Hope After Death

"W-what?!"

Bishop Carl's face twisted in confusion as he looked at the madman before him.

Yes, he was a madman.

What other word could be used to describe someone as deluded as him?

"This body is one that feels no pain, and practically all damage inflicted on it is deflected or healed so rapidly that it's not noticeable."

"... E-eh…?" The Bishop's bulging eyes could not hide the disbelief that he was feeling. "That can't be! You certainly felt the attacks! You even touched the parts of your body that were affected."

"Ahh… ohhh, so that's why you thought—"

"Don't even try to hide it! Your cool guy act won't work on me!" The once-calm Bishop was now falling apart, his bloodshot eyes heavily glaring on Lucius.

Even with all of the rising tension and mounting pressure, though, Lucius remained calm.

"I just felt a slight itch in those places." He stated plainly. "That's all."

"No… you're lying!"

"It's fine if you don't believe me, but I don't have to explain myself to you any more than this…" Lucius sighed. "Besides, this troublesome ability of yours makes it sort of pointless fighting you like this."

"W-what?!"

"It might be fun beating you up and seeing you heal over and over again, but right now I have to tend to my other affairs."

"...?!"

"Once I'm done with it, I'll see what I can do and figure out how to deal with you." With that, Lucius nonchalantly walked away from the Bishop and instead walked to where Lili's body lay.

"Y-you dare turn your back on me? Your adversary?!"

"I'm sure you also need more time to figure out how to beat me too, so let's just keep this on pause for now." He retorted while casually waving. "I'll be right here, so you don't have to worry about me running anywhere."

"B-but—!"

Before the Bishop could finish his words, Lucius turned to him, staring with a very dangerous glint in his glowing purple eyes.

It instantly struck fear into the heart of Bishop Carl.

"You should also have no funny ideas about escaping." Those words came subtly. "The moment you move from where you are, I'll end you instantly."

"...."

"Now then…" 

Lucius' eyes fell on the 'corpse' of his beloved Cult Leader. He swiftly knelt and cupped her pale body in his arms, his eyes focused on her still form.

"Lili… you did well." He whispered to her. "Thanks for holding on for so long."

Suddenly, the eyes of the corpse twitched and regained focus. The dull crimson irises of the Cult Leader focused squarely on Lucius at that moment.

"Y-you… finally came… Lord Mors." She whispered, her voice humming low and her words cracking.

She clearly wasn't dead, but no one could call this living.

'Just what is this woman? I noticed she didn't have a Soul hovering above her like the other ten. Her soul was still clinging to her body somehow, even with all this damage.' Lucius wondered to himself as he drowned in her gaze. 

"I came. Forgive me for being so late." He whispered, casting aside all of his thoughts as he looked at her for that forlorn moment.

"No… you came right on time. A moment later, and I'm not sure that my Soul would be able to keep its hold on my dead body…"

'How did she even achieve this? Some sort of Spell?' Lucius wondered.

"I can already feel my Soul rejecting this body… so please, Lord Mors, I have a favor to ask of you…" She slowly raised her hand and placed it on his cheek. 

A look of melancholy played on her face as she looked at him, but it was soon followed by a warm smile.

"Kill me."

Lucius was silent for a moment, even after listening to her request. He still had many questions in his mind—for example, why she held on to life just so she could be killed by his hands. However, now wasn't a time to think about that.

There was only one thing to do at this moment, and he didn't hesitate to.

"Okay…" He placed his hand on her cheek, instantly sending the power of death coursing through her rotting flesh.

One moment later… and she was nothing but dust.

"W-what?! You killed her? Even though there was a chance to save her life… you killed her instead?!" The loud voice of the Bishop echoed throughout the compound that had now become a battlefield.

He had watched the unbelievable sight of the Witch still somehow being alive even after he killed her, and he had thought her 'Lord Mors' would save her from death.

Instead… he went ahead to end her life.

"Pfft! So this is the Lord that the Heresy Cult devotes itself to! What a foolish set of people."

There was no response.

"Both Lili and the rest of them… all of you are foolish! Why follow such a man when you can find true power and salvation in the God of the Cathars?! There is greatness and prosperity in this life, and hope after death! Ahh… who is like our God!" As he praised and adored his deity, Lucius keenly watched him.

As always… calm.

"Hope after death…? A tempting proposition."

"So you agree!" The Bishop replied with immense energy. "Unlike your wretched Cult, our people are—"

"But… why die, to begin with?"

"What?!"

"Life after death… Death after life… it makes no difference." The whispers grew more intense. 

"In the end, everyone wants to live."

"You're insane! For a man who killed your devoted follower, you sure know the value of life." The Bishop sneered. "It's too bad you'll be dying very soon… alongside the Witch."

Lucius did not bat an eye at those words.

He had died once, and he had no intention to repeat that process.

But…

"Your Curse is quite interesting." Rather than address the threat on his life, Lucius chose to divert his attention to the power of the Bishop before him.

He even broke into a smile as he did so.

"You recover from damage inflicted on you, but I'm curious to see if you can recover from something else… something like death."

"W-what are you even saying…?!"

Lucius said nothing more to the man, instead focusing his attention on the souls of his fallen followers that cried out to him. It was finally time to hearken their call.

"Rise up."