Just as Alex laid eyes on Arwen’s Stigma, he sensed something causing him to glance back in shock.
Quickly calming himself, he remarked. "Everyone, prepare yourselves."
"What’s happening?" Claudia worriedly asked.
"It would seem my confinement is not as perfect as I thought it to be..." Alex muttered though he thought it to be more serious than he made it out to be.
For a brief moment just before he warned the others, it had felt as though something caused Eternal Night to lose its order, quickly pushing it into a chaotic state.
This wouldn’t have happened had he been inside but since he was outside, Eternal Night was not as good as it was supposed to be.
Alex suddenly snapped and immediately, several wolf-like creatures rose from his shadows and stood before him.
The next moment, one of them was pierced through.
By that time, Alex had already taken several steps back.
"Its invisibility has gotten better." He muttered in a grim tone.
Despite using his spirituality to inspect his surroundings, it was almost like there was nothing ahead of him but Alex was not stupid enough to believe that.
His sense of danger continuously screamed, causing him to wonder just how many Slenderman clones escaped Eternal Night.
In the blink of an eye, the wolves he created were destroyed, with several holes punctured in their body but this did not bother Alex too much as he snapped and created more, quickly filling up the hall and creating enough distance between his group and the invisible monsters.
Meanwhile, Claudia stood beside Arwen, ready to take her away once things got out of hand though, normally speaking, it had already done so.
In any case, she was left confused as Alex fought against what she could only describe as the wind.
Ada showed less of a reaction as she stood as stiff as a statue, causing one to wonder if she was okay.
As the silent battle took place, Arwen’s eyes fluttered open and as she drew in a deep breath, she remarked. "Out of the way!"
Alex quickly snapped his fingers twice, once to teleport to Arwen’s side and the other to dispel his Night Dwelling and Eternal Night, revealing the true body of the Slenderman in all its monstrous glory.
The next moment, Arwen’s voice grew deep and ethereal as a strange authority emanated from her body.
Alex suddenly felt weak and drained of energy... no, it was more like he became drowsy as a strange urge to sleep came upon him.
"... Is this the effect of her authority?" He muttered under his breath as he used Nyx’s authority to resist, allowing him to retain clarity.
Then, he heard Arwen’s voice.
Her voice held a certain calming effect that shook one’s soul at its depths.
Almost at the same time as she spoke, The Slenderman stumbled back and began to stagger, unable to keep its balance.
It was struggling with an urge that came from deep within its being but it found it hard to resist.
"Interesting," Alex muttered as he watched the Slenderman stumble.
"Take it down now!... I can’t keep this up for long." Arwen cried out in a hoarse voice, clearly strained by the Ability used.
Alex said no more as he stepped forward, his eyes trained on the true body of the Slenderman and its clones.
Each one of them looked as grotesque as they could come, their tentacles weakly moving about, seeking a way out of their sudden predicament.
He took a deep breath and as he closed his eyes, the atmosphere about him quickly turned heavy and oppressive.
Then a phantom image of a black and white disk appeared behind him.
Alex opened his eyes and as he snapped his fingers, he muttered in a deep voice.
Yet another phantom disk appeared before him and out of it, a black and white beam shot out and struck the Slenderman, completely erasing them from existence.
Even the rip in space was not spared as the beam went past it, erasing it without a second thought.
Both Arwen and Claudia were left completely speechless at the oppressive show of power.
".... Claudia," Arwen called out tiredly.
"... Who is that guy?"
Claudia remained silent for merely a moment before she replied in a tone filled with both reverence and pure awe for the being before her. "The Dark Lord."
Despite the destructive capabilities of the Rune, surprisingly, apart from the Slenderman and the rip in space, nothing else was destroyed.
This was because it worked on the principle of only destroying what Alex deemed impure.
Alongside Night Dwelling and Black Hole, this was the third Ability Alex had formed after the incident with Basar.
It brought great joy to him to know that his understanding was not in vain.
Each of the Abilities gave him the strength to deal out damage without resorting to mundane weapons.
He wondered if he would have struggled so much against Basar if he had these Abilities.
Shaking his head to get rid of the thought, Alex couldn’t be bothered to think about it further.
It was in the past and as far as he was concerned, Basar was defeated and now, it was time to face the problems before him.
Having dealt with the situation, Claudia led Arwen back through the hallway and down the stairs into the living room, accompanied by Ada and Alex.
Once they were seated with Ada standing beside the couch both Claudia and Arwen occupied and Alex seated on the couch opposite their own, the atmosphere turned silent for a brief moment.
After a full minute passed, Claudia spoke up. "Mind explaining what happened up there?"
"... No, not really," Arwen replied weakly.
Her complexion was paler than when Alex first saw her and a quick look with his spirituality active showed that her pneuma was not in a good state.
"Your friend... her Pneuma has been tainted by the Abyss," Alex muttered in a grave tone.
"Haha, don’t worry about it. I should be fine with a good night’s rest." Arwen said, clearly downplaying her condition.
With a weak smile, she glanced at Claudia only to discover her eyes were redder than usual.
"Is it until you are dead and without a single breath of life within you that you’d finally rest with your quest?"