Chapter 25: Hidden Currents (1)

Gangro—what a miraculous creature! Combining the physique of a werewolf and a vampire, it possesses an immortal body and a life that seems almost eternal…
According to legend, when something transforms into a vampire, it remains at the age it was at the time of transformation. Just like Jean Connel, hundreds of years have passed yet not a trace of aging has appeared on him; he retains his peak strength, and his age stays fixed at thirty-nine.
It is foolish to become an enemy of such a creature as Gangro, and even more foolish to oppose one with hundreds of thousands of spirits under its control…
On the summit of a small hill about eight or nine miles away from the village attacked by werewolves, Rio Village, two men were locked in a fierce struggle…
Argus, Argus BartClarkfield—this man, who appeared to be only twenty-eight or twenty-nine years old, possessed greater strength than Professor Hode. Surprisingly, not only had Jiang Zhe and his companions never heard of him, but even Professor Hode was unaware of his existence. After all, Professor Hode’s strength was already on par with that of a grand mage. If Argus was even stronger, then he must be…
A grand mage!
In fact, grand mages are already figures to be revered, representing the ultimate goal for most mages throughout their lives. It might seem there are no beings above grand mages, but in reality, the gap between them and holy mages is not significant. Holy mages are judged not only by strength—otherwise, why have so few holy mages appeared in centuries of magical history?
Take Viston Malagiji Hastings, the imperial chief mage, or Greta Kaines, the head of the Saxon Magic Academy, Heliriox. Though they were merely grand mages, they were both renowned dark mages in Salonia, their fame and strength sufficient to earn them holy titles. All that was lacking was the right opportunity.
Yet, we had never heard a word about this man named Argus before. Where was he from? Whose apprentice was he? How long had he been studying magic?
We knew nothing of this…
All we knew was that this fugitive named Argus possessed the strength to kill a candidate for cardinal archbishop and had even survived the pursuit of established cardinals like Father Andrew and six holy inquisitors…

But it was precisely because of this ordeal that Argus realized he couldn’t achieve his goals alone; he was searching for companions… companions with great power! Thus, he found Jean Connel, a werewolf-vampire buried in an underground prison by alchemists for hundreds of years—Gangro! Unfortunately, perhaps due to his past experiences, the werewolf dismissed the idea of companionship, though maybe he simply disliked him… It was an unrestrained form of willfulness, rooted in the werewolf’s overwhelming confidence in his own strength! It must be said that those astonishing [240,000 souls] made Argus back down. Gangro, with 240,000 souls, was like a deity—aside from true gods, I think no one could kill him more than 240,000 times; it was practically impossible… Argus stepped back, shook his head, and exhaled, breaking the prolonged stalemate. “Won’t you reconsider, Connel? Don’t waste your innate strength and talent. Be my companion! Let’s work together to end this corrupt and filthy world and create a new one!” “A new world?” The werewolf frowned in confusion. “Yes,” Argus said, spreading his arms with fervor, “break the existing constraints of the world, establish new order and laws. Both of us will become eternal beings far surpassing others!” “Hmph!” The werewolf sneered mockingly. “Eternal beings? Only the gods are eternal!” “Is that so?” Argus chuckled, his black pupils gleaming with danger. Lowering his head, he said wickedly, “How can those guys be called gods? Connel, come with me to explore the pinnacle of this world! Step onto those unknown altars and kill all those pretentious gods… Let us replace them and become the new gods!” “…” Clearly, the werewolf was stunned by Argus’s arrogant words. Born during the Alchemy Era hundreds of years ago, he clearly couldn’t accept such absurd claims. “Well?” Seeing the werewolf remain silent, Argus spread his arms and stepped toward him, continuing to speak words of persuasion.

“I know about you, Connel. Obviously, after going through so much, you should understand too that to the gods, we are nothing but ants. They don’t care about the death of a few ants at all. All they care about is their own dignity and the games among themselves… Both you and I are abandoned by the gods… What do you say? Will you join me? Step onto the altar and pull those hypocritical, arrogant gods down from their lofty positions, and watch them in their ugly state as we trample them underfoot! Don’t you want to see that?! When you prayed to the gods for help, did anyone give you strength? No! It was the demons who gave you strength! Hmph… Connel, I don’t believe there’s no anger toward the gods in your heart. In fact, we’re the same kind of people…”

“Anger…” Under Agus’s temptation, the werewolf’s gaze showed some confusion. Indeed, toward the gods he had always believed in but couldn’t seek help from at critical moments, he felt an indescribable anger in his heart.

“The gods don’t care about the death of ants! Connel, become my companion. End this corrupt, filthy, unfair world, establish new order and laws, and trample those hypocritical gods underfoot…”

“Is that possible? Do you think such a thing can be done?” The werewolf shook his head, but seeing his somewhat diminished indifference, he seemed persuaded. Yes… this is indeed a corrupt, filthy, unfair world…

“It’s possible! It definitely is!” With fanaticism in his eyes amid the werewolf’s astonished gaze, Agus said excitedly, “I’ve found an eternal being. That lord has granted me great power. Connel, do you know? That lord is stronger than the gods, closer to eternity, and will never be destroyed! That lord will eventually become the god who ends this corrupt world and creates a new one! The supreme god! And you and I will both become his followers… Connel, don’t you want to see how we, from being ants, step step by step onto the lofty altar? Just thinking about the terrified, ugly expressions of those hypocritical, false, arrogant gods when they see us ants… Hahaha, don’t you want to see that?”

“Is it the one who gave you that unknown dark power inside you?” the werewolf asked, frowning.

“Ah!” Argus nodded, calming his excited emotions. With an expression as if recalling something, he said softly, “Like you, I once believed so deeply in the gods. But in the end… hehehe, that’s when I realized that all so-called divine blessings and protection are nothing but illusions. Only one’s own strength is real! The weak will always be bullied and humiliated by the strong, who advance by trampling on their corpses. Commoners will always remain commoners, and nobles will always remain nobles. The fate of commoners who resist the nobles is death—or something even worse… Survival of the fittest—that’s the truth of this world! A truth that has endured for thousands, tens of thousands, even longer years, unchangeable and eternal!”
“…”
“Humans are creatures governed by unfair fate. The weak submit to the strong, and the strong dominate the weak—hasn’t this fact changed for ages? I, Argus BartClarkfield, refuse to submit to such imposed fate and live like a rat in this corrupt, filthy world full of injustice! What do you say, Connel? Join forces with me. I need your strength!”
“…” The werewolf remained silent. He was also deeply disappointed in the world and the gods, a disappointment that once turned into despair. Jean Connel was a man who had hovered on the edge of death many times. If not for the intense hatred deep within him, he would likely have long turned into bones, a nest for insects.
“The gods… the world…” The werewolf murmured to himself, gazing into the distance with a distant look, feeling the pain as the rising sun shone on him. Yet this pain was not even a fraction of the remorse and anger in his heart.
“Jean, it’s because of the gods’ blessings that we can have such good harvests!”
“Don’t speak disrespectfully of the gods, Jean. We are all God’s people, God’s children. It is God who has given us all this…”
“Wolves… werewolves? Why… why accept the power of demons, Jean?! Promise me you’ll never harm others. If you do, the all-merciful God will forgive your sins…”
“I’m sorry, Jean… forgive me. I can’t accompany you to the end anymore. Goodbye… Don’t hate this world. Perhaps it’s fate… Don’t hate. Anger and hatred will lead to corruption. I don’t want to see you like that… Jean… it’s so cold…”
“Fate?” The werewolf took a deep breath.
“What?”

“You’re not wrong!” Turning to nod at Argus, the werewolf said in a deep voice, “But I’m different from you! I’ve never been abandoned by the gods. The goddess in my heart never chose to abandon me—neither in the past, nor now, nor ever in the future! As for your gods and altars, I’m sorry, but I’m not interested in playing this game with you. If you don’t intend to stop me, I’m leaving!”
“How is that possible?” Argus laughed lightly, looking at the werewolf with deep regret and shaking his head sadly. “No one would dare to attack a Gungro who has devoured hundreds of thousands of souls. That would be foolish…”
“Hmph!” With a soft sound, the werewolf gave Argus a deep glance before turning and leaving.
“It’s not scary to possess dark powers. What’s scary is when even one’s heart is consumed by darkness…”
That man’s heart had already been twisted by anger and hatred. If it weren’t for you, maybe I too would have become such a person…
Cecilia…
Forgive me for asking again so rudely. Please wait for me a little longer, just a short while… This time, I won’t break my promise again…
So, you just need to endure a little loneliness and coldness, and all of the past will come to an end… Just a little while…
As the werewolf left, Argus kept watching him, then shook his head with a sad smile.
“Sigh, what a pity. I was almost able to persuade him!”
“Is this okay?” A muffled voice with a heavy nasal tone came from the empty ruins.
Argus chuckled and shrugged. “Don’t speak suddenly; it scares me. Didn’t I say your voice is unpleasant? Clark!”
As he spoke, a vague white figure slowly appeared beside him. A few seconds later, the figure gradually took on human shape…
It was a strong warrior clad in black armor, much taller than Argus—probably about ten feet tall. His left hand held a dark iron shield, while his right hand grasped a giant sword larger than an ordinary person’s body. The light reflecting off the sword’s blade seemed to indicate it was made entirely of obsidian.
The entire set of blue-gray armor had extremely ancient designs and patterns. From his horned helmet, which resembled that of a demon, a pair of pale red eyes stared intently at the departing werewolf as he said in a deep voice, “Do you want me to take care of him?”

“Never mind,” Argus shrugged, leaning casually against a broken stone pillar among the ruins, and said lightly, “I can sense the intense hatred in his heart. Maybe next time, he might become one of our companions. So… for those who aren’t enemies, try not to turn them into enemies—it will hinder my plans…”
“What if they do become enemies?” the ghostly warrior Clark asked in a deep voice.
“Do I even need to ask?” Argus narrowed his eyes and said in a low tone, “Of course, kill them all!”
“Hehe, I like your style!” the ghost warrior Clark grinned wickedly. “Then I’ll go take care of that guy named Hod and those brats. I remember those skeleton scum you worked with helping you cover your tracks while fleeing!”
“Hehe,” Argus smiled slightly before saying calmly, “Among those brats, there’s one who interests me greatly. I want to see how far that kid can grow… Remember, fruits can only be picked when they’re ripe…”
“What if it’s not a fruit, but a carnivorous plant?” Clark asked gravely.
“W wouldn’t that be interesting?” Argus laughed heartily. “If only I reached the peak alone, wouldn’t that be boring?”
“Just like when you let that werewolf go?”
“That’s right,” Argus chuckled before sighing and saying lightly, “Because this world is too boring… Is that an acceptable explanation? Clark, Clark Simmonley?”
“Of course, my master!” Clark tapped his sword and shield in respect and said softly, “Actually, I know a guy who has a special ability that can help the master achieve great goals!”
“Oh?” Argus’s brows twitched as he smiled. “Is he like you?”
“Yes,” Clark nodded before adding with a hint of disdain, “I can’t understand how such a weakling could rank above me. Hmph! That coward only hides in the shadows, using words to trick others into doing his dirty work…”
“Oh?” Surprise flashed in Argus’s eyes before he laughed heartily. “That’s great… To achieve our goals, brute force alone isn’t enough. What’s that guy’s name? Where is he now?”

“Hampa… I think it should be sealed near the place we’re going to…” As he spoke, Clark suddenly turned his head and growled, “Who? Come out right now!” He raised his hand and swung with force. Miraculously, just through brute strength, the shockwave generated by that giant sword shattered a wall of ruins in an instant.

After the dust settled, Eivo Beric, the culprit behind the werewolf incident, stared at Agus and Clark in terror…

“Oh, it’s you!” Agus said with a light laugh, as if greeting a friend.

Yet Eivo Beric didn’t respond to Agus. His eyes were wide open as he stared fixedly at Clark, trembling in fear. “Demon… a legendary demon…” His words were slurred due to extreme terror.

“Heh,” Agus chuckled, then turned around, wrapped his thin coat tighter, and headed downhill, tossing one last remark over his shoulder. “Kill him, Clark!”

“With pleasure, my master!”

“No! No…” Driven by inexplicable fear, Eivo Beric turned and ran, but his ominous forebodings grew stronger. When they reached their peak, he instinctively glanced back—only to see a giant sword larger than his own body looming close, wielded by that strong warrior riding a black ghost horse…

“Tch! Weaklings like you don’t even deserve to be foot soldiers! Consider yourself lucky—go to hell!”

Meanwhile, about eight or nine miles away, there was a village named Rio. Once, this village was home to four or five hundred kind and innocent residents. But now… those innocent people had turned into soulless, inhuman Gungro…

“Sigh,” the wise and kind old man, one of the twelve papal cardinals sent to this place, sighed as he looked at the ruined village. Raising his hands, he prayed for the villagers. “Poor souls wandering beyond the world, under the blessing of sacred hymns and guided by holy light, go to heaven. Merciful Lord, please open the gates of heaven for these innocent and kind people, let them rest at Your feet and be saved… Amen!”

But this is merely a hope. The soul is the most important thing in human existence. The disappearance of a soul means the end of everything. Even gods cannot bring back a lost soul. Demons must stay in the dark [Hell], evil spirits in the scorching [River of Fire] or the endless [Abysm], and the dead in the [Land of Death]… Souls cannot be revived or created—this is the law of the world!
“U-um, hello, esteemed Archbishop,” said the captain of the guards who had brought Jiang Zhe and the others to that mine shaft, with deep respect, after Father Andrew finished his prayer. “Thank you for saving us from those evil creatures and using your magic to heal us…”
“Don’t say that,” Father Andrew said with a smile, waving his hand. “There is no distinction between noble and humble lives; all lives are equal. And those monsters… they’re not evil. They are just pitiful, innocent people. It’s those who turned them into what they are now who are evil… Sin comes from the human heart…”
“Oh…” The captain of the guards nodded, seemingly understanding but also confused. Suddenly, as if he had seen something, he bowed his head with a mixture of fear and respect.
“Father,” said one of the other three Inquisitors, approaching Father Andrew and speaking expressionlessly, “all the villagers have been redeemed!”
“Oh, is that so? Thank you for your hard work…” Father Andrew sighed slightly.
The Inquisitor bowed slightly and turned to leave, unimpressed by Father Andrew’s kind words. Perhaps for beings like killing machines, only the supreme gods and evil pagans could change their indifferent expressions.
“May I ask…” After the Inquisitor left, the captain of the guards spoke softly, “May I ask, esteemed Archbishop, why did you come here…” He didn’t continue, fearing he might offend this powerful white mage before him.
“Heh,” Father Andrew explained with a smile, “It’s like this: The Pope asked me to take our apprentices from Salonia to the Heliorix Academy as a form of exchange between black magic and white magic. It also helps both sides’ outstanding students gain a better understanding of magic, which will be very beneficial for their future lives. Rest assured, we came to your country with the approval of King Sassen…”

“Oh…” The head guard nodded and looked around, his expression puzzled. Seeming to read the head guard’s thoughts, Father Andrew said with a smile, “There’s no need to be surprised. Our mentors and apprentices from the Salonia Academy of White Magic may have just set off now. We’ve come ahead to pay a visit and discuss some important matters with King Thasson and several respected archmages…”
“Oh, I see…” The head guard was relieved, and the last traces of suspicion vanished. scratching his head, he said apologetically, “You saved us, yet I still doubted you. Please forgive my rudeness…”
“Hehe, that shows you’re an honest person. May the Lord bless you, my child…”
It wasn’t that Father Andrew was making things up; it was indeed true. The Church didn’t believe that Argus BartClarkfield, that sinner, was acting alone. Before uncovering his true intentions, the Church didn’t want to alert the forces behind this evil man. So, under the pretext of exchanging magic knowledge with the Empire’s magic academy, the Heliorox Academy, they allied with the Empire’s dark mages to combat this unknown force of evil.
Additionally, they had been invited by the Empire to discuss the orc problem in the western territories. After all, the conflicts between the two countries were merely conflicts among humans. When faced with threats from other races, humans remained united.
Of course, that applied to the vast majority of humans. Perhaps at the front lines facing the orcish onslaught, there were still some who deliberately created chaos for their own purposes…
Maybe it wasn’t just Argus…