Monsters Die When Killed

Then there’s the ’Spirit Summoner,’ who received a power called ’Law Words’ from a Void Celestial God. Her every word and action is a Word Spirit, and she can use the power of her decrees to brainwash crowds. Basically, every new member has to be brainwashed once by this strange woman to see if they are a government spy.

The ’Plant Master’ is a freak who received the ’Divine Wood’ Tianqi. He’s always saying that humanity’s sins run deep and that to make the Earth a better place, the existence of humanity must be eradicated. I admire his goal, but his methods are too bizarre—the guy likes to plant human-head trees, imprisoning people’s souls in the branches where they slowly dissolve and scatter as Spiritual Energy.

He says this imbues the wood with Spiritual Energy, helping the world return to its natural state. For the imprisoned souls, however, the ending is quite painful.

The remaining two are especially unique. One is called the ’Exchanger.’ He possesses an unknown, innate inheritance and can achieve various goals through Equivalent Exchange. Whether it’s improving his luck, temporarily gaining power, or enhancing his own Talent, he simply has to perform a ritual and sacrifice something of his choosing to receive a reward.

He controls all of the Spirit Summoning Association’s human sacrifice channels on the Africa Continent, but he basically uses them for himself. He’s extremely powerful.

And the last one is named the ’Controller.’ She can control luck, see the threads of fate, and conceal them. It is because of her that we haven’t been wiped out by the authorities to this day; in fact, our organization’s membership just keeps growing.

However, the Controller has a strong desire for control. She enjoys turning people she likes into living puppets, manipulating them to live according to her whims. She has her own little kingdom in South Asia. On the surface, everything seems normal, but in reality, she has long since converted them all into living puppets.

And I, the Silent, Bornev, received the power named ’Dusk.’

I have no parents. I was raised by a tavern owner. He used me as an outlet for his sexual desires and forced me into prostitution. Of course, I don’t hate him. He allowed me to grow and made sure I received an education. In a sense, I’m grateful to him.

But one day, he fell ill. He was writhing in agony in his bed, and I helped him end his suffering.

"Why are you crying? Didn’t you say the pain made you want to die?"

"Is that so... You don’t want to die? Then, how about I join you?"

"You can’t even speak anymore..."

After killing him, I spent several years in prison. In my emptiness, I heard the Tianqi.

The voice of ’Dusk.’

’People fear the coming of the End, yet they themselves are clearly craving death, constantly engaging in self-destructive acts. I often see people drink themselves into a stupor. I see them indulge their lust to the point of being hospitalized. I see them beat each other over petty arguments, even pulling out guns for a duel. I see them drive drunk, dancing with the Death God.’

’They always say they don’t want to die, but their souls and bodies are honest—they *do* want to die. They just need someone else’s help.’

’The seeds of self-destruction are buried within everyone, even within the very foundations of civilization.’

’I am certain of this.’

’I don’t enjoy torturing people; their existence is already painful enough. I don’t enjoy killing people, either. But if I don’t kill them, they will suffer even more.’

’So, in the past, I would always wonder.’

’What was the real difference between life and death? Ultimately, life is just something destined to meet its End. Only by merging with death can one find their final home, their complete satisfaction.’

’But in the Tianqi, ’Dusk’ told me: there is no difference.’

’Since people crave destruction but are unaware of it, I don’t need to explain it to them. I just need to bring them that destruction.’

’This is peaceful slumber, eternal rest, and a tranquil departure.’

’This is my path.’

"Pouring all our efforts into going to the Demon Realm is tantamount to abandoning the entire foundation we’ve built on Earth."

Before our actual departure for the Demon Realm, my like-minded friend, the winged old man known as the Reborn, was always nagging the other Leaders. His brow was perpetually furrowed. "Bornev, I don’t doubt your choice, but isn’t a price like this simply too high?"

’Of course, this is the right choice.’

’On an Earth undergoing the Spiritual Energy Revival, we would only be slowly drowned by the power of the governments. The Reborn, the Plant Master, and the other Leaders of the Spirit Summoning Association all come from small, remote countries and have never received a formal education. But I am from Ross Country and was educated at one of the best universities on Earth. I know full well that when a nation-state makes its determination to eradicate an organization, even the very air will turn against you.’

’However, what those nations fear most right now isn’t overt destroyers like us. It’s the chaos among the lower classes, born from this changing era. The will of the people is a power in itself. Nations and civilizations rely on this power to exist, so naturally, they fear its subversion.’

’Therefore, the initial stage of the Spiritual Energy Revival is the golden age for factions like ours. But later, once the Revival stabilizes and the people adapt to this new world, we will be annihilated. Or, we’ll be treated like feral dogs in a junkyard—driven to the poorest corners of the Earth and left to fester under watch.’

’So, before the great powers are free to deal with us, we must take our now-powerful organization and escape to another world, one they cannot reach.’