Sin and Virtue System



91. The purpose of your life. [1]

While Logan was stuck in an unknown realm, Kevin was facing his own problems.

"May I come in, Headmistress?" Mia, a curvaceous blonde who was known as one of the most beautiful women in the human camp, and was also the medic for the Fluger Royal Academy, asked and entered without the Headmistress' permission.

Alice was wholly unbothered by Mia's intrusion and continued cursing under her breath. A ton of papers were lying on her desk, and her clean and modest room, filled with authentic and rare artifacts, looked worse than a littered room.

"Seems like you are still traumatized, very well." Mia's luscious lips curved into a smile as she saw Alice's state. As a sadist, Mia felt pleased when she saw the haughty and arrogant Alice with a paled expression.

It was not long ago that the Crimson Burn 2.0 had caused Alice to shut herself in, severing connections from the outside world, but now the situation had become dire.

"The one responsible for your condition has awakened, or shall I say the victim?" Mia's words went unheard, but as Alice processed them properly, the lost light in her fierce eyes lightened up.

"He woke up?" Alice stuttered, seemingly having not used any words other than curse words.

"I want to meet him." Alice looked at Mia with desperate eyes.

"Sure. Just don't kill him. We had to use two Fourth-circle magic scrolls to heal him. That's quite expensive." Mia did not linger anymore either.

In this world, magic scrolls were a supreme form of drawn spells. They were accurate and could be used by multiple people to cast the chants.

However, that's what made them exclusive and expensive. Since various professional and at least seventh-circle magicians were required to create these spell scrolls, their cost was astronomical.

Mia could use the first scroll on her own, but in order to save that puny life, she had used some external mana stones to provide strength. This entire treatment was paid for by Alice since commoners' insurance cannot even compare to the astronomical expenses. A single Fourth-circle healing scroll can bring a baron's wealth to half.

"It's been only a week and he has already recovered twenty to twenty-two percent of his health, even after absorbing two Fourth-circle healing scrolls. That's incredible, even for a Demon Hunter General." And without waiting, Mia left.

"It can't be… can it?" Alice's eyes gleamed. She was happy, but she could not conclude her suspicion until she met the student who had caused her current condition.

"I must meet him."

…

Mia was a professional person, even though she had a short temper and was very unpredictable. She had everything required to properly treat a patient.

So, the room where the student, Kevin was kept was also decent and well-equipped.

"Master." Robert, the high-ranking Demon Hunter, who was now dressed in white attire, was sitting beside Kevin. His face was well hidden under a mask as the mask was a part of his demon hunter identity.

After encountering a strange demon during an expedition to investigate Crimson Burn 2.0, he nearly died. However, he was saved by one of his skills and Kevin. Ever since then, he has been one of Kevin's subordinates.

It had been two weeks since Kevin was admitted.

"I'll avenge you, master." Robert kept saying those words.

He was a Knight under his king, and it could not be more shameful to see your king lying on a deathbed while the knight was unscathed.

The events were too fast for Robert to remember anything, but as far as he knew, things turned ugly in his battle against that demon.

A weird demon, an anomaly would be a better word.

Unlike how the Viscount demons behaved, this demon was different. He was impulsive, and there was something about him that caused his troops to be attacked by demons as well.

How could that be? If demons had internal struggles, they would never let them show to other people.

But that was not the only problem.

The last thing Robert remembered was a white light covering the demon and a select few of his subordinates.

His master, King Kevin, had attacked him with his most superior attack, which defied common sense and was something he had never seen before. However, the trouble came after when half of those spears turned and attacked their own master! How could this be? Robert remembered the face when the golden spears pierced through his king's chest. 

He was nowhere near exhausted, but the sudden attack of such high strength and magnitude had put him in a concussion. Even Robert fainted when he saw things unfold. It was mostly because Kevin had retracted some of the strength Robert had borrowed from him. 

The results were devastating. When Robert woke up, he saw all the demons dead, their bodies charred, proof of the damage caused by those spears. Robert ignored everything and first got up to help Kevin, who was gravely injured. With a teleportation scroll, given to high-ranked Demon Hunters, Robert teleported Kevin back to the academy.

However, the real problem was Jin's missing status. The girls who were caretakers and interns working under Mia were discussing it. Robert wasn't concerned about Jin's status because he was a high-ranked Demon Hunter, so killing some big-shot's son couldn't punish him. Robert also had some influence in the association, making it easier to get out of this matter. But Kevin wasn't the same. Robert knew, since his newly established connection with Kevin, that he was a commoner. Though people didn't know about their little adventure together, everyone knew the bad blood between Kevin and Jin. Jin's missing case could directly be linked to Kevin's injured state. As a commoner, even though Kevin was strong, he could not face the wrath of a nobleman. Not to mention that Jin was the grandson of the general of the Fluger Kingdom. Things were turning ugly, very ugly.

"Stop overthinking, Robert," a voice said, bringing him back to his senses. "M-master!" Robert exclaimed in joy. "Ya, I am alive," Kevin replied absentmindedly. "Call the nurse for me." Robert dashed to call Mia to see Kevin.

…

After confirming that he was alone,

"Michael," this was the hundredth time Kevin had called Michael. 

<...> No response. 

He felt that Michael was there, but just not answering. "Why aren't you answering?" Kevin urged. 

<...Weak...> Michael finally answered. "What?" <You are weak.> Kevin's eyes widened, caught off guard by Michael's sudden behavior. But before he could point it out, Kevin felt something take hold of Michael. 

<Michael has never been hit by his own attack. It's all because of you.> Kevin dropped his head at Michael's words. Indeed, for a warrior, it was a shame to get damaged by their own attack. 

"What was that demon? Was it the Pride Demon you told me about?" Kevin asked, effectively trying to change the subject. 

<No... That demon was not a Pride demon. You lost to a [Lust] demon. Be ashamed of even calling yourself a man.> Michael's firm answer did not solve the questions either.

"Michael, don't you think it's unreasonable to tell a person who has just faced death that he was weak? You are being rude, you know?" Kevin said, with a frown on his face. He was barely holding his wits against Michael's mocking. 

<...> Michael did not respond. Kevin kept mumbling and complaining. "Do you even have any idea how painful it was? I felt like every bit of my body was burning." Kevin was venting his frustrations. He vaguely remembered that the demon in front of him was not strong enough, yet that demon not only vanished into thin air but also gravely injured Kevin. Michael heard everything but did not interrupt Kevin. Kevin had completely forgotten the fact that Michael was the one who had saved his life. Using his strength as he had descended in his body, Michael had taken over ninety percent of the damage.

Kevin was only facing a mere ten percent of what he had previously experienced. Nevertheless, he was complaining, "What were you doing when I was suffering?" Kevin stopped after saying this. 

He felt that the mana around him had suddenly thickened, and even the airflow had stopped. His throat became dry, and he wondered if he had not drunk enough water. His body began to sweat profusely, and he was confused about what was happening.

"Say Kevin, what is the purpose of your life?" Michael's voice was different than ever. "Purpose? What do you mean? Explain," Kevin could not hold his anger. Instead of apologizing, Michael was asking unwanted questions. Although Kevin acted normally, the pain he had been through was excruciating, to say the least.

When the spears had pierced his chest, Kevin felt every fiber of his body getting shredded. He also felt his life force fading rapidly. The feeling of losing a dear life was something no one wanted to experience. The depleting mana to release the attack and the sudden increase after the spears hit had caused an influx and blown his mana circuits.

"Explain Michael! Aren't you being unreasonable? What was I supposed to do when that bastard had some-" 

Suddenly, Michael's thunderous voice rang in Kevin's head, "<SHUT UP!>" This was the first time Michael had raised his voice. "What do you mean 'SHUT UP'? You know I could've died!" Kevin's blood boiled too. He was enraged when the first thing Michael said after his return from the face of death was that he was weak! What nonsense was this?

"The audacity! To talk to Justice King Michael like that?!" Michael got fiercer. 

Ba-dump! Suddenly, Kevin's heart beat loudly and he lost consciousness. He closed his eyes and then it happened: 

"Huh?" A void appeared in front of him. A space with nothing on either side, except for a completely white, unending room. It felt like another world to Kevin. He found himself standing in the middle of this void, alone.

Magically, two eyes as big as the void itself appeared in front of Kevin, wondering. "Heuk!" Kevin's heart was pounding in his chest, threatening to burst out at any moment. His face was ashen, drained of all color as he stared into those eyes that seemed to bore into his very soul. The pressure emanating from those eyes was so intense that it felt like a physical weight crushing down on his body, making it hard for him to draw breath.

Every fiber of his being was telling him to run, to escape from the terror that lay before him, but he was frozen in place. It was as if those eyes had cast a spell on him, holding him captive with their hypnotic power. He felt helpless, exposed, and vulnerable as if his very existence was being dissected and examined by an entity far beyond his comprehension.

The veins on his neck bulged as he struggled to take a breath. His lungs burned with the effort, but the air seemed to have turned to molasses, thick and unyielding. The pressure only increased, making his head spin with dizziness. It was as if the very fabric of reality was warping around him, threatening to collapse and swallow him whole.

Kevin had faced many challenges in his life, but this was unlike anything he had ever experienced. It was a primal fear, an instinctual dread that crawled up his spine and rooted itself deep in his bones. He was at the mercy of whatever power lay behind those eyes, and he knew that he was powerless to resist it.

They were honey gold, shining as bright as the sun, along with dark pupils inside. He had never seen such eyes before. The golden iris and the black pupils looked like a black gem in the middle of a golden lake. Red veins glowed brightly in those eyes, and Kevin's soul shuddered. He felt existential danger everywhere. He saw his death in those eyes. His legs turned to mush and lost their strength.

Like a raging dragon breathing fire that could consume the entire planet and not even leave ashes, those eyes looked at Kevin with a desire to burn him alive. They resembled his eyes when he was using the <Michael Descends>, but far stronger, clearer, and fiercer. They conveyed emotions of rage, anger, hatred, and a burning desire to devour Kevin. A desire for revenge.

"So, this is how you look huh? But that's not important." Kevin heard Michael's voice, which was entirely different from what he heard every day. It was a mature, manly voice, like that of a warrior who has fought a million wars. Like a king who has seen all kinds of living beings, a voice that was devoid of any emotions except for mocking. Kevin felt that those eyes were looking down on him.

"T-t-t-he p-p-purpose?" Kevin stuttered.