Lord of Annihilation

Chapter 43: Taking Care of Escker.

Driving his soul power to its maximum, Lucius weaved through this blood red world. Keeping in mind to avoid the cameras and other students, Lucius kept to the shadows.

Having reached Stage 1 in his soul cultivation, Lucius soul energy underwent a qualitative change. It was much more effective and the boosts provided to his body were much greater than the previous boost.

If he undertook the Full-Body tests right now, Lucius' score would easily surpass 500+ in all fields. That is to say, Lucius current body strength was equal to five times the strength of the strongest human recorded!

In his vision the other organisms were highlighted with pale white colored spots of light. These lights represented the souls of various living organisms ranging from a tiny ant to a human.

Lucius followed the golden trail through various paths. When he had met Escker and suspected him, he placed a [Mark] on his body. [Mark] is another ability of the [Killer], which allows a mark to be placed on a target. Lucius can then track the mark, which is represented by the golden trail in his vision.

Of course there are limitations placed upon this ability rendering it ineffective when the target's soul cultivation is greater than that of the user or if the mark was placed for long time or if the target moved away by sufficient distance. The closer the target is, the denser the golden trail.

Judging by the density of the golden trail, Lucius had concluded that his target was still within the Academy. As he continued to follow the trail, Lucius gaze, suddenly sharpened.

"He's moving."

Saying so, he once again picked up his speed. Lucius who had already been running at the speed of 60 km/hr picked up his speed once more. This fact spoke volumes of his body's strength and standards.

Running at his top speed, Lucius noticed that the golden trail was getting denser and denser. The surrounding buildings had also lessened, with this area clearly being further from the academy's usual sphere of influence.

'Seems like he has realized something and is trying to run. But why is he running to a secluded area, is this a trap?' he unconsciously started to become alert.

Just as he was reconsidering his approach, Lucius noticed a figure running at a distance. The figure was quite tall and lean. Seeing that silhouette he confirmed that was the teacher he had met earlier. He quickly used his vision to scan around the immediate vicinity.

Lucius could not neglect the possibility of an ambush. No matter how strong he currently was his body could not withstand plasma being shot directly at it. He was still made of flesh and blood after all.

Scanning the area, his eyes picked up many spots of light but none belonging to humans. Most of the souls in his vision belonged to birds and other smaller insects.

Without proper knowledge regarding the workings of the soul and a high enough cultivation Stage, it was impossible to mimic the wavelength of other souls or to completely hide the energy released by one's soul.

This was in the domain of the 'Rule of Souls' and without having a 'Rule' higher than that of souls or a deep enough understanding of the 'Rule of Souls', it was impossible to make any changes to one's soul. The 'Rule of Souls' was one of the highest Rules in existence just below the likes of 'Rule of Cause' or 'Rule of Time', etc. It even surpassed the 'Rule of Space'!

It was such a high Rule, that even Lucius at his peak had to obey, even though he had reached Stage 7 in [Killer] and had already grasped its essence and concept. Perhaps Ka'lor'ah might have the strength to mess with it at her peak.

After confirming that there were no ambushes in the vicinity, Lucius once again sped up. The only reason he had let his prey live this long was because he was on guard against a third party intervening. Now with confirmation that there was no one else other than the two of them here, Lucius moved not wanting to drag this along any longer.

Perhaps he had felt the approach of his death, the man in front of him suddenly turned to look back. Seeing Lucius chase after him with those, terrifying looking eyes the man panicked and tripped, falling head first into the ground.

He was running at quite the speed, resulting in him breaking is nose upon his fall. His face looked bloodied and his eyes were rapidly moving. A sense of intense horror and panic had already grasped his heart, making his brain unable to react rationally.

Seeing the man like this, Lucius slowed down his speed and maintained a walking speed.

"Y-yo-you get away from ME!!", Escker screamed at the top of his lungs. HIs voice was trembling, while he hurriedly tried to crawl away. His ankle bent in an unnatural angle, rendering him unable to stand up the run.

The pain and fear had completely overtaken his mind, rendering him unable to react rationally.

Upon meeting Lucius in the morning, Escker ran back to his office to try and contact the capture team whom he had contracted to catch Lucius.

Trying the various contact methods they had left him, Escker realized that none were working. They simply did not answer! Panic had already started setting in.

He realized that if the boy reported him to the academy, Escker could very possibly lose everything that he had built here. All his contacts, connections, ties with the various families. His entire dark history might end up being exposed, with death being his final outcome.

Escker's reaction was over the top, to say the least. He had obviously not been thinking in the right state of mind and overreacting to the extreme. But he could not be blamed. How would a normal person react upon seeing a 'dead' person suddenly walk across them in broad daylight? The fact that he did not immediately scream and pass out on scene, spoke lengths of Escker's mental fortitude.

Seeing that he could not get in touch with Lucius' kidnapers, Escker started gathering all his wealth and the bribes (gifts, gems, etc.) he had received and started on his escape. No matter what, he had to immediately escape from this academy.

If a teacher or student wanted to leave the academy they first had to register their ID at the gates, only then would they be allowed exit. Escker carrying his ill-gotten wealth could naturally not do that. Therefore, he decided to chose another exit, known only to a very few people.

Alas, the very ghost he wanted to escape from, now stood across him with a smile on its face. The ghost seemed amused by his reactions. Looking at those black irises with crimson rings surrounding them confirmed the fact that the boy in front on him, was no human.

Seeing at this man obviously no longer sane, Lucius had a gentle smile on his face. The red rings in his eyes slowly receded into little slits. Starting deep into the eyes of the man in front of him, Lucius unhurriedly spoke, "First, tell me your name."

Escker's eyes which were filled with panic and fear slowly settled until they resembled that of a puppets. His eyes were staring into Lucius' ,lifelessly and his face was entirely blank. Upon hearing Lucius' question, he immediately replied, sounding mechanical.

"Sean Escker."

"Tell me then Sean. What do you do and why are you afraid of me?" Lucius continued his questioning.

As Sean began to explain, Lucius' originally amused expression stiffened. Listening intently he, finally understood who was behind his kidnapping.

'Keith.' the image of that young man appeared in his mind. 'Who would have thought that the pawn I used to get acquainted with Reyna, would be behind this entire mess. Seems like I underestimated him a little.' Lucius thought calmly. He then seriously began analysing his actions till date, to make sure he did not leave any more of such loose ends.

'Oh, there is still that Luther. Almost forgot about him. Seems like Keith and Luther are in the same team.'

Looking at Escker whose face was blank, Lucius thought to himself, 'Well, this guy was an unexpected find.'

He then questioned him, "Tell me about Alex Hellwig."

Escker promptly complied, "Alex Hellwig, eldest son of the Hellwig Family. He joined the academy 2 years ago and is graduating this year. He's part of the Army Course and is currently in a field mission outside the academy."

Lucius expression once again tightened as he asked again, "He's not in the academy?"

"Correct. He left a few weeks ago to collect some practical experience aboard a spaceship. He should be returning soon." Escker explained.

Hearing this Lucius nodded his head. 'Looks like Alex is already back in the city having not reported back to the academy.'

What he could not figure out was how and why he had attained Ka'lor'ah. Thinking about it for a while, he eventually gave up and threw it to the back of his mind.

He then looked at Escker and spoke, "You have been unexpectedly useful. Knowing that, you can rest in peace." saying so, Lucius condensed his soul power at his palm and used it to chop Escker's head.

Lucius' palm moved smoothly through his neck, beheading him with a clean, singular cut. Lucius channeled his soul power and activated [Decay], hence cleanly taking care of his body.

No trace of Escker's presence existed.

Lucius quietly stared at the place where Escker had died, his thoughts unknown. He then tilted his head to look up in the sky.

Having already returned his vision back to normal, Lucius quietly gazed at the white moon, hanging in the sky. A few other foreign bodies were also present near it, which were the numerous space ports and transfer hubs.

He then let out a sigh and spoke out loud, "Seems like I can only wait.". Shaking his head Lucius continued, "It would be a shame if someone like Alex died prematurely. I look forward for how much he can grow this time."

Saying so, Lucius turned around and retreated back into the darkness. The moonlight shining upon him lost it's target as his body vanished.