novelraw Chapter 284 284: Chapter : 284 : What Do You Want?
Chapter 284 284: Chapter : 284 : What Do You Want?
Ethan felt himself sinking.
Not falling—sinking.
Like he'd been dropped into black, syrup-thick water. The roar of the colosseum faded to a distant hum, then to nothing.
Darkness swallowed him whole.
He opened his eyes slowly.
There was no light at first—just endless black. But gradually, far above, a faint silver pinprick appeared. A surface. A way out. He reached toward it instinctively—arm stretching, fingers grasping—but the current only dragged him deeper.
He let his arm fall.
Closed his eyes again.
And sank.
The deeper he went, the quieter everything became. No pain. No panic. Just… calm. A strange, velvet peace that made his heartbeat slow to a lazy drum.
Then—a voice.
Low. Deep. Older than he was. Coming from everywhere and nowhere.
"What do you want?"
Ethan's eyes fluttered open.
He was still sinking—slowly now—like drifting through ink.
"I… I don't know," he muttered. His own voice sounded small in the void.
The voice waited.
Patient.
Then—another voice. Softer. Familiar. Warm.
"Kee…"
Mee.
He froze.
Her laughter bubbled up next—light, teasing, the way it always sounded when she caught him staring too long.
"You're such a pervert, Kee…"
He smiled despite himself—chest aching.
Then her voice again—gentler this time.
"Kee… you dummy."
He laughed—quiet, broken.
And finally—barely a whisper, but it hit like a hammer.
"Kee… I love you."
The words echoed—looping, overlapping—wrapping around him like sunlight.
Ethan's throat tightened.
He looked up at the distant silver light again.
"I want more power," he said—voice steadier now.
The deep voice returned—curious, almost amused.
"Power. For what?"
Ethan swallowed.
"To… impress the girl I love."
Silence.
Then—soft, approving.
"Love. Very well."
Ethan blinked.
"Who are you?"
The darkness shifted.
Something rose in front of him—tall, broad-shouldered, exactly his height but… wrong.
It was him.
But not.
Black shadowy tattoos crawled across every inch of exposed skin—writhing, living patterns that pulsed like veins of midnight. His eyes glowed deep crimson, pupils slit like a predator's. The same messy brown hair, but longer, wilder. Hands covered in the same black markings—claws at the fingertips. A faint, cruel smirk played on lips that were unmistakably Ethan's.
"I am you," the other him said—voice deep, resonant, echoing inside Ethan's skull.
Ethan stared.
The shadow-self stepped closer—boots silent on nothing.
"I am what you could be. What you will be. The part of you that never backs down. The part that breaks chains. The part that protects what's his."
He reached out—black-marked hand hovering over Ethan's chest.
"You called for power. You offered love as reason. That is enough."
Ethan's heart hammered.
"What happens if I take it?"
The shadow-self smiled—sharp, dangerous.
"You become more. Stronger. Faster. Unbreakable. But the marks will never leave. The rage will always be there. You'll feel it—every time someone threatens her. Every time someone looks at her wrong. You'll want to tear them apart."
Ethan's breath hitched.
"And Mee…?"
The shadow-self tilted its head.
"She'll see you. All of you. The monster and the man. If she truly loves you… she'll stay."
Ethan closed his eyes.
He thought of Mee—laughing at his stupid jokes, blushing when he teased her, curling against him in the dark.
He thought of her voice.
"I love you."
He opened his eyes.
"Do it."
The shadow-self's crimson eyes flared.
Then—without warning—it lunged forward.
Not an attack.
A merger.
Black tattoos surged—pouring into Ethan's skin like liquid night. The marks crawled up his arms, across his chest, down his back—burning, freezing, alive. His heartbeat thundered—then slowed. Power flooded him—hot, electric, unstoppable.
He gasped—back arching in the void.
The silver light above grew brighter.
Closer.
He reached again—this time not grasping.
Commanding.
The darkness shattered.
---
Back on the central stage.
Flora had already turned away—hips swaying, whip trailing behind her like a satisfied serpent—smiling as though the fight was over.
Elowen cleared her throat—voice magically amplified.
"It seems Ethan Leilive is unable to continue. That means—"
She froze.
Every eye in the colosseum snapped to the cocooned figure.
It twitched.
Once.
Then again—harder.
A low, guttural sound came from inside—half growl, half pain.
Flora stopped mid-step.
Slowly—very slowly—she turned.
A single hand burst through the vines—fingers splayed, black veins crawling up the skin like living ink. The marks pulsed—dark, unnatural—spreading from wrist to elbow in jagged, lightning-like patterns.
The vines around the wrist snapped—torn apart like wet paper.
Flora's smug smile vanished.
Elowen's mouth opened—then closed.
Mira leaned forward—eyes wide.
---
Back in the highest gallery.
Liana whispered—voice trembling.
"Brother…"
Aiden's system screamed.
---
[WARNING]
[HIGH ENERGY SIGNAL DETECTED!]
---
Aiden muttered—low, stunned.
"What the fuck…?"
Selvara's eyes snapped open—violet irises contracting.
"No…" she breathed—voice shaking. "It can't be."
The hand flexed—black marks flaring brighter.
More vines tore—ripping apart with wet, violent snaps.
Ethan roared—voice distorted, deeper than it should be—and ripped the cocoon apart from the inside.
Vines shredded—sap spraying like blood.
He staggered to his feet—chest heaving, black marks pulsing across both arms, creeping toward his neck.
His eyes—once warm brown—now glowed faint crimson at the edges.
Flora took one step back—whip trembling.
"You… what are you?"
Ethan cracked his neck—slow, deliberate.
Grinned—sharp, feral.
"Someone who just woke up."
The crowd lost its mind.
Commoners screamed—cheering, crying, jumping.
Nobles recoiled—faces pale.
Elowen gripped the railing so hard it bent.
Mira's breath caught.
Ethan took one step forward.
The concrete cracked beneath his boot.
Flora's whip snapped—desperate—vines lashing out in a storm.
Ethan moved.
Faster than before.
Faster than human.
He blurred—dodged left—right—then closed the gap in a heartbeat.
His fist—black veins pulsing—slammed into Flora's stomach.
The impact echoed like thunder.
Flora doubled over—eyes bulging—air exploding from her lungs.
She flew back—skidding across concrete—stopping only when her back slammed into the base of her own colossal rose bush.
The bush trembled—petals raining down.
Flora coughed—blood flecking her red lips—then laughed—hoarse, delighted.
"Ohhh… now we're talking."
She pushed off the bush—vines spiraling around her like armor—rosebuds blooming into full, blood-red flowers.
"Let's see how long you last, pretty boy."
Ethan cracked his knuckles—black marks flaring brighter.
"Bring it."
---
END OF CHAPTER : 281 : AWAKENING!
---