dying
[There is a problem with your story, Lord Demon.] After listening to the narration, Pandora was suspiciously formed into a ball and floated beside the Demon King.
"Um?"
[If I listened to my family, I would not have come. Would you really summon the, uh, giant monster just mentioned to attack your lover?]
"… "
Nemo lowered his gaze, the corner of his mouth still smiling.
Although it is still the human appearance she knows, there is something different inside. Pandora gathered himself tighter—the gentleness of the Demon King did not disappear, but there was a bit of icy, inorganic texture in it.
"Yes, this is our agreement." He said slowly, "We need to ensure this before the world is destroyed. Whether he kills me or I hurt him, it makes no difference. I It's my responsibility."
[But you said that he will never let you down...]
"Yes, he never let me down."
Nemo stood up and stretched out of habit.
"... That's why I'm willing to retreat to my last bottom line for him."
He now knew what Oliver wanted to do.
"What a fun new circuit. So when are you going to see me, Ollie? Sly guy."
A few days ago, near the capital of Garland, in the desert not far from the city of Hiram.
It's evening. The night is climbing along the largest desert in the world, the sky has not yet completely darkened, and the pale moon has already risen. The desert glowed a strange red, with sharp boulders standing like rotting tooth roots.
One man and one beast are confronting each other.
"I'm ready, the two of you can start anytime." Adrian sighed and didn't say anything more.
Since he was resurrected from death, the magic in his body was like a flood that finally broke through the dam, and it was out of control. It took him a long time to gain full control over this power.
It never occurred to him that the first time he used it was as a guard in a life-and-death battle.
Jesse Dillon has no plans to use his "true appearance". Even if he cannot match the two in battle, Adrian believes that he at least has the strength to ensure that the battle between the two will not affect ordinary people.
The city wall-like light shield lit up beside him, pushing outward in layers, finally enclosing a rather vast desert. Excessive power drives out all life with consciousness, and even the most sophisticated adventurer will not choose to spy under that power.
Inserting the precious greatsword borrowed from Ann for spellcasting into the soil, Adrian looked in the direction of the center of the battlefield—
"One last confirmation."
Oliver spoke first.
"The Demon King has indeed woken up. The flesh and blood living underground is either Ulysses or Nemo in human form."
"This is our way of resisting risks. External flesh and blood is always the first line of defense." The behemoth affirmed the other party's questionable narrative. "Even if you attack my body directly, it will be 'this animal' who is injured right now."
"You once said that your flesh and blood on the surface has almost the same limit as Nemo. The relatively huge Ulysses have a much stronger endurance than Nemo."
"That's right, what are you trying to say?" Jesse licked the sand off her nose, sounding displeased.
"I need your help, Jesse Dylan." Oliver breathed out a white breath in the gradually cold air. "I need a test."
In fact, the chessboard was not as hazy as he imagined. If the Pillars of the World were as terribly cautious as before, the world would have been destroyed long ago.
There may only be two left.
First, the Pillar of the World is absorbing Nemo's intelligence, and is observing his own reaction, evaluating the feasibility of using his emotions to get rid of himself alone. Flying to the sun is the safest, but in this way, it can avoid wasting civilization, which is still valuable for observation. Start from scratch.
However, no one knows when the Pillars of the World will complete the evaluation, it may be next year, or it may be tomorrow.
Second, the Pillar of the World holds Nemo's heart, so there is no attack.
As for whether the beast underfoot is willing to use something similar to emotion, consider Oliver Ramon's "restraint" in memory as a harmless factor. That is the decision the other party needs to make. If you don't take action, you "will not make mistakes", but...
He doesn't pray.
There is really only one best option, Oliver thought.
"Dylan, no, Jesse. I'll take the power as lightly as I can, as if Nemo was still around."
"As for the amount of draw, I will control it to no more than the surface flesh and blood strength of both you and Nemo - within this limit, I will try to use spells to establish my own magic circuit, summon the family and gain power."
"What's this got to do with me? You don't mean to... ah, you're really a lunatic."
"Well, I'll shoot both of you at the same time."
"Okay, if you can. I'm not going to stay, and you're going to hurt me. That's fair."
Oliver bowed his head and gave a solemn salute: "Thank you, Jesse. If your flesh and blood reaches the limit, please remind me."
"why?"
"I have to stop in moderation. That way, for 'Ulysses' to learn 'I believe Nemo is still there', the damage is bearable - it's like giving up a piece of cheese and putting in a mousetrap. A good observation opportunity, he won't turn a blind eye."
The beast sniffed, raised his chin, and motioned Oliver to continue with his eyes.
"'Nimo' is different. My absorption may cause his body to be exposed, and he will definitely attack me in order to protect the surface. Before that, I need limit tips." Oliver's voice was very determined.
Jesse was silent for a moment, then took two steps closer, bowing his head slightly.
"…but I have to tell you, Ramon. If the Pillars of the World decides to fight back early—you can't take the attack from both of us at the same time, you'll definitely die."
"I know." Oliver rubbed the blade of the Sword of Rest.
"This isn't a joke." Jesse wrinkled her nose, baring sharp teeth.
"I thought about it."
Oliver smiled.
"The loop spell is mine, assuming 'Ulysses' confirms that I'm malicious, it can't guarantee that the backlash will kill me - it will seriously injure me, and immediately abandon the possibility of booby-trapping me and fly straight to the sun. Right? "
"I warned you, yes," Jesse said in a displeased tone.
Oliver stepped into the fine sand, and the gray fog began to fly into the sky, extending the complex lines of the magic circle.
"Then under your combined attack, my death will dispel the worries of the Pillars of the World. If he can't accept the gentlest draw, I won't have the chance to be strong enough to kill him... For the surface, this is the most good practice."
Jesse stared silently at the man standing opposite.
Oliver Ramon is using his own life as part of the plan, his tone is extremely calm, cruel as another pillar of the world.
"What if 'Nimo' decides to fight back?" Jesse wasn't going to ignore the cruel possibility.
"I thought about it as well. It's a real fight, not a game, I get it."
With Oliver as the center, the circle began to extend in all directions. The lines twisted by the gray fog were so thin that they could not be seen clearly. They gathered strength and began to gradually fill the space.
"I know he's going to be in pain, I know he's going to wonder. It's a one-sided attack, the last thing I want to do in the world - hurt him. Jesse, this isn't the first time I've hurt him. Nemo was taken to the Church of the Penitents to see him pierced by a long sword."
"I promised him that I would never do such a thing. After that, I promised that if things got to the point of no return, I would kill the Demon King myself."
"Nowadays, I don't think things are irreversible."
Oliver's expression was very calm.
"I have the confidence to control the precision of my power draw, except for the moment I die. If I overdraw for this reason... I'll die before Nemo can fight back."
"What if he decides to attack early, long before he reaches the limit?"
"If that's my 'Nimo,' I trust him."
These were the last words of the head of the tumbleweed before the battle, and what followed was a real fight.
Sleepless endless attempts, the control of power is like a heartbeat instinct. In response to Jesse's stormy attack, Oliver had a strange illusion - he was dancing on a stage full of knives and traps, and he had to ensure that the candle in his hand would not go out.
As the gray fog thread expands, his own magical circuit is slowly taking shape - fueled by his survival instinct.
Once started, there is no way to stop, and you can't get any results if you give up halfway. The birth of the circuit requires power, and the action of drawing must have alarmed the pillar of the world.
He has only one chance. Oliver tightened every nerve and fought harder.
For the first time since joining Tumbleweed, Jesse Dillon got serious.
The sky was covered with overcast clouds and there was no rain, but the thunder rolled in the gray clouds, and the rumbling thunder directly shook the internal organs. Between heaven and earth, countless light spines are connected, and a piece of flesh and blood will be torn off with a light touch.
White beasts move freely among the deadly white brambles, and Oliver struggles.
The gray fog continued to disperse all around, and the more blood flowed, the faster it spread.
"That's it." The hair around Jesse's neck exploded slightly, and his huge claws stomped deep into the gravel. "As long as you ensure that the 'only yours' loop circle is correct and the road is clear. Plundering will follow instinct, and the closer to death, the clearer and stronger it will become."
Oliver panted heavily, raised his still intact left arm, and countless gray fog condensed into ice blades, poking straight at Jesse. At the same time as he moved, the movements of the gray fog filaments were not chaotic at all, and they were frighteningly precise.
He can still hold on.
The filaments are centered on the desert, drill into the underground abyss, and expand to the surrounding surface. It first covered the city of Hiram, and then spread to the whole of Garland.
not enough.
The sun rises and sets, alternating the heat of the day with the cold of the night. The battle continued without rest or pause.
The black armor on the chest was shattered in half, the metal pieces collapsed into the chest, and blood was dripping. Oliver didn't care, and avoided another attack from Jesse-a thick light thorn from the bottom of the bowl pierced from the ground, and several light thorns immediately wrapped around him, almost mashing him into flesh.
His circuit spell isn't finished yet.
How many days is this
The ice wall surged up behind him like an ocean wave, and along with the gray fog, forcibly cut off countless light thorns in the middle. In the pain and exhaustion that made his eyes black, Oliver continued to attack.
The three-dimensional array formed by the gray fog firmly continued to move away.
Jesse grinned, long white hair stained with bright blood. As the gray mist filaments expanded between the heavens and the earth, the giant beast's footsteps were a little flimsy.
"This should have been a simple question." The blood stained the beast's fangs. "Die, or successfully complete your own circuit before you die—but, Ramon, if it's just me and Nemo 'flesh and blood,' you're going too far."
"I didn't take more, and I didn't grab it roughly, you should know very well."
Under the action of the light thorns, Oliver's right arm had almost no flesh left, and the tragic bones were mixed with blood, directly exposed. But he stood still, his voice eerily calm.
"Your gray fog has covered Garland, Alban, and Willard, and it hasn't stopped!"
Jesse let out a roar that belonged to a beast, blood dripping claws sticking out sharp nails.
"I don't know the condition of the abyss... At least this is the surface that belongs to me. You can get the power of my flesh and blood just by absorbing these three countries. What are you thinking?"
The fur of the beast exploded completely, and countless pale thunder lights radiated: "It's up to now, if you're deceiving me—"
"If I told you, you would really think I was crazy."
A gray fog wrapped around the bleeding arm, forcing it to keep moving. The Sword of Rest is covered in blood and dust, but its owner has a smile on his face.
The ice shield suddenly stood up, blocking those pale flames and thunder.
"Not enough," he said softly.
"Walton, Pride, Hatfield. Half the world, Oliver Ramon. Your greed will kill you."
Jesse's voice was hoarse, and blood began to ooze from the holes in her pointed ears. Unlike Nemo, as the gifted party, he is not strong in his own control over the race he takes over, so he is especially sensitive. Oliver Ramon did not take away the power beyond the agreement.
But at this scale of influence, if Ramon wanted to...
At this point, Jesse couldn't think of a better way than to finish the fight - after all, he was already attacking Oliver Ramon, and his opponent was now dying.
The extraction is still gentle and unhurried. Compared with the blood-covered figure on the opposite side, this restraint made him shudder.
Jesse felt fear for the first time.
So the offensive was even more intense, and the desert surrounded by the light shield barely had much sand left. The white light squeezed, burned, and swallowed.
In the middle of the battlefield, the human figure seemed a little lonely.
"My circuit... a little bit."
Oliver sighed, the ice shields around him began to collapse, but his voice remained steady.
Under the strong light, there was no haze in those green pupils.
The bloody ice shield stood up again and again, even if it was swallowed by pale flames in the next second. Oliver procrastinated resolutely as he dragged the time, a faint force running along the gray fog on a terrifying scale.
Jesse could feel the bones in his body breaking, and this appearance was originally transformed from a human form, and it is even difficult to maintain it now. With blood filling his throat, he looked in Oliver's direction with complicated eyes.
My body is about to reach its limit, but it's a pity.
Oliver Ramon was a step too late.
Whatever Ramon was trying to do, for now, that plan didn't work out. And just like they said in advance, they put the flesh and blood as a bet, and the other party put their life as a mortgage.
It's about time, really sorry.
"I warned you," Jesse muttered, a little sad.
"...I clearly warned you that doing nothing is the best choice."
Oliver Ramon showed his defeat before the circuit was built, even though he had a crush on the human...
A contract is a contract.
An extra-stout light spine was the first to break through the ice shield and slid through Oliver Ramon's chest. Then the second and third.
The human seemed to be stunned for a while, then fell down slowly, and the ice shields were all broken in an instant.
The beast let out a low whimper and staggered forward, waiting for the smoke to disperse.
Oliver Ramon lay quietly on the sand, his entire body devastated. If it were an ordinary human, he should have been a corpse. There is no heartbeat, no breathing, only blood seeps into the soil.
Unlike Adrian, Oliver is no longer his family. Even myself, I can't do anything now.
Coupled with the variables of the Pillar of the World, Jesse has been unable to calculate anyone's fate, but he can still speculate with experience and get very reliable results. He had imagined this possibility, but he thought...
Jesse nuzzled his shoulders.
His body was collapsing, and he really couldn't maintain his animal form. A figure who was also seriously injured appeared - Jesse Dylan, wearing a disfigured and dilapidated shabby robe, knelt on the ground, coughing out blood. The long blond hair is covered with dust.
At the last moment, Ramon lost control for a moment. As he put it, it was dying out of control.
And his body should have collapsed along with it. Fortunately, his body was on the surface, and timely replenishment allowed Jesse to maintain the integrity of this piece of flesh and blood.
Wait, something is wrong.
As far as I can see, Oliver Ramon is indeed dead. But that gentle learning did not end with his death. The ingestion continues, albeit weaker.
Jesse frowned.
After confirming that Oliver was unconscious, he directly connected the flesh and blood to the body, quickly recovering the physical strength of this body. That drawing couldn't hurt him at all. Now that the array has lost its owner, even if the pillar of the world wants to fight back, it will find it faster than himself.
As if responding to his conjecture, the Pillar of the World still curled up quietly, without any movement.
what happened
The light shield surrounding the desert dissipated, and the white cloak was wrapped down, followed by a cleansing spell. Jesse turned his face to the side—Adrian Cross was on one knee, examining Oliver Ramon, who looked unmistakably dead.
"I'm sorry," Jesse said stiffly.
"No." The knight commander stretched out his hand and covered Oliver's green eyes. "I think Mr. Ramon chose you over me for a reason."
"Now I will hesitate and waver. And you will absolutely abide by the agreement and will not stop because of his misery."
Adrian settled, no sadness in his voice.
"His circuit is complete, with your final blow."
"But he—"
"I heard that call, and it makes sense that you and Mr. Wright, as beings of the same level, could not hear it. Oliver Ramon is still alive. Although human beings in this situation will surely die..."
"But I think he is no longer human now."
The author has something to say:
The pillar of the world with a wealthy family is a conscientious social animal.
Then one day, he found a small painful swelling in his stomach.
Situation 1: [The pillar of the world without Nemo memory, without emotion]
Lack of understanding of this mass, it is impossible to judge benign and malignant.
Pillar of the World: Come on, I'll take a leave of absence and cut it off! Although it will cost a lot of money and delay work, it is still life-threatening.
Situation 2: [Pillar of the world with Nemo memory and no emotion]
With the latest test results of this swollen mass, it was found that although it still exists and continues to absorb its own nutrients, it is likely to be a benign type that can be resolved by taking some medicine (booby-killing).
Pillar of the World: Maybe it will be cancerous or not, then take some medicine and see. If the medicine doesn't work, I'll ask for leave to cut it off. Unnecessary losses are still to be considered.
—————————
Sorry Ollie! (Breaking sound)
But if the Pillars of the World did dissolve Nemo's feelings, the logic for Ollie did look something like this. So just because the Pillar of the World didn't act immediately, it doesn't mean that Nemo's will is still there.
I personally think it is a decision to maximize profits _(:з"∠)_
Jesse's proposal, in translation, is actually: You see he knows you may be harmless? If you don't want to kill yourself, don't get stronger, don't absorb nutrients, don't make him uncomfortable. Maybe he will continue to socialize and decide not to operate.
Sorry Ollie! ! ! (broken again)