Sloth stared at Arthur, unable to understand what the boy did or what he was still trying to do. His entire aura had completely calmed down and was suppressed back into his body and his expression was eerily calm even though the situation was quite bad for him.
‘Is he trying to play with my mind?’ Sloth thought to himself as he gripped his short sword. For someone of his position, being psychologically manipulated was simply impossible, especially not by a literal kid.
It didn’t sit right with him that Arthur was trying to play with his mind even though it could’ve been something else.
‘I will kill him and end this pointless attempt.’ Making up, his mind, Sloth vanished from sight as he moved toward Arthur. This time he made sure he was extra careful as he ambushed Arthur, waiting to see what the boy was going to do and then shift his position and attack him at a vital point.
*Swish*
Emerging from the nothingness, the man tried to attack Arthur from the side while preparing his teleportation to counter any potential reaction from Arthur. However, he didn’t feel a single shift in Arthur’s aura as he remained standing still, not moving at all.
‘What?’
Sloth realized quickly that he couldn’t read Arthur at all and before he could even react, Arthur sword was moving toward him at a horrifying speed, far quicker than ever before.
‘When did he…?!’
“AGH!”
Sloth tried to dodge the attack. But, this time, he was far too late. Slicing through his clothes, the sword left a deep cut in his chest. The man vanished and appeared far away as he held his chest where blood gushed out endlessly.
‘Dammit! Why can’t I read his mind? Why is his aura suddenly not reacting at all?! What did he do?’ The man was starting to panic deep down, unable to figure out what went wrong.
Meanwhile, Arthur turned around with his eyes closed and faced Sloth again, repeating the same move. At this point, the man was completely lost. He didn’t dare to attack again as he eyed Arthur down.
The two stood there for a few seconds before Arthur finally opened his mouth. “Are you done?” He asked in an eerily calm tone. He didn’t seem bothered at all.
However, Sloth didn’t like that question at all. He was being mocked in broad daylight. Never did he face such a humiliation by a mere kid before.
“Well, if you’re not going to attack. It is my turn.”
*Swish*
Arthur vanished from sight as he basically blinked in front of Sloth with his sword slicing down.
‘Fast!’ Sloth couldn’t even exhale his breath as he vanished and reappeared behind Arthur, aiming to counter the attack instantly. However, he suddenly felt two sharp objects pry his body.
“UGH!”
Looking over his shoulder, he realized that two blood arrows had just penetrated his defense. ‘When did he… summon them?!’
The man didn’t feel anything approaching him from behind and for some reason, he ended up falling right into Arthur’s trap. Stumbling forward, his eyes met the sharp edge of Arthur’s word as it was driven into the left side of his abdomen. Arthur had missed his target.
Sloth immediately disappeared again. Appearing in the corner of the room, his face contorted with pain as he was on one knee from the sheer pain. Looking down, he saw a gaping bloody hole in his body that was leaking out a dangerous amount of blood.
‘Fuck… He got me…’ He tried to breathe but even that felt extremely difficult. ‘This boy is too dangerous… He isn’t as easy of a target as I thought… I need another pla-‘
“I have seen the prison you built under this place.” Arthur suddenly said, cutting the man’s thoughts at a weird spot. “I have seen the tens of people you threw in those dark cells and the torture marks on their bodies.”
“…” Sloth stared up at Arthur, his face filled with sweat as he clenched his teeth.
“Before I cut your head off, I want to know.” Arthur blinked. “Why? What did those people do to you to deserve such a treatment?”
That was the question that has been bothering Arthur ever since he laid eyes on that hellhole of a place. He wanted to know why all of this cruelty happened. What drove him to commit all of that?
But, Arthur never expected the answer he was about to receive.
“Why? Why you say?” Slowly, Sloth stood up with a groan as he swayed left and right. “Let me answer you with a question of my own… Why not?”
“…” Arthur squinted his eyes.
“Haha, I believe you’re one of those goody-two-shoes who advocate for the fair treatment of all, don’t you?”
‘Is that supposed to be a bad thing?’ Arthur thought to himself.
“Let me tell you something, Gifted kid. In this world, in order to survive, you better lower your head and keep yourself out of others’ problems. Those things were not considered humans to be treated as such. They’re far lower than us. They were born into this world destined to be the plaything of the strongest. They have no right to ask for anything and neither do we have to listen. After all, if an ant came and asked you for freedom, would you give it to it knowing you can easily control its fate?”
“…”
Arthur’s expression grew darker and darker as he listened to every word the man said. He was certain that Sloth wasn’t pretending nor was he trying to act differently… He genuinely believed every word he was saying.
“Those little dwarves you were hiding with you. I couldn’t believe it when I saw them. Letting those lower creatures step into the capital… It’s a huge crime. Once it reaches the Royal Family, pray for your head, kid.” Then, he slowly made a sign with his hand near his neck, indicating that Arthur won’t be spared.
“For better or worse, you have proved to be quite the tough foe so I will give you a choice. You can return Sora and leave this place with your small group. Consider all of this to have never happened and everyone will have their peace. What do you think?”
Sloth tried to keep his tone commanding and strong, hiding the immense pain he was feeling at that moment. The injury was slowly killing him and he knew he had to stop it quickly before he faced his demise.
‘If he accepts now, I can stop the blee-‘
“You have already given me an even stronger reason to cut your head off, Sloth. Do you really think I will just leave this place and give you my friends? Don’t insult my intelligence!”
“…”
Arthur yelled loudly, his heart burning with anger. He still didn’t forget those deep marks on Sora’s frail body and this bastard was the cause of it all. He was barely keeping himself calm or he would’ve already attacked Sloth like a rabid monster.
“If I don’t kill you here and now… I won’t be able to face them.” Arthur clenched his teeth. “So, pick up your goddamn weapon, and let’s end this!”
A//N: Don’t forget to give the book some golden tickets for good luck! :3