Requiem of the Damned

“Haha, Eugene… you never could have imagined it… hahaha…”

Like a madman, he glared at the person on the ground.

In the next instant, he jerked his head up nervously and burst into laughter at the full moon above.

Then he suddenly lowered his head again, trembling violently like a lunatic, as if seized by convulsions.

But he would not convulse now.

Because he was already, in a sense, a corpse.

From the very beginning, he had only been a shell controlled by a parasite.

At best, nothing more than a walking corpse—perhaps a walking corpse with Savage’s memories.

That tail was merely pretending to be Savage.

Eugene clutched his pierced abdomen and looked up in fury at Savage.

Their eyes met.

That reddish-brown face—under the high temperature, the blood had already dried rapidly.

The body that had slaughtered countless people was almost entirely stained crimson.

Only the face he had wiped clean with cloth retained a faint brownish-red hue.

His entire body, even his clothes, had hardened stiffly.

Their gazes locked, as if transcending time itself.

Eugene seemed to return to that arena—the arena that determined his fate.

From the very beginning, Savage had already become a puppet.

Only the symptoms were not yet obvious then; the Flower of Death was still in its seed form.

So Savage had not behaved too strangely.

But now, the Flower of Death behind him had grown into two chain blades…

It had completely matured.

It had replaced the original Savage, inheriting his memories.

Even the tail itself believed it was Savage.

The greatest lie in the world… is deceiving oneself.

That is obsession.

Or perhaps, faith.

And for that faith, one will do anything.

The tail obeyed the black mage behind the scenes, and in turn controlled the host’s body.

Under normal circumstances, it would imitate Savage, becoming almost indistinguishable from him.

But a tail is still just a tail.

It amplified every emotion infinitely, believing that this would make it more like its host…

Strength was Savage’s original desire.

Thus, he created the Soul-Devouring Orb, using it to absorb others’ cultivation and strengthen himself.

His hatred for Eugene followed the same logic.

Under the tail’s infinite amplification, that thought had evolved into—

Destroy Eugene.

Yet he maintained enough rationality to suppress this desire.

That was how he could blend into crowds, appearing like a normal person.

He even became a bishop.

He deceived Savage’s family.

He deceived the Church.

He even deceived himself.

It—the tail—was Savage.

“Have you thought about how you’ll explain this massacre…?”

Eugene lay flat on the ground.

Blood flowed steadily from his abdomen, gathering into a small pool.

A chill spread through his body.

He understood—he was bleeding out.

He didn’t have much time left…

Just as that old woman had said—he wouldn’t survive today.

“Hah?! What did you say?! You monster! Black mage!”

Savage’s face twisted grotesquely, his eyes widening to an impossible extent, as if his jaw might dislocate.

“Could it be…”

He suddenly froze and muttered softly.

“Could it be…?”

Each word Eugene spoke sent sharper pain through his abdomen.

“Could it be that the people in this town… weren’t killed by you?~”

Savage frowned deeply, looking at Eugene with fear—as if staring at a monster.

“…”

Eugene choked.

He couldn’t refute it.

The escaped black mage… rescued by accomplices… fled the Duchy of Bordeaux…

Massacred a town along the way…

And was ultimately executed on the spot by the traveling red-clad bishop—Savage.

Everything was flawless.

Perfect.

He had completely become the “black mage.”

The script had returned to the execution ground from two days ago.

In the end, he was still the black mage—

Judged and executed by the “righteous” Church.

Only this time, his escape had doomed an entire town.

“Hahaha…”

Eugene suddenly let out a dry laugh.

“…?”

Savage stared at him, momentarily at a loss.

“Funny?”

Savage’s expression hardened as he asked coldly.

“Hahaha… cough… hahaha… cough…”

Eugene continued laughing, coughing up blood as he did.

Blood spilled from the corners of his mouth.

He ignored it.

He kept laughing.

“Hahahahahahahahahahahaha!”

Savage burst into laughter as well, eyes wide, his expression bordering on insanity.

His jaw hung open as if about to fall off, like a monstrous beast baring its fangs.

A laugh without warmth—more like rage than humor.

But Eugene felt no fear.

When death is this close… what is there left to fear?

“Hahaha… cough cough… hahaha! I… cough… laugh at you! In the end… you’re just… a shell! Hahaha!”

He laughed and coughed blood at the same time.

The light in his brown eyes was slowly fading.

Yet his words remained sharp.

“…Still laughing?”

Savage realized—this meant nothing to a dying man.

“Bang!”

He turned and kicked Eugene hard in the abdomen.

“Laugh! Hahaha—keep laughing!”

“Bang!”

Before Eugene could cry out, he delivered another kick.

“Haha…”

“Bang!”

Eugene paused briefly—then burst into laughter again.

Savage kicked him again without mercy.

“Cough… cough…”

Blood pooled beneath Eugene’s head.

Pain overwhelmed him.

The world spun.

Everything seemed wrapped in a hazy sweetness.

He understood.

Death was near.

He had pierced through Savage’s defenses with spell marks…

Dodged the explosive flames…

Bypassed the ice wall…

Used Wind Reversal to descend from the sky—

Just like Savage once had.

An impossible maneuver.

From an unexpected angle, he struck Savage successfully.

In an instant, Savage ignited like a candle.

“AAAAAAHHHHHH!!!”

Flames and heat erupted instantly as the Flame Sigil activated.

This spell could reduce an elephant to ashes in seconds—

Let alone a human.

Eugene collapsed, exhausted.

He knew—this time, Savage would surely die.

He had executed everything perfectly…

Fireball, misdirection, wind spell, final strike…

Just like Savage once did.

But this time—

Eugene succeeded.

Savage… had not.

Crack—

A crisp shattering sound.

Eugene turned his head sharply.

Something was wrong.

The flames were extinguished instantly.

The charred figure stood frozen in crystal-like ice—like an insect trapped in amber.

Crack…

Cracks spread across the ice.

Eugene forced himself up.

He… wasn’t dead.

“Whoosh—!”

A charred tail shot forward like an arrow—

Piercing straight through Eugene’s body before he could stand.

It bored a bloody hole through his abdomen.

“Ah… careless…”

Savage spoke indifferently.

His body was nearly charcoal.

Some parts were burned down to bone—

While others remained completely intact.

“…In the end… I won… Eugene…”

Savage looked down at him.

Eugene could barely breathe now.

More exhale than inhale.

This six-year-long battle—

In light and shadow—

Had finally ended.

Suddenly—

That body, controlled by the tail…

Shed tears.

“…What is this…”

Savage muttered, staring blankly at the liquid falling from his eyes.

Were these tears repentance… for the dead?

Or a final tribute… to a worthy opponent?

No one would ever know.

Eugene lay in a pool of blood.

This revenge—so long in the making—

Had ended in failure.

And he never even realized…

He had been watched from the very beginning.

Or rather—

The tail had been watching.

That boy…

That long-dead boy…

In a dark alley of the black street—

Made a pact with a black mage.

And from that moment on…

This absurd duel had begun.

In the end—

They were both just children.

“May the Goddess… bless you…”

“May your soul reach heaven—where there is no scheming, no conflict…”

For once, he spoke like a true bishop—

Offering a prayer for the dying youth.

“…Wait.”

He suddenly paused.

“May I… fall into hell…”

He added that strange final line.

Then the prayer ended.

It wouldn’t be long now…

The boy he framed…

Would die from blood loss.

And his body—

Would be taken back—

To be publicly burned.