NOVEL NEXT Chapter 56: Taming a King (4)
As he spoke, the golden-haired youth's eyes underwent a terrifying transformation. His irises expanded and contracted unnaturally, twisting into the shape of a radiant lotus. When those lotus-shaped eyes fixed on the surviving fiend, it was as if his soul was laid bare, with every single one his secret, sin, and thought stripped of its hiding place.
The surviving fiend trembled violently. Just being seen by those eyes made him feel as though his very existence had been dissected, catalogued, and judged, as though he had been seen through completely.
Then such words began to flow from the golden-haired youth's mouth that they shocked him.
"Your innate ability allows you to transfer damage to your kin. To survive the curse just now, you sacrificed your newborn son. I always knew fiends were scum, but I didn't expect them to be so lowly as to not even spare their own flesh and blood to survive."
Ray feld dumbfounded. The golden-haired youth's ability to unveil a creature's greatest secret with just a glance... it was epic beyond belief!
"You! What the hell are you?" The surviving fiend felt terrified as his greatest secret had been unearthed in a flash!
"Didn't you say it yourself?" The golden-haired youth raised his hand once more, his golden lotus eyes gleaming with inexorable power. "I am of the Shattering Mother."
With a single gesture, the curse of shattering struck again.
The fiend howled as he was forced to trigger his ability again. Another one of his kin was sacrificed in his place for him to survive the Shattering Mother's curse again.
"I wonder how many kin you have left. Considering the practices of your kind, it won't be long before you die. I probably have to cast the curse a few more times and you will cease to be. Am I right?"
The golden-haired youth's threat didn't sit well with the surviving fiend.
"If I am going to die, I will at least take one down with me."
The surviving fiend lunged at Ray, brandishing his sword threateningly.
"You think I am easy to kill? Look with your dog eyes at what I am capable of!" Ray covered his body in armor made of sharp and sturdy Azure Winds before his hands slashed out like twin blades.
The surviving fiend expected to see his sword cutting through Ray's hands before hacking his body apart, but the reality was far from his expectations.
The second Ray's hands came in contact with the steel sword, the weapon shattered. Then, his hands carved a dreadful path through the fiend's flesh, splitting his body apart.
♦️ You have killed an Initial Stage Bronze Rank Fiend. You have gained +15000 EXP.
♦️ You have earned an additional +10000 EXP for killing a fiend an entire major realm above you.
"Not bad, my human race has given birth to another genius. Good, good, good!" The golden-haired youth praised, seeing how easily Ray had killed a bronze rank fiend.
"Thanks for saving my life," Ray expressed.
The golden-haired youth waved his hand. "Don't mention it. It's my duty to eradicate fiends and ensure no harm comes to my people."
"Do you mind if I ask who you are?" Ray asked.
"Who am I? That's a tough question to answer. If you had asked it a few years ago, I would have given a different answer. But now I can only say I am a mere commoner."
"What a coincidence. I am also a commoner."
"What a funny coincidence indeed. Well, my fellow commoner, I have to warn you. You are caught in quite a tricky situation. This dungeon has been overrun by fiends. Worst yet, they are guarding the only way out. I advise you to find a good place to hide for a day if you value your life," the golden-haired youth advised calmly.
"What will happen after a day?" Ray questioned.
"There will be no fiends left in the Slime Nest. I would have killed them all. It would be safe to leave then," the golden-haired youth answered confidently.
Ray shook his head. "I can't do that."
"Hmm? Do you perhaps not understand the severity of the situation we are in?" The golden-haired youth's eyebrow raised.
"No. I understood you clearly," Ray said. "I came to kill them and bag myself what they came here looking for."
The golden-haired youth smiled.
"Your courage is admirable."
Ray had caught his interest.
"If you truly meant what you said, follow me. I know where the rest of the Ash Legion is. Let's go kill them!"
As Ray was being led, the golden-haired youth glanced at him and asked,
"Still curious about my name?"
"Who are you?" Ray nodded.
"Guess," the golden-haired youth smiled teasingly.
"Did anyone ever tell you you are annoying?" Ray felt exasperated.
"Not many people dare say the truth to my face," the golden-haired youth laughed.
"So you know you are annoying," Ray said sharply.
The golden-haired youth thought, "I have been outwitted."
"Since you are not willing to tell me your name, what should I call you?" Ray said.
"Just call me Nameless," the golden-haired youth replied, thinking to himself while feeling a bit melancholic, "My name has long been stripped from me. I can only be nameless now."
'Nameless? What a weird name to give oneself,' Ray thought as Nameless asked him the same question. "What about you? What should I call you?"
"Call me Yar," Ray replied, unwilling to give his true name to a person who was hiding his identity from him. While he felt grateful for Nameless has saved his life, his gratefulness didn't extend into blind trust.
Clang!
Sounds of fighting came from ahead.
"Do you hear these noises. These are the sounds of the Ash Legion fighting the Slime King and his army ahead. You can still back out if you want to," Nameless said.
"This is the moment I have been waiting for. Retreating now would waste the sacrifices I have made and the danger I have faced to get this far." Ray said.