My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger

Ric was so angry his hands wouldn’t stop shaking. He was far beyond the feeling of forgiveness.

He was hoping to kill this person.

It was just as his master had said. Some men did better for the world by leaving it.

Razor Head was no different. He was less than an animal. He had to die, and Ric would kill him.

Their two swords clashed, and Ric was slightly pushed back. However, he spun around, jumping toward Razor Head’s face, and threw a spinning kick. Razor Head blocked it, then stepped onto the side of the wall, bouncing off and pushing Ric back with his shoulder.

The boy was pushed back, and he rolled to avoid a series of sharp swings. Then Razor Head vanished. As soon as he did, Ranar’s white flash of light blasted toward Ric and struck something. Ric dodged right before he was cleaved in half.

Her voice echoed from behind him where she was fighting Gunter and the two bodyguards.

”Careful, he has a skill that allows him to camouflage. I’ll take care of these three.”

As soon as she said that, three shadow drones jumped out of nowhere and charged towards them. Two went towards Ranar while the last went towards Ric. Their only directive was to protect them.

The shadow drone rushing towards Ric carried a long spear, and it threw it towards Razor Head in an attempt to kill him. It slammed into him, smashing him through a nearby wall.

Razor Head groaned but rolled out of the way of a series of punches that shattered and cracked the ancient walls. Flipping through the air, he landed on his feet with a streak of blood across his face.

”What, can’t fight like a man?” he said to Ric while glancing at the shadow drone that had pulled its spear out of the wall.

Ric smiled, then scoffed.

”Ragebait on this level doesn’t work on me. I’m an eight-year-old and you still want a handicap? Dream on.”

The shadow drone rushed towards Razor Head with Ric right behind it. Sparks flew in all directions as they began to fight.

Ranar, on the other hand, was still standing still. Then she opened her eyes, her mind made up. She raised her hand.

Then she spoke.

”I still don’t understand why anyone would betray a friend, but I’ve learned that different people have different motivations and different circumstances. I won’t say I understand it. The truth is, I don’t, and that’s fine. What I do understand is that I have to protect those that are with me.”

She glanced at Gunter, who had betrayed her. His expression was still calm as he held the sword and armor Ric had given him.

”This might kill you, but I hope it doesn’t.”

She suddenly raised her hand upwards, then whispered.

[Starfall.]

Maybe they had forgotten, and her small and adorable form had given them false confidence, but Ranar was a being in the Fourth Class Advancement.

The fact that they had even had the audacity to challenge her was bold of them. Their courage was the kind that could be sung about in songs meant as warnings for fools.

That said, the fault was hers. Since she had this skill, she had never used it. She never had to.

When they looked up at the sky, they saw countless golden motes of light, as if they were golden diamonds illuminating the sky.

Their light was bright and beautiful. However, what followed next was a horrible pressure that seemed to lock onto them with the weight of a mountain.

The stars fell from the heavens, singing songs of burning embers and heralding annihilation. It was as if the stars in the heavens were falling.

And certainly, they were.

White light filled the area from the sky. The blinding eminence of this light made everything disappear, and when the light vanished, the ground was now made of glass, molten and baked earth.

On the ground, the twitching and severely damaged bodies of the two bodyguards were charred and cooked.

They were dead. Their heads, limbs, and other parts of their bodies were simply gone, and then slowly, like motes of light, what remained vanished as if they had never been there. Even their weapons were destroyed.

She took a deep breath and turned to Gunter, who had half his body blown away. She walked up to him like a serene celestial, with a body and wings made of golden light, and then she spoke to him.

”You have wronged me. You have wronged us all.”

Gunter did not have feet, so he could not run. He did not have the will to run. Where could he possibly run?

”Then kill me... Show me that you are powerful.”

Ranar raised her hand. A light appeared, and then his wounds closed.

”No. I won’t kill you. I will leave you as you are because forgiving you is easier than tormenting myself with hate.”

Then she glanced at him.

”But you will not go unpunished. You will remember this every time you look below your waist, and one day, when you learn to forgive, you shall walk again. That I promise.”

Gunter felt her magic enter his body and imprint something within him. It had the energy of a blessing but felt more like a curse. He was condemned to never walk again until he learned to forgive.

Her words were vague and left no room for Gunter.

She turned around as Gunter screamed and thrashed on the ground.

”You can’t do this to me, you little bitch! Damn you! Damn you!”

She didn’t say anything, only waving as Ric sliced off the arm of Razor Head. Then he crouched down to pick up his severed hand, removing the spatial ring from it.

”This doesn’t belong to you.”

Then he put the ring on his finger, and in the same instant, an orb appeared in his palm. Ranar recognized it. This was one of those orbs that had the black flames.

The shadow drone disarmed the sword Razor Head was holding and impaled him on its spear, tossing him against a wall and nailing him there.

In one fluid motion, Ric tossed the ball towards him.

Black flames rose in all directions, devouring his flesh and body as he screamed in agony.

As of today, both Ric and Ranar had tasted blood. The darkness of the world was no longer hidden to them.

Damon came just in time to watch the final act of their little misadventure. He sighed, lamenting how terrible of a parent he was.

That said, they had performed excellently. They protected their friends and managed to get even, which was good.

Ranar was a little more naive, but Damon didn’t want to shape her young mind with cold ideals that would warp her soul.

She was a good-natured girl. She didn’t need to be any more than that. Ric was a playful spirit as well. Damon didn’t need them brooding over the rights and wrongs of the world when they were just children.

”Ahhh, I better arrange a meeting with the mental health quartermaster,” he whispered as he jumped down from the roof, landing in the square.

When he landed, he was in a woman’s body. However, as soon as his feet touched the ground, Ric and Ranar instantly relaxed. They rushed towards him without hesitation.

Damon immediately spread his arms and scooped them both into a hug, holding them against his chest.

”Ahhh...”

”Uhuhh...”

He couldn’t understand why, but they suddenly started crying. Damon blinked in confusion before sighing as Ashcroft began to chew into him.

”Every day you disgrace parents everywhere. You better not have another child. You shouldn’t be anyone’s father...” Ashcroft wouldn’t stop cursing him.

Damon ignored him and looked down at the two children. He gently patted each of them on the head, his expression softening.

”Good job. I’m proud of you two.”

When he said that, Ric wiped his tears with the back of his hand and looked up at him.

”But we killed people. Isn’t that wrong?”

Ranar also looked at him, her eyes quietly asking him to clarify.

”Killing people is always wrong. However, there is nothing wrong with protecting your friends. That is right. You survived. I am proud of you for that.”

Damon gave them both another gentle pat on the head before looking toward the ruined streets around them.

”Now let’s go back home,” he said calmly.

Ranar nodded, but Ric suddenly stopped and tilted his head.

”Wait, Master... you have a daughter? Is she adopted like me or what?”

Damon sighed.

Why did he have to ask?

In fact, this was not what Damon had planned. With the way things were going, he might have to involve them in his little secrets.

”Ric, my boy, it’s a long story, but a few years before you were born, I sort of found her, you know. She’s been with me ever since. It’s not what you think. You and I... we have something special.”

Ranar glared at him, her eyes narrowing into suspicious slits.

”I’m his daughter, flesh and blood, and I’m not adopted.” She glanced at Damon, then pointed at herself. ”Right?”