My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger

Chapter 868: Chapter 869: A Man Who Must Leave

What did she even mean by forcing her hand? Damon would find out eventually.

Lilith Astranova was not the type of woman who gave up. She had lost to him four times, but not because she lacked a way to stop him. It was because doing so would have been cruel. Because it would have denied Damon the right to choose.

Now she had been pushed past that line.

He could hate her for it if he wanted.

He could only hate her if he was alive.

The first four times, she truly believed she could change his mind. She felt like a foolish woman who thought she could fix a man who was already too far gone. Maybe she could have, given time, but he was not giving her that option.

Her heart tightened painfully. She did not care about his defiance. She did not care about his pride or his grand ideals.

She just wanted him to live. Dammit.

As long as he survived to the very end.

Then again, what was the difference between surviving and living.

Damon had never really learned how to live. He had always been surviving. From his village, to the slums of Valtheron, to the halls of the academy. Everywhere he went, it was as if the world itself was trying to kill him.

What made it cruel was that she understood him perfectly.

Everything he said translated to one thing.

I regret your pain, but I will not stop.

That was what sorry meant.

Soft footsteps echoed behind her.

Lilith turned, her eyes cold and sharp.

“Sylvia,” she whispered.

The white haired elf smiled faintly.

“Hmmm. I always thought I would be the one to sabotage you. I did not expect you to do it yourself. Wonderful work, by the way.”

Lilith crossed her arms, returning the smile thinly.

“I would not be so happy if I were you. We are moving forward with plan B.”

Sylvia winced, closing her eyes briefly.

“I was hoping we would not have to use such a tasteless option.”

Lilith’s gaze did not waver.

“Well, it has come to this, has it not. We have no choice.”

Sylvia’s expression grew serious. This plan was cruel. Damon would live, yes, but what would come after. What would he be forced to endure?

“Lilith,” Sylvia said quietly, “you realize that if we do this, death will follow him everywhere.”

Lilith clenched her teeth.

“I know that. But death follows everyone. Is that not life? A constant chase by invisible hands until it finally catches us.”

Sylvia lowered her head, her voice weakening.

“Yes, but for him it will be constant. Closer than for most. Ever present. It will twist his heart. I do not know if I can.”

“I did not want this either,” Lilith cut in. “But Damon chose this. It was his choice. And now we are making ours. We either do nothing and let him die, or we make him live.”

Sylvia hesitated, then inhaled slowly.

“If you do nothing, Sylvia, he will die. He will be lost forever, beyond your reach. As for the consequences, I will bear them. Even if he hates me for it.”

Sylvia bit her lip, then sighed.

“Very well. Then we share the burden. Half the responsibility. Half of Damon’s hatred.”

And so their scheme began.

Damon was wrong about one thing. Not all the cards were in his hands.

In a magical world, anything was possible. And it was unwise to underestimate people willing to go to any lengths to achieve their goals.

Perhaps he had grown arrogant.

He had underestimated how terrifying Lilith Astranova could be.

That mistake would undo him.

When the dust settled, no one would be victorious. Only the broken would remain.

The world was not a romantic fantasy. Bonds shattered as easily as they formed.

…

Damon had no idea what Lilith and Sylvia were plotting. He only knew that he felt overwhelmed.

He understood that Lilith was right. But being right did not make her correct.

Life and death were natural laws. People should have the right to end their existence when they chose.

There was nothing left for him here.

“I just need that elixir.”

He muttered as he slipped through the shadows, moving past patrolling chained knights with practiced ease. He headed back toward the Grinding Gate.

The number of knights had noticeably decreased. Most had been pulled away, leaving only the bare minimum behind.

“Seraph Null is preparing for war,” he muttered.

When he reached the Grinding Gate district, the stench hit him immediately.

Burnt embers. Rot. Blood. Decay.

It reeked like a refugee camp.

Corpses lay scattered across the streets, recently dead. Starvation, most likely. People with open wounds staggered around, feverish and hollow eyed. Others were collecting bodies, stacking them into wagons.

He overheard them discussing disposal duties.

Those corpses would be fed to his shadow maw.

This was the aftermath of the chained knights’ slaughter. Even after the incident, people continued to die. The wounded succumbed. The healthy grew sick. Hunger claimed the rest.

And his shadows benefited from the fresh dead.

Much of this was his fault.

“How can someone who brings this kind of misery into the world be worth keeping alive,” he muttered. “You are wrong, Lilith.”

His fist clenched.

“Some men contribute to the world by leaving it.”

He was one of them. He knew that. At the very least, he was honest with himself.

Damon slipped into a hidden passage, bypassing the magical seals placed by Lyn and Sithara. He moved deeper until he entered the chamber.

Glowing eyes opened in the darkness, watching him.

He felt their gaze linger.

They did not feel hostile, so he continued forward.

As soon as he stepped fully inside, a young girl’s voice echoed softly.

“You are back.”

Damon raised an eyebrow. He had been careful. Silent even.

Sithara looked directly at the shadows where he was concealed.

He stepped out, his form solidifying.

“Hm. How did you sense me.”