Chapter 151: We Watch

"I wish to offer the head of a patriarch—not just anyone, but the Patriarch of an ancient family," Aaron revealed, staring straight at Raze through the heavy shadows.

​"An Ancient family? You aren’t even strong enough to take on their chosen Knights, so how exactly do you plan to take on the head of a house?" Raze muttered in a calm, dangerously measured tone.

​"I am not going after the established ancient families, but the fifth family," Aaron said, lowering his gaze slightly. "I don’t have any personal grievance with him, but his wife took away my eye. He will surely step forward to protect her when I come for my retribution."

​"Wife... so the time is now part of the galaxy... But are you truly confident you can defeat him?" Raze asked, his head tilting slightly forward.

​"I am ninety percent confident! If my plans go smoothly, I will return victorious."

​Raze stared down at him, his glowing red eyes under the deep hood narrowing slightly. After a few agonizing seconds of silence, he opened his mouth:

​"I despise the ancient families, so if you can actually bring me the head of a patriarch, I will forgive your catastrophic past mistakes... But if you fail, I will personally hunt you down and kill you, that is assuming you even manage to return alive." He fixed his sharp gaze onto Aaron:

"Now tell me... Why are you truly here?"

​"....?"

​Aaron remained dead silent for a moment, then slowly looked up at Raze. "I came to beg for your assistance, My Lord... Five powerful monsters will be enough for what I have set in motion," he admitted quickly.

​"I will grant you five SSS-Rank Monsters, but remember: the true power of those who claim the bloodline of an ancient family is not something a creature like you can fully comprehend. Your target might very well possess the strength to effortlessly wipe out these beasts."

​Aaron slammed his forehead back onto the cold stone ground: "I understand, Lord Raze. I have already crafted a secondary back-up plan specifically for that outcome."

​Raze slowly nodded. He raised his right hand and casually snapped his fingers. Instantly, five blinding spheres of crimson light materialized out of thin air in front of the throne. Standing trapped within the compressed spatial barriers of these energy balls were five distinct, terrifying monsters—every single one radiating the overwhelming aura of an SSS-Rank calamity.

​’He can effortlessly seal live SSS-Rank Monsters inside small energy orbs?!’ Angelina thought, completely frozen in shock.

​A single SSS-Rank Monster possessed enough destructive capability to single-handedly level an entire sprawling metropolis, yet she was staring at a man who held five of them as mere captive pets, using them as disposable slaves whenever he pleased.

​’Just how many of these abominations does he have trapped in the dark?’ she wondered, her mind reeling in terror.

​"Thank you, Lord Raze." Aaron carefully took the five floating spheres of light, binding them and, surprisingly, stowing them straight into his spatial storage. He then looked up at the looming figure before him.

​"Lord Raze... before I take my leave, do I have the profound honor of hearing a prophecy regarding this path I am about to walk?" he asked, placing his forehead on the ground once more.

​Raze remained motionless and silent for a long beat. Then, he raised his hand and snapped his fingers a second time.

​WHOOSH!!

​A sudden, fierce draft of cold wind swept through the massive factory hall. Floating above them, a glowing red card materialized out of thin air, drifting smoothly downward until it hovered right before Aaron.

​"Thank you, Lord Raze." Aaron knelt upright, reaching out his hand. The exact moment his fingers brushed against the smooth surface of the card, lines of glowing, blood-red text flared across its face:

​[When the throne of iron cracks from within, the Great Tyrant shall bleed into the soil, and the earth will choke upon his blood.]

​[In that hour, the sun turns to ash and the oceans boil to the edge of ruin.]

​[Yet as the world gasps its final breath, a new crown shall rise from the dust—not to rule the wreckage, but to reforge the light.]

​".....?!"

​Both Aaron and Angelina stared intently at the glowing words written as if in fresh blood, both of them left stunned into utter speechlessness.

​"This prophecy... it clearly means I am the new crown destined to rise from the dust and reforge the light!! Yes!" Aaron declared, a bright, manic smile breaking across his blood-stained face.

​"I merely reveal the prophecies as they are written; the way you choose to interpret them is entirely up to your own ambition... But always remember one fundamental truth: every single prophecy I utter inevitably comes to pass." Raze waved his gloved hand dismissively at them:

"Now leave my sight. You have exactly one month to accomplish this task... You already know what will happen to you if you fail."

​"I obey!"

​Aaron stood up to his feet, with Angelina hastily following his action. They both bowed deeply toward the iron throne, turned around, and walked away into the long dark corridor, closing the heavy iron door behind them.

​The moment the doors clicked shut, the cloaked woman standing behind the throne lowered her gaze and spoke softly: "The Ancient family patriarch he is referring to... isn’t that Asher?"

​"It is indeed Asher..." Raze replied, moving his fingers through the air. The crimson card he had just given to Aaron materialized directly between two of his fingers:

"But if Asher cannot even deal with a pathetic creature like Aaron, then he is nowhere near ready for what is truly coming for this world." He stared down at the glowing glyphs. "Though I am also deeply curious about the sequence of this particular prophecy."

​"Yes, it reveals an extraordinary number of significant events." The massive, rotund figure standing a few feet away agreed, giving a heavy nod.

​"That is precisely the concern... There will be a apocalyptic battle in the near future that will plunge this entire world into absolute darkness... As we always have, we shall watch the spectacle unfold from the shadows. But soon, the destined day will arrive when we no longer need to hide in the dark."

​Raze tightly clenched his fist, and the glowing red card instantly vanished into dust.

​"We watch."