Chapter 262: Accepting the heart Interlude

Adrian's mind swirled with confusion as he struggled to grasp the passage of time in this murky, watery landscape. How many days had passed since he first found himself trapped in this nightmarish realm? How long had he been subjected to its suffocating embrace? The answers eluded him, lost amidst the oppressive darkness that enveloped his senses.

With each labored breath, Adrian fought to stay afloat in the water, his head submerged beneath the surface as he grappled with the disorienting effects of his surroundings. The world around him seemed shrouded in an eerie silence, broken only by the sound of his own ragged breathing.

But amidst the fog of confusion, one question burned brighter than the rest: What about the fight? Memories of his confrontation with the monstrous entity within him flickered in his mind, fragmented and disjointed. He could recall the clash of titans, the searing pain of battle, but beyond that, everything was a blur.

Forcing his weary body to move, Adrian pushed through the waves of agony that washed over him, his muscles protesting with each agonizing movement. It felt as though every fiber of his being was aflame with pain, both physical and spiritual, a torment unlike anything he had ever known.

Despite the overwhelming agony that threatened to consume him, Adrian pressed on, driven by a desperate need to escape the suffocating grip of this watery prison. With each moment that passed, the darkness seemed to close in around him, threatening to swallow him whole.

Adrian's mind raced with urgency as he grappled with the overwhelming sense of urgency. Elena, his beloved, was in danger, and he knew that he needed to muster every ounce of strength he had to save her. There was no time to waste, no room for hesitation—he had to rise once more and face the darkness head-on.

But as Adrian struggled to stand, he found himself inexplicably held back, as if invisible hands were pulling him down into the murky depths below. Frustration boiled within him, mingling with the searing pain that coursed through his body like wildfire.

With a primal scream of defiance, Adrian tapped into the last vestiges of his dwindling aura, unleashing a burst of energy that sliced through the phantom restraints that bound him. As the phantom limbs fell away, Adrian staggered to his feet, his body trembling with exertion.

But his victory was short-lived, as a wave of dizziness swept over him, sending him crashing back to his knees with a curse. Every movement, every breath, sent waves of agony rippling through his battered form, threatening to overwhelm him.

Forcing himself to focus, Adrian scanned his surroundings, his eyes darting frantically in search of any sign of his dark counterpart. The other him—the monstrous entity that lurked within—was nowhere to be seen, yet Adrian could feel its presence lingering in the shadows, a malevolent force biding its time, waiting to strike.

With a grim determination, Adrian pushed himself to his feet once more, his resolve unshaken despite the relentless onslaught of pain. Elena needed him right now and he already wasted too much time here he needed to hurry and assimilate with the monster within him.

Elena, Aria, Louise, Analise, Mother, Sister his other family members, his friends, and even some few acquaintances he liked and met along the journey... they needed him in some way or form right now... despite the confusion with in him Adrian knew he had a duty to fulfill right now.

And that goddess still needed her own beating as well, he can't just let her laugh in arrogance as he suffered in pain here.

Adrian's thoughts whirled with confusion and disbelief as he surveyed his surroundings, his senses assailed by the surreal sight before him.

This place, once a desolate wasteland of darkness and despair, had transformed into a twisted mockery of life itself.

Where once there had been only barren plains and towering black towers, now there were plants, trees, and deformed creatures that roamed the land.

But even as he struggled to comprehend the strangeness of his surroundings, Adrian's attention was drawn to the sound of a familiar, sinister voice echoing through the air.

His heart clenched with dread as he realized the source of the voice—it was his own, the dark entity that lurked within him, mocking him with its presence.

With a resigned sigh, Adrian reluctantly acknowledged the truth of the situation. Despite the urgency of his circumstances, he knew that he could not rush the process of assimilation. Just as it had taken time for the original Adrian to assimilate the darkness within him, so too would it take time for him to merge with his doppelganger, especially considering the subtle differences between them.

Adrian's consciousness flickered to life as his other self's touch stirred him from the depths of his slumber. As he struggled to fully awaken, fragmented words and snippets of information echoed through his mind, each one painting a grim picture of the chaos that had engulfed the empire.

"Don't worry about Elena," his doppelganger assured him, its voice laced with a twisted amusement. "Mother and the others are taking her matters very seriously."

With each passing moment, Adrian's awareness sharpened, allowing him to grasp the full extent of the devastation that had been wrought in his absence.

The demonic princess and the demon king had launched a full-scale invasion, plunging the empire into turmoil and leaving kingdoms in ruins, races teetering on the brink of extinction.

The doppelganger's laughter echoed in Adrian's mind, a chilling reminder of the havoc they had wrought. "You're quite good, other me," it taunted, reveling in the chaos they had unleashed. "Did you know the laws of causality would support us this time?"

But amidst the chaos, a flicker of concern emerged as Adrian's thoughts turned to Aria and the others. "Loki is currently taking care of them," his doppelganger reassured him, its words dripping with malice.

"No one can harm them under his watchful gaze, especially with his son Fenrir by his side."

As the doppelganger's words sank in, a sense of anticipation tingled in Adrian's veins. What actions would he take once he awoke to witness the chaos he had sown?

The thought sent a shiver down his spine, mingled with a perverse excitement at the prospect of facing the goddess herself.

"If we ever come face to face with the goddess," the doppelganger mused, its voice dripping with hunger, "I can't wait to taste that beautiful face of hers..."

With each word, Adrian's sense of dread deepened, mingling with a perverse thrill at the thought of the battles that lay ahead.

As he teetered on the brink of consciousness, he knew that the moment he awoke, a new chapter in the saga of chaos and destruction would unfold—one in which he would play a central role, for better or for worse.

He was excited as well.

.....

Celestial Lumenian year of the gods... people were fighting, and screaming for their lives as demons took hold of everything they've known...

Death lay everywhere and it felt like the gods had already abandoned them, Angels and demons roamed through the skies as they battled for dominance... and the hero was assumed to be dead.

Then... as snow hit the the corpse of a young man resting on top a white demonic castle.... it's shimmering pale white eyes shone under the night sky.

On the third week of the holy war a monster woke.