CHAPTER 155: THE CORRUPTION OF AURELIUS

[Leif’s POV—Office—Later]

"...Are you saying the Devil has woken up?" Eryndor’s voice cracked the room like a whip.

I nodded once—slowly. "He has. And we need your powers now more than ever."

Eryndor’s expression darkened. Beside him, Thalion folded his arms, brows drawn tight as he thought.

"I will send word to the magician in the Elf Village at once," Thalion said. "If anyone can stabilize the northern barrier, it’s him."

"Thank you," I murmured.

Before I could say more—SLAM—!!

The door flew open so hard the walls rattled.

"That isn’t enough," the spirit goddess snapped, stepping inside like a storm in human form. Her eyes blazed brighter than her usual annoyed glow.

"We need more than defenses. We need a way to end the Devil permanently."

The room fell silent.

Daren swallowed audibly. "End him... permanently? But how? We have no records of the previous Seraph King. How do we even begin—?"

The goddess’s gaze sharpened. "That is exactly what we must uncover, because the first Seraph King did defeat him once."

"But we don’t know how," Daren insisted. "There are no texts, no scrolls, not even fragmented legends—nothing survived."

A beat of silence.

Then—A voice from the doorway answered:

"We have the record."

We all turned.

Alvar stepped in, boots echoing heavily against the stone floor. His expression was carved in cold determination, but his eyes—they flicked to me first. Always to me.

"What do you mean?" Eryndor asked.

"The Holy Temple," Alvar said quietly. "It keeps the Seraph Chronicles. The original ones. The ones written by the temple priests during the first war."

My breath caught.

"The Holy Temple... in Aurelius?" I whispered.

He nodded.

"Yes. If there’s any knowledge about how the previous Seraph King defeated the Devil..." His gaze swept across the room, landing on me again. "...it will be there."

The goddess crossed her arms. "That place is crawling with corruption now. The Devil’s influence has likely already seeped into half its wards."

"Which means," Thalion said grimly, "once we enter, there may be no turning back."

The room tightened with tension—like the air itself knew we were about to step into the heart of danger.

I straightened, swallowing the fear scratching at my ribs.

"Then we go," I said. "We head to Aurelius, to the Holy Temple, and we find the truth."

Alvar’s jaw clenched—but he nodded.

"We’ll go with you."

Eryndor nodded as well, one hand on his sword. Thalion murmured a quiet spell, blue light sparking between his fingers. Daren straightened his posture, face hardening with resolve.

The goddess closed her eyes, exhaled slowly, and whispered:

"Very well... Then prepare yourselves, because the Devil won’t let us step foot in that city without a fight."

I looked around the room—at the allies beside me, at the husband who was trying so hard not to tremble, and at the goddess whose glow flickered with warning.

This was it.

The beginning.

"We leave at dawn," I said.

And for the first time since awakening Luminael—everyone nodded without hesitation.

We were going back to the capital.

Back to Aurelius. Back to the place where the Devil waited. Back to the heart of the war.

***

[Later—Outside the Thorenvald Estate—Night]

The night was cold.

Colder than usual. As if the world itself knew we were leaving not for a journey...but for a war.

Mother stood in front of me, hands trembling slightly, though her smile tried to hide it. "You’ll come back... right?"

Her voice was soft—too soft—like she was afraid the wind might steal it away.

I didn’t hesitate. I smiled brightly, the way Leif always would. "Of course."

Her shoulders relaxed in relief, and she pulled me into a hug—warm, gentle, and familiar. And my smile faded instantly against her shoulder.

Because I wouldn’t be coming back.

But her real son would.

Father stepped forward next, expression serious, eyes more emotional than he would ever admit.

"I don’t know why you were chosen," he said quietly. "But... all the best, my son."

I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat. "Thank you, Father."

Then I turned to Alvar’s mother. She didn’t say anything at first—just looked at me with that same soft, knowing smile she always had.

"We’ll be waiting," she whispered.

Something inside me twisted painfully. I nodded again—because if I spoke, I might break.

Zephyy landed beside us, wings shimmering under the moonlight.

"MASTER, SHALL WE DEPART?" he chirped—loud, cheerful, and blissfully unaware of the weight crushing my chest.

"Yes..." I murmured. "Let’s go."

I climbed onto his back, settling into the curve of his warm fur, and felt Alvar mount behind me.

His arms instantly wrapped around my waist—tight. Possessive. As if letting go even once would mean losing me forever.

Zephyy’s wings unfurled—FWOOSH—And we soared into the night sky.

The estate grew smaller beneath us. The stars stretched overhead. The wind whipped past—

And then Alvar’s arms tightened.Hard.

"This won’t be the end of us," he whispered into my ear.

A vow.A plea.A refusal to accept fate.

I looked back at him.

His eyes—sharp, dark, filled with unwavering determination—never left mine.

Then he said it.

Slow.Firm.Breaking and rebuilding something inside me.

"I have decided... to follow you." A breath. "To your world."

For a few seconds—everything in me stilled.

A wish I’d buried deep—a selfish, impossible wish—rose painfully to the surface.

If only he could. If only destiny wasn’t so cruel. If only love could bend worlds.

But the truth was—This was the end of us. Or at least... the end of this version of us.

I turned away, staring into the vast darkness ahead.

I didn’t say anything.Couldn’t say anything.

Because if I opened my mouth—I wasn’t sure whether words or tears would come out.

But as Zephyy flew on and Alvar’s arms stayed locked around me—his heartbeat steady at my back—a fragile, dangerous hope flickered inside me.

Maybe...just maybe...he really would find a way to follow me.

***

[Later— Approaching Aurelius — Night Sky]

The closer we flew to the capital, the colder the air became.

Not normal cold.Not weather cold.

A wrong cold.

A cold that felt like fingers trailing down my spine, like breath at the back of my neck, like the shadows themselves were watching us.

Zephyy’s wings hesitated mid-flap.

"Master..." he whispered, voice uncharacteristically small. "Something is... off."

I lifted my head.

And my stomach churned.

"Aurelius..." I breathed. "It looks... different."

Alvar leaned forward slightly, his chest pressing firmly against my back as he stared. It wasn’t the same city anymore.

The golden rooftops and peaceful lantern-lit streets were gone. Swallowed. Half the city—entire districts—were drowned in darkness.

Not simple shadows.

A moving darkness.

Tendrils of black fog crawled between buildings. Streets pulsed with red veins like open wounds. The once-blue barrier around the palace flickered sickly purple.

Alvar inhaled sharply. "Leif."

I nodded, voice tight. "I see it."

Zephyy whimpered. "The corruption is... spreading so fast. Faster than any natural decay. Faster than anything divine."

We descended slightly, enough to see the outskirts.

People staggered through the streets—but they weren’t people anymore.

Their eyes were hollow.Faces pale.Limbs twitching like marionettes pulled by invisible strings.

I felt bile rise in my throat. "Are they... alive?"

"Not in the way you hope," Luminael whispered from my side, voice low and trembling."They’re corrupted. Souls tainted. Bodies kept moving by the Devil’s influence."

A man jerked suddenly—his head snapping toward the sky. Straight at us. His jaw unhinged—And he shrieked.

A long, distorted cry that tore through the air like broken glass.

Dozens of other corrupted souls snapped their heads upward in unison.

Alvar stiffened behind me. "Leif... they sensed us."

"What do we do??" Zephyy panicked, wings beating faster.

Before I could answer—

SHLIIIIIIP—!!!

Black mist shot upward like spears, reaching toward us as if the city itself wanted to drag us down.

Zephyy yelped, swerving sharply. "MASTER—THEY’RE TRYING TO GRAB US—!!"

The dark tendrils stretched higher, faster, writhing with hunger.

"Fly higher!" Alvar barked.

"YES!!" Zephyy wailed.

But the corruption was too fast.

It surged up like a tidal wave—and for a moment, I felt it.

A pull.

A whisper brushing against my consciousness.

—seRaPh...coMe...FinALLy...

"Alvar—! Something’s calling me—!"

His arms wrapped around me instantly. "Don’t listen," he hissed. "Leif—listen to MY voice, not his."

Luminael blazed angrily. "Master! Push him out! That’s the Devil’s will—he can sense your awakening!"

Zephyy shrieked, beating his wings with frantic bursts of light.

"I CAN’T OUTFLY THIS—!!"

"You don’t have to!" I shouted, raising a glowing hand. "I’ll stop it—"

"No!" Alvar grabbed my wrist. "Your powers aren’t stable enough—!"

"They’re stable enough for THIS!"

Golden energy burst from my palm, meeting the rising tendrils of corruption—BOOOOOOM—!!!

Light and darkness clashed in midair, shockwaves rippling through the sky.

The tendrils recoiled—then twisted into monstrous shapes.Distorted arms.Clawed shadows.

Reaching again.

Alvar tightened his grip on me, voice shaking with fury. "This... this entire city is turning into his nest."

Zephyy trembled.

"If we’re this far and the corruption is already this strong... Master... half of Aurelius may truly be gone."

I swallowed.

Hard.

Because I felt it too.

A pulsing throb beneath the city.A heartbeat.Slow.Dark.Awakened.

"...He’s down there," I whispered. "The Devil. He’s awake. Fully awake."

Alvar leaned closer, his breath warm but tense against my ear.

"Then we must reach the Holy Temple," he said, voice low and urgent.

A new tendril lashed upward. Zephyy flapped with a desperate burst of speed, barely dodging.

"MASTER—WE NEED TO MOVE NOW—!"

Alvar grabbed my hand, squeezing hard.

"Leif," he murmured, "whatever happens next... don’t let go of me."

"I won’t," I whispered.

Even though I knew—The Devil was already reaching for me.

And Aurelius...was dying below us.