Rise of the Lustful Evil Monarch (Re)

Ethan's POV

My body shivered uncontrollably and it refused to move as if something was holding my legs down and an acute sense of dread washed over me.

"What in the hell is that?" I whispered hoarsely in a barely audible voice over the relentless pounding.

Summoning every ounce of my courage and strength, I turned my gaze away from the gate and quickly entered the hole in the wall. The tunnel's curves soon obstructed my view of the terrifying door, and the pounding noises ceased as abruptly as they had begun.

I gasped for air and sank onto the narrow stairs. Holding my head, I wiped away the cold sweat that dripped from my forehead.

What could that possibly be? My mind raced through the countless texts I had read and lessons I had learned but no answers surfaced to my mind as of present. The idea of consulting the Eterna Nexus crossed my mind but I quickly dismissed that thought

For now, the gate and its secrets could wait.

I steeled my nerves and pushed myself to my feet. Though my legs trembled slightly, I forced myself to continue descending the spiral staircase. Soon, I reached the large bronze gates but I was surprised as I came down here only to find them securely locked.

I inspected them closely and ran my fingers over its cold surface. The gate were ancient, and many intricate patterns were carved into the blackened wood but there were no visible mechanisms to unlatch them.

Cautiously, I pressed against the door and applied gentle force at first but then gradually increased it. But the gate did not budge even a little bit and nothing happened.

I had a small frown on my face as I took a step back and focused inward. I circulated my body's strength before pushing again but this time with far more power than before. Yet, the doors remained immovable as if it was fused with the very walls surrounding them.

I hesitated. Was this truly my destination? I had no way of knowing for sure.

Knocking would be reckless as I had already experienced the horrifying event in the above reached of this staircase so instead, I extended my soul sense through the gate and attempted to peek inside.

The moment my soul sense touched the wood a sudden invisible force struck back.

A sharp piercing pain lanced through my skull, and my vision spun. It felt as though I had rammed headfirst into an iron wall at full speed.

A low groan escaped my lips as I clutched my head and the sheer intensity of the feedback sent my senses into disarray.

The lingering shockwave combined with the earlier ominous pounding from the evil gate above created a cacophony of ringing noises in my mind. Dizzy and disoriented, I slumped onto the stairs and struggled to regain clarity.

An hour passed before the dull throbbing in my skull subsided. With measured caution, I stood up once more but I was careful and determined not to make the same mistake again.

This time, I adjusted my approach.

Rather than sending my soul sense in a broad wave, I compressed and stretched it into a thin, nearly undetectable thread and carefully extended it through the large keyhole.

The keyhole itself was wide and much larger than modern locks. Judging by its structure, I concluded that the doors were very ancient.

This time, my presence faded into the background, and the soul thread slipped past without triggering any sort of defensive reaction from the gate. Find adventures at My Virtual Library Empire

A dimly lit yet not entirely dark room came into view. My thread wove through the space as it started mapping its contours.

I soon concluded that the furniture, the layout, and everything overall bore a striking resemblance to my own room in the upper parts of the well.

At the center of the room stood a large bed with its thick and dark curtains drawn tightly around it.

As my thread drifted further inside, the limited scope of its visibility hindered my ability to see as clearly as I would with my own eyes.

Then, just as I was about to withdraw my soul sense caught something.

A single slender white foot rested near the edge of the bed as it peeked out from beneath the heavy curtains. Its nails were painted in bright red nail polish and it gleamed faintly in the dim light. Observing it from afar and even with such low visibility, I recognized it instantly.

It was Virelle. She was present in this room just as I had expected her to.

I retracted my soul sense with precision and pulled it back into my own body. My eyes opened, and I rubbed my chin thoughtfully as a small plan started to form in my mind.

This gate isn't protected by any complex magical restrictions. Instead, the material itself seems to be the key as it naturally repels outside interference.

These thoughts raced in my head as I reached forward and traced my fingers along the rough black wooden surface. Slowly, my hand drifted downward toward the keyhole.

Closing my eyes, I channeled my magic power. A dark bluish light pulsed at my fingertips and slowly seeped into the keyhole like liquid mist.

It was Dark ice. This was the element I had developed myself by implementing the fusion between dark magic power and the icy energy that resided in my bones.

Over the past few years, I had attempted a lot of things to properly merge both of my elements so that their combined form could have the properties of both ice and dark affinity while also attaining something unique.

Till now, I had not succeeded in it and I was still in the rudimentary stages of merging them and simultaneously using their powers.

I came back to the present and felt the icy energy coursing through my bones which emerged from all over my body but only a small amount of it joined in a single stream.