NOVEL NEXT Chapter 52: Vex (2)
Vex paused again, the sole of his shoe halting mere inches from the man's broken body.
"Who?"
"A security guard," he gasped, the words tumbling out in a desperate rush.
Vex cold blue eyes narrowed slightly.
"A guard." The word was flat, a prompt for more.
"Yes! A male guard," the man insisted, clinging to this new thread. "He was the first person I saw that tried to steal the ability core. Before you, before anyone else!"
"Steal?" Vex repeated.
The air in the surrounding seemed to grow thicker, heavier, as if the very molecules were tightening in response to his focus.
"But... he couldn't steal it! He didn't. He is dead already, I killed him." The man's voice was frantic, pleading for Vex to understand. "I swear it. He was impossibly dead. I felt his bones break. I left him broken, totally destroyed!"
"Dead?" Vex repeated, the single word laced with a skepticism that felt like a physical chill.
"Yes, he is dead," the man replied, a desperate certainty in his eyes.
Vex's gaze drifted toward the rubble-blocked passage, then back to the man.
The logic was inescapable.
"If he is dead... then who blocked the passage?"
The man froze. His story, his last desperate defense, had a hole he couldn't patch.
His mind raced, but came up empty.
"I-I don't know," he whispered, the admission sounding like a death sentence.
"Okay then," Vex said, his voice regaining its bored finality. "You are of no use now."
He shifted his weight, preparing to deliver the crushing blow.
But a sound interrupted, hurried, scraping footsteps.
The person Vex had sent to clear the passage returned, breathing heavily.
He skidded to a stop and bowed deeply, not daring to look up.
Vex stopped, his attention shifting with an almost audible snap.
"What?" The word was a blade.
"I have already done as you requested, my Lord," the man said, his voice trembling. "The passage is clear."
"And?" Vex's voice was dangerously soft. "Did you bring me the core?"
"About that..." The man swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing nervously. "The core... isn't there."
Vex went perfectly still for a moment.
Then he slowly turned his head, his gaze shifting from the messenger back to the broken man on the ground.
The man's eyes were wide with disbelief.
He waved his head in denial, a weak, pathetic motion.
"Did you see any dead corpse there?" Vex asked the messenger, his eyes still locked on the man.
The messenger seemed confused for a moment, but answered anyway.
"No, my Lord. I didn't see any corpses. Only... blood. A lot of it, smeared on the floor and the wall. But no body."
Vex continued to stare down at the man.
"What do you have to say about that?"
"He-he was dead! I saw it!" the commander cried, his voice cracking. "I am a higher level than him! He was totally broken from my attack, there is no way he can survive that! No way!"
"Broken?" Vex said, a flicker of understanding in his icy eyes. "Ah, I see."
A new, almost academic curiosity replaced the boredom on his face.
"Let's do a little experiment."
The man froze, totally unsettled by Vex's calm tone.
"I wanted to try another style of elimination, but you gave me an idea," Vex mused. "Let's see how you would be in the same condition he was. Don't you think that would be interesting? Let's see if you would survive."
Before the man could plead or protest, Vex made a small, almost lazy gesture with his hand.
An invisible, immense force slammed down onto the man, crushing him into the floor.
It wasn't a blow; it was a pressure, a weight that compacted him.
The man's eyes widened. He spat out a mouthful of blood, but he couldn't scream.
The air was forced from his lungs. The pain was sudden, immense, and absolute.
Vex watched, his head tilted.
"Don't die," he said, his tone one of mild disappointment. "It would be a shame. Didn't you say you were higher level than him...?"
But the command came late. The light in the man's eyes flickered and went out. Then his body went limp, utterly still.
Vex looked down at the corpse for a long, silent moment.
"...Yet he survived," he murmured, "and you couldn't."
He turned away from the mess without another glance.
"Let's go," he said to the two remaining subordinates, his voice once again a calm, commanding normal.
The two men looked at each other in confusion for a moment, then one found the courage to speak.
"Sir, what about the person that stole the ability core? Should we... find him?"
Vex paused. He turned his head slightly, a cold smile touching his lips that never reached his eyes.
"...I would soon pay him a visit."
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[Author's Note:]
Well, there you have it! Vex's patented "Applied Physics and Philosophy" seminar has concluded, and it seems our dear unknown guy, it's a pity we couldn't know his name... well he failed the final exam. Spectacularly.
Let's review the key takeaways:
1. "Do not" lie or keep silent to the walking natural disaster
2. "Do" only what is "right" around the walking natural disaster, even if he didn't ask you to.
3. "Do" send "Power stones", or "Golden tickets" (maybe both), and also write a review if you haven't.
Writing Vex is a delight because he approaches absolute evil with the calm curiosity of a scientist watching ants. This chapter was brought to you by:
- My desire to have a villain who isn't just monologuing, but aura farming (acting)
So, as always, if you enjoy the story, remember to Vote for it with Powerstones, and Goldentickets, and also give it a Review, if you haven't, there are the only things that can soothe the savage beast (and also help this novel get more readers). Just sayin'!
And before I forget, let me announce that... Our MC is now a certified cockroach!!
Thank you all for reading! Catch you in the next chapter (^^) (Sorry for the long author's note)