Solomon, freed from Karayan's curse, gripped his magic staff tightly, channeling the last reserves of his mana. The staff began to glow, a radiant white light pulsing with power. His expression was heavy, burdened by the knowledge of the immense risk he was about to take.
Even while trapped in the vortex, Karayan managed to launch relentless attacks. This time, however, the vortex weakened his blows. Solomon saw his chance. The only path left was to reflect the curse ray back onto Karayan. The risk of injury was immense, but hesitation was not an option.
The glow from Solomon's staff intensified, illuminating the hall. Karayan, caught off guard by the vortex, noticed too late what was happening. His eyes widened with fury.
"Do you think I'll let you—"
Before Karayan could finish, Solomon unleashed the reflected curse. A dark beam struck Karayan in the chest, sending him hurtling into a wall with such force that cracks spread like spiderwebs. He collapsed, blood trickling from his mouth, unconscious.
The powerful backlash forced Solomon to his knees. Blood dripped from his lips as he struggled to steady himself. The vortex and the poisonous mist dissipated, and with them, the protective barrier Solomon had erected.
Leone, Maria, and the others rushed to Solomon's side.
"Sir Solomon! Are you alright?" Leone and Maria helped him to his feet. His face, though pale, bore a faint, satisfied smile.
"I'm... alright," Solomon rasped, coughing weakly. "I'm truly sorry for what happened today. My shortcomings put all of you at risk. I failed to ensure your safety."
"Please, sir, don't blame yourself," Leone implored. "None of this is your fault."
"No," Solomon insisted, bowing his head. "It is my fault. I should have ended this without endangering you all. I failed as an archmage."
A sudden, wet coughing sound interrupted the moment. Karayan, regaining consciousness, glared at the group with seething rage. He gathered the blood in his mouth and hurled it toward Leone and Maria.
The blood struck them both with unerring accuracy. Shocked, they stumbled backward, staring at the crimson stains spreading on their clothes.
"What have you done?!" Solomon roared.
Karayan's lips twisted into a maniacal grin. "They'll pay the price for disrespecting me... with death. Stop it if you can." His body dissolved into black mist, vanishing into the shadows.
Maria's body convulsed, and blood spewed from her mouth. She collapsed, lifeless, into Leone's arms. Moments later, Leone followed, coughing violently before falling unconscious beside her.
Panic erupted. Ashan knelt beside them, his hands trembling as he assessed their condition. "Their life force is... fading fast."
Solomon pressed his hands to their foreheads, channeling his remaining mana in a desperate attempt to heal them. His face darkened.
"This curse… it's unlike anything I've encountered before,"
Ashan also looked at them with his eye power. Through his eyes, he saw something that didn't belong in a living body spreading in their stomach area. Ashan, who had knowledge of every disease, quickly understood what was happening.
"It's cancer, a stomach cancer. But it's not normal. That damn undead user used his dark mana to mutate it. Normal treatment won't work. A massive mana surge is needed to stop the disease from spreading. With my current body, I can't do that. I'm helpless. Only hope is this mage."
Ashan looked at Solomon, who was also trying to stop the disease with his power. However, Solomon's mana core was depleted. After a few moments, he stopped his efforts, despair evident on his face.
"Sir Solomon, what happened? Are they alright?" First Lord Eridan asked.
"First Lord, I'm sorry. They can't be cured. They have a cursed disease. There's no cure to heal them. I can't save them. They won't live long," Solomon admitted.
Hearing this, Eridan kneeled beside Leone lifelessly. With a sad face, he placed his head on Leone's chest while holding his hand. Eridan's wife, Emily, started crying, clutching Maria's hand. Her best friend was dying near her, helplessly.
Ashan, who had lost all hope, looked at his parents with a blank expression.
"So that's it. It seems I'm fated to become an orphan in this life. My parents are dying near me. I'm helpless."
Memories of his past lives flooded his mind. He remembered the pain of watching loved ones die. Suddenly, Ashan raised his head, his eyes filled with determination.
"There is one. There is one hope. I know the absolute power that every being has. It will save them."
Ashan looked around. Everyone's faces were filled with sadness.
"Before I do anything, I have to clear this place so that no one will witness what actually happens. What can I do now?"
Ashan analyzed the situation, recalling memories of his past life as an Archmage. He thought of a spell he could use. As soon as he remembered, he placed his hand on the floor secretly.
[Darkness magic: Eternal Void]
Suddenly the hall filled with darkness. Everyone who was in the hall lost their five senses. They lost their sense of reality. The only one who survived was Ashan.
After that, Ashan placed both hands on Leone and Maria's heads and closed his eyes.
This person who is going to make a miracle was a being who didn't look away from others' misfortune. Because of continuous births, he realized the truth of life; his fear toward death disappeared. He saved everyone who was going to die without any fear or hesitation. Because of that, he had died many lives as a sacrifice.
Before he was born as Ashan, he died in his past life while trying to save his sister who was fated to die with her unborn child.
He recalled those lives and memories. Tears started coming out from his eyes. He finally opened his mouth.
"I'm a being who was born through countless lifetimes. After dying continuously, I lost my reasons to fear death. I saved countless lives using my own flesh and even sacrificed my life. Those times were unimaginable. I suffered, but I gained happiness from them. And now my parents who gave birth to me are dying without knowing how they are dying."
Ashan opened his eyes. They were filled with confidence.
"If my sufferings hold a true value and if every word I said was true, my parents will get cured from this unfortunate death. I believe in the power of truth."
The moment after Ashan finished his wish, Leone's and Maria's bodies started to glow in white and yellow light. Gradually, the size and brightness became like the sun. A miracle started happening. The divine power that is born through the power of truth started to spread everywhere in the hall. Because of the divine power, the spell that Ashan performed was broken. Everyone gained their senses. But they couldn't see what was happening.
Eridan saw the divine power and was shocked.
"It's divine power. I'm witnessing a miracle."
Invisible divine waves began to ripple across Verdalis, radiating outward to distant kingdoms. Dragons, long asleep, stirred from their slumber, their ancient instincts awakened by the pure and unfamiliar essence of the divine power.
The radiant light vanished, leaving the grand hall filled with the delicate fragrance of blooming flowers. Slowly, Ashan, Leone, and Maria became visible to everyone present.
"Ashan."
Emily hugged Ashan after he became visible. She didn't know what happened. She looked at Ashan.
"Son, are you alright? What happened?"
Ashan didn't answer. He was in deep shock.
"What just happened?" he muttered under his breath. "What is that light? I've wielded the power of truth before, but nothing like this has ever occurred."
In the next moment, both Maria and Leone started to open their eyes. They straightened up.
"What… happened?"
Eridan hugged Leone without saying anything. Emily also started crying and hugged Maria.
"E-Emily, what… why are you crying?" Maria asked. But she also didn't reply. Emily could not find words, her emotions too overwhelming to articulate.
"A miracle happened," Solomon, who was looking at the scene, replied to Maria instead of Emily.
"Both of you got cursed by Karayan and went near death. But through a miracle both of you survived, though I don't know how it happened."
Both of them looked at Ashan. There were signs of tears on his face. They hugged Ashan. They couldn't stop their tears.
Ashan didn't move, his arms wrapping around them instinctively. For the first time in what felt like an eternity, his face softened, a radiant smile breaking through the sorrow.
Thank you for not leaving me alone.
To be continued...