Shortly after I stepped into Evan's room, a black puddle formed in the center of the ceiling. Thick drops of black water trickled down the walls like brushstrokes. Within moments, the small room was swallowed by darkness. Evan, who had led me inside, had vanished without a sound.
A faint laugh echoed from somewhere in the darkness. I rubbed my sore eyes, irritated by the sudden blackout, and grumbled, "It's a nice day. Why are you closing the curtains? What kind of child of darkness are you?"
I spoke nonsense while calmly taking in my surroundings. Simply painting a wall black would not plunge it into such deep darkness. Evan must have used some kind of ability. The space around me felt far too vast for a simple room.
My senses extended far beyond the confines of the narrow room, reaching out in every direction. I moved quietly through the darkness. After about twenty steps, a creeping shadow closed in on me from the right. I slipped past it with ease and struck back with a punch. It scattered like spilled ink, yet I felt no impact. It was like striking muddy water.
"You had better answer my questions honestly from now on." Evan's voice emerged from the darkness, echoing from all sides. It reverberated like a cave, making it hard to pinpoint his exact location.
"What if I refuse?" I challenged him.
"You will be trapped here forever," he warned.
I sneered. "Scary stuff. Go ahead, ask."
"How did you know I am a Young Dark Pope?"
"Gut feeling," I said.
A brief silence followed before I added, "I have pretty sharp instincts."
As that faint laughter echoed again, I drew upon the power of the divine beast and activated the Serpent Eyes. Surprisingly, the darkness around me did not lift.
Then it hit me. The space wasn't simply dark—the walls themselves were painted black. The faint impression of brushstrokes had been accurate. Enhanced night vision would not pierce that. I needed to see the energy flow itself.
I poured internal energy into both eyes and activated the Eyes of Fire. It was my first time using them alongside the Serpent Eyes, but the combination felt unexpectedly natural.
As I had expected, black air currents swirled in every direction. The turbid, sinister energy twisted like tangled threads. Most people couldn't even decipher such an esoteric flow. For me, hardened by Second Senior Sister's relentless training, it was hardly a challenge. I quickly identified the barrier's core and worked out how to break it.
I clenched my fists and circulated my internal energy. The total amount wasn't enough to be called a sea yet, but it had grown to the size of a lake.
Now, I can finally use the second part of the White Sun Eclipse's first half. The phrasing sounded awkward, but since my regression, I had only managed to use up to the White Sun Eclipse's sixth move. Moves seven through ten demanded massive internal energy and placed a heavy strain on the body, so I hadn't dared to use them until now.
Now, things were different. I had trained my body enough, and my internal energy was no longer lacking. The only move still beyond my reach was the tenth—my special killing technique.
As Fire Qi surged from my dantian and wrapped around my entire body, I felt Evan watching me from beyond the darkness. The biggest drawback of the first half's second part was the time it took to prepare. Because of that, it remained difficult to use in a head-on fight where every second counted.
In the darkness, multiple hands lunged at me, but the waves of Fire Qi radiating from my body repelled them. I relied on my mind to counter the weaknesses of this powerful move in my own way. While I focused on gathering energy, fire spread across my body, forming a protective membrane. Naturally, this consumed a tremendous amount of internal energy, which was why I had avoided using it until now.
Now. At the peak of my focus, I took a decisive step forward. Though I did not intend it, the ground seemed to tremble beneath me.
White Sun Style's 7th Move, Double Flame Force!
I slammed both fists, charged with explosive force, into the air. The shockwaves from each strike collided at their meeting point. The impact bent the space where they met. Unable to withstand the pressure, it shattered from within.
The black walls shattered like glass. Beyond the rubble, I saw Evan sitting on the bed, his expression dazed. "What is this—"
I closed the distance quickly as Evan appeared flustered. He snapped back to his senses and drew his sword. Upon seeing that, I deliberately slowed my attack. A fist surrounded by concentrated energy was nearly impossible to injure with a sword unless the opponent was a master swordsman.
This room was small and cramped, hardly suited for swordplay, and I soon grabbed Evan by the collar. He hastily grabbed my wrist, but it was useless. His struggle resembled a beast caught in a noose. I threw him onto the bed. The frame couldn't absorb the impact and collapsed under his weight.
Evan coughed violently. I seized his sword, drew my Seven Sins Sword, and crossed them just above his neck on the bed. One slight twitch would slit his throat.
To my surprise, Evan laughed. Despite the pain surely radiating from his back, he seemed to relish the moment.
Did he still have a trick up his sleeve? I tilted my head and looked closer, but he wasn't resisting at all.
"Throwing me onto the bed? How considerate," he grumbled.
"Can't make a racket and disturb the neighbors in broad daylight."
"What? Ah." His laughter cracked as he realized we were on the second floor. Then his enigmatic eyes locked on mine. "That was fun. Go ahead. Kill me now. You're far more interesting than I thought. It wouldn't be a bad way to die at your hands."
I expected more resistance, but he lay oddly calm. I could press down on the hilt and end it all, but instead I asked, "When did you awaken as a Young Dark Pope?"
"Do you know about the awakening too?" he said, surprised.
"Answer the question if you don't want to get hurt," I warned.
" Oh? So if I answer properly, you might spare me?"
"I can hold off a bit depending on your answer," I said flatly.
"Well then, I'd better be honest." Evan grinned. "I awakened last night."
"Did you die last night?"
"That's right. Didn't see it coming."
I hadn't expected him to answer so easily but pressed on, "Who killed you and how?"
Unexpectedly, Evan replied with a smile, "A fellow church member. I was careless and died."
"A church member?"
"Well, technically I died in a trap one of them set. Word of advice—stay away from the research wing. It's already a lost cause."
I watched him chuckle and pulled out one of the swords, lightening the pressure. Evan exhaled slightly. His body relaxed, just a little.
"Next question. What happened to the original Evan?"
"The original Evan?" he echoed.
"The Evan I knew."
"Ah." Evan said with a faint smile, "Of course, he is already dead."
I stepped forward and gripped the other sword. If I struck, his unguarded neck would be sliced clean. Instead, I pulled the blade free.
"What?" Evan touched his neck, dazed, as if confirming it was still attached. "Aren't you going to kill me?"
"If I wanted to kill you, I would have done it from the start. Why do you think I've kept you alive this long?"
"To extract information about the church?"
"That's part of it. What else?"
" Um, let's see... I don't know."
"It is because you used Raven."
That made him freeze.
"Raven is a complex sword technique. No one pulls it off just from watching over a shoulder," I explained.
In life-or-death situations, the average person would fall back on what they were most familiar with. Faced with a desperate crisis, Evan responded with Raven without hesitation. That was when my doubts appeared.
Evan beamed. "So what, you saw a glimpse of the Evan Helvin you knew in me and now you're waiting to see how things unfold?"
"Killing you would be easy. I could do it anytime. But I want to be sure. Something doesn't sit right." There was another reason I felt uneasy. "It's possible you absorbed all of Evan's memories, knowledge, experience, and skills when you awakened as a Young Dark Pope. But that doesn't explain last night's event."
"What about last night?"
"You beat the hell out of Talis. You said it was because the Helvin name was insulted. But if you were truly a Young Dark Pope, why would you care about family honor?" I pressed. "So tell me, what exactly are you right now?"
Evan chuckled yet again. "Didn't think you'd ask that. Guess you don't know much about the Young Dark Popes. Fine. I will tell you. First of all, there is no such thing as the original Evan. I am the Evan that you knew."
His usual smile made his words sound light, but this time his tone grew serious. I watched him carefully as he went on, "You probably think a Young Dark Pope's awakening wipes out the old personality, replacing it with something new, like possession by an evil spirit, right?"
"Isn't that how it works?" I asked.
"That's wrong."
"But you act nothing like the Evan I knew," I pointed out.
Evan's expression turned grave. "People change."
"Fair enough. But not this much in a day or two," I countered.
"That's true from your point of view. But don't you think ten years is enough time for a person to change?" Evan asked.
"Ten years? Where did that come from?"
"When someone awakens as a Young Dark Pope, they revive memories etched deep in their bloodline—memories soaked in evil. How many depends on what they felt right before dying."
Juan's words from before echoed in my head, "And so, you subjected him to the most excruciating death. Evan Helvin will be reborn as the ultimate Young Dark Pope!"
So the worse the death, the stronger the Memories of Evil awakened? That could explain Evan's odd demeanor. His attitude felt oddly hollow, as if the venom had drained from him.
If his death had been sudden—too quick to fester in hatred—then the Memories of Evil would be faint. Less mental corruption.
Of course, it was too early to tell. I couldn't simply trust everything Evan said. Still, it was hard to deny that people could change in ten years. I was living proof of that.
The biggest question had been answered, but a new one appeared. I looked at Evan and asked, "Then why were you acting like you had a death wish? It's one thing that your identity as a Young Dark Pope was exposed because I exploited your weaknesses. But your response was pathetic. After being overpowered, you immediately admitted defeat and told me to kill you."
"What are you getting at?"
"The church members I've faced were far more relentless. Even knowing the odds, they charged ahead without caring if they lived or died. They were like rabid dogs."
Evan smiled faintly. "It is meaningless."
I stared at him. "What do you mean?"
He stood and walked to the window. "You're asking why I acted like I had nothing left to live for? Simple. Because I'm already as good as dead."
"What?"
"To be exact, everyone in this academy is." Evan's shoulders shook with quiet laughter. "Want a tip? Leave the academy now. If you're lucky, you might escape."
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"What do you think? This place is already hell." He turned to face me. "You said you had questions about the church. Judging by your tone, you're starting to see something is wrong here. Unfortunately, it's too late."
Evan looked out the window again. The sunset dyed the world red, the river flowed lazily, and the soft laughter of the academy's students drifted pleasantly to his ears.
Appreciating the scene like a painting, Evan said, "The demon king has already descended."