Chương 311: A Memory of Shattering

The Cowardly Flame sat beside the corpse of his heir in silence, his charred body glowing faintly beneath the endless inferno that surrounded them. The divine heart resting within Eskar's chest pulsed softly now, each beat sending waves of molten orange light through torn veins and shattered flesh, slowly knitting life back into what should have remained dead forever.

A massive hole still gaped in the founder's own chest where that heart had once rested, flames leaking from the wound like liquid sunlight, yet he showed no sign of pain. The loss did not weaken him. If anything, it made him appear even more ancient, more monstrous, as though he had willingly torn away the core of his existence without hesitation simply because the boy before him mattered more. The small bloodscale curled weakly within his lap, exhausted beyond measure.

Its crimson scales flickered dimly as the founder gently stroked its head with burnt fingers blackened like cooled ash. Despite the horrific appearance of those hands, the touch itself was careful.

"You look just like your mother," the Cowardly Flame murmured softly. The dragon let out a faint chirp in response before nestling deeper against him, finally allowing exhaustion to overtake its fear. Then the valley trembled. A single step echoed through the abyss. The founder did not react. Another followed. Then another. Soon the sound multiplied into dozens, then hundreds, until the entire burning canyon shook beneath the weight of approaching monsters.

Massive silhouettes emerged through curtains of crimson lightning and frozen mist alike. Gargantuan spiders crawled across the cliffs with legs like black spears. Bulls large enough to flatten castles lowered molten horns toward the valley floor. Winged abominations descended from above while twisted horses of ice and flame stamped against the earth hard enough to crack mountains apart. Some resembled beasts only vaguely, others looked like nightmares that should never have existed at all.

Every single one of them stopped before the founder. And every single one bowed. The Cowardly Flame smirked. Slowly, he rose to his feet. His ruined body groaned violently beneath the movement, cracks spreading across his charcoal flesh as flames leaked from within, yet still he stood tall before the countless demonic creatures surrounding him. Raising one burnt hand high above the valley, he laughed, a terrible sound, inhuman, like a dying god forcing breath through ruined lungs.

"Have you all come to bear witness, my subjects?!" The creatures erupted instantly. Shrieks thundered through the abyss. Roars shook the mountains. Some slammed their claws into the ground while others spread colossal wings that blotted out entire sections of the burning sky. The founder's grin widened.

"Then feast your eyes!" he roared.

"For my son is about to awaken! The chains that bind us to this hell shall not remain eternal! Those traitors who sealed us away shall one day pay in blood, and this heir of mine..." His gaze lowered toward Eskar's motionless body.

"... this child is the key to that triumph." The valley descended into madness. The demons screamed in celebration, monstrous cries echoing endlessly across the inferno while the Cowardly Flame slowly lowered himself beside Eskar once more. This time, however, his expression softened. The fury vanished from his eyes, replaced only by exhaustion and something dangerously close to regret. Find this and other great novels on the author's preferred platform. Support original creators!

He gently brushed burnt fingers against Eskar's cheek.

"Indeed," he whispered quietly, "you are the key, my son." The bloodscale lifted its head weakly, staring at him.

"You need not fear these creatures," the founder continued.

"They are merely victims of my own foolishness. Souls dragged into damnation by my arrogance. Yet despite everything... they remain loyal to me still." His eyes dimmed.

"And for that, I shall forever carry their sins beside my own." Silence followed. Only the distant crackle of burning mountains and shrieks of wandering horrors filled the abyss now.

"But you..." the founder said at last, looking back toward Eskar, "your journey is different. For now, all you can do is accept the truth... and wait for his return." His voice grew quieter.

"For the day he decides we, and he himself, may finally become free once more." The founder fell silent again. For a very long time, he said nothing. Then finally, with visible hesitation, he spoke the name of the one who had destroyed the age of old. The friend they betrayed. The being they feared. The man responsible for sealing every founder within this living hell.

"Kealix von Eskarion." Eskar awoke lying within tall grass. His remaining eye fluttered open slowly as warm wind brushed against his face. For several moments, he simply stared upward in confusion, his thoughts sluggish and fragmented. The sky above him looked wrong. Massive cracks spread across it like shattered glass, countless fragments of heaven suspended unnaturally in place as though reality itself had broken apart and failed to repair properly. A groan escaped him. He pushed himself upright.

Pain exploded through his body immediately. Instinctively, he reached toward his face, only for panic to seize him when one arm failed to move entirely. His breath hitched. He looked down. Nothing remained beyond his shoulder. His left arm was gone. His eye grew violently as his remaining hand flew toward the left side of his face, fingers tracing rough scar tissue where his eye had once been. A shaky breath escaped him.

"I survived...?" he whispered. Frantically, he tore open the front of his clothing. A massive scar stretched across his chest directly over his heart, unmistakable evidence of the blade that had pierced straight through him. He stared at it in horror.

"No..." he muttered.

"I died. I know I died." His breathing became uneven.

"How am I still alive?" Then another realization struck him. The bloodscale was gone. Eskar looked around. Mountains stretched across the horizon, endless fields of grass swaying beneath fractured skies while distant rivers floated impossibly through the air like broken streams disconnected from gravity itself. The entire world looked incomplete, as though pieces of reality had been torn away and carelessly stitched back together afterward.

"What... is this place?"

"Fascinating, isn't it?" The voice came from behind him. Eskar spun. The moment he saw the figure standing there, his entire body froze.

"V-Vale?!" The man before him wore a deep onyx mask marked by a golden sun, the exact same mask Vale wore. His voice sounded identical. His physique, his posture, even the visible structure of his exposed arm all mirrored Vale perfectly. Long black hair drifted behind him within the wind while dark armor wrapped around his body like living shadow. A long black cloth extended from his waist into the grass below, fluttering softly as he stood there with unnatural composure. Yet despite all the similarities...

This was not Vale. The figure chuckled softly beneath the mask.

"Vale?" he repeated.

"What a wonderful name. But no... it is not mine." Eskar slowly stepped backward.

"Then who are you?" The masked man tilted his head.

"That," he answered calmly, "is none of your concern." He gestured lazily toward the fractured world around them.

"You wish to know where you are, correct? I do not have much time, but I suppose I can answer a few questions." Eskar hesitated before nodding.

"Fine," he muttered.

"Where am I? What is happening? I fought Frost... then I died... and now I'm suddenly here." The masked figure gasped dramatically.

"Oh? That cheeky beast killed someone again?" He sighed.

"At least he honored the deal." Eskar frowned deeply.

"What do you mean?" Darkness gathered within the stranger's hand. A slender onyx blade materialized instantly, its surface shifting like living darkness.

"You succeeded," the man explained calmly.

"You reached the Cowardly Flame, and in response he gave you his heart. That is why you survived." Eskar's eye widened.

"Then where am I now?!"

"The Tower of Ruin," the figure answered.

"Or rather... one version of it." He looked toward the horizon.

"This place is a memory."

"A memory?" Eskar repeated incredulously.

"Then why can I speak to you?!" The man laughed softly.

"So many questions." He turned toward Eskar fully.

"To answer you properly: I am not bound by simple concepts such as time, memory, or reality. This event occurred long ago, yes, but that does not prevent me from interacting with it." His gaze drifted toward the breaking dawn overhead.

"And as for what memory this is..." His voice lowered slightly.

"This is the day the founders were sealed." Eskar's body stiffened.

"What?" The masked man said nothing more. Then suddenly, The world exploded. Six overwhelming presences descended from the sky in an instant, each carrying pressure powerful enough to crush mountains flat. They attacked simultaneously without hesitation, launching toward the masked figure with relentless force. Among them stood the Cowardly Flame. And beside him, The Black Lion. The founders. Eskar staggered backward in shock.

"Then who are you?!" he shouted desperately.

"Are you another founder?!" The masked man smiled beneath the golden sun emblem.

"A founder?" he repeated softly.

"No." His voice became colder.

"Quite the opposite." The six founders closed in around him. And despite their overwhelming power, The man never moved.

"I," he said quietly, "am the very reason they were sealed." Then he glanced back toward Eskar one final time.

"But your time here is ending." The founders struck. The world shattered. And the masked man's final words echoed through the collapsing memory like a promise whispered by something incomprehensible.

"Goodbye, Eskar."

"I do hope we meet again soon."