Magister Insanity

Hiding in the mist on a high branch, I watched as the demonic beasts tore into Zephyr. At first, he fought back and was surprisingly fierce, even managing to fell a few of them.

It was almost heroic.

But numbers told a different story. Gradually, the creatures swarmed him, teeth and claws rending flesh where armor offered no mercy. Zephyr screamed and flaired his arms around desperately. At some point, they began chewing at his "schlong" and ripped it with deadly force.

My body shivered.

For a brief moment, it felt like mine had been eaten as well.

Why did animals always go for that 'place' first? If they wanted to finish someone, they'd be better off snapping the neck. Instead, the beasts feasted with a kind of filthy curiosity and prolonged the traumatic experience.

The mist swallowed the sounds as the last of his screams choked away. When the clearing fell utterly silent, I let out a sigh. This memory would never leave me.

Descending from my perch, I moved through the mist with careful steps. The stench of blood grew thicker, cloying in my throat, until I reached the clearing.

What remained of Zephyr barely resembled a man. His hollow eyes stared upward, stripped of all spark, nothing but vacant sockets gnawed clean by the merciless scavengers.

His upper body was half-eaten, flesh torn away from his arms and chest. His torso had been ripped open, leaving a gaping cavity where blood spilled freely into the earth.

From that wound, his insides had spilled out, dragged into the open. Most of his organs had already been devoured, leaving only fragments behind, shredded and unrecognizable.

To think that this ruin had once been a living person. It was almost surreal. His body looked like a broken doll.

"I really did it…"

My voice was shallow, trembling. My whole body shook uncontrollably.

I killed him.

The mist, the beasts, the very circumstances of the victim — everything had been twisted to my advantage, all so I could kill him.

He was dead because of me.

Because I wanted to live.

No matter how many excuses filled my mind, one truth remained undeniable. I killed him because it was the easiest path.

But what choice did I have now?

The Soul Devouring Shadow had to be fed. Otherwise, I would perish. That much was clear from the runes describing the curse.

Its hunger could be measured in stages. At zero to twenty percent, it was bearable. At twenty to forty, it lingered like a faint ache. At forty to sixty, the hunger became noticeable. At sixty to eighty, it became an excruciating agony that felt like being eaten from the inside out. From eighty to one hundred, the shadow would seize my body slowly and I would die.

Right now, its hunger level was at [77%].

My vision blurred. Hunger clawed at me so hard I thought I might collapse, and yet that same hunger fed a brutal, unnatural strength through my limbs.

Along the way I nearly attacked a few people. Their souls smelled sweet and irresistible, and for a moment I almost let the shadow take control. At the last second I forced every ounce of will I had and pushed the urge back.

In the end I carried out the plan. If not him, then someone else would have died. Someone would have to.

Even so… why did it feel too easy? Disgustingly so.

Couldn't this guy have just flown away by manipulating the wind?

No, only those reached the sequence of Transcendents unlocked the ability to fly. Despite that, he had died in the most effortless manner.

He could control the wind… and still, he died.

It was infuriating.

「 Murderer. 」

I gritted my teeth. Irritated, my gaze fell downwards.

"Well... aren't you going to eat?"

The shadow shuddered, eager as a child with a suddenly gifted toy. It spilled from the soles of my feet without hesitation. What happened next was merciless and instant.

The darkness swallowed Zephyr's broken body whole. From within that maw came the sickening crack of bone collapsing, the wet sighs of flesh being consumed. The sounds inside the shadow's maw died with a final, wet hush. For a long moment nothing moved but the mist and the slow drip of blood into the earth.

Soon, the shadow slithered back to its rightful place at my feet and settled with a shiver of satisfaction.

Hope you're happy.

[Your shadow have consumed a dormant soul: Nameless.]

[Your shadow has extracted the sequence ability: Skyweave.]

[Your shadow's craving is fulfilled.]

According to the Murmur, Zephyr was classified as a "nameless." In the eyes of the Murmur, there were only two kinds of people: those who bore a name upon their soul, and those who did not.

In the end, he was destined to be forgotten forever.

Wasn't that cruel?

Something shifted in my chest. Was it guilt? Perhaps that was the case. But it didn't matter.

I smothered the feeling and let it sink into silence.

'There's no turning back now. The only path left is forward.'

Looking around, I noticed the Echo Zephyr had been holding was gone. Vanished without a trace.

Did it disappear?

Wasn't this supposed to be like those games where the slain drop their loot?

'Tch. Figures. If it worked that way, Niflheim would've been reduced to a slaughter pit long ago.'

Echoes weren't ordinary weapons. Born of the Spire, they carried a nature similar to Mystery. No matter the grade or tier, they couldn't be broken by physical force, not even by a Seraph. Only an Echo of higher caliber could shatter another. And once the wielder died, the weapon dissolved into nothing.

In short, killing someone for their Echo was completely meaningless. Perhaps torture could yield results, but a corpse never would.

A shame, really. His sword had looked like fine craftsmanship.

'Wait… isn't this actually for the best?'

The Sky Wind Clan wouldn't ignore Zephyr's death. Lesser Imperial Clan or not, their reputation couldn't afford such humiliation. Even if he was worthless, news that he'd been torn apart by scavengers would still sting.

But if I had taken his Echo and it was later found on me… that would've been a nightmare.

'Better it disappeared. Good riddance to that magic sword!'

It was really regrettable but nothing could be done.

With a sigh, I scratched the back of my head and summoned the runes.

Echo: [Philosopher's Mask]

Tier: ???

Type: Armor

Description: [An ancient philosopher forged this helm in pursuit of the "truth" of the gods. His endeavor ended in failure, driving him into despair and insanity. Yet from that failure, something strange and powerful was born in its place.]

Runes: [Veil of Masquerade], [Voiceless], [Trickster]

†

Rune: [Veil of Masquerade]

Hides the wearer's true identity.

Rune: [Voiceless]

Prevents speech. Any attempt emerges only as static.

Rune: [Trickster]

Distorts appearance, allowing the wearer to appear as another person.

†

Philosopher's Mask, was it? This was just a random helm that happened to catch my eye, and I merely "borrowed" it from some shady fellow peddling worthless Echoes. To be precise, it was my shadow that slipped it away while he was busy scamming a few customers. Just clarifying, to avoid any misunderstandings.

Its rank, however, remained a mystery.

'That strange merchant must have thought it was nothing more than junk. The truth only revealed itself after I'd pored over countless rune languages, particularly Draconic and Hermes.'

Its effects were curious, to say the least. One rune, [Veil of Masquerade], made sense. It concealed the wearer's identity. But the other, [Voiceless], left me puzzled. What exactly was its purpose? Had some careless tinkerer just thrown together random runes and hoped for the best?

Considering the helm was described as "ancient," I could only assume it dated back to the Old Emperor's era, long before rune study had reached the sophistication of modern times.

And what did the runes truly mean when they said he was pursuing the truth of the gods? Guess only the gods would know the answer.

'I'll investigate this later. Now let's see something else. After all, I didn't kill this guy for no reason.'

I manipulated the runes, opening another section of my information and scanned through it until something caught my eye.

First Sequence Ability: [Soul Eater]

Ability Description: [You can freely control the Soul Devouring Shadow and wield it as both a blade and a shield. Consuming a soul carries a chance to acquire its individual abilities.]

Shadow Storage: [ ]

Souls Consumed: [1/3]

†

First Acquired Ability: [Skyweave]

Ability Description: [A hereditary Legacy of the Sky Wind Clan that grants control over the wind. At advanced levels, it allows the user to walk on clouds and water. Unlike its original wielder, the Legacy can now be used without the limitations of its former owner due to the influence of the forsaken Black Solace.]

I blinked.

Was I reading that correctly? Of course, I already knew Zephyr could manipulate the wind. That was the very reason I had targeted him in the first place. But the runes were saying something far more shocking this time.

Using the legacy without the limitations of its previous owner? Could it really be what I thought it was…?

'Does this mean I can use the sequence abilities of others without their corresponding curses?'