Chapter 361 The Malignant One [Pt 4]

Chapter 361 The Malignant One [Pt 4]

[A Few Moments Earlier]

"Huff... huff..."

Claudius was already beginning to feel the exhaustion in his body as he sprinted at full speed, without stop.

His aged, wrinkled body began to ache, begging to slow down for even a moment. However, he knew he could not do that.

Stopping for even the slightest of a second meant certain death.

Sweat sprayed from his face as he navigated the path he and his men took to reach the KariBlanc Mansion.

His goal was simple—escape the Capital!

He had expended all of his Mana, and right now he was merely running on the little reserves that his Enchanted Items gave him.

He had lost all of his Undead, and even if he had his full stock, they would be useless against the enemy.

Even running was useless.

But... Claudius had to hold on to hope one way or the other.

As a result, he found his legs moving.

'Faster!'

They swept past the silent city.

'Faster!'

They moved away from the peaceful ambiance.

'Much faster!'

They trampled upon the unsoiled ground.

'Fas... ter?'

Claudius tripped on something and found his body headed for the ground. Unfortunately for his tired self, he could do nothing but witness his collapse.

"Guh!" He winced as he hit the ground, his eyes tightly shut.

However, he couldn't allow himself to dawdle for much longer.

He had to get up!

He had to run!

'I-I have to, or else... h-huh...?'

Perhaps it was due to his overwhelming fear, but Claudius hadn't been paying any heed to his surroundings until now.

It was dark, and he was running too fast, so he didn't take the time to observe.

But now... as he knelt on the ground and looked around him, he found something odd.

It was he who refused to move his body.

There was no point, after all.

"Sure. Ask your question."

Claudius leaked out a bitter smile as he parted his lips and finally addressed the issue he had been ignoring for so long.

"Why... do you look so young and attractive?"

"Hm?"

"You're a Necromancer, aren't you? That means you deal with Miasma when handling corpses and turning them into Undead. I'm only thirty-three years old, and yet I look like this..."

Claudius knew he was rambling to an enemy, but this was the first time he was telling anyone his real age and his personal struggle.

He thought that if anyone could understand, it would be a fellow Necromancer.

"My skin is wrinkled and loose, my body is aged, and my bones are weak. I always thought that it was a sacrifice I had to pay to attain the power I needed, but after seeing you... my resolve has wavered."

Claudius looked up at the being who listened in silence, tears now falling from his eyes.

"Why? What did you have to sacrifice to give you such power? How can you have everything I wanted, with no flaws or caveat? What did you do that I didn't? What makes you so special?"

Claudius always believed he was special since he was a child. After all, it was incredibly rare for someone to be born with an Exclusive Skill—especially one as rare as his was.

But, compared to the man standing before him... he was nothing.

Why?

"Your mistake lies in your initial premise." Once Ater spoke, Claudius' thoughts were suspended.

He only blankly looked at the man of darkness.

"Power requires sacrifice? Where did you get that absurd idea from? Those that claw their way into power will surely have a measure of it, based on what they scrape from the world. But... true power is etched in a being's nature."

16:36

'N-nature...?' This was the first time Claudius was hearing such a thing.

"Yes. Nature dictates that you are weak and I am strong." Ater's voice sank deep into the darkness.

"That is all there is to it."

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[A/N]

Thanks for reading!

Do you agree with Ater's philosophy? What are your thoughts?