The Smiling Death

Amon slowly lifted his head.

His breathing was heavy. His body was covered in dust, blood, and small cuts. The battlefield around him was almost silent now. The sounds of fighting had disappeared.

Only the distant noises of a few remaining monsters and collapsing trees could be heard.

He looked up at the voice that talked to him just now.

Just a short distance away from him, one tree was still standing.

It was tall, but most of its branches were broken. Many of its blackened leaves had already fallen, and the trunk looked half-burned and cracked from the battle.

But that was not what made Amon stare. At the top of the trunk, someone was standing there.

A figure wearing full violet armor.

The armor looked elegant and smooth, not bulky like normal armor. Strange patterns were engraved on its surface, and faint purple lines glowed across it like flowing energy.

The man wearing that armor looked to be in his mid-twenties.

He was extremely handsome.

More than six feet tall, with fair skin and a sharp jawline. His short blonde hair moved slightly with the wind.

He stood there calmly, his hands locked behind his back, as if he was just observing the battlefield for entertainment.

But what drew Amon’s attention the most were his eyes. His sclera were pitch black. And his irises were glowing purple.

They shone faintly in the dim light as he looked directly at Amon with amusement. The moment Amon saw those eyes, his body froze.

A primal fear rose from deep inside his body. It was not fear because of strength alone. It was something deeper. Something instinctive. Like a prey animal standing in front of a predator far above its level.

His hands trembled slightly. He tried to speak, but his throat felt dry. Still, he forced himself to ask in a shaky voice,

"W-Who are you?"

The man did not reply. He did not even look surprised that Amon spoke. Instead, he slowly turned his head and looked toward the west direction.

Then he looked toward the other directions where the other towers were located. He remained silent for a few seconds.

Then he suddenly laughed quietly. "Haha... I was really late."

His voice was calm, smooth, and strangely confident.

"Three of them are already deactivated," he continued, still looking into the distance. "But at least one remained... I think I came just in time to stop you."

He slowly turned his head back toward Amon.

"It took so much time to enter this body... and get adjusted to it," he said casually, as if he was talking about something very normal. "Anyways... I came directly to you for a reason."

Now he stared directly at Amon. But this time, his eyes were no longer amused.

They were cold. They made Amon’s heart beat faster in fear.

The air around Amon suddenly felt heavy, as if an invisible pressure had fallen over the area.

Then the man spoke again. "Where is he?"

Amon swallowed his saliva. His throat felt dry, and his heartbeat was getting faster.

"W-Who... who are you asking about?" Amon asked carefully.

The man did not answer immediately.

Instead, he slowly stepped forward from the top of the tree.

But he did not fall. He walked in the air.

Step by step, as if invisible stairs were beneath his feet, he walked down from the tree until he landed on the ground a few meters in front of Amon.

Amon’s eyes widened slightly when he saw that.

The man stopped and looked down at him quietly.

"You do not need to know who I am," the man said calmly. "You only need to answer my question."

His purple eyes glowed slightly brighter.

"Where is the one who should be with you?"

Amon frowned slightly, confused and cautious at the same time. His mind started moving quickly.

’The one who should be with me? Who is he talking about? Malphas? Ethan? Someone else?... or Vetaal?’

"I do not know who you are talking about," Amon said slowly.

For a few seconds, the man just stared at him silently.

Then suddenly that man appeared right in front of Amon.

Amon’s eyes widened in shock. He had not even seen him move.

The man leaned slightly closer and looked directly into Amon’s eyes.

Up close, those black sclera and glowing purple irises looked even more terrifying.

"I can feel his presence," the man said quietly. "He was around you the most."

Amon’s heart skipped a beat.

The man tilted his head slightly.

"So I will ask one more time," he said in a calm but dangerous voice.

"Where is he?"

Amon’s heart was still beating fast as the man stood in front of him, those glowing purple eyes staring directly into his soul.

"So I will ask one more time," the man said in a calm but dangerous voice.

"Where is he?"

Amon hesitated for a moment, then spoke carefully.

"You mean... Vetaal?"

The moment he said that name, the man’s expression changed slightly.

He immediately moved his face away from Amon and walked a few steps behind him, as if thinking.

"So he told you his name as Vetaal..." the man muttered quietly. "Hmm... Yes. Vetaal."

He stopped walking and looked toward the forest.

"Where is that Vetaal?" he asked again.

Amon gulped and replied, "I do not know... maybe he is somewhere in the forest..."

The man narrowed his eyes slightly.

Then he slowly closed them.

He stood completely still for a few seconds. The air around him felt strange, like invisible waves were spreading outward in all directions.

It felt like he was searching for something.

After a few seconds, he opened his eyes again.

"I cannot sense him," he said quietly. "That means he has recovered enough strength to hide his presence... troublesome. But again... it might be just a small amount... which is no big deal."

Then he turned his head toward Amon again. He was about to say something.

But suddenly a loud laugh echoed from the forest.

"Ahahaha..."

The sound was strange. It was not loud, but it echoed across the silent battlefield clearly.

Both Amon and the man turned their heads toward the forest.

Leaves rustled. Branches moved.

Then someone came out of the forest.

Or rather... someone floated out.

It was Vetaal.

The corpse-looking man Amon knew.

He floated slowly in the air, moving forward lazily. He was still wearing those ragged clothes tied around his waist.

His body was skinny, with gray-colored skin that looked like he had no blood in his body. His lips were dry and cracked. His long black hair was dirty and messy, moving slightly in the air.

His white eyes looked directly at the man in violet armor.

He floated forward and stopped a few meters away from them.

Then Vetaal smiled widely and said,

"Long time no see, Kezriel. You are just like before. When I saw you a few thousand years ago."

The man in violet armor, Kezriel, looked at Vetaal without smiling.

His face remained calm and cold.

With the same cold expression, he replied,

"You took a good name for yourself... Vetaal. And honestly."

Vetaal giggled, covering his mouth slightly with his thin fingers.

"I needed to do that," he said playfully. "I cannot tell my true name to everyone."

Kezriel nodded slowly.

"You are right. It is not good for you to share your true name with everyone."

For a few seconds, both of them just looked at each other.

Amon, who was standing between them but slightly behind, could feel the air becoming heavy again.

It felt like two invisible forces were colliding in the air.

He did not understand what was happening.

But he understood one thing very clearly.

Both of these people were monsters far beyond his level.

Vetaal slowly floated a little higher, looking down at Kezriel with a playful expression.

"So," Vetaal said, "how did you manage to come here? Possessing a body? That armor... hmm... not bad. You always had good taste. Also... have you kept that body in this place somewhere hidden?"

Kezriel did not react to the teasing.

He simply looked at Vetaal and said,

"You are still weaker. You haven’t recovered even a tiny part of your powers."

Vetaal laughed again.

"Of course I am weaker. Do you think escaping from this place is easy? And I cannot recover until I escape from here. Getting this very tiny amount of power was a huge deal for me."

"You cannot escape from here easily," Kezriel replied calmly.

Vetaal tilted his head and smiled.

"That is true."

Then his white eyes slowly shifted toward Amon for a moment before returning to Kezriel.

"You came for me, did you?" Vetaal asked.

"Yes," Kezriel replied immediately.

"For what reason?" Vetaal asked, still smiling.

Kezriel looked directly into Vetaal’s eyes and said in a calm voice,

"You know the reason."

For the first time, Vetaal’s smile became a little smaller.

The air became even heavier.

Even the wind stopped moving for a moment.

After a few seconds of silence, Vetaal sighed dramatically.

He moved toward the fallen Amon and said, "Are you okay, boy?"

He helped Amon to get on his feet.

"You are not a fool, Vetaal. You already know... that one day you could escape this place..."

"Oh... or I was already meant to escape... but when you... or I say... when she wanted me to?" Vetaal asked with an amused smile.

Kezriel did not reply.

Amon stood up somehow with Vetaal’s support.

Then he looked at the man in front of them, who was silent now.

Vetaal had floated down until his feet were a few inches above the ground beside Amon.

He looked around at the destroyed battlefield, the dead monsters, the broken trees, and the blood everywhere.

Then he looked back at Kezriel.

"You came a little late," Vetaal said. "Most of the towers are already deactivated."

"I know," Kezriel replied. "But one is still active."

Vetaal smiled again.

"Yes... but not for long."