Realm Lord
Chapter 103: In the Dark (4)

Chapter 103: In the Dark (4)

The monster approached through the void, its presence a weight in the darkness that pressed against Aziel’s skin like a cold, wet shroud. As it drew closer, the lightning coiling around Aziel’s body grew brighter and more intense, responding to his rising emotions like a loyal pet sensing its master’s agitation. The blue-white energy shot off in frantic arrays, illuminating nothing but more darkness as it arced and twisted in explosive bursts, casting eerie shadows across Aziel’s manic expression.

Aziel pivoted on his heel, muscles tense and ready for confrontation. The lightning crackled wildly around him, popping and hissing as it leaped from his fingertips and danced across his shoulders. His heart thundered in his chest, no longer with fear but with a savage anticipation that bordered on ecstasy. He turned his head to face the darkness where he sensed the monster lurking, eyes wide and searching, teeth bared in a feral grin.

But when he completed his turn, there was nothing there. The void remained empty, a vast nothingness that swallowed his defiance without echo or response. The presence he’d felt so strongly had vanished, leaving him disoriented and cheated of his confrontation.

Until he felt it again.

This time the presence materialized to his right, a heaviness in the air that raised the fine hairs on the back of his neck. Aziel shot his head toward the sensation, instinct taking over as his right hand extended outward. With a thought as quick as the electricity that powered it, he summoned his spear—a weapon born of will and lightning. The weapon formed in his grip, materializing from sparks that coalesced into solid metal, immediately coated with a brilliant shroud of crackling blue energy.

Without hesitation, Aziel hurled the weapon into the darkness, putting all his strength and fury behind the throw. The spear became a streak of light, cutting through the void like a comet. He watched with narrowed eyes as the light of his weapon traveled further and further, illuminating nothing but more emptiness until, eventually, the darkness absorbed it completely. The azure glow faded into nothingness, and once again, the presence of the monster vanished.

Frustration boiled in Aziel’s veins like magma seeking release. The lightning around his body intensified, no longer flowing in smooth arcs but trampling on itself in chaotic patterns that reflected his escalating anger. Sparks flew from his eyes and fingertips as his control began to slip.

"FACE ME!" he roared into the void, his voice cracking with rage.

Aziel spun in desperate circles, searching for any sign of the entity that had tormented him. His eyes darted frantically from point to point, seeking shadows within shadows, movement within stillness. The lightning responded to his emotional state, growing more erratic and dangerous with each passing second.

And then, finally, he felt it again... but not from one direction. The presence was behind him... in front of him... to his right... to his left... everywhere at once, surrounding him in a suffocating embrace of malevolent attention. The monster had ceased being a single entity in a specific location—it had become the void itself, watching him from every conceivable angle.

Aziel froze for a moment, the realization washing over him like ice water. Then, slowly, deliberately, he exhaled a long breath that misted slightly in the cold air of the void. His manic smile, which had briefly faltered, reclaimed its place on his face—wider now, touched with madness and exhilaration.

The lightning surrounding him began to compound on itself, growing outward in intensity rather than dissipating. Great arcs of electric blue slashed through the void like swords of light, cutting into the darkness only to be swallowed again and again. Aziel spun with his arms outstretched, a conductor orchestrating a symphony of chaos as he screamed his challenge.

"COME ON!" he bellowed, voice raw with emotion.

He felt supercharged, as if his body contained the power of a thousand storms. Every cell vibrated with energy barely contained within his frame. He was a living bomb with his finger hovering over the detonator—and God help him, he wanted nothing more than to press it, to release this buildup of power and rage in one cataclysmic moment.

Aziel’s body shook violently as lightning coursed through his veins, illuminating them from within so that blue lines of power showed through his skin like a macabre anatomical display. His muscles spasmed under the assault, but still he pushed for more.

"COME ON!" he screamed again, specks of drool flying from his rage-filled mouth as the words tore from his throat.

He was reaching his boiling point, pushing beyond any limit he’d previously encountered. For the first time since he’d acquired his powers, the lightning wasn’t just an extension of himself—it was hurting him. The electricity that had always been his ally now felt like it was tearing his body apart from the inside out, shredding muscle and sinew as it sought escape.

He knew, with sudden clarity, that he needed to release it—needed to expel all of this built-up energy or it would consume him entirely. The realization came with both fear and acceptance; if this was to be his end, he would make it a spectacular one.

And then, just as his body seemed ready to disintegrate under the strain, the lightning did something unexpected. It warped inward, the wild arcs and bolts condensing and collapsing back toward his core as if drawn by some irresistible gravitational force. For a brief moment, Aziel became a human star, containing within his flesh an impossible density of power and light.

The respite lasted only an instant. With a sound like thunder compressed into a single, deafening crack, the energy released—expanding outward in a devastating explosion of light and sparks that filled the void completely. The darkness that had seemed so absolute and eternal now retreated before Aziel’s fury, pushed back by the expanding sphere of crackling blue-white radiance.

For the first time since he had entered this infinite dark, the void began to fade, its oppressive presence replaced by his light until nothing of it remained. The explosion of power continued to expand until it seemed to reach some invisible boundary, where it shattered like glass against stone.

Aziel fell to his knees, his body suddenly impossibly heavy. Exhaustion claimed him like a physical weight pressing down on his shoulders, drawing him toward the ground. His vision blurred as the last of his strength ebbed away, but through the haze, he realized he was no longer in the void.

He found himself back in the castle, in a dark bedroom. The candles had been extinguished, but thanks to the faint excess of lightning still clinging to his skin and clothes, he could make out stone walls, a bed with rumpled sheets, and a small wooden table.

But unlike what one might expect after such an escape, Aziel was not filled with relief or joy. No smile found its way onto his face as he knelt on the cold stone floor. Instead, his features contorted with rage, his face flushing red with anger as he realized what had happened.

"No!" he growled, rising unsteadily to his feet, struggling against the bone-deep fatigue that threatened to topple him. "NO! COME BACK HERE!"

He cast his gaze wildly around the small bedroom, searching every corner and shadow. But instantly, he could tell—the monster was gone.

"I WASN’T DONE WITH YOU!" he shouted, his voice echoing off the stone walls.

Small arcs of lightning, mere shadows of the storm he had unleashed moments before, flickered weakly around his body as he continued to rail against the entity’s disappearance.

"I’M NOT SCARED OF YOU!" he yelled, rage fueling his voice even as it cracked with exhaustion.

"I’m not scared!" he repeated, a bit quieter this time, as if trying to convince himself as much as any listener.

"I—I’m not scared," came the words again, this time barely a whisper as something inside him began to crumble.

A single tear tracked down his cheek, gleaming in the fading light of his powers. His knees gave way beneath him once more, and he crashed to the floor, slamming his fists against the unyielding stone. More tears followed the first, cascading down his face as his shoulders shook with emotions he couldn’t name—or wouldn’t acknowledge.

"I’m not,"