Apocalypse: becoming the hidden Ruler[English]

Butcher scratched his barely shaved head and snorted.

“I sell meat at the market. My son runs the stall. And hey—don’t bullshit me. You’re still thinking about running, aren’t you?”

“You can’t reason with idiots,” he added bluntly. “You kids are all the same. If the Saints catch you, dying would be the easy part.”

Riley frowned and was about to speak, but Butcher waved his hand lazily.

“It’s fine. He should know. You’re food to them. Just livestock.”

“They’ll slice off some lean meat, make it into shredded pork. Then cut a few ribs for braising.” He licked his lips. “After that, they’ll use a healing Awakening to grow your body back.”

“Tsk. You’ll be their personal feast.”

With that, he casually produced a knife from nowhere and began carving the air in front of Axel’s body. Though the blade never touched him, Axel felt an instinctive chill—like his flesh had already been neatly separated along joints and bones.

“Don’t frighten him,” Riley said, stepping between them and blocking Axel’s view.

Butcher chuckled and sheathed the knife.

“I was just stating facts. It’s one of our theories anyway.”

“All right, kid. Go rest. And remember—don’t fucking run.”

He watched Axel with obvious satisfaction.

Axel’s forehead was slick with sweat. Though his posture remained straight, the faint trembling in his hands and legs betrayed him. He gave a small wave and slowly walked out.

“…I underestimated them,” Axel said quietly as the door closed.

“Starveil, he’s just a kid,” Butcher said smugly. “Scared him a little—that’s all it takes.”

Riley’s expression remained calm as she picked up a broom and carefully swept the grease and crumbs into the dustpan.

“You’re still so tidy,” Butcher muttered.

After cleaning up, Riley moved to the window. Sunlight washed across her face as she gazed outside.

“You’ve underestimated him.”

Butcher paused, then stepped over to look as well.

Outside, Axel sat beside the flowerbed, head lowered—completely still, lost in thought.

“Was he just putting on an act for us?” Butcher asked.

Riley nodded. “He smuggled the Heavenly Spirit Fruit out of the Abyss and slipped past every inspection. That alone tells you what kind of person he is.”

Butcher’s bloated body straightened slightly as he let out a low laugh.

“If he’s really like you say… I might even start respecting the kid.”

Riley turned to look at him, her tone firm and unyielding.

“Then keep your eyes on him. If you get careless and he leaves Everton only to be killed by the Saints, both of us will be held responsible.”

“You make it sound like the end of the world,” Butcher muttered. Under her quiet stare, he finally waved his hand in surrender.

“Alright, alright. I get it. If the kid dares to leave, I’ll break his legs.”

Riley didn’t respond.

Not long after, Butcher exited through the back door. As he walked away, his grotesquely massive frame subtly shrank, flesh pulling inward until he became nothing more than an ordinary overweight man of a little over two hundred pounds. The vicious scars on his face faded, replaced by the harmless look of a wealthy middle-aged businessman.

An hour later—

“Axel, come in for dinner.”

Riley opened the door, called out to him, then calmly picked up her broom and continued cleaning.

Axel stared at the simple three dishes and one soup laid out on the table, slightly dazed. For a moment, memories of the days he spent with his sister in the Dune slums rose unbidden to the surface.

Riley was already eating, taking small, elegant bites. Seeing Axel lost in thought, she tilted her head slightly.

“Not to your taste?”

Axel shook his head and began eating.

“It’s good for your recovery,” she said lightly. “If you don’t like it, tell me and I’ll change the menu.”

“Do you usually cook and clean for yourself?”

“Housework helps me focus. It also keeps my perspective grounded. You should try it sometime.”

By the time Axel finished, Riley was already collecting the plates. As she stood, she added calmly,

“You’ll be staying here for another month. If you need anything—medical, material… even sexual needs—I can arrange it for you.”

Axel’s eyelids twitched.

“Thank you. I… don’t need anything like that.”

Riley nodded once.

“If you do, speak up. You still have residual effects from the Blood Needle inside your body. Continue cultivating after you eat. Don’t waste it.”

At the mention of the Blood Needle, Axel couldn’t hold back his curiosity.

“What exactly is the Blood Needle?”

Riley pointed to the faint mark on his arm.

“The Saints currently possess two types of injectable compounds. One is called the Bloodstained Needle—it can rapidly turn a target into an Infected.”

“The second is Savannah’s Blood Needle. It erodes the mind, turning a person into a cultivation-obsessed idiot—but in exchange, it violently amplifies both physical strength and Force.”

Axel listened quietly, then his eyes sharpened.

“Savannah… that was the woman who attacked me. And the Blood Needle is what forcibly boosted my strength?”

Riley nodded.

“According to what we know, she’s a mid-ranking Saint. As for ‘boosting’… I’d say it’s closer to fattening livestock.”

“Your drug resistance is frighteningly high. For you, this Blood Needle is equivalent to a supplement worth hundreds of millions.”

Axel had already sensed it himself. He still had a large stockpile of Life Crystals, but for now he barely needed them. His compressed Force was closing in on four thousand. He could feel that breaking into Level Five was only a matter of time.

“The Saints are connected to the Holy Light Organization, right?” he asked.

“That’s only a hypothesis,” Riley replied. “They were not directly involved in the previous rampage of the Infected Faction.”

“Also, Bloodstained compounds are extremely valuable. They usually only use them when capturing a target… or when stealing abilities.”

Stealing abilities. Axel frowned, recalling how Savannah had transformed into Vernon.

“They all have the Devourer Talent?” he asked quietly.

Riley nodded.

“Yes. They’re extremely abnormal. They can copy other people’s faces—which is why you were caught off guard.”

Axel took a slow, steady breath. The ability reminded him uncomfortably of Zane.

“Send me the full dossier on those eleven Saints.”

“I will,” Riley said smoothly. Then she added, as if discussing the weather,

“Also… you have a worm inside you.”

“A worm?”

“This is intelligence we didn’t previously possess. Savannah injected you with the Bloodstained Needle—she obviously intended to harvest you later.”

“The worm is called a Spacetime Worm. It doesn’t harm your body. Its only purpose is to track your location.”

Axel immediately entered inner vision, releasing his mental energy to scan his body—but found nothing.

“That’s strange… I can’t see it.”

Then suddenly, in his inner realm beneath the ancient tree, he saw it.

A silvery-white, finger-length fleshy worm trembled on a sheet of pale bark attached to the ancient tree itself.

With a thought, the branches of the ancient tree shuddered and wrapped around the worm in an instant.

Fear trembled through the tiny creature. Axel knew he could annihilate it with a single thought.

After a brief hesitation, he slowly withdrew from his inner vision.

Across the table, Riley slid a pill toward him.

“I made this myself. It will kill the spacetime worms inside your body.”

Axel took the pill, turning it between his fingers. Riley watched him closely and continued, her voice calm but sharp.

“I know you want to kill Savannah with your own hands. And I believe that once you reach the peak of Level Five, she may not be your match anymore.”

“But a Saint is never alone.” Her gaze hardened. “If you try to get rid of Butcher and me just to lure her out… you won’t be the hunter.”

“You’ll be the bait. And the bait gets eaten.”

Axel looked at her, something complicated stirring in his eyes.

“You understand me better than I expected.”

Riley lowered her gaze to the pill.

“So,” she said quietly, “what will you choose?”