Chapter 93: Run If You Can't Win

"What about Wang Yu?" Edward muttered to himself. He had been trying to contact others without success. Initially, he had considered calling Charles, but had abandoned the idea upon learning that Pernia Ryder was from the Ryder family. However, he had always intended to bring Wang Yu along.

Could Wang Yu have been obstructed on the way? Or perhaps Pernia was mistaken. Judging by the powers she had displayed so far, however, Edward was more inclined to believe the former. Her predictions had been flawless as far as he knew.

However, whether Wang Yu could make it or not would remain to be seen. If he did, Edward wouldn't simply gain an ally—he would unlock whole new branches of possibilities that Pernia hadn't foreseen.

"As expected of the Grand Duke's son, you react quickly—but it's meaningless. Just stay here and try to survive, won't you? You can't stop me."

Pernia's voice echoed from all directions, leaving Edward unable to discern where it originated. He couldn't understand her purpose in continuing to speak to him, either.

For now, his options were limited. All he could do was try to remain calm, expand his field of observation, and wait for a chance—or the breakthrough that Wang Yu's arrival might bring.

Suddenly, there was a crack. The floor seemed to be breaking. Edward's expression darkened. He had underestimated the intensity of Pernia's mysterious power. Even if he lay completely still, disaster would still find its way to him.

Observation—this was a significant characteristic Edward had identified about Pernia's ability. At the edge of what he could observe, particularly in his blind spots, seemingly reasonable yet strikingly abrupt phenomena appeared to harm him.

If he moved, the fearsome nature of this ability would become even more evident. Things would quickly materialize in his blind spots to block, harm, or even kill him.

So far, Pernia hadn't even used wizardry to attack Edward directly. She had only enveloped him in her latent ability, rendering him unable to act.

"A Fatewatcher's strength isn't directly terrifying. Pernia's latent ability is an exception. Observing fate comes at a price, one that Pernia herself must pay. This means there's definitely an opening..." Edward's expression shifted as his mind raced.

Suddenly, he rolled to the side and landed prone on the floor. As he moved, he deliberately swept his gaze over his surroundings to avoid leaving any blind spots in his vision.

"Good, it worked." Edward exhaled slightly in relief. His hypothesis seemed correct—those sudden obstacles would only come from his blind spots.

The cracking sound Edward had heard earlier returned anew. The spot where Edward had been lying was now a gaping hole. If he had remained still, he would have fallen with it.

At the same time, the collapse of the floor began to spread. The building's deterioration caused a chain reaction; the fragile structure quickly started to crumble.

"This is exactly what I wanted." Edward steadied himself, unfazed by the ongoing destruction. In fact, he had been counting on it.

As the floor beneath him gave way, Edward, already poised for action, seized the moment. He allowed himself to fall along with the debris.

As long as he could leave the building, he could avoid many potential dangers. Pernia's latent ability needed enough obstructions to manifest in strength—such as the cluttered debris and deterioration in this old warehouse.

Edward was confident that in a sufficiently open space, Pernia's ability would lose much of its potency. For now, his priority was to ride the collapse to the ground floor and escape the building.

Focused and alert, Edward scanned his surroundings as he fell. Upon landing, he rolled to dissipate the impact.

His rolling body collided with a pile of iron farming tools—pitchforks, hoes, and even a few hammers for breaking stone, seemingly dislodged from above due to the initial collapse.

The tools carried significant momentum, considering that they had fallen from two stories above. They were tied together with straw and hemp. When they struck Edward with immense impact, he was sent sprawling. Pain radiated where he had been hit.

"Ugh!" Edward spat out a mouthful of blood. Fortunately, his armor had deflected the pitchforks' prongs, sparing him greater injury. His internal organs had suffered some damage, but it wasn't critical.

The interference during his fall had caused him to briefly lose sight of his surroundings, creating more blind spots. Nevertheless, he had successfully reached the ground floor. All that remained was to dash out and neutralize many of his problems.

Kicking aside the pile of tools, Edward maintained his vigilance and sprinted toward a window on the ground floor.

Just as the window came into view—just one leap away from freedom—a familiar sensation enveloped Edward. His expression turned grim. This sensation meant that Pernia herself had made her move.

"Spatial transfer..." Edward gritted his teeth as he identified the source of the sensation. It felt the same as Charles' Star tarot card.

His vision blurred momentarily. He found himself in an unfamiliar section of the building. Surrounding him were piles of stone, some mixed with strange tools, and containers filled with what appeared to be alchemical ingredients.

Edward hadn't been able to observe his surroundings during the initial disorientation from the teleportation. Consequently, the sounds of cracking stone and shattering containers filled the air.

"Damn it..." A protective shield enveloped Edward as he surveyed the collapsing stone and the unknown liquids spraying from the broken containers.

His face was dark with frustration, but he remained calm, poised to move. He refused to give up no matter what.

"Almost there..." Wang Yu probed the Voidblade's guidance. He was close. He'd arrive soon, though Edward had been out of contact for some time.

There was no response to his attempts at communication—a troubling sign. Perhaps the signal had been intercepted, or Edward was too preoccupied to reply. Or worse...

Wang Yu ran along the walls at high speed, moving even faster than Edward did. His elevated vantage point also gave him a clearer view of what was doing. He quickly spotted the building and the empty lot surrounding it. Something seemed amiss on the fourth floor.

A crack in the wall was leaking a viscous, red-colored liquid mixed with mud and sand.

"Combustion oil?! What's Edward doing in there?" As an amateur alchemist, Wang Yu instantly recognized the liquid as a cheap alchemical byproduct commonly used as a secondary fuel.

This substance didn't ignite quite as explosively as standard fuels, but it was inexpensive. When mixed with wood, it could produce extreme heat. In winter, the residents of the walls often used it in large quantities.

But why was it here, and in such volume no less? Did Edward need fire for something inside?

No, this couldn't have been Edward's doing. He likely didn't even recognize this substance. Moreover, combustion oil was full of impurities.

If ignited, it would produce not only flames but also large amounts of toxic gases far deadlier than carbon dioxide. Inhaling it without proper ventilation would quickly render a person unconscious. With that much oil cascading like a small waterfall down the fourth floor—everyone in the building would suffocate if it were ignited.

"Damn it, what's Edward doing?!"

Wang Yu sucked in a deep breath. He expanded his ripples to their maximum 15-meter radius and absorbed all the information they transmitted.

Inside the building, Edward stood on a small pile of wood and stone, eyeing the red-colored liquid flowing beneath him with caution. As Wang Yu had suspected, Edward didn't recognize the substance and dared not test it.

On the opposite side of the cluttered mound stood Pernia, who was smiling sweetly at Edward. "So, fate has brought you here. You cannot interfere with me."

Edward's expression was grim. He had been forced into this corner after relentless maneuvering. The liquid at his feet was an unknown danger he couldn't ignore.

Pernia's beautiful face boasted a confident, calculated smile. Meanwhile, from Edward's blind spot, a piece of flint fell down a crack in the ceiling.

The flint struck a piece of metal and began to spark. The spark caught on a nearby piece of oil-soaked parchment, and a small flame ignited.

The fire flared briefly—and was subsequently snuffed out.

Edward stared in shock as Pernia's expression twisted into one of terror and disbelief. She looked down at the lower floors, her composure shattered.

"How is this possible? Who is he? A wizard? Void energy?! He's observing me! Is he a seer of fate, too? Impossible—there should only be one... How could he be here? He's coming!"

Edward frowned. It took him a moment to realize what had happened to Pernia—her predictions had failed because of Wang Yu's arrival. This was the breakthrough he needed!

Pernia staggered back in shock and disbelief. The confident and calculating woman from before was nowhere to be seen. At this moment, she looked both pathetic and ridiculous.

"This is our best opportunity! Attack!" Edward didn't hesitate. Exploiting the enemy's moment of vulnerability, he picked up a rock from the ground, took aim, and hurled it with all his strength.

𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

The stone blurred under Edward's formidable strength. When thrown with the power of a knight, even an ordinary rock could pierce through human flesh with devastating force.

No matter how strong Pernia was, a direct hit from the rock would be fatal. This was the fundamental difference between magicians, wizards, and knights—resilience. A magician could never outlast a knight in a battle of endurance.

At the same time, Edward frowned. He had thrown the rock at full force, focusing intently on his throw to the exclusion of all else. He was prepared to be severely injured by Pernia's latent ability, but nothing seemed to happen. Why?

There was no time to think. He needed to regroup with Wang Yu. The rock hurtled towards Pernia's chest; it seemed impossible for her frail body to withstand such a violent impact.

But then, the unexpected happened. A ripple in space appeared. In an instant, Edward and Pernia switched places.

"I will not accept your attempts to rewrite a predetermined fate. The Ryders always control their own destiny," Pernia's calm, unwavering voice resounded.

Edward's eyes widened in shock. The stone he had just thrown was now hurtling towards him—and it had grown much larger. Pernia had used wizardry to alter reality, enlarging the stone with the power of the void. She was finally using her wizardry abilities in full.

The rock had grown more massive, but its speed didn't change. It struck Edward with an enormous impact, shattering his Steel Sunlight, denting his armor, and sending searing pain through his internal organs. The force threw him out of the building entirely.

The collision of the rock and Edward's armor produced an intense shower of sparks, igniting a blaze. In seconds, the fourth floor turned into a fiery inferno. The ceiling collapsed, and the entire structure began to crumble.

"Thank goodness," Edward muttered. His resilience prevented him from losing consciousness, though his ribs had cracked. The one silver lining was that the impact had flung him out of the building, which might turn the situation in his favor. Or so he thought...

Space rippled again. As Edward fell, he was caught and forcibly pulled back into the building. Edward found himself staring at Wang Yu and Pernia, who were locked in a tense standoff.

Wang Yu looked utterly disheveled. Debris from the collapsing building had nearly singed off what little hair he had left. His leather armor was in tatters, and one of his legs was pinned under a fallen wall.

In contrast, Pernia, having regained her composure, was now demonstrating the true power of a wizard. Around Wang Yu, objects seemed to move of their own accord—falling stones, burning timber, and sudden spikes of metal. This was a wizard's true strength: the power to distort reality.

Wang Yu dodged frantically, with no opportunity to counterattack. His injuries were accumulating, and the fiery, collapsing ceiling above them was about fall.

Edward, still dazed from his rough landing, struggled to get up. His injuries had compounded, and his body was severely overstrained.

"Damn it, it's my turn now! Do you really think I've got no tricks up my sleeve?" Wang Yu's voice rang out amidst the chaos, laced with anger and frustration.

"I don't know why I cannot foresee your fate, but you, a second-rate wizard, can't change anything!" Pernia's tone was cold and unyielding.

"Underestimating me, huh? Fine, watch this! Lights out!" Wang Yu shouted furiously, slamming his palms together.

Edward froze for a moment, puzzled. Wang Yu never spoke while fighting. Suddenly, everything went pitch black. Endless darkness enveloped them all.

"It's useless... Hmm? Divine power? You may have blocked my perception, but you still won't be able to harm me. This is but a futile struggle. Embrace your fate," Pernia replied calmly. She was slightly startled, but otherwise maintained her composure.

Edward's heart pounded with tension. Could Wang Yu's desperate gambit succeed?

Someone suddenly tugged his waist.

"Run," Wang Yu hissed. Grabbing the still-reeling Edward, he began sprinting under the cover of impenetrable darkness. They might not be able to win against Pernia, but they could easily escape.