The Extra's Rise
Chapter 808: Western Continent (4)

Chapter 808: Western Continent (4)

The royal plane cut through the evening sky with the smooth efficiency that only the finest magical engineering could provide. King Valen Ashbluff reclined in the luxurious cabin, his fingers absently swirling the remnants of golden tequila in his crystal glass. The soft glow of enchanted sconces bathed the private compartment in warm light, reflecting off the polished mahogany fixtures and the intricate royal insignia woven into the silk upholstery.

Beside him, Queen Camila Ashbluff rested her head against his shoulder, her auburn hair slightly disheveled from three exhausting days of border negotiations. Her green eyes held a delicate blend of diplomatic frustration and the bone-deep weariness that came from managing continental politics during wartime.

"The Northern Houses proved as intractable as we expected," Valen said without preamble, taking a measured sip of his drink. The negotiations had been a exercise in diplomatic futility—three days of circular arguments that satisfied no one and resolved nothing.

"General Rothschild continues pushing for territorial concessions we cannot afford to grant," Camila replied with a weary sigh. "While General Blackwater seems more interested in positioning himself for whatever comes after the war than actually preparing to fight it."

Valen’s grey eyes hardened with the cold determination that had unified the Western Continent under his rule. "They don’t understand that there may not be an ’after’ if we continue this pattern of delays and half-measures. Fear has paralyzed them when decisive action is what’s needed."

"Fear of the Savage Communion’s growing strength," Camila murmured, her voice carrying the weight of countless intelligence reports detailing cult expansion across their lands. _{f.r(e)e\webn.ovel.co\m}

The plane’s communication system chimed softly, indicating their approach to the capital. Through the enchanted windows, the lights of the royal city sprawled below them like scattered diamonds against dark velvet, the familiar sight of home doing little to ease the tension that had settled over both monarchs.

"At least the war preparations continue to advance," Camila said, attempting to inject some optimism into their increasingly grim assessment. "Jin’s progress has been exceptional. His engagement to the Maelkith girl has proven both personally fulfilling and politically advantageous."

"High Immortal-rank at their age," Valen agreed, genuine paternal pride breaking through his diplomatic composure. "Both Jin and Kali have achieved power levels that would have been considered impossible just a generation ago. Their combined strength will be crucial in the coming conflict."

"Kali has exceeded all expectations," Camila added with careful diplomatic language that couldn’t hide her growing respect for their son’s fiancée. "Her methods may be direct, but they’re undeniably effective."

The conversation lulled as both rulers gazed out at their approaching kingdom, each lost in contemplation of the challenges that awaited them. The weight of leadership during wartime pressed against their shoulders like a familiar burden that never truly lifted, a constant reminder of the millions of lives that depended on their decisions.

"The preparations are proceeding smoothly," Valen continued after a moment. "Our forces grow stronger each month, and the continental alliances are finally beginning to solidify. Soon, we’ll have the unified strength necessary to crush the cults permanently."

"And yet," Camila said quietly, her voice barely audible above the transport’s engines, "we still face the greatest threat of all."

The temperature in the cabin seemed to drop several degrees. Valen’s expression darkened, the casual warmth evaporating like morning mist under harsh sunlight. They both knew exactly what she meant—the one danger that overshadowed even the Savage Communion’s growing power.

"Rin," he said simply, the name carrying weight that spoke to sleepless nights and impossible decisions.

Camila’s fingers tightened on his arm, maternal anguish bleeding through her royal composure. "She’s growing stronger, Valen. The seals that contain her... they won’t hold much longer."

"I know." Valen’s voice carried the bitter acceptance of a man who had wrestled with an unsolvable problem for too long. "My own power was barely sufficient to create the containment barriers in the first place. As she continues to develop, the energy differential becomes increasingly unstable."

"How long?" Camila asked, though she already knew the answer would offer no comfort.

"Six months," Valen replied with clinical precision that couldn’t hide his underlying dread. "Perhaps less. Soon, she’ll reach the level where breaking free will no longer be a question of ’if,’ but ’when.’"

The royal transport began its descent toward the palace landing platforms, the familiar towers and spires of their ancestral home growing larger through the windows. Neither monarch took comfort in the sight—not when they knew what waited in the deepest, most heavily warded chambers beneath those ancient stones.

"The world cannot know," Camila whispered, voicing the fear that haunted their every waking moment. "If the other continental rulers discovered what we’re hiding..."

"They would unite against us immediately," Valen finished grimly.

"She’s our daughter," Camila said desperately, tears threatening to spill from eyes that had witnessed too much loss already.

"She WAS our daughter," Valen corrected with brutal finality that made his wife flinch. "What she’s becoming... it’s not human anymore, Camila. The power that’s been growing inside her, feeding on itself, amplifying beyond all natural limits—that’s not our child. That’s a weapon capable of destroying continents."

"There has to be another way," Camila pleaded, clinging to hope with the desperation of a mother watching her child slip away. "Some solution that doesn’t require..."

"What?" Valen’s voice cracked like a whip, his warrior’s temperament bleeding through diplomatic control. "What solution exists for containing power that will soon eclipse my own? What prison could hold someone capable of reshaping reality through sheer force of will?"

"I don’t know," Camila admitted, her voice breaking slightly. "But I can’t accept that killing her is our only option."

Valen’s expression softened marginally, paternal love warring with the cold pragmatism that had kept their kingdom intact through two decades of increasingly deadly threats. "Neither can I," he said quietly. "But we may not have a choice. Jin is our heir, our continent’s future. I will not risk his life, or the lives of our people, for someone who is already lost to us."

"Lost according to projections that might be wrong," Camila said with fading hope. "What if there are containment methods we haven’t considered? What if someone exists with the power to help us find another solution?"

"Who?" Valen asked, though his tone suggested he already knew no such person existed. "What individual possesses the strength necessary to contain or redirect power of that magnitude?"

Before Camila could respond, Valen’s enhanced senses suddenly snapped to attention, his entire body going rigid with alertness that spoke to decades of surviving in a world where political miscalculation meant death. The casual conversation died as something immense pressed against the boundaries of his perception, a presence so overwhelming it made his carefully maintained mental shields strain under the pressure.

"Someone extraordinarily powerful is in the palace," he said quietly, setting down his glass with careful precision that spoke to suddenly heightened danger awareness.

Camila frowned, her own considerable magical abilities reaching out to assess the situation developing below them. "One of the generals arriving for unscheduled negotiations?"

"No," Valen’s voice carried growing wonder mixed with genuine disbelief. "Much stronger than any of them. Stronger than anyone I’ve encountered in recent memory."

The presence continued to build, layer upon layer of controlled power that spoke to capabilities far beyond anything the Western Continent had seen in living memory. It was like sensing the sun descending to earth—impossible to ignore and fundamentally unsettling in its implications for the established order.

"The Axe King launching some kind of direct assault?" Camila asked with rising alarm, her mind immediately jumping to worst-case scenarios involving cult infiltration of their capital city.

"Far stronger than him," Valen breathed, his warrior instincts automatically cataloging the approaching power while his analytical mind struggled to process what his enhanced senses were detecting.

And then recognition dawned like lightning splitting a dark sky, bringing with it memories of a stubborn black-haired boy who had nearly passed impossible trials through sheer determination alone.

"Arthur Nightingale," Valen said with something approaching reverence. "That remarkable young man who refused to accept defeat even when facing challenges far beyond his capabilities."

The royal plane completed its final approach to the palace landing platforms, the city lights now blazingly bright as they prepared to touch down. Camila gasped as the full weight of the approaching presence finally registered on her consciousness, her enhanced senses struggling to process power levels that shouldn’t exist in someone so young.

"This strength," she whispered in awe. "How is such growth possible in just six years?"

"I don’t know," Valen admitted, his voice carrying genuine wonder at what Arthur had apparently become during his absence. "But his return might change everything we thought we knew about the problems facing our continent."

The transport settled onto the landing platform with practiced precision, magical stabilizers ensuring smooth arrival despite the tremendous energies swirling through the area. Through the cabin windows, they could see the familiar architecture of their ancestral home, now serving as backdrop to a reunion that could reshape their kingdom’s future in ways neither monarch could predict.

"He’s here," Valen said unnecessarily, his voice carrying complex emotions that ranged from genuine pleasure at seeing an old friend to deep apprehension about what this meeting might mean for their carefully guarded secrets.

Camila straightened her formal attire, adopting the regal bearing expected of a queen even as her heart raced with possibility and fear. "The boy who impressed you so greatly years ago."

"Has returned as something approaching a force of nature," Valen finished, rising from his seat as the transport’s doors prepared to open. "Whatever Arthur Nightingale has become, our kingdom will never be the same."

The reunion was about to begin, and neither ruler could predict whether it would bring salvation or catastrophe to the secrets they had guarded so carefully.