Hero of Darkness

Chapter 1202: The Dramatic Entrance

The ceremony had reached a pivotal moment as the devotees across the empire saw the glimpses of some of the most important and revered figures, escorted by semi-saint rank warriors, slowly marching towards the main ceremonial grounds.

Millions of people across the Abyss Empire cheered as they saw the monumental and revered figures showing up their faces to the general masses. All of them were considered the bastions of pure devotion and a mere glimpse of their face was considered sacred among the worshippers.

Surrounded by the Divine Cadre of the Darkborne, Morrigan Morningstar stood proudly as their floating vehicle finally reached the epicenter of the ceremonial grounds.

All the Chapters and their templars, standing in order while creating divided rows and lines, surrounded the spherical platform that spanned 100 meters in diameter, as a few stone columns arose at the borders, while a deep and hollow pit at the very center descended.

Step!

Step!

Morrigan ventured towards the center while all the members of the cadre walked towards the stone columns while chanting with a muffled tone.

Soon, they placed the censers on the ground, and from all of their space rings, appeared big golden chalices, engraved with ornate designs.

And from the golden chalices, they poured dark red blood.

”Ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est. Congregavit nos in unum Deus Tenebris amor.

Exultemus, et in ipso iucundemur.” chanted Morrigan, the High Priestess.

Thud!

Thud!

All the Templars and the devotees of God of Darkness instantly knelt where they stood.

The blood flowing at the feet of the columns created its own path towards the deep pit at the center, and despite the time, the golden chalices kept pouring it out incessantly as if the blood itself had no end to it.

To the outside world, it may appear disturbing, extreme, or some could say... heretical.

But to the people of the Abyss Empire... it was pure devotion.

As a matter of fact, the members of the Divine Cadre of Darkborne were the very people who met the supposed savior on the day the vampire king introduced him to the High Priestess of the cult when he was brought to the real Abyss Empire first time.

They had seen their hero. And kept their silence till this very day, so that his arrival wouldn’t be exposed prematurely.

”You all may rise.” spoke the priestess, her authoritative tone echoed throughout the empire through the broadcasts they were doing, the same way it was done in the Rakos Empire.

The Doom Templars, in their armors with their weapons held in hand, stood proudly but also disciplined.

The only group that hadn’t knelt so far in the southern corner of the grounds was not part of the cult.

It was the one section where the top officials of the Senate and the envoy, along with the members of the Imperial Family, were seated under pavilions as honorary guests.

”Before we meet our lord... There are some people that I must introduce to you all.” said Morrigan with a stern tone.

As she spoke, the blood collected at the bottom of the pit started rising upward and creating patterns akin to magic formations.

These formations detached themselves from the pit and started floating on their own in the air, and soon, glimmered with a pitch-black hue.

HMMMM!!

HMMMM!!

The humming sound resounded in the ceremonial grounds as billions of people witnessed what was happening from wherever part of the empire they stood.

Shing!

Finally, the glimmering formations shot forth bright white light that flashed and almost blinded everyone.

And 12 new figures appeared in front of Morrigan, standing tall and proud, their visage brimming with an unparalleled, mighty aura that even the Chapter Masters among the attendees found threatening.

Any great warrior who has survived countless battles and annals of time develops a sixth sense where they can gauge the strength of a person standing next to them.

And these seasoned warriors were instantly alerted as soon as they saw these figures.

Omega, Rudra, Blackwall, Jugram, Ceril, Armin, Ronin, Oliver, Tobias, and the last three subordinates created so far faced the gazes of the entire Abyss Empire, which presently had a population of 3.6 billion citizens.

One after another, they started revealing their names, their class, and the element of nature they controlled. And finally... their Saint Rank.

The repertoire was so extensive and mind-boggling that even the Doom Templars understood that the man soon to arrive... didn’t actually need them to fight even a single one of his battles.

With the number of 5th-stage saints alone in their ranks, and even the weakest ones being 4th-stage saints... they were a force that could easily rival the Cult of Darkborne, the Senate of the Republic, and the Imperial Family.

And if they ever fought against any of these factions... There was an 80% chance that these guys would win the battle regardless of the millions of warriors all these factions had.

This was not just a wake-up call, but a blatant warning.

BOOM!!

One after another, they started releasing bits of their strength, just to let everyone know that none of them was lying about their ranks.

The latest update was that even Armin was now a 5th-stage saint after his recent breakthrough.

Their creator had already given them the cores from the members of the Hero of Time’s party many months ago. And everyone had already made a significant breakthrough.

Armin was the last one remaining, and just a couple of days ago, he had finally become a 5th-stage saint.

But this was not the end... as one more entity made an even grander appearance.

BANG!!

This time, the light turned dark blue as a figure of a woman appeared in front of the anticipating eyes of the people.

And instantly, many people were shocked and started chattering amongst themselves.

”The Hero of Darkness is a woman this time? Why didn’t they reveal that in the first place?

She’s even clad in those black robes.” spoke one of the Chapter Masters.

Kassandra Mikealson, the Raven Sorceress, had made her appearance, and her majestic aura encapsulated both the sight and the hearts of everyone present in the ceremonial grounds.

However, Kassandra didn’t waste time; her eyes looked over the crowd and acknowledged the billions of gazes as she spoke with a sharp and precise voice.

”I am named Kassandra Mikealson. I am a 5th-stage battlemage with a unique class called Deity Summoner.” she revealed.

”Whoa! What’s that? A deity summoner? Isn’t that one of those classes mentioned only in books of legends?

Can the new chosen hero really summon deities?” asked one of the Princes from the imperial faction.

”However...”

Her cold tone pierced the air, and the audience became silent again.

”I am here to introduce you all to my beloved... who happens to be the Hero of Darkness you all have been eagerly waiting for.” elaborated Kassandra.

And the very next moment...

RUMBLE!!

The sky suddenly darkened as if night had come out of nowhere.

Tremble!

The ground in the whole headquarters of the Cult of Darkborne started shaking as if an earthquake was imminent.

BOOM!!

And finally, a black and blue lightning bolt shot down from the sky and instantly struck the platform.

BANG!!

The entire headquarters trembled from the shockwaves as the ear-deafening thundering roar of the sky became a beacon for a man’s arrival.

A tall and ripped man, his body covered in armor and weapons from head to toe, made his existence known to the entire Abyss Empire.

On the left side, Vidarr, the legendary rank battleaxe, floated, and on his right, Sigrun, the legendary rank shield, floated while releasing their immense pressure.

The man himself had a pitch-black greatsword called Lucifer in his left hand, while an Ancient rank katana called Muramasa in his right.

On his back was a legendary rank spear called Gungnir, and he also wore the legendary rank Beowolf Gauntlets and Boots.

The pressure from these legendary and ancient rank weapons alone was simply petrifying to everyone present, regardless of what their rank or position of power in the empire was.

”Greetings, everyone. My name is Kahn Salvatore,” said Kahn confidently.

The Man, The Myth, The Legend... had finally arrived.

His charming and stoic appearance enchanted everyone at first glance.

Though he seemed fairly young to many, there was a distinct, mysterious aura about him.

Many warriors and saints, regardless of their faction, could tell that the aura felt just by looking at Kahn was a form of power, authority, and most importantly... Irrefutable Dominance.

”The new Hero of Darkness.”