179 Silence and Darkness

Having just recovered from 'Instant Death', Black Sword calmly looked around at several of the monsters that pounced at them. Within a fraction of a second, Black Sword suddenly let go of Thales and crouched down.

He extended his right arm to his leg, straight into a pile of wood debris. He abruptly withdrew his hand the next moment.

The old broken wood fell off, and Black Sword held something that looked extremely familiar to Thales—the strange black sword.

This was the weapon the Blood Mystic seized during the battle just now.

"How did you find this?"

Thales was shocked. He suddenly realized that they had returned to the alley from the beginning. It was just that the buildings around them had been flattened during the battle with the Mystics.

There was no more time for discussion.

In the next moment, Black Sword grabbed his own weapon, turned around, and unsheathed his sword in the face of a full onslaught. Just like when they were on the Cliff of the Sky, Black Sword moved like a dancer. He spun twice in the blink of an eye!

Thales saw swift movements executed before his eyes. At the same time, the continuous sound of metal clashing rang next to his ears.

The several dozens of dark monsters that were the first to pounce at them actually flew backwards in the air. They fell among layers upon layers of their own kind.

"Didn't I tell you just now? You must be skilled in identifying objects around you," Black Sword said coldly, "And make sure you have your best weapon with you. This is the first rule of the battlefield.

"Also…"

Thales watched him anxiously.

Black Sword lowered his head and looked at Thales in a profound manner.

"I found it," the average-looking man spoke concisely. He raised his head and looked in another direction.

Thales trembled suddenly.

"Do you mean—"

The second wave of monsters pounced on them again and were as densely packed together as ever.

Before Thales could react to this, Black Sword extended his injured and weakened left arm without hesitation and grabbed Thales' back collar as his arm shuddered.

He then rushed towards a direction that was completely different from where 'Giza' was. He rushed off without regard.

"Aaaaahhhhh!!!!"

While Thales screamed shrilly, 'Giza's' face froze.

'What? That direction…'

At that moment, the dark monsters beside Black Sword stopped charging forward in a synchronized wave formation. Instead, they crowded towards Black Sword together.

The monsters crashed frequently into each other, but they still got up from the ground and charged towards Black Sword without regard for anything.

The monsters were only there to stall them.

Black Sword's charge this time was quick and could not be stopped. There was a determination in him laced with a hint of resolve saying that he would achieve his goal at all costs.

He dodged most of the interceptors rapidly, brandished his strange sword without pause and got rid of the other obstacles. Even though he was injured every now and then under the monsters' siege and blood flowed down his skin, Black Sword did not stop at all. He continued charging forward desperately.

A second later, the number of blood-colored patches on 'Giza's' face increased at an unprecedented speed.

Behind her, Kilika thrashed about frantically and extended its giant tentacles towards Black Sword. Soon, as if they had gone into a frenzy, more tentacles swiftly moved from places near and far away, and above-ground or below-ground, to join the ranks surrounding them.

'Giza's' expression quickly changed again...

Because this time, with eyes shut, Thales held the Blade of Purification in front of him.

Black Sword waved his strange sword with one hand and parried away most of the intercepting attacks. He held Thales up with the other hand, letting the boy finish off all the unavoidable obstacles with his legendary anti-mystic weapon.

The tip of the blade moved forward as Black Sword charged. It turned the dark monsters into ash; it turned the intercepting tentacles into ash; it turned all the Blood Mystic's toys and flesh into ash.

Black Sword quickly broke through the dark monsters' siege. There was a trail of ash behind them, along with flesh-puppets that chased frenziedly after them.

Thales opened his eyes and lowered the tip of the Blade of Purification slightly as he panted harshly.

They charged towards a massive, dark red tentacle. Strangely, this tentacle did not desperately intercept Black Sword like the others. Instead, it crept… backwards.

Thales furrowed his brow.

'It looks… frightened?'

As he stared at the fleeing tentacle, Thales understood why and clenched his teeth softly. They had found Giza's greatest weakness—her real body.

But in the next moment, the situation of the scene changed again.

A limping figure appeared on the road in front of Black Sword, and Black Sword's pupils narrowed.

It was Gleeward, the Soul Slayer Pike's handler who was a Northland heavy swordsman, and the chief of Shield District and Hammer District. He stood in front of them with an unpleasant face.

"Run!" His teeth clenched hard, Gleeward hissed through the gaps of his teeth. His words were full of hatred. "That monster… is controlling me!"

Black Sword creased his brow.

On the other hand, Thales' mouth was wide with shock.

'This is the supreme class elite from just now. He's actually… controlled by that monster?! Is it just his body being controlled, or…'

Recalling how Serena and Katerina walked towards Giza in the birch tree forest in spite of themselves, Thales could not help but break out with goosebumps.

In the next moment, Gleeward's entire body trembled. He lowered his body and kicked sideways!

Black Sword's expression changed. He mercilessly waved the strange sword in his right hand at an angle that made it hard to dodge.

However, Gleeward retracted his crippled leg and landed a well-timed kick on the ridge of Black Sword's weapon, stopping the blade.

Vigorous and forceful, Gleeward stepped firmly on the strange sword. He then threw a punch.

Black Sword had no choice but to put Thales down. He extended his weakened left arm and blocked off his opponent's heavy punch. Behind them, the pursuing monsters and tentacles slowly got closer.

"I am a heavy swordsman. The instinct carved into my bones compels me to block off others and kill them." In his stalemate with Black Sword, Gleeward said resentfully, "And after I reached supreme class… Both of you had better flee now, don't let her have her way!"

Black Sword trembled as he held off Gleeward, feeling the latter's massive strength with a solemn expression. His breathing became heavier when he saw enemies approach from afar.

'A human controlled by a calamities' ability… A legendary anti-mystic equipment… should be able to undo it?'

Black Sword inhaled deeply and glanced at the approaching 'troops in pursuit'. He then looked at the giant tentacles that were fleeing further and further away. He sighed.

'There's no more time.'

In the next second, the two figures intersected with each other before they let go of their opponent.

Thales felt a chill down his spine. Black Sword's words rang in his mind again.

"The most ideal situation would be for me to escape 'Instant Death' immediately after finding her true body. Then, I would carry you and strike her at her weakest point, sealing her true body before she can react and escape.

"But, like what I've said before, the Blood Calamity is a combat expert and can come out with thousands of unusual tactics. I'm also far from being at my best. Therefore, something will definitely go wrong in this plan of mine.

"We have to reduce the damage of these accidents to a minimum, such as consciously making it so that these accidents happen where we want them to.

"Such as… me."

Thales' heartbeat increased without him realizing it. In the blink of an eye, the empty-handed Black Sword had already fought hand-to-hand with Gleeward a few times.

With the extra flesh and blood endowed upon him by the Blood Mystic, and thanks to his desperate fighting style and battle instincts, the barehanded Gleeward was able to quickly take down the weakened Black Sword until he could no longer get up!

"She doesn't know that you're the one who's actually using the legendary anti-mystic equipment, and would put all her focus on me.

"So, if an accident happens… if I'm held back by the Blood Calamity and can't… You, kid, are our last trump card. If I'm held up, bound, suppressed or even killed in the battle, you must take over my role…

"Wield the Blade of Purification and continue with my unachieved goal."

Thales took a deep breath. Black Sword suddenly said, "I'm counting on you, kid."

Then, Thales felt his collar tighten. The boy turned pale with fear and only had time to utter one word. "Wait—"

The scene before him then changed in a flash.

It was only when the howling wind grazed past his ears that Thales suddenly realized Black Sword had flung him away again.

Thales could only hold on tightly to the Blade of Purification in his bosom. He was headed for the tentacle that might contain the Blood Mystic's true body.

In the blink of an eye, the Sin of Hell's River surged into Thales' mind and made him shudder violently. Everything around him slowed down once more.

Thales watched himself as he fluttered through the air, moving slowly towards the giant tentacle. Black Swords' words lingered by his ears.

"To ensure that nothing goes wrong, I hope that you can also do this: Identify and seal the Blood Calamity using the Sin of Hell's River and the Blade of Purification.

"I told you before that the Sin of Hell's River is an omnipotent Power of Eradication. It can suddenly increase or strengthen your agility, reaction time, explosiveness, speed, strength, perception, sight, willpower, mental strength, contemplation, recovery time, endurance… Any quality you can think of."

Thales took in a deep breath. He felt the Sin of Hell's River fluctuating under his skin and veins, wave after wave of it.

'That's right. It's this feeling.'

Just like the time he fell on Katerina in the birch tree forest, the Sin of Hell's River kept strengthening his balance in the air.

From afar, Thales watched in fear as Black Sword and Gleeward's figures were drowned within the tentacles and the dark monsters.

"This is also why the Sin of Hell's River is often not easy to control. When you need to increase your agility, the Sin of Hell's River will give you the agility of an acrobat, but it may also give you super speed, great strength, and perfect vision at the same time. This unconscious dispersion of power will greatly reduce its efficiency and persistency, reducing your control over it.

"Thus, as the wielder of the Sin of Hell's River, your first lesson would be to 'Summon'.

"Summoning is different from the other Powers of Eradication. You need to consciously focus the Sin of Hell's River on one part, then focus on what you want to do.　

"Don't treat it as a tool. Instead, treat it as a companion whom you can speak with. Tell him, as a master of life, exactly what you want!"

Thales closed his eyes gently in mid-air and simply allowed the cold wind to blow past his ears.

'Very well. Sin of Hell's River… The ability that came from being in a state between life and death.

'Right now, I'm faced with precisely the choice between life and death. I need… what I need… is to seal the Blood Mystic!

'That's why, I need you to help me… Sin of Hell's River!'

During that moment, Thales could clearly feel the Sin of Hell's River which had originally spread through his entire body, but in a scattered manner. It was dissipating now.

Those strange fluctuations gathered in his heart. After a moment, they surged to another place.

'Everyone's Power of Eradication is different. It depends entirely on you how strong you'll end up with the Sin of Hell's River, and it'll entirely depend on how much you'll be able to figure out your ability. Tremblor and Instant Death are the skills I mastered while I was figuring out my own ability. I'll give you some of my experiences and epiphanies regarding the Sin of Hell's River.

'Perception. The perception I gained from the Sin of Hell's River comes from vibrations and fluctuations. I call it Feedback. Even the slightest breath can cause the air to shiver and it will travel to the ground, the wall, and so on, even cause a person's body to shiver.

'With Feedback, I can sense the slightest movement a hundred meters away.'

At the end, Thales sucked in a breath. He opened his gray eyes, already covered and filled entirely by the Sin of Hell's River, in a manner that had happened to him before.

At the instant the Sin of Hell's River surged into his eyes, the effect of slowed time seemed to have suddenly disappeared. His once nimble hands and feet seemed to have become much slower in a very abrupt manner.

Thales landed harshly on top of the tentacles and everything that touched his body felt slippery. Smaller tentacles instantly burst out of the tentacle to tie Thales' feet together tightly. Forcing down the feeling of nausea, Thales clenched his teeth tightly and repeated his mission in his heart multiple times.

Little Rascal's tears appeared before his eyes, along with countless corpses littered on the streets in Shield District.

When he thought about this, Thales could not help but clench his teeth. With a shout, he gathered his mind together.

"AAAHHHH!!"

But at that moment, he noticed something odd.

Thales lifted his head and he could tell that the scene before his eyes had already become different.

Thales was stunned.

Compared to Black Sword, what Thales sensed was different from Black Sword's 'Feedback' which allowed him to sense vibrations and fluctuations. His was in a different manner.

It was sight; his vision became clear again.

It was different to the clear colors he saw when those fluctuations had previously surged into his eyes, because at that time, the details were vague.

This time, the Feedback from the Sin of Hell's River showed him another world. It was colorful and radiant, but the details were full of life.　　

It was as if the resolution had become much higher.

He could see every inch of the flesh and blood in that gigantic tentacle before him. Each vibration could be seen clearly. Thales could even guess the general flow of blood in the tentacle, as well as the detailed way the muscles contracted and expanded, and which inch of the tendon he would need to cut to be able to free himself.

He stared at the world he could see, the world provided by his new senses, and almost had his eyes bulge out by how wide he had opened them.

But that was not all.

Thales stared at the tentacle shining in endless red light and he suddenly realized that there were multiple layers in that light. They were also in differing shades of red.

As he became certain of his target, more of the Sin of Hell's River gathered in his eyes, and it also became denser.

Soon, he saw a shade of red so great that it had turned violet at the deepest parts of the tentacle. It slowly shrank and pulsated.

'So… that is...'

Thales' heart froze. The tentacles beneath his feet wrapped themselves tighter around him.

He did not hesitate any longer. Thales raised the Blade of Purification and sensed the heat coming from the sword again. Then, he thrust it downwards. The tip of the sword sank into the tentacle.

Right before Thales' eyes, the lights with similar shades of red at the tip of the sword and the tentacle fused together. Then, the red light coming from the latter disintegrated.

From the spot where the sword had pierced into, the flesh and blood formed by parts of torn limbs from other living creatures swiftly melted and evaporated before it was reduced to ash.

Thales only felt the grip around his feet loosen. As the tentacle was reduced to ash, he sank into the gigantic tentacle.

In his panic, Thales swung the Blade of Purification in his hands wildly, and wherever it went, ashes would scatter all over the place.

The inner part of the tentacle was like a red, mountain cave, and it looked as if it was moaning in pain. As it shuddered endlessly, it flung Thales around until he felt dizzy.

Eventually, Thales' feet landed on the ground.

The second prince panted harshly, sucking in air that was foul and rancid.

'Damn it. This place… is just a little too disgusting.'

He lifted the Blade of Purification, stepped on a sticky but slippery mass of flesh and blood, then forced himself not to look at the torn limbs and broken bodies around him which were still moving slightly and looked as if they were breathing on their own. Heads, arms, stomachs, lungs, eyes, noses, and all other parts of a human body… He forced down the desire to vomit, then moved slowly towards the brightest red spot.

*Swoosh!* 　

Several thin tentacles and sharp thorns surged towards him.

However, Thales only held on to the sword in his hand and cut them all without any hesitation, reducing them all to ash. He was getting closer to the glowing spot.

Soon, Thales' target appeared in front of him.

A purplish-red, naked girl whose limbs and back were 'mounted' on a wall made of flesh and blood.

The maiden's face was matted with layers of densely packed blood-red spots. They continuously squirmed about and looked very bizarre.

She had no gentle expression on her face, neither did she have a charming smile. She only had her eyes closed and she breathed slowly. That bizarre, purplish-red shade could also be observed on the rest of her body.

Millions of dark red blood vessels, thick and thin, stretched out from the wall of flesh and blood to connect with the maiden's body. Liquid could be seen vaguely flowing continuously inside them.

The dumbfounded Thales could not help but stop moving.

The prince stared at Giza who had nearly fused together with the wall of flesh and blood behind her, and his breathing slowly quickened.

'What… in the bloody heavens was this?'

The maiden widened her eyes and Thales, who was already anxious and terrified, jumped in fright.

"You should not be here," Giza' true form said slowly. The marks on her face quivered slightly, like parasites that swam about her. "How did you find me?"

Thales first looked dazedly at the Blood Mystic in this form. Especially at the numerous blood vessels on her body. When he remembered that those were the people who were dragged into her tentacle, and were now flowing about in those blood vessels as pieces of flesh or liquid, Thales felt another wave of nausea hit him.

A second later, Thales sucked in a breath. Under Giza's cold and crazed eyes, he slowly walked closer to her and said resentfully,

"Well, I can only say that you ran into a 'powerful warrior'." Thales sucked in a breath, and his gaze became determined.

"I'll remember him. Black Sword… a terrifying opponent."

Giza slowly narrowed her eyes. "I should have noticed it a long time ago when he disappeared from my senses again. There is no way an opponent like him will repeat the same trick twice so easily."

Thales cut apart two tentacles that tried to stop him. Mustering his bravery and ignoring the disgusting limbs around him, he stood before Giza.

"And you, child… You will regret it."

Giza stared at the red sword and a deep wave of wariness appeared in her eyes. "Do you know what it means to become a Mystic, to obtain power, to be immortal? Do you know everything about it?"

"No."

"It's not as good as you think it is… This isn't a gift. They are shackles…"

During that moment, a deep wave of loneliness appeared in Giza's eyes.

"A curse…"

Giza put on a complicated and profound expression. There was an emotion that had never appeared before in her words. "And I… only wanted to set you free."

Thales frowned, he simply could not understand what she meant.

Giza continued slowly, "Or else… when you find your 'name of origin', you will never ever be free."

Thales shook his head so that his mind could be clearer. The Blade of Purification in his hand was hot, reminding him of his current situation.

"Very well." Thales ignored her words. He stared at Giza, lifted the Blade of Purification, and aimed it at Giza's abdomen before he spat his words. "Then I will free you first."

Giza only used a gaze filled with grief mixed with pity to look at him gently, as if she was staring at an ignorant child.

It caused Thales' emotions to turn chaotic.

'No.' Thales gulped. 'Remember Dragon Clouds City and Little Rascal…

'I have to end this.'

In the next moment, Thales clenched his teeth, emptied his mind, and thrust the red smallsword in his hand outwards.

But his sword suddenly stopped halfway.

Thales discovered to his shock that a person had stopped in front of Giza.

"Little Rascal!" he cried out.

A shivering Little Rascal opened her eyes, spread her arms wide, and used her throat to block the Blade of Purification.

"Thales." Little Rascal had practically cried to the point that her eyes had become swollen. She stared ahead with unfocused eyes. "Is it you…?"

"You—" Thales only hesitated for a moment, because Little Rascal had suddenly pounced on Thales in the next moment.

Thales watched as tears trailed down Little Rascal's small face, and he could not help but have his hand shiver.

He wanted to move past her and stab Giza, but he had lost his chance.

Thales only felt a furious tremor beneath his feet.

'This is…?'

Immediately afterwards, tremors surged unendingly towards him, under his feet.

At the moment, terror assaulted his head, he was then pushed down by Little Rascal because he could no longer keep his feet firmly on the ground.

The two of them fell on the 'ground' formed by flesh and blood.

'No.'

Amid the chaos, Little Rascal lay on his body, and while trembling, she struck away the Blade of Purification in Thales' hand.

Thales turned pale with fright.

'No!'

*Slap!*

Thales felt a chill creep down his heart. The red smallsword in his hand had left his palm.

It landed in a flesh-and-blood corner, stirring up countless ashes in its wake.

Soon after, the Blade of Purification—now away from his hand—gradually darkened. It was no longer effective.

During that second, Thales' mind was blank.

'Purification… Blade of Purification…'

As Giza laughed madly, the blood and flesh in the tentacle squirmed around and swallowed the useless Blade of Purification. It disappeared without a trace.

"This is a skill I learned from Black Sword." The Blood Mystic on the wall had the smile on her face become enchanting and coquettish again. "Executing an extremely high frequency of tremors on a surface area, as large as you can manage…

"If you can't even stand properly, then how are you going to seal me? How does that feel?"

Thales face was pale. He pushed Little Rascal, who had now regained her mobility, a little away from him. He fixed his stare at the direction where he lost the Blade of Purification.

But the only thing in sight was a red light formed by flesh and blood, nothing else.

Legendary anti-mystic weapon… His only hope in fighting against a Mystic…

He lost it just like that?

'No… No!'

He no longer had a chance?

Thales felt utterly devastated. He turned his head around in a daze and stared at Giza.

'I… failed?'

Little Rascal hugged him from the side and continued crying. Giza slowly sucked in a breath and narrowed her eyes slightly.

Two tentacles stretched out from the inner layer of the flesh-and-blood wall. As Little Rascal cried out in surprise, they bound Thales' arms and legs and pulled him up.

Thales struggled constantly, but like an insect trapped in a spider's web, it was futile.

More tentacles stretched out from the inner layer. When Little Rascal covered her mouth to suppress her cries, the tips slowly sharpened and hardened. They became ferocious, sharp, deadly spikes.

"Let me offer you a warning." Giza stared at Thales, who was now brought before her, his face was ashen and heart was filled with despair. She put on a charming smile and spoke with a breath as fragrant as orchids. "Throw away all those unnecessary emotions in battle. You saw it as well, did you not?

"You were dragged down by this thing really badly."

Thales shuddered as he stared blankly at the Blood Mystic. This time, there was no Sonia, no Asda, or Black Sword.

He was the only one who could save himself.

"It's just as I promised." During that moment, a kindly and sympathetic expression appeared on Giza's face. "You will not suffer any pain, child."

Thales gulped slowly. He only sensed the tentacles binding his limbs wrapping themselves tighter around him. Even the sharp, spiked tentacles had slowly moved in front of him, and one of them even extended its sharp spike to pause just a few inches away from his left eyeball.

The fear of death instantly welled up his heart.

Thales could even hear his heart pounding fiercely. He sensed his blood rushing as his blood vessels swelled up. All his muscles trembled involuntarily, and the heat caused by the excitement slowly spread from his chest to his entire body.

'Is… Is this the end? No. I have to save myself.

'I must.'

Giza smiled softly.

The terrified Thales stared at the smiling Mystic and said with much difficulty and pain,

"I—"

But this time, he only managed to say one word.

In the next moment, several tentacles with sharp spikes were sent deep into Thales' body at the same time.

Thales shuddered.

'No.'

His eyes became unfocused, and he stared at the Blood Mystic in disbelief.

'No.'

The first spike stabbed his left eye and went through his brain.

'No.'

The second spike pierced his throat, then went out the back of his neck.

'No.'

The third spike pierced into his heart, and went out the upper part of his back.

'No!'

More spikes pierced into Thales' body without mercy, without hesitation, and without reservation…

But he could no longer feel it.

During that second, all senses seemed to have left Thales Jadestar. He felt as if he had sunk into eternal silence and darkness...

...unable to return.