Journey to Become the Zenith

The Sleeping Monster

Henrick and his knights went completely pale the moment they arrived.

A pile of corpses littered around, as the ground was splattered with blood stains, and in the middle of all this mess, was a boy who was taking a nap. The moment Henrick got closer the boy yawned as he stretched his body looking at the new arrival.

The night wind swept through the clearing.

The smell of blood was so heavy it felt almost tangible.

Leaves slowly drifted over the corpses before becoming soaked red.

One of the knights behind Henrick suddenly covered his mouth.

”Ugh...”

Another knight’s face had already lost all color.

”W-what happened here...?”

”No...”

”Who... Who could’ve done this?”

Then their eyes moved toward the only living person present.

Victor lazily rubbed his eyes.

Golden eyes slowly opened.

His expression carried the relaxed appearance of someone who had just awakened from a peaceful sleep.

”Took you long enough, so are you the leader of these losers?” The lazy looking boy who was yawning moments ago, was now looking at Henrick with a vicious smile on his face.

The smile did not belong on a human face.

It wasn’t anger.

It wasn’t excitement.

It was amusement.

Like a predator finding a toy that had finally arrived.

Henrick felt cold sweat immediately slide down his back.

”...You...”

Victor slowly stood up from the rock.

Crack.

Crack.

He stretched his neck lazily while his black hair moved gently in the night wind.

The moment his feet touched the blood-soaked ground—

Henrick could feel the very air become tense when Azriel woke up. The smile that the boy in the middle of all the lifeless bodies showed was bone chilling. The pressure he was emitting while he was casually walking towards Henrick was overwhelming. The knight that was behind Henrick was now actually down on the ground kneeling as he was having difficulty breathing.

Thud.

One knight dropped to his knees.

His sword fell from his hand.

Another knight suddenly grabbed his own chest.

”Hah...!”

”Hah...!”

”W-what is this pressure?!”

”I... I can’t breathe...”

Fear spread through the group.

Victor wasn’t releasing mana violently.

He wasn’t attacking.

He was simply walking.

Step.

Step.

Step.

Yet every step felt like a mountain pressing down on their shoulders.

Victor stopped in front of Henrick.

Golden eyes quietly observed him.

Then he tilted his head.

”So you’re the person who’s messing with my girl... Hmmm, based on your build you aren’t what I was expecting you to be. Are you perhaps just a pawn, are you someone who’s under orders to do this? Tell me who is it that ordered you to kill my friend?”

Victor narrowed his eyes.

”Hmm... no...”

He looked at Henrick from head to toe.

”Too weak.”

”Too stupid looking.”

”You don’t really give off the feeling of someone important.”

Henrick gulped dryly as he shivered in fear while Azriel was assessing him. It was at this moment that he truly believed what Shawn said, the man in front of him was extremely dangerous. It was like they stepped on the tail of a sleeping dragon and they even did it on purpose.

Sweat poured down his face.

His heartbeat felt chaotic.

Boom... Boom... Boom...

His instincts screamed at him.

Run.

Yet his legs refused to move.

Henrick’s entire body felt cold.

His instincts were screaming at him to run.

To escape.

To survive.

But as fear reached its peak, something else slowly surfaced beneath it.

His fingers slowly tightened into fists.

Shawn’s warning.

His lord’s trust.

The responsibility placed upon him.

Everything flashed through his mind.

This monster...

Cold sweat rolled down his face.

He looked at Victor’s smiling expression and felt his heart tremble.

Then gradually—

The shaking in his body began to lessen.

”No...”

His voice was barely above a whisper.

The knight beside him looked over nervously.

”M-My lord...?”

Henrick gritted his teeth.

”No matter what happens...”

I must never let this man meet my lord.

Henrick solemnly swore in his heart that even if death itself stood before him, he would never allow the Prime Minister’s son to face this monster.

His fists slowly clenched.

Even fear gradually gave way to determination.

His eyes slowly steadied.

”I can’t allow someone like him to know about my lord.”

Even if he had to die here—

He would buy time.

He would protect his lord from the monster standing before him.

”I don’t know... What you’re talking about...” Henrick spoke even though it was difficult to answer under this overwhelming pressure.

Victor blinked.

Then suddenly smiled.

”Why are you talking like that? Oh, I see sorry about that, I thought since you had the balls to challenge me, I thought you would be somewhat decent. Turns out you’re just slightly stronger than the weak mob I annihilated.”

Silence.

Then—

The pressure suddenly disappeared.

The knight who had been kneeling suddenly gasped loudly.

”HAAAH!”

”HAAAH!”

He breathed desperately like someone surfacing from drowning.

The other knights almost collapsed.

Cold sweat covered their entire bodies.

Victor scratched his cheek.

”Oh?”

”My bad.”

”I forgot weak people break easily.”

He smiled.

”So now that you can speak properly how about you tell me who’s ordering you around.” Azriel once again asked the wobbly Henrick.

Henrick took several shaky breaths.

His face still looked pale.

But his eyes carried determination.

”There’s no one ordering me around, I’m doing this under my own volition. I just find that commoner irksome, that’s why I wanted to kill him.” Henrick answered with a look of disdain. He knew that he needed to act this out the best he can. If he makes a mistake here, then he would have failed as a vassal of his lord.

Victor stared at him.

Silently.

Seconds passed.

Nobody dared breathe.

Then— Victor smiled.

”So you won’t tell me, well there are many other ways to make you talk.” Azriel hearing Henrick’s reply happily smiled as he slowly extended his hand towards Henrick.