The shattered glass of the eighth round faded into the vacuum, leaving behind a heavy, pregnant silence. Mirabella turned to the side, seeing the senior walking casually towards her across the invisible floor. His arms were still crossed firmly behind him, and his ancient, perfectly calm gaze met hers, unfazed. She blinked, exhaling a slow breath to steady her mind, then asked:
"What next?"
"You truly want to continue?"
Mirabella nodded her head. There was no hesitation in her eyes; she had bled, fought, and sacrificed far too much. She had come this far not to surrender when her ultimate goal—The complete dominion over death—Was already in hand reach.
Seeing her absolute, unyielding determined expression, the senior slowly nodded his head, acknowledging her resolve as a true Sovereign. He raised one hand and lazily snapped his fingers.
WHOOSH!
Mirabella looked quickly over her shoulder as a torrential mass of shimmering waters appeared violently out of thin air, hovering against the backdrop of the stars. She turned fully around towards the swirling water as it began to compress, dense energy weaving together as it took a distinct human shape.
"...?!"
She was completely stunned. As the water settled, solidifying into flesh, bone, and cloth, it formed a man. A man she knew just too well.
"Why are you showing me this person?!" Mirabella asked, her voice cracking slightly, looking over her shoulder at the Senior with a mix of anger and deep confusion.
"You should ask yourself that." The senior replied, his tone as vast and uncaring as the space around them.
"Huh?" Mirabella was genuinely confused, her mind failing her. Why would she have to ask herself that? What did this phantom have to do with her trial?
"In the Ninth round. You will fight against the one person you truly wish to see In your life... The one person you always dream about, think about, and wish to have. From when you’re born, to this very stage." He explained calmly, also staring at the man standing silently before them, an immaculate reflection of her deepest psychological longing.
"You mean?" Mirabella’s eyes violently widened in sheer disbelief, staring at the man, her brain going completely blank for a terrifying moment.
"No, that’s Impossible!! How could she!!" She muttered frantically, suddenly pacing back and forth on the invisible floor. Her hands on the hilt of her sword were tightening so hard her knuckles turned entirely white.
"Why?! Why must he be the one?! There must be a mistake." She kept murmuring, her usual cold facade entirely crumbling under the weight of the revelation.
"There is no mistake... I read your soul, and track this human. He is 100% the right person. With your expression, you know him, but can’t accept it." He said, slowly turning his ancient gaze to Mirabella, pinning her down with the truth.
"This man here is undoubtedly your Father."
"NO!! I don’t believe it!! He can’t be my father!" Mirabella yelled at him, her tone raw and desperate, completely catching the ancient senior off-guard.
"Apologies, but... I can’t accept him as my father." She added softly, lowering her gaze to her feet, her fists tightly clenched, trying desperately to suppress the whirlwind of childhood abandonment and longing tearing through her heart.
"Young lady, It seems you are doubting my powers. Do you want proof?" He asked, his voice softening just a fraction, recognizing the deep emotional scar he had just ripped open.
"You... You can actually do that?" Mirabella looked up at him in surprise, her blue eyes shimmering with unshed vulnerability.
"Of course, for my past connections with your Grandmother, I will help clear your doubt." He said, and with a sweeping wave of his hand, manipulating the fabric of time and space, he created a huge, glowing Mirror before them.
"...?!"
Mirabella stared intently as the space inside the mirror tore opened, revealing an expansive, beautiful clear field blooming with vibrant flora. Suddenly, a spatial rift violently opened, and a beautiful lady fell out from it, crashing into the grass. She was clearly severely injured, her aura flickering weakly as she bled heavily onto the earth.
A young man, who was surprisingly just picking wild flowers in the peaceful field, spotted the phenomenon and rushed forward without hesitation. He took her gently into his arms, and with his desperate, mortal help, the cultivator survived the fatal ordeal.
The woman was no one other than Genevieve, Her mother.
"First time they met." The senior said quietly, and remained completely silent, as years flew rapidly within the mirror’s borders. From there, the legendary Sunrise clan rose into absolute power, their banners flying high. Mirabella watched with a tightened chest as her fiercely independent mother inevitably fell in deep, passionate love, which later led to her giving her body and soul to the mortal man she loved, even granting him and his family immense powers.
"Okay!! What happened?! Why did the Sunrise clan suddenly vanished?! Why did she leave the dragon empire, why did he forget her?!" Mirabella demanded, a torrent of questions pouring out of her as she watched the fragments of her broken history play out.
"I am here to proof this man is your father, not to answer your questions like a suspect." The senior replied coldly, shattering the vision and dismissing the mirror into dust.
Mirabella blinked, forcing her turbulent emotions back into their steel cage. He was right. The senior was in absolutely no position to answer all these complex questions; only those two individuals could ever give her a clear, truthful answer.
"Thank you." She said, her voice dropping back to its cold resonance, and firmly grabbed her sword. "What do I have to do in this round?"
"Kill him."
".....?!"
Mirabella violently snapped her head towards the senior, completely shocked by the brutal condition. Although the man standing silently before them was nothing but a water clone, a perfect illusion constructed from her own desires, he was surprisingly still her father; the exact same father she had begged for, searched endlessly for, and desperately wanted in her life as a lonely kid.
"If you can’t attack him, you lose this round." The senior simply shrugged at her, not a bit bothered by the cruel psychological torture of the trial.
"I can’t fail!! Besides, we might be related by blood, but we have no deep emotions between us! Killing him will make no difference." She said ruthlessly, forcing the empathy out of her heart, and instantly vanished, utilizing her speed.
The water clone also raised its head, its eyes flashing with an identical, predatory light. The very next moment, Sunder materialized flawlessly in its hand, perfectly mimicking her signature weapon, which he swung with devastating precision at Mirabella, who had just appeared before him.
BOOOOM!!!
The two identical Sunders collided with the force of a dying star. The catastrophic force immediately sent Mirabella flying backward through the vacuum of space. She aggressively stabilized her body midair, using her energy to brake, and landed lightly on her feet, staring at the weapon in her father’s hands.
"Sunder?" Mirabella called out, a bit stunned. How could a mere trial clone replicate a supreme-tier artifact perfectly?
"You didn’t let me finish."
She turned her head to the senior, entirely flabbergasted by the sudden spike in difficulty.
"Your opponent in this round will have every single thing in your arsenal, from skills, weapons, and even bloodlines... So Mirabella, Good luck on winning."
With that devastating final warning, he completely shattered into glowing particles, leaving the empty stage solely for the brutal deathmatch between the father and daughter duo.
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