Kai died a miserable death, his existence vanquishing with one blow.
With Black and Kai sharing the same Source, true death had already become a complex and foreign concept for him.
As long as one of them survived, Kai would not die.
However, at this moment, there was no Black. The Item didn't even exist, much less needed to be said about Kai surviving the death using the shared Source.
Biokinesis had its limit as well. How could a mere Skill bring Kai back to life when absolutely nothing of him left anymore?!
…
With the Contestant gone, the Item couldn't exist, either.
Under the silent gaze of Black Ghost, the Orochimaru he held between his left hand's fingers, blurred before disappearing altogether. It was as if some greater mystery had just decided to erase him from the world on a whim.
The Jaeger, Striker Eureka, and the pilot, Rintaro Okabe, also ceased to exist.
Petyr Baelish let out a sigh as the titanic phantom behind him melted him into the air. He, too, followed the footsteps, blurring out of the sight.
Cersei fared the worst.
Crying tears of blood, she pounced in the 12th-floor Contestant's direction like a shadowy wraith. Neither the distance nor the limitations of her magical existence could stop her.
It took her a fraction of a moment. Just that much…
It was like she had walked out of the unseen shadows and stood next to Black Ghost, shocking the living breath out of him.
She lunged at him, her Haki tearing through the world.
Alas!
She vanished.
…
"Whoa…" Black Ghost mumbled, realizing he had stepped back just now. "These bugs were persistent… The Supreme was something, yeah?
"It's like the guy is dying a slow death, moment by moment. When did Items begin lasting after a Contestant's death? Tch! Anyway…"
Suddenly, Black Ghost, the Mad Commander of the Millennial Magical Alliance, frowned.
He felt an itch on his left cheek.
Then the itch intensified, making him wince.
He lifted his hand and touched the flesh, and smelled the awful, nauseating odor.
"Did she…?" A chill ran down Black Ghost's spine. "Did she touch me?! How?! No… It can't be… No one has ever touched me!! Me!!! Me!!!!!!!!!!!
"YOU CAN'T TOUCH ME!!!! MEEEEEEEEEEEE MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!! AHAAAAHA HAHAHA HAA AAA AAAA AAA!!!!! DAJFFEHFHAHFE UFAJFHAFHAH FAEFADO FADKfhadifhvdih adfhdfdfhd iofdhafadDAAHF DAHFADHFDH!"
It happened, then.
…
It was as if the obliterated Cursed Vault of Ice couldn't handle the Black Ghost's madness, and shook.
Then, slowly, a bloody redness took over everything. It encompassed all corners, chunks of ice, broken mountains, the Mad Commander, and even the cracks running down the Bounded Field's skies.
This bloodiness was solid at first.
Then, little by little, it became liquid, everything melting onto itself.
It felt like someone had put the entire world over a volcano, liquidizing all things that existed within the Vault.
In this Blood World, nothing else remained but a sheet of blood ocean.
Then, like Kai, it ceased to exist as well.
*
*
Icy Corridor,
Outside the Vault of Ice
Cersei licked the blood clean off Kai's finger as his eyes snapped open.
Kai hadn't even entered the Vault when his Lucky Intuitions had begun screaming bloody murder. Whatever, or whoever, was behind those doors, could really pose a threat to his life, he had realized.
His life!
Giving caution to the wind, as was his nature when it came to the matter of Survival, Kai prioritized holding off his bored thoughts.
Worse came to worse, he would just abandon Black.
Fuck DEATH, then!
Fuck Timeline!!
If he lived and went through the things as per his choice and pace, he would get Black back sooner or later, Kai knew.
Thus, Kai had used the ACT he had put on the sidelines for a long time.
Blood Prophecy!
The Icy Corridor was practically within the Bounded Field but wasn't actually the Cursed Vault of Ice. It kept the Timeline's gaze from falling on him, giving Kai ample time and private space to use his trump cards.
Ever since Kai had glimpsed the shadow of Hastur in his Blood World, he had stopped using the ACT. Then, he had even tried getting prophecies, by letting the people around him use it.
However, the results had failed to appease him as they were subjected to just too many deviations.
Then, when Kai had learned that an Old One desired the Book, he had completely given up on it.
If, in those times, Kai had known a way to discard Cersei's tale, he would have already done so.
Fortunately, the Book provided no such option.
Only recently, after the matter of Soul King was resolved, Kai had realized the Yellow King had no interest in the Book itself, but in the piece of a Half-Deep One, hiding within the Item.
It was the concepts on the same level that had caught Hastur's attention.
With the problem uprooted, and the Book becoming a Grimoire, changing its very nature, Kai had already been looking forward to using the ACT once more.
It was especially so when he knew all ACTs had undergone qualitative change.
Petyr's ACT let him use Titan's Buff in reverse. Orochimaru's ACT let him use the Impure World Reincarnations without letting Kai face the burden of their Mana, Breath, and Life Consumption.
But, never in his wildest dreams, Kai could have imagined that Blood Prophecy would end up becoming one of the greatest trump cards.
Kai stared at Cersei with Calm, his reptilian, hazel eyes reflecting nothing.
"How was it?" Cersei asked, smiling.
Kai just stared at her… in sheer disbelief.
Within him, the Ad Infinitum began processing all that Kai had seen and more.
Hmm… Incredible… Kai mused on the results. It was so clear and thorough. Unlike before, I wasn't seeing myself from a third-person perspective, but I became the Blood World's Kai… until my death. Even then I kept seeing the events… Incredible, indeed.
However, despite all the things Kai had quantified related to the Blood Prophecy, one thing shocked him the most.
I could see through the enemy… Kai realized, licking his lips. I could … hear? Hmm… feel his thoughts…
Click!
Cersei snapped her fingers, almost giggling.
Kai again brought his attention to her, the scene of that last, shadowy touch on Black Ghost's face sending a chill down his spine.
"What…"
Kai didn't give her a chance to speak. He stepped forward, and before the Shadow Queen could blush, he kissed her.
…
When Kai backed away, Cersei's cheeks had gained the color of cherries.
"You still blush," he said, smiling. "Even after all this time."
Cersei's green eyes fell, knowing not where to look.
Kai felt amused.
"Come." Taking out Murasame and Sounga, Kai walked toward the huge doors leading to the Vault of Ice. "Let's take care of this nonsense."
Cersei looked at Kai's tall back as she walked behind him, her heart pounding.
The sudden kiss… She was worried. "You… You didn't say. Will we…"
"Hmm?" Kai looked over his shoulder, smiling. "Will we what?"
Cersei snorted. "Will we survive?"
Kai remembered the blow that had vanquished him in the Blood World and… burst out with a peal of laughter.
"Hahahaha!" He resumed the walk, his steps slow, but firm. "Of course. Not only Survive, Cersei. We will Thrive! You know why?"
Cersei caught up with him with hurried steps and looked into his eyes. They were so demonic, she observed. And yet, gentle. "Why?" she asked.
Kai kicked the doors, shaking the entire Corridor.
BOOMMMMMMM!
"Because… I have you."
**************
AN: Over 60 Chapters ahead of Webnovel are on Patre0n, excluding exclusive Side Stories. With each Tier, you will get ALL Monthly Uploads as well. You can also access all the backlog chapters, with Images and Gifs, enriching your reading experience, while simultaneously supporting the work.
Link: https://www.patreon.com/c/droopyauthor
100 Power Stones: +1 Bonus Chapter