Infinite wealth In A New World-Chapter 448: We Are All Pawns
[Ghosts’ Headquarters — The Inner Hall]
BAM!
"Huh?"
Executioner and Patricia were stunned, their eyes locked on the dense, pulsating black ball of energy that materialized before them. It reeked of despair and stolen mana.
"What is this?" Executioner asked in confusion, stepping back slightly from the concentrated aura.
"That there is all the power I have absorbed from the Summoners I have killed in my life. It should be enough," Denton said, his voice ragged but proud.
Executioner turned to Patricia. She analyzed the sphere for a moment, her eyes reflecting its dark glow, and nodded her head. With a casual wave of her right hand, she seized control of the energy. It flew towards her and hovered in suspension beside the array of their sacrificed summoning cards.
"What about her?" Patricia asked, her voice devoid of empathy, staring down at Angelina.
"Um... Can she rest for now? She doesn’t feel... um... good at the moment," Denton stammered, shifting uncomfortably under Patricia’s cold gaze.
Patricia narrowed her eyes, staring at the crying Angelina huddled on the stone floor, and exhaled a harsh, impatient breath.
"Ten minutes to mourn... Truthfully, I don’t see the reason for that. We should be happy Madurai died for our mission. If he had died without doing anything, like the Tenth Ghost... that would be disappointing. So instead of being sad, you should be happy... At least, he died—"
"SHUT UP!!!!"
Angelina snapped. She raised her tear-streaked face at Patricia, her usual submissive demeanor shattering under the weight of her grief.
"All you ever think about is the Mission!! Even if it means sacrificing your own members!! You won’t bat an eye! You’re just like your brother!!" she yelled, her voice cracking with raw agony.
".....?!"
The three of them were stunned, staring at her in absolute shock. In the history of the Ghosts, no one had ever spoken to the higher-ups like this.
"Yes!! I said it to you!! You guys only take us as pawns!! We are all still humans!!" she added, violently clenching the fabric over her chest as if trying to hold her broken heart together.
"Both Madurai and I loved each other!! But because of your rule, we held our feelings back!! Do you know how painful that is? And now..." She wiped her tears furiously, smearing dirt and blood across her pale cheeks.
"He is dead!! And all you have to say is we should be happy!!"
Patricia stared at her with narrowed, dangerous eyes. The air in the room grew heavy and suffocating.
"Look here. We are all pawns from the start! Just get that straight in your head. You joined this organization for power and wealth!" she said.
"You dare complain about your situation to me? To us?!! Look back! How many families have you killed? How many loved ones have you taken from someone?! So don’t come here and start lecturing me on anything that deals with emotions!!"
She turned her gaze back to the hovering cards, but her eyes flicked momentarily to Executioner, carrying a hidden, unspoken weight.
"You aren’t the only one in love with someone!! Like me, Just get that out of your head."
Everyone turned to Patricia, who briefly lowered her gaze to her feet, a microscopic crack in her icy facade, before looking back up with renewed steel.
"Rather than kneeling there yelling at us, why don’t you go and avenge him!! That will be better, don’t you think?"
"You!" Angelina clenched her hands into fists on her lap, kneeling on the cold ground, her eyes shut tight against the harsh reality.
"Is that all you have to say?!" she asked, her voice trembling with hatred.
"Of course... We are not happy losing a member of the organization, but that doesn’t mean we will sit and cry..." Patricia answered flatly, dismissing the girl’s pain entirely.
BEEEEP!!!
"HUH?"
Denton flinched, turning toward the blaring red light flashing from the archaic warning runes etched all over the hall’s perimeter. He blinked, instantly entering a state of high alert, and closed his eyes, spreading his sensory mana out like a net over the surrounding territory.
"This... There are three people outside the Forest edge... Women. I think they are with the enemies. But." He opened his eyes, a look of profound confusion on his face.
"I can’t feel their energies. Maybe they’re with those four humans," he said, staring at the two leaders.
"It seems after Madurai got killed, those bastards got information from him. Maybe by cutting his head off," Executioner said smoothly, his words deliberately chosen, freezing Angelina in place.
"Then they dived into his memories... I thought I was ruthless," he added, shaking his head in mock disgust.
Angelina’s fists tightened so hard her nails drew blood from her palms, and her eyes turned blood-red with absolute, blinding fury.
"No!!! I will make them pay!!!! I will kill every last one of them!!!" she screamed, her rationality completely overridden by vengeance. Her body shattered into a swarm of dark, razor-sharp feathers, flying violently out of the high, stained-glass window.
"Wait!! There is something else—" Denton reached out, but he was too late. He sighed heavily and snapped his head toward Executioner.
"You did that on purpose!"
"Yes... She is useless already, even going as far as to question us. Her death will only add to our mission’s progress," he said, his gaze completely emotionless as he watched the window where she had vanished. She was just another drop of blood for the Cup.
"But... But, those three, they’re all flying in the air," Denton stammered.
"What?!!!"
Patricia and Executioner were shocked, staring at him with wide, disbelieving eyes.
"Yes. Only SSS-Rank summoners have such abilities... Do you think?" Denton gulped hard, terrified of his own conclusion.
"This is bad. Go and see what’s happening out there! We will increase our pace here!" Executioner ordered, his calm demeanor finally cracking.
"Yes." Denton nodded, and vanished into the shadows, merging with the darkness to scout the perimeter.
"This is very bad!! We must move faster!!" Patricia yelled, her hands glowing violently as she released massive, reckless torrents of energy into the hovering cards, accelerating their destruction.
BOOOOM!!
A distant, massive explosion sounded, the shockwave violently shaking the foundations of the whole fortress, causing dust to rain from the ceiling.
"It seems it started already," Patricia sighed, closing her eyes for a brief second to center herself against the incoming storm.
"We must succeed, even if we will die here! We must!" she added with gritted teeth, pushing her mana to the absolute limit.
