The clacking of shoes sounded, and an individual finally appeared from the shadows.
He had a wide smile on his face, and the cool demeanor he exuded was befitting of someone of his caliber.
Even the aura that oozed out of him made Damien realize that he was special.
"You know, it makes sense that you're one of them..." His voice was calm.
Even though his golden eyes stared coldly at Damien's pathetic form, the person's smile didn't fade.
The young man's golden hair swayed, a portion of his face covered by it.
His outfit resembled a traveler, but they were all extremely well-made Magic Items—befitting of royalty.
"... I never liked you very much back then too."
'Y-you—!!!' Damien's eyes seemed to ring out as he looked upon the face of a boy he recognized.
The most exceptional student he had ever seen in his Instructing days at Ainzlark... Kuzon Midas!
"Well, now that you've performed your role well, there's no further reason to keep you alive."
"MMMMPHH!!!" Damien struggled to speak, realizing that his life would come to an end if he didn't say anything.
"Looks like you want to say something. Alright then, speak."
"Puah! T-thank you very much for—"
"Speak."
The young man's eyes narrowed further. It was condescending beyond description, but Damien didn't have the luxury of complaining.
"A-ah, why don't you spare me? You're after the Organization, right? I-I can help you. They betrayed me too. They used and threw me away. I have no loyalty to them. I help you. So... what do you say?"
It was a classic betrayer move, but Damien had run out of choices.
His Original Magic didn't work, and, for some reason, his entire body couldn't move. His only chance of survival was for—
"Pfft. You're so pathetic, it's hilarious."
Damien had expected some resistance, but not this.
"I don't know which is funnier. Your desperate desire to live, or how ignorant you are."
Damien's fear was temporarily disabled by an entitled rage that he felt anytime he was looked down upon.
"You didn't realize this, but someone put a tracker on you—most likely to trace your location. If I have to guess, I'll say it's Jared's work. It could also be Neron's, but I'd still go for the former."
"W-wha—?!" Damien's rage was completely submerged in an ocean of shock.
"Look at your face. You're so stupid, aren't you?"
Damien didn't understand how anyone could have placed a tracker on him without his knowledge.
'H-how...?'
"Don't worry, though. I disabled it. There's no need to get those people involved in my business."
Damien was still trying to comprehend how he had been hoodwinked when a hand suddenly tapped his shoulder.
It was Kuzon's.
The young man was squatting, placing a hand on his shoulder which brought about a greater degree of pressure.
A portion of Kuzon's face was covered by his golden hair, so only one of his eyes could be seen by Damien.
It was... so cold and condescending.
"You're wrong about so many things. My intentions, and your worth."
There was something Kuzon hadn't told anyone.
His true motives, the reason he had killed two members of the Organization, and was about to kill another—without any shred of remorse.
It was all because of a certain man—a member of the Cult that he had been after since forever.
Of course, he wasn't going to tell Damien the details. Still...
"Let me ask you this. If you answer well, I could let you live."
Damien gulped. Despite the fear squirming within him, he wasn't going to miss this opportunity he had to live.
"Do you know anyone by the name of Kido?"
'Uh?' Damien Lawcroft was clueless.
Was he supposed to know the individual? He had thought his assaulter would ask him a question about the Organization, but he simply asked about a person.
"I see... you don't know him, uh? Figures. You're just a 10th Seat."
>BZZTZZZ<
Flashes of golden lightning began manifesting all over Kuzon—and then they started extending to his hand.
"N-no... please no! I can help you! I can find him for you if you want. Please, just don't—!!!" Damien began pleading desperately, feeling the absurd concentration of Mana in the flashes of lightning coating Kuzon's body.
"Find him for me? Heh..." The golden lightning finally reached the hand that held Damien's shoulder.
"... I've been doing that for 12 years now."
>ZZZZZZTTTTZZZZZZZ<
"GUARRRHHHHH!!!"
Lightning sizzled, burning through Damien's body in an instant.
Thigh death came nearly instantly, the pain Damien felt before death was the most agonizing type he had ever experienced.
It was like every cell in his body ruptured—exploding like tiny fireworks.
And then—
>THUD<
—Damien Lawcroft met his end.
"Weak. He didn't even last five seconds..." Despite the man's enhancements that came with using Mage Mode and Fusion Mode, he was still powerless before absolute power.
"He's dead now. I might as well leave for the next location. I should at least thank him for showing me the coordinates."
Kuzon rose to his feet, his golden hair fluttering as he coldly walked past the corpse.
He had killed three members thus far, but it was nowhere close to his desired estimate.
"If this is how powerful a 10th Seat is, then Kido has to have one of their highest ranks—if not the highest..."
That was how powerful his prey was.
"Well, it seems Jared will be coming here to investigate soon. For some reason, he's also after their Organization, uh?"
Kuzon didn't care enough to question Jared's reasons, so he simply shrugged and generated another flash of lightning.
"The whole war with the Demons and the Nether Cult moving in the shadows, I've had enough of it..." With a sigh, the blast of lightning grew larger, enveloping Kuzon's immediate surroundings.
>VWUUUUUSHHHHH<
With a final statement echoing in the room...
"As long as he doesn't get in my way... it's all good."
... Kuzon vanished.
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[ORIGINAL CHARACTER DESIGNS AND ILLUSTRATIONS]
1. Jared Leonard (12 Years)
2. Jared Leonard (15 Years)
3. Neron Kaelid
4. Serah Crimson
5. Anabelle Frederick (Ana)
6. Edward Karl Leon
7. Kuzon Midas
8. Maria Helmsworth
9. Lewis Griffith and Emilia Vindiel
10. Legris Damien
[Hope you enjoyed the art. More Artworks are posted on the Discord server, so make sure you join.
I won't create an Auxiliary Chapter for these pictures. Consider it a reward for making it this far.
You can make art requests and interact with me on the Discord Server. There's an Auxiliary chapter for that.
Thanks for reading, and I certainly hope you enjoyed this Arc.]
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[End of The Fourth Arc]
[Fifth Arc: Emergence Of The Nether Cult, will resume shortly. ]
Cheers!
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