Damned Healer
Chapter 151: I’m Not Promising Anything

Chapter 151: I’m Not Promising Anything

"NO! AHHH!"

Screams echoed through the underground levels of the great tower. They were the final cries of the Bird Tribe’s King. Along with him, every Mannaz involved got special treatment from Darian’s dark rune.

Darian didn’t show any mercy and destroyed the King’s soul completely. All the Kings had agreed to these experiments on their people, and he even had ties to the Academy’s Leader.

Niara turned to the only Mannaz from that tribe who’d been kept underground. She clenched her fists tightly, her face twisting — even after killing the King, her hatred hadn’t faded at all.

The woman had reddish wings and a big bump on her belly. The experiments hadn’t been on her, but on the child she was carrying.

"It’s alright. I can remove everything, and that baby’s gonna be born healthy," Darian said softly, trying to calm Niara.

It wasn’t surprising, honestly — Ariu and Rion had been born in similar ways... but it was still painful to see and imagine. Even Darian felt a bitter taste in his mouth just being there.

He let out a breath and turned toward another part of the underground.

There was a Mannaz hiding there, right next to the King and several others. That alone showed how important he was. He hadn’t been killed because Darian could see what no one else could; the man had an extremely rare gray karma.

"I’m gonna ask you straight. If you don’t give me an exact answer, you won’t get a second chance."

The slug spoke coldly, and the Mannaz trembled, nodding quickly. He was an average-looking guy, with a few colorful feathers on his body.

"What were you doing for the King?"

The man replied, "I’m the one responsible for the tower’s inscription, the one connected to the planet. I’m one of the few descendants of those who built it in the past. That’s my only job... I swear, I had nothing to do with any of this stuff here. Honestly, I’ve never even been to this place. It was always super restricted and secret."

"So what were you doing here?" the slug asked coldly.

The man answered, clearly distressed, "I’m the only one who knows how the Kingdom’s inscription works. Without me, nobody could maintain or fix it. I was in my quarters when everything started. The King summoned me and brought me here because I couldn’t be allowed to die."

Darian listened and didn’t ask anything else. He believed him because of his karma. At that moment, Niara turned and spoke:

"The inscription from this tribe is something amazing. I heard the Dragon King tried everything to copy it without success. And throughout history, every Kingdom has tried to replicate something like it."

"Yes!" the man said, excited, "My ancestors devoted their lives to studying inscriptions. Other than the galaxy’s protective one — the one that belongs to the Academy — all the best and most powerful inscriptions around here were created by my ancestors."

Darian didn’t care. He just waved the man off and turned around. "Alright, you can go."

The man heard that and stood there confused, frozen in place.

Niara moved over to the woman, and Darian used white power on her, healing her and her child. A few minutes later, they turned around and saw the man still standing there.

"What do you want? I already told you to leave," Darian said flatly.

"... I heard you and the lady are destroying the Kingdoms..." the man said, taking a deep breath. Then he looked at them seriously.

"I-I don’t have the protection of the Tribe King anymore... I’m afraid that once things settle down, I’ll be targeted by everyone... and with no major powers left other than the Academy, I’ll never be safe again. I’ll probably get killed just so no one else can get my knowledge."

"What does that have to do with me?" Darian shot back. "Your life’s your own. You think I’m who, exactly?"

"Sir, secretly, I received word about the Academy Leader’s betrayal. If he’s a traitor, there must be tons of powerful Summoners with him. I saw that you brought Mannaz who aren’t Summoners to fight with you... even if you destroy the Kingdoms and defeat the Academy Leader... the traitor Summoners will hunt you all down to the end," the man explained quickly.

Darian snorted. "Yeah, and?"

"I’m sure someone like you wouldn’t be doing something this big unless you had a place to keep everyone safe. Please, I can be useful. If you want, I’ll accept a soul contract. I feel like I’ll be safer with you."

He finished by bowing. Darian heard something new and turned to Niara.

"I saw the Dragon King use it once. A soul contract is a kind of inscription used on a person. It’s tied to the soul — if they break the agreement or even indirectly do something that could be considered betrayal, they die instantly. It’s serious stuff and lasts for life... but it can’t be forced on someone."

Darian let out a breath. That sounded way too heavy, like slavery.

"You’ve gotta be nuts. I can guarantee your chances of dying by my side are way higher."

Hearing the slug’s words, the man replied right away:

"I don’t mind dying. I just don’t wanna die for nothing, at the hands of stupid people. If I can help even a little with something useful for my universe, I’ll die happy."

Niara and Darian looked him straight in the eyes.

He had no talent as a Summoner, and the only thing he knew — and had studied his whole life — was inscriptions, especially the one on this planet. Since the Academy didn’t care about that, helping the tribe’s King had been his best shot at contributing.

But he really hadn’t known about the horrible stuff being done here. And... knowing about the Academy’s betrayal showed he was sharp. His quick decision-making showed good instincts too.

’What do you think?’ Darian asked Niara.

She nodded. ’He really wants to help the universe and isn’t afraid to die.’

Darian sighed. He didn’t know yet what he’d do with his allies, but he’d try to figure something out later. "What’s your name?"

"Endi, sir."

"I’m not promising anything, but if you wanna help save this universe, you’re welcome," Darian said, turning around. "Take her with you."

That pregnant woman was unconscious, and they were going to bring her along. The reason was simple — Darian could feel that Niara didn’t want to leave her behind without knowing for sure that both mother and child would be okay. Endi ran over and gently lifted the woman into his arms.