Mask One: The Hero Who Couldn't Show His Face

Boom!

An explosion rattled the whole castle.

Boom!

Another one.

Boom!

And another one.

The magnificent castle, which was clad in darkness shook again and again. Crimson flames broke through the white walls, charring it black.

Large black silhouettes covered the sky over the castle, throwing fireballs at the soldiers hiding behind the walls.

"Micheal! I need more arrows!"

A soldier yelled as he called out to his acquaintance beside him.

"Dammit! I don't have anymore! I'll go get some!"

His friend ran towards the arrow quivers at the side of the wall. But before he could reach it, a fireball fell on him, killing him instantly.

"Michael! No! Wait... Hah! I don't have to pay my debt to ya anymore!"

"Wait, who are you talking to? I'm here?"

"Wait, Micheal? Then who..."

"No!!!! Samuel! Bro!"

"What! Wait, he owed me twenty silvers! Noooo!"

Scenes like that (well, not exactly like that but similar nonetheless) were occurring all over the castle.

The town surrounding the castle wasn't in good shape either. Crimson flames burned throughout the once-grand city, the sound of sword clashes could be heard from the streets, blood and gore covered the walls around the buildings.

"Gahahaha! Fall in despair! Your souls shall be food for the Great Demon Lord! Hahahaha! Your cries will fuel our powers!"

A dark being drifted over the town. Two massive black wings were sprouting out of his back, and two ominous-looking horns were jutting out of his long silver hair.

He was wearing dark tattered robes, and two glowing yellow eyes were watching the carnage below him.

"Now then... When will he show up..."

He, Jaldaboth, one of the ten demon kings serving directly under the Great Demon Lord, muttered. The massacre he was doing wasn't meaningless.

He was waiting for someone. Someone far more powerful than these puny humans.

Suddenly, a flash of light appeared in the corner of his eyes. The next moment his whole body was blown back by an incredible power.

Barrages of punches fell on his face, arms and chest. All he could do protect his face with his arms.

His whole body ached. Yet, he laughed. His opponent was finally here.

"Hah! You finally came, reincarnation of the Dark God!" Jaldaboth screamed in joy.

"Not that damn crap again!"

His assailant yelled back in a higher tone. His long, red scarf waved in the air, and his white shirt and black pants were making him stick out.

"Gahahahaha! It's no use hiding it now!"

"No, I'm seriously telling you..."

"Gahahahahaha!"

"Wait listen..."

But Jaldaboth wasn't going to pay any heed to the attacker's bluffs. He unleashed his demonic aura, engulfing his body with a dark haze. His strength and mana increased tenfold.

"Tsk!" The assailant clicked his tongue as he fell back. Jaldaboth wasn't an opponent to underestimate.

"Demonic Skill: [Jublagol]!" Jaldaboth instantly unleashed a skill.

"What the hell is with that naming sense?!!"

"Gahahahahaha! You are done now, Shadow Breaker!"

"Heavenly Skill: [Silver Dome]!" The attacker, Shadow Breaker unleashed one of his defensive skills.

His white mask was coloured yellow as blinding yellowish light came out of his hands. It created a dome of divinity around his body.

{Tier-Three Heavenly Skill Unleashed. MP remaining 96%}

A well-familiar monotonous voice spoke up in his mind. Shadow Breaker had successfully cast his skill. Just then, Jaldaboth's skill hit his defensive barrier, and Shadow Breaker was pushed back.

His dark black hair was rustled as he fell down. Falling from this height would instantly kill him.

"Heavenly Skill: [Fly]"

Two angelic wings came out of his back, pushing him up. He flew up towards the demon king, his rapier unsheathed.

{Tier-Four Heavenly Skill Unleashed. MP remaining 88%}

Just as always, Shadow Breaker didn't understand what MP or tiers meant, but hearing the same thing for the past few years had made him accustomed to such terms.

All he knew was that percentage couldn't drop to zero, or he'd die.

Jaldaboth watched him soar through the sky. A smile appeared on his dark face.

"This is where you die, Hero of the human kingdom!" He held his hand up, and a ball of light appeared between them.

The light slowly glowed brighter and brighter, before it took the shape of a small sun.

"Demonic Skill: [Barbasha]!"

The ball of light exploded and several serpents of light came out of it. The serpents rushed towards Shadow Breaker at an incredible speed. He couldn't dodge them.

"At the first place, demons using light skills is absurd! And how come skills with such crappy name be so powerful?!!" he yelled as he cut the serpents in half.

Yet, even the great hero of the Zuan Kingdom, Shadow Breaker couldn't get out unscathed.

A serpent tore through his left hand, while another one through his right thigh.

He gritted his teeth in pain, trying to hold his scream back. But alas, he didn't succeed.

"That bastard Charlessssssss!!!! He fuckin' told me that it didn't hurt if you apply strengthening magiiiiiiic!"

Yes. Shadow Breaker seemed reckless, but he wasn't a fool (well, not an absolute one). He had taken necessary precautions, but it still wasn't enough.

"God Skill: [Bermuda]!"

Yet, even though he was in pain, he cast one of his most powerful skills.

{Tier-Seven God Skill Unleashed. MP remaining 24%. Caution advised.}

Three parallel lines suddenly surrounded Jaldaboth, and then took the shape of a triangle.

The space inside the triangle distorted, revealing a dark hole. Jaldaboth's whole body was pulled into it.

As his body was fully devoured by the black hole, the triangle vanished along with the demon king. Seeing that, Shadow Breaker sighed in relief.

However...

The space in front of him was torn apart, and a hand came out of it.

"Demonic Skill: [Bishlam]!"

A spear made of a dark substance stabbed into Shadow Breaker's stomach. He screamed in pain.

{HP less than 40%. Initiating auto-heal. Caution advised.}

The voice spoke inside Shadow Breaker's mind, and a light green light engulfed his body. The pain soon subsided, replaced by an irritating sourness.

As his body healed, he looked at the space where the hand was. It had already vanished.

"So even [Bermuda] isn't enough... Huh..." he muttered as he looked down at the capital city of Ray. He sighed, then sped up. Dawn was coming. He absolutely had to go back before that.

At the same time...

The soldiers on the ground, as well as the citizens of the capital, saw their hero successfully defeating the demon king (though that demon king was still alive, no one needed to put down the cheerful mood) and cheered. They saw him disappearing without a word, but they didn't mind.

Their hero was like that.

He'd come every time there was an enemy harming them, protect them, and then leave without a word.

It had been like that for the past six years. They had become accustomed to his behaviour. Yet, that didn't change the fact that Shadow Breaker was, undoubtedly, their beacon of hope.

"Oh... How beautiful..." A lone girl muttered from the terrace of her magnificent mansion. She was watching the hero disappearing on the horizon.

"Unlike that bastard brother of mine..."

Her next words were completely opposite of what she was saying. Unlike the first few words which were filled with love and respect, these were filled with hatred and anger.

"Sarah, come inside."

Her mother called out from inside the room, and she turned back.

"One day... I'll make you fall in love with me, just you wait, Shadow Breaker! And that day, I'll make you show your face!" She declared with a bright smile. The identity of the masked hero, Shadow Breaker was one of the biggest mysteries of the current era, after all. It was an information everyone wanted to know, and she was going to reveal it.

For sure.

At the same time...

Shadow Breaker slowly descended on the ground. He looked around, but no one was there.

"Good..." he muttered as he entered the broken hut in front of him.

There was only one room inside the hut, with three pieces of furniture. A bed, a table and a chair.

Shadow Breaker removed his beautiful and clean white shirt, and put on an old one. He did the same for his pants.

After changing, he sat down on the bed. The old furniture croaked under his weight.

Shadow Breaker looked at his fingers. They were already looking weak and frail.

It was coming again.

Dawn was coming again.

Another painful day was about to begin.

A few hours later, the silence of the night was broken with a shrill cry, but no one paid it any mind. The people leaving in the 'slums' were already used to it.

The next morning...

"Mmm... Mhm... Mmmm~"

A girl walked down the streets, singing an unfamiliar song. Her chestnut hair was swaying slowly as she walked with little hops. Her brown eyes were filled with energy, and a bright smile was on her face.

Light brown freckles were around and on her nose, just over her cheeks. They made her cute face look cuter.

The girl hummed as she headed towards a certain hut. It was broken and ill-maintained. The white walls had lost their colour long ago, and the windows were broken. Simply put, it was a miserable place to live.

Yet, the girl's face lit up as she saw it. Without hesitation, she went through the tattered cloth that worked as a curtain and door. As her eyes fell down on the person lying inside, her heart became warm.

However, the person in concern didn't have a good appearance, or an image that inspired the complex emotion called love. If anyone around here saw him, they would certainly feel disgusted.

Long skeletal arms, with skin barely clinging on it. A malnourished body. Sunken cheeks, with sharp green eyes that had bags under them. Unkept messy silver hair.

Yet, for the girl, that person was more than beautiful. Yes, for he was the one she loved. No matter how he looked, she loved him.

As the boy noticed the girl, his sharp eyes slightly softened, and his mouth broke into a smile.

He gestured the girl to enter with his eyes.

Yes, he couldn't move his body. Except for his face, his whole body was paralyzed. How pathetic.

But the girl didn't think so. She believed and loved the boy who was looking at her.

"I brought your favourite meal, Val!"