Super Righteous Player
Chapter 763 - 304: Victor Frostword_1

Chapter 763: Chapter 304: Victor Frostword_1

Vladimir had never underestimated "Victor."

Or rather... in the current entirety of the "Hand of Winter" organization, Victor was the sole enemy that Vladimir had to face seriously.

This middle-aged man, appointed by Duke Ivan, had inherited the "right thumb ring" left by Vladimir and with it directly commanded the entire "right half" of the Hand of Winter.

He, along with Zorgen, represented the visible and the hidden facets of the Hand of Winter.

They respectively guarded the "Duchy of Winter" and the "Duke of Winter."

Unless ordered directly by the Duke, Victor would never leave the Duke’s mansion. His presence was to prevent the re-occurrence of the old incident where Vladimir had stolen the Frost Beast... and also to deter the escape of prisoners held in the dungeon below the mansion.

And Zorgen would forever stay by Annan’s side, concealed within his shadow.

Being entrusted with such significant responsibility by Duke Ivan alone was enough to prove Victor’s exceptional talents.

And indeed, it was so.

Before Vladimir turned traitor, only Victor could suppress him... not even Zorgen could manage it.

Zorgen couldn’t even control his own power — he almost always killed upon acting, with no room for holding back. That’s why he was the last line of defense by the Duke’s side.

In addition to guarding the mansion, Victor was also responsible for negotiation, talks, and exchanges of interests with the nobles.

His work was extremely burdensome, even more so when the Duke was shirking his duties.

That was also one of the reasons Victor politely declined when Annan wanted to bring him to the North Lands.

Whenever the Duke was unable to work due to various matters, Victor would be the first to take over the work at hand. To better accomplish this mission, he had to completely understand all the details of the entire nation of Winter.

If Zoya was the head maid taking care of daily living, then Victor was the steward of the Duke of Winter... at a national level, that would amount to being the Prime Minister.

He was the Guardian of the Duchy of Winter.

And the original "Hand of Winter."

"It’s been a long time, Victor."

With a voice devoid of any emotion, Vladimir spoke deeply, "You still haven’t aged a bit... exactly the same as when I first saw you."

The bloody wound on Vladimir’s aged face, in contrast, made it appear even more terrifying.

Victor, clad in servant’s clothes, his back straight and towering in stature, simply raised his left hand and calmly adjusted his left glove a bit tighter with his right.

"Ah, indeed."

Victor responded calmly, "I do not age, as you well know."

"Heh, in a sense, I truly envy you..."

"What, have you also fallen into the philosophical quandary of life and death?"

"...you are correct,"

Unexpectedly.

Vladimir closed his eyes and slowly nodded.

Victor raised an eyebrow and his mouth curved up: "Hmph."

"You need not mock me. For I too shall one day discard this decrepit shell and step into eternity."

Vladimir’s unemotional voice resounded.

The dark grey human shape behind him moved away from Selicia’s side. Its branch-like, twisted arm, which had been extended towards Selicia, now pointed towards the sky again, while its tormented visage turned to face Victor.

"You still harbor desires strong enough to form a [Sublime Falsehood],"

"Because I am human,"

Vladimir answered succinctly: "And human desires are infinite."

As his voice faded,

Without any warning, he launched an attack on Victor.

The world around them was instantaneously dyed with a despairing dark grey. The entire world seemed like a frozen black-and-white photograph, with only Vladimir and the scars on his Sublime Falsehood being vivid red.

The next moment, the many wounds tearing apart his body began to expand.

The still world before them became like a solidified photograph. And numerous invisible Sharp Objects, like blades stabbing in from "outside the photo," easily ripped the whole world apart—

The air, the earth, the walls.

Completely disregarding the original "hardness" and "durability" of objects, they were destroyed at a higher dimensional level. It was as if random, "stigmatic" wounds had appeared... these were the stigmata that covered the surface of the world.

A power capable of penetrating and severing the world.

"...I see, the ’Suffering’ Elemental," he muttered.

In theory, only an Elemental can counter another Elemental.

Not to mention one that has been cultivated to its limit, even possessing a sublime false body with form.

But that calm voice, it simply arose on its own from the frozen space, "You wish to become a god of Suffering? No, that’s not it..."

The frost-haired, grey-eyed Victor suddenly raised his right hand in the frozen world.

[We are all bearers of sin—]

Fluent Frost Speech flowed from Victor’s lips.

The world around him was instantly covered with frost, and the seal on the ring radiating coldness on his right thumb was also released.

As if the wound had been frozen over.

—The world’s collapse suddenly halted.

The next moment, dense curse patterns crazily surged out of the host object—spreading over Victor’s entire body in the blink of an eye.

No, even after covering his whole body, it still did not stop.

The curse patterns, written in curses, continued to spread wildly outward, forming two spiraling black wings behind Victor. A visible mist formed around him, causing his image to blur.

It was a seal and shackles inscribed by the gods themselves with endless curses.

Only by this means could that sinful power be completely isolated from within him—

After the seal was released, Victor’s ears grew elongated, and his grey pupils appeared to flow with mercury.

—Indeed.

He was an elf, an old elf who had personally experienced the "Auster Empire" era.

He was one of the founders of the Frostspeaker profession...and could be considered an ancestor of Annan. He had once been a Pope decades ago under his grandmother.

At the same time,

He was also a practitioner of "Curse Energy"—and one of the advocates for the policy of destroying the Curse Cellar.

It was because of this achievement that he managed to survive.

And it was precisely because of this sin—that he was not allowed to die, nor allowed to ascend to Gold.

For his soul was sealed in ice by his grandmother’s Divine Power, unable to age, ascend, or undergo Stigmatization. His life was forever paused at the frozen moment...and every day that followed was one of atonement.

To suppress the toxicity of Curse Energy, too many curses had accumulated within Victor. His death would provoke a great disaster.

Conversely... having accumulated curses sufficient to elevate a common man to Gold, he remained merely silver.

Therefore, Vladimir would never treat him as an ordinary silver-rank Transcendent.

"Curse Energy" and "Essence of Elemental Power" are on the same level, both being the liquid Blood of the World. Though the other had not ascended to Gold and couldn’t extract Elemental Power with his soul, Victor’s soul had long been imbued with Curse Energy.

Vladimir’s Elemental Power could not suppress the opponent’s soul.

...Perhaps, this is also why His Majesty Annan only sent Victor to stop him.

Because Annan himself... even with all the other Hands of Winter, could not act within his ’Suffering Domain’.

But he originally did not come to assassinate Annan.

"Victor Frostword. I knew you would be waiting for me here," said Vladimir, calling the other by his true name, looking straight at him, "You think I would return here... without making any preparations?"

"Ah... it doesn’t matter," Victor took a deep breath, his patience visibly dwindling, "Just a defeated general."

The curse pervading his body made him extremely uncomfortable.

It was like walking in the cold wind for a long time and then finding oneself in the blast of a hot breeze... he felt tear-like severe pain throughout his body.

The fight could not last too long...

But he had not squandered these millennia. Although he could not grow stronger... he also had not wasted time.

The moment he lifted his head and met Vladimir’s gaze with his mercury-flowing eyes,

Vladimir was suddenly pulled into a pure white illusion by him.

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