Beyond the Bloodline-Chapter 243: Nos. 5 & 4, The Witch and The Sword I

Alternate Dimension of Restricted Archives

Amphitheatre of Eternity

Pinecone Galaxy

December 5th

Year 2018

"Are you sure Jamie’s definitely going to come here?"

"I’m sure of it. In his current state, there’s no way he would not."

A man responded to his younger sister’s question as the two of them walked through this alternate dimension, completely ignoring the thousands of traps and Instant-death barriers that filled the hallway they walked through.

The man was quite tall, dressed in a simple pair of blue jeans and a black T-shirt that hugged his broad shoulders. His face was sharp and angular, with a strong jawline accentuated by a faint stubble, giving him a rugged look.

He had heterochromatic eyes, with his left iris taking on a dark amber hue, while his right had an azure hue.

At his waist was a plain, unadorned sword rested in a simple leather sheath.

For his sister walking beside him, she wore a black, sleeveless, toga gown dress with a keyhole neckline. The dress was trimmed in red and adorned with golden laurel accents around her waist, with a high slit along the right side, revealing her legs in sleek black heels.

She had a fair complexion, and her knee-length black hair was styled in a French braid, accented with a few delicate ornaments.

Like her brother, she had heterochromatic eyes—the left, crimson and the right, blue. The colour of blood, and the colour of the clear sky.

Together, they were among the most famous siblings in the universe: the Second Son and Sole Daughter of the greatest witch the Zanerth Universe had ever known, and likely ever would.

Of the Six Hybrids, the Myths of Estea, they bore the titles of ’Amber Sword’ and ’Rune Archon’, respectively.

John Lawrence Cathedral and Olivia Miriam Cathedral.

Currently, they were in the Pinecone Galaxy’s Amphitheatre of Eternity, which as of this time, was supposed to be closed. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Not a single soul was allowed in as the Amphitheatre absorbed ambient cosmic energy in preparation for its opening in February next year.

Not even the Creator Society who managed it could enter during this recharging stage.

So, these two were obviously intruding.

No one in the universe dared to arrest or chastise them for trespassing into the Amphitheatre of Eternity. It wasn’t just because of their renown or the weight of their titles; it was simply because no one could.

They were currently within the Alternate Dimensional Space where the Amphitheatre’s Records were kept.

The records of all the existences who had been scanned by the Amphitheatre—be they the originals Cassiel had scanned himself, or those who had fought in the Amphitheatre and had been recorded afterwards.

This was where the combat data required to create their projections was kept.

It stood to reason that this place would hold the highest security thought possible; a level of security that even the Creator Society can never and would never get past.

Yet John and Olivia strolled through it with ease, as if the defences were nothing more than decorative trinkets.

Magic formations flickered out. Cosmic bombs were rendered inert. Instant death barriers dissolved like mist. Status effects never had a chance to take hold.

Before Olivia, who had inherited her mother’s theoretical energy manipulation knowledge, even more so than her elder brother who was called the Golden Magician, Cassiel’s traps and security measures might as well not exist.

It was not arrogance on her part, just confidence in her unmatched skills.

The Archives had Five Sectors, each one with greater security than the last.

Starting from Sector 1 of the archives, they made their way through the invisible barriers and traps barring their way.

Each time they approached a magical or law-energy barrier, Olivia would simply trace a rune mid-air, its symbol glowing for a second before she flicked it toward the obstruction. With a faint shimmer, each barrier faded away, leaving their path open.

When they encountered a floor trap, she would tap her heel twice, sending ripples of cosmic energy into the air, and the trap would disarm itself in response.

John could also breeze through the traps, but his method would render them permanently disabled and would also alert the entire galaxy to their presence, hence, Olivia handled it.

While they moved, they talked, their conversation drifting to various topics before eventually settling on something the two of them had set out to fulfil.

One of their Mother’s unfinished goals.

"So, you’re absolutely certain this is what she wanted?"

John asked, his voice low but carrying easily through the empty space. Olivia dismantled yet another invisible ward with a sweep of her fingers before responding.

"Without a doubt. Mother’s goals were far more personal than most people care to imagine.

They slap grand titles on her and assume she must have some grandiose, galaxy-destroying or universe-dominating ambition.

But the truth is, Mother never cared about any of that."

They entered Sector 2, where the archives stretched high into the darkness above, filled with holographic data records floating in glass-like orbs.

As if swatting away invisible flies, Oliva flicked away more defensive barriers as she continued speaking.

"If not for this, Mother would never have begun her countless projects and experiments. This was her ultimate goal.

You and Richard never spent much time in her labs, so it’s no surprise you didn’t see it. She never spoke of it openly, but her actions made it clear enough to me.

It was something she always intended to accomplish ’someday.’ But that day never came."

Olivia’s brows furrowed slightly as she uttered those last words.

It had been over a billion years since the ’Witch of Chaos’ was last seen.

No one knew what became of her, and the prevailing belief was that she was dead. Or perhaps it was more accurate to say that those who declared her ’missing, presumed dead’ desperately wanted that to be the truth.

John’s gaze shifted to the rows of archive orbs, his eyes scanning them as he asked.

"Do you really think we can pick up where she left off? This isn’t some small undertaking."

Olivia paused, her hand hovering over a glowing crimson formation. She turned it into harmless particles of magic before turning to face John and speaking with a sharp edge to her voice.

"She left it undone because she believed she needed to do it herself. Everything mother had done since...since our father died...has been for this."

Her voice softened at the end, the sharp edge giving way to a faint tremor as the mention of their father stirred long-buried emotions.

Hundreds of billions of years could never be enough for her to forget the last smile he showed the five-year-old Olivia.

It was a simple task he went out for. Something he’d done over a dozen times before. But that one time... it was different.

Olivia’s memories cut off soon after. When they resumed, a million years had already passed.

Her home galaxy was gone, annihilated—by her mother. Her family... all gone. No amount of revival spells and magic could bring them back.

Taking a steadying breath to compose herself, Olivia continued speaking.

"Mother wouldn’t ask us to take it on, but I know she’d need it done. And now that she’s not here...who better to see it through?"

Hearing her, John nodded slowly.

"True. If anyone could understand our Mother’s intricacies, it would be us.

Still, don’t you think there’s a reason she kept it to herself? Maybe it was something she wanted to keep separate from...well, everything else."

Olivia smiled faintly, her eyes glowing as she raised her hand, pressing two fingers to a shimmering barrier that filled the corridor ahead of them in Sector 3.