Chapter 77: An Illusion (1/2)

Dimon looked at his own hands, now covered in blood. He felt as if a fist of lave has made its way to his internals, burning them away. He was in so much pain that he could barely listen to the words this young man said.

”Although I find no reason that excuses this mass murder, I can't help but wonder about the reason such a vile human exists.”

He heard the boy's righteous words, and he felt even more nauseous at the self-righteousness he must be feeling. However, whatever was inside him rocked havoc as if a wild beast has been unleashed.

”What… What's happening to me!” He finally managed to bellow at the masked man, wishing to rip him apart. However, what greeted him back was simply two golden, freezingly cold, eyes. He almost had an identity crisis thinking himself to be an insect because of the way the man looked at him with disgust.

”What I gave you earlier was healing water for sure, but I also mixed some poison within.”

”Impossible, I felt nothing when I drank it!” Dimon screamed in disbelief, yet the pain he felt was very real. He has been poisoned.

The masked man massaged his neck as he sighed and started mumbling some things. Through the pain and suffering, Dimon only managed to pick some words like 'runes' and 'tweaking'.

”Nonetheless, who made you kill so many people?”

Before he knew it, the masked man had a dagger on his neck while grabbing his head by the hair. Arthur looked at him and sought to leverage any foolish mercy for his escape, but he knew he wouldn't get any. He swallowed his saliva making a shallow wound appear on his neck by the edge of the dagger. The sharpness and coldness of the weapon sent chills of death down his spine.

”No one! I did it by myself!” Dimon shouted.

”Then die.”

”Wait!” He shouted even more urgently as he felt the dagger cut deeper. Any more than this and he would truly bleed to death. He tried to summon his mana but the pain was hindering his ability to focus.

”It was someone from nobility! I don't know who he is, but he's a blonde man with a young voice!”

”Not enough, you can die.”

”Wait, please! I beg of you, spare me!”

”Did you spare them? I think not. I would have also died if I was fooled by you.”

It was then that Dimon was able to gather enough mana to activate the ring on his finger. Runes glowed on the ring as mana invaded the head of the man behind the mask. Dimon created a terrifying illusion to stall for time.

'It's time that I kill this bastard!'

His hand turned into a beastly claw as he slashed at Arthur's neck. However, the goblins were here to defend the young man. One of them, Dimon couldn't differentiate between the pests, blocked his attack using its crappy sword.

”Move!” Dimon slashed at the goblin's arm with his claw leaving a deep gush. His movements made his body pulse with pain as blood leaked from his mouth. Even if his body has evolved under the effects of mana, he still couldn't be immune to a poison that has already entered his body.

Dimon moved his mana toward his abdomen. The masked bastard wasn't satisfied with only poisoning him, but also slashed him in the abdomen. What gave him away so much that made this bastard suspect him? Even still, he was foolish for drinking whatever the bastard gave him. It couldn't be helped since he has been drinking this water for days and trusted the bastard to be a good person.

'The world is corrupted if people started poisoning kids under suspicion. Ah, what has times turned into?' Dimon lamented in his heart as he kept healing himself. The masked man was still in a daze, looking as if his souls has left his body.

***

When Dimon stood behind him in front of the cave, Arthur realized there was something wrong. Despite his stats, he still felt pressured by the aura surrounding the cave. Yet, Dimon, who was supposedly weaker than Arthur himself stood there just fine.