Endless Evolution: Last Star

Chapter 959: Crooked Throne

”Hmm? Are you and your folk going to prepare me for battle? Will Arnoth and his followers let us do that?” Adam was baffled.

Risha nodded her head several times. ”Yeah, that bothers me too. For monsters to help humans? Thatʼs weird...”

”Thereʼs nothing strange about it, silly girl...” Vorx sternly replied. ”The gate of my enemy, my friend. Iʼm sure youʼve heard that phrase. As for your question, Adam, it is simple. Arnoth has enslaved us and holds our city in fear, threatening to kill each of us for disobedience.”

”And? Has no one tried to raise a riot?”

Vorx nodded deeply, his gaze turning dark. ”Sure, some tried but proved too weak. I wanted to join too, but fortunately or not, thatʼs when Kreyna sent me on a mission similar to this one.”

”Kreyna...?” Adam raised an eyebrow in confusion.

”Yeah, Kreyna, Warden of the Cruel Light. Same S5 monster as Arnoth, but sheʼs weaker than him. Sheʼs the number two and chief aide to Arnoth. In fact, for the most part, she is the one who manages the captured lands, doing all the dirty and difficult work.

Meanwhile, Arnoth sat on the crooked throne, absorbing energy and gradually building up his strength. Iʼm sure heʼll reach the next stage of evolution in a few years this way, but itʼs too long. No one wants to wait that much, neither humans nor monsters, but not everyone has the ability to speed up this tedious and sometimes painful process.”

”But, Arnoth is not part of that rule, right?”

Vorx nodded again. ”He makes my folk hunt, bring monsters, and dump them into the bloody lake like an offering to a god. Besides that, at the Fallen Ring Castle, there are a lot of crystals, Red Spiked Flowers whose roots are full of energy, magma fruits, and a lot more.

Arnoth, Kreyna, and their subordinates require us to bring them everything that contains energy every day. As you can imagine, we have to kill Phantoms as well. Itʼs a valuable energy source for any monster. You can hit me for that later, right now, I donʼt care.”

During the short pause, Risha was the only one who didnʼt understand one detail, so she asked: ”And...? What happens if you donʼt bring enough energy? If you had a bad hunt or didnʼt pick enough flowers?”

Adam shook his head, it was too obvious.

”Arnoth is killing Vorxʼs men. Isnʼt that a natural outcome for you, a resident of the Lower Ring?” he looked at her with suspicion.

In response, she rolled her eyes, her arms crossed over her chest. ”I was just asking, whatʼs the big deal?”

”Well...” Vorx grumbled. ”Rishaʼs right about something. On days like this, dark days, they kill one of our kind. However, Arnoth never does that. All the executions and murders go to Kreyna, and... that bitch, genuinely enjoys it. I can feel it in her crazy eyes.”

Rubbing his chin thoughtfully, Adam hummed.

”Hey, from what I understand, Kreyna does most of the work. Maybe we should try to sway her to our side?”

Adam waved his hand in reasoning. ”I mean, sheʼs just as much a monster as Arnoth. Phantoms want power too, but monsters especially. Alone, even with the support of the Serpent Folk, she wonʼt go against Arnoth, but my presence might make a difference.

”Everything Arnoth gets will go to her, and itʼs her who will reach the next stage of evolution, not him. Is there a monster in this world that will give that up?”

With a heavy sigh, Vorx narrowed his eye.

”Adam, donʼt even think about it. You donʼt know the whole situation, and youʼre getting all kinds of ideas in your head. I appreciate that, but Kreyna will never betray Arnoth. Iʼm sure of it. I donʼt know for whatever reason, maybe itʼs fear of his power, maybe itʼs love, or maybe itʼs just a good deal for both of them.

But her loyalty to Arnoth is unwavering. One time, I saw her rushed execution even though Arnoth ordered her to wait.”

Risha touched her lips, pensive. ”And? What did he do?”

”Slit her throat, the whole place was drenched in her blood. He knew she would survive it, but there is still a wide scar on her neck that she doesnʼt dare to remove. No conflicts or arguments between them have been noticed since that incident.”

”Damn... The best-case scenario is immediately tossed aside,” Adam shrugged. ”Vorx, you mentioned some crooked throne. Did you and the other serpents really have a king?”

Vorxʼs tone changed to a deferential one, full of sorrow.

”A king and queen... To make it clearer to you two, you should think of them as S5 monsters. However, as far as I know, they werenʼt rated since they didnʼt leave the castle very often.”

ʼI see...ʼ Adam nodded internally. ʼThat is the drawback of the star system. Vorxʼs king and queen didnʼt kill enough Phantoms to become an S5 monster, but their power was at that level.ʼ

After a few moments, Vorx continued. ”They tried to fight and defend the castle, as well as my Folk. However, Arnoth and Kreyna proved to be too strong. Kreyna killed the queen, and Arnoth pierced my king with his sword.”

”And...?” Adam whispered, with a dark look in his eyes. ”You donʼt know where Arnoth and Kreyna came from? They attacked your castle, but there had to be some reason for that, right?”

Vorx shook his head. ”I donʼt. We tried to find out the location of their former home, but we were met with nothing but failure. I just remember how a dark flash was the beginning of our end as a thriving kind. Sometimes, during executions and her favorite tortures, Kreyna says something about a devastating future... but... I donʼt know what she means.”

Risha was left with a confused expression, but it made a lot more sense to Adam.

He remembered the Crimson Monarchʼs and Douglasʼs words.

ʼFuck... Does this have something to do with Queen Elisa? But how would the monsters know about it? Maybe Iʼm confusing things?

ʼIf I get the chance, I should interrogate Arnoth or Kreyna... They seem to know what I need.ʼ