Chapter 89-90: The Clown is Me
Qin Chu laughed, his expression a mask of cruel amusement. “I’m the traitor! Surprise!”
Benson, though battered and weakened, was still a powerful member of the Hero Squad. That’s why Qin Chu had waited, patiently weaving his web of deceit, approaching him only when his mind was clouded, his defenses weakened.
Mentioning Ekaterina, Loseweisse, and even Natia… it was all to lower his guard.
Revealing his status screen… it was to confirm his identity as the Hero.
Humans were strange creatures.
Benson and the others had plotted against him, using him as a tool, discarding him once he had served his purpose. In their eyes, he was a fool, a puppet dancing to their tune.
They viewed him with amusement, his sincerity a source of both annoyance and ridicule. Their arrogance, their belief in his gullibility, had blinded them to his true intentions. They had eagerly anticipated the moment of revelation, the moment he realized the truth, his expression a mask of despair.
They had never imagined that he would be the one pulling the strings.
Benson, his scream ripped from his throat by the excruciating pain, stared at him in disbelief.
He… He was the Second Hero! How could he be the traitor?
What did he gain from this? How had he learned of his movements, contacted Lomond?
He had only arrived a few days ago! It was impossible!
As Qin Chu had predicted, confirming his identity as the Hero had erased any lingering suspicion. He hadn’t anticipated this betrayal.
He had thought Qin Chu was the clown. It turned out the joke was on him.
The pain, coupled with the realization of his own foolishness, enraged him. He lashed out, his fist, encased in a metal gauntlet, slamming into Qin Chu’s face.
He didn’t have the strength to lift his axe, but he would gladly crush the Hero’s skull with his bare hands.
The impact cracked Qin Chu’s cheekbone, drawing blood. Benson smiled, his expression twisted with pain and rage. If only his Battle Qi wasn’t depleted! He would have crushed the Hero’s skull with that single blow!
He prepared to strike again, his confidence unwavering. Even without Battle Qi, his fists were deadly weapons. He could pulverize this weakling.
But then something… impossible… happened.
The wound on Qin Chu’s face, the cracked bone, the gushing blood… it began to heal, new flesh rapidly growing, the blood flowing back into the wound as if defying gravity.
The wound vanished, as if it had never existed.
Benson stared at him, his eyes wide with disbelief. What was this power?
He hadn’t seen him cast a spell. It had to be an Ability, but he had never seen anything like it. It wasn’t in the intel Loseweisse had provided.
He understood.
This Second Hero had been hiding his true power from the moment he arrived.
This man… he was terrifying.
A chilling realization dawned on him. This man, newly arrived in this world, had deliberately concealed his true strength, deceiving the three strongest humans, the Thirteen Sages, even the Hero Squad. This level of cunning… it was unsettling.
Qin Chu touched his cheek, his smile widening. “That hurt…”
He snapped his fingers.
“Explode.”
The ice spike embedded in Benson’s stomach shattered.
Countless shards of ice ripped through his insides.
“Aaaaaaaaaaah!”
His scream, fueled by unimaginable agony, echoed through the forest. His body convulsed, his muscles spasming uncontrollably, sweat pouring down his face, his features contorted in pain, his expression as grotesque as a demon’s.
“It hurts…” he gasped, his voice a strangled whisper.
His insides were shredded, his organs pierced.
He was still alive, but that was hardly a comfort.
It hurts?
Qin Chu’s smile widened as he grabbed Benson’s hair, yanking his head back. The Immovable Shield, his strength sapped by the pain, offered no resistance.
He forced their faces close, his gaze, cold and merciless, sending shivers down Benson’s spine.
He couldn’t understand this… hatred… this… malice…
“It hurts?”
His voice was soft, almost gentle, but his tone was laced with a cruel amusement.
Anthea, perched on a tree branch, watched, her presence a silent deterrent. Shaye had already set up wards around them, a web of magical defenses.
Loseweisse wouldn’t arrive for at least another day. He had plenty of time to play with Benson. And even if someone stumbled upon them, he could easily snap Benson’s neck before they could intervene.
He needed to vent his rage.
“It hurts? So you know pain?”
“But this… this is nothing compared to what I endured. Do you know what it feels like to be torn limb from limb? That’s true pain.”
He raised his knee, driving it into Benson’s stomach, the point of impact the already mangled wound.
The force of the blow made Benson’s stomach cave inwards, the ice shards grinding against his organs, his insides a pulpy mess. He groaned, his body flying back, landing with a thud several meters away.
He writhed on the ground, his agony unbearable.
“Now it’s your turn to experience it. How does it feel?” Qin Chu chuckled, extending his hand.
Devourer!
His fingers transformed into translucent tendrils, like those of a slime, reaching for Benson, wrapping around his body.
The Ability, fueled by his growing power, was no longer limited to physical contact.
The tendrils sank into Benson’s flesh, draining his energy, his Battle Qi already depleted. To his horror, the tendrils began to siphon energy from his Battle Origin.
His Battle Origin was his core, the essence of his strength, decades of cultivation condensed into a single point.
“False… Absolute… Defense!” he screamed, his voice hoarse, activating his Ability one last time.
A faint golden barrier enveloped him.
His wounds didn’t heal, but his stamina and Battle Qi began to regenerate.
Hope flickered within him. If he could regain some strength, he could still defeat this Hero. He was weak, a coward who relied on sneak attacks.
But his hopes were quickly dashed. His Ability activated, his strength returning, but the tendrils, their grip relentless, continued to drain his energy, preventing any significant recovery.
False Absolute Defense couldn’t withstand Devourer!
To steal another’s power… what kind of evil Ability was this?
Fear, cold and constricting, gripped his heart. This enemy was far more terrifying than he had imagined. He struggled to sit up, his body screaming in protest, then, discreetly, he retrieved an Information Magic scroll.
He had to warn Loseweisse.
This wasn’t the harmless clown they had believed him to be. It was too dangerous for her to be near him. He was going to kill him now, but he would surely target her next, his methods even more cruel, more ruthless.
His movements were slow, careful, his attempt at stealth clumsy, but he believed he was being subtle. He was unaware that Qin Chu was watching him, his gaze amused, his every action anticipated.
“You… you betrayed us…” Benson hissed, his eyes filled with hatred.
“No, no, you misunderstand. I truly considered you… family…” Qin Chu shrugged, his voice calm, his expression devoid of any anger.
“But you betrayed me…”
Benson’s heart skipped a beat, his face twisting in fear. Did he know…?
“You befriended me, pretending to care for me, making me believe you were my closest allies.”
“Tsk, tsk, how cunning.”
“A stranger… a… foreigner… arriving in a new world, alone and vulnerable… I would be grateful for your kindness, wouldn’t I? I would trust you, consider you my brothers, my comrades. I might even fall in love with one of you…”
Especially him, a former shut-in, socially awkward and desperate for connection.
“And then, once I had eliminated the Demons, once I had served my purpose… you would stab me in the back, when I least expected it…”
Benson’s eyes widened, his body trembling. How did he know?
This was a secret, shared only within the Hero Squad. They hadn’t told anyone else. Was there another traitor among them?
He had to warn Loseweisse. She couldn’t fall into this monster’s clutches.
He couldn’t wait any longer. He activated the scroll, its magic enveloping him.
He pressed his hand against his ear, his voice a desperate plea.
“Loseweisse, be careful! Qin Chu is a monster!”
“He knows everything…”
Qin Chu, a cruel smile twisting his lips, watched him, his gaze filled with amusement, as if observing a clown performing a pathetic act.
…
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