The Beginning After The End novel Chapter 368

Chapter 368

Clamping down on my emotions with a cold iron grip, I refused to let myself be overtaken by rage at the sight of mana beasts ripping apart unarmed and magicless people…my people.

My stomach turned at the sight while the rest of me wanted nothing more than to God Step onto the field and kill the beasts.

The power to defy reality in my grasp, yet I couldn't even save those people.

I reasoned that restraining myself now was for the greater good, that it was the price we all had to pay for losing the war.

But that didn't make it any easier to sit and watch my fellow Dicathians be slaughtered. And then there were the cheers that rolled like hateful thunder down from the tens of thousands of onlookers as they gorged on the sight just like the wolves gorged on the innocents…

For a single, dark moment, I hated them all.

I imagined Destruction leaping from my hands to burn the entire stadium and everyone inside it to less than ash…but there were no cheers or laughter coming from our staging area. Though I couldn't bring myself to look away from these Dicathians' last moments, I could hear the shallow, labored breathing of my students, the crack of their knuckles as they gripped the rails, the quiet whimpers of disgust as the wolves feasted…

Then the hair on the back of my neck stood up as a familiar force filled the room, breaking the spell of the slaughter.

The students began dropping to their knees as they followed the source of the pressure to the back wall of the staging area, where a horned figure dressed all in black stood watching us. Regis bristled, the mental equivalent of putting his hackles up.

Seris Vritra looked much different than she had that day on the battlefield, when Uto nearly killed Sylvie and me. Instead of a wartime general, she looked regal as an empress draped in a black scale battledress, though she wore the same midnight-black cloak she had when I first saw her arrive in Darv.

Next to me, Seth remained on his feet, slack-jawed and staring. While the rest of the class had the good sense to go down on their knees, Seth seemed frozen in place. The Scythe's sudden appearance cemented one piece of information I had only guessed at so far: Nico wasn't the only one who knew my real identity.

Seris was watching Seth like he was some amusing little critter. Whatever her reason for coming here, I didn't need the students involved in it, and so I placed a hand on Seth's shoulder and pushed him to his knees.

"Scythe Seris," I said. "How nice to see you again."

"Professor Grey of Central Academy. Lady Caera of Highblood Denoir." A tremor ran through

the kneeling students at the sound of Seris's silvery voice. "With me." _{fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm}

She spun, her cloak flowing like liquid around her, and vanished through the single door set into the stone wall at the back of the staging area. Caera jumped to follow her, but I stayed where I was.

'Yes, because what this whole ordeal really needed was another layer of complication,' Regis thought, our link clearly transmitting his hesitant resignation.

The fact that Seris had also discovered my identity wasn't exactly a surprise since Nico obviously knew, but I had to wonder why she would contact me now, and so openly.

Even with Seris gone, the students were still petrified. Their shock and awe were tangible, floating in the viscous silence that the Scythe's sudden appearance and departure had created. Even the noise of the crowd had been muffled, as if unwelcome in this place.

"Briar, Aphene."

Both young women flinched as my voice broke the silence, their heads snapping up to stare wide-eyed and searching around the room. Briar's eyes blinked several times behind her mask as if she were waking from a long, uncertain dream.

"You're in charge until I get back," I said quickly, then marched out after Caera and Seris.

The Scythe was silent as she led us through the bowels of the coliseum. She walked with purpose, and yet her movements maintained a fluid grace and elegance that hinted at a flawless control over her physical form. Her confident rhythm never broke, not even to look back and make sure we were following. As we strode after her, we saw no one else despite the constant bustle of officials, workers, and slaves that must have filled the underworks.

After a minute or two, I noticed Caera watching me from the corner of her eye. She opened her mouth, but closed it again without speaking.

"What is it?" I asked, my voice sounding hollow in the underground tunnels, but she only shook her head in response.

Seris's head turned a fraction of an inch as I spoke. I wondered what unspoken tension was weighing down Caera's shoulders, but kept my silence.

I was wary, but not afraid. Although Seris was too distant and mysterious to consider an ally, I didn't count her among my enemies, either. If she wanted to harm me, there had been plenty of opportunities to do so before the Victoriad.

When we arrived in a private viewing box overlooking the combat field, I immediately scanned the room for any threats—as if there could be anything more dangerous than the Scythe within—but found only a plush lounge from which to watch the games below. The decor didn't interest me, and my attention turned immediately back to Seris.

"Make yourselves comfortable," Seris said, her light tone at odds with her dominating presence. When I made no move to do so, she waved a hand as if to brush away my wariness. "I didn't bring you here to harm you, Grey, but you already know that. You look well, by the way. Golden eyes…very subtle. Why don't you remove that mask so I can see your face properly?"

"Thank you for the hospitality," I replied, doing as she asked. "Nice place, if a bit lonely. Where's Cylrit? Lurking in the closet, waiting to jump out and give me some dire warning?"

Seris laughed happily. "My retainer is seeing to something else for me at the moment. No dire warnings today, but that doesn't mean we don't have business to discuss. I'm sure it won't surprise you to learn that I've been keeping close tabs on you ever since you so conveniently appeared in the Relictombs."

Caera flinched, looking slightly past me, not quite meeting my eye. "I'm sorry, Grey. Scythe Seris, she is my guide—my mentor, as I've mentioned before—and at first of course I had no idea you might know each other, but only told her about you because you were so…" She paused, biting the side of her cheek. "So curious and interesting, and then she wanted to know more about you, and she asked me to keep an eye on you—but I told you, so I hope you know I—"

As she spoke, I had noticed Seris searching my eyes from behind her and giving me a coy, knowing smile. When I returned the expression, Caera faltered, her worry giving way to a confused frown.

"It's fine, Caera. I mean, you have a powerful female Scythe mentor with an unusual interest in me?" I gestured to Seris, unable to suppress a guilty smirk. "I never pressed you for more details because I didn't need to. It wasn't all that hard to figure out."

Caera let out a deep breath and ran a lock of blue hair between her fingers. "Thank you for understanding. You two can stop making silly eyes at each other now."

"Caera of Highblood Denoir, is that any way to speak to your mentor?" Seris asked with only a slight mocking air. "Your adoptive mother would be appalled."

'Pretty classy, the way you handled that. But then, I guess it'd be pretty childish of you to get all pissy at her for not telling you, considering the uncountable number of lies you've told about your own identity,' Regis scoffed.

Fair point, I thought back. And also, shut up.

Seris reclined against the warded glass that fronted the chamber. "You've grown predictable, Grey."

"Oh," I asked, quirking an eyebrow at the Scythe. "How much of what I've accomplished have you predicted, exactly?"

Her lips parted to respond, but I saw her eyes flick to Caera, and she seemed to rethink whatever she had been about to say. Finally, she said only, "Enough."

I met the Scythe's piercing eyes, no longer smiling. "What do you want with me now, Seris?" "The same thing I have always wanted." She turned to face the window. Below, a dozen slaves were cleaning up the last of the mess left by the black-fanged wolves. "To see your potential grow."

The Scythe drifted to a chaise lounge and eased into it while indicating we should take the couch across from her. Caera didn't hesitate to comply with her mentor's unspoken request. I moved to stand behind the couch, but did not sit, instead resting my hands on the cushioned back.

"Speaking of potential," Seris said, her focus on my sternum, "Caera tells me you have exchanged your ability to manipulate mana for mysterious aether arts that even she does not understand." Caera shifted uncomfortably at Seris's words. "How did this come to be? I hope my last gift to you wasn't entirely wasted, was it?"

'Uto's mana wasn't wasted at all, if you ask me,' Regis thought with the mental equivalent of letting his tongue loll contentedly from his mouth.

"My injuries in the war were catastrophic," I answered, my body tingling as I remembered the feel of it breaking down due to prolonged use of the third stage of Sylvia's beast will. "I had to adjust."

"Yes, well, that is certainly something I couldn't have predicted," she said in a low voice, more to herself than Caera or me.

"What do you want with me?" I asked again, more firmly this time. A sudden suspicion dawned on me, and I added, "Did you bring me here? To the Victoriad?"

Seris's painted lips quirked up. "I'll admit, it has pained me to see you sit on your hands at that university for so long. A professor, really?" She gave me a disapproving look, as if I cared what

she thought about my actions in Alacrya. "As I said, predictable. But you are also right, I did arrange for your class to be here."