Chapter 136

“If you have any last words, then speak.” …he asked for her final statement. The unmistakable murder in his voice returned the terror to Lyrule… “If you kill me, you’ll die, too.” …and she fought for her life. Her weapon of choice was Yggdra’s information about the grandmasters’ ambitions. They intended to sacrifice Lyrule, holder of the seal, and Lindworm, the man who would become the vessel. She spurred herself on with all the courage she could muster and glared at Lindworm. “Two souls can’t coexist in one body. When the other soul is freed, it’s going to swallow yours and extinguish it. Did they tell you that?!” “No.” “Then…” She meant to say “Then why don’t you stop this foolishness?” She never got the words out, though. “But it matters not.” Before she could, Lindworm declared the whole thing to be trivial. “?!” “Whether the Four Imperial Grandmasters lied to me is a trifling matter. I understand the power that slumbers within me better than anyone. If it tries to consume me, I will simply devour it first and subsume it into my own flesh and blood. Survival of the fittest is law in this imperfect world, and I need only abide by it.” If Lindworm was a man who abhorred putting himself in danger the way Neuro did, then Lyrule might have been able to convince him. However, he was an emperor in the truest sense of the word. He was willing to risk annihilation to see his dream fulfilled. Lindworm heard the truth, and it didn’t shake him. He believed Lyrule, but after hearing her, he decided that it didn’t matter. With that, the final tool to stop the emperor was gone. “But that all ends today. This inane world where people use petty tools like power, wealth, and lineage to squabble over insignificant pecking orders will be no more. In the New World, there will be no strong or weak. All will be equal before my supreme might. They will know my protection equally. “In surpassing humankind, I, Prodigy King Lindworm von Freyjagard, will create a world without flaw!” The sword came down, sending blood spraying. Lyrule’s vision went dark. Her consciousness slipped away. The cries of the young man she loved seemed terribly distant. The world ended for the girl who’d inherited an ancient fate.