The Oracle Paths

Chapter 1053: Hold That Throne As Long As You Want

1053 Hold That Throne As Long As You Want

The raven-haired beauty stood frozen, unable to utter a word. Her mouth opened and closed repeatedly, but no sound escaped her crimson lips. Yet from the flicker in her eyes, it was clear her mind raced at a mile a minute.

The other Soulmancers present were in a similar daze: too stunned to react, but with undeniable sparks of excitement in their eyes. Seeing this, Jake had a bad feeling in his gut.

”Shit... I have a really bad feeling about this.” He muttered bitterly, trying to ignore Xiʼs mocking laughter echoing in his mind.

Nevertheless, as much as they were all scheming bastards, it was also evident that many feared him. Maybe not all, the woman whoʼd spoken to him looked more shocked than scared. Still, among his present company, few could claim her acting skills.

At that moment, Jake had channeled enough of his biomass to more than triple his size, regaining his peak form as a Myrtharian. If he wished, he couldʼve expanded even further, but accessing his Inner Space Dimension had drained him of a ridiculous amount of spiritual energy.

Just to do that, heʼd felt in a heartbeat a mental exhaustion akin to a human staying awake for over a month. The sensation was gut- wrenching, and he felt that if he relaxed even for a split second, he might just keel over.

But the effect was clear. From the puniest, Jake now stood as the most imposing Underworld Barbarian heʼd ever encountered since arriving on Twyluxia. The Soulmancers seemed to share his sentiment given their dropped jaws.

So Jakeʼs eyes nearly popped out of their sockets when Meribelle and the other Soulmancers simultaneously knelt, clasping their hands reverently and bellowing in unison, ”Your wish, our command, O revered Soulmancer King! Forgive us for not recognizing Your Greatness sooner. We will accept any punishment.”

ʼWhat the hell?!ʼ Jake was dumbstruck.

Only the young woman continued to lock eyes with him, an infuriatingly smug smirk plastered on her face. All the other Soulmancers bowed their heads, making it impossible to gauge their expressions. Yet, deep down, he felt like heʼd walked straight into their trap.

Jake wasnʼt buying their sudden display of loyalty. What he did believe, however, was their need for a king, fake or not. As soon as their bowing ceremony ended, Meribelle promptly dished out her ”advice”, though he had no clue what title to attribute to her.

”Your Highness, itʼs quite the shocker that you managed to pull a fast one on the Celestial by masquerading like this, but itʼd be wise to stick with your newbie persona fresh out of his baptism. Your Soul Cloneʼs death will throw him off, but heʼll catch on that youʼve played him. Maybe he already has.”

The cunning stunner paused, flashing Jake another suspiciously charming smile, then continued, ”For that reason, pulling strings in the Duskwight Lands from afar, away from your Dusken Throne, will be a tough gig. But donʼt sweat it! The Soulmancer Guild will handle it for you. Your Abyssal Revenant, Bones, has agreed to act as the go- between, backing up the throne and legitimizing decisions made in your name.”

Jake shot her a less-than-amused look, his eyes narrowing dangerously. ”Just because Iʼm operating at a fraction of my mental prowess doesnʼt mean I canʼt squash you. You sure you want to play this high-stakes game with me?”

Even knowing it might give him a pounding headache later, he didnʼt hesitate to unleash every bit of his available spirit power, supplemented by a rogue wisp of soul force driven by his True Will of Crushing.

Meribelleʼs eyes widened in alarm, feeling a never-before-experienced lethal threat closing in. Reflexively, she let out a cry, thrusting her arms out and releasing her own spiritual energy. Her previously dormant Lumyst Aura began to expand, emitting a blinding brilliance, quickly forming a spectral miasma sphere about twice her size, shimmering like a full moon.

Jake felt resistance but was hell-bent on not letting her off so easily without pushing his menace further. His gaze intensified, a prominent vein pulsating on his forehead, and a split second later a ”pop” sounded, followed by the unnerving crack of breaking bones.

Not his.

Ignoring the sudden mental exhaustion that drowned him, and with cold indifference, he then nonchalantly lifted his hand and levitated the young womanʼs body towards him, never releasing his psychic grip. All the while, the female Soulmancer writhed, gritting her teeth, but it was clear she wouldnʼt last much longer.

The other Soulmancers, witnessing this dominating scene in utter horror, had already drawn their weapons, ready to risk it all to save her. But when their eyes met Meribelleʼs, she subtly signaled them to stand down. At the very least, sheʼd guessed that this Player wasnʼt out to kill her; otherwise, sheʼd be dead already after her bold provocation.

Yet, she began to harbor some second thoughts. Glancing again at the fleeing army now only a kilometer or so away, her face contorted in a mix of emotions before she shut her eyes, resigning to her fate.

”Just do it,” she whispered, reopening her eyes to confrontation Jake, daring him to follow through.

”No! You canʼt give up! The Soulmancer King nee-” One of her comrades tried to interject, but was harshly silenced by the woman he aimed to comfort.

”Shut your trap!” Meribelle snapped, even as the grip on her throat tightened. ”One more word, and Iʼll take you down with me, even if I have to claw my way back from the dead to haunt your ass.”

The man went pale hearing her threat, as he came to the horrifying realization that heʼd almost made an irredeemable blunder. Biting back his words and swallowing his frustrations, he braced himself for whatever storm was about to rage.

But he was ready. They all were. If this outsider son of a bitch decided to end her, theyʼd unleash all hell on him in vengeance.

Unfortunately for them, the raw emotion of the moment had just handed Jake the missing piece of the puzzle he needed. He was starting to form a theory on the Soulmancer Kingʼs whereabouts.

[The real Soulmancer King is among us. More specifically, within that fleeing army rushing towards us.] Xi concurred darkly, mirroring Jakeʼs conclusions. Meribelleʼs looks towards the army had finally given her away.

ʼIf I had to bet, this woman holds some significance to him. A close friend? Or maybe even a lover?ʼ Jake mused with a hint of wicked satisfaction. He felt like he was finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. ʼSo they want me to impersonate their King, because the real Soulmancer King is here too. Theyʼre taking the old ʼhiding in plain sightʼ trick to a whole new extreme. Are they trying to use me as bait for some trap set for the enemy? The Celestial, right?ʼ

Even without the full backstory, the botched ambush the Soulmancer King had supposedly sprung on the Radiant Conclave just hours earlier, heʼd nearly pieced the truth together. But as tantalizing as it was to play along, there was one more thing he needed to verify.

Easing his grip on the young womanʼs throat just a tad, he stated sternly ”Iʼll play your Soulmancer King for as long as you want. Use me as bait or a front all you like, but you better do your damn job. If I catch wind that you intentionally blew my cover to the enemy or our allies, Iʼll flip your own threat on its head. Believe it or not, I get a lot scarier when Iʼm dead too. Just hope you donʼt end up regretting this.”

Choking on a cough, blood trickled from between Meribelleʼs clenched teeth. Forcing a defiant smile, she rasped challengingly,

”If youʼve got the balls, hold that throne as long as you want. Hereʼs hoping you wonʼt rue it either.”

Seconds later, Jake had morphed back to his previous size, albeit with an added couple of heads in height to match the expected stature of the Soulmancer King. According to Meribelle, he didnʼt need any further adjustments appearance-wise since nobody really knew what the guy looked like, allies included.

She then downed a vile-looking potion, more crimson and viscous than blood itself, to cure her wounds and mend her frayed nerves. As for Jakeʼs throbbing headache, it had already faded thanks to his Energy Spirit and Soul. His thoughts felt sharper, even if only by a smidge.

The mental strain had given him some new training insights, but theyʼd have to wait. Because the Soulmancer woman, Meribelle - whose name heʼd just learned, disclosed that a fresh conflict was on the horizon.

Havocspire Citadel had to be reclaimed.

Today.