Enigma of Sin

Kayn quickly became distracted due his curiosity. Before he could see the figures in full detail, he already knew that they were undead beings. Were they natural undead? Raised undead? How were undead truly created?

Kayn hadn't been able to find much information on raising the dead as in the places he lived it was seen as forbidden magic, so it was hard to hold himself back from just studying the entities instead of taking any action, as he knew he should be.

As his focus returned to him, he honed in his senses more on the figures in order to determine their strength, then it suddenly made sense why so many people were scrambling around in mass hysteria.

Every single one of the figures coming towards them exuded the aura of a 6th stage individual and there was one presence in particular that didn't hold back in letting their aura be known. This individual wasn't one of the large ones, but a smaller one among the group. However, even Kayn couldn't understand the full extent of his strength.

Charlotte quickly appeared by Kayn's side and informed him of the situation. "We need to leave Kayn, as soon as possible."

Her serious tone spoke volumes about the situation, but it did make Kayn confused. "Charlotte, why don't we just fight them? We also have several 6th stage healers here and with the majority of them having a light aptitude, shouldn't we have the advantage?"

"Kayn, not everyone can be like you or me and be able to dabble in both combat and healing. Most of these people haven't fought a single day in their lives. Plus, none of that would even matter when we are up against that monster. Now, quickly activate your scroll. I'll do the same after I see you are gone and safe."

Charlotte beckoned Kayn to use the teleportation scroll that was supposed to take him back home. Kayn figured he could get his answers when he saw her again, so without hesitation he reached into his sash and grabbed the scroll before injecting his mana into it.

The scroll began to glow with a soft white light, and then…nothing. Nothing happened. The scroll returned to its original appearance as it if had never been activated in the first place.

It was a one-time use item, so the fact that it didn't work and didn't disappear meant that it couldn't fully activate for one reason or another.

Seeing this, a single word slipped from Charlotte's mouth, "Shit."

Kayn was confused about the situation as he had no idea what was going on, so he decided to wait for Charlotte to regain her bearings and tell him what was happening. Not even five seconds later, Kayn got his answer.

"Fucking undead bastard set up a sealing zone somehow. Fortunately for us, sealing zones always have a rune placed somewhere on the ground, we just need to find and destroy it to get out of here. Let's go."

Kayn nodded his head and began to follow behind Charlotte who was moving at Kayn's top speed, rushing here and there searching for a rune that could be any size and hidden anywhere. 

However, before they could search much, a booming voice echoed out in the surroundings.

"Hello peasants! Your kind Lich King, Mitas, is here to release you from the bonds of life! I require a few of your filthy light elemental ilk for my experiments and I heard that this was the best place to collect some of you!

"There are even a few rare creatures here! You'll all be fine additions to my collection! Please remain calm and collected while my pets end your lives, I'd rather not have to patch up your bodies before I can use them!"

Many of the people at the convention were frozen in place now, only those at the peak of the 6th stage were moving freely. The tremendous pressure being exuded from the one who referred to himself as Lich King Mitas was quite overwhelming, even Kayn was having difficulties moving even a tiny bit.

Seeing this, Charlotte threw Kayn over her shoulder like sack before sprinting around trying to find the rune once more.

That was when Kayn saw the true horrors that were descending onto the area. Bone dragons, several of them at that. One of them was carrying an extremely large box as well that it dropped to the ground like a bomb.

The cage exploded into countless wooden pieces and from inside thousands of undead began to run free, terrorizing those they came upon. It was as if the entire box was packed full with no empty space with the number of undead that were now present.

Kayn gritted his teeth as he watched the unprepared crowd start to get mauled down and killed by the undead. He couldn't do anything, he was helplessly slung over Charlotte's shoulder without the ability to move.

Finally, Kayn had a spark of inspiration of how he could help. Even though the mana in the surrounding area was quite chaotic currently, he should be able to help Charlotte pinpoint the rune's location by sensing for the major disturbance.

As Charlotte ran around, Kayn relentlessly extended his Mana Sense, intently focused on the feedback he was receiving. Eventually, upon moving past one of the temporary housing tents, Kayn found something that stood out from the rest of the mana that was present or being tossed around.

He could still move his mouth so he quickly informed Charlotte of his discovery, "There! Inside that big tent!"

Without questioning him, Charlotte entered into the tent and waited for his next instructions. However, what awaited her was not what she was expecting. It was the Head Healer of the Carnet Empire along with several other 5th or 6th stage individuals.

The Head Healer was in the middle of the group's formation with the remainder guarding him, or more specifically the ominously glowing rune right behind his feet.

"Charlotte, I didn't expect to see you this soon, even carrying baggage I see. You'll never get through us though. I know how strong you are, but it won't be enough to take us all on." The man smirked as he spoke, however he didn't let his guard down even the slightest amount.

"So, it's your filthy Carnet Emperor that is once again betraying his own people. First you abduct a talented healer and kill her disciple's family to force her into solving some riddle of forbidden magic. And now, you are in collusion with not just the Inmortuea Empire, but the Lich King himself.

"You all disgust me, and your Emperor will receive his comeuppance in time." Charlotte angrily spat out as golden fire began to blaze around her figure and in her eyes.

"HA! The rewards we will get from his Majesty Mitas will be grand, especially once we give him your body. And then, no one will ever know what happened as no one will make it out of this place alive today, except for us that is."

Charlotte then dropped Kayn to the ground and cast a barrier around him in order to protect him while she fought. She charged forward as flames blazed behind her, directly clashing with the front line.

Her goal wasn't to defeat these people, all she needed to do was destroy the rune they were protecting, and victory would be hers.

Kayn laid there and watched as an intense battle he could barely track began between Charlotte and the people from Carnet. The inside of the massive tent quickly became destroyed, but somehow the tent itself was undamaged.

The Head Healer stood in place without moving, but it was clear that he was maintaining some kind of barrier around himself and the rune, preventing any spells from getting close.

Between the noise from their battle and the screams of terror coming from outside of the tent, Kayn couldn't help but feel useless. If only he could move, if only he could cast spells, anything! He would settle for being able to do anything at this point!

Minutes passed, then and hour, as battle sounds continued outside as the fight between Charlotte and Carnet raged inside. Oddly enough, no undead had entered inside of the tent, but Kayn could guess why. It also appeared that the group outside had formed some sort of resistance as they were continuing to fight out there.

He couldn't help but wonder if Director Vix and Clara Whiteclaw had survived so far. They were both nearing the 6th stage, but in front of those bone dragons, the entire congregation was probably relying on the 6th stage healers and guards that were present. Kayn didn't have a single smidgen of hope that they were able to save even half of the people present at this convention.

On the other hand, Charlotte was holding her own and had already killed seven of the fifteen people guarding the rune. She probably would have had more power if she reverted to her original phoenix form, but that would draw Mitas's attention to her, and she couldn't have that. Not to mention, it would reveal one of her best kept secrets to everyone, including the Lich King.

She was going to save Kayn from this situation at all costs though. If the situation didn't progress soon, she was going to transform and take Kayn away personally.

The battle continued on and Kayn watched on as Charlotte killed a few more of them at the cost of sustaining grievous injuries. Watching Charlotte take one hit after another, but continuing to fight with ferocity while he could do nothing but be protected infuriated Kayn so much so that he was bleeding from clenching his teeth and fists so hard.

She probably would have done better if she wasn't alone and protecting him at the same time. If she could simply go all out, even with them having a 6th stage healer, she would have been in a better position than she was currently.

Kayn was trying to move or cast any sort of spell under the effects of the suppressive aura. Then it struck him, a sense of clarity and knowing exactly what he had to do.

Instead of continuing to suppress the part of his soul he was trying to gain control over, he dove straight into it and let it meld with him. Even as another part of his soul, the one where the Villa resided, tried to resist, Kayn felt an intoxicating feeling wash over his mind, soul, and body.

It was like he had finally fully made Wrath his own, and it was his to do with what he wanted. It was his power, his strength, and he knew exactly how to use it.

The Villa then began to exude a different kind of feeling that washed over his mind, giving him the clarity of thought to keep all of his thoughts his own and control of his body in his hands. If his strength now stemmed from Wrath, his focus and the cool, refreshing feeling in his mind stemmed from whatever the Villa was doing.

No one in the room battling, including Charlotte, noticed Kayn casually stand up. His hair reverted back to its normal snow white and his eyes turned black and purple.

His hair was waving around in the air as currents of mana began to surround him, wisps of a black wind began to circle around him filled with sparks of black lightning and black flame.

All of the sudden, the small group that was battling Charlotte and herself paused in their steps, feeling a sense of death right behind their backs, near the entrance of the tent. Charlotte instantly became worried because the barrier she placed around Kayn at the start definitely wasn't going to protect him from whatever was now entering their battle.

However, upon glancing back over her shoulder to check on Kayn, to her surprise he was floating just above the ground with wildly whipping hair and clothing. There was blood running down from his eyes and he looked to be in pain, but there was also a firm resolve plastered on his face.

She had no clue what was happening, even the aura he exuded at the auction house didn't feel anywhere close to this. This wasn't possible for someone with a 4th stage core, not unless he used some sacrificial art that would burn his life force, but even then the power he was exuding shouldn't be possible. 

Quickly retreating back to his side, she tried to tell him to stop, but it was too late. Before she could even get her first word out, Kayn had already moved with a speed that he shouldn't have, appearing directly before the group she was previously fighting.

It was Kayn's turn.