Lord of Annihilation

Staring evenly at the smiling face of Olivia, Lucius curtly replied.

"Olivia."

He could feel himself lying down, with his head resting upon a soft pillow of sorts. Immediately releasing a wave of soul power, Lucius surveyed his surroundings.

Just as he had thought, he was lying on the ground with his head carefully nestled on Olivia's lap. The soft sensation that he had felt originated from Olivia's soft, yet firm thighs.

Upon sensing no other party, apart from Olivia, within a 5-meter radius, Lucius continued with his next question.

"Where is Ka'l—" 

Just as Lucius was about to utter the golden crystal's name, Olivia hurriedly used her hands to block his mouth. Staring into Lucius' slightly furrowed eyes with utmost seriousness, Olivia recited.

" 'Our predictions were right! He's here and He's watching! Don't expose your identity!' She told me to tell you that."

Biting her lips, Olivia watched as Lucius' pupil's shrunk with shock and worry. Her keen senses did not miss the slight sense of fear, hidden within the depths of his eyes.

'As I thought, it is something serious.' Olivia bitterly thought to herself.

Lucius found himself frozen for a few seconds, before regaining his senses. Although he had been expecting this to happen, hearing that he was already being watched made him instinctively react with shock and fear.

However, Lucius calmed himself soon and clarity returned to his eyes. His pupils turned into two bottomless pools of darkness that showed no emotions.

Lifting his head from Olivia's lap-pillow, Lucius raised his body and climbed onto his feet…only to lose his balance and stumble.

'Right. I forgot my body was weakened due to the battle and the changes in my mindspace.' Lucius belatedly thought to himself.

Fortunately, thanks to Olivia's instantaneous reaction upon seeing his stumble, he was caught by the former and was balanced against her body. 

Seeing Olivia support his body, Lucius merely nodded his head as a gesture of thanks before looking around. 

Standing 10m away from the duo were the two-hundred plus warriors from Pectron, forming a tight defensive circle around the duo. 

Each of them had their weapons raised and pointed towards the army of humans, who were looking towards the group with anger and hatred in their eyes. 

"What happened?" Lucius questioned.

Hearing his question, Olivia lightly sighed before explaining.

"During your fight with the black-robed figure, their commander Alex Hellwig jumped into that large black sphere which was enveloping the area…"

"The Domain." Lucius corrected and gestured for her to continue.

"Right…the domain. He jumped into that black, lightless Domain surrounding a 10km area. These people who were much slower were unable to follow him, before that Domain changed into…a vast mountain range of corpses. Was that also a Domain?" Olivia curiously asked.

"Yes. It is mine." Lucius calmly answered.

"Are you at Stage 3 now?" Olivia excitedly asked.

"Yes. Continue with the explanation." 

"Anyways, your Domain covered the area and we were unable to get close to it. A horrifying feeling froze our bodies whenever we came near. The closer we approached, the stronger that feeling became." 

Olivia's body instinctively shivered when it recalled the feeling radiated by Lucius' domain.

It was a feeling that told them, the moment they entered it they would die.

"Unable to enter it, we stood outside. A few minutes later, the Domain disappeared and you started to fall from the sky. Seeing that you weren't moving, I jumped up and caught before you fell." Olivia unabashedly spoke.

"However, there were no signs of Alex nor was there a body. Seeing that he was missing, the humans, more specifically Alex's wife- Anya, grew very agitated and wanted to bring you in and question you."

At this point, Olivia's eyes became incredibly cold and cruel, surprising Lucius. A powerful murderous was radiated by her body, as she continued.

"Of course, I could never let them do that."

"I had my men hiding in the area in advance, in case things went unsavory with the Stage 3 ambush. When these guys tried to attack me, I called them out to protect you. Unfortunately, it seems they(humans) were still sensible enough as they immediately stopped resorting to only stare at us."

"Since you seemed to be unconscious, they figured to just wait for you to wake up before asking you. Well, at least most of them did save for one person."

Olivia's eyes landed on the figure of a human female soldier who was being held back by the people around her. An expression of incomparable wrath and worry filled her face, as she continuously tried to escape from their grasps and attack the group of foreigners before her.

Hearing Olivia's explanation, coupled with the sight before him solved all of Lucius' questions. Feeling that his body had recovered sufficiently, he freed himself from Olivia's careful grasp. 

Turning to face her worried countenance, he simply raised his hand and pat her head. 

"You did well." Olivia's body stiffened as her outstretched arms froze. 

'Wh-wha-wah--?' Feeling Lucius' hands pat her head, completely halted her thought process, and crashed her brain.

After commending her, Lucius turned around and started to walk towards the army of humans. 

He did not have time to embroil himself with the troublesome issues of these humans. If Ka'lor'ah's words were right, he had a greater opponent, awaiting his arrival.

Lucius' circulated his soul power, radiating the pressure of a Stage 3 existence. That coupled with his cold, scathing aura as an experienced killing machine quickly drew the eyes of everyone on the battlefield.

The warriors from Pandemonium looked at him with reverence as they moved aside to make way for him to pass. 

At first, they had felt disdain towards this feminine-looking youth with whom their illustrious boss was seemingly infatuated.

Lucius' slender frame and handsome face had previously earned names such as 'Pretty Boy', 'Useless Flower', etc from these warriors, with some of them even making plans to silently get rid of him and protect their boss from this 'scammer'.

However, watching Lucius battle with that black-robed figure completely shattered their previous image of this youth. 

The dignity and majesty which he radiated when seated atop his throne at the peak of the mountain of corpses, coupled with a singular word that killed that invincible figure. They had been watching the events inside the Domain from their place outside it.

Power was everything within the Universe and Lucius had it. This sole fact earned him their acknowledgment and reverence

Walking past these warriors, Lucius arrived before the army of humans. These people, unlike the previous group, were gazing at Lucius with faces of horror and fear. 

Three years was a long time, especially for those at war. The memories of the Hero of Deatov were already forgotten by many, leaving only the image of what they had witnessed here today.

What stood before them was a monster. A monster that was dozens, if not hundreds of times scarier and more dangerous than that pig-headed beast.

However, there existed a solitary person who was not frightened by the unfriendly, monstrous aura that Lucius radiated. 

"What did you do to my husband?!" Anya screamed, her eyes locked onto Lucius' figure.

"I did nothing. He was foolish and he paid for it." Lucius blandly answered.

No matter how much Lucius hated to converse with other people, he had to reconcile with these humans.

Mankind was essential to the Great Plan. While Lucius did not care if they loved or hated him, at the very least, he had to ensure that they were in his side. Being hostile would complicate matters further down the line.

"Bullsh*t! I saw him enter that dark sphere and only your return! Where is he?!!" Anya cried.

"Why did he enter in the first place? Was he blind enough to not recognize the difference in powers?" Lucius questioned, this was one part that he could not understand.

According to his memories, Alex Hellwig (of the past) was a sensible and smart man. A true leader by definition. He was surely not dumb enough to jump into a battle where even the slightest of misstep could kill them.

Hearing Lucius ask that question, Anya felt inflamed. She leapt forwards once more, only to be held back by the struggling soldiers around her.

"WHY?! YOU ASK WHY?!!"

"It was because you were fighting against his Father!! Not only did you fight him, you even killed him!!" She thundered.

At her words, all the other human soldiers also looked at Lucius with hatred. They still felt fear when looking towards him, yet their anger and hatred had suppressed some of that fear.

Hearing her answer, Lucius finally understood.

"I see." He curtly answered, before using his soul energy to manifest something.

Soul power gathered before his figure, before fusing together and materializing something. It was a corpse.

To be specific, it was the corpse of the black-robed figure.

"Is this him?" Lucius asked, removing the hood from the figure's head.

A human face, possessing red hair and crimson eyes appeared before the audience. The face looked remarkably similar to Alex, albeit being a bit older and more mature.

"""Supreme Commander!!""" The soldiers echoed in unison.

"You killed our Supreme Commander! Mankind will never forgive you for this!!" They pointed their fingers towards Lucius and blamed him.

Lifting his head towards the crowd, Lucius spoke one word.

"Silence." 

[Annihilation Intent] of the third stage burst forth from his body instantly silencing everyone within the crowd. An insurmountable pressure weighed upon their bodies and minds, rendering them incapable of any action.

Lucius then kneeled next to the corpse and used his finger to slightly pierce it. He then channeled some of his soul power into the corpse, which made it tremble greatly. 

The corpse quivered fiercely before its skin started to stretch and twist horribly. The pale color of the skin vanished replaced by a deep black. The human face was replaced by a featureless blank mask. The corpse's limbs greatly shrunk and its body shriveled.

Pointing to the corpse which now showed on similarity to the Supreme Commander, Lucius spoke.

"This is a Doppelganger. A Grade 4 creature with the ability to mimic the bodies of those it consumes." 

"This, Supreme Commander you speak of, must have been eaten by this creature allowing it to mimic his appearance. In other words, he is long dead."

Upon stating that shocking truth, Lucius ignored the reactions of the human soldiers and walked past them. When he passed the figure of the pale-faced, collapsed Anya, he heard her ask.

"…what about my husband? My Alex?"

"I didn't see him. His body was either vaporized by the attacks, or he fell into a spatial rift."

Shaking his head, Lucius spoke a final sentence before walking past her.

"Either way, he's dead."

Anya finally collapsed onto the ground and started to loudly cry. Her heart-rending cries triggered the suppressed sadness amongst the other human soldiers, as many started to grieve while shedding a tear.

Hearing their cries made Lucius realize how utterly dispassionate he was. He could clearly sense and feel their accumulated reactions, yet he could not feel it.

'Through and through, I am an unfeeling monster.' 

He shook his head once more and started to walk towards the Academy. His head looked straight and his eyes started unflinchingly at a distance.

From beyond the walls of the Academy, he felt an entity summoning him.

'It is time.' Resolving himself, Lucius walked to face his enemy.

---------

Arriving at the central island of the Academy, Lucius walked into the hallowed Memorial Hall situated at the island's center

This building, constructed to resemble the ancient Acropolis of Athens, was where the names of the great people who have served Mankind to the greatest extent were etched into its white marble walls. 

Step. Step. Step. Step.

Luicus' footsteps echoed as his lonely figure, stiff from anticipation and fear approached the depths of this building. Crossing the corridor that leads him into the inner chambers of this construct, Lucius found a figure waiting for him.

A woman possessing braided silver hair and argent eyes, seated upon her wheelchair. Her beautiful, yet pale face that sported a smile that made anyone feel at ease, stared at Lucius. 

"You have finally come…Lucius. I've been waiting for you, for a very long time." Illya politely announced, her bell-like voice echoing within the marble chambers.

Lucius gave a single weary look at her figure and curtly replied.

"Pope."