u/Echidna_The_Witch

As her family hugs her creating a happy scene, something feels... off.

They themselves do not even realize it as black liquid starts pouring out of their ears, mouth, nose and eyes. Soon enough they are entirely consumed by the black.

"Yes... together forever."

She looks towards the others with a dark disappointed glance

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"So this is it? What you thought would be enough to stop the natural order of things? The Void consumes all. That is it's nature and our duty is to serve as kindling."

With a single step all the black liquid on the ground shoots op creating countless tendrils which attempt to grab everyone in reach. Even the slightest contact with them causes the person to lose their mana and life force rapidly. Far in the distance they can see it, the sky has gone completely dark. Massive tendrils of black shoot out from under the ground to meet with once descending from the sky creating a sphere around the battlefield, trapping everyone inside.

"I shall give everyone present one last chance join us willingly."

The 3 clones of Sphinx and Little Gil turn around towards the others. They seem completely normal except for the dark liquid covering them almost fully.

"Otherwise you are causing yourself pointless suffering. The end result is inevitable."

『Dimensional Lock』- A spell is cast silently. A spell which blocks any spatial travel within the boundary created by the Witch. No one could get inside or out. The only possibility was a fight.

As the dust settles the laboratory everyone has been fighting in front of was revealed. One side of it was completely decimated and the seal was shattered.

From within the broken room steps out a beautiful woman. She is unharmed, as if not even a single spec of dust reached her. Looking around she speaks in a calm and melodic voice.

"Is everyone alright?"

A sharp sound rings throughout the imperial palace once again.

*BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP*

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The loud piercing noise signals one something, something the Emperor hoped would neve happen. Something was wrong with the seal. The Witch of Greed was once again creating trouble for him.

Moving towards the seal with haste he gathers several guards as well as Chisha Gold, his trusted advisor who was already near the scene before he arrived.

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There was no expression on the soldiers face, her eyes were black with a liquid resembling the one on the ground leaking from every orifice. He had feared the worst but upon closer inspection he could see the soldier was alive, slow breaths sometimes escaped her and her heart still beat, even if faintly.

"One of you take her back, she needs medical attention. Others continue with me."

As they move further this sight becomes more common, each few meters a soldier can be found. Some on the ground, some sitting, some as if they were screaming out.

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It all seems the same until Vincent manages to notice something. The longer they are inside the dimmer and dimmer the magic stone gets, as if the light itself was being consumed by the corridor. Pondering the fact while inspecting the edge of their light his eye catches a faint movement within the darkness. Not hesitating for a second he unsheathes the Yang Sword illuminating the corridor. This action reveals several dark tendrils which were hovering just outside the range of their light.

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"What the hell is that!?"

The soldiers prepare themselves while tendrils quickly retreat into the dark. With the additional light they can now see the door into the laboratory. It is battered and scratched, there are large gashes made into the expensive and durable metal alloy.

The windows supposed to show the inside of the laboratory have cracks in them. Some parts look as if something bashed into it with a fist, some others as if thin needles tried to pierce into it. And in front of it all, stands a lone figure.

A young man with brown hair stands in front of the door. His sword is drawn in front of him and covered in the black liquid. It slowly slides down the blade and covers his gloves. His clothes are covered in the liquid just the same as if large splashes hit him repeatedly.

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But his eyes, they stay resolute and unwavering. Not a single drop of black comes out of his face as he seems unaffected by whatever got to the others. He stands unmoving and warry, but not of the people approaching.

Behind him the laboratory stays dark, even with the light of the Yang sword that fact does not change. What does change, is the quiet surrounding them.

✂︎☼︎❖︎🙰◆︎♋︎📪︎ 🕆︎♐︎●︎♓︎♋︎●︎⬧︎♐︎📬︎ ❄︎⧫︎♐︎ ♎︎♋︎❒︎♐︎♎︎♋︎❑︎♐︎❍︎ ⬧︎♋︎●︎♋︎□︎❖︎❑︎📬︎✂︎

✂︎✋︎⧫︎🙵 ■︎❍︎❒︎⬧︎❑︎♋︎🙵❍︎ ♓︎❍︎●︎◆︎♋︎●︎♐︎🙵⧫︎❒︎📪︎ 🙵♋︎●︎⬧︎♋︎ ●︎❍︎●︎ ❑︎♋︎♓︎⬧︎♋︎ ◆︎❖︎🙰♋︎□︎❖︎🙵🖴︎ ❖︎⬧︎ ●︎⧫︎●︎♓︎📬︎📬︎📬︎ ●︎⧫︎●︎♓︎ 🙵♋︎ ❖︎♓︎♓︎❍︎🙵🙵❍︎♎︎❖︎◆︎♐︎📬︎✂︎

✂︎☼︎♋︎🙵 ♐︎●︎⬧︎♋︎🙰🙰♋︎⌧︎♐︎📬︎ 💣︎🙵●︎♐︎❖︎ 🙵♐︎♏︎♐︎ ●︎⧫︎●︎♓︎ ■︎🙰❖︎●︎♋︎ ■︎❖︎⬧︎♋︎●︎⬧︎📬︎ 🏱︎⧫︎⬧︎❍︎ ⬧︎♋︎ 🙵♋︎ ♎︎♐︎🙵♐︎⬧︎⬧︎♋︎❑︎♋︎ ■︎❍︎❒︎❒︎♋︎🖴︎ ●︎❖︎🙵 ●︎⧫︎●︎♓︎ 🙵♋︎ ♐︎■︎❒︎⧫︎🙵 ❑︎♋︎♍︎❍︎📬︎✂︎

Words that sound like nothing ever heard before yet convey their meaning perfectly sound out through the corridor. Two white eyes appear behind the laboratory glass. They move around the room in slow and steady movements. Their movement is very fluid, maybe a bit too much.

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-----

As this reunion unfolds, a being in the distance feels something. A familiar feeling, yet so, so different. It makes no sense yet it is still true, the senses they do not lie and what they tell now is frightening yet intriguing. What actions the being takes no one knows, but one thing is clear. It knows more than anyone else.

-----

It was this very day that several people, united in only a book they own, received a feeling they know well. For the first time ever the Book of Greed calls to every user at once and it has something else to say for each of them.

The Lord of Death:

✂︎☼︎❖︎🙰◆︎♋︎📪︎ ✞︎♐︎●︎⌘︎📬︎ 😐︎♋︎ ■︎❖︎♋︎●︎♐︎⬧︎♋︎⬧︎ ◻︎⧫︎❍︎♎︎ ⬧︎♋︎ ❖︎●︎⬧︎♋︎❖︎ ●︎❍︎●︎ ♓︎❍︎●︎⬧︎❖︎♓︎⬧︎❖︎◆︎♐︎📬︎✂︎

✂︎☞︎●︎♌︎♋︎🙰♐︎♓︎♐︎⬧︎♋︎❑︎ ❖︎□︎ ♐︎🙵■︎♋︎❑︎❖︎⬧︎❍︎❑︎♋︎ ◆︎❍︎🙰🙰❖︎♓︎♏︎♐︎❖︎♋︎ ♐︎●︎⬧︎❑︎❖︎ ♓︎❖︎❒︎⬧︎♋︎🙰🙰⧫︎🙵 ❒︎⧫︎⧫︎🙵 ♐︎●︎♓︎🙰⧫︎❒︎⧫︎❒︎ ❒︎⧫︎🙵 ♋︎⬧︎ ❒︎❍︎🙰⧫︎❒︎ ♋︎♌︎♌︎⧫︎♍︎♋︎❑︎♋︎ ●︎❍︎●︎ ■︎❍︎❒︎❒︎⧫︎🙵📬︎✂︎

✂︎🏱︎♋︎⬧︎❍︎ ⬧︎♋︎📬︎ 🏱︎⧫︎❖︎♋︎❒︎❍︎📪︎ 🙵♐︎♏︎♐︎ ❖︎⧫︎⌧︎♐︎🙰♐︎⧫︎🙵 ♌︎♋︎❑︎ ⧫︎⬧︎ ♋︎♌︎♌︎⧫︎♍︎♐︎❖︎🙵📬︎ 🕆︎♐︎♓︎♐︎❒︎❒︎♐︎🙵📪︎ ⬧︎♋︎ ❖︎♎︎♐︎⧫︎◆︎❖︎□︎❍︎ ♓︎⧫︎🙵 ◻︎⧫︎❍︎🙰♐︎□︎♋︎⬧︎ ■︎❑︎❍︎□︎🙰♋︎🙵❖︎⬧︎♋︎ ◻︎⧫︎❍︎♎︎ ♏︎❖︎□︎♋︎❖︎❒︎📬︎✂︎

The Evilest Sorcerer in History:

✂︎😐︎❖︎♍︎♐︎❒︎⬧︎♋︎❑︎ 🙵❖︎♍︎⧫︎❒︎📪︎ ♎︎❍︎🙰♋︎❍︎ 🙵♋︎ ♏︎♐︎❒︎ ❑︎♋︎□︎⧫︎❒︎ ⬧︎♋︎ ❖︎■︎■︎♋︎🙰🙰❖︎❑︎♋︎ ♎︎♋︎□︎♋︎❑︎♋︎📬︎✂︎

✂︎☜︎♋︎⧫︎📪︎ ❑︎❖︎■︎⬧︎❖︎ ❒︎⧫︎🙵📬︎ ☞︎🙵■︎♋︎❑︎❖︎⬧︎❍︎❑︎ 🕆︎❍︎🙰🙰❖︎♓︎♏︎♐︎❖︎♋︎ 🙵♋︎ ♐︎●︎ ❖︎❑︎♓︎♋︎ ❒︎⧫︎❖︎ ♐︎●︎♓︎🙰⧫︎❒︎♐︎⬧︎📬︎✂︎

✂︎☠︎❖︎♓︎⬧︎♐︎❍︎●︎♋︎🙵 ⬧︎♐︎□︎♐︎ ■︎❑︎❍︎■︎❍︎●︎♋︎❑︎♋︎ ◆︎❍︎🙰❍︎📬︎ 🏱︎⧫︎♐︎●︎◻︎⧫︎♋︎ ❒︎■︎♐︎❑︎♐︎⬧︎⧫︎❒︎ ■︎❑︎❖︎♋︎❒︎⬧︎❖︎●︎⬧︎♐︎❒︎❒︎♐︎🙵❍︎❒︎ ■︎❍︎❒︎❒︎♐︎♎︎♋︎❍︎📬︎ ☼︎♐︎ ❖︎🙰♐︎❍︎❒︎ ❖︎♎︎ 🙵♋︎ 🙰♐︎□︎♋︎❑︎❖︎●︎♎︎❖︎🙵 ❖︎♎︎♐︎⧫︎◆︎♋︎❑︎♐︎❒︎📪︎ ⧫︎●︎⧫︎🙵 ◻︎⧫︎♋︎🙵◆︎♐︎❒︎ ♋︎⌧︎ ♐︎♐︎❒︎ ❖︎♎︎ ●︎⧫︎🙵♋︎❑︎⧫︎🙵 ⬧︎⧫︎⧫︎🙵 ❖︎♎︎♐︎⧫︎●︎♍︎♋︎●︎♎︎⧫︎🙵 ♋︎🙰♐︎♍︎♋︎❑︎♋︎ ■︎❍︎⬧︎♋︎❑︎♐︎❒︎📬︎ 🏱︎⧫︎❍︎♎︎ ❒︎♐︎ 🙵♋︎ ♐︎■︎❒︎❖︎ ❒︎♋︎❑︎◆︎❖︎◆︎♋︎❑︎♐︎❒︎📪︎ ♎︎⧫︎❍︎❒︎ ♋︎⌧︎ ♐︎♐︎❒︎ ♋︎🙰♐︎♍︎♋︎❑︎♋︎ 🙰♐︎♓︎♋︎□︎♐︎⬧︎📬︎✂︎

The Masterpiece:

✂︎👎︎♐︎❒︎♓︎♐︎■︎⧫︎🙰♋︎ 🙵♐︎📪︎ ❒︎■︎♋︎❑︎❍︎ ⬧︎♋︎ □︎♋︎●︎♋︎ ◆︎❖︎🙰⧫︎♐︎❒︎❒︎♋︎📬︎✂︎

✂︎☼︎♓︎♐︎❍︎ ⬧︎♋︎ ❑︎♋︎□︎⧫︎❒︎ 🙰♋︎◆︎♐︎□︎⧫︎❒︎ ●︎❍︎●︎ ♎︎♋︎🙰♋︎♓︎⬧︎❖︎❑︎♐︎🖴︎ ♐︎⬧︎❖︎◻︎⧫︎♋︎ ❖︎■︎♋︎❑︎⬧︎♋︎ 🙰❍︎◻︎⧫︎❖︎❑︎📬︎ ✋︎❖︎■︎⬧︎⧫︎❒︎ ❒︎⧫︎🙵📬︎ ☞︎🙵■︎♋︎❑︎❖︎⬧︎❍︎❑︎ 🕆︎❍︎🙰🙰❖︎♓︎♏︎♐︎❖︎♋︎ 🙵♋︎ ♐︎●︎ ■︎❖︎🙰❖︎⬧︎♐︎❍︎ ❒︎⧫︎❍︎ ♎︎♋︎⬧︎♐︎●︎♋︎⬧︎📬︎✂︎

✂︎✋︎⧫︎🙵 ◆︎♐︎❑︎ ❒︎♐︎❒︎ ◻︎⧫︎♐︎ ❑︎♋︎❒︎ ■︎❑︎♋︎⬧︎♐︎❍︎❒︎❖︎❒︎ ❖︎♋︎❒︎⬧︎♐︎🙵♋︎⬧︎📪︎ ♓︎❍︎●︎♎︎♐︎♓︎♐︎❍︎●︎♋︎🙵 ⬧︎♐︎□︎♐︎ ■︎❑︎❍︎■︎❍︎●︎❖︎🙵📬︎ ☼︎♐︎ 🙵❖︎●︎⧫︎♐︎ ♏︎❍︎🙵♐︎●︎⧫︎🙵 ❖︎♎︎ 🙵♋︎ 🙰♐︎□︎♋︎❑︎❖︎●︎♎︎⧫︎🙵 ❖︎⧫︎⌧︎♐︎🙰♐︎⧫︎🙵 ⬧︎⧫︎🙰♋︎❑︎♐︎❒︎📪︎ ◻︎⧫︎♐︎●︎◻︎⧫︎♋︎ ♐︎●︎♓︎❖︎●︎⬧︎❖︎🙵♋︎●︎⬧︎❖︎ ♐︎●︎ 🙰♐︎□︎❑︎⧫︎🙵 ⬧︎⧫︎⧫︎🙵 ❖︎♓︎♓︎♐︎■︎♐︎♋︎❒︎📬︎ 🏱︎⧫︎❍︎♎︎ ❒︎♐︎ ❒︎❍︎🙰⧫︎❒︎ ♏︎❍︎♓︎ 🙵⧫︎●︎⧫︎❒︎ ■︎♋︎❑︎♌︎♋︎♓︎♋︎❑︎♐︎❒︎📪︎ ♎︎♋︎♓︎♋︎🙵 ♐︎●︎♓︎❖︎●︎⬧︎❖︎🙵♋︎●︎⬧︎❖︎ ■︎❑︎❍︎ ❖︎❑︎□︎♐︎⬧︎❑︎♐︎❍︎ ⬧︎⧫︎❍︎ ❖︎♓︎♓︎♐︎■︎♐︎♋︎❒︎📬︎✂︎

The Witch of Vainglory:

✂︎💧︎♋︎ ♎︎♋︎❒︎♐︎♎︎♋︎❑︎❍︎📪︎ ❒︎❍︎❑︎❍︎❑︎📬︎📬︎📬︎ 💧︎♋︎ ❖︎🙵❍︎📬︎✂︎

The words on the page are random symbols and marking yet somehow, each of them can perfectly understand what they mean and the emotion they convey.

The Witch of Greed has made her next move.

Roswaal has been hard at work. While his mindset may have changed, healing magic was still proving to be quite the difficult discipline. However, it didn't matter to him, he knew why he was working so hard, to keep those close to him safe. That was enough to forget all fatigue and immerse himself in studying.

However, even the Court Mage needs to sleep. Eventually, fatigue caught up to the diligent student and caused him to fall asleep at his desk, his head still burrowed in a book he has been reading at the direction of Felix.

Soon enough, he finds himself inside a dream. It was a pleasant dream. He remembered the small house he used to live inside with his master, back in Sanctuary. As he looked around he realized something was weird, it was all too... clear? Dreams did not feel this way... It almost reminded him of-

"☼︎□︎⬧︎⬥︎♋︎♋︎●︎❞︎"

Turning around he sees a familiar figure. Her body is clad in shadows but he knows it is her, his teacher. Her words, they make no sense yet he can understand them perfectly. Her voice, while distorted is undoubtably the gentle voice of his teacher.

"ptvarm raquv ka"

His teacher spoke in a sad voice, asking him for help.

Yesterday XX:XX - Location: Vollachian Imperial Laboratory

Experiment number: 136 - Danger: High - Safety Protocol: Maximum Lockdown

Vincent had a lot to think about. He recently came back from the dead, he made a deal with a Witch, was now engaged to her daughter not to even mention the fact that his wife just returned.

Thinking about it, the Witch really was at the center of most of his issues, but it was hard to hate her. She was the one who avenged him and the one to bring him back, without her, his country may have fallen and he would have never been here to rule his people once more.

She took care of it when he was presumed dead and even helped it improve. In fact, even after his returned she stayed behind to help further. But that did not make her any less scary, he was just thinking about their conversation a few hours ago when it happened.

*BEEP BEEP BEEP*

Red lights blast in his office as the castle goes into shutdown. This could only mean one thing.

'Something went wrong... did she make a mistake?'

Vincent was the only person with the authority to release the lockdown, opening only specific doors he approached the Witches laboratory. Finally reaching the place he looks inside the window only to see... nothing.

Inside, there was complete darkness. The bright light of a captured star inside her office, one of the many powering the newly improved Imperial Castle was completely gone, there was no sign of light inside the room. Even the red piercing light blinking outside couldn't enter, it was absolute darkness ... a void.

Soon enough, he heard a voice that sounded eerily familiar but different at the same time inside his mind.

"jfoaqv ka ✞︎♓︎■︎♍︎♏︎■︎⧫︎❞︎"

Ever since then, he could not get the voice out of his mind. He was not the only one. Many others dreamed of darkness on that very night, they dreamed of a dark figure speaking unfamiliar words with familiar meaning.

"👍︎□︎❍︎♏︎ ❒︎♏︎●︎♏︎♋︎⬧︎♏︎ kvsaq~"

"raquv sttk ❄︎♏︎♋︎♍︎♒︎♏︎❒︎❞︎"

"vkfitr sttr ■︎♏︎♏︎♎︎⬧︎ ⍓︎□︎◆︎❞︎"

Inside the room, Echidna awaits rescue. For someone to open The Door.

❄︎□︎□︎ ❍︎◆︎♍︎♒︎📪︎ ⧫︎□︎□︎ ❍︎◆︎♍︎♒︎📪︎ ⧫︎□︎⚐︎ 💣︎🕆︎👍︎☟︎📪︎ ❄︎⚐︎⚐︎ 💣︎🕆︎👍︎☟︎✏︎

lfkftk sarsfkmlftk. 🕈︎♒︎⍓︎📪︎ ⬥︎♒︎⍓︎📪︎ 🕈︎☟︎✡︎✍︎

fd fd fd daotfs btlisfmlak rtvk nqvarsfsfrra. ✋︎📫︎♓︎📫︎♓︎⧫︎ ♎︎♓︎♎︎✏︎ ✋︎⧫︎ ♎︎♓︎♎︎ ⬥︎□︎❒︎🙵✏︎

N̴͈͕̹̙̲̠̭̼̙̆̚͝i̶̧̡̳̙̖͖̥̖̟̙͕͙͓͖̰̋͊̀̂̎̕ḿ̴̨̧̦̥̠̺̑̍i̷̡̤̹̲̤̱͓͉͈̖̰̳̳͛̀͛̄̿̋̀̿̕͝͝s̸̢̛̛͓̒̄̽̑̎̓̄̋̑̈́̎ͅ ̴̙̹̝̭͋̈́ḛ̴̺͔͕̼͕̯̬̿͋̓̑̏̅͐̔̑̎r̸̢̙̮̞̝̳͕̬̞̺̂̿̌̓̐͛̌͐͝à̵̢̨͔͇̤̲̻̺͇̒͝ͅt̵͔̝͎̱͚̘̥̰̯̋͌̌

As Roxy finishes unpacking her things, she looks around her room. It was surprisingly large. The university clearly provided more than generous accommodations for both their students and teachers. It truly made one wonder what they could possibly gain from such an institution.

She sits on her bed, thinking about all the events of today, and what will come tomorrow. Thinking she should get something to eat she slowly stands up. However, before she can finish her goal a knock on her door sounds out through the room.

*Knock Knock*

It was gentle and polite. Moving to open the door she sees a tall pale woman on the other side. With a gentle smile the woman asks her a question.

"Would you happen to be the teacher of Rudeus?"

Echidna enters the room of her daughter Sphinx. The room was empty of all that one might consider sentimental. No paintings, images or entertainment. It always used to look as if no one even lived inside, but now, what once used to be a completely empty room was filled with trash that hasn't been taken out in a long time.

Sphinx sits on her bed with disheveled hair, staring into space. Her clothes are dirty and old. Approaching her with a smile she attempts to take a hold of her attention.

"Daughter, are you doing alright? I know you have been quite sad since the war ended... with what happened to the Emperor..."

Sphinx looks towards her, she doesn't cry or yell, neither does she deny her sadness. She looks confused and hurt.

"Result of the war was unexpected. Feelings are confusing. - Observation: Needed."

Pulling her into a soft hug Echidna comforts her.

"It's alright. I know you are confused by all of this. I wasn't able to fulfil your desires before, but I want to help. Let me make it better now."

Echidna snaps her fingers and a new figure appears within the room of Sphinx. It is a tall man. While hair falls to cover one of his eyes as he looks around the room in a confused manner. A while and black suit with red and golden details covers his whole body, a tuft of white fur sticking out above his left shoulder. The only exception is his chest where a large hole pierces through him right where his heart should be.

"Where... am I?"

He asks as Sphinx stares at him in shock.

"In the room of your new wife~. Sphinx, I know you are angry because of what happened, so I did my best to make it right. Enjoy him to your hearts content~"

"Wait Kacchan! Todoroki is still packing up his things!"

"Well he should hurry the DAMN UP! We don't go all day!"

The boys chatter as they pack their things. They had spent the night in tents on their way to UA, to attend the school of their dreams. The Witch Factor of Pride inside Izuku, the one that warped his mind so much he couldn't even think had gone silent.

Through the incredible bond he shares with his friends, he managed to suppress it. But it was a question of time until it acted out again.

"I'm done, we can g-?"

As they prepare to leave, two pale women appear in their path. They appear without a sound or warning, before the trio can question their arrival they already speak.

"Sissy, look at the poor boy, he is unwell. The Factor has been surpassed but it is fighting back. I would hate to see young love be ruined because of it."

The shorter Witch speaks up. She speaks as if the future Big 3 of UA wasn't even there, because their opinions on the situation doesn't matter, for her word is the law of the world itself.

"Sister, you are right. I am sure Tanya would be happy if we fixed her boyfriend. We should make things right."

The taller Witch agrees. With this they look at the boy and get ready to act.

Without a sound two women suddenly appear on top of the tallest mountain in Gusteko.

The Witch of Greed stands tall, covering her sisters eyes with her hands as they take a few steps.

"Dona, did we just teleport?"

Grabbing at her sisters hands the shorter girl questions her as soon as she feels the temperature shift. Her bare feet dig into the snow with a gentle sensation, she is beyond being harmed by mere temperature shifts but she can still feel the change. The wind blows at the blanket covering her body which looks as if it was holding on by a miracle.

"Hold on sister, be patient~"

With a teasing tone Echidna guides her to the edge.

"You said you wanted to go somewhere special for our first date, so I hope I do not disappoint~"

Removing her hands from her sisters eyes a beautiful sunset is revealed. The sky is clear and the snowy scenery only serves to enhance the sight. A scene only very few in the history of the world have seen due to just how cold and secluded the area was.

And a gift from sister to sister, from a loving partner to her support.

Magical academies have been erected all around Vollachia. Any and all who wish to study magic are allowed to join free of charge. The only payment required is that they study hard and publish any findings they make in the area of magic for the world to see.

Race, nationality, age, gender, none of these matter. If you are someone who wishes to peruse the truth of the world, you may join. The libraries are full of books on every topic and the staff is mostly undead meaning you can ask questions at any time.

Rumors say that those who prove their talent may even get to learn from the current Empress, the Witch of Greed.

As the night falls and Rudeus, who is currently traveling through the Vollachian forests, sets up his camp to stay the night.

His journey has been mostly peaceful, the security around Vollachia seems pretty high. He was asked for his name and place of origin so many times he lost count. There were even these undead soldiers that looked intimidating.

At times he worries, from what he heard there were really powerful people everywhere. Yesterday he even saw a massive light in the distance, it lasted for whole 10 seconds. It was frightening to imagine the amount of damage such an attack must have caused if it could be seen so clearly at this distance.

As he looks upon the stars and thinks of all the people he hopes to meet a presence makes itself known.

From within the darkness of the night a tall pale woman in a black dress slowly walks out.

"Are you perhaps Rudeus~?"

"Everyone please say hi to Eris. She is arrogant, incompetent, loud, annoying, stupid and weak. You will love her~"

Entering a training room Echidna drops the broken body of Eris to the ground like a broken toy. With a smile she kneels down next to her and uses magic to quickly heal her.

Eris feels all her bones snap back into place one after another, each small wound all over her body is rapidly healed in a painful process.

Taking a few more steps Echidna casts a simple『Fura』spell to cut a line into the ground.

"For a simpleton like yourself, I will make the test simple. Cross this line and you pass."

Standing a meter behind the line, Echidna waits.

There were a couple hurdles amongst the way but she had done it.

A whole country was ready to be transformed into paradise. Into the land of magic and innovation.

All that was left to do was to clean up after the war.

16 Million citizens were returned to the Empire. They were unharmed and well taken care of. Ironically enough, being kidnapped turned out to be the safest option in this war.

After sorting out internal issues she teleports over to Roswaal whom she previously agreed to meet with. Speaking up she makes her presence known.

"Hello Roswaal. As I promised I will now return the obstructors to you."

Putting her hand into the place she used to store them she takes out 4 balls. With a wave of her hand they open causing the people inside to spill out.

Emilia Natsuki

Kazuma Satou

Frisk

Wilhelm Van Astrea

"Now, if you will excuse me, there is a poor soul who needs my help."

Upon reaching the depths of the mansion she is met with a small but intimidating figure.

"Little Gil, would you please let me through? He is begging for help."

A little reluctant, the king lets her inside where she finds the body of one Nuatsuki Subaru.

"Just remember our little bargain~"

She whispers into his ear before getting to work.

The battle lasted a week. For seven uninterrupted days the most complicated spells the world has never seen were exchanged. Magnetism, electricity, poisons, radiation, plasma, molecules, gravity, time, energy itself every natural force imaginable bent to their will.

The greatest battle in the history of magicians took place without most even knowing. Iguin locked both of them in a different dimension of his own creation. The Subaru Natsuki lying unconscious on the ground was stolen by the Darkness Devil at some point and they didn't even realize, for the opportunity to compare techniques for a scholar of a similar level has never presented itself before for either of them.

In the end, Echidna barely emerged victorious. To the body of Iguin, lying on the ground devoid of any mana but still alive, she speaks these words as she heals him.

"Thank you for this opportunity, I never though fighting could be this fun. You know, the country I hope to build is one where everyone can live peacefully and safely, one where there is nothing to distract people from perusing the height of magic. Or any other research topic, all knowledge is valuable after all."

Her body hurts so much, the strain of using all her powerful spells caused it to start tearing itself apart. The only reason she was still whole was the various spells she used to force her body together. Unfortunately, that didn't stop her from feeling the process. Standing up and focusing on her own recovery she finishes her thoughts.

"I think it would be a country you would enjoy. Think about joining once you recover."

Some time later, once she recovers her control over mana and heals her body, she shatters the dimension that was barely held together after her last attack.

'Time to see how the war effort is going. Wasting so much time was not part of the plan.'

She then realized what a terrible state the country fell into in her absence.

'The Cult... they did all this? And Ainz too...'

Unable to contain her thoughts she speaks to herself.

"It was a bloodless war... I didn't want this... this country clearly needs new management."

Flying off she thinks of what her next move should be.

In the dark laboratory, the starlight serves as the only source of light.

Inside a vat willed with some sort of liquid floats a body of man. Reformed and improved it was the Sword Demon as the legends describe him.

His body now adorned with several magical circles, Echidna observes him with a smile. Placing a hand on the vat she talks to the puppet that cannot hear her.

"Oh, what valuable data you collected. I wonder how long you will last with the improvements~."

With a wave of her hand the vat opens. His body, detaching itself from several cables, comes spilling out onto the ground.

Pointing her finger, his armor and weapons float into the air and fly towards him, quickly transforming his naked form into a formidable warrior.

"I made some improvements to your equipment too~"

His armor shines with a slight purple hue. Almost unbreakable it softens the blows of his enemies, even reflecting part of the damage back onto them.

"And look at these~. You remember them, right~?"

Twin Swords Trias - Already capable of withstanding the claws of the Divine dragon before, their durability has been enhanced even further. One of the sheathes burns hot while the other crackles with electricity.

"I wonder if there is anything in this world capable of breaking them now... well, we will find out soon. Go say hi to your friends Wilhelm~"

I want to talk about magic...

As Greed sits in his office after a tea with Petra, he notices a female figure standing across form him. It is quiet, her tall figure stands unmoving, a green butterfly rests on her finger as she finally decides to talk.

"You seem quite tired Subaru. Wouldn't you like to take a break?"

Her grin is wide, her posture confident and her eyes look at him as if she could see straight through him.

The ground rubles under the feat of many. Humans, Beast Humans, Elves, Beast Humans, Beasts, what united them all was one thing, Death. Each and every one of them has died and then been brought back.

Millions, millions of soldiers both armed and unarmed walk towards Vollachia. At the head of this army marches a massive amalgamation of stone and metal. Standing hundreds of meters tall, the earth shakes under it's feat and it's surface is covered by a massive barrier.

On top of it stand 2 women. Witches.

"Ah, daughter of mine, look out over the horizon. This all will be for us to rule soon, ah, all the research we can do. It makes me excited."

Echidna uses a slightly modified version of a spell she saw many others using, instantly transferring a message to all the citizens of the Empire.

"This country, Vollachia, for far too long has it been preaching the values of strength while being ruled by weaklings and cowards

 Your armies are weak and vulnerable. They feel tired, they need food, they fall ill, they die. As such we have come with an Army much stronger than anything you could ever hope to possess.

We declare war on the Vollachian Empire, our conquest shall be bloodless and unstoppable. We shall pacify the armies of Vollachia and thus prove our unquestioned authority.

And to you Emperor, I say this. You preach the value of strength, while you sit on a throne inherited through blood. If you practice the values you preach, once your soldiers are captured and your throne lies broken on the ground...

Admit your inferiority with grace and hand over the power to those stronger, the same way your ancestors took the throne for you."

 

Having declared their intent, the Army marches on.

 

----------------------

Members of the Conquest Party are:

- Sphinx

- Echidna

- Luocha

Anyone else aiming to join our Coquets of Vollachia is welcome to contact us.