Chapter 208-The Manga Pariah's Guide to Self-Salvation

"Sykes, you've lost your mind."

Amid the chaotic screaming, Ye Zheng stated with a steady voice.

Looking past Sykes, she saw skeleton after skeleton crawling endlessly out of the ground. A massive skeletal bird crashed into the banquet hall, blocking the people trying to leave.

"In your eyes, I've always been a madman, a monster."

"Even if I do something like this, you're not surprised, are you, Ye Zheng."

After his manic laughter subsided, Sykes regained his composure, yet his golden eyes still burned with something fierce—like the decorative candelabra someone had accidentally knocked over nearby, its heavy dark-green curtains catching fire, the flames spreading and intensifying the chaos.

Ye Zheng frowned in disapproval. "Do you have any idea what you're doing? You had a chance to turn things around, but after today, you'll only have two outcomes."

"Either you're killed or imprisoned on the spot, or you narrowly escape and spend the rest of your life as a fugitive."

Sykes looked as though he'd heard a joke, his smile widening. "Turn things around? No—whether or not I showed up today, the ending you've all tailored for me is the same: death."

The moment the word "death" left his lips, Ye Zheng's heart nearly skipped a beat. Impossible—how could Sykes possibly know she intended to kill him?

From his perspective, she had no reason whatsoever to kill him. Unless Sykes had obtained certain "off-stage" information.

...No. Thinking calmly, Sykes had just said "you've all," not "you." Perhaps the plot had advanced with new information in corners she wasn't aware of.

Ye Zheng looked at him with a puzzled expression, as if she had no idea why Sykes would think that.

"You are the Crown Prince of the Empire. Who would lay a hand on you? Your siblings? Your father... or me?"

"You still have a chance to turn back. Destroy the Demonic Domain now, and no one will dare accuse you of bringing it here. Your father will cover for a moment of impulsiveness."

"Father?" Sykes laughed loudly. "He's the one who can't wait for me to hurry up and die... I was never the Empire's hope. He knew that from the very beginning."

So Sykes's sudden outburst was because of Emperor Havel.

Suddenly, Sykes lifted his chin and looked down at Ye Zheng with his golden eyes. His expression carried a hint of something almost like pity.

"The so-called Godsent, the hope of salvation—nothing more than his chess piece. No different from me."

Ye Zheng's expression didn't change. She asked calmly, "So you're here today to kill him?"

"No. I'm here today to kill you."

Hearing Sykes's resolute reply, Ye Zheng reacted as though she'd heard the funniest joke imaginable. She couldn't help but tilt her head and laugh—not at all the reaction of someone being threatened.

Seeing Ye Zheng's response, Sykes's expression turned cold in an instant. He stared at her, face blank.

Ye Zheng shook her head with a smile. "Let me guess—why do you want to kill me first?"

"Because I'm the Godsent, the hope of salvation. Kill me, erase the Empire's hope, and let your father watch as the Empire he's so proud of descends into ruin. Is that the most painful revenge against a king?"

A skeleton lunged at Ye Zheng from behind. Without turning, a thread of water instantly coiled around it and smashed it to pieces. The ground around them was already littered with countless shattered bones.

Ye Zheng's dark eyes stared unblinkingly at Sykes as she took a step closer.

"Or perhaps—I am your hope of recovering all your memories. You're afraid of seeing those soft memories of your mother through my eyes. You see me as an emotional stumbling block, a tendril of sentiment that would hinder your resolve to kill."

Sykes's face turned completely frigid, as if she had struck a secret buried deep within. A suppressed killing intent churned in the depths of his eyes.

He should have killed Ye Zheng long ago—on the day Yu Tianming brought her to see him, the day he discovered that Ye Zheng could actually resist his [Destruction].

"Sykes, think carefully. Am I really your enemy?"

"You just said I'm also his chess piece. He and I are not allies on the same side. On the contrary—I can help you."

"Just as I promised before, I'll help you restore your memories. I will—offer fair redemption to everyone."

The soft voice lingered in his ears. Sykes's eyes reddened. His head felt as though it would split open as more voices, older and more distant, buzzed simultaneously in his mind.

[Look, it may seem a bit odd-looking at first glance, but if you look closely, it's actually quite cute. I'm sure it'll grow into a lovely child.]

[It's very attached to me. Perhaps when it's truly born from my body... that moment won't be too painful, will it?]

[Sister, look—it really does seem to understand what I'm saying! It's clearly just a little child! What day was it born? How old is it?]

[May the God of Hope bless you. Many people will love you and care for you... my child.]

...

[Sigh, the little prince killed three more servants this month. He's so young, it must be unintentional, but—anyway, I've already made arrangements. I'm getting far away from here.]

[Do you think His Highness the Crown Prince is really a... he looks just like the legendary de— Ah, no! Please spare me, Your Highness!]

[Sykes, I am truly disappointed in you. Your mother wouldn't want to see you like this either.]

...

[Your Highness Sykes, would you like me to heal you?]

[Whether good or evil, I can offer fair redemption to all!]

"Enough! Ye Zheng, I no longer need your hollow, useless kindness!"

Sykes's golden eyes were nearly dyed red with fury and madness. He didn't need Ye Zheng to restore his memories—he had already remembered everything!

From the moment he learned the date of Ye Zheng's coming-of-age ceremony, he had suddenly recalled his true birthday—which happened to fall on the same day as hers. Then more memories about his birthday came flooding in.

His life had not begun with the name "Sykes." He was born from the Dragon Bone, raised in monster form at the Hope Base, then transferred to a church in the upper district, where he met his "mother"—the woman named Qin Tian.

Everyone treated him as nothing more than a monster embryo. But from the moment of his birth, he had possessed intelligence and consciousness. No one cared about his feelings. Only his mother, Qin Tian, had treated him like an ordinary human child.

They told him that once he entered Qin Tian's womb and she "gave birth" to him, he would become a real human child, and Qin Tian would be his true mother!

He had longed so desperately for that day. Until the day finally came...

He never got to reunite with his mother. His birth had been her death.

"No one is worthy of redeeming me. Ye Zheng, do you truly want to save me?"

Sykes admitted it—Ye Zheng was special. She was the only person who could resist [Destruction]. She wouldn't be like the others, outwardly compliant while their eyes and body language always betrayed fear. Every time she healed him, he instinctively recalled his mother's soothing touch. No one else could ever give him that kind of warmth.

But he and she were destined to be mortal enemies.

"You are the savior chosen by the God of Hope, and I bear the weight of sin, destined to bring destruction upon the Empire. If you truly want to save me—then die!"

The crazed words echoed through the bone-strewn hall like a demonic voice from the depths of hell.

Sykes's eyes were bloodshot. His left hand moved, reaching to tear off the black glove on his right hand and fully unleash [Destruction]. But in the next instant, his body went rigid.

He looked down and discovered that Ye Zheng was still holding his left hand. She hadn't moved an inch.

More than holding—clamping would be more accurate. Sykes had never known that Ye Zheng's grip could be this strong.

"Are you done?"

Ye Zheng spoke lightly, lifting her gaze to the wide-eyed Crown Prince.

"Your speech and... your memories were both quite riveting. They've answered some of my questions."

"Now, it's my turn to answer yours."

"Aren't you curious why the Emperor values Percy so much? Because Percy is different from you—he wasn't born from the demon dragon's remains."

"Percy was born from the bloodline of the God of Hope. He is the true Godsent—the one recognized and chosen by the Divine Sword."

Ye Zheng's tone was perfectly casual. "The sword at my hip comes from your Royal metallurgy works."

Sykes's pupils trembled. Even the madness in his eyes receded somewhat. He realized something in an instant. His lips parted, a challenge about to burst forth—when a force suddenly slammed the back of his neck downward. His forehead nearly collided with Ye Zheng's.

Ye Zheng's dark eyes were inches away. She was looking up at him, yet her eyes carried an almost cruel superiority, her gaze passing cold judgment upon him.

Sykes could clearly feel Ye Zheng's hand gripping the back of his neck. He should have been able to react—[Destruction] was merely strongest when channeled through his right hand. If he wanted, the hand she had so brazenly placed on him could be annihilated on the spot.

But why couldn't he move?

Sykes suddenly realized that from the moment he had extended his hand to Ye Zheng and she had clasped it, their hands had been joined the entire time. He had only just now become aware of this.

She had been silently numbing his senses and controlling his body!

Sykes glared at Ye Zheng's smiling dark eyes, nearly splitting at the corners. Since when had she possessed such an insidious ability?!

"You used the dance as a pretext to get close to me because activating your ability to summon the Demonic Domain requires an external Dragon Bone as a medium—and my palm happens to have a piece of Dragon Bone embedded in it."

Ye Zheng said with a smile, as if indulging an ignorant child. Her hand slid from the back of Sykes's neck gradually downward, tracing along his spine.

Sykes stood frozen in place. His body trembled slightly, beyond his control. The madness drained from his golden eyes, replaced by a dazed bewilderment—like a predator who had never imagined the day he would become prey.

"I noticed your abnormality but went along with your intentions. First, because I was curious what you were really planning. Second, because I had absolute confidence."

Sykes shut his eyes in agony, gasping for breath. It felt as though his insides were melting. All his senses blurred together into one, with only the sensation along his spine amplified to infinity. Ye Zheng's fingertips were tapping against his vertebrae, feather-light yet unmistakable.

"Confidence that from the moment our hands clasped, I could not possibly lose."

"Sykes—you haven't earned the right to use me!"

Ye Zheng's slender fingers slipped through the red uniform and sank into true flesh and blood. Her five fingers closed, then wrenched outward with a violent pull!

Only then did she release Sykes's left hand. He staggered several steps before finally losing his balance and collapsing to the ground.

Ye Zheng's right hand was raised high, holding a blood-drenched piece of white bone. Drops of blood stained the mirror-like tiles red.

Then Ye Zheng opened her right hand. The bone clattered to the floor. Her bloodied hand hung at her side as she looked down with half-lidded eyes, gazing mercilessly at Sykes convulsing on the ground.

---

Author's Note

He's not dead yet. Don't pop the champagne just yet.

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