Rivers of the Night - Chapter 657

Chapter 657: Corner

Theron’s reaction on the surface was much the same. He still had a sad expression on his face, a forced smile, a gentle twinkle in his eyes. He looked quite pitiful, all things considered.

However, he knew that allowing the Matriarch to check his rings was unacceptable. He had brought what he had stolen with him, but it wasn’t just that either.

He had the Alpha with him.

While Theron could tell that the Matriarch wanted something from him, likely believing he had used some sort of method to become the “Voidwrought” she mentioned, he also knew that if the Alpha was found, there would be no digging himself out of this hole unless he killed every single person present.

As powerful as he had become, he had no confidence in defeating a Dome of Heaven expert. He didn’t know the extent of their abilities, and even if he could somehow defeat her, there was no guarantee that he could kill her.

The Alpha was a true Blood Mancer. The moment its oddities were seen through, the label of Demon Chosen would fall on him no matter what.

And if the Matriarch managed to escape, who knew who she would tell and what sort of hunters would come after him as a result?

However, there was no way the Matriarch thought he was really a Demon Chosen. She just wanted an excuse to check his spatial devices to find what she wanted.

If she didn’t find anything, she would let it go. If she did find it, she would likely take it—maybe even using the excuse that he was a Demon Chosen to try and kill him on the spot.

Or maybe, to save some face and not do things in public, she would take him away to do it elsewhere.

There was simply no end to the shamelessness of the experts of this world. But maybe that was a shamelessness that just came from constantly seeking a way to become stronger. It was never enough, and that he could understand.

It truly was never enough.

He too constantly wanted to become stronger.

Just as Theron was about to speak, a rush of darkness bloomed from his back.

Wings that blotted out the skies formed, and the Matriarch’s pupils constricted as an aura that seemed to rival her own took shape.

Even though it only rivaled her, and even seemed quite empty, it was so ancient that she knew deep inside that whatever this was existed on a plane beyond her comprehension.

“Why are you questioning a descendant of my Nightingale Clan?”

The voice boomed with an ancient air, rippling out with such strength that the kneeling parties in the surroundings found themselves collapsing to the ground once more.

Theron looked up above his head, a bit surprised himself. It seemed that this Voidwrought—whatever it was—was quite something.

The Nightingale Ancestor Bird had given him a list of conditions to receive the Dark Resonance it held within it. He had initially refused because he didn’t want to have his Water Resonance—given to him by his parents—be overwritten. He wanted to maintain a piece of his real lineage.

However, the Nightingale Ancestor Bird knew that it would take much more effort to do that. It didn’t have much left within it, and doing so would completely drain it. It didn’t want to have to take a gamble on Theron and Theron alone.

So, it told Theron he had to pass a Primal Tribulation, form a Perfect Mandate, and make it to Quasi Cloud Mancy within a very finite amount of time.

It seemed that it had completely thrown the last condition and the second out of the window. Though Theron didn’t know if he had formed a Perfect Mandate or not, he still wasn’t sure what that was.

The only thing he was sure of was the fact that he had passed a Primal Tribulation.

Regardless, the Nightingale Ancestor Bird knew that there would be no finding a better candidate than Theron. Even if it had to use all its remaining energy, it would be worth it.

A Voidwrought would be the one to bring the Nightingales back from the dead. Not just any Voidwrought, but a Dual Resonance Voidwrought.

This was simply astounding.

Even if it was iffy on Theron’s background, the bounds of Karma would force Theron to help the Nightingales out at least in part, and for now, that was enough.

Regardless, with Theron’s strength, there would be no pulling away from him anyway.

If the Demon Corps learned that a genius like Theron was running for his life because a few idiots wanted to take advantage of him, they would gleefully take him in.

And after observing Theron for a long while, the Nightingale Ancestor Bird knew that Theron wouldn’t reject them on principle. Why would he?

The Ancestor Bird also knew of the Alpha’s existence, but its perspective on such things was very different from that of others.

Slowly, the Matriarch stabilized herself. She didn’t move an inch, but it took her some time to be able to speak without losing balance and embarrassing herself.

She looked up into the skies with a serious expression on her face. Though she had heard that the Nightingales had once been a true powerhouse amongst powerhouse Clans, they had long fallen to the ebbs of history. She hadn’t known that there were still remnants remaining.

If that was the case, that would explain how Theron could get his hands on such a Soul Method.

To think Patriarch Nightingale had had such a thing on hand but was so pitifully weak. He was a complete waste of opportunity. Maybe the reason for his long lifespan was also this inheritance he had been left behind.

If this was the Ancestor Bird of that Clan, then the Matriarch already knew that it was impossible for it to ever hand Theron over. A Voidwrought was probably a talent it had been waiting for. It would undoubtedly go all out with him, and it was even less likely that it would allow her to see Theron’s ring because that would mean seeing the secrets of the Nightingales.

Suddenly, it was the Matriarch painted into a corner.