Ric slipped away from the crowd before any new topics or tedious backstories emerged. For him, maintaining leadership meant staying ahead and disengaging to preserve that position. There was no middle ground—either he led or risked falling behind.
As the crowd gathered around the wall, questions arose about why none of them had attempted to breach it and claim the resources beyond. The consensus was that they considered themselves weak, and they reasoned that a slow death was preferable to an instant one. While acknowledging the accuracy of the brat’s words, no one seemed willing to engage in self-reflection or alter their set path.
One path offered the comfort of a familiar pattern, while the other hinted at uncertainty and potential doom. The mere idea of embracing change sounded preposterous to many individuals, reinforcing their preference for the known over the unknown.
Ric contemplated scaling the wall to unravel the numerous predicaments that surrounded him. His strategy involved instilling a sense of greed in the civilians, motivating them to act as a protective barrier while he lurked in their shadows, seeking to uncover the truth behind immortality. In this way, they would either perish, thereby granting death’s affinity to him, or he would venture into the city within the walls to seek answers.
Either way, he would win, but how could his darn fate allow for such an easy victory?
Despite the foolproof plan, Ric was thwarted by the twists of fate. The initial attempt to turn the civilians against the kingdom failed, and even after various on-the-spot improvisations, their inherent cowardice persisted. Faced with a lack of viable ideas, Ric retreated into the forest, determined to cook up a different approach to achieve his goals.
With such a frail body, he might never uncover the truth, yet Ric refused to be deterred. The limitations of his physical form wouldn’t impede the indomitable will of the demon king. If brute force wasn’t an option to propel him towards his goal, he resolved to manipulate others into uncovering the sought-after information. Ric embraced the notion that there were always multiple paths to achieving one’s desires, and he was prepared to sacrifice the world if even the slightest chance of success existed.
In his relentless pursuit, Ric declared that if he could not find the answers in this life, he would persist through a million more lives until success was inevitable. The stubborn will of demons always led them to get what they desired, one way or another.
If the surrounding cowards refused to confront challenges head-on, Ric concluded he had to teach them the demon way.
A demonic smile curled upon Ric’s lips as he plotted his next moves. In his eyes, even the simplest of barriers can be transformed into a lethal trap with the right enchantment, so his initial strategy involved persuading someone to scale the wall on his behalf.
His planning met its first hurdle after spotting Mary in the forest. Boy, was he glad for refraining from monologuing like a stereotypical villain while strategizing.
“There must be another way,” Mary hoped, anticipating Ric's alternative solution to his previous question.
“Once you find it... feel free to follow.” Ric strolled deeper into the forest, intent on picking up the trail of Henzo. The air buzzed with an unspoken tension, leaving Mary to contemplate the unfolding events and consider her course of action.
Of all the individuals, Henzo harbored a potent mystery that intrigued Ric, compelling him to delve deeper into the enigmatic child’s psyche. Ric resolved to probe Henzo further, waiting for the opportune moment when the citizens let their guard down.
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In the forest, Henzo displayed an unusual scene, stabbing a trunk with a potato scraper. Next to him lay an axe and a pocket knife, yet only the scraper appeared to serve a purpose with his strength. Henzo scraped parts of the trunk at an angle, causing it to topple over from its own weight.
Ric’s initial intention was to spy on Henzo, coaxing him into revealing his secrets, but his current frail body left him unsuitable for anything beyond aura control. Moreover, his intuition hinted that the kid had detected the approach, rendering the spying plan futile from the start.
“Not bad instincts, kid,” Ric acknowledged with a smile, as Henzo continued to feign innocence. Concealing a dagger, he waited for the opportune moment to strike. Yet as he closed in on Henzo, doubts crept into his mind.
‘Is he hiding something?’ Ric questioned himself, his suspicion growing with each step.
Surprised, Henzo genuinely appeared shocked and struggled to transition into a proper defensive stance before Ric closed the distance. Knowing that he could heal any minor wound, he plunged the dagger toward the kid’s stomach.
A cacophony of chipping sounds, a clang, and a slap echoed through the air as Ric hit the floor, stunned by the sudden burst of power and speed from the scrawny kid, who threw him over his shoulder with little effort. The force of the dagger’s impact tore the kid’s ragged clothing into several pieces, revealing a viscous, dark liquid that seemed to retreat into his unscathed body.
“Neat skill,” Ric remarked with a smile, throwing Henzo off guard with his unexpected response.
Henzo’s throw, though not intended to cause harm, carried a force that couldn’t be shrugged off with a smile.
‘Kill.’ An inner voice urged Henzo while he tried his best to suppress the urge.
Seizing the moment of confusion, Ric attempted to lock the kid’s arm and pull him to the ground, intending to slit his throat open. He had enough practice with the trio and with ten percent confidence to keep the brat alive he held nothing back, but to his astonishment, another clang resounded, followed by the unmistakable sound of a knife meeting steel, and a spark tracing the trajectory of the cut.
Henzo’s legs shot forward with an impossible speed while he remained planted in place. Whether through an extraordinary feat of speed or by growing two extra limbs, Henzo lifted Ric at an implausible angle and slammed him into a nearby tree.
Refusing to relinquish his grip, Ric braced for another swing. But before they reached the tree, Henzo swayed and lost his strength. The momentum carried them into the mud, and seizing the opportunity, Ric spun and landed on top of Henzo, securing another body lock.
“I knew something was off with you...” Ric panted. “Wouldn’t have guessed you were so much stronger and weirder than the other, though.” He aims for the eye, yet once again, another clang and sparks follow, protecting Henzo from Ric's full-power assault.
“What the fuck did you bond with?” He strikes again in vain. The black liquid seeps back in, while Ric aims to strike at the jugular. “You can’t keep...”
Henzo’s sudden shriek reverberates, and a formidable wave of power propels Ric into another tree. “Guess you can.” Ric gets back on his feet with a grunt. “Let’s talk man to whatever fuck you are.” He raises his hands in surrender.
A resounding “No!” echoes in Ric’s mind as an ancient voice refuses the proposal. Henzo flashes in front of him with alarming speed, and Ric’s heart sank, realizing the gravity of the situation.
‘Oh, fuck I am dead.’
Ric raised one hand to block the oncoming blow while aiming the dagger toward Henzo’s chin.
The sudden surge of power emanated from Henzo’s bond, a formidable force capable of ending Ric’s life if it so wished so. Yet, in a surprising turn of events, Henzo restrained himself, holding back the bond from delivering the decisive blow. Ric couldn’t fathom the reason behind this restraint, but he didn’t hesitate to seize the opportunity to end the confrontation.
Henzo diverted his hand at the last moment, punching a hole through the tree’s trunk. Ric ducked thanks to the diminished speed and stabbed the brat with all the force he could muster. He anticipated the bonds interfering and sliced twice more, slashing Henzo’s leg and stomach open.
The viscous black liquid coalesced around Henzo’s wounds, staunching the blood flow and offering a peculiar form of protection.
“Good.” Ric smiled and added two more lacerations. He paused for the bond to protect its host while Henzo protected Ric by holding back. Another punctured lung joined the list of wounds until Ric rose victorious.
“Can’t handle it all? Good... now we can talk,” Ric declared, his voice laced with a mix of triumph and exhaustion as he pointed the dagger at Henzo, its enchanted edge chipped from the relentless attacks.
“Never.” The ominous voice echoes within Ric’s mind, disorienting him.
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