Midnight Prince: Empire of Sin

Adam was quite a bit worried right now. Even as he flew as fast as possible and hid himself from his lunatic of a sibling with the power of illusions, he was still worried about getting caught.

'That move is definitely a cheat. As much of a cheat as a cheat could get.'

Adam had used a move that would be nearly impossible to use outside of this region, this was, without the slightest shadow of a doubt, his strongest attack ever, if you did not take into account the conceptual power of [Death] that is. Even so, the attack had been completely neutralized without a single shred of effort. They just ate the whole attack and it was gone just like that.

This made him realize just what kind of monster Lycaon truly was.

{A close combat fighting specialist who can more or less neutralize all long-ranged attacks. That should be an adept description of your current opponent, Adam. Things… don't seem to be looking great.}

This was truly bullshit of the highest degree possible.

Had it been anywhere else, Adam would have not hesitated in continuing the fight for as long as it took.

He did not fear death. Even less so in this, this—

'Huh…'

Adam's thought process started to change very soon once he took into account the realm that he was currently inside.

What was Lycaon's goal in the end? Clearly, it was not about just transforming Natasha and letting Fenrir's shadow take over. In fact, it was quite clear to him that Lycaon had no care for Natasha. It seemed that he didn't have any care for anyone that was not him.

So then, what was his goal exactly?

To make him stronger. To train him. Or perhaps just to play around So then, what was his goal exactly?

To make him stronger. To train him. Or perhaps just to play around with him? The third proposition wasn't entirely impossible but it was highly improbable with the current way things were going.

Adam clenched his fists ever so slightly.

There was something that he had realized after some tests while dying and mutilating himself.

The curse that he was born with, the curse of immortality, changed, evolved, and strengthened the more he died.

He had already received messages such as [You died too many times] then followed by an evolution that woke up a hidden trait that he didn't even know existed in him.

This kind of evolution would obviously make his life very complicated in the long term. But it was a great power-up for him when he was just starting. It was the kind of thing that gave him a strong Early game boost but he would have to pay the price for it in the Late game phase.

Another thing was that the resistance obtained from [Adaptation] grew faster when he actually died rather than when he simply suffered many injuries and didn't die as a result. Barely surviving didn't mean anything, only true death would skyrocket his abilities.

Sadly, because of the time necessary between each death, it was impossible for him to easily evolve this skill further.

But what if…

What if he was in a place where he could die and then regenerate almost immediately?

'Ah…'

Adam's expression sharpened after coming to this point. His eyes glittered with a light filled with passion and exuberance.

This was an opportunity he could not miss. Not even in a thousand years. He had to capitalize on the opportunity that Lycaon was creating for him.

So his next course of action was truly simple.

Feeling Lycaon getting closer and closer to his location, Adam did not hesitate in lifting a huge chunk of ice that was over 500 meters long and threw it at Lycaon at hypersonic speeds.

"Eat this!"

"I love ice cream!"

"There is no fucking cream in this!"

"Everything is in the mind, brother dear!"

A stupid exchange followed between the siblings as Lycaon showed movement worthy of an ace gymnastic, hovering and gliding through the objects thrown at him with absolute ease/.

The ice blocks were broken down under the pressure of the throw, creating a rain of ice chunks, each of them moving fast enough to put holes through most things.

Explosions rang everywhere due to the impact of the hail of ice but Lycaon was unperturbed by everything. This body might be unable to move at light speed but hypersonic speed was not much of a problem for him.

He punched, jumped, avoided, slid, sidestepped, somersaulted, crouched down, and did so much more. Again and again and again and again. It was just rinse and repeat for him.

He would destroy what he could not avoid and eat what he could not destroy.

This pure degree of skill and coordination of body was enough for Adam to even feel slightly jealous about what this man could do even when using an unfamiliar body.

"Impressive, right!? Come on, praise your awesome big brother! I can even teach you how to do this later on! Hahaha!"

Adam answered by sending him another huge chunk of ice in the form of a middle finger. Clearly, he was not feeling amused by his brother's behavior at the moment.

Meanwhile, he made sure to accelerate and keep the distance between them.

He vividly remembered the first attack Lycaon had used on him and he knew that if he received it, he would lose his advance.

'He is playing with me.'

Or rather, Lycaon was clearly holding back against him right now. Either because Fedora's body could not allow him to use big moves in quick succession or simply because he was keeping his power at a reasonable level that would not be too crushing for him. He was metering things out for Adam so that it would not be impossible to face him.

'This is quite… humiliating, to say the least.'

Adam gave a strained smile as he continued to accelerate further and further.

He was not lost as the pressure coming from Fenrir far away was clearly turbulent.

More than anything— he could even feel someone was fighting against that creature right this very instant.

'Good job Takoda.'

It seemed like Takoda had been fighting up and keeping things occupied at that place.

The more Fenrir remnants were occupied while fighting Takoda outside— the less power they would be able to muster fighting Natasha, inside.

'I am coming to help you soon. Just hold on for some time.'

.

.

.

'I am going to fucking die.'

Takoda stifled a scream when his arm was torn by the claws of the giant white wolf standing in front of him.

The fight had not been easy for him.

Rather— could he even call it a fight?

His entire body was covered in blood and even his neck showed signs of blood leaking out from the shallow slashes and bite marks that marred his skin.

'This isn't funny.'

He came filled with bravado but got killed at the very first instance.

The moment the wolf swiped his head clean, Takoda really thought that he was done for.

He even had a whole flashback and made peace with himself while cursing at his weakness and inability to live up to the expectations he had put on himself.

So, waking up immediately at the very next moment was a very jarring experience for him, to say the least.

What followed afterward was a one-sided beatdown as he continued to fight against Natasha or whatever was in control of this wolf in front of him and got killed repeatedly.

He was now in a very pitiful situation but his mind was still burning with passion and a will to fight on.

Takoda got a deep understanding of his inner self after falling into depression after the death or rather the murder of his father— something that he enacted with his own two hands.

If life was a story, then he was nothing more than a side character. An entity with little to no importance whose existence or absence would not change anything in the long run.

He could not even call himself an antagonist. Even if he were able to call himself one, then he would be the cheap third-rate villain who would get killed off in the first few chapters. He was the kind of character that was made solely for the protagonist to trample on. A stepping stone in other words.

At first, this realization made him despair. Agony filled his entire being. His mind began to be filled with nihilistic thoughts as he realized the futility of his existence.

But now?

Now he was truly alive.

He was not the main character.

But his existence was NEEDED.

He was IMPORTANT.

Even if only for a moment. Even if for acting as nothing but a punching bag.

He was fighting on a scene worthy of the greatest myths!

He could not die.

He would not die.

He would continue to fight.

Fight and fight.

No matter how pitiful he looked.

No matter how unseemly he acted.

He would grit his teeth and bear it.

'Not yet.'

He grimaced as Fenrir cut his remaining arm. But hopping on his legs, Takoda kicked Fenrir in the guts.

'Still not yet.'

He screamed when Fenrir bit down on his legs before throwing him towards the ground. But, using his maws, he bit down on Fenrir's fur, unwilling to let go.

'It's still not time yet!'

He partially blanked out, when the power of frost exploded in his mouth, destroying his jaw on the way. But he kept holding it in.

Until finally— n.(O1n

"Takoda!"

'Now!'

He could not speak nor could he walk.

But his eyes were filled with joy and glee as he finally made himself useful.

｢ Phantasm Realm ::  Crime and Punishment.｣

Takoda's mission had always been to do one thing and one thing only.

This mission had been decided since the very moment he stepped into this damned realm of ice and snow.

— He was successful in his endeavor.

'Now, do your job. If you are truly the protagonist of this story, then let me witness your victory.'

He stayed flat on the ground, looking at the sky and watching the fight go on.

His body was battered beyond belief. He was in a situation where he was neither truly alive nor truly dead.

His body could not completely regenerate because of Fenrir's poison but he could not afford to die because his domain would vanish otherwise.

It was truly a problematic situation.

But he did not care about it very much.

His job was done and now he could simply watch and admire from the sidelines. He was done with his role and it was now his time to be the spectator of this brilliant show that involved the gods and the heroes of the myths.

Sometimes— being a bystander could also be quite cool.

He sighed as he felt the weight of his own realm apply to him.

Hopefully — The hero was not guilty of too many crime.