35: YOU ARE TOO KIND TO COMMIT SUCH A SIN
As the silhouette of Benimaru's flying form crept closer and closer to the royal castle—the wings on his back flapped frantically in a desperate need.
Once he had arrived at his destination, his wings disappeared as he fell slowly onto the ground.
His footsteps echoed through his head as he approached the large metal door which loomed over him. Without a single wasted motion, a simple flick of the boy's wrist was all that was needed to blast the door away—knocking it off its hinges.
Once inside, his eyes explored the hallways of the castle looking for something—or someone.
"Looking for me, boy?"
Zeldris stepped out from behind a hidden doorway, clad in his usual attire and his sword strapped to his waist—even he knew where this was going.
"You lied to me." A strangled mutter left the lips of Benimaru as his palm lifted itself to tightly clench his chest. "You always looked down on humans, how you would express your disdain for them when you thought I couldn't hear. How you spoke about them to Master Meliodas. You did all of this and yet…"
"YOU CLAIM TO LOVE HER." A single finger raised in anger as it pointed itself towards Zeldris' calm form. But the demon king had no response.
"Why don't you answer?" The voice of Benimaru grew soft before devolving into a cold, mindless laugh. "I get it now. You never loved her. What was she, just a pawn in your crazy game? A toy to use and be discarded?"
"Don't speak of what you don't know, boy." For the first time, Zeldris spoke, but his voice remained cold and detached—his words exemplifying a warning.
"So now you can speak?" The boy's tone underwent a maniacal change. "Nothing I'm ever meant to learn do I ever learn from you. Until a few months ago, I didn't even know my mother's name! And it wasn't even you or even Master Meliodas who told me!"
"If you claim to love her, then why can't you show any love for me!" But Zeldris still refused to give a response.
A look of realization appeared on Benimaru's face. This man would never care about him as anything more than a memory of his dead wife.
"Is Master Meliodas the same?" The question voiced by the boy was barely a whisper—but was heard loud and clear. Even Zeldris didn't know how his brother felt, so he couldn't answer.
The silence his grandfather granted him was all the information he needed to know. "I probably knew the answer myself. I just needed confirmation," Benimaru said. "Then before I kill you, can you answer me one thing?"
"If she was still alive…would you even want me?"
Surprisingly, Zeldris answered, quick and decisive. He didn't put much thought into it.
"No, I wouldn't."
A sigh left Benimaru's lips as his expression became unreadable—a cold mask which oozed surgical precision. "I see."
The Astral blade at his waist was unsheathed with brutally quick efficiency as the boy shifted his body into a stance.
"Then there is no reason…for you to continue living."
The flame of hell began coating his blade as his body surged with demonic energy—Stage Three Mark activating as symbols and patterns spread across his limbs.
Lightning chakra fueled his assault as it powered his body like a battery—making him exponentially stronger.
The gaze of Zeldris locked onto the scene of Benimaru's transformation with an indifferent expression. In his eyes, the boy was simply throwing a tantrum because he wasn't given his way.
The form of Benimaru dashed forward in a blinding step. His body ricocheted off the wall and tiles at an unimaginable speed.
"It seems my brother has trained you well," Zeldris barked out, waiting for his grandson to strike.
But Benimaru ignored him completely. The words of a dead man didn't matter to him.
'I never fully used this against Master Meliodas, you will be a good test subject.'
The speed at which the boy moved began getting faster and faster as the castle began to tremble under the weight of his movements.
'Thunder breathing: First form: Thunder Clap and Flash.'
His frame moved—or teleported—through the large room as sparks crackled beneath the very soles of his feet and merged with his blade.
With a single step, his form materialized mere inches from the demon king. With his sword outstretched and gripped tightly within his grasp, the blade in his fingers sliced cleanly against air as Zeldris ducked below it—momentarily surprised at the sudden speed. He was almost decapitated.
The boy reacted swiftly to his grandfather's dodge, his leg swept the ground quickly to catch him off his feet—eliciting a jump from the demon king.
The fist of Benimaru clenched inward tightly as it shot forth; however, Zeldris had anticipated this, his forearms locked in an X shape to block the blow.
BOOM
Although barely sustaining any damage, the mere impact of the blow shattered the glass and sent him crashing into the nearby wall—cracking it.
Within moments, Benimaru had resumed his assault once more. Astral pierced through skin and blood vessels as it struck Zeldris—pinning him to the wall and preventing escape.
"You damn brat." Blood spat out of the demon king's mouth as he felt the explosion of one of his hearts. He would survive—all high-ranking demons possess seven hearts, after all.
Benimaru gazed up at his grandfather with an expression devoid of even the slightest traces of emotion.
"Do you know why you are going to die today?" Astral embedded itself deeper and deeper into Zeldris' body as Benimaru's fingers applied more force. "It's because you are a monster. Something that shouldn't exist."
"A mistake like you has no place to talk down on a king." Zeldris' foot arched upwards as it slammed itself into the boy's jaw—stunning him for a moment. As the boy's hold on his blade faltered, the backhand of Zeldris embedded itself into Benimaru's abdomen—sending him stumbling back.
"You are merely a child throwing a tantrum. And I am the adult who will control you." The short sword at Zeldris' side was gripped tightly as his fingers pulled it from its scabbard.
"So after all this, you still believe it's just a tantrum?" Although his expression remained unreadable, the anger and fury in his words were palpable. "You can think about your actions in hell."
'If only you knew, boy,' Zeldris thought solemnly. 'Your grandmother was my light, and your mother was my pride and joy. But you are a human. I want to love you but…I can never care for a lowly human.'
The chakra surrounding Benimaru surged once more as streaks of yellow and black spiraled all around him. His hair turned half and half—one side golden yellow, the other pitch black.
His eyes gained a dual setting, one eye contained a golden hue while the other burned with a purple darkness.
"This is the power of my human and demon halves together." The tone of the boy's voice was completely flat. "And this…will be the last thing you see before you ascend."
Benimaru disappeared from the spot in which he stood and materialized at his grandfather's front.
His grip on the hilt of Astral became even harder as he flexed his wrist ever so slightly—a slash permeating the air.
Zeldris reciprocated the blow with equal force, his blade clashing against Astral in a fervent battle of pure swordsmanship.
The sound of metal against metal resounded through the halls as their movements, coordinated and executed with complete skill, made even master swordsmen look like jokesters.
The heel of Benimaru sprung forward in a sideways manner to the side of Zeldris' head. In that instant, his grandfather blurred out of sight and reappeared at his back—blade drawn in a downward spiral.
As his sword struck true, his grandson vanished into thin air and revealed his form behind him.
"It's time for you die grandfathe…it's time for you to die, Zeldris." The weight of Benimaru's fist was charged with the combined energy of both Hellblaze and lightning release. The force of the blow was devastating as it loomed over the demon king's head.
When the blow landed, a huge dust cloud was formed—covering everything in sight as Benimaru jumped back.
"You need to calm yourself, boy." The power with which the Sage of the Six Paths had granted Zeldris, the power to give and take—had been used for the first time in over a century.
Using this ability which he named "Demon King's Levy," he could freely steal and absorb attacks from enemies, or grant his own powers to his allies.
The right hand of the demon king lifted itself, a dark and ominous power emanating from it. The lightning and the Hellblaze in which he had just absorbed—launched itself towards Benimaru without hesitation.
The eyes on the boy's head widened for a split second—instinctively acting to dodge before a realization dawned on him.
'I need to evolve myself. I need to evolve…Perfect Copy. I won't allow myself to stay weak forever. If I don't get stronger I'll lose...so I'll dominate. If gods exist, grant me the power to erase this pest from existence'
Benimaru's hand raised in a similar manner to his grandfather; dark energy bubbled from within him. The thunderous Hellblaze was unable to even come close to its gathered power—dissolving mid-flight.
A ridiculously compressed amount of chakra charged within Benimaru as even more chakra leaked from his pores—a stable flow of power surrounded him constantly.
'His chakra? It's eclipsed even mine?' The demon king thought frantically.
As the chakra overflowing in the boy's body reached where Zeldris stood, for the first time in his life—he felt…
Dread.
The sound of Benimaru's footsteps hitting the ground was terrifying as his backside gazed against his grandfather's prepared form.
"Don't you dare look down on me!" The sword at Zeldris' waist left its scabbard swiftly and swept through air.
"Isn't this what…you once did to me?" The boy's palm gripped the hand of Zeldris which he had quickly severed without any trace of resistance. No hesitation, no preparation.
Zeldris jumped back frantically in an attempt to maintain distance and reattach his severed arm.
"Flashstep." Within a gust of wind and dust stood Benimaru who was positioned beside him. "Did you know that if you strike the ground at high enough speeds you can basically teleport? Because I didn't. I made it just now."
The boy's knee extended into a strike to Zeldris' gut, his elbow smashing itself into the demon king's back.
'It's humiliating to admit it but the boy has surpassed me in both hand-to-hand and swordsmanship.'
A combined mixture of blood and saliva spewed from Zeldris' mouth as he lost his footing but quickly recovered. His fingers gripped the hilt of his blade tightly as he swung towards the boy's neck.
The sound of Astral being sheathed into its scabbard was the only thing heard. In Benimaru's grasp, the hand of his grandfather was held deftly under him.
"This was the same thing you did to me when we first met, right?" He said with a calm nonchalance to a stunned Zeldris who instantly jumped back—using darkness to reattach his arm as Benimaru let him.
"Are you running away now? Quite unbefitting for a king, don't you think?" The boy's attempt at mockery fell flat as his voice remained as emotionless as ever.
As the bottom of the demon king's feet hit the ground, a bead of sweat rolled down his brow as the realization dawned on him. The power his wife had spoke about, the power specific only to humans…
The Flow.
A state where all unnecessary thoughts are pushed aside and the body is forced to work at one hundred and fifty percent efficiency. It was a power that drew upon all of the user's latent potential.
But one didn't simply enter the Flow—they were chosen. It was said that the Sage of the Six Paths and his brother had entered the Flow against Kaguya—and Indra against Ashura.
But since that time, not a single record of the Flow had been found. Zeldris had thought that the Flow was simply a folklore told by humans to make them feel stronger—but here it was in front of him.
His own grandson, in the Flow state. That was the only explanation he could think of that would allow him to become so much stronger.
But what terrified him wasn't his increase in strength—it was the nature of the Flow.
The Flow wasn't simply another random power-up. It was a state which drew out all of the user's latent potential and allowed them to draw upon it on command.
The strength Benimaru was displaying at the current moment meant that in the near future—he could possess power surpassing even him.
And that thought enraged him.
'A human surpassing the likes of me? It's absurd. It's unheard of. It shouldn't be possible.'
But there it was right in front of him—clear for all to see.
In contrast to the shocked thoughts which plagued the demon king's mind—Benimaru had a more calmer, more expressionless disposition.
His mind had gone astray from distracting or inhibiting thoughts as he fought purely on instinct. For the first time—he was free.
Benimaru's feet clenched the ground beneath as he prepared to blitz forward—ending the pest once and for all.
'Benimaru!' The voice of Astra resonated within their shared space. Her tone held a concerned and tearful edge as tears flowed freely down her face. 'You need to calm down.'
'What do you mean, Astra? I'm perfectly calm,' an expressionless Benimaru responded, but Astra's face shook in denial.
'Stop lying to yourself!' The time goddess shouted as her tears gained an even more fervent flow. 'All the emotions you're feeling, the anger, the sorrow, the rage, the pain—I feel everything and it hurts, so I can't imagine what you must be feeling. You try to cover yourself up with a mask of nonchalance but I know you're hurting inside.'
The emotionless mask in which the boy had cloaked himself began to crumble slightly.
'You don't deserve the life that was given to you, but you do deserve happiness—and you won't even that by killing Zeldris. But I know you won't do it, do you know why?' The tone Astra had was like a mother, soft and soothing—kind and caring.
'Why?'
'Because you are far too kind to commit such a great sin.'
In the outside world, rivers of tears began flowing from the completely stoic face which Benimaru still held, but it cracked slightly—his lips moved upwards to form a smile.
Once his gaze captured Zeldris' semi-injured form, a scowl visibly began to form on his face.
"I have nothing to say to you." The tone Benimaru used for his grandfather was filled with nothing but ice-cold contempt.
Zeldris' hand dusted his clothes to wipe away the grime which had gathered during the battle.
"Likewise. And if you can't stop this pitiful tantrum, you will never get my approval." Zeldris' words were laced with faked indifference despite his growing fear of the boy's potential. But despite his words, a sort of respect had been earned by the boy in his heart.
Air gathered at the soles of Benimaru's feet as it acted as a propeller to levitate his muscular frame. Gusts of wind began to surround his body, allowing him to gain a streamlined coating around him.
As the propulsion of air by his feet grew, the sound of Benimaru blasting off into the distance was all that could be heard as a sonic boom was created.
Once Benimaru had left the castle, Zeldris collapsed to his knees.
"Did I do the right thing, Gelda? No matter what, I can never forgive the humans for what they did to you."
In the wasteland where the boy landed, a thankful message passed through his brain.
'Thanks...Astra.'
'No problem, kid.'
When Benimaru's foot attempted to take a step forward, his entire body began to convulse rapidly as blood escaped from every pore in his body.
Black–purple lightning started circling around his body as the pupils in his eyes vanished and he succumbed to the black abyss of unconsciousness.
'BENIMARU! BENIMARU! BENIMARU!'
CHAPTER END