Chapter 276

Boom!

"When will I be able to get stronger?"

A demon wearing a theater mask covered in cracks rose from among the rocky debris.

His clothes were in tatters, with tears in the fabric here and there, and through those tears, deep, bleeding wounds could be seen that were slowly healing.

"It’s sad, it’s so sad. I’ve tried so hard, and I’ve only made a little progress."

The Herald’s feigned sad voice was tinged with frustration.

The cavern was gloomy, but for a demon, the darkness posed no problem.

Two tall, monstrous, dark silhouettes walked toward a crevice inside the cavern.

"You’ve steadily advanced to the Seventh Rank; many demons would love to be in your place."

A voice—somewhat hoarse and solemn, with a touch of malice—emerged from the crevice that the tall silhouettes had approached.

"How sad! And what good is that to me? I’m still weaker than that marquis. Isn’t he wishing for my death?"

The voice in the crevice belonged to Cabrat Vercen, and at that moment he said to the Herald:

"Being strong requires patience and talent; or...," Cabrat paused to look at the Herald, who had already stood up, then continued, "It requires sacrifice and courage."

The Herald sighed and clenched one of his fists so tightly it bled.

"Do you think I’m trying to deceive you?" Cabrat’s voice sounded calm and grew calmer by the moment, but that only made it more terrifying.

"It’s so sad—you’re forcing me to offend you. You’re a Warlock; if you can, you’ll deceive me." The Herald had lived long enough to be extremely cautious.

Cabrat Vercen laughed, and his dry laughter spread like an echo that flooded the cavern.

"Herald, you are insignificant to me; I’ve helped you out of the goodness of my heart. Besides, I’m not forcing you—sooner or later, the marquis will fall. But you—will you remain hidden until the very end?"

From the spot where Cabrat was sitting, a square golden box emerged, adorned with demonic symbols that could barely contain the sinister miasma emanating from within it.

The box levitated until it fell into the Herald’s hands; he felt his very being yearning for what lay inside it.

The Herald swallowed hard, as if he were looking at something exquisite before him.

"This is the last chance I’m giving you; it’s up to you whether to use it or not," Cabrat’s voice faded away as if it were plunging into an abyss.

At that moment, both tall, dark figures were enveloped by a mist, behind which they vanished from the cavern.

...

Cabrat Vercen had also been enveloped in the dark mist with which he vanished from the cavern, only to reappear in a dark setting where everything seemed distant yet within reach.

"Do you think he’ll take that pill?"

Two figures dressed in dark robes and hoods appeared.

The one who asked that question was Mozert Cromer.

"The Herald has no other path than the one I’ve prepared for him—that is a fact," replied the demon with spiral goat horns.

The other two demons immediately realized that the Herald had been cursed by Cabrat.

This made them feel they could not let their guard down against that Warlock standing near them—even though they were allies—since Cabrat Vercen was not a Cudernic, unlike them.

...

Still inside the cave, the Herald opened the box, and the demonic symbols burst like shattering glass.

At that moment, he could see the purple pill inside the golden box.

A pill that emitted a dark and sinister miasma, and on whose surface were green silhouettes that looked like eyes.

Even so, despite its appearance, the pill set the Herald’s demonic energy and blood ablaze.

"Dark Shadow Pill, but...," the Herald seemed to weep with emotion.

He knew what those pills were; after all, he had worked with some demons who had consumed them.

But he had also witnessed the dire fate that befell some of the demons who had taken that pill.

"This doesn’t seem like an ordinary ’Dark Shadow Pill’; it shouldn’t...," despite his mutterings, his demonic energy surged as if announcing that he was close to achieving a great feat that would allow him to rise in rank.

The Herald was about to close the golden box, but his fingers trembled with anxiety and desire.

A myriad of emotions suddenly began to flood his mind.

"Didn’t you want to be strong?"

"Don’t you want to kill that marquis?"

"They humiliated you—can you live with that?"

Strange, intrusive thoughts urged him not to close the box.

His mind grew increasingly confused as he stared, hungry and thirsty, at that pill that seemed to offer him a great opportunity.

The lower part of the cracked mask fell to the ground; in one of his trembling hands, the Herald held the "Dark Shadow Pill."

"It’s sad, it’s so sad; why must I do this? Because of him, I will take my revenge on that marquis; yes, that way I won’t be sad anymore, no more sadness..."

Despite his words, his feigned sad voice betrayed doubts, but despite the doubts that inexplicably drove him toward the abyss, the Herald brought the sinister pill to his mouth.

...

The days went by.

In the capital of the Argariz Republic, at the White Castle, the Extraordinary Council had convened to address matters related to the "rebel demon"—as they had labeled Marquis Sevec.

In that spacious hall, there were 28 private boxes at the same level and two private boxes located on a higher level.

All the boxes had translucent curtains that prevented the council members from being seen; in the two sumptuous and imposing boxes located on the upper level, the two Senior Councilors sat in silence.

The presence of the two Senior Councilors was imposing; to the rest of the councilors, they were both feared and respected.

But since, up to that point, the Senior Councilors had behaved solely as a neutral force protecting the order of the Republican Council and the Republic, the other councilors did not hesitate to present their positions regarding Marquis Sevec.