Seven Devils and a Rose

Book 3: A Kingdom of Roses and Magic - Chapter 112

On the platform, he turned his attention to his beloved Bella, an alluringly stunning silver-haired beauty, his young wife. He pulled her into his arms and hugged her tightly.

Her face buried against his chest, Bella murmured, "It's all right, my love. It's all right."

"No matter where you are after this, Bella," he said softly, "I'll find you. I will bring you back to me."

When he released her from his embrace, Bella stood on tiptoe and gave him a kiss on the growling mouth of a beast mask that sat ever so perfectly on his face.

"I love you," she said softly.

"I love you too," Aslan replied.

Watching them, Akari wished that Maximus was here too, at least to say their last goodbyes once again.

Yuki, too, wished that Philip was here with her. Yet she knew that it was impossible, as he was currently being detained and restrained by the White Sages to keep him from going blind with rage and leading a revolt against all this farce, as he believed it to be.

Eri said, "It's time, Lord Aslan."

Aslan nodded and stepped back from Bella. Then he headed toward the center of the stone platform, which had been carved with magical spells of ancient signs, symbols, and scripts. Surrounding them, too, was a stonehenge, a circle of standing stones carved with magic spells.

Stardust—in her glowing orb—came to Lord Aslan and rested on his awaiting hands.

As Eri and the rest of the White Sages watched in anticipation and anxiety, the eight Great Ones spread out their arms, and instantly, their pure qi of dust particles released from within their beings. The energy then was directed toward Stardust, and she started absorbing the power. The more she gained, the brighter and stronger she became.

Suddenly, a voice shouted, "Yuki! Stop it! Don't do it! Stop this stupid nonsense now."

It was Philip.

Standing there, her physical body becoming weaker by the second as she continued to release her qi, Yuki wanted to laugh in both joy and sadness. So he'd managed to escape the high-tier prison cell after all to stop her from performing this madness of a sacrifice.

She knew he was still pissed off and in a rage, thinking that this was some sort of conspiracy created by the seven demon lords to gain world dominance.

She didn't respond to him. She couldn't afford to. Performing this very important task required her full attention.

Hence, she continued to release her qi, and as Philip made a big scene, rushing up the stairs, intending to tear her away from her position, Yuki released the last bit of what was left of her power.

At that moment, as the White Sages obstructed Philip's path, the Great Ones released their cores into the air, eight glowing orbs hovering in midair, bursting with brightness. Instantly, their physical bodies collapsed onto the stone floor like lifeless dolls.

Philip swung his hands and bashed one White Sage in the chest, sending him flying back and colliding against the stonehenge at the back. He used his leg to kick another in the stomach, sending that one flying back and hitting another stone.

Freed, he rushed up the stairs onto the platform and then to Yuki. There, he gathered her lifeless body into his arms.

Above him, Yuki's core—along with the others—floated toward Stardust.

Once Stardust absorbed all the cores, the physical bodies of the eight Great Ones began to disintegrate, their body parts breaking into small particles.