"Even after your betrayal... It appears I couldn’t help but fall for your words."
A chuckle, deep and self-deprecating, leaks out of Kalakuta’s lips.
He coughs lightly as he slowly lifts himself from his miserable state. His hair is disheveled, and his enormous body appears completely worn out.
Lacking an arm and a foot, he no longer appears to be the perfect, invincible specin.
There is a certain ugliness radiating from him now.
However, nothing about Kalakuta has changed in my eyes.
He remains the sa.
I see him.
The man I first t on the shores.
The one who beat .
The one who beca my friend... My brother.
I see him even in this devastating mont when my blade is pointed at his throat.
"Why...?" He mutters with a sad chuckle. "Why did I not doubt your words? I didn’t even suspect that you were leading astray until it happened."
I sigh and shake my head.
"It’s basic manipulation. You are a good, honest man. You were also surrounded by very loyal people. Your strength also prevented you from ever needing to learn of such things; you beca susceptible to it."
Weak people like are the ones who need manipulation.
It is the best way to level the playing field.
How else can a weakling beat soone powerful?
By posturing as a man of strength, one can bluff one’s way out of a dangerous confrontation.
Lies and sches may allow one to bring down kings.
Rulers perish because of betrayal.
Traitors are largely no more than weak n who resort to manipulations to seize power.
Why else would they hide in the shadows and operate in secrecy?
I am one of those weaklings.
Or rather, I was.
SWISH!
With a powerful strike of my blade and the blinding flash of powerful blackish red lightning, I cut down Kalakuta’s other hand.
Then, I am for his remaining foot and force him to fall once I slice it off.
Now, he is on the ground.
Unable to stand.
He raises his head while keeping his fierce gaze on .
Even now, he won’t give in.
"You know, at first, I wasn’t sure I would win... even with all of these preparations. I studied you all this ti and still wasn’t certain you could be beaten."
"...."
"I was tempted to simply hide in the shadows and make my pawns eliminate you. I would have even let the Dark Guild finish you off while you remained unaware. But... I deeply respect you, Kalakuta. That’s why I felt it fitting to do this myself."
"I see..."
"Is that strange?" I ask him softly.
"It is..." He mutters, blood staining his moving lips. "But, I can’t say I’m surprised."
"...."
"Even now, I can’t bring myself to despise you. You lied and betrayed . I will die here, and my dream will end in this wretched palace. And yet... even with things ending this way... why can I not hate you, brother?"
"I... don’t know..."
"I rember all our monts together. All those talks. The monts I confided in you. Although I was likely falling for your sche even back then, and you were dishonest about many things, I still look back on those tis very fondly. It was all real to ."
"I know..."
"Thanks for all those monts, brother."
"Yeah..."
"Why am I being grateful? You’re about to kill , and yet why do I feel this way?"
"...."
"It’s strange, right?"
"It is."
"I thought so. It is strange. So strange. Very strange."
"...."
"...."
For a mont, silence dwells between us.
Deep recognition flows.
Then... he smiles.
Kalakuta gives a broad grin, one devoid of malice or even an ounce of rage.
"You will always be my friend."
"You too."
WHOOSH!
Without saying anything more, I swing the serpent, and it finally bites off the head.
Blood dances in the expanse before .
My friend’s head spins before landing on the ground and joining the rest of its body in a lifeless descent.
I stare at this tragic sight in silence.
Even as the oozing blood forms a puddle, I take it in without an ounce of hesitation.
I caused this.
I deserve whatever it is I am feeling now.
"It was... real for too," I mutter, although my voice can hardly be heard thanks to the overwhelming noise that now fills the hall.
All the mbers of the Dark Guild are shouting in triumph.
They are celebrating my victory.
They sully the mont.
But I can’t chide them. What would be the point?
Kalakuta’s death was what I wanted for the longest ti, and now that it is here, regardless of what I feel, it is a joyous occasion worthy of celebration.
After all, this is only a Trial Scenario.
None of these matters in the end.
Not to my own world.
Not to .
If all goes well, I will experience several more of these emotions.
So, what use are they?
Rather than dwell on Kalakuta’s death, whether in celebration or mourning, my ti would be best spent figuring out my next move.
After all, I don’t belong in this place.
I have to return ho.
Staring at Kalakuta’s mutilated corpse with a cold expression on my face, I tell him my farewell.
He was truly my friend.
But he was also destined to be nothing but my puppet.
Not anymore, though.
’Now... you are free. Truly free.’
So is this the answer?
Is death the only true way for a man to be free from the machinations of fate and the cruel toying of the world we dwell within?
This Trial Scenario is different from my reality, but is it not true that is simulates the real world?
If this world is ant to be controlled by , then what about my own?
Who controls it?
Is it not obvious at this point?
—The Leviathans!
In my past life as a Knight, every major thing I ever experienced was directly or indirectly caused by a Leviathan—a Rank 1, for that matter.
Zarius, the Witness Exemplar.
My second life was not much different.
Even as a Scholar and Wandering rcenary, amassing far more wealth and power than I ever could in my past life, I could not escape the glaring truth.
Not entirely.
I still played into the hands of this Leviathan.
The mont I strayed from his machinations, he executed my friends and family.
He sought to execute , too.
But, in a stroke of luck, he did not succeed in his Apotheosis, and I survived... eventually going on to beco a Leviathan myself.
What does this say about the state of the world?
What does this say about ?
In the end, what does all of this an?
The Rites of Exaltations put it very astutely:
Tribute be given to the Leviathans—the ones who move the world.
It is them!
They are the ones who see everything.
They control all.
In the sa way I achieved great success in this Trial Scenario within a year, these mystical beings, who have been present for hundreds of thousands of years, if not millions, have long embedded themselves into the very fabric of the world.
The scope exceeds my most enlightened imagination.
I cannot comprehend it, even now.
But this realization has also caused to reflect on myself and the path ahead of .
After this, there is no going back.
What must I do?
It’s clear.
I have to accept it—my identity as a Leviathan.
To be a Leviathan is to be ruthless.
To be rciless.
Unforgiving.
Powerful, but wise.
Exceedingly astute, yet simple.
Malevolent and kind.
Generous but also miserly.
Serene... Graceful... Destructive... Selfish.
To be a Leviathan is to be an invisible overseer—an untouchable monarch.
To save and destroy lives according to one’s whims.
Shaping all to resemble one’s ideal.
To move the world.
’But what is my vision for the world? What ideal do I have for humanity to strive towards?’
Perhaps this Trial Scenario is a test to help discover it.
After all, I already know what it is I desire for this world and how I intend to go about it.
All the Great Nations will have governnts connected through The Dark Guild, which will operate according to my grand design. Corruption will be organized and unified productively, fostering progress.
No one will truly be free, as they will be under my machinations.
But this is good.
As long as I provide a false sense of freedom and make a few concessions, there will be no problems in the long run.
Naturally, I also have to account for the deviants.
The aberrations of the world.
The world I hope to create here will ensure n like these are not created, as everyone will be satisfied with their incredibly mundane lives. They will graze on the ordinary and be satisfied with their full bellies.
Those who are exceptional will be recognized and elevated.
The ones who seek to break out of their constraints will be discouraged from pursuing it any further, and with enough ti, their dreams will fade away.
However, if a man like Kalakuta arises who desires to break out of their chains and possesses the strength to do so, there is very little that can be done to stop such a person.
If I am still present, I will eliminate them.
If I am not, then they might succeed.
Should that happen, I bear no grievances towards the outco.
No system is perfect.
A man who possesses both power and purpose has the capacity to see the flaws in the world around him and enact change.
Change disrupts order and is bound to expose even more flaws.
This is how societies advance.
It is how humanity evolves.
In my world, there were a total of fifteen eras because of this very reason.
Each epoch had its fair share of systems as well as the disruptions that appeared to usher in a new age. It is simply life, and the endless pursuit of these heights is what makes us human.
I don’t know how long it will take this world to grow beyond the system I will put in place.
It might not be long.
But my own opinion is that it will take an exceedingly long ti.
This is because experience has shown the true nature of humanity within the confines of what we call civilization.
Humans find comfort in the chains of restrictions.
They crave normalcy.
While there exist exceptional people who strive for the freedom that exists beyond their reach, very few of them possess the strength to grasp it.
So possess the strength but not the will.
So possess the will, but do not have enough insight into the world.
This is why people like Kalakuta are rare.
They are heroes who only appear once in an era, perhaps never even showing up at all.
This is also why I doubt that there will exist another like him in this Trial Scenario.
Kalakuta is already dead.
I killed him.
Now...
"Once we are done here, give the order to our associates. I want the remnants of the Freedom Fighters and their relatives in the other Continents to be wiped out as well. Especially those who remain in No Man’s Land. Kill everyone. Spare no one. The won... the children... all of them should be put to death without exception."
"As you command. When we are done, not a speck of them will be left."
"Good."
I nod at them before sinking into further contemplation yet again.
I step out of the palace and witness the bloody sight in the vast compound. It is littered with mangled at, crushed bones, and a sickening quantity of blood.
All the Freedom Fighters have finally been extinguished.
’With this matter resolved, there’s one final thing I have to resolve...’ My eyes flash with cold light as I shortly exhale.
’After that, I hope all of this will finally be over.’
User Comments
0 comments from readers