858 Ater Vs Fae [Pt 2]

'Who is this man?'

Fae wondered within herself as she glared at him with sheer animosity.

If it wasn't for her duty as a warrior and her perfectly honed self-control she would have torn him limb from limb. That was the consequence of insulting her creator—the progenitor of all Fairies.

The Fairy King!

Anyone who did such a thing deserved nothing short of death.

'Still… I need to act just like the old fart is always telling me. Calmly observe the enemy and extract as much information before finishing the task.'

Fae had always been impulsive in her actions, which was why the Fairy King took extra care in drilling the essence of patience into her.

Thanks to those centuries of constant nagging and training, she finally bent.

'I'll learn all I can from you, just as I know you plan to learn all you can from me, and then afterwards… I'll end your life!'

If she managed to 'accidentally' kill him before then, so be it.

'I hold the advantage anyway.'

This was her turf, and she was clearly more powerful than he was. Sure, they weren't in the Fairy Kingdom—so she didn't have the Immortality Protection of the Fairy King—but that didn't mean she couldn't return at any time.

She also had his [Royal Authority], which was how she could deal with any Skill or Magic that she encountered.

'All of these are compounded by the fact that he'll eventually grow impatient and make a slip-up due to his separation from his ally.'

Unlike her, he didn't have all the time in the world.

That would be his downfall!

'The old fart told me to look out for Rey Skylar, but this guy doesn't fit the description he gave me. He also has a negative vibe about him…' She narrowed her eyes as she stared at Ater. 'My instincts tell me I have to get rid of this guy as quickly as possible'

As she thought this, she took a proper stance and prepared to charge in.

'For the sake of H'Trae… and the Fairy King's honor… this man must surely perish!'

~VWUUUUUM~

As soon as she charged forward, a wave of darkness suddenly appeared.

The wall of utter blackness spread from the enemy, and it caused her to have a moment of slight hesitation—enough that she halted in her tracks.

"You need to have an understanding of the Skill or Spell that you're negating before you do so, am I correct?"

As soon as Fae heard this, she took her eyes away from the pulsating darkness and glared at the smiling man before her.

'How did he know?' She thought to herself.

"My name is Ater, by the way. I find you intriguing, Fae…" "Shut up, you filthy thing! You're an abomination that should be cleansed from this world." She growled, prepared to charge in despite the strange and perverse energy that kept pouring out of Ater's body.

"Ahh… as I suspected." His smile broadened. "Your averse reaction towards me isn't merely because of my words regarding your King."

"...."

"You consider me a terrible stain on this world, right? Looks like the System really hates me."

"The System? What does that have to do with—?"

"Your instincts… they're telling you to get rid of me, right?" As he said this, Fae couldn't help but frown even further.

How did he know these things?

"The System does more than just give Stats and Skills, you know? Those with high integration with it… like you and The Oracle… are given overt directives from it. The 'instinct' you refer to is just the System's reaction to my presence."

"What?"

"I am not meant to be here… and it doesn't like that. I thought I had more time, but… I suppose my plans have taken the natural order off course." He sighed. "This is why Master shouldn't be distracted by these mundane things around him. There's no time for such."

"I don't know what you're talking about. It just sounds like I hit you a little too hard."

"Ah? Is that how it is? I guess there's no use telling you these things. Perhaps your King will have more of an insight on this matter than you." He retorted, giving Fae the most condescending smile she had ever gotten.

"In the end, no matter how esteemed you are… sheep is still sheep."

"You—!"

~WHOOSH!~

Fae rushed towards Ater, but almost as soon as she reached halfway through the distance, silhouettes emerged all around him.

'What?!' Once again, Fae was forced to stop.

No, not just stop.

She retreated about a hundred meters away in the blink of an eye, a glare of caution fixed on the apparitions that surrounded the grinning man.

"I was able to stall a little thanks to our little chat. You must have considered me to be in a hurry due to my ally's situation, but you are mistaken."

As soon as he said this, the silhouettes around took solid form, turning into three varying entities.

"I too have all the time in the world."

This was, of course, a bluff from Ater, but Fae couldn't know that.

Instead, she suspected it to be a bluff. However, Ater was so good at faking confidence that she was beginning to buy into his bravado.

The Undead he summoned also did well to add weight to his words.

"Now that we're done conversing a little…" As he spoke, all the darkness that spread around him returned to his possession, and then was distributed evenly among the three entities that surrounded him.

"... Let's have a little more fun!"

His eyes gleamed purple, and the three creatures jerked to false life.

One had pitch black armor like a warrior—with a sinister purple glow warbling within the dense shell he was covered with.

One was garbed in a shadowy cloak—almost akin to death itself. It had a twisted staff, with a gem atop it that glowed with malevolent energy.

Finally, the last one was a Ranged Archer—with weapons such as guns, a bow and arrows, alongside other such artilleries locked in strategic parts of their bodies.

All three of them were prepared to attack.

*

*

*

Thanks for reading!

Ater continues to remain a mystery. I think he's actually my favorite character in this book.