Chapter 543: Chapter 545: No Grudges Left The villagers watched as Damon left with the caravan. Some travelers were heading towards Valerion, others were heading deeper into Ravenscroft territory. However, Damon was heading towards the border of the Holy Empire. He would have to part ways with the caravan in about a day’s time. Before he left, he gave the village a million zeni to make their lives better — as it was the place where he was born. The travelers and adventurers kept singing his praise for his wisdom and kindness. Seta watched Damon leave with the group he came with. No one died. He hadn’t killed anyone. The village resumed its activity. With no travelers around for the first time in a while, only residents remained. Seta sat under the old oak tree with the village head and Neil. "He... he actually just left... without killing anyone." Her words made the village head frown. "Yes... this old man was surprised... he didn’t even try to brand us as heretics." Neil smiled with lingering fear. "He can’t kill us with so many people around. We have whole families in the village..." The old village head chuckled lightly. "Ahhh... he’s actually quite soft, like his father. If he had that woman’s temperament, he would not have let us go..." Seta bit her lips, gazing at the evening sun. "I suppose he forgave us..." "I did..." a voice came from the top of the tree — a voice that shouldn’t be there. Seta snapped her gaze upwards. A familiar-looking young man sat on one of the thick branches, holding a staff in his hand, his eyes calm and unreadable. "Y... you... you... Damo... Damon... but... how..." Damon glanced down at them, his face giving away nothing. "Ahhh, right... about that... I have the ability to clone myself." The village head paled when he heard that. "Wha... what are your intentions...?" Damon smiled faintly, his tone carrying a dangerous hum. "My intentions? Did I not tell you...? It’s obvious... You are all going to die..." Neil didn’t even wait for Damon to finish. He turned and bolted towards the edge of the village, screaming. "Run! Run! He’s going to kill us all!" Damon didn’t even look at him, still seated casually in the tree. "There’s nowhere to escape. I used those runes to keep the evil spirit in... but that wasn’t the only reason. It was also to keep you all in as well... No one will escape." As Neil ran, his screams caused panic. When someone tried to stop him, he frantically shouted Damon’s name. Those who were smart enough understood what would come next and began running towards the village’s edge. But when they reached it... They hit an invisible wall. Damon smiled, watching their helplessness. Seta fell to her knees, looking up at the figure in the tree. "You said you forgave us..." "I did forgive you. That’s why I’m wiping out all grudges." He glanced at the village head. "I’m not going to ask why you didn’t fulfill my parents’ last wish, but that’s fine." The village head raised his hand in fear. "Please... show us mercy. Everything we did... we did to preserve the village. We were afraid we would get caught up in the politics of powerful nobles. Our village would never survive. I beg you... spare us." Damon’s expression remained calm. "When we begged... did you show us any?" Seta bowed her head, tears filling her eyes. "We were wrong... please, give us another chance to change..." "I did give you a chance. You just proved me right. And for that... I can’t let you live. You will make this world more ugly." Seta’s eyes widened. "If you kill us, that doesn’t—" "Enough..." Damon cut her off sharply. "This small talk is so annoying. I think I’ll just destroy the village." He took a single step, leaping into the sky with his skill Air Walk. As he reached the highest vantage point, every villager could see him. Damon raised the Staff of Carnage. From the staff, a massive ball of black flames began to condense in the sky. The village watched in horror as the darkness spread. Those at the edge of the barrier pounded against it harder, desperate to escape, but nothing worked. With a flick of the staff, the ball of destruction began to descend — slowly, deliberately, giving them time to witness their doom. "Make your peace with the goddess... though you will not see her. I offer your souls to the god of the abyss." Screams and desperate cries filled the air, but all was futile. Today, an entire village would be erased from the ground. Men, women, even children... whole families were eviscerated, leaving nothing but ash. With a roaring boom that echoed for miles and tremors that carried even farther, the small village of Littletown was destroyed. Everything was gone. The earth was scorched and hardened into glass. Men and women were reduced to piles of ash, their shadows permanently burned into the ground by the searing destruction of the Ashborn flames. And in the shadows, a faceless entity watched the destruction of what had once been his home. Where once he had been happy, everything was gone now — the house he grew up in, the fields, the windmills, part of the distant forest, the streams, even the gravestones of his parents. Where he stood today, grass would never grow. He had tried. He had really tried. He had wanted to be better — to be someone who could live up to a single noble idea. But he was Damon Grey. How could there be anything noble about him? He could not be the justice-driven Evangeline, the honorable Xander, as pure as Leona, as loyal as Matia, or as accepting as Sylvia. He was Damon Grey... and right now, all he could think of was blood. He didn’t care how — but he wanted it. The heart in his chest was not allowed to feel guilty. That emotion, he had given entirely to his main body. Let that version of him wallow in self-pity. This version of him wanted blood, and by the unknown god, he would have it. And as he stood there, he heard a familiar chime. [You have leveled up.] [You have gained 150 Attribute Points.] [You have awakened the skill: Heart of Shadow.]