Abyss Draconis

BLEEERRRGGHHH

Blood burst out from the lips of the impaled assassin, and Antares watched, bewildered, as each drop of blood halted in the air.

Then, they began turning into red frost crystals that hovered around the white-haired figure, whose hand had turned into the frost crystal pillar that had impaled the figure.

"If you plan on bringing an end to his life, you might as well lay down yours too..." The ice-cold, emotionless words rang out through Vlon's being—each word bitingly cold.

He watched as the frozen blood of his transformation turned into sharp bullets that pierced through him.

In an instant, his head was turned into a sieve, but instead of pain.

He felt numb.

A numbness that emanated from the crystal impaling his chest and slowly spread across his body.

It was cold, but silent.

Incredibly silent, with no pain, and soon enough, his entire body turned into cold statue, before the breeze blew and he was turned into frosty ashes that dispersed along with the it.

Painlessly, he was wiped out of the world.

[Congratulations on defeating a Pseudo-Eternal Stage Expert]

[Rewards: + 200,000 EXP!]

The system notification flashed as the crystallized pillars of ice on Ryuk's hands shattered into pieces before they erupted into frost flakes that gently dispersed into the wind.

His gaze was fixed on the distance, where he could see two figures quickly escaping.

He simply watched them fleeing farther and farther before he turned his gaze away and towards Antares instead.

"Good to see you're alright..." he said, as Antares' axe disappeared, leaving just his gauntlets as he took steps toward Ryuk.

"You've awakened from your cultivation..." he replied.

He had watched Ryuk remain in that frosty world for about a month now, and had seen the entire island covered in snow.

It was a sign of being on a critical threshold of cultivation, and he didn't interrupt it.

"I have. But I never expected to wake up to the sight of Pseudo-Eternal idiots disturbing the peace," he said as Antares shrugged.

"They're just spies sent to probe the island, to see if you're really here. They must have gotten the info somehow but needed to be sure—hence these idiots."

"I've stopped them from ever stepping on the land, but now that two of them have seen you and escaped, I'm afraid they'll finally get the proof that you indeed are here..." Antares said with furrowed brows, as Ryuk's gaze shimmered with frosty light before he replied:

"Don't hold back."

"Huh?"

"Don't hold back. Anyone who points their blade at you in this world and harbours killing intents—then don't hold back. Go all out, and leave their survival to their ability."

"If they point their blade at you, they were never on my side to begin with. So don't hold back for fear of killing one of my own. They're not," Ryuk said, but it was petrifying to Antares—it wasn't a voice filled with anger or resentment.

It was cold, and filled with nothing, as if Ryuk was merely stating facts.

"I understand..." He replied, as Ryuk nodded his head before turning his back and resuming his walk toward the island.

Antares followed, and he was about to say something when—

DRIIIIIIING

DRIIIIIIING

The sound of ringing echoed out as Ryuk's device appeared in his hand.

His gaze tightened slightly when he saw a bubbling notification at the side that revealed he had 768 missed calls.

But then his hand moved toward the call button, and he swiped it to the side.

"Asteralaxia..." he said into the phone, followed by a faint rattling—then the words.

"Ryuk? Ryuk?"

"Yes. It's me," he replied curtly.

"Oh my... I've been trying to reach you for close to five weeks now, but no reply. You made me worried," she said.

"Was in seclusion, so didn't notice it," he replied shortly, as silence followed for a long while, before her voice rang out again.

"You sound... cold," she whispered, and Ryuk's brow creased.

"Do I?" he asked, then got his answer when he watched Antares nodding his head at him from the side, and he could only shrug.

"Must be due to me just exiting my frost cultivation. The Frost is cold, you know," he said, as a faint "oh" escaped Asteralaxia's lips.

"I thought you were mad at me," she said, and Ryuk shrugged.

"And why would I be?"

"I don't know... Maybe because you didn't pick up my calls for four weeks! Four weeks!"

"I just told you—it was because I was in seclusion."

"And after your impromptu leaving just before the commemoration party, I had to deal with so many headaches trying to give an excuse to the Alliance and the entire world for the reason of your absence."

"Yet mere minutes later, we got the footage of you bursting into the Titan Forge and—" Aster was saying when Ryuk suddenly interrupted.

"We?" he asked, and she paused.

"Who's 'we', Asteralaxia?" Ryuk said, as silence enveloped the call before it was broken.

"I mean—I, and the Starweave Organization, and the Ascension Alliance group, and all the higher-ranking groups, and the entire world got the footage of you bursting uninvited into the Titan Forge and coming out with a lady."

"And that was a clear abduction footage."

Ryuk paused in his steps, his brows knotting.

"You sound like you believe that."

"Maybe if you had picked up the calls after I saw that footage and explained yourself instead of four weeks later, then I would've had a good excuse to the world and canceled out the stain on your reputation."

"It's not just about you anymore, Ryuk!"

"You are the Supreme Weave of the Organization—the Horned Hero that Endearth looked up to as a source of hope!"

"But now, there's nothing but vicious speculation all over the news about you, and that's with rightful reasons and not a single word from you to clear your name."

"The organization's reputation is plummeting to the ground, all due to your childish actions!" Asteralaxia shouted—her voice a mix between anger and frustration—yet Ryuk's gaze remained as cold as ever, before he replied with a single word that shook Aster to her core.

"..."