Chapter 64: The replica
Selina and Arden nodded at Navin’s words before looking at Jaden, who was staring at the sword with a dumbfounded look as he read the message before him.
[Replica of the All-severing Moonlight - Legendary.]
’That’s a replica? How strong is the real one if this one’s already legendary?’
Seeing his expression, Navin asked worriedly.
"What’s wrong?"
Hearing his voice, Jaden came out of his reverie and replied.
"Nothing..."
Arden stepped closer to him and asked in a cheerful voice.
"What do you think about taking it?"
Jaden opened his lips to answer him, but Arden continued his own chatter.
"I think you should take it, it will make you much cooler, and you also need one."
Jaden just closed his mouth and gave him a nod as he mumbled.
"Ah, right."
He stepped closer to the altar, which had the sword. As he walked closer to the altar, the crystals became much more visible. He turned his head and looked at the enormous colourful crystal placed all around the hall.
’Beautiful.’
Jaden thought as he looked at himself in the crystal; he continued to walk forward, but his reflection lingered inside the moonlight crystal.
Soon, more and more crystals had his reflection in them, but Jaden had no clue about it, and the others couldn’t see it either.
A few moments later, Jaden was just a few meters away from the sword. He halted his steps and looked down at the ring on the floor. It was made of silverlight fog. He lifted his leg and stepped over it. Just as he did so, the silverlight fog drifted towards the nearby crystal, and suddenly Jaden felt his skin turn cold.
"Is it because of... the sword?"
Vapour left his mouth as he muttered with gritted teeth and stepped forward. With each step, the cold seeped deeper into his body, and most of his skin had started to turn blue; the sweat across his skin froze, glittering like tiny diamonds.
"Minor Heal... Soil Hardened... Flame Veil..."
Jaden used his spells while stepping closer to the altar; however, they didn’t help much as the cold simply brushed all their effects.
"B-blasted h-hell."
A pained expression painted his face, his lips turned blue, and his body quivered under the cold. Soon, his frozen skin began to crack, and blood began to drip from it. The flowing blood also froze into ruby-like crystal, and his bones creaked, but he continued moving while using the spells to decrease the cold as much as he could.
"J-just... a few m-more steps..." he muttered with quivering lips as ice crystals began to appear at the corner of his eye.
A few moments later, he reached the altar and lifted his hand to grab the sword, his frozen skin ripped apart, the cold seeped deeper into his lifted hand, and his muscles froze, then tore apart.
"AHHHHHH!" a harrowing scream left him, the others’ expressions turned dark as they began to run towards him; however, before they could reach him, five of the crystals shattered, releasing the last reflection within them—copies of Jaden.
Even though they looked like Jaden, they were still E rank, and the others could take care of them, but their focus was on Jaden, who was about to grab the sword with his bony hand.
Just as Jaden grabbed the sword, his eyes rolled back, and the falling moonlight froze, trapping him within a similar crystal.
***
Jaden opened his eyes and found himself within a giant hall, which was similar to one he was in before, but it didn’t have the flowing mist or the sword.
"Are you sure of it, Possibility?" a heavy voice echoed within the hall, and Jaden turned towards it.
His eyes widened as he looked at the two figures who were talking with each other.
One was a human male. He wore a black and yellow mage robe, and a grimoire floated beside him. His crystalline yellow eyes were locked on the being in front of him with a frown, taking hold of his lips.
The other being... was no human; instead, it was someone otherworldly. She appeared to be a human female with three dark horns at her forehead, her night sky hair cascaded down like a dark river, and her playful violet eyes gleamed like twin amethysts.
"Sure? When am I not sure, Nightshade?" the witch of possibility asked with a slight smile, her voice sounding as if it were a serene rhyme.
The founding father of Nightshade City looked at the witch as he questioned.
"You are truly heartless, aren’t you? Possibility. Asking me to throw my kin in that dreadful game of yours."
Possibility turned, and Jaden met her gaze as she spoke.
"Haha, you jest, Nightshade, you should know better than anyone else how heartfelt I am. There’s a possibility for each wonder to come true, even if it’s a broken one."
Nightshade shook his head and asked in a dark tone.
"You are truly something, hah... but are you sure the gods would fall? How is that even possible?"
The witch didn’t answer and simply waved her hand as she spoke.
"The bright sparks stay bright because you are fueling them, allowing them to burn in all their glory; however, how would the sparks burn without any fuel?"
"What?" Nightshade and Jaden muttered in disbelief, and their faces went pale.
The witch didn’t explain further and simply smiled.
"Tell me more!" Jaden demanded, but the scene before him changed, and a blue screen appeared.
[Bind with the replica of All-severing Moonlight?]
[Confirm | Deny]
Jaden read the messages before him and muttered as he moved the thoughts of what he had just witnessed to the back of his mind.
"Confirm."
Just as he spoke, the sword shook and began to melt into a mystical blue liquid before seeping into his body. It spread into his body, and a chilling pain hit him all over.
"Ugh?!" He groaned, gritting his teeth as he tried to cast another spell, but before he could—
"B-blasted H-hell—"
Crack... Crack...Crack...
His bones cracked, and a chilling scream left his lips.
"AUUUURRRRRGGGGGHHHHHH—"