Chapter 357: A Great Person

Power makes right.

It was what Kai learned from having to struggle as a Lesser Angel.

As long as someone has enough power to go against the norm, then it would be the new right thing to do. On the contrary, if someone doesn’t have enough power required, then it would be a disaster.

Someone powerful would intervene and eventually, power would take control again.

Back when Kai was still a Lesser Angel, he was wrong all the time.

No matter how compliant and good he was, there would always be something wrong.

Now, once he became the Red Prince, the complete opposite happened. Even when he enacted revenge on those who had done him wrong while he was still small and weak, it never became a problem for him.

Kai had tasted what it felt like to become one of the strong.

He understood why people do it—the control and satisfaction of being able to do what many others couldn’t do brought along a feeling that nothing could replicate. But nevertheless, this was wrong.

At least, there should be a limit.

Nothing like that would ever appear unless the strong remained the same people.

Kai was made certain of that after listening to what Marcus had to say.

"I am going as fast as I could because the world would not wait." Kai continued, and then he gestured towards the corpse beside him. "Soon—there would be new Angels who would also go through what we went through. And my aspiration is still far away. Five years. Ten years. Or even more than that.

"If I don’t rush, then how many more would need to suffer?"

Bryan’s mouth opened, but no words came out.

He then averted his gaze, slowly understanding why Kai was moving quickly.

It would take a long time for him to become a Demigod, and it would take longer to challenge the ones in power and eventually replace them. Relaxing even for a little bit meant far more people were going to die.

New Angels would be sacrificed. Families would be sacrificed. Innocence would be sacrificed.

Kai has experienced the worst life an Angel could have.

And that experience fueled his determination to make a meaningful change to the world.

No need for more people to suffer.

Seeing the gloom hovering above Bryan’s head like a cloud, a smile crept to Kai’s face.

He approached slowly and then placed his clean hand on Bryan’s shoulder—clasping it firmly as if to give away his strength. "I understand that you might feel left behind, but the Ambrosia Pact never mattered. As long as you understood and believed in the goal, then we would always be one even if we were separated.

"Do you still have your family, Bryan?" He asked.

Bryan straightened his back and nodded firmly. "Yes."

"Do you want them to live again, truly live again as they did on the surface?"

"I do."

"Then fuck the group. Fuck the cum laude. Keep pursuing a better future, and we would most certainly meet again if you fell behind. Even if you fell behind, we’ll wait for you up there. No matter what, I want you to understand that you—" Kai pressed his index finger gently against Bryan’s chest. "You will always be my friend, and there would always be a place for a friend."

Dorian also slapped Bryan’s back one time.

A form of encouragement that Bryan understood without needing to hear a single word.

Despite his circumstances, his lips curled into a smile as he bobbed his head up and down.

"You know... I was pissed at you back then for forcing me to swear upon Zeus. I also thought that I made the wrong choice being with your group." Bryan muttered, recalling the first time he decided to follow Kai. "But then, you welcomed me into your group. And you helped me get back at Chester. I must say, Kai... You’re a great person—and it’s an honour to be by your side as your friend.

"And yes, I also think this dark world needs to change for the better." He added.

Kai’s lips didn’t curl into a smile immediately.

Both corners were drawn down for a second before finally forming a smile.

He patted Bryan’s shoulder and then turned around to look back at the hole-filled hill.

Behind, Dorian was also saying his piece—encouraging Bryan as he did.

But their voices were tuned out, turning into static in the background—as his mind wandered somewhere else. He placed both hands behind his back and stared at the holes as if they were much more entertaining than what was happening behind him.

A great person... No, I am not.

Bryan’s words kept ringing inside his mind.

It was a compliment, a heartfelt one too, but Kai couldn’t accept those words.

How could he? He didn’t believe what he was saying at all.

Or at least, he didn’t feel like he truly believed it.

A better future? Change the world for the better? Ensuring the innocent would not suffer what he had? No—none of that was the main point. None of that was what Kai truly wanted when he set out to grow stronger and tear down the powerful who ruled the world.

His reason was much simpler.

Revenge.

Kai stared into the empty space before him, and the world around began to fall away.

His senses detached from the environment, drawing inward, collapsing into the mere confines of his own skin. The cold wind brushing against his skin, the crunch of snow, and the distant murmurs of the forest—all of it faded into a muffled, suffocating static.

He could hear his breaths coming in and out roughly, scraping against his throat.

Could hear his own heartbeat pounding against the inner walls of his chest.

Slowly, he closed his eyes for a moment.

And once he opened them again, he swallowed harshly.

Before him, the empty space was no longer empty.

A Demon stood there.

Like always, he was imperious, carrying the bearing of a king. No—a God. His black and gold robe draped his body fittingly; the quality fabric flowing like liquid shadow and molten metal, an attire of a being who brought the cold embrace of death and mayhem wherever he walked.

Covering his face was a red, horned Demon mask that burned like a preserved fire.

It was a stark contrast against the snowy backdrop, like blood on ice.

But the mask could not hide the icy gaze behind it.

An impassive gaze that viewed everyone around him as nothing more than animals. Sacrificial pawns that could be tossed away like they were nothing, like their lives meant nothing. Even now, after months of growing exponentially stronger, the shadow of the Demon Man was still overwhelmingly vast and deep.

It stretched over Kai like an impending doom.

His presence was still dominating; a physical weight that pressed down on Kai’s body.

Kai felt his shoulders slumping, his legs growing weak, and his knees trembling.

It felt like he was a helpless mortal staring at a God.

A child standing before the abyss.

However, like back then, Kai didn’t flinch away from this icy gaze.

He held his ground and stared into the icy depths—and he made his promise inside his heart once again. Not because he hadn’t done it before, but to remind himself why he aspired to be even stronger.

One day, he would have the Demon Man’s head.

And he would offer it to his sister as his final parting gift.

Sensing the intent behind Kai’s eyes, the Demon Man narrowed his eyes as if amused.

And then, he disappeared.

"Kai."

A hand tapped on Kai’s shoulder, and the world snapped back into focus.

Kai looked to his side and realized that it was Dorian; there was a troubled frown on his face.

"Hey. You okay?" He asked.

"Yeah." Kai nodded and turned around again. "Did you say something to me?"

"No. I was only confused about why you’re standing there. Are we done here?"

"No, we’re not."

Kai shook his head and cleared his throat. He then glanced at the corpse on the side. "He’s on his deathbed already. His infection is already making him sick. Even if we help him, the Guard Angels would sweep Ixos clean when the new batch of Angels arrived."

"I understand." Bryan nodded, already accepting that fact.

It seemed Kai was worried that they would view him differently because of what he did.

But in reality, that was the only logical move.

Helping the man survive would only prolong his suffering as he would be dead soon enough anyway. He kept trying to survive because he believed his family was still alive, but they were not—they were long dead.

None of the failed Angels’ families were spared.

Even if his family was somehow alive, the Guard Angels would kill him regardless.

Failing the Blood Rite meant he had no place in the sky, and living was practically impossible.

Now that I thought about it, how are Roan’s parents still alive?

Kai thought for a second—and then pushed that thought to the back of his mind. He has little to no idea about how the hive works, so there must be rules and loopholes in them that could be exploited.

"Come on." He walked towards the corpse. "Let’s give him a proper burial."

Kai, Dorian, and Bryan worked together to dig a grave through the snow.

Despite the biting cold that gnawed at their skin, the cold wind that whipped around their faces, and the numbness creeping into their fingers regardless of their gloves, they dug a generously proper grave with their bare hands coated with mana in silence.

The process was harder than it should have been.

The ground beneath the snow was half-frozen, stubborn, resisting the bite of their hands. But they dug anyway. They dug until the hole was deep enough, until the snow was stained with the dark earth beneath.

Burying the dead in soil made them feel normal.

On the surface, burying someone after dying was the norm.

A fallen comrade, a lost friend, a family member—they were given a grave.

But here, in the brutal crucible of the world of Angels, many weren’t given that decency.

And that included his sister, Bella. Instead of being buried or cremated, she was tossed into his prison cell as a tool to break him. Allowing her corpse to lie on the cold floor was too much for Kai to bear.

It was the reason why he decided to devour her using the Deep Slumber Legacy Skill.

Perhaps because of that, he would try to bury corpses whenever he could.

Not only for the corpse to get the honour it deserved, but also to make up for his failure.

Something to ease the knot in his heart.