Rebirth of the Disgraced Noble-Chapter 67: If I Can’t Have My Life, Then I’ll Kill Everyone Who Wants It and Kill Myself
Zero stood paralyzed at the edge of the crater. He gasped strangely for his breath, and behind him the rest of the Vassals’ chests rose in erratic movements.
"You... you’re bluffing," the Entity’s half whispered, though the cold confidence was gone, replaced by a frantic, vibrating tremor in the vocal cords. "If this heart stops, we both vanish. You don’t have the guts to erase yourself."
Aden’s left eye, the human one didn’t blink. The pupil had shrunk to a pinprick of pure, localized hatred.
"Watch me," Aden rasped.
His fingers tightened. A wet, sickening crunch echoed through the cave as he squeezed the aorta. The marble-white skin on the Entity’s side of the body began to turn a bruised, necrotic purple.
Zero fell to the ground immediately. The Vassals opened their lips in pain as they gasped for air. Lorelei’s face had gone dangerously pale and the thread her life was hanging on looked to snap any moment.
"Stop! Stop it!" the Entity shrieked, the two voices beginning to overlap and distort. "I’ll give them back! The Vassals, I’ll give you back control of your body! Just... BREATHE!"
Aden bared his teeth, a small waterfall of blood flowing through the gaps. "Too late you arrogant prick. I’m taking you and all my Vassals to hell with me!"
His voice which had grown noticeably singular boomed in the cave. The dry gasps of the Vassals were drowned in the feral declaration as they struggled to keep their existences intact.
"What, what about Lorelei?!" The Entity screamed, his voice becoming less tangible as he instinctually retreated into the depths of Aden’s soul.
"I’ll talk to the gods on her behalf!"
Yes. Aden had completely lost his mind.
His fingers curled harder against his own heart. Darkness crept at the edges of his eyes, his ears felt like they were stuffed with cotton, the restricted beating of his heart echoing loudly in them.
’If I can’t have my life, then I’ll kill everyone who wants it.’
His eyes hardened and he tightened his grip further.
His knees buckled and the Entity screamed, but this time, he didn’t use Aden’s vocal cords.
’Fine! Fine! You’ve won! I’ll leave you be!’
The Entity’s voice was stripped of all its pride and arrogance. Only pure survival instinct and desperation could be felt.
Aden flashed his crimson–painted teeth. ’Weren’t you the one who wanted to destroy my body because of your pride? Where’s that pride now? After all, I’m helping you achieve what you wanted.’
If the Entity had control, he would have waved his hands frantically. ’I never planned to destroy it! It was all a plan to absorb the Vassals and increase my strength.’
Aden’s eyes widened slightly in realization. The Entity had planned everything—how to absorb the Vassals, how to predict Aden’s mentality, even how Lorelei would react.
Somehow, it had known Aden would mock him after his defeat against the princess. It had also known Lorelei would inevitably bring the Vassals to his feet in a desperate attempt to save him from what she presumed was certain death.
’You... how can I even trust your words? For all I know, this could be another elaborate plan of yours.’
The feeling of predetermination gnawed at Aden, grating against every fiber of his being. If the Entity failed to offer him a tangible reason to believe even a word it said, he had already decided to follow through with his plan.
The Entity’s presence in Aden’s mind shivered, no longer a towering shadow but a flickering, desperate flame.
’I have no reason!’ the Entity shrieked directly into Aden’s subconscious, the voice cracking like breaking glass. ’There is no logic that can satisfy a man who is currently crushing his own heart! You want a reason to trust me? There isn’t one!’
Aden’s grip didn’t waver. His vision was now a pinhole of red.
’Then die,’ Aden thought, the command heavy with the weight of a final sentence.
’WAIT!’ the Entity’s voice turned into a jagged, pathetic crawl. ’Trust the Sync, not me! Look at the Vassals! Look at the girl!’
Aden’s internal gaze flickered toward the bond. He saw the threads—the silver and black lines connecting him to Lorelei, Zero and the rest of the Vassals.
He also saw their desperate, almost pathetic attempt at saving Lorelei who had taken one step off the cliff of death.
’If I wanted you dead, I would have let the Princess finish the job!’ the Entity screamed. ’The reason you can trust my words is because I am you, Aden! I am the part of you that refuses to be a victim! I used the Vassals to build this body because you didn’t have the stomach to do what was necessary to survive her! I didn’t plan for your death—I planned for your ascension!’
The Entity let out a mental wail of pure, unadulterated fear as Aden’s thumb pressed into the cardiac muscle.
’You could have just stayed in your hole. My adaptive traits would have sufficed,’ Aden shot back, but his hands didn’t tighten the grip.
His knees buckled and he fell face first on the hard ground, his face drenched in his own blood.
’We both know that’s a lie. That Saintess would have killed you and everyone else! Can’t you see? I’m on your side—’
’Don’t finish that statement or we’ll meet at the other side.’
’... Okay, just look at the body! Look at what I made for us!’ the Entity pleaded. ’The marble skin, the channels—it’s a vessel that can stand against any threat! Your Adaptive Resonance will soar to greater heights if you use it wisely! I did all of it for our own benefit!’
’... Stop screaming. I can hear you just fine.’
Aden continued, his voice calmer, but still laced with its suicidal edge. ’You suppressed my consciousness each time you took over and I was forced to crawl through the depths of my subconscious each time. That alone is enough reason to not dispute everything you’ve said.’
Silence stretched between them, the only sound in that subconscious space being the low hum of Aden’s Resonance energy.
’... That was my arrogance,’ the Entity hissed back, its voice small, shivering, and utterly defeated. ’Let go... and I will go back into the cellar of your mind. I’ll be the shadow. I’ll be the blade. Just... let us live.’
