Episode 180
The Shadow Lord walked across the crystalline land, flanked by the Frost Watchers. They were heading to the most forbidden place in their kingdom, a place no one was ever allowed to tread.
“Ah, damn it. How did I end up getting dragged into this mess?” Master Baro grumbled beside him, drawing hostile glares from the Frost Watchers.
“Please, for the love of all that’s holy, stop provoking them,” the Shadow Lord advised.
“Heh, these folks are already on edge no matter what we do,” Baro chuckled, unfazed by the tension.
The leader of the Frost Watchers, known as the “Crystal Prince,” spoke coldly, “Shut your vulgar mouth, you repulsive human.”
“Oh my, did you just call me repulsive, Your Highness?” Baro continued, undeterred. “Well, I’ve had my share of adventures with the Elf Queen next door, you know, trying this and that in the Empire.”
Dale, another member of the group, interjected with disbelief, “Should I remember that word for word and tell the old crone?”
“No, no, that’s not what I meant,” Baro backtracked quickly.
Amidst the palpable tension, they reached the heart of the Crystal Kingdom, a desolate ruin that lay before them.
The ruins of the once-mighty Second Empire.
“Behold my works, you mighty, and despair,” the Shadow Lord murmured, recalling an ancient poem from a world long past.
“Nothing beside remains. Round the decay of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare, the lone and level sands stretch far away.”
“Wow, that’s quite the poetic touch,” Baro remarked, as they left the ruins behind and approached a gaping crystal cave.
The cave descended into the unknown depths of the earth. Soon, even the surrounding crystals and ice vanished, leaving only darkness as they ventured deeper.
This was the site of the ancient Elf Empire’s final experiment, a place they called the “Gate.”
“There it is,” the Crystal Prince announced, halting his steps.
At the deepest point of the earth, a temple adorned with the grandeur and reliefs of the old Empire stood.
“Beyond this lies the trial you must face,” he declared.
Dale nodded silently.
“The ancestors of the Empire sought to reach beyond the limits of providence, and even after their fall, the scars and ruins remain beyond that gate.”
”…….”
“We call it the Gate,” the Crystal Prince continued, causing Dale to catch his breath.
“Enter,” the prince commanded, as the Frost Watchers exuded a menacing aura, making it clear there was no turning back.
“If you truly possess the right to be the Shadow Lord, you will return safely with the truth that lies beyond the end of providence.”
The Crystal Prince smiled coldly, “If you succeed, our Elf Kingdom will honor the ancient pact and serve as the riders of shadow.”
It was clear from his expression that he had no expectation of Dale’s survival.
“Prove your worth as a lord,” he challenged.
“Gladly,” Dale replied without hesitation, stepping forward with unwavering resolve.
Toward the end of providence, beyond the Gate that the ancient Elf Empire once sought to reach.
Dale opened the entrance to the temple, sealed with chains and magic, and stepped inside without hesitation.
Inside, an indescribably beautiful radiance awaited him.
Yet, the light was unlike any color of this world. What seemed crystal turned jade, and what seemed jade turned violet, shifting endlessly.
“Are you ready, Lady Aurelia?” Dale asked, gazing at the scene. A silent affirmation came from the shadows.
With that, Dale reached out toward the colors.
Toward the Colour Out of Space.
The light enveloped Dale, revealing the future beyond the veil once lifted by the ancient Elf Empire.
It was a winter night, filled with biting cold and darkness.
In that winter landscape, the Shadow Lord raised his head.
”…….”
But this was not Dale’s world. The horizon stretched endlessly with ruins, the end of the world even the Golden Empire could not escape.
The end of providence, the frost of apocalypse.
“I know enough of hate to say that for destruction ice is also great and would suffice,” the Shadow Lord recited, echoing the words once murmured by the Crystal Queen.
Frost that seemed to cut through flesh and soul swept across the land.
The presence was there.
A white frost in the shape of a human silhouette, exuding a chill that could extinguish the world’s light and flame.
“Ah, you’ve come again?” the shadow of the white frost spoke.
“Who are you?” Dale asked.
“Winter.”
“The Elves sent me here to test me.”
“Elves? Ah, I don’t bother remembering the names of insects. But… how could I forget your presence?”
The being called Winter spoke. Dale held his breath, but it was not directed at him.
“Ia Shub-Niggurath.”
─ …….
Beside Dale stood the Mother of Ancient Darkness, and Shub smiled quietly.
“Is that truly your will?” Winter asked again. The Mother of Ancient Darkness merely twitched the tendrils beneath her dress. Human communication held no meaning for them.
“Show me your blood, child of shadow,” Winter demanded. Without hesitation, Dale gathered his blue magic and slashed his wrist with an icy blade.
Splat!
The dark blood within him splattered onto the ground beneath Winter. The frost reached out toward the wound.
The chill of apocalypse flowed into Dale’s body.
”……!”
It felt as if his entire being was freezing, and amidst the chill, a vision unfolded.
“So, you are the Shadow Lord,” Winter remarked.
“There is no test. Just take this.”
The Shadow Lord remained silent, unable to speak.
He could feel the chill coursing through his veins, threatening to overwhelm his consciousness.
“From now on, an inescapable end will flow endlessly within you.”
At that moment.
「Kieeeek!」
A chilling scream echoed, and the boundary of the area Dale stood on began to warp and split as if time and space were fracturing.
From beyond, “they” emerged.
Hounds with grotesque and hideous forms, unlike any beast Dale had ever known.
“Ah, the hounds have found the ‘careless traveler,’” Winter chuckled nonchalantly. Dale quickly cast “Shadow Bullet” at them. The endless barrage of dark projectiles tore the hounds apart, but then—
Their bodies, reduced to chunks, writhed like living slime and reformed.
“The hounds have caught your scent,” Winter laughed with delight.
“They are relentless, impossible to kill by any providence, and you can never escape them. So, what will you do?”
Dale remained silent.
His body, no longer human, was infused with the chill of apocalypse.
The frost within him wrapped around his heart, and the tendrils of Shub entwined with it, writhing madly.
Finally, Dale began to accelerate the five circles.
The dark blue magic.
But it was no longer the magic of an ordinary sorcerer.
The endless abyss of darkness from the Mother of Ancient Darkness, and the chill of apocalypse from the edge of the universe.
The magic of dark blue began to swirl at Dale’s feet, beyond the bounds of providence.
“Rise, my knights,” Dale murmured.
With those words, the swirling magic began to form human-like figures beside him.
For a necromancer of Dale’s caliber, creating beings from magic alone was not impossible, though not easy.
But the result was extraordinary.
The creations of the Shadow Lord, imbued with power beyond providence.
Knights formed from primordial darkness and the chill of apocalypse stood there.
And as they raised their swords, they began to generate their “aura blades.” These were not the black swords of Saxon. No, they were unlike any color of this world. Not black, nor blood-red, nor violet, nor jade.
The Colour Out of Space imbued their aura.
The knights of the Shadow Lord finally tightened their grips on their sword hilts and charged forward. Their aura blades, imbued with colors beyond the natural order, slashed through the pack of hounds, unleashing the most horrific screams the world had ever heard.
The Shadow Lord was there.
“Shub.”
He spoke calmly, without a hint of movement.
─ Yes, brother.
“Am I still human?”
Dale asked. Winter had not granted him power without a price. Just as Shub had once transformed him into a creature of the abyss, now it was the chill of the apocalypse that gripped his heart.
The eternal winter of the universe, destined to torment Dale’s body for the rest of his life.
─ Why go to such lengths?
At that moment, young Shub, with a seemingly affectionate gesture, caressed Dale’s cheek and asked.
”…For something very personal.”
Dale replied, pushing aside the overwhelming force, desire, and fear that threatened to shatter his humanity.
The Shadow Lord was there.
Wielding the primordial darkness and the chill of the apocalypse, holding power beyond the natural order.
“How… how is this possible…?”
The sight froze the expressions of the Crystal Prince and the Frost Watcher.
Yet, within Dale’s heart, as he looked at them, there was no emotion.
It was simply so unbearably cold that he longed for warmth to thaw his frozen heart.
”…Cold.”
Dale murmured softly.
And the Shadow Lord knew better than anyone that nothing in this world could melt his heart from the chill of the apocalypse.