The Eclipsed Order

Chapter 41: Chapter 41: The Eclipse That Turned the Laboratory Into a Crater

Both women glanced toward him.

"The facility has been cleared."

He paused briefly.

"All hostile personnel have been eliminated, and the five children and three adults have been evacuated safely."

Valentine nodded.

"Good."

She looked toward Aoda.

"Then we’re finished here."

Aoda turned toward the researchers.

"Take care, Mr. Researcher."

The senior researcher froze.

Valentine gave him a faint smile.

"And try not to destroy yourselves with your own experiments."

Aoda raised her sword.

"Let’s go."

The two women moved together.

BOOOOOOM!

Aoda’s Eclipse Impact struck the creature with overwhelming force, launching its enormous body across the chamber.

Valentine followed immediately, sending a concentrated crimson wave after it.

BOOM!

The creature crashed through the far wall and disappeared beneath a mountain of debris.

Before the researchers could react, Aoda, Valentine, and the Eclipse elite had already vanished.

"W-Wait!"

The senior researcher rushed toward the destroyed wall.

"Where did they go?"

One of the researchers stared into the darkness.

"They’re gone."

Another swallowed.

"Maybe they retreated."

The senior researcher slowly turned toward him.

"Retreated?"

His voice was filled with disbelief.

"Did you even watch what just happened?"

He looked around the ruined laboratory.

"The guards are dead, the specimens are destroyed, the facility has been compromised, and our enemies disappeared without even allowing us to understand what happened."

His face slowly lost its color.

"If the higher-ups discover this..."

Nobody answered.

Then one of the researchers suddenly looked upward.

"Wait."

"What’s that?"

He pointed toward the glass ceiling.

"Look."

Everyone raised their heads.

The moon was visible through the cracked glass.

But beneath it stood a human figure.

He was suspended high above the laboratory, looking down at the ruined facility with a calm expression.

Then one magical formation appeared beside him.

Another formed on the opposite side.

Then another.

Within moments, countless enormous circles surrounded him from every direction, rotating slowly as dense Eclipse Power gathered inside their intricate patterns.

Some appeared above him.

Others formed below.

Several opened behind his body.

And then the largest formation emerged directly behind him.

It spread across the night sky like an enormous black sun.

The surrounding darkness seemed to deepen beneath its presence.

The researchers stopped breathing.

One stumbled backward.

"I-Impossible..."

Another stared upward with trembling eyes.

"Those aren’t ordinary magic circles."

The senior researcher couldn’t move.

His face had gone completely pale.

"That amount of mana..."

His voice cracked.

"How can a human possess something like that?"

Another researcher shook his head.

"No..."

He stared at the countless formations.

"Those aren’t spells."

"What are you saying?"

"Look at them."

His voice trembled.

"The structures are completely different from conventional magic. They’re all connected to him."

The senior researcher stared upward.

His expression slowly changed from fear to disbelief.

"This isn’t magic."

He swallowed hard.

"Then what is it?"

Aoda and Valentine had also stopped.

Both women looked toward the sky.

The moment they saw Ares, their expressions changed.

Valentine’s eyes widened, while Aoda’s calm expression gave way to unmistakable awe.

Neither of them had expected to witness this.

Valentine slowly smiled.

"So this is the power of the Great Eclipse... to witness such a magnificent scene"

Aoda’s eyes remained fixed on the enormous formations.

"That’s Master for you."

The words left her quietly, almost without thought.

The ten elites had also stopped moving.

Every one of them stared upward as the Eclipse Power illuminated the night.

Even the rescued children and adults, standing safely beyond the facility, could see the enormous formations covering the sky.

They had no understanding of what they were witnessing.

They simply knew that something far beyond their comprehension was standing above them.

+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

Ares looked down at the laboratory.

His expression remained completely relaxed.

"Huu..."

He glanced across the ruined facility.

"What a great view."

The researchers finally understood.

One of them dropped to his knees.

"No..."

Another backed away.

"Wait!"

"Please!"

The senior researcher stared upward, his face filled with terror.

"You can’t..."

Ares raised one hand.

The countless formations began rotating faster.

The enormous circle behind him expanded until it dominated the entire sky above the facility.

The air itself began trembling.

The ground cracked.

Dust rose from the ruined laboratory.

"Let the heavens lose their light, let the earth forget your name, and let everything beneath my shadow return to nothing... Eclipse."

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

An overwhelming wave of Eclipse Power descended upon the laboratory.

The ground shattered first.

Then the remaining structure disappeared beneath the attack.

Stone, steel, glass, machinery, containment chambers, and everything buried beneath the facility were erased in an instant as the force continued downward.

The underground levels collapsed one after another.

The surrounding earth ruptured violently, trees were torn from the ground, and a massive shockwave swept across the abandoned landscape.

Then the ground beneath the laboratory gave way completely.

The earth collapsed inward.

A colossal crater formed where the facility had once stood, stretching across the surrounding landscape as the remaining foundations disappeared beneath the overwhelming force.

For several seconds, the entire area trembled.

Then silence returned.

Dust drifted slowly beneath the moonlight.

The laboratory was gone.

The experiments were gone.

The researchers were gone.

Nothing remained except the massive crater carved into the earth.

Aoda continued staring at it.

Valentine’s eyes remained fixed on the destruction.

The ten elites stood motionless.

Even the rescued survivors were unable to speak.

Finally, Aoda lowered her gaze.

"Magnificent."

Valentine gave a quiet smile.

"Indeed."

She continued looking toward the crater.

"After serving beneath him for so long, I still find myself surprised by the distance between his strength and ours."

Aoda nodded.

"And we’ve probably only seen another fraction of it."

The excitement in their eyes was impossible to hide.

For the Eclipse, witnessing the power of their master was not frightening.

It was something closer to reverence.

Valentine finally turned toward the survivors.

"You are free to go."

The children and adults remained frozen until one of the adults finally stepped forward and bowed deeply.

"Thank you..."

His voice trembled.

"Thank you for saving us."

Another survivor lowered his head.

"We thought we were going to die in there."

Valentine’s expression softened slightly.

"You’re alive. That’s enough."

Then her expression became cold again.

"But you will not speak about what happened here."

The survivors immediately fell silent.

"Not to the kingdom. Not to your families. Not to anyone."

Her violet eyes moved across them one by one.

"You know where we can find you, and we know where we can find you. I don’t want this information leaving this place."

The adults exchanged nervous glances before one of them nodded.

"We understand."

"We won’t tell anyone."

Valentine gave a small nod.

"Good, then we’re done here."

Aoda turned toward the enormous crater.

+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

The private meeting room inside Starlight was quiet despite the noise coming from the establishment outside.

Aurora sat at the head of the table, calmly reading through the reports that had been placed before her. Across from her stood Aoda and Valentine, both of whom had already returned from the destroyed laboratory.

Neither woman appeared particularly tired.

If anything, they looked unusually composed.

Aurora finished reading the final page before closing the report.

"So that facility was only one branch."

"Yes," Aoda replied. "The information we recovered before the destruction confirmed that."

Valentine placed several small containers on the table.

"We also managed to secure these before the facility was erased. They’re remnants of the substance we encountered during our earlier investigation."

Aurora’s eyes moved toward the containers.

"The same substance?"

"Not exactly the same."

Valentine picked up one of the containers.

"The composition has been altered, but the foundation is similar. Whoever created it has been refining the process."

Aoda continued.

"We also found records indicating that the facility was supplying materials to several other locations. The number of facilities mentioned in the documents is considerably higher than we originally expected."

Aurora’s expression remained calm, but her eyes became slightly sharper.

"And the enemies?"

"There are stronger specimens."

Aoda placed another document on the table.

"Some were classified as failed experiments, while others were listed as successful. Their descriptions suggest that several of them possess abilities far beyond the creatures we encountered previously."

Valentine nodded.

"We couldn’t investigate everything. Once the facility began collapsing, we prioritized the survivors and the materials that could still be recovered."

Aurora glanced at the containers again.

"That was the correct decision."

She leaned back slightly.

"And the survivors?"

"Five children and three adults," Valentine answered. "They’re alive and have already been moved somewhere safe."

"Good."

Aurora’s gaze returned to the report.

"So we have confirmed that the laboratories are connected, the substance is being refined, and the organization behind them possesses facilities considerably larger than the one we destroyed."

Aoda nodded.

"The investigation is far from over, but we have enough information to begin tracing the larger network. We’ll have the recovered materials examined and use the records to identify the other facilities before making our next move."

Valentine glanced toward the sealed containers with a faint smile.

"And perhaps we should preserve some of the report for Master. After witnessing what he did tonight, I doubt any of us will ever look at a laboratory the same way again."

Aoda’s expression softened with admiration.

"Master erased an entire facility with a single attack, yet his control remained so precise that none of the survivors were harmed. Even with that level of power, he didn’t waste a single movement."

Valentine nodded.

"That’s what makes his strength frightening. It’s not simply the amount of power he possesses; it’s the fact that he can control something that overwhelming as though it were completely natural."

Aurora listened quietly before allowing a faint smile to appear.

"As expected of Master."

Aoda and Valentine immediately nodded.

"Indeed."

Valentine glanced toward the dark window.

"We’ve followed him for so long, yet every time he reveals another part of his strength, it feels as though we’ve only seen the surface."

Aoda gave a quiet laugh.

"Perhaps that’s exactly how it should be. The Great Eclipse wouldn’t be much of a mystery if we could see everything he was capable of."

Aurora closed the report.

"Enough admiration for tonight. Secure the materials, organize the information, and continue the investigation."

Aoda and Valentine lowered their heads.

"Understood."

Valentine smiled faintly.

"Still, Master really is extraordinary."

Aoda nodded.

"Without question."

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