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nAs these words left An’xhur’s mouth, a bitter smile gradually crept up onto his lips, containing hints of mockery around its corners. Being on the opposite side of the sphere, as well as being privy to the half-orc’s narration so far, it did not take long for Valyr to figure out that An’xhur was focusing the feeling of mockery on himself, giving the young man the feeling that he was inwardly admonishing himself for being a fool.

n“As my suspicions regarding his intentions of reuniting with me had disappeared by that point, it was no surprise that I felt a multitude of emotions after seeing my half-sibling, someone whom I thought had returned to my life in his entirety, stab me in the back just when I was at my weakest,” said An’xhur with a sigh, slowly shaking his head soon after.

n“Was this when you began to retaliate?” Valyr asked An’xhur, recalling that the latter told him that he was able to inflict some damage to the one who had betrayed him. In response, a faint murderous intent emanated from An’xhur as a slight frown adorned his face.

n“How would I not?” replied An’xhur, his tone containing a hint of rage. “Even though I was at my weakest, hoping that the ones I had asked to accompany me in my ascension would protect me to the very end, I was left with no choice but to retaliate. The weapon my half-sibling had used to stab me was incredibly nefarious, being a weapon that introduced a poison that would even kill Myths given enough time.”

n“Aside from that, the other people I had asked to accompany me, people whom I thought had no connections to my half-sibling whatsoever, were all under his wing at that point.”

n“However, the most important reason as to why I retaliated…”

n“…was because he betrayed my trust.”

nWhoosh!

nAt the very moment An’xhur was finished talking, Valyr felt a gust of wind blow throughout the white space as the murderous intent the former emanated began to disappear. Instead, what replaced it was the feeling of oppression and tyranny the young man had felt from the half-orc earlier.

nThe feeling that would only arise due to a great disparity in class rank.

nThe feeling of overwhelming strength.

nThe feeling… of the Sage of Erudition’s rage.

n“Though I had yet to acclimate to my newfound power as a Rank 6 class holder, I went ahead and began my retaliation by reducing the number of enemies I fought against.” Letting out a low sigh, the overwhelming aura An’xhur emanated gradually weakened, though the feeling of immense strength his body contained still remained.

n“Without hesitation, I allocated all of the unused XP I had at that point towards increasing my level, hoping to buy myself some more time before I succumbed to the poison, as well as give me more strength to ensure that my foes would perish from my wrath.”

n“Of course, after taking the initiative in taking me down, my half-sibling and his ‘lackeys’ did not dare to dawdle around. Seeing as they were left with no choice but to ensure that I died, all of them unleashed their strongest attacks at me, with my half-sibling acting as a commander to coordinate the others.”

n“Unfortunately, they underestimated how strong a newly ascended Myth was, especially one that was desperate to get back at his assailants.” Surprisingly, An’xhur had infused a bit of his energy into the sphere, showing Valyr a few images regarding how the half-orc’s retaliation unfolded.

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nFrom what he could see through the sphere, the battle An’xhur had gotten himself into placed him at a great disadvantage. Not only were there ten people who sought to end his life no matter what, but they had also achieved the peak of Rank 5, with some even being considered Epics.

nHowever, just as Valyr was about to ask An’xhur how many of the ten he had dragged with him to the afterlife, the images on the sphere shifted to another portion of the scene, with An’xhur flashing a somewhat proud smile while Valyr was left at a slight loss for words at what he saw.

n“With a few punches towards the ground, combined with my newfound control over the world with a Concept, I had eliminated almost all of my assailants with a single move,” said An’xhur, briefly glancing at Valyr. “Those who were most affected by it were those who had only reached the peak of Rank 5, turning into blood vapor just from my first punch.”

n“After that were those who had achieved a higher level of power, the Epics,” he continued. “Though they lasted a bit longer compared to the ones at the peak of Rank 5, they were still rendered dead by the time I had landed my third punch. At that time, I made sure the wrath I felt towards them was channeled entirely through my attacks.”

n“Eventually, only one remained standing among the ten.” Saying these words, An’xhur had a grim expression on his face. “My half-sibling.”

n“To this day, I have no clue as to how he could endure wave after wave of attack I had sent his way.” The half-orc deeply sighed. “Nevertheless, because of that, he was able to inflict more attacks on my body with the weapon.”

nSwoosh!

nFinished with his narration, the sphere separating the two dissipated into thin air, allowing An’xhur and Valyr to look at each other face-to-face. With a solemn expression, Valyr processed everything the half-orc had said to him so far, waiting to see if the half-orc would tell him a bit more information.

n“I pushed myself far beyond my limits just to ensure that I could land even more damage on him, just so he could realize how much pain he had inflicted to me.” At these words, An’xhur tilted his head slightly downward. “Yet, no matter how many skills I threw at him, all I saw was a nefarious smile on his face. It was as if he was telling me through his smile that his plan was a success.”

n“Eventually, I gave up fighting back, instead asking him why he decided to betray me.” As the half-orc said these words, he tightly clenched his fists, the anger within him bubbling as his half-sibling’s response at that time lingered in his mind.

n“There was a multitude of possible answers he could have said in response to my question, but never did I expect him to be so blunt.”

n“You know what he told me?” Asking this question, An’xhur looked at Valyr, the rage the man felt towards his current situation evident on the man’s face.𝚘𝒱𝐞𝒍xt.𝗰𝓞𝗆

n“What did he say?” In response, a somewhat curious expression appeared on Valyr’s face, though this expression swiftly turned into a frown once he heard An’xhur’s response.

n“I was in the way.”

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