Jake memandang pria dengan rambut lurus yang diketuk rapi dan sikap santainya. Pria itu mengenakan jubah putih sederhana yang mengingatkannya pada jubah dokter, meskipun sudah jelas terEnchanted. Namun, bukan untuk menilai gaya berpakaian, tapi untuk membunuh seorang vampir.
u201cPindah.u201d
Eron memandangnya sambil mengangguk kepalanya. u201cSaya minta maaf, saya tak bisa melakukannya.u201d
u201cKamu akan menghentikanku?u201d
u201cPenundaan saja. Aku disewa untuk menunda kedatanganmu ke kamar Count sebanyak satu setengah jam. Atau sekitar satu jam sekarang. Jika kamu ingin tahu, ya, ini Augur dan Gereja Suci yang merekrutku,u201d jelaskan Eron dengan jujur. u201cSaya tidak ingin ini berubah menjadi kekerasan sia-sia, jadi bisakah kita duduk dan menikmati kopi sambil menunggu? Atau kamu lebih suka teh?u201d
Jake terkesiap melihat pria yang tersenyum lega sambil menggodok cangkir kopi di depannanya. Masalahnya u2026 dia harus lewat jalan ini. Seperti kamar Count lainnya, jalan menuju sana bersifat linier. Ada satu masuk dan satu keluar.
Dalam Sphere of Perception-nya, dia melihat sisi lain dari pintu logam. Seorang grup tanguh sebelas orang berdiri di dekat gerbang di sisi lain sambil mengalirkan mana ke dalamnya. Dengan Eron di depannya dan kelompok itu di belakangnya, situasinya semakin rumit.
Tidak buruk, Jacob.
Jake harus mengakui ini tak terduga. Eron adalah salah satu dari sedikit orang yang tak bisa ia pahami di planet ini. Dia adalah satu-satunya orang lain di Bumi dengan garis darah, menurut pengetahuannya, yang langsung membuatnya menjadi orang yang sangat penting.
Sayangnya bagi Eron, Jake tak ada keinginan untuk tertunda.
u201cYa, tidak. Keluarlah, atau aku akan membuatmu.u201d
Eron memandangnya. u201cMenyendiri, namun kemarahanmu bisa dimengerti. Baiklah, aku penasaran untuk melihat upkemanmu membuatku pergi. Jika kekerasan tak terhindarkan, setidaknya sedikit bermakna. Aku sudah mendengar banyak tentang dirimu dan kemampianmu, jadi tolong tunjukkan metodumu.u201d
Jake mengedipkan matanya. Ia sudah menggunakan Identify padanya, namun hasilnya mengecewkan.
[?]
Tak peduli apa pun yang dilakukannya, Jake tak bisa penetrasi. Meskipun begitu, dia masih bisa merasakan kekuatan gila pria ini u2026 Namun, apa yang dia rasakan hanyalah sama seperti saat World Congress: perasaan bahwa melawan dia akan sia-sia.
Akhirnya, Jake mengeluarkan napas sekaligus mengambil satu langkah. Ia muncul langsung di depan Eron yang masih berusaha membuat kopi. Dengan cepat menarik pisannyamembunuh, ia menempatkan pisannya di lehernya, sementara Eron tak tergoyahkan.
u201cTidak ada?u201d
u201cReakSaya akan membuatmu yakin bahwa dekapitasi akan membunuhku. Aku lebih suka tidak melakukannya, karena akan merusak minuman ini,u201d jawab Eron sambil memutar garpu dalam cangkir kopi panasnya.
Jake mengerutkan kening, menyimpan pisannya, lalu berjalan mulus ke gerbang. Dia sudah memeriksanya dengan sphere-nya, dan ini jauh kurang aman dibanding lainnya. Sementara yang lain Butuh waktu 20 menit untuk membuka pintunya, ini bisa ia selesaikan dalam lima menit.
Saat ia mulai membakar engsel pintu yang rakitan, Eron melambai tangannya, dan sebuah nyala api putih aneh muncul lalu berbentuk menjadi sebuah panah api.
Jake menghentikan pekerjaannya dan memandangnya. Ia memutuskan untuk memblokirnya karena rasa penasarannya. Begitu nyala api mengenai tangannya, seolah-olah hancur, dan tiba-tiba ia merasakan aliran hangaau2026 sebelum mulai terbakar, dan Jake harus menggigit bibirnya dari rasa sakit. Hanya sejenak saja, energi internalnya meniadakan energi asing itu, namun ia menyadari baru saja kesehatannya terluka secara langsung.
Apa-apaan sih ini?Jake membisikkan dalam hatinya saat mundur. Ia tulus-tulus tidak tahu apa-apa tentang sihir ini, namun ia yakin bahwa ini berbahaya dalam jumlah besar.
u201cKubisanya, aku harus menunda kamu lagi. Jadi, bisakah kita relaks dan menunggu sekitar semalaman? Atau setidaknya seranglah aku dulu,u201d tawanya sambil mengambil minumannya.
u201cTidak untuk yang pertama.u201d
Kali ini Jake tak tertarik mendengkannya. Eron menyerang duluan, dia akan membalasnya setara. Lalu, dengan cepat menarikhir Nanoblade-nya, Jake menyerbu. Ia mengharapkan lawannya melompat, namun pria itu tak bergerak, dan dengan mudah Jake membelahnya di perut.
u201cAku mengharapkan keaslian lebih,u201d kata Eron sesaat sebelum bagian bawah tubuh terpotongnya menghilang sebagai mengglobal menjadi kabut merah, dan Eron mendarat di kakinya yang baru sembuh.
Sekarang Jake sungguh mengerutkan keningnyau2026 Ia sebab melihat prosesnya sepenuhnya. Ini bukanlah peniadakan kerusakan. Eron telah menerima banyak damage; Jake yakin. Tandaanya juga membenarkan. Namun, pria itu tak tergoyahkanu2026 Ia hanya mengobati lukanya secara instan, tanpa pun Jake mendeteksi adanya sihir yang digunakan.
Regenerasi alami ekstrem?
u201cApa kamu?u201d tany Jake, sementara Eron tak pernah melepas sanggup minumannya.
u201cSebuah manusia, seperti kamu. Aku tidak ingin terdengar kliak, tapi kita tidak begitu berbeda, kamu dan aku. Kita semua mencari puncak yang mungkin u2013 untuk menjelajah di balik pintu-pintu yang membuka dunia multiversal ini. Kita hanya memilih membuka pintu yang berbeda. Sementara kamu mengincar kehancuran dan kematian, aku mencari pelestarian dan kehidupan. Ah, tapi jangan anggap ini sebagai pengunjukku. Kedua-duanya perlu, meskipun aku mungkin tak suka jalanmu,u201c monolog Eron. Jake tidak tahu apakah karena pria ini punya banyak waktu, atau memang pria yang suka berbicara.
u201cPun, aku ingin melihat apakah bisa memusnahkanmu,u201d kata Jake sambil menyerang lagi. Ia menyalurkan energi arcanenya ke pisannya saat menusuk Eron, yang tak terganggu karena berbicara.
u201cEvolusi itu konsep yang menarik, bukan? Untuk berkembang menjadi versi sempurna milik sendiriu2026 Namun, ada banyak hal yang akan selalu sama. Aku tidak bicara tentang ciri fisik yang sia-sia, tapi apa yang ada di balik kulit. Usus, hati, sebagian besar usus halus. Semuanya dinilai tidak penting saat kita berhenti membutuhkannya,u201d jelaskan Eron, sementara Jake sudah membelahnya menjadi banyak potongan, termasuk setengah kepalanya dan otaknya. Namun pria itu tetap berbicara seolah tidak terganggu.
u201cHeh, mengapa kamu tetap membrani?u201d balas Jake sambil menghancurin dalam-dalam Eron dengan Touch of the Malefic Viper, meskipi racunnya selalu dineutralisir oleh banjir energi vital, namun sebelum mengkoreng dada penuhnya, termasuk isi yang ada di dalamnya.
u201cParu-paru tidak bertahan untuk menghirup udara, tapi untuk menghirup mana. Kami bernapas untuk meregenerasi diri; inilah sebabnya meditasi begitu dekat dengan teknik pernapasan. Kami menyimpan perut tidak untuk mendapatkan nutrisi tetapi hanya untuk kesenangan. Bahkan banyak hal bertahan hanya untuk kesenangan. Kesombongan manusia. Sekarang, beberapa hal masih masuk akal. Alat kelamin akan tetap berfungsi untuk berkembang biak karena kita makhluk biologis, tapi mengapa kamu masih memiliki anus ketika sudah tidak lagi berfungsi untuk buang air besok? Aku duga itu hanya bertahan untuku2026u201d
u201cGila, terlalu banyak informasi,u201d protes Jake sambil menghancurkan Eron ke tanah lagi, menyebabkan setengah tubuhnyameledak, termasuk kepalanya. Seluruh tubuhnya meregenerasi dalam seketika sambil tetap berkata-kata.
u201cBaiklah, aku akan melompat ke inti masalah. Di samping organ kemewahan ini, kamu tahu apa yang terakhir-hirir menghilang di semua makhluk hidup? Apa yang dianggap penting dan yang takkan kita bisa lepaskan dalam pencarian kesempurnaannya?u201d tanya Eron, bukan lagi retorik kali ini.
u201cTidak tahu, Kentengs?u201d jawab Jake, semakin terganggu. Sentuhan tidak berhasil, sihir arcanenya tidak berhasil, bahkan ia mencoba Gaze of the Apex Hunter, namun hanya menghalanginya sejenak. Dengan energi arcane-nya, ia menumpuk Arcane Charge hingga maksimalu2026 namun tetap tidak berhasil.
u201cIyau2026 tapi selain itu, yang tersisa adalah hati dan otak meskipun relevansinya semakin berkurang. Aku yakin aku sendiri adalah contoh yang baik. Faktanya, tidak ada organ yang vital untuk tetap hidup.u201d
t
Jake memutuskan untuk beralih taktik, mevarijakannya dengan senarai mana dalam bentuk menggulingkannya jauh dari gerbang.
Namun, tatkala ia selesai mengikatnya, indra bahayanya bereaksi untuk pertama kalinya. Jake mundur sejenak, sementara tubuh Eron terbakar energi, dan pria gila itu meledak dalam ledakan merah energi vital dan kabut, agak mirip dengan penghuni bawah tanah namun jauh lebih kecil dan terlokalisir.
Perbedaan lainnya adalah Deepdwellers tidak muncul kembali sebelum kabutnya benar-benar mereda.
u201cKasusnya seperti ini, aku yakin. Kita tidak lagi bergantung pada tubuh kita sebagai makhluk hidup. Selama nyala api kita tetap menyala, kita tetap hidup. Nyala api ini tidak ada di dalam tubuh kitau2026 melainkan di luar,u201d kata Eron sambil seraya memanggil kembali jubahnya untuk menuturinya.
Jake memandangnya sejenak lalu bertanya: u201cApakah kamu kebal pembunuhan?u201d Ia baru saja melihatnya menghancuri tubuhnya hingga tak tersisa. Bahkan tak tetes darahpun tersisa, namun ia meregenerasi.
Eron memandangnya. u201cTidak. Tidak, aku tidak percaya ada sesuatu yang benar-benar kebal di dunia multiversal ini. Setiap nyala api yang ada, harus ada kekuatan yang bisa memadamkannya. Setidaknya, aku percaya keseimbangan ini penting. Aku tidak pernah mencurigai bahwa seorang dewa bisa menghilangkan keberadaanku jika memang diinginkan.u201d
Kedua pria itu berdiri sejenak dalam hening. Jake merenungkan apa yang harus dilakukan, sementara Eron tak terus menggunaui mulutnya.
u201cMari kita kembali ke topik sebelumnyau2026 Otak dan hati tetap ada. Otak mengendalikan tubuh dan mempercepat reaksi. Ia tak lagi menjadi rumah siapa diri kita, tapi lebih seperti otot kompleks yang berfungsi untuk memperkuat fungsi tubuh kita. Aku bisa melihat ini masuk akal sebagai landasan fisik dan kekuatan fisik di luar keilmuan. Tapiu2026 ini membawa kita pada hati.
u201cMengapa kita butuh hati, dan mengapa hati adalah pusat dari kita? Kamu memiliki garis darah, jadi aku yakin kamu tahu bahwa hati ini terhubung ke inti jiwa kita. Itu adalah titik kontak antara egzistensi metafisik dan bentuk fisik kita. Saat aku menyembuhkan, hati adalah yang pertama kali muncul,u201d katanya sambil mencabut hatinya untuk ditunjukkan. Kemudian ia meledakkan tubuhnya yang lain sekaligus membentuk kembali.
u201cHati tetap memompa darah dan sekarang menciptakan darah itu juga. Ini secara alami membuka pertanyaan tentang mengapa darah masih diperlukan. Aku yakin ini kembali kepada penanamangan yang fisik. Untuk mentransfer energi melalui media fisik lebih efektif daripada tidak. Agar darah mengirimkan energi vital ke tubuh saja masuk akal, bu
Jake looked at the man with his combed-back slick hair and casual demeanor. He wore a simple white robe that reminded Jake a bit of the coat doctors would wear based on its design, though it was clearly magical and enchanted. However, he wasn’t there to judge fashion but to kill a vampire.
“Move.”
Eron looked back at Jake as he shook his head. “I apologize; I’m unable to do that.”
“You’re gonna stop me?”
“Delay. I was contracted to delay your arrival in the Count’s chamber by one and a half hours. Ah, around an hour only now. In case you wonder, yes, it was the Augur and the Holy Church who contracted me,” Eron explained forthcomingly. “I shall be honest, I would prefer for this not to devolve into needless violence, so would it be too much to ask for us to simply sit down for a cup of coffee and wait? Or do you prefer tea?”
Jake looked a bit dumbfounded at the man who just stood there with a light smile on his face as he summoned a small coffee table and a pair of chairs. The issue was… Jake needed to go down this hallway. Like with the other Count chambers, the way there was linear. There was one way in and one way out.
Within his Sphere of Perception, he saw the other side of the metal door. A group of fifteen people stood close to the gate on the other side as they channeled mana into it. With them and Eron in front of him, the situation had suddenly gotten a lot more annoying.
Well played, Jacob .
Jake had to admit this wasn’t expected. Eron was one of the few unknowns of the planet that he couldn’t really understand. He was the one other person on Earth with a bloodline as far as Jake was aware, instantly making him a person of interest.
Sadly for Eron, Jake had no interest in being delayed.
“Yeah, no. Fuck off, or I’m gonna make you.”
Eron looked up at Jake. “Rude, but I guess your anger is understandable. Fine, I am looking forward to seeing your attempt at making me leave, as if violence becomes a necessity, let it at least have a purpose. I have heard much of you and your capabilities, so please show me your methods.”
Jake narrowed his eyes. He had already used Identify on the man, but the result had been disappointing.
[?]
No matter what he did, Jake couldn’t pierce it. It wasn’t that bad as Jake still got a feel for the madman’s strength… but all that told him was the same as during the World Congress. A feeling that fighting him would be a waste of time.
In the end, Jake sighed as he took a step. He appeared straight in front of Eron, who was still making his coffee. Drawing his blade, Jake placed it at the neck of Eron, who stood unfazed.
“Nothing?”
“My reaction would warrant a belief that decapitation would do me any harm. I would prefer to do without, though, as it would ruin my drink,” Eron answered as he twirled the spoon in the cup of hot coffee.
Frowning, Jake put his blade away and just ignored Eron as he went over to the gate. He had already inspected it with his sphere, and it was far from as well secured as all the others. While those took him twenty minutes to get off a door, he could easily do this one in five.
Just as he began burning at the hastily assembled hinges, Eron waved his hand as an odd flame appeared and formed into a bolt. Jake stopped what he was doing and looked back to see a pure white flaming bolt be fired his way.
He decided to block it primarily out of curiosity. The moment the flame hit his hand, it just sank into Jake’s body, and instantly he felt like a warm flow went through his body… before it began burning, and Jake had to grit his teeth from the pain. It was only for a moment before his own internal energies dispelled the foreign energy, but Jake saw and felt he had taken damage directly to his health points.
What the fuck was that? Jake asked himself as he backed away. He genuinely had no idea what the fuck that magic was, but he knew it was dangerous in large quantities.
“Once more, I am to delay you. So please, can just we just relax for the next hour or so? Or at least have it be you attacking me?” Eron asked before taking a sip of his coffee.
“No to the first one.”
This time Jake didn’t hold back. Eron struck him first, and he would respond in kind. Then, brandishing his Nanoblade, Jake attacked. He expected the other party to dodge, but the man just stood there as Jake effortlessly bisected him at the stomach.
“I expected more originality,” Eron said. A split second later, his severed lower body simply disappeared as they exploded into red mist, and Eron landed on his newly healed legs.
Now Jake really frowned… for he had seen the entire progress. This wasn’t nullification of damage. Eron had just taken some significant damage; Jake was sure of it. His Mark confirmed as much too. Yet the man seemed unaffected… he had just healed it instantly, without Jake even detecting any magic being used.
Natural extreme regeneration?
“What are you?” Jake asked, Eron having not even let go of his cup.
“A human, just like you. I do not mean to sound cliché, but we are not so different, you and I. We both seek the pinnacle of what is possible - to explore behind all the doors this new multiverse has opened up! We have just chosen to open different doors. While you aim for destruction and death, I seek preservation and life. Ah, but do not see this as me admonishing you. Both are necessary, even if I may personally dislike your path,” Eron monologed. Jake didn’t know if it was because the dude had time on his side or if he really was such a talker.
“Then let me see if I can destroy you,” Jake said as he attacked again. He infused his blade with arcane energy as he stabbed Eron, who just kept talking.
“Evolution is an interesting concept, is it not? To develop towards your own version of perfection… yet some things will forever be in common. I am not talking of the vain outward features but what is beneath the skin. The viscera- oh excuse me, internal organs will slowly disappear in the ranking of importance. The spleen, liver, large parts of the intestines. All of these are judged unimportant as we as humans stop needing them,” Eron said, Jake, having already cut him into many pieces, including half of his head and the brain. Yet the man kept talking as if unaffected.
“However, it is not these I find the most interesting. It is those that remain… or, more accurately, why they remain. Tell me, Mr. Thayne, why do you need lungs when you do not need to breathe? Why do you retain a stomach when you do not need to eat? Is it not fascinating how the reason why we keep those is not for their original purpose?”
“How you seem to not need any organs at all sure is fascinating,” Jake said as he repeatedly turned Eron’s insides to mush with Touch of the Malefic Viper, only to see his poison constantly be nullified by a flood of vital energy but not before corroding his entire chest away, everything within included.
“The lungs do not remain to inhale air, but mana. We breathe to regenerate ourselves; it's why meditation is so closely interlinked with breathing techniques. We keep our stomachs not to get nutrients but simply for pleasure. In fact, many things remain only for pleasure. Human vanity. Now, some things make sense that they remain. The sexual organs will forever serve the purpose of reproduction as we are biological creatures, but why retain the anus when it is no longer used for the excretion of waste? I surmise it’s only retained for se-“
“Dude, what the fuck, too much information,” Jake blurted out as he smashed Eron into the ground again, making half of his body explode, including the head. His entire body regenerated within a moment as the man kept speaking.
“Very well, let me just skip the details then and get to the point. Besides those vanity organs or features, do you know what the last organs to disappear are in all biological creatures of the system? What has been deemed essential, and that we, even in our pursuit of perfection, can never get rid of?” Eron asked, the question not rhetorical this time.
“I dunno, the dick?” Jake shot back, honestly starting to get annoyed. Touch did nothing, his arcane magic did nothing, and he even tried Gaze of the Apex Hunter, but all it did was freeze the guy for a bit. With his arcane energy, he stacked his Arcane Charge to the largest one possible… and yet it did nothing.
“Well, yes, that does remain… but besides that, what remains is the heart and the brain despite their presence being less and less relevant. I do believe that I myself am a great example of this. In fact, no organs are vital to continue existing.”
Jake decided to switch up his tactic as he wrapped up Eron in strings of arcane mana. His thought process was that if he couldn’t kill Eron, he would just displace him and toss him somewhere far enough away from the gate to get Jake enough time to burn the gate off.
Yet just when Jake was done wrapping up Eron, his danger sense reacted for the first time. Jake jumped back from the man just in time as Eron’s entire body burned with energy, and the madman exploded in a red explosion of pure vital energy and mist, a bit reminiscent of the Deepdwellers but far smaller and more localized.
Another difference was that the Deepdwellers did not instantly appear again before the mist had even subsided.
“Case in point, I believe. You see, we as living beings no longer exist solely dependent on our bodies. As long as our sparks remain alit, we remain alive. This spark does not exist within our bodies… no, it exists beyond that,” Eron said as he quickly summoned back the robe to cover himself.
Jake looked at him before asking: “Are you unkillable or what?” He had just seen him literally return his body to nothing. Not even a drop of blood remained, yet he regenerated.
Eron looked at Jake. “No. No, I don’t believe anything in this multiverse is truly unkillable. For every spark there is, a force that can blow it out must also exist. At least, I believe such a balance is necessary. I do not doubt for a second that any god could whisk me out of existence if they so pleased.”
The two men stood for a while as Jake considered what the fuck to do, while Eron wouldn’t stop talking.
“To return to the earlier topic… the brain and heart remain. The brain controls the body and speeds up reactions. It no longer houses who you are but is more like a complicated muscle that serves to amplify your body functions. Once more, I can see this making sense as anchoring physicality, and physical prowess outside of the metaphysical is sensical. But… this brings us to the heart.
“Why do we need the heart, and why is the heart the center of our beings? You hold a bloodline, so I am certain you know that the heart is linked to the core of your soul. It’s the point of contact between metaphysical existence and our tangible forms. When I heal, my heart is the first to appear,” he said, promptly ripping out his own heart to show. He then exploded the rest of his body as his entire person reformed around the heart.
“The heart still pumps blood and now even creates the blood itself. This naturally begs the question of why blood is even necessary. I believe this refers back to grounding the tangible. To transfer energy through a physical medium is simply far more effective than not. To have blood deliver vital energy to the body only makes sense, does it not?”
While Jake did find it more interesting than he dared to admit listening to the guy talk, he still knew his objective. The issue just was that he wasn’t certain how to actually do anything… because he was fairly certain that his theory was correct.
“You have limitless or at least near-limitless health points, don’t you?”
It was the only thing Jake could see make sense. Eron had learned to control his vital energy like Jake controlled his mana and could use it actively to instantly regenerate his body. Of course, the expenditure of vital energy – health points – to do this had to be ridiculous… but what if you had a near-limitless supply?
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