Modret got to work, his hands swiftly moving across the two rabbits as he made quick work of them.
He quickly impaled the meat with a nearby stick, then lit a fire before searing the meat to get that tenderized texture.
The black fire surfaced in his hand as he occasionally flicked it toward the meat, which was already emitting a sizzling noise.
A few minutes went by before he finally finished preparing the meat. The moment he served it and stood up, a frown surfaced on his face for a brief instant.
Snapping his gaze in the direction of the celestial gate, he waved his palm.
Immediately, the null fire and lightning crackled to life, swiftly engulfing the creature that stepped out of the celestial gate.
He frowned for a moment before shrugging and swiftly bringing the green core that fell off the creature with him.
Entering the hut, he saw Xara lying nearby. He hesitated briefly, then let out a sigh and walked toward them…
Since Xara was a shadow servant, aside from recovering his mana, he couldn't increase his strength, nor did he need food to satisfy his hunger, as he never grew hungry.
Modret was curious if the same thing applied to Axel; after all, he was of a different breed — his shadow…
'The life of a shadow servant is truly pitiful, huh… It's as though they're destined to be chess pieces from the moment they're killed. Is this the consequence of them not being loyal to me?' Modret had the brief thought, but he quickly shook his head, settling down with the duo.
"Axel, let's eat," he said lightly, without much expectation, as he placed the dish down.
"Alright," Axel nodded and reached out, placing a piece of meat in his mouth.
After savoring the taste for a short while, he exclaimed, "Young master, your talent in cooking meat is truly unparalleled!"
Modret was startled for a moment, staring at Axel with a stupefied expression before settling down for the meal, reaching out to take a piece of meat.
Xara turned his face to the side, not lingering with the two — master and life guard.
As they were engrossed in their meal, Axel finally asked,
"We're heading to explore the celestial gate, right?"
Modret smiled and nodded. "Of course. We'll rest for the night while Xara watches over the gate in case any creatures step out. Tomorrow morning, I'll give you a surprise before we enter the celestial gate."
"A surprise?" Axel wrinkled his brows in confusion, but didn't say much.
Chuckling lightly, he said, "Okay then. Thank you in advance, young master."
Modret nodded. "Tomorrow should be a difficult day — exploring the gate. I wonder what will happen if we clear it, killing all the creatures inside."
Although he had a certain guess due to all the games he played back on Earth, he didn't dare make assumptions — he'd wait to see how things played out tomorrow.
"Hopefully everything goes smoothly," Axel said as he stood up to wash the plates, melting snow with his lightning.
But Modret just shook his head, smiling faintly. "No need." He waved his hand, and immediately water emerged, moving swiftly toward the plates and washing away the grease before he waved his hand again, tossing the water out of the hut.
Axel's eyes widened in shock. "Another ability?"
He turned to look at Modret, curiosity filling his eyes. "Young master, how many abilities do you have? Can you copy anyone's ability you see?"
Modret fell into a fit of laughter. "If only it were that easy. As for how many abilities I have… let's just say, not nearly enough."
Axel's eyes brightened with renewed respect for Modret.
Xara, who was on the bed, rolled his eyes at Modret's antics, but his heart was unsettled.
'Damn, the Illuminati is doomed! This monster can obtain the ability of anyone he kills! Or perhaps anyone within a certain range when they die…'
After seeing how Modret had obtained his ability after he died — and now Axel's after he died — Xara now understood the true extent of Modret's strength.
And he was horrified!
Staring at the bluish-silver-haired boy, he couldn't help but feel a wave of reverence in his heart…
As though Modret could sense his gaze, he snapped his head in Xara's direction, a faint smile playing on his lips.
"You should be able to watch the celestial gate for the night, right?" Modret's voice carried a hint of curiosity.
Xara nodded. "It shouldn't be an issue for me."
Modret nodded. "Alright then, I'll be going into cultivation."
Xara stood up, excusing himself from the hut. Despite his injured hand, he could still make some minor movements — and with his shadow puppet ability, which allowed him to control his limbs individually, he felt it shouldn't be a problem to handle the creatures.
Meanwhile, Axel excused Modret, moving to the side as he sat down, staring at the beautiful scenery of ice, with the moon hanging in the sky and casting its glow vividly upon everything, creating a surreal sight.
It was unknown what thoughts were going through his mind.
Was he sad that he was dead now? Was he worried about his family? Was he disappointed in anything?
Modret stared at Axel's back for a moment, thinking it looked desolate.
For a moment, he felt pity toward Axel; after all, he had done more than Modret could ever ask for…
'He can be considered a friend that sticks closer than a brother…'
Not knowing how to console him, Modret glanced toward the fairy and asked, 'Since shadows are very devoted to their masters, having all sorts of benefits, there should be a way to bring them back to life, right?'
The fairy was silent for a moment before Modret heard an exasperated sigh escape her lips.
{Of course there's a way to bring a shadow back to life… it still has to do with shadow fragments. All you have to do is obtain one million shadow fragments, and then you can choose to resurrect any of your shadows.}
'That much, huh?' Modret wasn't discouraged by the large number.
Where there was a will, there was a way.
'I'll gather it with time. Besides, it'll be nice to see him live for himself for once…'
No longer feeling disheartened by Axel's fate, Modret closed his eyes and entered a state of cultivation.
Two techniques surfaced in his mind — one from the SSS-graded Death Puppet ability, and the other from the SSS-graded lightning ability.
...
Author's Note: What do you think about Axel? Would you guys love to see him regain his humanity and freedom?
This chapter is dedicated to man_man. thank you for the 9 golden tickets. its your support that's keeping this novel alive!