Gifts of the Demon Lord

(He dodged it!?)

In disbelief, Henrich witnessed Theodore narrowly avoiding the invisible talons swinging down at him.

While it possessed precision, in Henrich's eyes, the eyes that could see even the faintest light of Aether, Theodore's thread-like Aether alone should not have the power to protect him from one of Barnaby's blows.

That one hit should have incapacitated him, yet he was still nimble enough to avoid the expertly timed attack.

(Could it be that? That thing he put on while avoiding my attacks?)

Before Henrich had begun to lead Theodore towards Barnaby, he saw Theodore putting something on his body, wrapping it around his chest area. From the Aether density of the said 'something' it looked to be alive somehow.

(Was that one of those? What did they call it? A Living Armor?)

The 'Living Armor' was a rare magic construct that was invented by ancient witches. While details were few, it was said that the armor was able to change its form to suit the user, hardening and softening on demand, as well as enhancing the user's combat capabilities. It was also capable of consuming other living things and gaining their traits, something a certain Professor Cato took inspiration from when he created the Corpse Eaters.

It was said that only a few were created and even fewer survived to this day.

(Could he have obtained it from one of the late Demon Lord's vaults? No, he must have! One does not just stumble upon something as rare as this.)

Henrich had convinced himself that this must be the case, although, he himself was not sure if such a thing existed in the Demon Lord's vault in the first place or if there were any vaults at all.

Unlike Theodore, most of the Demon Lord Aether that Henrich inherited went to granting him the Aethersight Eyes mutation. What memories Henrich inherited were fragmented recollections, knowledge about magic, and basic understanding in regards to the existence known as the Demon Lord. Everything else he had to pick up on his own, including the rumors of the Demon Lord's secret vaults.

(What a lucky day. If I defeat him and absorb his Demon Lord Aether I'll be able to find out where the vault is. This is an opportunity that cannot be missed.)

"Barnaby, I couldn't finish him off! Regroup, now!"

Excited at the prospect of powerful treasures and artifacts as he was, Henrich could not afford to let his guard down. Larvae they might be, they were still Demon Lords. Even though he had the advantage, his opponent could still find a way to turn the situation around.

(Don't be impatient. Cautiously, calmly. With the two of us, we can gradually corner him and take him out.)

Taking a moment to confirm Barnaby's position so as to not hit him with the Abyssal Magic, Henrich prepared to launch his next attack. However, it was then did he commit the mistake he had just urged himself not to make.

"What!?"

Henrich doubted his eyes for a moment, the very same eyes granted to him by the late Demon Lord. At this very moment, just as he took aim at Theodore's location, Henrich saw two sets of lights. With his Aethersight Eyes, Henrich could identify someone just by looking at their Aether, however, he was unable to tell the difference between the two bodies of Aether. Be it their density or their flow, the two bodies were exactly identical.

(Could it be the Living Armor?)

Though shocked for a moment, Henrich quickly deduced that of the two bodies, one must be the Living Armor, imitating its owner's Aether flow.

(But which is which?)

Of the two bodies of Aether, one was making a break for it towards the walls while the other was running towards the opposite direction, right at Henrich. Focusing on the one heading to the walls, Henrich could see the light from the Aether crystals carried in his pouches and satchel, as well as the Aether of the undead mice clinging to the inside of his robe. Meanwhile, the one one only had a single crystal on them.

It was obvious, the one running for the walls must be the real one as they have all of Theoodre's belongings while the one rushing towards Henrich was a decoy, with but a crystal to act as its behavioral matrix. Having determined that, Henrich took aim with his catalyst wand, paying no mind to the decoy.

It wasn't because he thought that the decoy was not a threat. In fact, if it truly was the Living Armor, then it should be quite dangerous even without a user. However, he could tell that Barnaby was heading his way and he trusted Barnaby with his life. Barnaby will take care of the decoy while Henrich will focus on taking out the enemy Demon Lord Larva.

Eventually, the one running away reached one of the walls. Without hesitation, he leaped right over, trusting that the decoy would do its work. However, that was a fatal mistake. The very moment Theodore rose from the cloud of smoke was the very moment Henrich was waiting for, the moment when his target is in the air and unable to avoid what comes next. It did not matter if his dark blue robes blended in with the night sky, Henrich could see him as clear as day with his eyes.

Streaks of Aether were shot towards the target location. Bouncing off of the loose Aether in the air, the multiple streaks tore open Abyssal Rifts from all angles around the target. Before Theodore could even react, the talons converged upon him. Being in mid-air, there was nothing he could do to escape.

Within an instant, Theodore was ripped to shreds, his fluids splattered all over. Even the wall he was jumping over was torn to pieces. The power of the talons could not be matched. Nothing could have survived that.

Yet, something was not quite right. The fluids that splattered from Theodore's body did not appear to be blood. Rather, it seemed to be water.

Then, finally, what Henrich thought was the decoy emerged from the smoke. It was Theodore without his robes, his face covered by a mask that wrapped over his entire head, leaving but a slit for his eyes to see through.

What Henrich had destroyed was a slime, the one Theodore kept in a jar and used to pick locks.

It was before Henrich's attack became predictable so that he could lead Theodore to Barnaby. At that time, Theodore realized that he had to prepare a countermeasure against Henrich's eyes. As such, he attached the slime to himself, making some on-field adjustments to the behavioral matrix as well as letting the slime absorb his Aether.

When he was struck by Barnaby, Theodore had leaped backwards in the nick of time to avoid the full force of the blow, while his Aetherweave Armor, combined with the slime, allowed him to avoid the worst of injuries, ones that might have immobilized him.

There had been no legendary equipment called the 'Living Armor' involved. It was just a bit of luck, some good instincts, and a great deal of speed and precision.

And then finally, Theodore put his plan into action, having the slime strip him of his robe, pouches, and satchel in one go, and sending it on its way. By granting the slime his belongings, having it take a humanoid shape, and having it imitate his Aether flow, Theodore successfully tricked Henrich into thinking that it was the real one.

While Henrich might have been gifted with a useful ability, Theodore had inherited the full range of experiences from the Demon Lord. As such, when Henrich could no longer reliably track Theodore using his eyes, it came down to the difference in experiences.

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End of Chapter 114

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