Nothingness

Chapter 23: Nothingness

Holiness and demonic mana can't coexist.

Bryce knew that much because he couldn't wield both simultaneously. Those were natural enemies; having them in one body was already a miracle. It came out as a surprise that there were more people like him.

But what side effect? Bryce could only think of the odd feeling, but wasn't it a warning? Wasn't it something that guided him to swordsmanship, preparing him to wield Excalibur and Sword of Dracula?

"No clue?" Devin said, his interest in Bryce deepening.

He had already seen through Bryce's lifespan, which was untouched, meaning that the young man had more than thousands of years ahead of himself. He didn't seem to have any trouble using his mana. It hadn't gone mad, even when Devin had sealed Bryce's bloodline.

"There's a chance you have a personality disorder," Devin recalled a few hybrids that had gone berserk when they felt scared or death approaching them. Being hybrids, they didn't have to do much to get hunted by others, so it was like a defensive mechanism for them.

Devin chuckled, his smile worrying Bryce, then he unleashed what he had learned, experienced, and honed throughout years of existing in the dangerous world: his mana and killing intent.

Being the target of it, Bryce's mind went blank, his eyes hollow, his arms and head drooped, and his consciousness drifted away, but just for a second. A breath later, Bryce opened his eyes and gazed at Devin without any emotion; those dark eyes seemed like bottomless darkness, for real, this time.

At first, the demon lord thought that a new consciousness had come out from Bryce. But that was wrong as those eyes recognized him, so Bryce knew exactly who he was facing, yet there was no emotion within. He didn't fear the demon lord, he regarded nothing of him, even respect, as though Devin wasn't in the cave.

"If holiness can't save you, if your demon side can't erase your problems, then you are left with nothing. Nothingness, is it? It took the form of such beautiful eyes, some crazy hoes will like it, hah," Devin commented lightly, even though he wasn't sure of his theory.

But if he was, what stood before him wasn't just a miracle or someone who shouldn't exist.

To confirm his thoughts, Devin wheeled to the undead troll. The reason that this existence was even in this cave was naturally because of his main scheme, that is, Devin came here to collect his harvest. Of course, the undead was nothing more than a resource, so it wasn't strong, to begin with.

But it was a perfect tool to test his idea, Devin thought.

The undead answered the demon lord's call, took heavy steps forward, and when it towered above Bryce — the young man not caring about the troll — it instantly heeded the order, punching down.

And then, it happened. Bryce disappeared as though he had a teleportation skill, appearing behind the undead. He thrust his silver sword without a clear target and easily pierced through the undead's skin. It seemed like the deepest power was actually within the plain-looking sword.

The lanky troll toppled forward. It fell like a dead weight, its drop causing the whole cave to shake.

"It's a powerful and near-perfect defensive mechanism. I have never heard of it, so you're the real deal, young man," Devin muttered, not sharing all of his thoughts.

He naturally saw flaws, such as Bryce's lack of killing intent or lack of control. He stood as though enchanted, like a tool, and he only protected himself when the outside world endangered him, and only him. To prove his thoughts, Devin ordered the undead to attack the ground beneath Bryce.

When the earth cracked and the ravine popped beneath Bryce, he teleported somewhere else, when the troll attacked him again, Bryce replied with one strike, matching it.

"I'll leave with a present," Devin uttered, giving the last order to his tool.

Hearing him, the undead shrieked and stomped his way toward Bryce. It let out a punch, then another, and a few more; Bryce replied to every attack with a slash.

At last, the undead troll lost all of its health points, it dropped with a loud thud, then its body melted. During that process, something black and oval flew out of it — Devin used his skills to grasp it and hid it in his inventory. And when the undead thoroughly evaporated, it left behind a black coat.

"I don't know whether you will remember what happened after you've gone. I'm not sure, either, whether you will wake up and revert to normal. But if you return, this coat will hide your bloodlines thoroughly, even from demon lords and heroes. It's not an omnipotent item, though, so be careful as you tread.

"If you don't wake up, oh well, it's just a loss of one item, isn't it?" Devin shrugged and left the scene as though he had his own teleportation skill.

For him, Bryce was one of those gifted fellows. They regularly appeared in their world, and some residents also came out with extraordinary skills, so he'd never lack people for his main scheme. And more importantly, the main scheme could never be around one existence, and he wasn't a person to leave all his goals to one.

If Bryce died, so be it. But should Bryce survive all ordeals, Devin had an inkling he'd see the young man on the big stage in the far future.

As a hybrid, what kind of side would he take?

Perhaps, he'd conquer all and wield nothingness, too, becoming the third force?

"I have thought of many prodigies as a third force," Devin thought aloud, "but he seems like the best guess."