FIERY SHIELD

Arex was still unsure whether it was the right thing to agree with Leomold. He was having some doubts despite how this specific lord had treated him nicely compared with the rest of his kind.

Although that would seem to be the case, Arex found it difficult to have faith in the process and ended up feeling betrayed. Yet, based on what Leomold had shared with him before, it was clear that there were no hidden motives involved, as Leomold had nothing to gain.

Moreover, Arex was convinced that Leomold had offered him a fair deal to examine his body in return for healing it.

"I also have another condition." Arex eventually said.

Leomold smiled back and said, "What's your condition?"

"I know I can't stop you from telling your high lord whatever information you'd find about my body, but I would appreciate being the first to know before anyone else. This is my body we're discussing after all, so I have all the rights to be the first one to be informed, right?"

Leomold gazed at Arex with a pensive expression before nodding in agreement, "That makes sense. Sure, I'll go along with your point. By the way, may I ask what your real name is, human? I'd rather call you by your name if that's okay." Leomold eventually inquired, following Arex's agreement.

"Arex, I go by the name Arex Carceri." Arex responded.

After that, Leomold nods as he finds out Arex's name and carefully pushes a glass of water closer to Arex's side of the table. "Here, Arex, I'd like you to drink all of this." Leomold stated.

Arex gazed at the glass of water, pondering the reason behind the insistence on hydration. "What is the purpose of this?" Arex couldn't resist inquiring.

"This is like a treatment that will purify and restore your skin tissue that sustained damage during the encounter with Halze." Leomold responded.

"Is this safe to consume? I mean, it's not poisoned, right?"

"I have no intension of poisoning you, Arex. If I were to do that, I would miss the opportunity to examine your body's structure. I'd prefer a living specimen rather than a deceased one." Leomold's swift and accurate reply quickly reassured Arex that the water was not actually harmful.

After that, Arex quickly drank the entire glass without stopping. Leomold felt satisfied when he noticed that Arex appeared to have placed his trust in him, especially after seeing how quickly he drank it.

"It had the flavor of simple water." Arex exclaimed after finishing his drink to the last drop. He gazed at the glass, still filled with a sense of awe. "Are you attempting to ridicule me or something? This is simply regular water!" Arex eventually expressed his frustration, his voice rising as if he was on the brink of exploding with anger.

Meanwhile, Leomold found it even more fascinating to hear that from Arex.

"Really? It just tasted like water to you?" Leomold asked with enthusiasm brimming in his eyes.

Arex had just become even more furious seeing how it would seem that Leomold was not even showing any sign of seriousness over his concern.

"Hey, you're not taking me seriously here, aren't you?" Arex protested.

Yet Leomold continued to show no indication of losing interest, his face still displaying fascination. After a short pause, Leomold responded, "Oh, yes, that beverage you consumed was actually blueberry-infused. It was supposed to be blue in color and taste like berries. However, it's just interesting that you seem to have lost your sense of taste since, of course, you're dead." Leomold pondered.

Leomold sounded as though he still had doubts about his conclusions. Leomold had never before possessed a living specimen which was why he was trying to carefully assess Arex.

"And what exactly do you mean by that?" Arex, who became intrigued by a sudden idea that Leomold mentioned, abruptly inquired. His voice had become quieter, helping him to relax afterwards.

Leomold pondered with his chin propped on his hand, gently stroking his upper lip with his index finger. "Your senses are quite unusual now, Arex. It's quite understandable that you may have lost your sense of taste, and even the slow discoloration of things affects your vision because you're dead. Yet, It's still a mystery how come you were able to have that damage from the attack that Lord Halze caused, when none among Lady Roxina and Lord Valkas' scythes were able to harm you?"

Arex remained silent. He could not say anything because he, too, was equally puzzled as Leomold was.

"Do you have any idea how it could have occurred?" Arex inquired, shattering the abrupt quietness that enveloped them.

"Hmm...Frankly, I don't have any. Although I'm looking through the report mentioned that Lady Roxina tried multiple times to turf your soul, but none of her efforts had any impact on you, plus both Lord Kiyo and Lord Valkas had a similar experience too. Earlier at the conference chamber, we all saw how Lord Valkas' scythe didn't even scratch you at all."

Arex was completely absorbed by Leomold's words and immediately wanted to understand what he was truly trying to convey, "What exactly are you trying to employ here?"

Yet, Leomold continued to evade a direct response. Instead, he brought up a different information that had been talked about among the other lords earlier at the chamber. "Arex, during your battle with Lord Halze, do you still remember seeing any blue flames?" Leomold inquired out of the blue.

It made Arex recalled that time while fighting Halze, and as he tried to remember it he was not able to see the same blue flames that helped him out most of the time.

"I don't remember seeing it. I think it went out after that blue haired guy with a thin braid launched his fiery scythe against me."

"I see. If my hunches were right then maybe that's the reason why you got wounded. The blue flames you're yielding were acting like shields that made you invulnerable to our scythes." Leomold suddenly thought. "Will you be able to summon this power now, Arex? the blue flames?"

"I am not sure about that." Arex immediately replied. confused as to what Leomold was really planning at the moment.

the next thing he knew, Leomold stood up and immediately took out a small bottle, almost the size of an index finger, from the inside pocket of his trench coat.

"Don't worry, I won't go harsh on you like lord Halze. I will just test if my theory is right." Leomold said which was followed by him pouring the liquid contents of the glass into his other palm.

It was not before long when Arex witnessed how the liquid formed like a scythe into Leomold's hand. from there Arex realized that it was Leomold's way of keeping his scythe hidden.

"Wait, is that your scythe?" Arex asked while pointed at Leomold's scythe which blade was like hardened crystal form of the water.

"Yes, this is my scythe and it's able to control all forms of liquid." Leomold replied which was followed by him extending the blade towards Arex's direction with one one. "Activating, Amorgan." 

Leomold's activation was more subtle compared to how others express theirs like it should supposed to sound like a battle cry.

Following the activation, a liquified circle infused with a shallow blue light appeared around Leomold's feet. 

"Amorgan, let's quench our thirst and aim for his blood." Leomold's tone may have been express less agressively, but it still sounded too wicked. 

it was almost as if he had just casted a terrifying spell. Leomold swung his scythe in an crisscross motion towards Arex's direction, aiming for his chest.

"Seriously?" Arex couldn't believe that Leomold was really serious about using his scythe against him.

He had no choice but to try and pull out the blue flames before he could get himself cut off by that powerful force that Leomold had just unleashed. 

Arex felt a surge of heat steaming off him, and before Leomold's attack could even harm him, the blue flames appeared across his body once more.

"I knew it," Leomold grin the moment he found his theory to be correct. "You really are able to utilize the blue flames to protect yourself against our scythes." he eventually added after making his scythe evaporate like smoke.

Arex stared at his hands, seemingly captivated by the power within. "Were protections the sole purpose it served for me?"

"I'm uncertain about that. I am not familiar with your abilities, to be completely honest, this is the first instance where we have come across a jinnx with such impressive strength and powers comparable to shikaris. which only make sense. now I get it why..." Leomold responded with a humorous laugh at the end.

Arex's left brow arched up, wondering what seemed to be funny about what he said, "What was so funny about that?"

When Leomold heard Arex, he quickly attempted to stifle his laughter while clutching his belly. He proceeded to dab away the small tear that had escaped from his left eye due to laughing.

"It's no surprise that Halze and the others were so determined to get rid of you."

"Why?"

"Because they're too afraid you might surpass us, the lords of the Black Parade."

The thought of surpassing those powerful lords that Arex had encountered earlier had never even crossed his mind. Although it was true that after this Jinnx thing was able to morph inside him, he was able to feel like he had gained an unexplainable amount of strength and even the power of being able to wield blue flames.

Yet claiming that he would eventually outdo even a single lord seemed far from achievable. He was unable to defend himself against them. Without the azure flames shielding him, Arex understood he would forever be destined to lose from them.

"I doubt that could ever happen. Did you see how I appeared weak when I confronted one of you? I look like a frantic rodent fleeing danger, and you seriously believe I could outshine you solely due to this ability?"

"Certainly not." Leomold promptly responded, causing Arex to feel unexpectedly let down. He believed Leomold would boost his confidence and agree, but Leomold quickly disagreed, almost as if he had changed his mind.

However, it appears Leomold enjoyed adding a little flavor to the conversation by eventually saying, "Well, simply because you're simply weak, for now. We're still uncertain about what will happen tomorrow. Who know if you become much stronger."

"How are you to say that?" Arex asked.

And Leomold simply smirked and replied, "You're an aberrant, remember? everything about you could be unpredictable."

Arex desired to delve deeper into the conversation with Leomold, but before Arex could even start questioning, Leomold swiftly changed the subject as if he wished to move on.

"I assume all your injuries have been completely healed by now." Leomold's statement prompted Arex to quickly investigate.

As Leomold predicted, the injuries on Arex's ribs had completely healed. There wasn't even a trace of a scar in sight. It was as if his injuries had miraculously disappeared.

"This is absolutely amazing. It's gone now." Arex quickly responded by running his hand over his ribs, trying to confirm the reality of what he was witnessing. Eventually, he verified that his injury had completely healed. "Hey, Leomold, It's really healed."

All of a sudden, Arex's focus shifted to Leomold, who was strolling towards a different door on the opposite side of the entrance they had used before.

Before Leomold could even open the door, he turned back to Arex to toss him a pair of white tunic and black pants he took from a nearby chair and said, "Good. If you're feeling better, go get dressed as we should go see the high lord, he's been waiting for you."