A few days later
Lovigary's voice cracked with urgency as he followed closely behind his father, who walked with hollow, unfeeling steps down the desolate and ruined halls of the once-grand Albert family estate. The walls bore the scars of past battles, the windows shattered, and the once-lustrous floors now cracked and broken beneath their feet.
"You don't have to do this, Father!" Lovigary shouted, his voice raw with emotion. "Mother is gone... gone for good. Listening to that maniac won't bring her back. We need to focus on getting Arianna before it's too late!"
But Laden—his father—kept walking, his eyes vacant, as though the weight of Lovigary's words didn't even reach him. His face was a blank mask, the deep furrows of his once-proud features now etched with despair. He moved mechanically, each step heavy, as though the burden of his grief was the only thing propelling him forward.
Lovigary's heart twisted as he saw no reaction, no spark of life in his father's eyes. "Father, please..." he whispered, but his plea was swallowed by the emptiness surrounding them.
Suddenly, Lokk's voice broke through, colder than Lovigary had expected. "Are you even listening to yourself, brother?" Lokk's steps echoed beside their father, his gaze unwavering as he glanced at Lovigary. "This is mother we're talking about. You think we should just let her go?"
Lokk's eyes were hard, filled with a dangerous determination, unlike Lovigary's desperate hope. His jaw clenched, and there was a faint tremor in his voice, a mix of anger and sorrow that he barely contained. "Father isn't strong enough yet to face him, true. But what does that change? Eldest brother tried, and we all know what happened. But if we keep building our strength...
we will get her back."
Lovigary's breath caught in his throat. His fists tightened at his sides, knuckles white. He could feel his heart hammering in his chest, torn between the fear for his sister, the loss of his mother, and the madness creeping into his family.
"Lokk..." Lovigary began, his voice trembling with frustration. "Even if you bring Mother back... what will you do when she learns that her life—her resurrection—came at the cost of countless innocent souls? That you sacrificed entire worlds just so she could live again? How do you think she will feel when she knows that blood was spilled in her name?"
Lokk stopped walking, his hand twitching at his side, his fingers curling into a tight fist. For a moment, Lovigary saw hesitation in his younger brother's eyes—a flicker of doubt. But it was gone in an instant, replaced with cold resolve.
"We'll cross that bridge when we get there," Lokk said, his voice low and unyielding. His gaze turned forward, ignoring the turmoil in Lovigary's words. "For now, I'll follow Father."
Lovigary was about to explode, his rage building, when a new voice broke the tension.
"I agree with the master."
Ulthra's voice cut through the silence, filled with both anger and disbelief. "Gor, what are you doing? Get back here!" Her eyes blazed as she looked at the hulking figure of Gor, her heart racing. "Why are you being ungrateful?!"
Gor's towering figure, dwarfing everyone around him, moved with a slow but deliberate grace. His deep, booming voice reverberated through the broken hall as he turned to face Ulthra, his expression soft but unyielding. "I'm sorry, Ulthra," he rumbled, his voice carrying both love and sadness. "But the madam... she would never approve of this. She wouldn't want us to walk this path.
It's my duty to bring you and the others back, my love."
Ulthra's lips parted, her eyes wide, as she took a step back, stunned by his words. Her hands trembled at her sides, torn between loyalty to Laden and the love she felt for Gor.
The tension in the air was palpable, the weight of their divided loyalties hanging like a suffocating cloud.
Suddenly, Laden burst into laughter—cold, mocking, and utterly devoid of joy. His voice echoed through the ruined hall, cutting through the tension like a knife. "You think you can stop me?" His laughter died as quickly as it had begun, replaced by a voice dripping with disdain. "Do you even have the strength to back up your words? Or are they nothing but empty threats?"
In an instant, Laden's aura exploded outward, a tidal wave of raw power that crashed over everyone like a storm. The air grew thick, oppressive, and suffocating. The floor cracked beneath his feet as his overwhelming presence pressed down on everyone in the room.
Lovigary's legs buckled beneath him as the weight of his father's aura forced him to his knees. His breath hitched in his throat, and his vision blurred as he fought to stay conscious, his body trembling violently. Every muscle in his body screamed in pain as the oppressive force crushed him.
Drax and the others fell to their knees, gasping for breath, their bodies convulsing under the sheer pressure of Laden's power. Gor, though stronger than the rest, gritted his teeth as he struggled to remain upright. His massive frame shuddered under the weight, but his eyes remained locked on Ulthra, determined and unyielding.
Ulthra herself faltered, her knees buckling as she collapsed, her hands gripping the cracked floor. Her eyes darted toward Gor, wide with fear and disbelief. The man she loved was defying the master, and yet... there was a part of her that wanted to reach out to him, to follow him.
Laden watched them all with a cold, detached gaze. His expression didn't change, his lips a thin, emotionless line as he observed the suffering around him. To him, this was nothing more than a necessary step on his path, a minor inconvenience on his way to reclaiming his beloved.
Lovigary, gasping for air, lifted his head just enough to meet his father's gaze. His vision swam, but his resolve remained unbroken. "This... won't... stop us," he choked out between labored breaths. "We...
won't... let you go any further."
Laden's lips twitched into a faint smirk, his eyes glinting with cruel amusement as he watched his son's futile struggle. "Foolish boy," he whispered, his voice as cold as the air around them.
"He is not foolish, he's just brave and is willing to stop you from going down the wrong path."