CHAPTER 107: HE WHO DEFIES FATE

Charles peeked his head out from the corridor by the stairwell. He asked a rather peculiar question in a sheepish tone: "Uh... Am I interrupting something?"

The purple humanoid figure, formed from Colin's shattered body and cloaked in deep, shadowy hues, asked with Colin's voice, "Hm? Are you Charles Ryder?"

"Yes, that's me, Charles Ryder. Did I come at an inopportune time? It looks like the captain and the professor are about to get taken out. Can I still turn back?" Charles scratched his head, his expression troubled, as though he genuinely regretted showing up at such a moment.

"Ah, well. Just look at your captain and Mr. Sieg. They can't even interfere with reality right now. If you want to leave, I'll give you the chance." The purple humanoid waved dismissively, turning its featureless face toward Sieg and Hugin, who were trapped within a spatial distortion.

The two hovered suspended mid-air as if frozen in time. Their bodies shimmered with a static-like distortion, reminiscent of the snowy interference on a broken TV screen. The distortion flickered, disappeared, and reappeared, rendering their forms semi-transparent.

"You really are generous. But leaving now feels like a waste, doesn't it? After all, you're immobilized too, right? I mean, if I set this place to blow with this thing here, wouldn't you die as well?"

Charles' tone shifted abruptly. With a flick of his hand, his Moon tarot card dissolved, revealing a glowing metallic sphere engraved with intricate sigils.

"A Destroyer? I didn't expect you'd get your hands on one of those. Aren't you afraid it might take out your captain and Mr. Sieg along with me?" Colin's tone remained calm, though it now carried a threatening undercurrent.

"Ah, I didn't expect the capital's shadow to supply these things either. A friend of mine had some connections, et voila. So, how about it? Release my captain and the professor, and I'll spare your life." Charles grinned mischievously, flashing an impish smile at Colin, who remained trapped in the distorted space.

"Very well, I suppose. It seems I've lost the upper hand. But I still have a question. Pernia Ryder's prophecy foretold that everything would go smoothly, that I would succeed in killing your captain and professor here. Granted, matters of the key were beyond the prophecy's scope.

"That said, you Ryders all share the same visions of fate, don't you? Why would you try to change it? Historically, your family is known for its legacy of averting disasters using this special ability of yours. You're a bit of a heretic, aren't you?"

"Ah, Granny Pernia? What did she do? No idea. Sure, I saw the prophecy, but I didn't really bother to look too closely. I spotted something fishy and rushed over to report it. And look, hasn't the prophecy changed? That's why you can't take it at face value."

"Oh? No wonder the Ryder family distanced themselves from you. You've utterly abandoned their teachings."

Colin's words carried a hint of pity, as though lamenting Charles' squandered gift.

"Tch. I don't get why they cling to this so-called ability. Glimpsing a few images and treating them as gospel? Sure, they always come true, but I think it's just them steering events toward that outcome. It's less about foreseeing the future and more about being trapped in a box." Charles shook his head, his tone filled with exasperation.

"My friend once said, if you blindly trust glimpses of the future, you might as well let someone swindle you out of your life savings," he added thoughtfully.

"Looks like you've truly wasted your talent."

"No, no. If it weren't for this ability, I wouldn't even know about this mess. Then I couldn't rush in to save my captain and professor—and negotiate for a raise." Charles shrugged nonchalantly, utterly unfazed by Colin's droning remarks.

"I'm afraid you won't get that chance. Do you think I've been chatting with you for fun? What do you think I've been doing this whole time?" Colin's tone finally betrayed a ripple of emotion. Laughter and contempt replaced his earlier indifference.

Though he had previously been immobilized within the distorted space like Sieg and Hugin, the shadowy aura around Colin now began to fade, revealing a purple, seemingly "real" body.

"Only those who adapt to the void can truly survive. I wonder how much longer your captain and Mr. Sieg will take to adjust to this incomplete Voidgate? It's nothing but an imperfect replica of true void, and yet..."

The purple humanoid glanced at Sieg and Hugin, who remained in their distorted states. Despite its featureless face, its posture left its mockery and scorn evident.

"Leaving earlier would've been your best choice. I gave you a chance—or perhaps, if you'd triggered the Destroyer just now, you might've had a shot at killing me. But since you wasted time chatting, you'll pay for your decision."

The distorted space began to spread.

Unstable, static-like distortion crept along the charred walls toward Charles. Wherever it passed, reality unraveled, transforming into the same warped state that trapped Hugin and Sieg.

"Don't you think I was making my preparations while you were making yours, too?" Charles' voice rang out again after a pause.

"What a pity—I can only use this power once," Charles murmured. In his hand, the reversed Wheel of Fortune shattered, releasing a unique energy. An invisible pulse swept through the entire space.

"What's this? The power of the God of Order? Are you a priest?" Colin's voice betrayed genuine shock, his calm shattered by the strange energy emanating from the card.

"Don't joke like that. I only worship the God of Light and the Lady of the Night. I'm super devout—don't slander me." Charles frowned deeply. He looked strained, though his words remained as irreverent and flippant as ever.

Colin no longer cared to manipulate his opponent with words. The divine power released by Charles' card seemed to have altered something fundamental. Though its effect was limited, something had clearly happened to the two individuals present.

"Boom!" A tremendous force slammed Colin into the ground. Clawed, scaled hands tore into Colin's reconstructed purple form, rending its body into fragments. The once-immovable entity was overwhelmed and shredded by raw violence.

Thick smoke drifted along the corridor, coalescing into a solid form beside Charles—Hugin, clad in his fearsome smoke demon armor. He now stood between Charles and Colin, shielding Charles from potential attacks.

"Uh, the Professor looks terrifying. Captain, aren't you going to help him?" Charles instinctively shrank behind Hugin, his legs trembling uncontrollably in the presence of the smoke demon.

Charles hesitated as he fixed his gaze on the rampaging Sieg, who was violently dismantling Colin's body. He hadn't expected the professor to be so fearsome—perhaps he should tread lightly around him in the future.

Glancing briefly at the trembling Charles, Hugin called out, "What happened to your earlier courage? There's no need for me to interfere. I'd only hinder Sieg. If I don't protect a weakling like you, your contribution will likely be negated when the enemy takes you hostage."

"Wait—so you admit I made a contribution?" Charles' focus was oddly misplaced.

"Yes, but I'd like to ask—do you still have the contract you signed with me and the professor? The one bound by the God of Order? I recall our rule was that any deliberate violation of the contract would result in..."

Hugin trailed off meaningfully.

"Haha, Captain, how did you know that I could strip away the power imbued in the God of Order's contracts and crudely unleash it through my tarot cards? Haha, thank you for your appreciation! That's the greatest reward for me—nothing else is needed."

Charles was drenched in cold sweat. Why was it that every time he started showing off, the Captain and the Professor could always find something that made his plans fall apart? Was he being targeted by some unknown God of Fate?

Meanwhile, on Sieg's end, the fight was nearing its conclusion. Sieg's draconic traits brought him increasingly overwhelming power—sharper claws, stronger muscles, and an even more ferocious aura.

He relentlessly tore apart the purple humanoid shell that Colin had called a "vessel," using pure violence and brute strength to crush, obliterate, and destroy its tough and resilient form.

By the time the head was all that was left of the vessel, Sieg was fully covered in red scales. His razor-sharp claws held the purple shell's head tightly as blinding light and searing heat began to emanate from his mouth once more.

"Boom!" The dragon's breath erupted, unleashing an explosion even more intense than before. Even the flames were extinguished by the violent shockwave, leaving only light and heat that ravaged everything around them.

Hugin raised his shield to block the aftermath of the breath attack. Even so, he had to anchor himself with nails formed from smoke to avoid being bowled over. The shockwave still pushed him back nearly ten meters, leaving a jagged trail on the ground.

Where Sieg stood, the corridor had completely collapsed. The surrounding superheated semi-liquid material undulated weakly—brick and soil reduced to ruins by the extreme heat.

A massive crater appeared in the hallway. Sieg's hand, which had been gripping Colin's head, was now empty. The tremendous power had vaporized the head entirely, leaving not even a trace of the wreckage that might have fallen and struck Sieg.

It was clear that Colin's vessel had been utterly destroyed—completely annihilated. The flames were scattered elsewhere but still lingered at the explosion's point of origin. Sieg's clothes were incinerated by the flames, and tiny embers danced around him.

"Is it over?" Charles peeked out from behind Hugin expectantly.

"I'm not sure. No, wait—it's not over. Sieg, stay alert!" Hugin frowned deeply. Based on Colin's earlier words, destroying the vessel would cause it pain and damage. With Colin's vessel entirely obliterated, it should have been completely killed.

But... could their enemy's words be trusted? Of course not. Smoke quietly filled the space, observing every subtle movement in the collapsing hallway, akin to how Wang Yu would monitor his surroundings.

Just as Charles asked his question, part of the smoke disappeared—not scattered but entirely obliterated. Something capable of destroying matter was moving through the hallway, consuming and annihilating the smoke.

"Run!" Grabbing Charles, Hugin rushed forward at full speed. The trail of destroyed smoke formed a path, revealing the trajectory of this mysterious entity. It was targeting Charles.

Hugin dodged desperately as the sudden attacker revealed itself—a pitch-black chain extending from a void-like rift in the air. The chain relentlessly pursued Charles, destroying everything in its path.

"Because of you, I'll have to abandon this vessel and identity. You shall pay a price for this. You wish to become a defier of fate, Ryder whelp? Face a future where you cease to exist. I shall erase you completely." A hollow voice resounded. It didn't sound like Colin, but could hardly be anyone else.

"That thing's revealing its true form. It's a void creature, but there's no record of anything like it..." Hugin caught sight of a flash of something within the void rift—a massive eye.

In place of a pupil was a bottomless abyss, a pitch-black pit that gave anyone who gazed upon it the illusion of falling.

The chain accelerated as the void rift expanded, allowing a colossal entity that existed in the boundary between reality and the void to force its way into the material world. It was close to succeeding.

The void rift continued to widen further. If not for the Material Stabilization Spears embedded all around the Abyssal Depths, the process would have been even faster. Even so, the creature's emergence was imminent.

Hugin's evasive maneuvers grew increasingly strained as the creature approached the material world. The chains grew taut.

"Sieg!" Hugin shouted. This creature couldn't be allowed to manifest. The resulting damage would be catastrophic for the capital.

Sieg's reply came in the form of a deafening dragon roar. The massive head of a red dragon burst through the walls and floor of the hallway and bit down on the chain.

The powerful muscles of the red dragon tore through layers of earth and rock above the corridor, dragging the chain and the unknown entity behind it toward the surface.

Hugin and Charles clung to Sieg's dragon form as they were carried upward in a frenzied ascent.

The corridor was too confined. Such a battle would need a larger arena.

The ground shattered as the mighty red dragon, its physical strength pushed to the limit, destroyed everything between itself and the surface. With the chain linked to the unknown void entity in tow, Sieg burst through the surface of the lake and took to the sky under Wang Yu and Avia's watchful eyes.