"A thought is a weapon. Use it properly, you can save millions… Use it wrong, even millions can't save you."
......….
Planet Vermillion.
Previous Timeline.
A few years after the 2nd Cataclysm.
I, Zero aka Reaper, was driving down the empty barren wasteland, as usual. These days were quite boring as all I did was search for food, kill parasites, save a bunch of people and move forward; everyday on repeat.
It has been quite a long time since I came across a living town or a city. Though, it wasn't that odd since most of the towns had been ravaged by the parasites and even the other races had decided to hide to protect themselves.
The only one who came out in the open were pilgrims like me, who travelled from place to place, or in search of desperate people with desperate needs. There are also some ill-fated ones who happened to be left behind by the masses for one reason or the other.
'I wonder if I could find something to eat in the next town,' I thought as I drove down on my motorcycle with my scythe hanging on my back.
I luckily found a black jacket a few towns ago, which I took a liking to, and now I am wearing it all the time. It was a bit larger for me, but still it was fine, as I liked it more that way.
Checking for the next gas station, it was still a few kilometres ahead. I still have enough gas for me to last at least a few days, so it's fine. Learning how to create your own gas with the help of mana and real wood was a good choice, though… Still, I would prefer to use real gas whenever I can.
After driving for another hour or so, I passed by multiple barren gas stations and when I finally found one that seemed to be having some gas; I came across a minor parasitic nest filled with scout parasites with a scout leader watching over them.
I parked my bike at a distance and got off as I saw them looking at me before they started laughing menacingly. I just sighed before moving towards them as they dashed towards me at full speed.
"Blood Magic: Black Flare," I said as a small black rope came in my hand and then I began rotating it a little by holding it from one side before I threw it at them. Most of them dodged the rope before I gave it a little jerk and the rope jerked towards one side, getting in contact with them and…
-SCREAAAAAAACCCHHHHH!!!!!
The parasite who got in contact with the rope immediately started shouting before he instinctively jumped away from the rope. Although, the part that got in contact with the rope was detached from the parasite's body before it completely burnt away.
I had been told that my blood is quite… dangerous for the parasites and it won't just kill them but kill them excruciatingly. So I had been using it to fight against them whenever I could.
'Though, it had me on their hit list, making them search for me whenever they can,' I sighed before continuing to attack the parasites using the rope.
I skillfully dodged their attacks, made them separate whenever I could, and used the rope to completely destroy them if I got the chance to. For the next few hours, the battle continued, and I finally killed all the 17 parasites, including the leader who was, though strength wise as strong as all the parasites here combined, wasn't really much of a threat since I was still much faster than him. Though it did take almost half of the time to kill him as much as it did to kill all the others.
It wasn't just my blood but many other things were there which were lethal for the parasites, like the grey stone made up of mana graphite or the special fire found in the tree of Yggdrasil etc, though they aren't as reactive as my blood. Still, they are strong enough to kill the parasites if used in large quantities.
What happened next was me taking some pain killers to deal with the aftereffects of using Blood magic. It usually occurs whenever I use Blood magic, especially when I use it for longer periods of time.
'I really wish I knew some regeneration magic… man, why are they such a pain to copy?' I thought as I made a slightly irritated face before sighing and then moving forward towards the gas station. Fortunately, I found some gas in it which actually made me happy… It has been a while since I got some real gas for my bike and not a magically produced one using wood.
-Bam!
I heard a sound from the inside of the market near the gas station which alerted me, making me turn in that direction. I used mana sense, and what I found surprised me once again, as the source of the sound turned out to be a human… a living human…
'Hmmm… a girl of around 20, huh? But what is she doing here? Surviving? In a minor parasitic hive invested place?' the more I thought the more suspicious the situation looked so I wondered what exactly was going on here.
I was deciding between going inside that place or just moving forward while ignoring this all together, but in the end, letting curiosity get the best of me, I decided to go check it out.
'Too many weird things have been going on since the parasites came… I don't think it will be much of a problem for me given how much I have already dealt with,' I thought as I moved towards the girl in the market.
I opened the gate and instead of slowly approaching her, I immediately reached her where I found out that she was doing something odd… or not, she was just trying to find her glasses, perhaps?
I checked around to see if there was something, and sure enough, a pair of glasses were lying there on the floor at a distance. Picking them up, I brought it closer to her and handed it to her.
Alarmed at first, she then immediately wears it before taking out her katana and pointing at me with a scared yet concentrated face. I looked at her grey eyes staring deep into mine as her black hair reached down to her torso. She was wearing a white jacket over a grey full length suit and honestly; she looked more like a westerner than those of the eastern people.
"What are you trying to do here?" I asked directly, without twisting the topic. Not including the part where she had pulled out a sword on me, the person who saved her, I wanted to know how come she was alive in a hive like this… considering how she was right now.
I tried to see if there were any signs of her turning into a parasite, but I could not find one, so I concluded she was still human. The signs that show a person is in the transition phase are usually severe lack of mana for a few days along with extraordinarily mud coloured eyes and skin. There are also a few scar marks present on the forehead, telling that the parasite has entered the body, but with her, there was nothing wrong with anything.
"I am… Nina Grey. Who are you?" She asked with a fixated gaze as her sword shivered along with her hands, which made me sigh a little before I looked around as I spoke,"well, the name is Reaper. Nice to me-"
"ARE YOU THE REAPER?!!!" she shouted out loud with her eyes fixated on me and a bright, unbelievable look on her face. She then analysed me from top to bottom once, twice and then again before she looked at me and spoke.
"That scythe… that hair colour and those white eyes… How can I miss that?... You really are… The Reaper…!"
I looked at her face and looking at her bright face I felt goosebumps all over my body. Just what is the problem with this girl? Is she all right?
"Do you know about me?" I asked with a bit of hesitation as I looked at her and she nodded heavily before speaking,"it would be more odd if I haven't heard about you. The Lone Wolf Reaper, one of the strongest humans to have ever existed… the parasite killer, the saviour in white-"
"Okay, all right, all right. That's enough," I spoke hurriedly as I felt embarrassed at all those words suddenly being showered at me. Honestly, I would rather have a black profile than a white one… it suits me better that way since… I have already killed so many people before…
"What are you doing here, though? It doesn't look like… you should be here, I suppose," I spoke as I looked at her and she makes a slightly awkward expression before speaking,
"Well… that is because…"
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