章節 254: Chapter 173: Preaching Lies
The words that Adryan had spoken somewhat confused everyone present in the training ground.
Hazel looked at Adryan with a slightly raised eyebrow while Sasha looked a little nervous at the man.
'Don't tell me that Boss is the believer of an Evil God? But he's never acted crazy or shown any sign of it?' Sasha thought seriously as she discreetly moved to Hazel's side.
It's not that she didn't trust the man who saved her and Nathan's lives, it was just a precaution.
But when she did this she couldn't help but be embarrassed and ashamed.
'Adryan saved my life several times and this is how I repay him? And after all we went through...Am I seriously gonna treat him with this distrust without letting him explain himself?'
Her experience working at the Church of the God of Combat and her experience at Adryan's side collided.
If she was still in the church she would have reported him and arrested 5 seconds ago but that was no longer the case.
She was no longer part of the church but on Adryan's team alongside Nathan.
Looking at her boss, she only sighed slightly and relaxed her guard a bit.
This was the least the boss deserved. She would let him explain and only then she would decide after hearing everything.
'I only ask that it's not the True Creator or the Primordial Demoness, Boss…' Sasha thought heavily as she looked at the redhead.
Looking at the giantess's reaction, Adryan could only inwardly sigh in relief.
'The person I was more worried about would react the strongest is calm. While I can see that this bothers you Sasha I can also see you have given me a chance. That's good... Hehe...I think the relationship I formed with them is stronger than I gave it credit for.' The redhead thought with relief as he glanced at Sasha.
Adryan glanced at this out of the corner of his eye but just kept his expression relaxed.
'Although I'm a bit surprised that Hazel is so calm…' The redhead looked at the aforementioned.
The noblewoman kept the same posture as before, leaning against the pillar with her arms crossed, she looked calm but a little confused.
'Maybe it's because she doesn't know how dangerous it is or because she trusts me a lot...' This thought made him suppress an amused chuckle.
'What a loving student, you make this wretch blush~'
Adryan then looked at Charlotte who was standing with his head slightly lowered and his brow furrowed in deep thought.
This lasted for several seconds that felt like forever to Adryan.
But before the atmosphere in the room turned heavy and it entered a dangerous area, Charlotte looked up and nodded.
"Tell me about this Lord, Boss."
Adryan's expression brightened considerably, and he nodded gently, his red eyes shining with faith like rubies reflecting sunlight.
Adryan raised his hands and brought them together in front of his lips in a prayerful posture.
He closed his eyes and bringing his hands up to almost touch his pink lips, he said with a calm smile.
"Let me tell you about the great and magnificent Scarlet Monarch."
Around the redhead the trio swore they could see an illusory halo, it was as if Adryan had become a saint.
Separating his hands without haste, he pointed to some chairs to the side and said.
"We'd better sit down, I have a lot to tell you."
...
Now the quartet was seated; Sasha and Hazel were sitting together and Charlotte was a little further away from them.
Facing them was a calm Adryan who watched them with a smile, his hands resting on his thick thighs.
Sasha was still uncomfortable but less than before.
Adryan noticed this and not wanting to miss the opportunity, he started his performance.
"Before I tell you about my Lord, I would first like to tell you how I was saved by 'Him'."
"Several months ago, I was in a situation that should have killed me."
"I was kidnapped by the Rose School of Thought along with several others in Balam. We were transported by ship to an unknown destination but with a clear motive, to be sacrificed to the Evil God this organization believes, The Mother Tree of Desire."
"And they had no problem reminding us of that. The ship's captain killed and consumed a man in front of us until he left only a pile of flesh and blood..."
When he said the last, his voice died and his head lowered.
"B-Boss..." Sasha muttered worriedly.
'I never thought that the boss went through all that... Since I met him he always seemed strong and confident, that nothing scared him and he would step on whoever got in his way...'
The image of a frightened Adryan seemed so foreign to her that it even made her stomach churn.
'Knowing that even the boss can feel fear too...I don't know why but it makes him look more...Human.'
While she was thinking that, Adryan continued.
"I was desperate and helpless, as was everyone on the ship. Everyone prayed to the God they believed in. Whether it was The Evernight Goddess or Lord of Storms, we all prayed."
"I was born and raised in Feysac so I prayed to the God of Combat for a miracle, to save me from this nightmare." he said sadly, his eyes moist.
He looked up at the stunned Sasha, Hazel, and Charlotte and gave a shaky smile.
"No miracle or salvation came. I was still trapped there, chained and sitting next to a pile of human flesh that was already giving off a stinking odor."
He lowered his head again and continued, his voice seemed like it would break at any moment.
Hazel, seeing her teacher like that, didn't hesitate anymore and grabbed her chair, she sat down next to him. Sasha didn't stop her, she was looking at Adryan unsure of what to do.
Hazel had no experience in comforting someone so she did the best thing she come up with. She grabbed the hand of the man and clenched it slightly.
This was how her mother comforted her when she was little so she hope this would make Adryan feel better.
Adryan smiled gratefully at his student and recovering, he continued.
"I have never been a very faithful believer in the God of Combat, I hardly went to church and when I did, it was only because I was forced by the sister from the orphanage who took care of me. This meant that I had no problem committing polytheism."
"I prayed to all 7 gods. Being from Feysac, the second God I prayed to was the Earth Mother. When that failed I prayed to the Eternal Blazing Sun, then the God of Steam and Machinery."
"Without receiving any sign my despair only grew and I prayed to the remaining Gods that since I was born I have been told that I have to hate. I prayed to the Evernight Goddess, to the Lord of Storms, and finally to the God of Knowledge and Wisdom."
"None answered…" Adryan's voice broke at this moment and he begin to cry a little.
He lowered his head and tried to cover his tears in shame.
"Sorry, you shouldn't see me like this. I'm supposed to be the example..." the redhead said embarrassed as he kept failing to cover his tears that had grown thicker.
Sasha bit her lip and unable to take it anymore, against everything she was taught, she got up from her seat and quickly stood next to Adryan and rubbed his back, trying to comfort him as Hazel was trying to do.
"Calm down, Boss..."
"Calm down Teacher... We're here..."
'Now I'm seriously a son of a bitch...Manipulating my team like this...Don't worry Sasha, Hazel. I'll make sure you girls grow up big and strong.'
Being comforted this way only made Adryan feel more horrible for what he was doing but no matter how he felt he didn't plan on stopping.
"Sob* Thank you...Thank you..." Adryan repeated shamelessly, trying to recover but failing each time.
Charlotte looked uncomfortably at what was happening in front of him, unsure what he should do.
Whether he should go with them and comfort Adryan or sit and wait for the redhead to recover.
'There is no trust on both sides so it would be better to sit and watch...' the purple-eyed man thought.
He looked at how his boss was being comforted and couldn't help but be surprised.
'I can tell they care about each other, although it seemed that Sasha was uncomfortable with the boss a while ago, she didn't hesitate to go and comfort him when he needed it...'
His view of the team he joined changed slightly and he saw them in a new light.
After what Adryan considered long enough, he stopped crying and looked at Sasha and Hazel with a grateful smile and bloodshot eyes.
"Thanks...I needed it."
"Don't worry Boss. We are here for you." Sasha said while nodding.
"Sasha is right Teacher. We are here if you need anything." Hazel said seriously.
'Seriously, what a good team I have.' The redhead thought happily on the inside but on the outside he just nodded weakly.
"Thank you very much but I'm better now..."
"Okay boss, but I'll sit here now." Sasha nodded and brought her chair over to Adryan's side.
Adryan didn't say anything about this, he just continued with his story.
"I didn't know what to do when my prayers failed, I turned to see the rest hoping that they had better luck but they were just as desperate as me, repeating their prayers over and over again or some were in shock, completely frozen like statues."
"At that moment I knew. That we were alone and that no one would come to save us."
"This made the despair that surrounded me start to choke me and I felt like my sanity was slipping away." the redhead said heavily.
"Not wanting to die, I did what the church so often says not to do. I prayed to a great existence to save me."
Nobody said anything, everyone was attentive to Adryan's story.
"I didn't use any specific name or prayer, I just prayed with all my heart for a miracle. I wasn't expecting anything, it was just someone's helpless attempt to survive."
"But to my shock, my Lord responded." The shadow surrounding Adryan disappeared at the mention of his Lord and he even smiled genuinely.
"The powerful yet soft voice of my Lord rang in my ears. 'He' told me who 'He' was."
"'His' name is The Scarlet Monarch."
"'He' is the Fire that burns depravity;
'He' is the Calamity of the Old Days;
'He' is Closest to the Oldest One."
The trio hearing this couldn't help but be stunned.
Although they all had different backgrounds, they all had a basic education in religion and knew what the man had said meant.
A name of three lines!
Only Gods can use the names of three lines!
The trio looked at the redhead as if he now had a new set of legs and arms along with three heads.
They all came to the same conclusion.
He received the answer from a God!
章節 255: Chapter 174: Courage and Trust
Not giving the trio time to recover, Adryan continued.
"'He' is a God of a forgotten time, of a time lost in the mists of history."
"'He' fell into a deep sleep and stayed that way for a long, long time. He only recently woke up." Adryan said seriously.
"'He' would give me the strength to escape my despair and in exchange for that I would have to become his believer."
"That was the easiest decision I ever made in my life." he said and silence filled the training ground.
"Wow..." Sasha muttered under her breath and Hazel nodded at her partner's words.
Looking around him and seeing that his story had the expected impact, Adryan felt proud of himself.
'This is a story I've been planning for quite some time. Originally it was shorter but when Flora appeared I had no choice but to lengthen it. Any hole in the story she would have detected instantly...'
Adryan had just told Flora this story a few days ago and thanks to her reaction he knew that Sasha and the rest would buy it.
"Boss, I have a question." Charlotte's young but old voice broke the silence.
Turning to see the purple-eyed man, Adryan smiled.
"Sure Charlotte, I'll try to solve your doubts the best I can." the redhead said with a soft nod.
Charlotte's expression was serious.
"What happened to the rest of the people who were with you? Were they also saved or did something else happen?"
Sasha and Hazel's expressions broke into realization.
'Right! The boss never said what happened to the people who were with him! How did I not notice before? I was so excited that I ignored such an important detail...' Sasha thought heavily but didn't move from her spot.
She just looked at her leader waiting for an explanation.
'Why wouldn't Teacher mention something so important? He's not one to leave those details out... Is there something he doesn't want to say?' Hazel thought feeling hurt as she looked at her teacher waiting for an explanation as well.
Adryan's expression remained the same, there was no change. His smile remained the same, with the corners of his lips slightly raised. His relaxed brow and calm gaze. Nothing changed.
'Attentive Charlotte, very attentive' the redhead thought quite satisfied with Charlotte.
'It's obvious that he is so observant. That is a necessity to be able to live in the East Borough.'
Nodding, Adryan responded.
"It was about to come to that."
At such an answer Charlotte frowned slightly but he didn't have time to protest because Adryan continued.
"My Lord did not give me strength in the sense of the word, he did not give me power but courage. 'He' told me that I already had the necessary strength to escape and that I just lacked the courage to do it."
At that, Adryan chuckled.
"This infuriated me and I claimed that courage was not what I needed. Don't you think that's crazy? Claiming a God?"
Sasha, Hazel, and Charlotte's expressions were stupefied.
This guy claimed a God and was still alive!
Charlotte put his hand to his forehead and scratched it to try to ease his brain which was working overtime.
'Is my sense failing me? Nothing he's said is a lie but if everything he's said is true... How the fuck is he still alive?'
Seeing what Charlotte was doing, made the corners of Adryan's lips rise slightly.
This was the Gaslighting of a Pyromaniac!
Only a Spectator would notice the lies that dance in every syllable, word, and sentence that comes out of Adryan's mouth.
A little 9 sequence like Charlotte would never notice this.
But Adryan did not prepare such simple and complex lies just to fool a sequence 9.
No.
He had prepared them to fool a demigod!
And one of a Pathway known for its tricks and master lies.
Adryan's story had many parts of truth and a few small parts of lies. In those small parts, he had made sure that there was nothing strange that might arouse Flora's attention.
Looking at the trio's faces, Adryan chuckled again.
"Every time I think about that moment, I prayed to my Lord and asked why 'He' didn't send me a bolt of divine lightning to punish me for such blasphemy. Do you know what 'He' told me?"
Not waiting for an answer, the redhead continued.
"<That he thought it was funny.>"
"I thought about 'His' words for a long time and after meditating on them I also found them funny since I couldn't help but imagine a story."
"I imagined that an ant asked me for some sugar but instead of giving her some, I told her where it was and she just had to go get it. This annoyed the ant who insulted me for that, I laughed a lot that day."
"The mere fact that an ant insulted me, someone whose size was not even comparable to her and could kill her in so many different ways that the puny little ant brain would never be able to comprehend, was ridiculous."
"At that moment I realized what my Lord was referring to, I was that ant to 'Him'." Adrian said with a smile.
He shook his head slightly and continued.
"I'm getting off-topic. My Lord said that while 'He' could give me the power to split a mountain in half if I wanted, what had I done to deserve it? I was nothing at the time and 'He' had no reason to help me."
"'He' then told me something that marked me for the rest of my life."
"<People who aren't willing to save themselves don't deserve to be saved.>"
These words shocked the trio.
Especially to Sasha and Charlotte who felt identified with those words.
Adryan continued.
"Our conversation didn't last long, the only thing 'He' told me is that there was a Werewolf on the ship, his powers and abilities, and that I would have to fight him if I wanted to escape, that if I managed to escape the ship 'He' would make sure I got to land. After that, I started my escape with this new courage given by my Lord."
"The first thing I did was, despite my disgust, take a bone from the pile of human flesh and use it to break my chains but when I freed myself I didn't escape yet."
"There were an unknown number of guards outside the room and I couldn't take them all alone, I needed someone else, a partner."
"I talked to the rest of the people trapped there and told them that if they were willing to help me escape, I would free them."
"Of all the people there, only 2 accepted, a woman and a girl. Alice and Sarah respectively."
The words from before and what Adryan said answered Charlotte's question.
'Isn't that a bit unfair?' Sasha thought heavily but did not express her dissatisfaction with this as she understood why her boss did it.
The words from before echoed again and she considered how those people could have become a burden during the escape.
'The boss did the right thing...' All three of them though.
"I already knew what the escape plan was. Getting to the deck was suicide, we would never make it. Fighting the guards much less. So, I came to the best plan, blowing the ship to pieces." Adryan said with a dangerous smile that surprised the trio.
"The ship we were on was a pirate ship and where they took us was the lowest part of it. When they transported us they didn't cover our faces so I could see all the way."
"Thanks to that I was able to see which floor the cannons were and according to that the plan was born. Get to the gunpowder store on the third floor and blow up the ship. We were already at sea for a long time and very far from Bayam so our only hope was to swim to one of the islands."
Adryan told how they carefully climbed floor by floor, killing two guards and making it to the third floor.
"Just when we finished spreading the gunpowder on the floor, Werewolf James appeared, with the broken body of one of his men and a crazy look. He told us that he had killed all his men and that after us he would go for the ones that were downstairs. I didn't know it at the time but the guy was losing control." he said seriously and the trio nodded, totally focused on the story.
"I don't know why but James focused on me from the first moment. Because he was losing control his movements became tense and clumsy which allowed me to dodge. Alice and Sarah took advantage of the fact that James was focused on me to escape to the next floor."
Sasha and Hazel frowned at this.
"What bad companions." Hazel commented and Sasha nodded.
"We will never do that to you Boss. We will always be by your side, no matter what." The giant said seriously and Adryan looked at the woman in genuine surprise.
Sasha's green eyes sparkled with bravery and Hazel's brown eyes sparkled with truth.
Adryan chuckled at this.
'I seriously underestimated them!' the redhead thought with a warmth growing in his chest.
'I don't regret trusting you.' the redhead thought with a sweet smile, a real one this time.
Ever since what happened with Robert at the party, he had been closed off and didn't trust people anymore.
Now it could be said that he did not trust any stranger and even considered them a threat.
That didn't change and Adryan doubts it will.
The only ones that you could say he trusts are Sasha, Nathan, Detective Isengar Stanton, Xio, Maric and Sharron, Klein, Audrey, and Alger...
....
....
Maybe a little Fors...
And only recently has he started to trust more people with only Hazel and Flora being the new additions.
There was still a bit of mistrust with Flora because of who she was but maybe with time that will change.
Shaking his head, Adryan looked at Sasha and Hazel.
"I'm sure of that but please don't blame them. I asked them to run away, besides, that was the last time I saw them alive." he said calmly.
"..." Upon hearing about the possible fate of the women who abandoned their boss/teacher, Sasha and Hazel fell silent.
Shaking his head, Adryan continued.
"After that, I managed to shoot him a few times, once in the head but nothing, the only thing I managed was to make him lose control completely."
"I wish I could show you, the guy turned into a huge malnourished, bald, malformed, ugly dog, he was horrible!" the redhead joked and the trio looked at him flat.
Ignoring the look, Adryan continued.
"After James lost control I knew I was almost totally doomed, I had nothing to harm him and now that he was completely gone he would be much faster and deadlier. I had nothing to do."
"With no other option, I did what I still consider to be the best option."
"I grabbed one of the lamps from there and threw it into the gunpowder we had thrown earlier, I barely managed to launch myself down the stairs to the floor below when everything exploded."
"To be honest I don't remember much, just a loud ringing in my ears, my body hitting something many times and swallowing a lot of salted water. I don't know how I didn't drown." Saying the last thing, Adryan laughed.
"That's a lie, I know why I didn't drown, it was because my Lord protected me from the explosion, the sinking of the ship and the three hours it took me to swim to the nearest island."
"Since that day I have been a faithful believer in my Lord and I will follow him until the day of battle." Adryan finished his story by closing his eyes and with a small smile.
His chest felt lighter after talking about what happened, this was the second time he had told someone about it, and even though there were lies there and a lot of information was missing, this was liberating for him.
'Talking about your problems from time to time is not bad.' the redhead reminisced a bit.
Charlotte who had listened to all of Adryan's story was surprised and a little incredulous.
'Everything he told me sounds like an epic story from a fairy tale. From being kidnapped by pirates, being taken on a ship, and escaping by blowing that damn ship to pieces...' Sighing, Charlotte looked up and purple collided with red.
"I have one last question, Boss. Won't that be a problem?"
Adryan smirked mischievously and raised an eyebrow.
"Is that the question?"
Charlotte's eye twitched but controlling himself he released a breath and shook his head.
"My question is, what does the Scarlet Monarch seek? What does he seek to achieve?"
Adryan smiled mysteriously and looked up at the ceiling.
"It is quite simple. My Lord seeks to spread 'His' belief and prepare 'His' believers for the Apocalypse."
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