CH 27

"Look over there!"

As the sounds of explosions stopped going off, the invading men have finally seen something other than smoke. A blue glow that seemed to repel the smoke appeared, carrying with it a heavy sensation that suffocated those too near it. Like how a slave meets its master, they knelt before the 'King'.

"Bang." But not everyone was pressured by his presence, some were able to withstand it due to their own powers being able to compare to his. Even if just a little. Zel stood still over the walls while his eyes gathered to that of two men.

"What are you doing? Fire at will!" One veteran old man while the other seemed to be a rather young commanding officer. He knew that taking those two out would finish this fight, as a body with no head would fall. Just like Leno.

"..."

"!!!"

"Fire!" Red had been flabbergasted by the reactions of his troops. He wondered why these idiots suddenly dropped to their knees while fear became evident in their eyes. What he didn't know what that his high Level and talent made him somewhat resistant to the effects of Zel's class ' King' when he is on his territory.

His power was only at its maximum when he is inside his territory. Like how a boss would only be the strongest in his lair, Zel was strongest within the walls of his kingdom. Since his mana would be drained quickly due to his overuse of it, it would be replenished just as fast as it was consumed in here. It's like adding an extra battery to his power and it was enough to last this fight.

Taking a stance with his hands behind his back, Zel scanned the fearful men that wanted to bring down what he had built. To harm his people and disrupt their lives. They had done nothing of the sort to deserve such a treatment, and his anger now soared as he threw shade at these invaders.

"I've saved lives, brought back land that would have been lost to outsiders and brought families back together. And yet, the same people who wanted to lead the remnants of humanity want to take me out? Is this how your legacy starts? By killing the hero of the world?"

Zel sounded like he was tooting his own horn, but no one here could deny it. If someone was to say that he was lying, everyone would look at him like an idiot. With the power he had shown by breaking through an otherwise 'lethally dangerous' land that was Flowrida which would serve as a 'push back' to the ever-increasing danger that was the abdicates.

"A hero? I've never seen a hero who was selfish enough to leave everyone behind and close his doors to people who suffered! If we didn't come here, then this facility that would protect humanity would still be in your hands!"

Red's main priority right now was to take the pedestal of righteousness on their side. If his men were to get the idea that they were doing the right thing then their morale would increase as a result. Yet, his efforts were for naught when a single child appeared before their army.

"Bullies! Don't talk badly about my big brother! He saved us! If he didn't save us then none of us would be here! Where was this army when the monsters hunted us? You are all just bullies with no heart!"

The men were at their lowest, while the will to fight had already left them. If their superiors were ordering them to do this for the right reason, then they would have no qualms about doing anything.

However, destroying someone's haven when everyone just wanted to survive was something that their hearts cannot accept. After all, what if they attacked them? If that 'King' guy attacked them, would they be able to defend?

"Die! Zoom. Crackle. Bang!"

A deafening bolt of lightning came out of the kneeling old man's hands that passed right through Zel. The old man had used every skill point he had and leveled up his Basic Mana Storage skill to the highest it can be and used all that mana to power his talent 'Lightning Release'.

[[6] - Basic Mana Storage - Level 6 (Exp 0%)

- The ability to observe and handle mana. Gives the user + 12 in Intelligence

- Active Ability: None

Requirements: None

[11] - Lightning Release - Green

- The ability to create lightning.

- Active Ability: Lightning Strike - Release lightning from the hands.

Requirements: Focused [Mana Cost: 200 to activate and has no limit]]

This was the most powerful display of a skill that the Earth had ever seen, creating huge commotion that was heard even a few kilometers away while the lightning itself had passed through one of the walls which proved how much power that single strike had if even Zel had a hard timing doing the same feat.

'Shit!' Zel's 'Clairvoyance' had always been a hindrance when he was actually in the dream when it comes to mana management.

This was because of the requirement of mana being the driving force of this dream, meaning it was only when he uses everything would the world collapse. If the others were to use their mana, nothing would happen to the world. However, this didn't mean this event had no consequences.

Zel's mastery of mana made him able to control mana like it was a part of his body, which explains why his mana was able to take form and move around as he willed it. His mana that was spread over his whole body made it easy to move but this also meant that the defenses he had were at its minimum.

Though this was normally able to defend against even the type 2 weapons of the X-Force's fighter jets, a Level 5's overdose skill, which was also green-ranked, was something that is able to gravely harm him.

'If I use my mana to heal myself then I would have to use all of them, ending the dream. If I don't then I'll die, ending the dream.' Zel's time had come for this iteration of the dream, but he had learned so much that he felt it was not bad.

It was also this moment that he tried to see if he should have something to keep in mind and used his System Watch 3.0's overlay function to his advantage. Then he saw a new system announcement has been released.

[System Announcements:

- Final Announcement! - ]

A feeling of strange glee was suddenly bubbling inside Zel. The fact that it said 'Final' could mean a lot of things and yet his mind leaned something that he knew was going to be a better thing for all mankind. After all, the people around him are firsthand evidence of the system's unpredictable effects on their users. It was only now that he saw the timer had reached 0.

'It was supposed to be a few days later. What made it-'

He already knew the answer to his own question. The many overuses of mana in this battle was not without consequences, but if this was the way it would be, he didn't mind. He was done anyway.

(With your dimension finally being connected to the central foundation, the system's major functions will now be retracted! Don't worry, you will still have your skills and stuff, it's the other things that will be removed. Hmm... Instead of listing out what we will remove, I'll just say that you'll only be able to see your Status now, though in much less detail. Check it out after you-)

"Big Sister!" As he immersed himself with the forums, which meant he had given up on this dream, he heard a startlingly loud cry behind him.

A large ball of mana had manifested itself behind Zel. Underneath the thing was a form he was very familiar with, as her body degraded from the overuse of mana, her tender smile that seemed to squeeze his heart like a wet towel broke his focus on his injury and he couldn't help but cough blood. Though this was not enough to daunt him as he used his remaining mana to come closer to her, even if he knew she wasn't real. Or he didn't want her to be real.

"If what you asked me was true, you could have still lived even if I'm gone" Zel's hand tenderly held her now rough skin as his gaze lingered on her wrinkled eyes. Her beautiful face grew older but that same smile she always had never seemed to fade.

He didn't know when, but tears had already formed on his eyes that threatened to release themselves if he lost control. He couldn't help but reprimand himself as he knew why she was being like this. But still, did it have to be this way?

"What's the point in living in a dream? Especially if that dream is without you?"

"Hehe, even if it is a dream, I'll love you just as much."

"I know, I love you too."

The two forgot about their surroundings as Zel inserted the last remaining mana on his body to Emilia through a kiss. Leaving only enough for him to last longer than she would as her body was collapsing from the overused mana surge that devoured her very existence.

The people around them felt that the surroundings were now lacking in mana and it made them feel weak. Though there were two kinds of reactions among the crowd. For those who belonged to the city of Oculus, a melancholy that seated itself in their hearts were drowning them in sorrow as the people who lead them here were now essentially sacrificing themselves so that they could survive.

In the enemy's perspective however, this massive behemoth of an attack will surely annihilate them all and though no orders were delivered, most of them decided on a tactical retreat. Chief among them was Red, who held his pistol that he had been aiming towards the couple while hesitating whether to shoot or not to shoot.

'I don't know what will happen if they die. I'm scared.'

Since something of that level had never appeared before, there was no telling what kind of consequence would erupt if it was disturbed. The best course of action would be to go towards a safe distance and wait it out. If his calculations were correct, those two would be dead in a few more seconds, leaving him the exact same amount of time to do his retreat.

'After those two are gone, the whole island is ripe for the picking.'

Since the linchpin holding the city together was about to vanish, there was no reason for them to fear them anymore. After all, who else in there could possibly be as powerful as the 'King'?

If only they knew.

"Protect King and Queen!"

"Yeah!"

The whole fighting force of the Oculus, Zel's Pantheon, had moved to back their leaders. Taking the forefront was Matty whose usual orange mana was now flickering yellow.

"Bang!" His body flew like a bullet towards Red who was still aiming his pistol towards the couple and he flew out towards the sea.

Matty had no way to check if he was in the water due to his abilities being limited to the earth and now that Red was in the water where Matty could only see vague lines that crumpled together instead of the usual fully rendered silhouettes, he didn't see that Red had been using his abilities to flee.

"Take everyone to the inner walls!"

"Yes, King!"

"Matty!... Take care of them!"

"No!!!"

Zel and Emilia held hands as the now building sized sphere of mana rained down towards the retreating army that tried to invade their home. Its destructive force seemed to be absent, as even though it passed through trees and small life forms along its path, none of them were damaged.

That was until a stray Pangea soldier had his feet touch the blinding blue orb and felt nothing, though that was because nothing was left of it. He hadn't even felt the pain when his whole body was swallowed by the light and nothing but the clothes he wore was left on his previous position.

Chaos ensued on the battlefield as none were left behind. The ships that tried to leave were left barren as no man was left behind to command it. The kneeling old man was no more, only the clothes left behind were indicative that he was in fact present here a while ago. Silence was the only thing that remained, and the Pantheon looked towards their leaders. The once awe-inspiring King and his exalted Queen left nothing but ashes behind.