Endless Debt

Bologue suddenly stopped in his tracks, turning abruptly as Ether was released in an instant, unleashing its aggressive force with indiscriminate explosive blasts in the surrounding area.

If Olivia’s invisibility was achieved through Secret Energy, then Bologue’s Ether wash, causing Ethereum Mutual Exclusion, would be enough to break her out from the effects of Secret Energy if she let her guard down.

The reality was as Bologue had anticipated. The cyan torrent of Ether swept across the area and under the powerful Power of Command, everything surrendered at Bologue’s feet, while those unwilling to bow were completely exposed.

The shadow beneath Bologue’s feet writhed violently, like boiling black water, with twisted, eerie figures struggling to emerge from within.

Olivia realized the gravity of the situation, attempting to disengage and avoid the fight, but Bologue grabbed the figure within the shadows, forcefully pulling her out.

In a brilliant overhead throw, Bologue clutched Olivia’s throat and smashed her to the ground. As the ground fractured into pieces, Olivia fiercely drove a dagger through Bologue’s abdomen, but no blood flowed from the wound she cut, only pure Ether.

Since ascending to the rank of Defender, Bologue’s body entered a state of high Etherealization, greatly enhancing his Undying Nature through the Blessing of the Time Reversing Axis.

Drawing the Vengeful Saw Axe, Bologue pinned Olivia to the ground with one hand while positioning the cold, dark blade at her chin with the other. Bologue enjoyed this angle, where he could precisely drive through the enemy’s skull and split it in two.

"Can you really use Secret Energy to hide? It’s truly hard to find while lurking in the shadows."

The same intensity of Ether emanated from Olivia as well, revealing that she, too, was a Defender. If not for Bologue’s words that lowered Olivia’s guard, combined with his sudden strike, Bologue had no confidence in forcing her out.

Olivia’s beautiful cheeks were roughly pressed against the ground. Her crimson eyes were wide open, but she didn’t care about the threat of the Vengeful Saw Axe, knowing that Bologue was Undead, as was she.

Olivia’s figure began to tremble violently. This tremor was not muscle spasms but a visual malfunction, as if an errant pixelated image.

The Ether swirling through her rapidly diminished. Bologue was initially puzzled, then realized that it wasn’t Olivia giving up resistance, but instead, it was Extreme Realm Level Ethereal Concealment enveloping her. The Ether fluctuations dwindled to near nothing, and her figure, amid intense trembling, quickly unraveled into intangible patches of shadow.

"Don’t think you can escape!"

Bologue growled, swinging the Vengeful Saw Axe upwards. Before Olivia completely vanished, the blade sliced open her chin and cut across her nose, nearly cleaving her face in two.

The dissipating shadow wrapped around Bologue’s body. Despite having no real form, it drew a sharp, small dagger as it glided across Bologue’s throat.

A flash of cold metal marked the burst that blew Bologue’s entire throat apart, blood spraying as a mist, and nearly decapitating him as his broken neck failed to support the head’s weight, drooping powerlessly.

Bologue’s body tipped backward uncontrollably, while shadows coalesced at his chest, and Olivia’s figure manifested once more, as if breaking free from Bologue’s body.

She attempted to drive the dagger again, but an unsettling screech of serrated blades interrupted.

Like a launched projectile, the Vengeful Saw Axe shot forward horizontally into Olivia’s abdomen, tearing through her clothes, armor, and flesh, leaving only ravaged, shredded remains.

Olivia bent over to one side, like a felled tree, her body folding unnaturally from the waist. The force carried by the axe blade hurled her heavily, rolling several times on the ground and leaving a long trail of blood until she hit a wall and came to a stop.

"Did I strike a nerve? You’re reacting so violently."

Bologue reattached the Vengeful Saw Axe to its strap, using one hand to prop himself with the Vengeful Saw Axe and the other to steady his swiftly healing head, vigorously flexing his neck, emanating a wild, sinister feel as he approached Olivia.

Olivia also stood, though strangely, her lower body remained upright while her upper body arched backward. After the crisp sound of misaligned bones, her form straightened.

The flowing black veil on her body was now stained with filthy blood, torn by Bologue in many places, making her appear somewhat disheveled, her eyes filled with anger.

"I get it, Olivia, you’re like a pitiful little girl yearning for the warmth of family but instead getting a bastard of a father and a bunch of mothers you can’t even recognize."

Bologue twisted his wrist, spinning the Vengeful Saw Axe into a graceful blade dance. "You yearn for warmth from your family, only to find out they’re a bunch of complete monsters, yet even those monsters were destroyed by Serey."

Ether steadily surged as Bologue strode toward Olivia, feeling like a menacing villain from a movie, causing a wicked smile to tug at his lips.

"You survived, under Serey’s peculiar favor, finding yourself lonely and out of place in this world. You yearned for companionship, thus impulsively granting Blood Donation to some you favored."

Bologue continued verbally taunting Olivia, "No, more than that, you might have fallen in love with someone, hoping he could also become undying so that he could accompany you forever."

"Shut up!"

Olivia screamed hysterically, not expecting Bologue to be so perceptive and vicious, each word stabbing into her heart like a needle.

Bologue’s grin widened further, assaulting the weakest parts of Olivia with his fists and feet.

"But no one is immutable. The undying incites desires hidden deep within, and they’re no longer satisfied with their small current happiness. They crave something grander. But fortunately, you have a bit of a sense of justice, perhaps having witnessed the horrors of the Eternal Night Empire and knowing it shouldn’t be revived."

Olivia unleashed Ether, the dagger in her hand glowing with layers of verdant light. Bologue paused; he felt sharp agony surge from within, as the Ether inside warped and turned into Olivia’s claws, tearing at his insides.

Bologue remained stoic, blood seeping from his smile, continuing, "Killing someone you loved with your own hands can’t feel good, can it?"

"It’s a pity that, like Serey, though you made a brutal choice, you couldn’t quite completely erase compassion."

Bologue openly approached Olivia, with the tip of the Vengeful Saw Axe pointing toward the ground, showing no intention of attacking.

"Serey’s compassion spared you, while your compassion let the Regent King survive, like a chain of collapsing dominoes, with one mistake breeding another."

Bologue sheathed the Vengeful Saw Axe, then reached to clasp Olivia’s face, forcing her to look at him. From those crimson eyes, Bologue read sorrow and regret.

"At least you’re better than Serey in one aspect; you’re more responsible, and you’re trying to rectify this with your own strength."

Bologue released his grip, and Olivia sat down on the ground disheartened, curling up, her gaze fixated on the floor.

"Am I right?"

Olivia responded softly, "More or less."

Bologue crouched down, studying the slightly wet corners of Olivia’s eyes, "So you being here means there’s a connection between the All Secrets Order and the Regent King, right?"

"And you appeared before me voluntarily, coercing me," Bologue chuckled at this, "because you really can’t handle it all, and before creating even bigger errors, you’re seeking to cooperate with me to solve the issue together, right?"

Reluctantly, Olivia lifted her head. In the face of Bologue’s dominance, their positions reversed. She couldn’t help but think how unexpected Bologue’s rapid growth was since they first met.

"Yes."

Olivia confirmed in a low voice, and seeing this, Bologue’s grin widened even more. This operation had gone smoother than he had expected.

"Then tell me, Olivia, what do you know?"

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