Earth's Greatest Magus

Chapter 2663: Choices

A ripple spread through the air, and silence fell over the group.

All eyes were locked on Veyarel as he stood tall, arms raised, gathering the fractured threads of spatial energy around him. Vayarel was a Three-Cosmos Grand Magus with mastery over spatial magic; he had broken through the walls of countless realms before. He had faced twisting dimensions, spatial mazes, and impossible folds in reality.

But this place was different.

This prison realm bound all who entered. The energies of the cosmos were muted, suppressed, as if the realm itself refused to allow a path outward.

The spell took shape—a complex formation of spatial loops and layered runes rotating in slow motion around him.

Minutes passed.

For an hour, Veyarel poured his strength into the spell. Veins pulsed at his temples. Symbols etched from pure spatial essence shimmered before collapsing again and again. And finally... he staggered back.

”The barrier is too thick,” he said, panting. ”There’s something else—something beyond spatial interference. I’m sorry... I can’t break through it.”

His words struck the chamber like a hammer. Silence followed.

Emery clenched his fists. He’d been hopeful—perhaps foolishly so—but deep down, he knew the result was inevitable. Even his own dark counterpart had tried, drawing upon Khaos itself, yet achieved nothing.

A sound broke the silence—Soltz, pacing in agitation, his voice cracking. ”Is this it?! Are we doomed to rot here?! Is there no other way?!”

Talaro’s voice cut through the panic, smooth and deliberate. ”There is... another way,” he said, stepping forward with a faint smirk.

Everyone turned toward the dark elf.

”How?!” Soltz asked, latching onto him like a drowning man to driftwood.

Talaro gestured toward Emery with a slight tilt of his head. ”Your young friend here holds the key... If he gives it to me... I can open the path out of this place.”

All eyes turned to Emery. Soltz blinked. ”It’s that power, isn’t it? That... dark thing.” He swallowed nervously, then stepped closer, speaking in a softer, desperate tone. ”Emery... Could you... maybe just lend it to him? for this?”

Emery exhaled slowly and stepped toward Talaro.

Their gazes locked, tension thick between them.

”You were right all along,” Emery said.

Talaro’s smirk widened.

With a pulse of chaotic energy, dark Emery raised his arm. Shadow and entropy flared around him, but it wasn’t to surrender. From beneath Talaro’s feet, jade roots erupted like vipers from the stone, coiling toward him.

”What?!”

Talaro leapt instinctively, but before he could escape, a ripple of distorted space folded in from above—dark Emery’s spatial binding locking his momentum midair. The dark elf snarled, channeling power to break through, but another force crashed down upon him.

Spectral arms—translucent and glowing faintly blue—descended from above, grabbing his limbs with ghostly fingers. It was a spirit-bind spell, cast by the deer half-blood warrior.

It didn’t end there; a second restraint snapped into place by the fairy race as rainbow ribbons curled from the side, wrapping tightly around Talaro’s torso. The bindings shimmered with fey enchantment, each ribbon humming with a sealing mantra.

The dark elf cursed under his breath, struggling against the bindings, but it was no use. The trap had been perfectly coordinated.

”What’s happening?!” Soltz cried, looking around in confusion.

It was clear that everyone had already been briefed about this plan, except for him. They had acted together the moment Emery gave the signal.

Emery turned to him. ”Sorry... You’ve been drinking too much, and we needed someone with a convincing reaction to pull this out.”

With that quick deception, they managed to fully restrain the dark elf.

Yet Talaro remained eerily calm. He turned his gaze toward the Supreme Magus. ”I thought you promised to keep me safe.”

Rosin Karat let out a deep sigh. ”I promised I wouldn’t harm you,” he replied, then turned away. ”I need to check the perimeters,” he added, already walking off and leaving the tense scene behind. Ꞧ𝒶Ŋօ𝐁Ɛș

Talaro chuckled darkly, then looked straight at Emery with a wicked smile. ”Have you really thought this through?”

”I have,” Emery said firmly. ”I will never put my trust in you.”

He stepped closer. ”I don’t think you can destroy the gate. And I’m confident I can retrieve it from your corpse. As for the technique to merge the power—” his eyes narrowed—”I ”can pry that from your mind piece by piece, in time.”

Amused, Talaro let out a soft laugh. ”Very good... The Lord of Shadow was not wrong to choose you.”

Then his voice dropped to a whisper. ”You’re right. I can’t destroy Khaos. But I am more than willing to shatter my own soul. You’ll never get the technique from me. Good luck spending the next few hundred years trying to recreate it.”

Emery took a long, heavy breath. Talaro’s eyes were locked on his, full of provocation, daring him to act.

This was a hard decision. A truly painful one. Accepting this delay could mean he would not return in time for the duel. But the safety of him and his allies should have come first.

Faces flashed through his mind. Thrax. Chumo. Julian. Morgana. Klea. He had to believe in them. Believe that they would win the duel, even without him.

And if, by some chance, they failed... Emery would break heaven and earth to take back Earth from Kronos. No matter the cost.

As the weight of that resolve settled over him, so too did a cold determination. One that wiped the smirk from Talaro’s face.

Emery raised his Embersword.

Talaro’s eyes widened. He shouted, ”Wait!! I propose another way... a compromise!”

”Speak.”

”The technique... it doesn’t require me to have both gates,” Talaro said quickly. He turned toward Vayarel. ”You can give your gate to him. I’ll guide the process. With both our expertise, we can escape this place together.”

It was a much more reasonable suggestion. Seeing Emery’s hesitation, the dark elf smiled again.

But to his shock, Emery gave no reply. His sword rose—and then fell.

SPLATT!!

Blood sprayed across the ground, followed by Talaro’s piercing scream as the Embersword struck a critical blow.