Bro, I'm not an Undead!
Chapter 1520 1520: Some Mortals Are Greater Than Others

Opungale.

The Auroras were finally livid with life again. Each, carving its own slice of the world across the vast continent made harmony with nature again, giving light and a dense, unseen dose of vigorous energy. The plant life on the continent seemed to have missed its neighbours and caretakers.

The Auroras were like all the great cities on Feinheath, only friendlier to plant and animal life. For a little while, the Sif, who had been restored from the Seedification ritual through the Deathly Ruse had gathered in all the Auroras, laughing, crying and rejoicing. They tended to their homes, lit the lanterns, hugged the trees and made love. It was good to be home, they had thought, but then Skullius had snapped his fingers, and they weren't home anymore.

They had once again left their entire continent untended. The embers of their vicious joy and relief still lingered in the Auroras though, as did the lights they had left on.

This was for the best.

After all, the chaos was about to begin, and it wouldn't spare them. This could be the end of Aigas.

The Hybrid Warmoth sat atop a great mansion in the Wonderfall Torrents, Darwel's personal domain. The rushing of tall, rapid falls, misty and cool, made the atmosphere around the mansion delightful. Skullius could almost enjoy it.

The Null Lifeform had his arms over his knees, looking into the distance, beyond the sea.

The [Entropy's Harmonising Nimbus], spotting threads of Ju`wtte that pulled on its volume to give it shape, hugged him protectively, barely revealing half his face. His coin grey skin had almost turned lighter, his honey-coloured hair shorter; perhaps the stress had trimmed it for him.

All Skullius had were dark thoughts in his head at the moment. His vigilance, his wariness and anxiousness had shot so high that they could see tomorrow beyond the hills of today.

All the preparations were done now, but he didn't feel as though they were enough. There were too many variables.

The only thing Skullius could control was collateral. He had warped everyone he'd marked with a symbol of [Just Light] earlier to the Empyrean Bosom. While he was at it, he had sent over the chest he'd retrieved from the Labyrinth of the Yoke. Back when he took it as part of the loot for inheriting the Insurgent Magnus Class, he had thought that the only hurdle towards opening it and extracting the boons within was mastering [Evil Darkness] and [Just Light].

Well, it appeared he'd been misguided, or perhaps he'd misunderstood something.

Skullius only hoped that whatever was in the chest wouldn't get into Fulgardt's hands, but was there a guarantee that this hope of his would come true?

But even when it came to the matter of avoiding collateral by warping all the denizens of Aigas away, there were aspects he couldn't control.

Quite honestly, the snag had unnerved him.

It appeared that there were people Skullius couldn't warp away, even after he branded them.

Oddly enough, they weren't even Divine; they were simple mortals, none the wiser about their ability to reject his influence in this way.

Skullius recognised some of them. His senses were broad and intricate, after all.

There was Bek, and there was the Ode of the First Horn, and then there were six others.

All of them were Spirit Wardens, the sort of people with unnatural connections to souls and Spirits.

These kinds of people had been a mystery to Skullius for the longest time, and now, the mystique behind them had grown even more suffocating.

But be that as it may, there was something even gnawing than the existence of these people. Only one thing could make Skullius brood on the roof of a mansion like this.

Unfortunately, where he would have desired less chatty company, what he got was…

<Not so easy, is it?> the Fruit Bearer standing by his side said. It was a pretty woman in a tasteless off-white tunic, grinning as she stared at the Hybrid Warmoth. The vessel seemed to convey 120% of Suzamete's intent and emotion. Perhaps that was why she chose to wear it for this.

"Don't start with me," Skullius warned with a scowl.

<I think I've earned this much, Skullius. I patiently waited for you to come to understand how the world outside your own constrained view worked. I still find it very interesting that it was Kintar and Elita who helped you see it – a product of your effort, and one of mine.>

"Fine then. Gloat. Maybe you have earned it," Skullius said, and he turned to look at Suzamete. "But these are still the souls of people who want to live as much I do. You know that better than most. Don't you feel remorse?"

Suzamete raised a brow. She considered the question offensive.

<Remorse? You say that word as though it is the epitome of penance. That does not serve the dead, Skullius. If they could watch what you do after using their lives, they would curse you for merely feeling remorse. That's only a part of the price you have to pay of expending someone's life, their soul.> She looked upward, a faint smile on her face. <For me, that means growing strong enough to not die while I'm this pathetic.>

Skullius followed her gaze.

"Is that what you told yourself with the masked man?"

<Precisely. I couldn't, and I can't afford to keep looking backwards after using people's souls for the greater good. The way to honour them is to look forward and make their expenditure count.>

A bout of silence took over.

Both parties mulled over what they had said and what they had derived from the other. They could understand each other much better now.

Skullius had always failed to understand Suzamete's perspective of things – a Deity's perspective. Now he did.

Suzamete had always had the benefit of foresight. She always experienced everything twice because Aigas' events had been clear to her – past, present and future. Now, she didn't have that benefit. That allowed her to converse with Skullius normally – without knowing what he would say next.

"If you're so comfortable with making sacrifices for the greater good, how could it have been so difficult for you, Listafelle and Quintess to defeat Fulgardt when he was a mortal?" Skullius asked. "Surely, back then it couldn't have taken you all as much effort – hard grit and compromise – as I am packing into my own plans for his demise."

The question stunned Suzamete a little. It brought to memory those old failures. Had they been a part of the plan?

She sighed.

"Some mortals are greater than others."

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