As the Skill activated, pure red lightning and storm clouds formed out of my body before creating a magic circle. Afterwards, a mass amount of energy was unleashed, creating a absolutely enormous pure red lightning serpent, which crashed into Olhade and carried him with it off into the distance for a bit, before crashing into the ground, creating a crater with Olhade in it.
After the Serpent had fully sunk underground, a massive magic circle appeared under Olhade, before unleashing a enormous and devastating tornado made from Red lightning and Red clouds, which spanned all the way up to the sky, creating a rotating pillar.
The others watched in slight disbelief - even Frindel, who was used to unreal feats, was absolutely shocked.
I gazed off towards the crater with a slightly sceptical glare. I wasn't sure whether or not that one move was enough to finish Olhade off completely, considering his immense healing abilities.
But then again.... I also couldn't imagine him surviving that or coming out unscratched.
After all...
98% of your Magical Energy was used up in that one attack.
There is 0% chance that Olhade managed to come out unscratched. Maybe he will be still alive though.
'And even then, I bet he would be hanging onto life by a thread.'
I thought, before using 'Shadow Manipulation' to quickly move over to him.
Upon reaching the crater, I looked down into it, seeing Olhade extremely beaten up and mauled, sitting down inside of it, with his back against one of the 'walls' of the crater.
Sharpening my gaze, I quickly leapt down into it, landing infront of Olhade, before glaring him down with a serious and cold stare.
Olhade was breathing heavily - his armour was absolutely destroyed and the skin underneath it... To call it burnt would be an understatement.
He was also bleeding heavily, which was actually kinda strange if you ask me.
Then, Olhade coughed, before slightly lifting his head up towards me.
[Olhade] "Save your breath... I know that I have lost."
He stated simply, coughing up some blood before lowering his head back down.
It was a rather pitying sight... I couldn't help but slightly feel bad for what I did to him.
'Serpents Wrath' on its own has proven to be absolutely ridiculous when it comes to its power, but it has never done THIS much damage before...
I guess it really does scale in power depending on how much Magical Energy I place into it when activating it.
"Why did you go after the Heroes party?"
I asked coldly.
Since it was obvious that Olhade wouldn't be able to do anything in this state, I may as well use this opportunity to gather information from him.
Olhade breathed heavily for a bit before coughing.
[Olhade] "I did it, to benefit the Hand Sons... The Heroes party is a red flag for them, since they are under the protection of the Deities... Getting rid of them, means that the Hand Sons gets rid of one extra nuisance with connection to the Deities.."
He stated slowly, his voice much weaker now, before coughing up more blood. Something more was here - he wasn't telling the full story, that's for sure.
But I guess it would be useless to drive him any further... I doubt he will let me in on anything else.
"Tell me, what are the Hand Sons even after? Control? Power? Domination?"
I asked, giving some examples. Olhade remained silent for a bit before shrugging.
[Olhade] "I do not know... The only ones who know what the Hand Sons are for, are the highest members. The only thing I know is that they plan to restore an ancient evil.."
An Ancient Evil?
Restore it?
....Could this Ancient Evil be whatever this 'Tritery' is who I have heard be mentioned multiple times now?
After all, that Void Lord fellow mentioned someone called 'Lord Tritery' or something...
"Is that really all you know?"
I asked with a sharp tone.
Olhade slightly nodded with a trembling body.
[Olhade] "If I knew any more, I would tell you.."
"And why exactly would you tell me this? You're a member of this organisation as well aren't you? Surely you would keep all of this a secret."
I asked with a skeptical tone. It all seemed just a bit too suspicious. He was telling me way too much valuable information, despite being an apparently high ranking member of this organisation.
So I don't exactly understand whether he is telling the truth or lying through his teeth.
Olhade remained silent, before lifting up his right arm, which looked like it was withering away and turning into ashed right before my eyes.
[Olhade] "...Because I have no reason to listen to what they say anymore..."
He lifted his head up towards me.
[Olhade] "Your move just now.... It seems like it disintegrated my curse, thus freeing me..."
Curse? He was cursed..?
...Is that why he was called the 'Cursed Paladin'?
It would make sense - someone doesn't simply gain a title without a reason. There is always a reason for things to happen, especially if its related to something as crucial as a title.
Olhade then looked off to the side.
[Olhade] "May I tell you my story? So that I can die without any regrets."
I was slightly shaken up a bit by his sudden request. His... Story? Does he mean he wants to tell me about his past?... But why?
Regrets... Regrets, regrets...
I see...
I can understand that. Dying with regrets is something unpleasant - I would know.
After careful consideration, I nodded lightly.
"I'll listen."
[Olhade] "...Thank you.."
Backstory told from Olhades perspective.
I was once a respected, young and powerful Paladin. A man, with so much in life. I faithfully served in the order of Paladins under the rule of the Holy Church - the Church, which worshipped The Deities.
Back then - I had a noble and selfless look on life. I always helped those that needed help, never taking anything in return, since it violated the codex of a paladin.
I had eventually grown to be strong enough and respected enough to potentially join the order of Holy Knights, becoming one of them. That was very exciting for me, since becoming a Holy Knight was one of the greatest honours a Paladin could have.
However....
I wasn't so lucky in the end.
One day, after a battle with a formidable witch that had terrorised an entire town for years, I was inlaid with a powerful, dark curse.
A curse, which relinquished my connections to the Light and Deities - replacing that connection, with pure darkness and evil.
I tried to seek help and a way to cure myself from the Church and The Deities, however....
They turned their backs on me.
Instead of helping me, they banished me - stripped me of everything I had as a Paladin and told me to never come to the Holy Capital again.
...So I did.
I wandered along - as a man, who was cursed.
My Paladins armour, it got fused to my bones and flesh, making it part of my body - making it impossible to remove. I was lost.
I had fallen from the grace as a paladin, becoming nothing more than a sinned soul, looking for someone who to place my belief within.
..That's when I was recruited to the Hand Sons of Tritery by him.
He told me that he would give me a new God to worship, a new being to place my belief in.
And I, blinded by desperation of salvation, accepted his offer - joining the Hand Sons and quickly rising through the ranks with my new Dark Abilities.
I had changed from the man I once was, into a man who worshipped a Demon.
Olhade finished his story, coughing up blood as he did, before breathing heavily. I was a bit lost for words, unable to exactly process whatI had just learned.
The enemy that I had just took down, was once a broken man who was simply looking for some help and salvation... It didn't excuse his actions or such, however it did place a new perspective on things.
Olhade exhaled before grabbing a hold of his stomach.
[Olhade] "I do not ask for forgiveness, since I am aware of how much evil I have done... But I do ask you to be somewhat gentle on this soul, after you destroy it."
Destroy it?...
Does he think I'll deliver some kind of Punishment?
I remained silent for a bit, before exhaling and crossing my arms.
"I cannot forgive you, noir can I punish you. However... What I can do, is give you my regards as you pass on."
I stated.
Olhade looked a bit surprised, before laughing lightly - coughing up blood afterwards.
[Olhade] "Y'know... You are strong Serpent... But I must warn you, that the Hand Sons will not overlook my death. The minute they learn of my death, they'll begin searching for you - searching for the one who killed me."
"And so what?"
I cut him off, asking simply.
Olhade once again seemed surprised by my lack luster response.
"They may search for me. They can try to take me down, however... I promise to you."
I looked with a stone cold, dead serious glare at him.
"I will defeat them all. I will kill them all."
I stated.
Olhade looked at me a bit confused, before laughing lightly, lowering his head once more.
After a bit, he coughed up some more blood.
[Olhade] "I don't have much time left, so I'll say this much..."
He weakly looked up at me slightly.
[Olhade] "You have a good heart Serpent... Make sure to not lose it with time.... Like I did."
He stated, before coughing more blood up.
[Olhade] "...You have such wonderful and faithful friends.... You must protect them."
He continued, lowering his head once more before lifting up his right arm weakly as it trembled slightly, pointing at me.
[Olhade] "You have my respect Serpent... Not as a Harbinger of Tritery, but as Paladin, that has gone down the wrong path..."
Olhade finished, before his arm dropped to his side, his entire body going still.
I do not detect any more signs of life from Olhade.
It is safe to say, that he had passed on.
'...I see..'
I simply stated, staring down at the beaten Paladin. I had a couple of mixed feelings - not because I regretted killing him or whatever, but because I wished that I could have helped him when he needed it the most.
If anything.... His backstory reminded me a little of myself...
We both felt helpless at one point - like shells wandering around searching for a new hope...
That made me resonate a bit more with him than I had expected.
...Shall I use [Black-Hole Starvation] to absorb his magical energy—
No.
The Ancient one gasped lightly at my rather unexpected answer.
...Shall I know why?
I remained silent for a bit, before turning my back onto Olhades unmoving corpse, beginning to walk away.
'Because - be him our enemy or not - he... Earned my respect.'
I replied lightly, climbing out of the crater, leaving Olhades corpse down inside it. In the end of it all, he respected the fact that he lost and even acted out sort of generously by giving us valuable information.
And besides...
Ignoring it all - He was a worthy enough of an opponent for me.
As I climbed out of the crater, I heard multiple voices call out towards me.
[Wezrall] "My Lord!"
[Odale] "Lord Faofa!"
[Frindel] "Master!"
[Iyka] "Hey Slithering Skull!"
Everyone called out towards me, rushing towards me. I slightly smiled, before exhaling, walking towards them, before 'reuniting' with my friends. They all began to examine me, checking for any marks, while Frindel hugged me, bawling her eyes out and saying how cool I was and how glad she was that I was alright.
I looked towards Iyka with a slightly questioning gaze. She seemed to catch on immediately, as she nodded lightly.
I exhaled in relief, smiling.
The Heroes were alive... That's good. Thankfully Iyka was able to help them.
In this reunion, I also contemplated a lot.
So much has happened since I reincarnated into this world. It has only been around 4 or 5 months and yet it feels like it has been years.
I've met so many great individuals and people in my travels so far, most of them becoming very dear friends of mine.
....Makes me a bit sad when I think back to the life I lived before... I was alone, a work slave and basically killing myself every day. But in this world....
It feels like I've lived my life the way I wanted to live it in my previous world.
But even better.
But it seems like there are still many challenges up ahead waiting for me. So many different factions all at play.
The Hand Sons, the Holy Church, The Deities...
I could probably keep going.
It does make me wonder...
How else will I get involved in this mess?
Will I be able to obercome the challenges ahead and protect those I now care about?
....Honestly -
Who can say.
However, one thing is for sure - I am NOT alone.
I have friends and the Ancient One here to guide me.
....I can't help but smile.
For my Journey, has only begun.
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Next Chapter:
[Special Chapter] 7. -
"Story of Faofa."
&
[SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT]