Life Of A Nobody - as a Villain

Chapter 380: The hungry shadow

As soon as the kill order was issued, system's anxious tone sounded in Rio's head. [Host, something's wrong.]

'Good guess, how'd you know.' Rio joked, staring at an army coming at him.

System ignored it's host's teasing tone and explained what it found.

[...They don't have a soul now. I mean even before their soul was shrouded in that green cocoon but now they've lost it whole...If before they were just hypnotized, then now they're full-on puppets. Much like how a necromancer controls dead soldiers.]

'Can you track who's controlling them?'

[Who else but that tree.]

'Can you find out what that is?'

[It's __ confidential information. System level requirements not met. Host lacks authority.]

'What the fuck???'

[Well, we can't do nothing about that. Just be careful when you're facing it.]

[Sayonara host. See you outside.]

'Hey system, what do you mean see you outside, where'd you go you fucker, answer me… .'

[.. I'm not here ..]

'???'

Rio ignored this damn system who went into silence mode refusing to give him any more information or help, and looked at the hundreds of puppets coming towards him from all sides.

"Kill him."

"Must kill him."

"Cursed _ kill him."

"Mother order _ I follow."

"Killllllllllll "

Rio was getting prepared to fight as he broke the chains binding him, and pulled unique ranked swords in both his arms.

Valtor stared at his swift actions, silently wondering in his heart where did these magic swords come from? And how'd he break restraints that seized mana.

Though curious, now wasn't the time to ask questions.

Both of them stood their back facing each other, staring at the oncoming soldiers from all over.

"Rio, what did you do?" Valtor asked, feeling a little irritated about how this so called angel always started wars as his first solution.

"I didn't do anything, look at them, they probably lost their minds." Rio said in defense.

Just when the confrontation between both parties was about to start, a wall made out of roots rose from the ground, separating the two sides.

The mad puppets had lost their wisdom and couldn't form any proper words, so they just growled and grunted in anger, trying their best to get past the wall.

Rio turned his attention to Baani, the clan leader, who made the move and raised the sword in his direction. "What do you want?" He asked.

"Call back your shadow, and I'll hold back these soldiers long enough till you can escape into the grand forest." Baani said, his words making the rest of the representatives stare at Rio and then at ground… .

In time when the sun is right on top of them, when everyone else had a shadow, behind him on the ground was nothing.

"You will never get past the spirits and reach the sacred tree. So just call it back and you can leave this city alive." Baani said again, intentionally making a hole in his wall from where mad soldiers rushed in like crazy before closing it.

Rio raised his left hand to block the attack and used the other sword to slash the 3 idiots in two pieces.

"If I couldn't even get past those spiritual trees, you wouldn't be talking like this." Rio said with a smirk and walked towards Baani. "Tell me, what happens if I control that tree, if I chop it down or burn it to the crisp."

"Spirits will never allow…"

"My flames can burn them, and you know it." Rio interrupted Baani and finished his words.

As his words finished the sound of a loud explosion rang in the distance. Causing a heat wave that swept even them so far away.

"Someone so strong, yet such an obvious weakness. Simir, they're literally trees, they burn when facing flames." Rio said, playing with an orb of hellfire in his hands.

"You have no idea of what you're doing? The sacred tree is not something you should disrespect. It's anger will wipe out you and everyone else."

Ignoring the threat Rio just extinguished the hellfire and ordered his shadow to eradicate anyone who tried to stop it. "Guess we'll find out, won't we?"

In the center of the forest, a figure, entirely made out of dark fog stood in front of a dozen floating trees. His hands holding a flame that threatened to vaporize even itself.

Faces formed on the trunks of those trees as they started talking in anger. "This damn cursed magic, we should've killed him when he first entered the dungeon."

"We shouldn't have allowed him to enter this city..."

"Mother pulled him here and now look where we are?" Another one said, looking down at the ground wherw black splinters were scattered around, still emitting smoke.

"What is mother even planning? Is this how she's supposed to secure our victory."

"You're still thinking about the war, I doubt the demon in front of us will end us before those monsters do."

Though their hearts were chilled for the oncoming battle, the stance they pulled against the shadow was that of a brave soldier who'd rather die fighting than falter for a second.

'Burn anyone who comes into your way.' Rio's voice came to the shadow's ears, making it smile. "Kekeke."

The sound of crackling laughter could be heard even though the dark figure had no mouth, just fog. Making it look even more eerie.

The shadow moved again, it's feet forming a domain of darkness for 3 meters all around it, which pulled anyone and anything in range into itself. Leaving only some screams and some chewing and gobbling sound.

The more 'life' his shadow ate, the more hungrier it seemed to become, and the more stronger too.

[A/N - To those who forgot Rio had used a forbidden spell to give his shadow the blessing from the sin of gluttony in the dungeon he was trapped in. If u wanna know more read previous chaps again or just ask me]

Since this shadow had no physical form all the attacks thrown at it from the Simir's, which just used roots to stab, entangle and form traps, had no effects.

The illusiory shadow just walked through everything, showing no sign of injury or hurt, except causing slight distortion in its form for a few seconds upon contact, which were covered by darkness almost instantly again.

"Kill him. We can't let him reach the sacred tree."

"Did the Ersion priestess said what mother wants next?"

"I just heard the priestess's voice, I think she ordered all the others to attack their real bodies and kill them."

"Great, so we just have to hold on until those musclehead sapin kills him."

"Yes, so we can't cower. We must never let the cursed one go near the sacred tree."

"But this damn flame, if I had known about it before, we could've guided him to some other camp, instead of bringing him here on our home."

"Where would we even take him, we already lost contact with 2 of our cities, and Cetum city is just… not right."

"We needed the rewards and protection, and now we're paying the price for it." Another tree spoke, watching as his 'friends' rushed forward and burned slowly in front of his eyes.

Just when the shadow had burned the last of the cannon fodder and reached the perrifery of garden, where 12 floating trees surrounded the big so called Sacred tree, forming a last line of defense, it disappeared from its place.

Taking along all the darkness, flames and depression too.

"What happened?" A floating tree moved forward after much courage and looked around in confusion. "Did the spell end? Or.."

"maybe he's dead." another tree said, seeing no trace of the shadow anywhere near again.

"Hahaha I knew those musclehead bastards won't be so useless."

"Finally the cursed one is dead. There's no more prophecy."

"I wonder who killed him, was it the camp chief Baani, Shin leader Nefrat Shi, or someone else?"

While the faces on floating trees were celebrating their victory, back in camp's square, Rio turned his face and stared at Valtor, the man who was still holding the sword stabbed through his back.

"W_why?" Rio said as he grabbed his friends collar, who just stared at him with no emotions and a green glint moving in his eyes.