Gathering Husbands with a System in a Game Like World [BL]
Chapter 45: This would be quick

Chapter 45: This would be quick

A pillar of violet light tore through the centre of the chamber.

The floors broken open and the floating crystals above the auction floor exploded one after another, raining sharp fragments across the hall. People ran, people fought to escape the threshold of a cataclysmic event and some unfortunate People died being caught up by the explosion.

At the centre of it all the prisoner remained bound, violet energy spiralling around them in violent waves that spread through the underground structure like blood through veins.

The System flared.

[Warning.]

[Warning.]

[Excessive mana accumulation detected.]

[Unknown phenomenon identified.]

Kai narrowed his eyes.

"Run Appraisal."

Blue lines stretched across his vision. This time the shape of the place finally became clear. The pillars, the walls, the floor, the hidden tunnels, the stage, the artifacts, the whole structure....everything was connected. Thousands of carefully placed delicate lines formed an enormous network beneath the transit hub.

"Commendable architecture, i must say"

[Agreed]

He took a more critical look at it and his next discovery made his breath hitch.

Turns out the entire place was a ritual site.

The artifacts had never been meant for sale. They were fuel for whatever was erupting from the floors and The prisoner had never been merchandise. They had been placed there as a catalyst to the explosion.

"Dammit."

Dexter stepped back as a crack raced across what remained of the floor.

"Looks like we found our answer."

Elias’s smile was gone.

"Unfortunately."

Slowly an applause echoed through the chamber. A lone figure stepped out of the shadows.

The Curator.

The heavy robes and distortions were gone. He looked ordinary, he had Dark hair, Plain features, an Average height and Nothing remarkable. A plain human through and through.

He smiled.

"You have no idea how long I have worked toward this moment."

Caelum stepped foward and raised his sword. His expression remained perfectly calm, as if the collapsing hall and the screaming crowd were only mild distractions. There was no panic in him. Only the quiet certainty of a man who had never met a problem his blade could not solve. Kai was already imaging thier wedding, but it dawned on him "Husband collection System" not "Boyfriends Collection System" wait i am to...

[Focus on the objective at hand Host]

"Oh right!"

"You should surrender."

The Curator said laughing softly in an incredibly eerily way.

Caelum was not fazed.

"Why?" he asked rather curiously.

"Because this ends tonight."

"No." The Curator extended both arms. "This is only the beginning. I spent years searching for answers. Years studying ruins and forgotten records. And do you know what I discovered? Everything is flawed. Humans. Demons. Beast clans. Elder races. Every single one of us is incomplete. But evolution has finally arrived. It is beautiful."

Kai stared at him.

"You’re insane."

"That is what people always call visionaries."

Caelum turned his head slightly toward Kai and the others. His voice stayed even and steady.

He pointed at Elias and Dexter

" You two Keep the guards and the scavengers off us. Do not let anyone leave with the corrupted pieces if you can help it. Kai." His blue eyes met Kai’s.

"Stay close to me until I say otherwise. You are still learning the weight of your own strength. I will not have you break yourself on the first real fight."

"But i have been in real fights before, i can protect myself" kai said looking pissed.

Instantly it was as if the three boys rolled Thier eyes in unison.

"Oh please, you know he is capable of protecting you even with a finger the guy is incredibly strong" Elias said while twisting a dagger in his fingers.

Dexter nodded "Agreed" he muttered.

Kai twisted his face in fury "fuck off you two" the two raised up thier hands in surrender and dispersed in a flash.

Kai turned to Caleum

"Do you think i am annoying?" He asked him

[Warning Host...]

Shut up

[Noted]

Caelum stared at him "Ask me these when everything is over and i would give you an answer for now let me handle this prick"

Kai swallowed.

"You’re going after him alone?"

"This will be quick."

Caelum winked rather attractively and moved immediately.

His steel flashed and it was if the world seemed to split. The Curator stepped backward and an enormous barrier erupted between them, shielding him from the attack.

"You are fast" Caelum said and the curator laughed behind thr shield.

Caelum smiled and stepped forward his sword struck it. The entire ground shook. The barrier shattered and another formed instantly. Then another.

The Curator sighed.

"I truly hoped we could avoid this."

Caelum’s expression did not change. He pressed forward, each strike calm and absolute, the authority of the Sword Sovereign turning the air itself sharp. Barriers bloomed and broke in rapid succession as the Curator retreated deeper into the formation. The glowing runes answered every step, the structure itself folding around its master like a living shield.

Caelum’s voice carried cleanly across the chaos.

"You are using those shields and running away like a rat. Come out and face me like a man. Oh wait. You can’t. You are weak."

Elias, cutting down a pair of fleeing guards, snorted.

"Cocky mother fucker."

Caelum ignored the comment and kept advancing. Barrier after barrier met his blade. Each one slowed him a fraction more. The formation was not merely protecting the Curator; it was feeding on the violet energy pouring from the prisoner and the artifacts, rebuilding its defences faster than even the Sword Sovereign could tear them down.

After a long sequence of unbroken strikes, Caelum stepped back. The calm on his face remained, but a thin line of frustration had appeared at the corner of his mouth. He turned and with a leap landed back at Kai’s side as if the failed assault had been nothing more than an inconvenient delay.

"Well," he said dryly. "That wasn’t quick."

Kai almost laughed despite the shaking ground.

"You think?"

"The structure is layered deeper than I expected. He has turned the entire hub into a fortress. Breaking through by force alone will take too long."

The System spoke.

[Recommendation: Immediate evacuation.]

Kai frowned.

[Secondary recommendation: Prevent completion of the ritual.]

Those contradict each other.

[Correct.]

That’s not helpful.

[Acknowledged.]

[Panic has not been determined to be productive.]

Around them Elias finished the last of the guards who had tried to flee with artifacts. Thin mana threads flashed; bodies fell. Dexter reappeared from the far side of the hall with an armful of confiscated pieces and an offended expression.

"People were trying to steal them," Dexter said.

Kai stared.

"You stole them from the thieves." he said with a sly smile.

"I confiscated them. It’s different." The fox replied rather seriously, Kai frowned and with a grunt turned away from him.

"What is he mad about, i thought we were cool"

The ground lurched hard. A terrible sound rose from the centre of the stage. The prisoner had raised their head. Violet light poured from their eyes. The chains rattled and began to crack and The pillar of light swelled.

Kai took an involuntary step forward.

Then the prisoner spoke.

Two words, clear and broken.

"Help me."

The chamber froze.

The chains shattered. The pillar burst outward. Violet energy flooded the underground complex in a single violent wave. The Curator’s laughter rolled through the collapsing dark.

"At last!"

The System’s voice came sharper than Kai had ever heard it.

[Emergency World Quest initiated.]

A blue screen burned into existence before his eyes.

Emergency World Quest

Objective: Survive.

Secondary objective: Save the host organism.

Failure conditions: Catastrophic.

Reward: Extremely high.

Kai stared at the words.

Host organism?

The System was silent for a moment.

Then:

[Correction.]

[The corruption itself is not the primary anomaly.]

Kai’s blood ran cold.

Then what is?

[Unknown.]

Deep inside the blinding violet light, something opened its eyes.