9 The One who contemplates infinity

(One image representing the chapter is going to be posted in the comments by the Autor)

*tick tock*

The repeated sound of a clock can be heard echoing... at least that's what the ears of a man passed out on the floor can hear, this man has black hair and a face very similar to Allan Addams.

The man is placed on a white surface and around him an infinite white surrounds him, an environment very similar to what Allan saw, when he saw himself face to face with Death, but the difference was clear by the simplicity and lack of details in this place .

"Argh" a grunt left the lips of the man who slowly moved until he was standing with his hands on his head…

"What horrible pain! "The man talks while trying to adapt to the pain he feels, seconds later he looked in front of him and could see an infinite void completely white…

'Where I am? What happened? ' the man looked around completely bewildered but his brain reminded the man of recent events in which he suffered a tragic end..."That bastard...he was prepared even in death...damn...I didn't have the sweet opportunity to torture him and make him pay for what he did" clear anger was felt in the man's voice… hatred that few have ever felt for anyone.

After all, the hatred he feels for his brother is something he can't control, it's like the world whispers in his ear to kill Allan…. That damn old man deserved to have everything wretched and venomous in the world to fall on his body.

The man shook his head slightly as if in denial and focused his vision in front of him "It doesn't matter now… I just want to know where I am"

"Maybe I can help you with that kid"

Instinctively the man rotated his body to attack the voice, but when the man saw the figure in front of him he was paralyzed with fear and complete confusion...

In front of the man is a completely white and apparently masculine figure the only thing that stands out about this figure are its two golden eyes that shine intensely as if analyzing the man's soul... but despite the appearance without any details a powerful aura is emanating from this being.

"What are you?" the man took a step back at the presence of this… this thing…

"Hmmm..." the being placed his hand on his chin while analyzing the man..."I am the one who contemplates infinity...I am God...at least what you consider God"

'God… impossible I must be crazy… that's it!!!… I survived and I'm hallucinating in a hospital… yes of course it is' the man came to a conclusion using all the logic that his brain managed to create…

"I found your little theory interesting, but… I think you forgot to put in your equation the part where you were blown up by a bomb… Alberth"

Alberth hearing his name coming from the figure reached the height of his confusion but then the man came to a logical conclusion..."I...died" pure strangeness was planted in the man's face as he never thought that he himself would hear these words come out of his own mouth.

"Yea … "

"And…Allan Addams?"

"In the Depths of the Fifth Circle of Hell"

A hideous smile appeared on Alberth's face "HEHEHE….Good to know that, that bastard deserves to be tortured for eternity even though I wanted to deal with it personally…Thanks for telling me that but I assume you want something from me, God…right… ?"

God's eyes flashed momentarily at the amused reactions of the mortal in front of him "Yes...I want to make a deal with you White Death"

Alberth's smile died on the man's face and a neutral face replaces it "God wants something from me...well...this is new"

"…" God kept his gaze on the man as he waited for him to make the first move

"And what would that… deal be?"

"I want you to kill the five legendary heroes of the kingdom of Melromarc, the apostle of death and the Three Vordr" the being spoke the list of possible targets for the White Death, already the same was thoughtful…

'It's a high number of targets but nothing that's impossible...'Alberth was thinking calmly but decided to get a little more information before making a decision...

"What are the five legendary heroes of the realm of Melromarc?"

"They are five human beings summoned from another world through a ritual... nothing more, nothing less... they are as normal as you, the only difference is that they have a weapon that gives them power, but at the moment they are weak "

"Hmmm… nothing too difficult… and what is the apostle of death" this time Alberth showed a bit of curiosity as he basically got confirmation that death exists or at least an entity that can send an apostle to the world..

"The apostle of death is a being that death itself sent into the world to destroy its balance… I have no further information as it seems that it has not given it any kind of power… thus rendering it practically invisible to my eyes… but I assume he is a reincarnated like you"

'That makes things a lot harder to find him, but if this apostle has no powers it makes it much easier to kill him' Alberth faced God and asked one last question "What about the three Vordr?"

A bit of annoyance was present on the face of the being signaling to Alberth that maybe these three were different from the previous targets to be hunted.

"Listen up because these three are more… troublesome… they are beings that are trying to corrupt the world or are trying to destroy it along with the rest, just like the ones mentioned before they all have to die but these three… , I will say their names, Barolt the Sword King, Jibril the Empress Flugel and Altair the First Arch Mage I hope you have memorized these names" Alberth was very thoughtful with everything he heard but he had an important question to ask to the being in his front.

"And what do I get out of it… God?" Alberth was interested in what God could give him in exchange for eight lives and one… apostle? … The White Death never believed in God but whatever, Alberth is not a man of God but reality has shown him to be wrong and the being that humans prayed to so much really exists…

The being looked at the man, the being's lips formed a smile and then God snapped his fingers...

*Tlack*

An intense light filled the place for a moment, suddenly disappearing leaving a small figure in front of Alberth...

"I can give you what you are most looking for in your life…"

The man's legs lost any and all strength they had, now on his knees a child ran into his arms hugging the man...

"your family…." the being spoke the last part while watching the situation unfold….

"Papa..." the man's daughter cried in tears now hugging her father who responded in the same way...

"My little one she…she is fine.." the man showed all his weaknesses in that moment as he hugged his daughter as if she was going to disappear at any moment…

"Of course she's fine... after all, paradise is open to everyone"

Alberth was completely shocked and shaken, but his mind gained a purpose in this moment when he was embracing what he loves most… 'I… I will dip the world in blood if I have to, to save my family I will do anything….'

"Father... mother is waiting for you..." Hearing this Alberth rose from the floor with a new and unshakable conviction...

"I assume you will bring my whole family back if I complete this mission" the man looked the being in the eye with a firm and convinced gaze as he waited for an answer…

"Of course I do…a new beginning in a new world pure and virgin from the corruption of mortals"

Alberth knelt in front of his little daughter and showed her a serene smile "Dad is going to take care of something … wait a minute … I'll be back"

The little one showed a bright smile to her father which completely melted the heart that had fallen into darkness years ago, but now it was coated and forged in steel in the fire of hope...

Alberth looked God in the eye "I accept your request"

"Good choice"

Alberth looked one last time at his little daughter and placed his hand on her head and stroked her hair while showing a sincere smile to her…

The being stretched out his arm and it snapped its fingers *Tlack* almost instantly Alberth crumbled into tiny particles of light…

God's neutral face morphed sharply into a wide, slightly creepy smile...

The small child who was in the place moved her head slightly and when her eyes focused on 'God's' eyes they lost all their brightness and the small child's body fell to the ground as if it were a puppet that had its strings cut…

The pure white being stretched its hand towards the child and it turned into a golden crystal ball… the being who had this object in his hand closed his fist abruptly destroying the small ball into thousands of fragments…

"Humans, fragile and sentimental creatures... just show a little hope, they can even move mountains to get what they want..." the smile on the being's face didn't stop growing with every word that came out of his mouth.

"Paradise? as if such a thing exists… humans are just soulless pieces of flesh to be used by me to fulfill all that I-…"

The being's eyes glowed intensely for a few moments until he looked in a seemingly random direction, his smile died instantly at that moment "Tsk" with this last manifestation the being disappeared into particles of light leaving behind a completely empty space...

Location: Throne Room, Royal Castle Kingdom of Melromarc

Allan looked behind him and could see the three heroes helping Naofumi who is not in the best condition the boy is clearly shaken by the situation.

*clack clack clack*

The sound of footsteps echoes through the throne room these footsteps came from the now Cardinal who passed Addams' side without paying any kind of attention to the old hammer hero...

'Looks like using the hammer to hide my scent worked' Allan mentally sighed at the success of his precaution, but even so, the old man didn't lose focus in the midst of this tense situation.

*clack clack clack*

Suddenly the boy stopped a few meters from the king in front of him is a barrier of soldiers and behind them is Aultcray and Malty, the father and daughter pair seem to show a high degree of nervousness thanks to the appearance of the Cardinal.

Addams took a few steps back to get closer to the rest of the heroes who already had their weapons ready for whatever could happen... except for Naofumi who still didn't seem to believe what happened to him...

"Aultcray can you explain why you summoned five heroes in your kingdom? Have you by any chance become senile old man?"

Aultcray shuddered momentarily at the pair of golden eyes that looked at him like a predator but he can't show weakness...he's a King!!!

"Because of the invasions th-"

"Lie lie lie… pure and complete lie… we both know that this matter is already under the jurisdiction of other realms and your realm is not even being affected, the heroes of those realms are already putting the affected places under quarantine…"

Addams' eyes showed clear surprise, as the boy in front of him confirmed to the man that he had made the right choice 'I knew I wouldn't regret getting more information… now I have to know who are the four heroes I have to kill …. But I still can't rule out the hypothesis that it could be these four...' Allan thought calmly as he shifted his gaze to the four heroes behind him who were trembling with the anxiety they felt.

"You bastard and whoever gives you permission to enter my house and dictate what I can and cannot do?" Aultcray yelled, already out of his mind, the man lost control of the situation which made the king uneasy.

The Cardinal placed his hand on the hilt of his Katana while keeping an intimidating gaze on Aultcray…

"…Then I assume we should resolve this another way"

The Black Death who was analyzing the whole situation felt something wrong with the Cardinal's actions as he dropped the grip of his weapon and seemed to want to use more... political methods...

Allan then decided to whisper something to the heroes behind him "When I say you run out of here..."

"B-but-" Motoyasu tried to respond to Addams but the old man stood firm on what he said

Ren and Itsuki just nodded in agreement as the two don't talk much but fully trust Allan's decisions.

"But nothing … "Allan put his hand on his hammer that is in his belt 'Even if I wanted the help of these boys I doubt they would even be able to bear to kill someone 'the old man knew very well that it is very difficult for someone to accept taking a life for this he was sure the four young men would never do unless forced to...

Tension was in the air and Malty stood by her father's side as she glared at Naofumi angrily 'If it wasn't for that bastard '

"What do you propose, Cardinal? "The King of Melromarc asked in hopes of saving his head from a stupid death…

"How about…" the boy shifted his gaze to the five heroes and then to Aultcray again "execute the heroes you summoned… in this way the Church can forgive you for your… failure…"

The five heroes who heard everything clearly tensed up…

'Ahm…predictable' it's time to put everything on the line…

"Stay ready and don't question what will happen now" the Black Death whispered to the four heroes who mentally agreed with Addams...

The old assassin took a step forward and all the soldiers around the heroes moved slightly ready to attack...

"Hmm... who are you old man" Cardinal looked at Addams as if he were a bug because he didn't smell any kind of smell that would draw his attention coming from the old man...

"I think we can negotiate something my lords… this old man does not believe that violence is the solution" Addams who was now almost at the side of the Cardinal spoke addressing the King and the boy…

"You bastard t-" Aultcray was getting angrier even this old bastard was trying to turn the Cardinal against the king...

"Do you want to trade with me? You? Don't you think you're asking too much old man?"

"Yes of course, but I can be useful"

The Cardinal contemplated the proposal, but quickly came to an obvious conclusion...

"Would you give something to a bacterium that would be in front of you screaming for help? … I don't … you're nothing but a bacterium to my old eyes … and I detest aliens from other worlds like you … you are … are dirty, pure and full dirt that must be cleaned ..." the boy's eyes flashed momentarily towards Addams who was a little apprehensive about the boy's words...

'This religion doesn't seem to like the idea of heroes from another world' Addams took another step towards the Cardinal and bowed slightly as he brought his hand to the hammer at his waist...

"Please I need …"

"Do you need? …"

"Now !!!"

A green glow blinded the Cardinal and the others in the throne room and then a loud noise rang out in the throne room...

*boom*

The Black Death has a smoking pistol in his hand and beside him we can see the Cardinal with his leg painted with blood...

Aultcray couldn't believe his eyes, the Cardinal was hit by something... and that something was pointed in his direction now...

The four heroes who were completely confused momentarily used the chance of the confusion that fell on the spot to escape...

Naofumi used an ability from his shield and launched himself at the line of soldiers that surrounded the heroes causing them to fall to the ground and opening an escape route through one of the corridors, the four heroes ran with everything they had while looking at Addams who was pointing a pistol at Aultcray...

Addams pulled his trigger again towards Aultcray...

*boom*

The bullet flew quickly towards the king, the Cardinal who had his leg almost useless tried to move as fast as he could, but that proved ineffective, the bullet looked like it was going to hit its target, but...

*Clanck*

A sword stopped the projectile in midair, in front of the king is a man with golden hair that Malty recognized well... was the same man who delivered the insignia of the kingdom of Falmart to Aultcray...

"Tsk… another snag… you keep showing up" Addams used his hammer to create something resembling a sword, now the old man has a sword in his left hand and a pistol in his right hand…

"You coward… trying to take the life of royalty in such a cowardly manner…" the boy shouted as he ran in front of Addams and tried to cut the old man with his sword…

The Black Death danced between the simple blows as they didn't compare to the speed of the Cardinal's blows….

The assassin dodged another blow and rotated his entire body and delivered a powerful blow to the knight's chest with his leg throwing him to the ground...

Addams pointed his pistol towards the boy's chest but when he was about to fire he felt his skin crawl and the air become electrified, the old man instinctively jumped back seeing a katana cut the air where he was previously the floor of the room shattered as well as the walls of the place because of the impact and pressure of the blow…

Aultcray looked at everything with a wide smile 'Yes die…your old carcass die', Malty already looked at the young knight with some concern and something else….

Addams looked at the Cardinal who had a red vial in his hand, and no apparent wounds on his leg... this sent Allan's senses into high alert...

'He's healed... it doesn't make any logical sense' Addams seeing that his opponent was healed he had to improvise the rest of his plan.

"You will pay with your head" the Cardinal has a look of pure hatred on Allan, but the assassin only showed a smile to try to get the cardinal out of his mind…

The assassin took advantage of the time of the Cardinal's monologue to use his hammer again and an explosion of light was present in the place and then a smokescreen...

After adjusting his eyesight the Cardinal put some force into his katana and slashed the air scattering the air and revealing some soldiers with slit necks and an Allan who is nowhere to be seen….

"Ahhh …. YOU OLD MAN …. DAMN IT!" the Cardinal shouted and a storm of electricity seemed to fall over the place affecting everyone in the room, almost instantly the Cardinal disappeared in a pile of electricity that scorched the floor where he was…

The golden haired boy who seemed to be the only one able to stand up after the show of power looked around and could see everyone lying unconscious...

The boy clenched his fist and a smile appeared on his face 'I hope that was enough… Addams…how strange this man's body is'….

Through the halls of the castle we can see the legendary Black Death running as if there was no tomorrow, out of the corner of his eyes the old man could see something that resembled thunder approaching, using his hammer the walls of the place quickly shaped themselves forming a stone shield that was cut like paper by the Cardinal...

Addams tried to dodge the attacks the boy was making on his body, but wounds began to form quickly across the old man's body...

The assassin then hit the Cardinal with the sword in his hand forcing him to retreat back and now with a little space between the two Addams fired his pistol towards the Cardinal's head... but that proved useless as the bullet was cut in half like butter...

"Always the same old trick…" the Cardinal appeared in front of Addams already blinded with pure hatred… but this proved to be a mistake when in place of a desperate face he saw a smile on the assassin's face…

From the ground several stone stakes emerged hitting the Cardinal's arm delaying him for a few moments….

"This is why young people should learn from their elders"

Taking advantage that the Cardinal was immobilized, Addams hit the floor with his hammer and a greenish glow covered the walls of the corridor, collapsing these on the boy...

"Afff… what a tough nut to crack… this bastard doesn't die…" Addams was focused on the rubble in front of him the hallway was covered with stones to the top with no chance of passing "If he survives this I doubt anything will kill him"

Addams turned his back then and ran out of that damn castle 'Time to look for the boys'

Location: Catalina Forest, Outskirts of Melromarc Capital

*scrack track*

The sound of twigs and quick footsteps can be heard in the middle of a forest, getting closer to the noise we can see the four heroes... well... the four fugitives from the kingdom of Melromarc who escaped the clutches of King Aultcray...

The four boys were tired and had no energy for anything else…

"hafff... is Mr Addams ok?" Ren was the first to break the silence, even though the boy had the habit of keeping silent he was worried about the old man...

"No… I don't know" Itsuki replied a little shaken and tired still…

"Of course Mr Addams is fine… that old man… he… he is strong" Motoyasu replied in order to calm the two, but a noise caught the attention of the three heroes…

*track*

Naofumi punched one of the trees that was close to him the boy's eyes show anger it seems that he has finally come to a conclusion about the situation in which he finds himself "If… if it wasn't for me this would never have happened… all because of out of my ignorance…why…why did I believe them despite Mr Addams' warnings " Naofumi's pained voice seemed to touch his friends, they know very well what he is feeling

Itsuki, Ren and Motoyasu looked at Naofumi with some pity in their eyes after all it took this point for the boy to open his eyes to the coldness of this world... they know that the shield hero is disappointed in himself

Motoyasu walked over to the shield hero's side and placed his hand on the boy's shoulder and looked at him with a slightly pained smile...

"Don't blame yourself Naofumi we all have flaws, but we can improve after all we are human … I'm sure Mr Addams is fine … now enough of blaming ourselves with something we had no control over and let's find a place to rest and wait for the Mr Addams" Motoyasu spoke firmly showing the heroes that he was calm, even though he himself is as confused as his friends, but he knows that at least he must show that he is calm otherwise the group's morale will disappear.

The remaining heroes who heard Motoyasu's words just nodded and continued their walk through the middle of the forest...

Minutes later a glow was seen by the four heroes in the distance, the heroes were curious and followed the glow, when they got close to the glow they saw a clearing in front of them and a man with white hair and a crow's beak mask sitting in front of a fire pit …

The man looked at the heroes as if he knew they could arrive at the scene at any moment.

"Oh oh... looks like they're far from the right path... looks like it's changed"

The man seemed to be talking to himself...

"Hmmm … that's it … another will is intervening in this world"

The four heroes got their confirmation, this man is apparently crazy and they prepared their weapons for any surprises he might commit...

"Do you want me to… test them?"

"No no… I won't kill them… at least I'll try not to" the man's thick and hoarse voice made the heroes tense and doubting if they could beat the man as they are tired of running…

"And are you ready to eat the floor?" The man's red eyes stopped looking at the bonfire and stared at the heroes in front of him, the man's menacing gaze made the four heroes a little afraid of the man in front of them...

Motoyasu swallowed hard… surely this day couldn't get any worse… right?

To be continued…

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