Volume 1 Chapter 22.3: Wait

- Wait

A light knocking could be heard from the side door. The sound of a male's voice could be heard from outside the door. "Your distinguished self, Mister O'Brien requests to meet with you."

The female on the platform finally made a movement. With a wave of her hand, Peperus withdrew.

When O'Brien entered through the side door, the sound of footsteps sounded for the first time within the silent church. His pace was steady and unhurried, and none of the inexperience from his eighteen year old exterior could be seen. Even though he already grasped his family's military force, the high and mighty O'Brien still entered from the side door.

O'Brien walked all the way to the sermon platform and even had the intention of walking onto the wooden platform. However, as soon as his left leg had just been raised, it froze in mid air. A deep gash appeared in the shabby looking wooden floor. This gash was so deep that the bottom couldn't be seen, and no warning was given before the attack. If O'Brien didn't immediately stop his footsteps, then half of his foot's sole would have been sliced off.

"You..." O'Brien's originally quiet and calm face suddenly flashed between red and white. He originally proceeded out of eagerness, yet he never thought that the other party's movements would be so ruthless.

"That was your mistake." The female sitting on the high back chair still did not move.

"Fine, I was too excited." O'Brien took a deep breath, and his face became calm again. Then, he said, "I thought that after I assumed control over the family, the distance between us would be pulled a bit closer."

"Wealth and power cannot add to one's charm. Moreover, the reason for you assuming control over your family is due to your lineage, not your strength." Her voice was still electronic sounding without the slightest hint of emotion.

The left leg that O'Brien raised slowly landed. He stood in front of the marking on the ground and said, "You know that I never liked these things. Authority, power, wealth, family, none of these were things I cared for. What I enjoy is art, music, and history. My greatest desire is to find a way to eliminate the radiation found everywhere and restore the blue skies, azure seas, and green plains of the olden era back to this world. Back then, you always said that my dream was unrealistic, and I also knew that this was almost an impossible dream, but I wasn't worried, because this was what I liked to do. However, when you came to this damn place two years later, all you always said was that I was too weak. From that moment on, I've continuously trained myself. Now, after two years, you can see my power for yourself, and how far I've gotten. I've constantly changed myself for your sake, but why is it that we are seeing each other less and less, and the time for us to talk getting shorter and shorter?"

She remained silent for three whole minutes. Then, she said, "There are three minutes left."

O'Brien was clearly stirred up, and he forcefully suppressed his emotions. "Almost everyone has acknowledged my talent, and I will become even stronger after taking over the family, especially after this month when control over the family's central military force, Poseidon's Trident, is passed onto me, I will have enough strength to protect you, and the empress will have a powerful ally! You don't need to stay in this damn place anymore. I will take care of you and allow you to return to being the radiant girl from seven years ago!"

However, she didn't make the slightest movement and asked, "Are you offering me a business deal?"

"No, this isn't a business deal, it is a promise! A man's promise!" O'Brien lost his composure once again, and his voice became even more hoarse. His heart felt like it was splitting apart, and he couldn't handle his kind feelings being so poorly misunderstood.

"Your time is already up." She stood up. The heavy armor continuously collided against itself, releasing fragmented and pleasant sounding rustling sounds. She walked towards the entrance of the church with her back perfectly straight, completely disregarding O'Brien in front of her. Meanwhile, her eyes passed straight through O'Brien, straight through the large doors of the church into the distance.

O'Brien couldn't even muster up his courage for more than half a second before crumbling like melted ice. He sighed inwardly and took a step to the side, moving out of her path.

From the back, even the heavy and sinister armor couldn't cover her slender and beautiful curves. She seemed to be as tall as O'Brien, and apart from its defensive capabilities, the greatest benefit was that it perfectly outlined her long and wonderful legs.

Only, the aura that was released by the armor was too cold and gloomy, to the point where it wasn't because of the dark atmosphere of the church that made her appear so gloomy, but instead it was because of her that the church appeared so dark.

She didn't walk that fast, but her steps were incredibly firm and steady. It was as if anything that dared to block her way would be shattered by her.

When O'Brien saw that she had almost reached the entrance of the church, he suddenly shouted frantically with all of his strength, "Madeline!!"

She revealed a rare hesitation and stopped her footsteps. Turning around, she calmly looked at O'Brien with her deep, azure eyes.

"Give me a single chance!" O'Brien said with a firm and resolute tone. At this moment, there was no trace of an underripe boy.

She looked at O'Brien and stopped for a full three seconds before saying, "Fine, I will give you a chance. If you can defeat me, then I'll be yours."

After speaking, she turned around and walked towards the church's doors. Her long, gray hair shone with silver luster as it floated gently within the dark church.

The thick doors silently opened. The dark outside world suddenly shone with light, becoming so bright that it was hard to see anything. There was only a boundless expanse of white and two orderly rows of figures.

She walked into the blinding radiance. Four arbitration officials carried an enormous and crazy-looking twenty meter long, forty centimeter wide square-headed blade and arrived at her side. They half-knelt onto the ground before delivering the enormous sword upwards.

Madeline casually picked up the enormous sword and allowed one end to drag on the ground before heading for the distance. With only a few steps, her figure already disappeared into the boundless darkness.

The enormous blade drew out streak after streak of deep streaks on the ground, so one could see just how terrifying its weight was. On the back of the sword were two sparkling dark green words: Death Prison.

"Seven years ago, was I really full of radiance?" As the light entered darkness, this was what she was thinking.