"The strong survive; the weak perish" was the lesson Ellise instilled in Eric from a young age. Throughout his childhood, Ellise displayed no compassion, not even towards her own son. She maintained a demeanor of coldness and ruthlessness toward everyone. As Eric grew older, he became accustomed to his mother's unfeeling personality and admired her formidable leadership skills. Ellise raised him alongside other members, all of whom underwent rigorous training to become masters of assassination and experts in the underworld. Eric had no complaints about his upbringing and was content with how Ellise treated him coldly. However, when Lambert Thom entered the picture, he experienced jealousy for the first time. Seeing his mother treat his step-brother differently stirred feelings of envy within him. His mind drifted back to the memory of his first meeting with Lambert Thom, three years prior, at the former Thom's Corporation headquarters in Ieffam City. Three years ago… Ellise and Eri
Ellise had initially mentioned that she would be multitasking by listening to the meeting while working on fixing her son's toy, but as the meeting proceeded, it was evident that her attention was undivided. Despite the distraction of her son's toy, she engaged fully in the meeting, as if her energy increased the longer she worked on it. Throughout the meeting, Ellise adhered to her usual practice of critiquing and roasting incompetent members and poor performers. She scrutinized all ideas and proposals meticulously, evaluating them more thoroughly than usual. It seemed as though the more Ellise worked on her son's toy, the more enthusiastic and energetic she became in her critiques. The meeting eventually concluded, leaving all board members and team members drained of their energy. They departed from the conference room with exhausted expressions, while Ellise remained engrossed in fixing Gaige's gun. "Mother, you have to meet with the elders soon," Eric reminded Ellise. However,
Upgrading his weapon hadn't been a part of Gaige's plan, nor had he requested it, yet he was suffering the consequences. Gaige couldn't decide whether to feel indebted to Ellise for the upgrade or to be angered by the excruciating pain it caused him. For the past thirty minutes, Gaige had been coughing up blood, and the ordeal wasn't over yet. It had forced him to grow accustomed to the pain. Meanwhile, the people around him had varying reactions to the sudden and seemingly fatal coughing fit he was experiencing. Eric had left the room, anticipating Gaige's demise due to the massive loss of blood. He lingered for a moment, feeling pity, before rejoining the meeting with Ellise. He also contemplated a dignified burial for his step-brother. Gaige's servants, Patal and Lisa, had given up trying to wipe away the blood. They could only watch as Gaige's entire bed became soaked with it. They knew Gaige would eventually recover due to his healing powers, but they still empathized with the
Gaige wore a gentle smile as he gazed up at the bright and sunny morning sky. Above him, white fluffy clouds dotted the azure blue canvas, and the sun beamed down, casting a golden hue upon the earth. Below, the grass swayed in mesmerizing waves, each blade momentarily reflecting the brilliant sunlight. These slender green wands danced together, somehow easing his pain and allowing a hint of goodness to seep in. He sat in the midst of an endless meadow, cradling a beauty in his lap. Gaige ran his fingers through the woman's long black hair, unable to suppress his smile. He felt blessed by the serene green landscape and the woman's goddess-like beauty. "Why do you keep smiling, Commander Gaige?" she asked. Gaige gently pressed his finger to the woman's soft red lips, captivated by the sound of her voice. He cast her warm glances before replying, "In the absence of truth, comfort is a delusion." His response seemed unrelated to her question, but he continued to speak as if lost in hi
Individuals with divine powers possess strong immunity and rapid regeneration abilities, eliminating the need for them to chant spells to heal themselves. Their powers work instantaneously to mend their wounds. The only time they must chant a spell or fervently pray to their god is when they suffer severe injuries that their regular health boost can't heal in time. What annoyed Gaige the most was that he had to clasp his hands, pray, and praise his god to regain his deteriorating health. He hadn't practiced the same chants as other saints and priests with similar powers. Gaige had learned only a few chants, primarily those used to create holy shields or weapons. Self-healing, as well as healing others, were skills he'd acquired on his own. A completely self-taught priest. So how did Gaige pray to his god? Certainly not in a holy or worshipful manner. Most of his prayers were straightforward requests for what he wanted; he delivered them like a rascal and spoke his praises crudely. Fo
"Why is he sticking around us?" Gaige asked, raising his notepad. He and Ainspenser needed to meet as promised to confront Andy tonight, but Eric was following him, expressing concern about his health. Gaige took his time lounging on his bed, hoping that Eric would eventually leave, but he didn't. Even when Gaige left their castle-like mansion, Eric followed him, even in his car. Without worrying that Eric would overhear his response, Patal said, "He might be worried about you." This comment prompted Eric to fake a cough and explain, "Mother won't hurt you for a while if I'm with you." "What?" Gaige furrowed his brows, finding Eric's words incomprehensible. On the other hand, Eric believed that Ellise had been intentionally causing harm to Gaige due to his rapid healing abilities. He saw his mother as purely sadistic and witnessed her torture numerous people as she pleased. Additionally, he was aware that his mother and their organization were involved in various illegal and vile
Purger’s weapons emerged from nothingness. They possessed no souls, bodies, or backgrounds to reflect upon. They simply existed due to the system—a system created to subdue expelled heavenly beings and maintain Earth's exclusivity. Four millennia had passed since the inception of the system, and it was also the duration of the weapons' existence. Initially, they appeared emotionless, mere tools for every purger. However, after millennia of purging experiences, they developed distinct personalities. None of them could die or reproduce; their physical forms remained unaltered. Even if they grew while in the purger's hands, they would reset to their default state upon their purgers' demise. In the end, their lives were a repetitive cycle, shifting from one purger to another, only to reset to their default settings once their duties were complete. The Purgers had no means of escaping their fate. Gun had no complaints. Whatever they had become or whatever their true nature was, he acc
If Gun had eyes, he'd probably be rolling them by now. He couldn't stand watching someone else fall under Gaige's broken yet artfully persuasive style of speaking. Unable to bear witnessing this scene unfold, Gun jumped inside Gaige's shirt and hid there for a while. Meanwhile, Gaige, oblivious to what everyone else was thinking, led the couple to follow him. He didn't want to get back in the car because it would be faster to walk home. Patal saw Gaige walking away and instructed Lisa to follow him, as he couldn't leave the chaos in the middle of the road just yet. "Lambert, you can't just leave like that," Lisa said. She had grown accustomed to speaking informally to Gaige, even if it went against her maid's customs, and it had made her more candid in her actions and words. Lisa was about to nag at Gaige, but he simply glared at her before walking away again.She only let out a sigh before simply following behind Gaige. Axel, who was curious about how he could also serve Gaige,