Shadow Slave:The legacy fallen in a world of nightmares Chapter 94 94: The Burden of Being a Burden

Samael quickly realized that he had fallen into an extrely uncomfortable situation.

The three of them walked through the city consud by nature, forming a strange sort of triangle.

Liu remained quiet.

Bel seed emotionally dead.

And for so absurd reason...

Samael was the most sociable person in the group.

If soone had told him that a few months ago, he would have probably replied that they had gone insane.

The silence remained heavy.

Bel walked a few steps behind them, holding the black staff while observing the surroundings with those empty, emotionless eyes.

Even his previous interactions felt forced.

As if talking were simply another annoying task he needed to complete.

Samael let out a small internal sigh.

Then decided to try breaking the silence.

"Um... Bel, have you been to the Dream Realm before?"

Bel slowly shifted his gaze toward him.

"Yes."

The answer ca imdiately.

Short.

Monotone.

"And how long did you stay there?"

Bel remained silent for a few seconds.

Then asked:

"Why does that interest you?"

There was genuine curiosity in the question.

It didn't sound suspicious.

Bel truly didn't understand why that information would matter.

Samael hesitated for a mont.

Then gave up on trying to probe him subtly.

"Then I'll ask directly... did you et anyone in Arica?"

Bel simply shook his head.

"No."

Samael narrowed his eyes slightly.

Then his anchor was pulled directly to a Citadel...

It was the only plausible explanation.

If Bel had remained in the Dream Realm for long while his body stayed defenseless...

He would probably be dead.

Or at least not in such relatively good condition.

The silence imdiately returned afterward.

Heavy.

Unpleasant.

Samael cast a discreet glance toward the boy.

What an unpleasant guy...

And honestly?

He didn't even have a rational reason for thinking that.

Bel was cooperating.

He hadn't threatened anyone.

He didn't seem hostile.

And yet...

His presence was unsettling.

The empty eyes.

The emotionless tone.

The complete lack of desire to live.

Samael sincerely felt that a robot would seem more human than Bel.

After several minutes of walking, he decided to ask sothing else.

"What do you plan to do from now on?"

Bel remained silent for a few seconds.

Then answered naturally:

"I don't know."

His eyes remained empty.

"I intended to keep fighting until I found my end."

Those words made the air feel colder.

And the worst part...

Samael's innate ability clearly told him that Bel was telling the truth.

There was no dramatization.

No exaggeration.

Bel genuinely didn't care whether he died tomorrow.

Or today.

Liu finally turned her gaze toward him.

"If you don't have any goal here... then co with us and find the others."

Bel slowly turned toward her.

"Why?"

The question carried genuine curiosity.

"I have absolutely no desire to keep living."

Liu remained silent for a mont.

Then calmly replied:

"Because if you help us... even for a little while, you'll still have a reason to keep living."

She looked forward again.

"Even if it's only temporary... it's still better than walking alone while waiting to die."

Her reason for trying to convince him was simple.

Liu could see it.

If it remained only the two of them...

Their chances of survival were small.

Very small.

But while listening to that conversation, Samael felt a chill run down his spine.

He finally understood.

Understood why Bel bothered him so much.

Bel reminded him of himself.

Or rather...

He reminded him of the version of himself that existed before Elizabeth.

The version that had already given up on living.

The one who kept walking simply because feeling anything seed worse.

Bel's words slowly opened a mory Samael had been trying to avoid.

That thing.

That existence that had dragged him into despair.

And then...

Another mory surfaced.

The black-haired man.

The figure whose face Samael had never managed to see clearly.

Yet who remained engraved in his mind like a scar.

The Corrupted man who had held back four Sea Terrors by himself.

The mory sent phantom pain through Samael's arm and leg.

The limbs he had lost while fleeing that hell.

For a mont...

Samael tasted fear again.

Forget it... it's over.

He lightly clenched his teeth as he pushed those thoughts away.

Bel continued staring at Liu longer than normal.

As if he were genuinely reflecting on her words.

"That..."

He fell silent for a few more seconds.

"I accept."

The answer ca quietly.

But for the first ti since they had t him...

There seed to be sothing faintly resembling interest in his voice.

The three resud walking.

And the awkward silence imdiately returned.

What a wonderful day...

Samael sighed internally.

Injured.

Sick.

Walking beside two emotionally complicated people.

One of them he was still trying to completely forgive.

And the other made every instinct in his body scream in discomfort.

And although it might sound paranoid...

Samael could swear that Bel's long gaze toward Liu contained sothing more.

Looking toward the distant horizon, where he could still sense Elizabeth through their bond...

Samael let out a small internal sigh.

I really miss you right now, Liz...

As they continued crossing the ruined city, a Nightmare Creature erged from the remains of a collapsed building.

Samael imdiately stayed behind.

He was still far too weakened to fight.

So he simply watched as Bel and Liu advanced toward the creature.

And honestly...

For a brief mont, Samael almost felt sorry for the poor creature.

The battle was absurdly one-sided.

Bel naturally took the role of primary combatant.

While Liu moved around the creature as offensive support.

Bel's Aspect proved to be incredibly versatile.

The vibrations generated by his staff could be used in two different ways.

The first created a sort of vibrational barrier around his body.

Anything that touched that barrier was violently destroyed.

The second transford those vibrations into pure offensive force.

BOOOOM!

The invisible impact pierced through the creature's torso.

Concrete exploded.

Roots were pulverized.

Flesh tore apart like paper.

What an incredible Aspect...

Samael watched the battle with genuine interest.

Lately, that had been happening more and more often.

Whenever he saw an interesting Aspect...

He felt the urge to possess it.

Even if only temporarily.