Night of the Soulless Heathens – 206



#206. Even if I lose my light 1

The nearby presence fades away. Like a dying campfire the heat gradually subsides and darkness takes on a physical form.

Inside Azadin slept as if he had fainted from hunger and exhaustion.

Regret and pain come constantly.

His life was full of nothing but suffering. He lived alone unloved by anyone.

He was hurt by his only blood relative and abandoned by those he loved dearly.

Should we have just tolerated Hathir’s outrage?

If that were the case Azadin would still have been a beloved disciple to Kazas and he would have been loved by Aldis as a godson.

He must have enjoyed a life of wealth and honor while walking a smooth path within his clan.

Of course the price would be to slaughter innocents unleash evil forces upon the world and negate what humanity has built.

It wasn’t really any worse than the current situation. At least it was a little better in that I wasn’t alone.

Should I have? What was my belief that made me do such a foolish thing?

Azadin spent his time in prison in such regret and pain.

How much time has passed like that?

“Azadin!”

Someone called Azadin.

Were you asleep?

The voice I heard in my hazy consciousness was familiar.

“Are you okay Azadin?”

“Don’t make any noise Medium. There are monsters all around.”

“but….”

Only then did Azadin come to his senses.

As his eyesight began to recover he began to see his surroundings. Midiam and Ismail were struggling to open the prison door.

Amun-Zadek is determined to kill Azadin as the keyholes of the prison bars have been filled with lead making them impossible to open using conventional lockpicking methods.

Eventually Medium was found struggling with a crowbar trying to pry open the door.

“Give it to me.”

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Azadin rose to his feet.

Since my left hand was gone I tried to twist the bars using a crowbar with only my right hand.

The iron bars are bent but not wide enough for a person to get out. It would take a long time to make a hole large enough for one person to get out.

“Hmm.”

I’ve been starving for so long and haven’t had a sip of water that when I open my mouth my lips are split and torn.

It was so painful to move his body after such a long time. The phantom pain that he had forgotten while losing consciousness was slowly awakening again and starting to torment him.

Is this really how you want to go out? Outside of here there’s only suffering?

Wouldn’t it be better to just give up on life now?

Azadin sighed and put down the crowbar.

“Okay. Go.”

“What are you talking about Azadin?!”

“I was wrong anyway. Look at this.”

Azadin held up his left hand the amputated area covered in amber sap.

“Do you know what it means for Aragasa to lose one of her arms?”

For those who used bows as their main weapon physical defects were a fatal weakness. In the old days even Azadin would have had to retire from his role as a messenger.

But Medium did not give up and asked.

“What do you mean? Are you really going to give up because of that level of injury?”

“I may have shown off in front of you but in the end I’m a pathetic failure. I’m not worth following even to the point of betraying your clan…”

Azadin said that and felt sorry for himself.

The fact that they came here to rescue Azadin now meant that these children had betrayed their clan.

Isn’t it irresponsible to leave the children who betrayed their clan under Azadin’s influence alone to despair and be frustrated?

“under.”

Ismail smiled bitterly as if he had seen through Azadin’s intentions.

“You are such a kind person.”

No matter how desperate and frustrated you are your sense of responsibility towards Ismail and Midiam comes first.

“Okay I understand. I guess I should at least take some responsibility.”

Azadin realized that Ismail had seen through his mind and pulled himself together again.

Even though his heart was shattered he had responsibilities.

‘At least I have to take responsibility for these kids.’

Ismail handed Azadin a jug of water and some candied fruit.

“First let’s eat and drink to regain some energy.”

After losing a lot of blood and being locked up in prison his body becomes exhausted and when he is given food and water his energy returns.

Azadin regaining his strength again tore off the bars with the crowbar.

Although his body was worn out from injuries and imprisonment Azadin’s brute strength was still there and he easily twisted through the iron bars and looked at Midiam and Ismail.

“So. How’s the situation?”

“The Nagas have taken over Btuma and are continuing to devour this area.”

“What about Amun-Zadek?”

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“The Bthuma people took refuge in Bel Hoda for the time being.”

“What about Scott and Shati?”

“Up until that point we were fine…”

“I see. How did you guys know I was here?”

“that….”

“I knew because Scott sent the command.”

“Commander?”

“Yes. Where we were a corpse suddenly started dancing and drew a map on the floor.”

It’s definitely something Scott would do.

“Looking at that it looks like everything is fine. Good. What about the King’s Church? What are the other neighboring countries doing?”

“Korasar fell into the hands of the clan. The others….”

Then the Emperor’s voice answered Azadin instead.

[The King’s Church and other kingdoms are all reluctant to intervene directly. In the first place it is a burdensome distance to go on an expedition and no one wants to waste their own troops and be beaten first. That’s why I tried to unify Hybris…]

That means no one wants to solve this situation by sacrificing their own soldiers first.

In a world where people are competing with each other who would be the first to exhaust their own national power?

[In addition as the light of the King’s Flower disappears the boundaries of the world are weakening. Not only in Btuma but throughout Hybris the light of the King’s Flower is weakening monsters are appearing and corpses are rising on their own disrupting the boundary between the living and the dead. Hathir it seems like a boy who grew up without a father…]

“It seems a bit strange when you say that.”

Azadin felt a strange sense of emotion as he heard the Emperor’s voice insulting Hatir for having no father.

First of all is the Emperor’s voice the Emperor himself? No it is not. It is an artificial spirit that replicates and operates the Emperor’s ego spirit but it must know very well that it is not the Emperor himself.

Perhaps this is a side effect of the 108 divisions that were previously divided into one due to the betrayal of the Herald Clan?

Azadin could only guess so.

“Anyway it seems like I’m the only one left among the Emperor’s messengers. Shouldn’t I be promoted?”

[From now on all Emperor’s voices are yours Azadin. As long as you fulfill your mission as the Emperor’s herald we will support you with all our might.]

“Hmm. Even though he lost a hand? In the past someone like that would have been immediately retired from being a herald. Looks like he’s really unpopular. Even the position of the Emperor’s herald.”

How can a place that everyone once wanted to be become so worthless?

I couldn’t help but laugh at the plummeting status of the messenger.

But when I laugh I get a headache.

Phantom pain is ultimately a pain suffered by the brain. The brain that was controlling a part of the body that no longer exists creates pain and a terrible headache follows.

Can I fulfill my mission as the Emperor’s messenger with a body like this?

With this mindset can you really achieve something by killing someone?

Azadin’s body and mind were already in shambles both of which were in shambles.

I’m just forcing myself to move because I want to create a better environment for Medium and Ismail.

*********

Azadin and Ismail Midiam moved while holding their breath.

Perhaps because the messengers were gone the Emperor’s voice was now only helping Azadin.

Thanks to this Azadin’s mind was able to clearly see the surrounding terrain. The Emperor’s voice flew through the sky like a bird of prescience showing the surrounding terrain and the movements of enemies.

Surprisingly the fortress and village located a short distance from Btuma were teeming with all sorts of monsters.

Among the corpses of war parasitic spirits roam the land seeking to kill the living and make them their own and creatures from the nether have taken hold of the war elephants abandoned by the Bthuma army mutating their very bodies.

A war elephant with large eyes where its forehead should normally be sprouted tentacles like octopus legs from its mouth and devoured the corpses around it.

And what about the king?

A black hole opened up in the sky above the castle of Bthuma.

Eyes floated in the sky above the giant black hole and distracting shadows wandered around the city taking on a physical form on the border between reality and fantasy.

The power of the Nether overflows throughout the air.

To be honest it was almost suicidal for Medium and Ismail to come here.

“You’ve done something terrible. Now even if everyone hates Aragasa there’s nothing left to say.”

“Well they hated us from the beginning. They hated us for no reason so shouldn’t we do something like this to balance things out?”

Ismail was cynical. In fact he was happy with the Hybris people. But he couldn’t let Azadin die.

“So what are you going to do now Azadin?”

“Let’s evacuate to a safe place first.”

“Yes. And?”

What happens after that? After you get to a safe place?

“You have to be safe.”

Azadin simply repeated those words.

Ismail sighed.

“Are you thinking that you will fulfill your responsibility to us by sending us to a safe place since Midiam and I betrayed our clan because of you?”

“Yes. Sorry but that’s true.”

“Is that really the best you can do?”

“There is a way to restore the throne of Bthuma. There is a way to destroy it but that is impossible. The Emperor’s voice shows me. This world is dying.”

“If that’s all Azadin I’m disappointed in you. Do you know how much trouble we went through to get here? And now you’re just trying to get us back to safety and say you’ve fulfilled your responsibilities?”

“But I’m not a savior or anything. I’m Azadin the other half of Mu-an.”

Azadin smiled bitterly and held up his severed hand.

“Now my body has become so weak that I can’t even draw a bow. In the end I failed and was defeated.”

“Then why do you want to take us to a safe place?”

“Even a loser can do that much.”

That’s when Azadin said that.

Medium suddenly asked.

“Azadin. Are the stars still beautiful to you?”

It was a sudden question.

But both the one asking the question and the one receiving it knew the meaning very well.