Chapter 100: Raging Texts

  "Umm... s-sorry," Malik stammered, his voice a thin reed in the cavernous hall. He pushed his thick, round glasses up the bridge of his nose, only for them to immediately slide back down on a sheen of nervous sweat. "About the... the tripping. Please don't kill me!"

  He scrambled backward, his lanky limbs flailing like a startled spider as he attempted to hide behind Samira. It was a comical sight; he towered over the petite princess, his knees knocking together audibly. He tried to curl his spine to make himself smaller, using her shoulder as a flimsy barricade against the terrifying stranger.

  "No, it is us who are sorry," Yukari interjected quickly, stepping forward with a practiced, diplomatic smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. She shot Raito a quick, warning glare before turning back to the terrified scholar. "Raito didn't really mean that. He is just... exhausted from his journey. The heat gets to him."

  "Malik, dear," Samira said, her voice bright and unbothered by her fiancé's cowardice. She moved behind him, placing her small hands on his back and physically nudging him toward the terrifying strangers. "You forgot to introduce yourself! These are Uncle Bob's guests!"

  "Samira, please!" Malik shrieked, the sound echoing off the high stone walls. He dug his heels into the floor, his boots squeaking in protest. "I'm scared! He looks menacing!"

  "There is nothing to be scared about!" Samira insisted, pushing harder, her heels clicking on the stone.

  "But that guy said he will kill me!" Malik whined, trying to circle back behind her again, clutching the fabric of her sleeve. "He has the eyes of a killer! Cold, dead eyes!"

  Samira laughed, a sound like wind chimes in the stuffy underground hall. She grabbed Malik by the shoulders and spun him around to face Raito. "Nonsense! He is just joking. Someone as cute as him doesn't really mean that!"

  Raito blinked, pointing a finger at his own face. "Cute?"

  After a few more seconds of struggling, Malik finally relented, realizing escape was impossible against the princess's determination. He straightened his rumpled robes, took a deep, shuddering breath, and extended a hand that vibrated like a tuning fork.

  "My... my name is Malik Saar," he stammered, his eyes darting nervously to the sword at Raito's hip and then quickly away. "Scholar... and Samira's fiancé. Nice to meet you."

  Raito took the hand. It was cold and clammy, limp as a dead fish. "Yeah, Raito," he said, giving the hand a firm shake. "I apologize, I guess. Still not sure what I said wrong, though."

  "See?" Samira clasped her hands together, beaming like a ray of sunshine in a crypt. "This is nice! Everybody gets along!"

  "Malik here is quite the bright young man, you see," Queen Aleena said, her voice smooth as silk as she stepped forward, the rustle of her fine garments filling the brief silence. She placed a reassuring hand on the trembling scholar's shoulder.

  "In fact," Aleena continued, a note of regal pride entering her voice as she gestured to the chaotic chalkboard behind them, filled with frantic scribbles and diagrams, "he is the one who discovered the metallic structure in the picture."

  "More like being lucky, Your Majesty," Malik stammered, nervously scratching the back of his head, his face flushing a pale pink that clashed with his chestnut hair. He looked at the floor, unable to meet anyone's gaze. "I was just... strolling around the desert area. The wind picked up... got swept by a sudden sandstorm. Ended up near that place by complete accident. Pure chance."

  "Gahaha! Luck is also another form of strength, young man!" Tanvir laughed, the sound booming like a cannon shot in the enclosed space. He strode over and slapped Malik on the back with a hand as heavy as a sledgehammer. "Didn't I tell you multiple times?"

  "Hieek!" Malik arched his back, a sharp puff of air escaping his lungs as he rubbed the stinging spot between his shoulder blades, grimacing in pain.

  "This young man may not look like it," Tanvir declared, ignoring Malik's discomfort and grinning at the group, his teeth white against his thick beard. "But he is tough and more capable than he looks. Ain't that right, Princess?"

  Samira nodded vigorously, her yellow eyes shining with affection. "Of course, Uncle Tanvir! Why else would I be going to marry him?" She leaned in, standing on her tiptoes, and planted a loud, affectionate kiss on Malik's cheek. "He is so lovely."

  Malik's face turned a brilliant, beet-red shade, steam practically rising from his collar. "No... not in public, please, Samira," he whispered, his voice shaking with embarrassment.

  Raito leaned toward Yukari, watching the lanky scholar tremble. "He don't look like it," he whispered, his voice low and devoid of his usual warmth, eyes flat. "I bet he will snap like a twig."

  Yukari stiffened. She turned sharply, elbowing him hard in the ribs. "Hey, stop it," she scolded, her voice a harsh whisper. She looked at him, her brow furrowed with genuine concern, searching his crimson eyes for the boy she knew. "What is going on with you?"

  "Huh?" Raito blinked, rubbing his side, looking at her with innocent confusion. "What do you mean? I'm me."

  "Do you not hear how you are talking currently?" Yukari asked, a chill running down her spine. The casual cruelty in his tone was completely alien to the Raito who hesitated to hurt a fly.

  Raito looked at her, his expression blank and open. "I am not sure what you are talking about right now," he said, and he sounded completely sincere.

  Yukari stared at him for a moment longer, searching for a lie and finding none, then let out a heavy sigh. "Never mind," she muttered, glancing at the others to make sure they hadn't overheard. "Let's just talk later. In private."

  "Uh... okay," Raito said, shrugging it off.

  Zhu Lihua stepped forward, her imposing presence drawing attention away from the couple. Her fiery eyes locked onto the nervous scholar, dissecting him.

  "So, you are the one who found the ruins?" she asked, scanning Malik with a critical eye. "Can you tell me more about it?"

  "Oooo... of course, ma'am!" Malik straightened up, adjusting his glasses, eager to be helpful to someone who wasn't threatening to snap him. "What do you want to know?"

  "Everything," Zhu said, her voice sharp with an intense urgency that made Malik flinch.

  "HEY!" Tanvir shouted, stepping between them like a boulder blocking a path. He glared up at the War Empress. "I thought you promised not to make any trouble!"

  "My apologies," Zhu said, taking a slight step back, though her gaze remained intense. "I am simply... eager."

  "But she is correct," Tanvir grunted, turning back to Malik. "Can you catch the guests up on what you found?"

  "Of course, Director!" Malik said, snapping a clumsy, wobbling salute.

  "Please, this way everyone," Malik said, his nervousness fading as he stepped into his element. He gestured for them to follow him deeper into the room, toward the massive chalkboard covered in diagrams.

  But before anyone could take a single step, a scream tore through the scholarly quiet.

  "FIRE!!!"

  It came from the back of the room, a raw, terrified shriek that froze the blood.

  With a sound like a great beast inhaling, the shadows at the rear of the basement were obliterated. Roaring flames erupted from nowhere, a wall of intense, searing orange that surged forward with unnatural speed. The heat hit them instantly, a physical wave that dried their eyes and scorched the air in their lungs. The fire wasn't just burning; it was devouring, swallowing desks, scrolls, and equipment with a ravenous hunger.

  "EVERYONE, RUN AWAY!" Tanvir bellowed, his voice booming over the roar of the inferno. He waved his massive arms, herding the frozen scholars toward the exit. "MOVE!"

  "What about the documents?!" a scholar cried, clutching a stack of papers to his chest, his eyes wide with panic.

  "FORGET IT!" Tanvir grabbed the man by the collar and shoved him toward the stairs. "Your lives are more important! GO!"

  He spun around, searching the chaos until his eyes locked on Zhu Lihua.

  "You! Red One!" he shouted, pointing at the advancing wall of fire. "Can you do something?!"

  Zhu nodded once, her face grim. She didn't run away; she ran toward the heat. She stopped before the raging inferno, the orange light reflecting in her eyes. She thrust her hands forward, channeling her will, commanding the element she had mastered for centuries to submit.

  "Stop!" she commanded, pushing her energy against the flames.

  But the fire didn't flinch. It didn't slow. It surged, licking at her outstretched hands with a malicious intent, mocking her command. It twisted and curled, not like a natural force, but like a living, breathing predator. It consumed the pictures on the chalkboard, turning history into ash in seconds.

  "HEY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! QUICKLY CONTROL IT!" Tanvir shouted from the stairs, guiding the last of the terrified scholars to safety.

  "THAT'S THE PROBLEM!" Zhu shouted back, her voice laced with genuine shock. She leaped backward as a tongue of fire lashed out at her face. "I CAN'T! THIS FIRE IS NOT SOMETHING I CAN CONTROL!"

  She turned, her face pale in the firelight. "IT'S AS IF THESE FLAMES ARE ALIVE!"

  She sprinted back to the group, the heat nipping at her heels. "We need to run," she said, her voice tight. "Now."

  "That is a word I never thought I would ever hear from you," Tanvir said, his eyes widening. "But agreed. There are too many people here right now. We can't fight this in a confined space!"

  "Samira! Malik! Quickly!" Queen Aleena cried, her regal composure cracking as she grabbed her daughter's hand and pulled her toward the stairs.

  The fire surged again, faster now, blocking the path to the exit with a wall of heat.

  "I'll try something to slow it down!" Yukari shouted. She stepped forward, her ring flashing white. A massive, thick wall of solid ice erupted from the floor, sealing the corridor behind them, a desperate barricade against the inferno.

  HISS.

  There was no struggle. The flames didn't just melt the ice; they evaporated it instantly. The wall vanished in a cloud of superheated steam that scalded their faces. The fire roared through the mist as if the ice had never been there.

  "No way..." Yukari whispered, stumbling back, her eyes wide with horror.

  "Then I will..."

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  Raito stepped forward, his hand flying to the hilt of Koenka. His eyes were focused, his stance ready. He gripped the handle, preparing to draw the blade that could cut anything.

  "NO!"

  Three voices shouted in unison—Tanvir, Zhu, and Yukari.

  Before Raito could draw an inch of steel, Yukari slammed into him, grabbing his wrist with both hands and forcing it down.

  "You are not allowed to do any form of action!" she added, her grip tightening on his arm.

  "Then what should I do?!" Raito asked, looking at the encroaching flames.

  "WHAT ELSE?! RUN!" Yukari screamed.

  She yanked him toward the stairs, joining the stampede of scholars and nobles rushing for the surface. The air in the stairwell was already thick with smoke, the heat rising from below like a furnace blast. They scrambled up the stone steps, coughing and gasping, the orange glow chasing their heels.

  As the last scholar cleared the doorway into the upper hall, Tanvir slammed the heavy wooden door shut. He threw the deadbolt with a resounding clank.

  "That should confine the fire," Tanvir panted, leaning his weight against the wood. "It's reinforced ironwood. It won't burn ea—"

  CRACK.

  The wood splintered instantly. The door didn't just burn; it disintegrated. The flames roared through the opening, swallowing the ironwood as if it were dry paper, spreading across the stone floor of the ground level with terrifying speed. It wasn't behaving like fire; it was behaving like a flood.

  "I was wrong! Very wrong!" Tanvir shouted, backing away as the heat blistered the varnish on the nearby display cases. "MOVE! FRONT DOOR! NOW!"

  The museum hall descended into frenzy. Smoke billowed, obscuring the artifacts and tapestries, turning the grand hall into a choking gray maze.

  "Can't you be more helpful?!" Zhu Lihua yelled at Tanvir, coughing into her sleeve as they ran side-by-side.

  "Not in front of them!" Tanvir hissed back, his eyes darting to the fleeing civilians.

  "Is this really the situation to care about your public identity?!" Zhu questioned, dodging a falling tapestry that had caught fire.

  "Oh yeah? Funny hearing it from you!" Tanvir retorted, grabbing a stumbling scholar and shoving him toward the exit. "You haven't even told your stepdaughter about your real self!"

  Zhu flinched, glancing at Yukari’s back ahead of them. "Touché."

  "CAN YOU TWO LORDS DO SOMETHING?!"

  Raito’s shout cut through the roar of the fire like a thunderclap. He was running behind them, looking back at the inferno closing in.

  Tanvir froze mid-step. Zhu nearly tripped.

  "How did he know?!" Tanvir gasped, staring at the boy.

  "I... You know what? We deal with this later!" Zhu shouted, pushing Tanvir forward.

  They burst through the massive front doors, tumbling out into the bright, clean air of the plaza. The last of the scholars scrambled out, collapsing on the stone, gasping for breath.

  Behind them, the fire roared in the doorway of the museum. But then, something strange happened.

  It stopped.

  The flames licked at the threshold but did not cross it. They churned inside the building, a contained storm of destruction, consuming ancient texts and priceless artifacts, but refusing to touch the world outside. It was as if an invisible barrier held it back.

  "Is everybody out?!" Tanvir bellowed, scanning the coughing, soot-stained crowd scattered across the plaza.

  "Director!" A young scholar, his face streaked with tears and ash, stumbled forward. He pointed a trembling hand back at the burning building.

  "The Queen! The Princess! And Malik!" he screamed. "They are missing!"

  "WHAT?!" Tanvir shouted, his face draining of color beneath his beard. He spun back to the inferno.

  "They must be inside," Mila commented, stepping forward. Her face was set in grim lines, her hand already on the hilt of her greatsword. "I'll go in."

  "Are you crazy?!" Tanvir moved to block her path, his arms spread wide. "That flame is not normal! Can't you feel it? It will swallow you whole before you take two steps!"

  "Then do you suggest we wait until they all burn inside?" Mila snapped, her voice rising. "Until they are just charcoal?! Do you not remember what happened..."

  Before Mila could finish her sentence, two booming voices called out from behind the crowd, silencing the panic with sheer volume.

  "WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?!"

  The crowd parted. Bob and Ahmed strode forward, flanked by the elite Kingsguard. Their joyful reunion was forgotten, replaced by identical expressions of horror.

  "Tanvir, my friend!" Bob cried, rushing to the museum director. "Can you explain?!"

  "Bob... unfortunately, I can't. Not right now," Tanvir said, his voice heavy with helplessness. "Even I don't know what caused this."

  "Where is my wife? My daughter?" Ahmed asked, his voice trembling, the authority of a king cracking under the fear of a father.

  "They are still inside," Tanvir admitted, dropping to one knee, his head bowed low. "Maybe... I promise with all my power that I will get them back safely, Your Majesty!"

  "I don't want your promise, Tanvir!" Ahmed roared, grabbing the man by the shoulders. "I just want my family!"

  "Oh no..." Bob stumbled back, his face ashen. "It happened again. Why now? Why..." His legs gave out, and he would have fallen if Mila hadn't caught his massive frame.

  "Master, hang on," she grunted, supporting him.

  "STAND BACK!"

  Zhu Lihua stepped forward, pushing past the King and the merchant. Her eyes were blazing. She slammed her gauntleted fists together with a deafening clang.

  A massive surge of red energy roared from her body. The air shimmered with heat as two colossal hands of flame, mirroring her own, materialized around her.

  "I may not be able to control it," Zhu grit her teeth, sweat beading on her forehead as she forced her will upon the chaotic inferno. "But I can open up a path!"

  With a guttural cry, she thrust her hands outward. The giant spectral hands mirrored the motion, plunging into the museum doorway and physically parting the raging flames like a curtain. A narrow, shimmering tunnel appeared in the fire, the heat intense but passable.

  "Now I just need a volunteer to enter!" she shouted, her voice strained with effort. "I can't hold this forever!"

  Before any of the Kingsguard could move, two shadows blurred past them.

  It was Raito and Yukari. They didn't hesitate. As they sprinted into the tunnel of fire, Yukari raised her hand. A very thin, shimmering layer of frost coated both of their bodies, a fragile shield against the overwhelming heat.

  "We're going in!" Raito shouted over his shoulder, and then they were swallowed by the flames.

  "NOT YOU TWO! COME BACK HERE!" Zhu shouted, her voice laced with panic, but she couldn't drop the spell without the tunnel collapsing.

  Seeing them disappear into the inferno, Bob's eyes rolled back in his head. "Not the kids..." he whispered, and collapsed, passing out cold in Mila's arms.

  Inside the museum, the heat was suffocating.

  "Why did we jump?!" Raito yelled over the roar of the fire. "I thought we were here for a vacation!"

  "Who knows?!" Yukari yelled back, her face slick with sweat despite the frost shield. "We just did it! I swear we can never have a calm, peaceful outing!"

  She turned to him, her eyes fierce. "Remember! You are NOT allowed to use your core, nor pull out Koenka! Understand?!"

  "Okay, okay!" Raito said, scanning the swirling chaos of fire and smoke. "I still don't understand why, but I'll follow your instructions!"

  "Good! You should listen to your wife! It's for your own good!" Yukari snapped. She strained her eyes, trying to pierce the thick, black smoke.

  "Have you found them?" Raito asked, coughing. The plume was too thick, the fire burning too hot.

  "I can't see them!" Yukari admitted, her voice tight. "We have to be fast. These flames are too hot. I have to constantly remake our frost protector, and this is taking a toll on me!"

  "Then let me use my core!" Raito pleaded. "My fire will shield us better!"

  "NO!" Yukari shouted.

  Then, she spotted something. Through a gap in the swirling flames, she saw an anomaly.

  "What's that?" she said, pointing.

  In the middle of the burning hall, oddly misplaced among the destruction, was a perfect dome made of packed earth and rock.

  They nodded at each other and sprinted toward it. Yukari waved her hands, parting any flames that got too close with blasts of frosty wind.

  They reached the rock formation. From inside, they could hear a strange sound—the sloshing of water.

  "Hello?" Raito shouted, banging on the stone.

  "Anybody there?!" Yukari called out.

  "Y-y-y-yes! We are here!"

  The dome rumbled and lowered, the rock sinking back into the floor. Inside, huddled together, were three figures. Malik was shaking. Samira was crying. And in the center, Queen Aleena lay unconscious, a dark stain of blood matting her hair.

  "What happened?" Yukari asked, dropping to her knees beside the Queen.

  "A random piece of debris came down... hit the Queen in the head," Malik explained, his voice trembling.

  "And... hic... before... hic... we could lift Mother up, the flames were already around us," Samira sobbed, wiping her eyes. "So we quickly put up a barrier."

  In their hands, Raito saw the glimmer of Core crystals. Samira clutched a brown topaz—a Ground Core. Malik held a blue sapphire—a Stream Core.

  "Please save her!" Samira pleaded, grabbing Yukari's arm.

  "Not just her," Yukari said firmly, her voice reassuring. "All of you."

  She looked at the two young royals. "Now, turn off your Cores. Before you two experience the backlash and we have to haul two extra bodies."

  It was harsh, but necessary. Samira and Malik nodded. They let their hands drop, the glow of their crystals fading. Immediately, they slumped, groaning as the pain and fatigue of overuse crashed down on them. They fought to stay upright.

  "Now, please lift up the Queen," Yukari commanded. She stood, raising her hands. A new, larger dome of ice began to form around all five of them, leaving only a small opening in the front for vision. "I will open up a path."

  Malik and Samira struggled to their feet, each taking one of the Queen's arms and draping them over their shoulders.

  "Huh?"

  Raito suddenly froze, his head tilting as if listening to a sound no one else could hear.

  "What is it?" Yukari asked, concern flickering in her eyes.

  Raito shook his head, blinking. "Nothing. Must've been a mistake. You know, the heat surrounding us."

  "Don't joke in a time like this!" Yukari scolded. "Let's get out quick!"

  They began to move toward the exit, their pace agonizingly slow under the weight of the unconscious Queen and the exhaustion of the royals.

  It became clear immediately that something was wrong. Yukari felt a sharp, jarring impact against her mental connection to the ice dome. The flames weren't just burning around them; they were striking the ice. Tongues of fire lashed out like whips, hammering against the frozen shield with intelligent malice.

  "Ugh!" Yukari groaned, her knees buckling slightly. The strain of constantly repairing the dome as it was chipped away was immense. It felt less like walking through a fire and more like wading through a swarm of angry hornets. "It's not letting us go," she gasped, sweat stinging her eyes. "It wants to consume everything inside."

  "Hey, hang in there," Raito said, seeing her struggle. He reached for his side. "I'll do something!"

  His hand closed around the hilt of Koenka.

  "NO!"

  Yukari shouted, stopping dead in her tracks. She grabbed Raito's arm with her free hand, her grip bruising. She shook her head violently, her eyes pleading. "You cannot!"

  Raito stared at her, then at the relentless fire clawing at their shield. For the first time in a long while, a cold, familiar sensation washed over him. Uselessness.

  He was the one who had trained. He was the one who had defeated Ao. He had power. Yet here he was, watching Yukari shoulder the entire burden of their survival, forbidden from lifting a finger to help.

  He tightened his knuckles around the hilt of his sword.

  In the shadow of his grasp, unnoticed in the chaotic light of the fire, a flicker of black flame licked at his fingers.

  They took another step. Then another. Each one felt heavier than the last. The smoke, thick and acrid, began to bypass the thinning ice shield, entering their lungs. They coughed, hacking sounds that tore at their throats. The heat grew more intense, blurring their vision, turning the world into a hazy, orange nightmare.

  However, hope was not lost. Through the roar of the fire, they could hear it—the sound of shouting people. And rising above it all was Zhu Lihua’s voice, strained and desperate.

  "ALMOST THERE! QUICK! RUN!" she screamed, her voice cracking under the strain of holding the tunnel open. "THE PLACE IS ABOUT TO COLLAPSE!"

  "Finally," they all thought, a surge of adrenaline pushing them forward.

  But then, a sickening groan echoed beneath their feet. The wooden flooring, weakened by the intense heat, gave up. It splintered and cracked, tilting precariously into the inferno below.

  Yukari reacted instantly. With quick, desperate thinking, she dissolved the protective dome.

  "BRACE YOURSELVES!" she screamed.

  She slammed her hands onto the crumbling floor behind them. An "ice press"—a massive, sudden expansion of ice block—exploded outward. It slammed into Raito, Samira, Malik, and the Queen, launching them forward like projectiles toward the safety of the exit.

  "YUKARI!" Raito shouted, reaching his hand out as he flew through the air. His fingers grazed hers, but the momentum was too strong.

  As he was launched to safety, Yukari fell backward, the floor beneath her disintegrating into the abyss of fire.

  Raito, Samira, Malik, and the Queen landed hard on the cool stone of the plaza outside.

  The moment they cleared the threshold, Zhu Lihua's focus snapped. She collapsed to her knees, exhausted, and the hands of flame holding the tunnel open vanished. The inferno slammed shut with a deafening roar, sealing the entrance.

  "NO! LINLIN!" Zhu screamed, staring at the wall of fire.

  "MOVE OUT OF MY WAY!"

  Raito’s shout was not human. It was a guttural roar of pure panic and rage. He scrambled to his feet, sprinting past Zhu, his hand finding the hilt of Koenka. His eyes were wide, burning with a desperate, terrifying intensity that made the War Empress flinch.

  "Please help me... just this once," he murmured to the blade, his voice cracking.

  He pulled Koenka out. He activated his Core.

  But this time, it wasn't the usual comforting warmth of crimson fire. A pitch-black, deep flame erupted from the blade, cold, hungry, and utterly devoid of Raito's usual warmth.

  "STOP!" Zhu shouted, reaching out to grab him.

  Raito didn't listen. He didn't stop. He swung.

  He coated Koenka with the black flame and slashed horizontally at the raging inferno of the museum.

  The black flame didn't just burn; it devoured. It tore through the mysterious fire, swallowing the orange flames whole, carving a path of absolute darkness into the heart of the blaze.

  He ran inside, jumping down the hole that took Yukari earlier, not caring about the falling debris or the collapsing structure around him. His black flame ate the mysterious fire, creating a tunnel of void.

  "YUKARI!" he shouted, digging frantically around the burned crater with his bare hands, ignoring the heat, ignoring the pain. "Yukari! Yukari!"

  He was panicking, his breath coming in short, sharp gasps. "I won't forgive whoever did this! I will find whoever did this! I will..."

  A hand, weak and trembling, reached out from the rubble he was digging.

  "Stop..." a voice called out, barely a whisper. "Those... words..."

  Raito froze. He dug faster, revealing Yukari half-buried under debris, surrounded by shards of ice she had used to shield herself at the last second.

  "Yukari!" Raito shouted, pulling her out and taking her hand in his, grasping it firmly as if he would never let go again.

  "Those... words..." she whispered, her eyes fluttering open, silver dulled by exhaustion. "Don't... suit... you."

  "Stop, stop talking," Raito said, his voice thick with emotion. He scooped her up in a princess carry, holding her close to his chest. "I will get you some help."

  Yukari’s vision blurred. Her head rested on Raito's shoulder, feeling the frantic beat of his heart. She smiled, a small, weak thing.

  Please don’t lose yourself, she thought, her consciousness fading.

  Then, she passed out.