Chapter 131 — The Fifth Prince
As Akira and Kakashi's conversation continued inside the barriered house, the air suddenly shifted.
A gentle voice echoed through the room.
Soft.
Sweet.
And strangely soothing to the soul.
"You're worrying too much."
Both Akira and Kakashi froze.
The voice continued calmly.
"He didn't kill Demon Lords or Evil Spirit Kings. Not their underlings."
Kakashi's eye sharpened instantly.
Both of them turned toward the source of the voice.
Standing near the window was a boy.
He looked around sixteen or seventeen years old.
Long white hair flowed down his back like silver silk. His red eyes glowed softly in the dim light.
His presence was calm… yet overwhelmingly powerful.
It felt like standing in front of something ancient.
Something that should not exist in this world.
Kakashi's body tensed immediately.
His chakra flared.
"…The Fifth Prince," Kakashi said coldly.
His gaze hardened.
"Or should I say…"
He took a slow step forward.
"Merin. The embodiment of darkness itself."
The atmosphere instantly became dangerous.
Without hesitation, Kakashi broke the seal suppressing his power.
A surge of soul energy burst from his body.
Kakashi stretched out his hand—
And a blue sword formed instantly, forged from pure soul energy.
The blade hummed with terrifying power.
Merin watched him quietly for a moment.
Then a look of understanding crossed his face.
"Oh…"
He tilted his head slightly.
Then a playful smile appeared.
"…I see."
Mischief flickered in his crimson eyes.
Without anyone noticing, Merin casually formed a barrier around the entire area.
A barrier so absolute that even the Creators themselves could not scratch it.
Merin sighed softly.
"Solaris," he said casually.
"Let's go to your space."
He glanced around the house.
"…or this entire place will collapse."
Akira—who had just been called Solaris—was still frozen.
Seeing Merin standing there had completely stunned him.
His mind struggled to process what he was seeing.
Merin sighed again.
"…Still the same."
Then he snapped his fingers.
Snap.
In an instant—
All three of them disappeared.
And reappeared inside Akira's dimensional space.
The entire event had taken less than half a minute.
But Kakashi had already moved.
The moment they appeared inside the dimension—
Kakashi attacked.
The blue soul sword cut through the air like lightning as he lunged toward Merin.
The strike carried enough power to split mountains.
Merin calmly raised one hand.
A small barrier appeared in front of him.
CLANG.
The sword struck the barrier.
A tiny crack appeared on its surface.
Merin looked at the crack.
Then he looked back at Kakashi.
His expression turned slightly annoyed.
"…Annoyance number one."
He sighed.
"You do realize that if a soul weapon gets damaged…"
He tapped the cracked sword lightly.
"…the user gets damaged too."
Kakashi stood silently.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then—
A thin line of white blood slid from the corner of Kakashi's mouth.
But his grip on the sword did not loosen.
His eye remained locked on Merin.
Cold.
Unyielding.
The tension between them filled the entire dimension.
And Akira—still standing there in shock—realized something terrifying.
The boy in front of him…
The one smiling calmly…
Was the same person whose name was written on the grave.
The Fifth Prince.
Merin Blaze.