Jin left the hotel, returning to the palace. He hailed a carriage for the journey. Upon arrival, he found Karlz, whom he hadn't seen in some time.
"Hello, Lord Jin. I have been assigned a mission, and I am your escort."
"My escort? For what?"
"You and I are going to clear a forest of a goblin and orc infestation!"
Jin replied with a scrutinizing look: "And what do I get out of it?"
"In truth," Karlz said calmly, "what you'll gain is beyond your imagination."
Suddenly, an excited man approached, showing no signs of majesty or nobility. The Minister had arrived.
"Hahaha! My dear guest, Jin! Please, come inside. I will tell you everything."
Jin looked at him angrily, thinking to himself: Now you want to meet me?!
They entered the hall—the Hall of the Two Great Statues.
Jin was shocked. "What is this? And why do I feel this strange sensation?"
The Minister replied, "This is your inheritance, Lord Jin. It is reacting to you just as it reacted to Clark before."
"What?!"
Jin began to see a massive beam of light erupt from the white statue, shooting towards the sky. The Minister exclaimed, "What is this?! The statue is directly demanding that you touch it!"
"What?!"
All the inhabitants of the city, Clark, and Elisa, without exception, saw that immense light... the sacred light that split the heavens.
As for Jin, who was at the heart of the event, he felt this light calling him... the sacred energy was guiding him. Jin approached involuntarily and touched the statue.
Sacred light began to burst from Jin's eyes and mouth as he screamed in agony. The Minister shouted to Karlz, "Hurry! Call everyone you can to prevent chaos!"
But Jin had already descended to the deepest point of his soul... pitch black, eternal darkness. Several forms, similar to Jin, emerged, each representing one of the Seven Deadly Sins, just as had happened with Clark.
But at that moment, a terrifying light appeared, jolting Jin awake from his unconscious state, preventing him from fully awakening his power. The Minister came to Jin's side. "What happened? Are you awake?"
Jin's eyes widened in shock and anger. "I... am I less than Clark?!"
Jin was stunned to feel his clothes were soiled and his body had become extremely pale. A flood of information rushed into his mind, making him dizzy. As Jin moved to leave the room, the Minister said, "Wait! Stop! Tell us what happened to you!"
Swiftly, Jin punched the wall with immense force. The wall split in two. His power had increased madly, even though it hadn't fully awakened. The Minister wasn't angry; he was delighted. "His power has increased!"
Jin spoke as dust billowed everywhere: "I will go to the forest." The Minister replied, "Very well. Karlz, go with Lord Jin and be his servant."
Jin thought to himself: Something inside is telling me to go to the forest. I feel my soul guiding me to the place Clark desires!!
---
Elsewhere, a man stood dressed in luxurious clothes, his handsome appearance radiating confidence and calm. It was Clark.
He exited the library to find a waiting for him... Elisa, whose beauty or any such "trivialities" he paid no mind. In the end, that beauty would turn to dust or become natural fertilizer. Why bother with such details? That was Clark's perspective.
Elisa looked at him angrily. "You're very late!" He replied with a condescending gaze, "And did anyone force you to wait? I know the way; I'm not a little child."
He continued in his mind: After touching the statue of Lucifer, I know everything... the paths, what I must do. I even hold the experience of the 'Venerated One, the Great Sun Queller' within my mind. It's unwise for everyone to know my needs.
She retorted arrogantly, "Do you think you're that important? Everyone wishes for my company!"
He stepped past her, saying, "Fine, go accompany them then. What is it to me?"
She threw a punch at a blind spot. But quickly, a translucent manifestation emerged from Clark, grabbed her fist, and began to squeeze. Clark said, "Girl, I don't have time for your childish games. And don't think for a second you're my equal."
He then pushed her away. She said in astonishment, "What is that damned thing inside you?!" Clark felt a strange spirit had been watching from within the girl, screaming with a terrifying murderous intent.
Elisa retorted, "Are you afraid of a girl who can't even face you?!" Clark laughed, "Are you trying to provoke me to reclaim your dignity? But I must inform you I possess not a single grain of it. Does that comfort you? My heart is as dry as sea algae."
She stepped towards him, but he walked out of the palace. She followed immediately, not out of interest, but because her curiosity was piqued. She felt a strange sensation she wasn't accustomed to from anyone else.
She broke the silence: "Why don't we take a transport carriage?"
"I don't want to. And also, be quiet. Do you enjoy talking, ?"
She thought to herself: How cruel he is!
As they walked, Clark knew what he wanted and what he needed. Today was the day of the inheritance. Clark wasn't arrogant; he knew they lacked the strength to repel the "Mad Sun," that powerful enemy. The key to his victory was how he used those around him.
He thought: This girl possesses something strange. I don't think it wants us dead. And Jin... I know he's coming. Because the will of Earnestine—who is in truth Lucifer's younger brother, the one who betrayed his elder brother—knows what is on his brother's mind. The will is inherited. Our souls are linked from now on. Our destiny is to fight, but I will use him. He will come. I intentionally let my desire be known so he would find out.
Elisa was focusing on Clark's strange features, full of cunning and malice.
Clark saw the forest ahead. Its entrance was magnificent. He said to himself: "From now on, the next step will be new to me... a new world, a strange journey. The past won't matter, as long as I am here, alive and breathing. Do I care about people's opinions? I will take a step on this grass, climb mountains, increase my strength, write poetry, and fuel the flame of my will like a wild Phoenix reborn from its ashes!"
His voice was loud. Elisa looked at him, shocked; she hadn't expected him to be a poet. He didn't even look at her and advanced, an air of aloofness around him.
Clark remembered what he learned from the book: releasing his aura in the form of particles allowed him to sense his surroundings within a three-meter radius. Elisa saw this and, not understanding what Clark was doing, asked, "What are you doing?"
"I'm scouting the area around us."
She wanted to compliment him, but he quickly silenced her: "Someone is there." He began to advance to see.
He knew what he found: It was Jin, Karlz, and another person... the "real Alex," who truly looked like Jin.
Jin laughed: "So you enjoyed yourself at the palace, huh?"
Clark laughed inwardly: He knows nothing, like the rest. I can use him well. Let's start with a small strike; after all, grapes are eaten gradually.
Clark replied: "Yes. They lavished me with food, women, information, and everything. They even assigned this beautiful lady to accompany me." He pointed to Elisa. "Show yourself."
Jin was shocked to see Elisa beside him. Elisa retorted, "I am not your friend! Since we left, you've been ignoring me!"
Clark grabbed her chin: "Is that so?" Her face flushed with embarrassment.
Jin was angered but calmed himself slightly: "Do you think I'm not your equal?"
Clark laughed maniacally, his voice loud. He approached Jin until they were face-to-face, his breath on Jin's skin: "In truth, I have never seen you as an enemy or an equal. You're merely a fool. Also, Jin, do you think I don't know? You hold a secret. Guess what will happen if I discover it? Do you think you'll live after that?"
Veins bulged on Jin's forehead from anger, and his heart was filled with tension. He wanted to draw his sword.
But then they heard strange, screeching laughter. Clark turned: "The game has begun."
A short goblin with red eyes was laughing at their discord. It raised a horn and alerted the tribe to their presence.
Elisa said, "Hordes of goblins are coming!"
Jin's mind was in another world: "There are corpses in the hotel. Maybe the owner will come and find them. Then my deed might be exposed. What do I do then? That bastard will use it against me and take my place. Then it will be my end."
Hordes of ghouls surged forward. Quickly, Jin moved too. It was his instinct protecting him now, but his mind was clouded.
The battle raged. Everyone fought except Clark, who rarely moved. He didn't tire himself, because the real event hadn't appeared yet: the Orc King and the Ghoul King.
There were three aura users: Clark, Elisa, and Alex. The fight was relatively easy for them. Even Jin, whose power had noticeably multiplied.
The one truly struggling was Karlz.
A clever plan formed in Clark's mind. He fired an energy shot from his finger towards an orc about to kill Karlz.
Karlz said, "Thank you!"
"Just... don't die before your time."
Karlz didn't fully understand the meaning and continued fighting. Clark kept laughing: "Yes. Let them all struggle until the main event arrives."
The numbers of the vast orc horde diminished. Suddenly, they heard the sound of very heavy footsteps. Clark's eyes snapped open. He knew what had arrived: the Orc King, standing three and a half meters tall! Clark looked at it, laughing: "Magnificent! But... I won't fight you."
An orc stood before Clark, thinking him the weakest. In a flash, Clark decapitated it without even turning around.
He laughed inwardly: "Even though I've only killed a few, my level has risen nicely. It's now Level 6." His Strength, Agility, Stamina, Toughness, Resistance, and Mana had increased. But his "Qi" had not. He wondered what increased it.
His stats were now:
· Strength: 11
· Mana: 7
· Agility: 15
· Toughness: 9
· Stamina: 13
· Qi: 1
In his mind: "Hahaha! My strength is sufficient. But the one who will fight him is that fool Jin."
Clark approached Jin and whispered in his ear: "The Orc King's core is useful;it will make you fully awakened. And also... why are you afraid and hesitant? Look at this beast before you. Don't you see it represents the weak self within you? The fear that seizes you when you do something wrong? That living conscience inside you? Go on! Kill it! Kill what remains of the human inside you!"
Jin's eyes widened hysterically. His grip on his sword tightened as he thought: "Is it true? I'm always in a cage of fear. I haven't stopped thinking about the consequences. Fear and terror never left my heart. But now... the mask has fallen. Is it my conscience that frightens me, or are they those vile acts I committed while fearing the consequences?!"
Jin saw visions of those he had killed... like gaunt ghosts. Lina and the other girl hovered around him, trying to drag him into the depths of hell. He suddenly screamed: "Silence!"
He charged forward with mad speed, attacking the Orc King with immense rage, his eyes red with overwhelming murderous intent. madness flowed from Jin incessantly.
Clark laughed: "That is the dilemma of crime and punishment.Humans do what they want, and when things get tough, they feel wronged. I don't know what Jin did, but he feels intense remorse and injustice."
But amidst all this, there was someone else watching with keen interest from among the branches of the trees...
To be continued....