Chapter 207 – Open Door

Black flames flowed endlessly from the black gauntlets. A flame that did not make the user feel the heat. But other than that, it wouldn’t disappear until it’s burnt out. I had never seen the black flame disappear except from my will.

[『Gooooooo!』]

The black flame undulated like a living thing and traveled along the stretched black threads. Then, it collided with the pale blue flame emitted by the black angel.

Black flames eroded the blue flames, seemingly consuming it. At one point, the latter was extinguished, but gained momentum and revived. The black flame greedily flattened the blue flame all the same and finally approached the black spear.

The black angel shouted again and turned its jet-black mask toward me, the Holy Stigmata glowing even redder. We had to reach it right away. In the sky, the black cube was in the stages of activating the magic circle. There wasn’t much time left.

[『I know that already!』]

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Attacks crept from behind us. Sudden hits from a long distance via the space jump. Moreover, it aimed at our hearts in multiple places.

We knew that much in advance. If you prepared in advance, evading became less of a problem.

On the contrary, with this attack, the tip of the black spear was on my side, and that’s it. If it’s possible to combine the two abilities together, it would have already done so. But since each one is a power that manifests from the user’s thoughts, it may not be possible to fuse them together.

The black angel had failed its counterattack. In other words, it was defenseless now.

[『Push here at once』]

The black flame burned faster in response to our voice. It wrapped the black angel in the air and produced a cross-shaped fire pillar.

The black angel was blown away by the explosion and fell from the sky. Its wings were scorched and the black flames continued to erode. Soon enough, the black flames spread all over its body.

Greed said to me. We need to destroy that black cube as soon as possible.

But…on one side, the black angel kept falling to the ground. The black flame burned the jet-black mask and caused a big crack in the red glowing stigmata. When I saw my father’s pained face under the slightly shattered mask… I shook off Greed’s restraint and my body started running without permission.

The magic circle of the Black Cube was shining like the sun.

In the dazzling light, I held my dad. Before I knew it, the crossing with Greed had been dispelled.

[Dad!]

[… What are you doing? Don’t you have something more important than me to deal with?]

I shouted, getting rid of the black flame.

[Dumbass…Oooh.]

Dad nodded off quietly without saying anything. At that time, the stigmata shattered and fell along with the jet-black mask. There was no longer a red tattoo on Dad’s face anymore.

[My destiny has been fulfilled.]

Those words, it acted like a signal. The sky shattered above the imperial capital, and a different world peeked through the cracks. As soon as the black cube had finished its role, it fell down like rain, piercing the ground one after another.

[Will this happen in the end…Ugh.]

Dad’s body was in terrible condition. He sustained not only damages from black flame and poison, but also from overusing the black spear. I recalled that it had the property of sucking the blood of the user.

Even if the user was capable of suppressing the black spear, it would still be difficult. It’s the same mortal sin weapon as Greed, so it wouldn’t be straightforward.

[I should treat you now.]

Switching from black gauntlet to black wand, I tried to activate Twilight Healing,

[Stop it. Don’t waste your power. It’s not over yet.]

Dad said, looking at the cracked sky.

[Then… Dad.]

[I told you. You must come at me to kill me. I’ve already died long ago anyway.]

Already dead… That word froze me. I remembered when Dad died. But, why did he die in the first place? I didn’t know the reason until now. When I faced the Gluttony skill, I was able to learn why.

There were two people called Fate. Should I call it a dual personality? Basically there was another me.

It’s very aggressive and had occasionally tried to take over my body. That insidious anger that rushed in was originally possessed by the fake Fate who had been exterminated in the spiritual world. He still hated me and was trying to replace me, looking for a chance to attack.

Originally, he was supposed to be the original Fate, not me.

It was my father who did not allow it. What I knew from the battle with Kairos supplemented me with my missing memories and reminded me. At the same time, I realized that I was there.

If Eris was a jumble of monsters, then I’m a jumble of souls eaten by the gluttony skills.

Dad put his hand on my cheek with a weak hand.

[You look like your mother. You’ve grown, Fate.]

[No, I am…]

[Is there something you want to tell me?]

[I’m not your real son. I was just a fake created by his gluttony skills… The real boy is still trapped within the Gluttony skills…]

Dad shook his head in response to my confession.

[You are my son. Fate, who have inherited my sacred beast power. You are not a fake created by your skill. You are a human who inherited your mother’s power. But, the Gluttony skill was too powerful for humans. Immediately after birth, Fate as a human was swallowed by the skill.]

[…But, I’m here now. No way…]

I remember taking my mother’s life from her eating skills. I thought that my eating skills had put a strain on my mother.

[Yes. Your mother didn’t die from giving birth to you. She dedicated her soul to save you from the Gluttony skill. At that time, your Mom could only do it while she’s physically connected to you.]

Dad pointed to my navel as he spoke. This meant that the newborn baby was connected to her mother by the umbilical cord. At that time, my mother was also connected to her eating skills.

[She died to extract your soul out, which by that time was already mixed in with the souls of those who were eaten by the skills. It was so deep that she couldn’t return. She was supposed to be a wall and keep protecting you so that you wouldn’t be consumed by your skill.]

[Protect? That’s…]

I remember the first time the gluttony skill was activated. It was when I was the gatekeeper in the Royal Capital, Seifert, and defeated the bandits who had sneaked into the castle.

There was a feeling that something repressed was being released. And I gained power with an inorganic voice.

[Mom wanted you to live as a normal person. But this is the world of skill supremacy. Your innate skills will determine your entire life. Effort barely has anything to do with it. You are essentially an incompetent since your skill was sealed. It would have been a difficult world for you.]

Dad was thinking about me up until he died.

[It was easy to imagine that you would awaken to your eating skills after I died, but it seems that your expectations were only half right.]

[Half?]

[When you woke up, you were not swallowed by your Gluttony skills and you were in balance. It’s alright, you ARE a human. Not a fake created from jumbled masses of souls. And your Mom is still protecting you.]

[Dad…]

When I put my dad in a safe place

[It looks like your friend has come.]

This sign is… When I turned around, I saw Eris standing there. She looked tattered and seemed to have a troubled look in her eyes. It seemed that she managed to get past that freeze attack.

[That was a flashy father-son quarrel. But, it’s good that you two are able to reconcile… There may be a lot of talk, but now we have to do something about that.]

The cracks in the space were slowly expanding. A bright red light was leaking from the hole. It looked similar to the world of Gluttony skill――the place where the dead were wriggling.

The world beyond that did not seem to be a friendly place for living beings.