"Aaargghh!!!"Leroy screamed in agony looking at the man standing infront of him relishing his pain and anguish. The Troll Devil withdrew the orb and stood to his left where two powerful individuals were heading towards their way. Naturally this was Bruce and his actual body heading here on his orders. Leroy was basically dead considering the dose of radiation his body had taken with blood oozing out of every orifice he had on his body showing no signs of stopping. Once the two had made their arrival at the scene,Bruce immediately darted to Leroy who lay against a rock for support on his last moments. "Where's Edward?" He asked to which Leroy shook his head and finally closed his eyes breathing his last breathe.
The puppet stood side by side to the Troll Devil's actual body and Aldritch switched bodies to his actual self. He could kill Bruce Goldeneye right now but for him,it was a cat and mouse game and said in a raspy voice ,"You're the last one and consider me a man of my word." He started to walk away from Bruce but he suddenly halted looking forward away from Bruce ,"And Bruce. Keep out of your nose out of other people's affairs. Next time you'll have the honor of meeting my scythe personally." He then resumed walking along with his puppet and the two vanished shrouded in the darkness.
...
Appearing back in his room Aldritch took off his disguise and put on Luke's appearance. He suddenly got a notification from Omniphinx.
[{Why do you have so many masks}]
[{For more cards on my deck}]
[{Warning!!!}]
Luke received a warning from his system then he asked
[{What is the problem}]
[{New feature unlocked!
Self communication}]
Luke looked at the message infront of him and wondered whether this was from Omniphinx.
[{Omniphinx, did you hand me this skill?}]
[{Skill? What skill!?!}]
Well this was alarming. If it wasn't from Omniphinx then maybe it was from the being on the hundredth dimensional plane.
[{Skill is gifted from your future self }]
"What!?!?!"
[{Host can now converse with his future self at any point in time. Since host exists in his own time frame, only host will have access to this skill}]
Luke was still perplexed by such a skill. When it came to delicate matters such as time,he could see the future if he wanted to but to savour the moment,he avoided doing so.
[{Connections successfully established.}]
[{Host has received a weapon from future self.}]
Luke was surprised as a sword appeared in his hand. But this sword had a unique design to it, the hilt made of fine leather but between the hilt and the blade,there was a black and golden black hole holding the two together. Further down the blade there was a second black hole but unlike the regular trope of black and gold,it was black and red at it's edge and another black and golden black hole at the furthest end before a few inches of the tip of the sword. He was unsure of the material used to craft this sword.
[{What is this sword made of?}]
[{Sword's material construct is made by host. The material itself is unknown.}]
'Unknown.' That was the first time he'd ever seen such a pop up. 'Wait,did my future self make this sword.'
[{No. According to the Intel sent by your future self,it was the past you who made this sword. Any further knowledge on this sword is unaccessible with host's due to power disparity.}]
[{Power disparity. Are you implying that my past self is stronger than me?}]
He waited for a couple of seconds before he was responded by the system.
[{Future self building contact...}]
[{Hello past me. You and I are nothing compared to what we were back then. Should you want to pursue any more knowledge,the cost is conflicting to our goal. You're exactly one percent of what you were meant to be while I'm five. I can't proceed any further from here but you'll realize why. As for the sword's mechanics, you'll make it out as you go.Don't trust Omniphinx}]
'What was that notification!'. He had questions but he couldn't connect with his future self so he would have to wait. As for trusting Omniphinx,he was no sheep to fully trust him completely and with his future self telling not to trust him raised his curiousity and cautiousness. So he would have to play with his cards close to his chest then. Dispelling his thoughts he focused on the sword in his hand amazed by it's beauty and craftsmanship. As for moves,he never had any as having so would make him more predictable and easier to read. He always adjusted with his fights till he gained the upper hand or make the opponent falter.
It would be impossible to counter someone who never had a plan and after fighting Bill, he found this style to be more effective as he went with his instincts rather than formulating a plan. With all of that said,he decided to rest as he had enough for today even though the sun had yet to set considering he would have to be fully refreshed for tomorrow's test. 'According to the rest of the information I handed over to Ernest,the organization should be operational after the test is over. Guess this is what happens when you have a lot of power with no useful output for it.'
Just like a regular assassin organization in the underworld syndicate, it would be filled with assassins of different ranks servicing all abroad with him as the Troll Devil alias at the top but still applicable for hire. Why, because he was bored and needed a little action, besides he could get more involved in the plot just to mess with it's cast for no sensible reasons. 'Somethings never change.' His last thought before he slept properly this time unlike of going to his mental state and training pushing the limits of his instincts sharpening them as he would be refraining from using his broken abilities.
...
"Are you okay Bruce ?" A guard asked looking at a man covered in the blood of Leroy and some of his own during the exchange. "Where's the king?" He asked in an authoritative voice to which he promptly received his answer. "He's waiting for you in the court. But don't you think that you should spruce yourself up before meeting him." Bruce proceeded towards the well lit corridors towards the court room. After his unannounced entrance,the entire courtroom went dead silent looking at him with concern and fear in their eyes. Everyone present knew his mission which was meant to be covert and out of sight but seeing him now,they knew that it was anything but that. Kneeling before the king James on one knee with his face looking at the floor,he began his report.
"Your majesty, I'm sorry in failing the I'm more than ready to receive any punishment you give me." He stated but James with his curiousity peaked asked ,"What happened? And where is the rest of your squad." Bruce looked up and started explaining what unfolded. "We tailed the carriages of the queen and king of Darwarke from a safe distance. They made a stop at a run down looking town but what caught me off guard was the two people there."
James asked ,"What was so unique about them?" Proceeding with his claim Bruce proceeded, "Your highness,I was not aware of what they used but it was definitely not mana as it's potency was more refined and stronger. One of them being male and the other female having an otherworldly aura to them. They quickly fell into an unfortunate predicament as the king of Darwarke, Aldritch, started to play grotesque games with them. Killing them in different ways, restoring them then killing them once more till he grew weary. After that he killed both of them."
"What!?!" Everyone in the court room stated but James raised his right arm ordering silence. "You may proceed Bruce." Taking in a deep breath Bruce resumed ,"The two tried to flee traveling faster than even the best flying talismans we have in our arsenal. But Aldritch teleported them back with a snap of his fingers and finished them off." James looked at his loving wife Rachel who was pleasing to the eyes as expected clearly a beauty despite her age. She had smooth but well defined curves and had a mature and charming aura to her. She reflected a concerned look back to James before she continued to look at Bruce. "After that they made it to Mordant where they released a SSS rank mythical dragon."
"So that explains the mana fluctuations we felt earlier." A member of the court openly stated. "But what shocked me was that Natalie, took on this fight with Horace." Everybody went silent as soon as they heard Horace's name. "Horace,the man who runs the black market syndicate is working for that monster Aldritch !" Leonard stated with worry in his tone. Horace was a wanted criminal that all kingdoms have been trying to catch but due to his vast networks and connections,it proved difficult to take down this man. He was feared for his ruthlessness and tryanny and to hear that he was working for Aldritch wasn't favourable for them. "Natalie and the dragon fought and after exchanging attacks which we couldn't observe due to it's magnitude,it seemed she emerged victorious but she didn't slay it as Aldritch intervened and enslaved it."
"So not only does he have a SSS rank soldier, Horace and the Queen of Darwarke under him,he also has a SSS rank dragon as his pet." Elaine said furrowing her brows. 'What a precarious situation.' Their enemy was only getting stronger while they could only watch. "After that he built what seemed a settlement out there but it had strange structures to it." He said as he pulled out an image he took in a ball after imbuing mana into it. The mansion's details proved baffling as they had never seen such a complex. "After that we withdrew fearing that they could sense our presence but after a while ,we ran into Horace who was badly bruised and before we could interrogate him,he exploded dying on the spot." We regrouped back at our safe spot collecting our thoughts when we got invaded by an intruder who mercilessly killed my men."
"Maybe it was Aldritch or one of his surbodinates?" Another member stated but Bruce interjected ,"Knowing his lack of mercy,he would not have hesitated to kill all of us. Besides,it seemed that the individual went by the alias of of the Troll Devil and looked more like another assassin but his preferences of murder were the strangest I have ever seen as Leroy died from a hole in his chest. But no matter how much he tried to recuperate himself,his wound wouldn't heal and strangely died. The Troll Devil who was S rank simply left along with his accomplice shrouded in the darkness of the forest. Edward was feasted upon by the rampaging beasts and Archibald was severed by the Troll Devil's sickles."
"Why are so many things happening right now? More and more powerful individuals are emerging each fueled by their own interests. It's only a matter of time till the world's power dynamics are completely thrown off balance." James contemplated as he dug his face into his hands. "The court is dismissed." He ordered and everybody feeling the uncanny atmosphere left each lost in their own thought of what the king had said. Now left with only his family and Bruce who now stood James asked Bruce ,"How did the masked individual look like ?" Bruce stuttered before responding ,"He was adorning black clothes but what distinguished him was hi mask. It had a ridiculing frown to it as if mocking anyone who saw it. That and he stated that he would kill me if we were to cross paths again." Leonard fueled by rage stated ,"We could launch an investigation to find this Troll Devil and realize that the royal family of Astria is not meant to be trifled with."
"Fine but be careful." James reassured his son. "As this assassin could be linked back to Aldritch and we cannot afford to offend him." Leonard was somehow annoyed with their current position. They went from being to one of the most respected kingdoms to cowards thanks to one man and his legion. "I'll make you pay for this Aldritch."