Chapter 456: Torch Of Humanity

Lilith waited, staring into Cain’s eyes, as his marks charged... more than they had before. They extended, moving up to his face and covering his whole body. The blue part in his hair and eyes also got bigger, as if trying to hold on to all the power that was being accumulated.

"If hypothetically, there was to be a giant hole in your chest, would you die?" Lilith asked, his hands clenching into fists as he slowly took a stance.

Cain chuckled. "Want to try?" Lilith didn’t wait any longer, dashing forward more than ever before and punching Cain right in the chest. The burst of energy came after the original impact, just a moment after, blasting through his chest completely, breaking everything that was there.

Bones, muscle, organs, they were all gone, just from one punch. Cain looked down, surprised, before grabbing Lilith by the neck and slamming him right into the ground, with unbelievable force, creating a crater.

Lilith choked out blood as the impact almost broke all his bones

Cain walked to the edge of the hole, looking at Freedom, disappointed. "Is that all? Just one of the three? I was expecting a little more, at least two of my hearts, but I guess not."

Lilith’s body shook in pain; as his eyes trembled, he was in agony; it was as if all his bones were slowly falling apart, and he couldn’t do anything. He hadn’t ever felt like this, ever. He had never been this badly hurt or humiliated.

He tried to get up with his hand, but the moment he put his weight on it, the bones broke, making him fall back, his arm now limp on the ground, soulless.

"You know. While you need me alive, I can kill you whenever I want. And it won’t be that hard..."

Lilith stared with hatred as Cain’s chest slowly started to regenerate. ’What kind of monster is this guy... how is this fair...’

Cain summoned his blade, walking down the crater. "I wonder how the King will react when he finds out that his most loyal Vessel has died. He won’t be happy, but at the same time, I won’t be there to see it; my trial is waiting after all."

Raising his blade, he stared into Lilith’s eyes. Freedom closed his eyes as he felt the blade come down.

...

...

...

"Are you alright?" Lilith’s eyes shot open as he heard James’ voice, who looked out of breath but relieved to see him.

"What happened?" Freedom asked. Looking around, though, he saw the people of the village from before, still cheering... he was still in the same place. Meaning Cain was still here.

Before he could open his mouth to say anything, he watched as the boy’s head got cut off, slowly falling on the ground and rolling away, before the body collapsed onto him. The Fallen stood behind him, not amused anymore.

"Brat, getting in my way at the last second."

Lilith paused for a second before frowning, trying to get up once more, but just like last time, he failed, breaking his other arm completely.

Could he really not do anything?

...

’Get up.’ His eyes widened as he heard the voice; it wasn’t coming from the crowd, but rather from inside his mind, but it was also... not him.

’Get up.’

’Get up.’

The voice only grew stronger, as more and more appeared in his mind. And slowly it wasn’t only his head where he heard these screams, but also from the people around him. Cries filled with desperation, screams filled with conviction, pleas filled with fear. All directed towards him; they all were for him, all the cheers.

...They all believed in him, in his action.

In his freedom.

...

[Freedom]- Nothing is stronger than the human Will, than their belief and conviction to keep going and chase something. To continue fighting even when everything is against them, you are the living representation of that Will. Your powers shall grow whenever your will is strongest, and you believe in your ideal Freedom, but also whenever the others around you see you as their Salvation.

"So, are you going to keep us waiting? What does it say?" His father impatiently said while talking to one of his people.

Lilith tilted his head, staring at his Affinity; he wasn’t even sure what category it was. But how it worked. "Um, I think..." He smiled. "That if I don’t give up, I will get stronger."

The father paused for a second, staring at his child... "What a disgrace, what kind of Affinity is that..." He pinched his nose. "I knew I shouldn’t have made up with your mother. It was an absolute waste."

"But..." Lilith murmured under his voice, but his father looked as if he had no intention of talking to him anymore.

He was going to have to work hard...

...

...

He took a deep breath as he stood in front of his friend, waiting for their friendly duel to start. The Academy was finally hosting some friendly duels to test their true strength. Even before the duel started, Lilith heard the other kids cheering for him, but it was for a reason; he was really popular after all. His friend didn’t seem that mad about it.

This duel was also nice, since it meant he could test his ability, which he had gotten after clearing his first book with his father’s people, the first and last book he was going to have help with.

Once the whistle blew, Lilith dashed forward, hearing the voice of Liberation speak into his ears. The people around him all cheered. Using his ability, he punched his friend.

...

Watching as the blast of energy completely obliterated his body, his blood spilling everywhere, while his organs and flesh had completely disintegrated.

Lilith stared, confused about where his friend had gone. The cheers had also all stopped. Replaced by screams filled with real fear.

Looking down at his hands, he noticed blood, and that blood wasn’t only on his hand...

Had he...

...

...

...

Lilith lifted his head to stare Cain in the eyes before a big smile appeared on his face... as his hands finally started moving again, almost as if his bones were reconstructing themselves.