Chapter 184: Defeat

Darkness exploded outward from Damian’s position, spreading rapidly, engulfing the three attackers within seconds.

The ground beneath them turned black, absorbing light. The sky above shifted to blood-crimson, pulsing like a living thing.

And everywhere, scattered across the dark ground and hanging in the air, were bodies and manifestations of negative emotion.

The three attackers froze, their eyes going wide with shock.

"What?! How does he have a Domain at C rank?! That’s impossible!"

But the Domain didn’t care about their disbelief.

It activated fully, its mental pressure crashing into their minds like a tsunami.

Every negative emotion they’d ever felt suddenly surfaced with overwhelming intensity.

Guilt for people they’d killed! Sadness from losses they’d endured! Fear from moments when they’d been powerless! Anger at injustices real and imagined!

All of it magnified, concentrated and forced to the forefront of their consciousness.

’DIE! DIE! DIE! DIE! DIE!’

They saw the faces of everyone they’d wronged! Heard the screams of victims! Felt the weight of consequences they’d ignored!

And Damian’s voice resonated throughout the Domain, carrying absolute authority within his own mental space.

"Kill yourselves! End your suffering! There’s no escape from what you’ve done! No redemption or forgiveness! Only despair and the release death provides!"

His words carried conviction that bypassed rational thought, speaking directly to the parts of their minds already drowning in negative emotion.

"I DON’T DESERVE TO LIVE!"

The rightmost attacker’s hand moved toward his own throat, fingers tightening, beginning to strangle himself.

"I’M A MONSTER!"

The second pulled out a knife, the blade moving toward his own heart.

Thud

"K-Kill me! End my suffering!"

The third was on his knees, tears streaming down his face, his mind completely overwhelmed by accumulated guilt.

’It’s working. The Domain amplifies their own negative emotions against them. They’re defeating themselves.’

But before Damian could finish them, the leader entered the Domain of Despair, his own willpower pushing through the mental pressure through sheer force.

He was also hit by the negative emotions, also saw manifestations of his own guilt and fear, but his experience with his own Domain gave him tools to resist.

"Will Reinforcement! Mental Barrier!"

Multiple defensive skills activated simultaneously, creating layers of protection around his mind.

The mental battle began immediately.

Damian versus the Kestrel leader, both standing motionless in the physical world while their wills clashed in the mental space of overlapping Domains.

Damian pushed waves of despair against the leader’s defenses, trying to overwhelm his mental barriers.

The leader pushed back with pure willpower, his experience in domain fights giving him an advantage against Damian’s superior Domain quality.

Neither could move... Neither could afford to break concentration. The first to falter would lose everything.

’Just need to hold a little longer. Just need to break his will before mine gives out. Then I can finish the others and–’

BAM

A fist caught Damian’s face, his head snapping sideways, blood spraying from split lips.

The mental battle shattered, his Domain collapsing as Damian’s concentration broke.

The three attackers, freed from the Domain of Despair’s influence but still badly shaken, had regained enough control to act.

Damian’s inexperience using the Domain was reflected here. When the leader had arrived, all of his attention was focused on him, giving others the chance to retaliate against him.

They swarmed him while he was distracted, their fists striking with A rank enhanced power.

BAM BAM BAM

Damian’s ribs cracked, his jaw dislocated and his left arm broke in three places.

Even his enhanced durability couldn’t withstand their concentrated assault.

Thud

Damian collapsed to his knees, his self-healing struggling to keep up with the damage, his Aura reserves nearly depleted.

Two attackers grabbed his arms, holding him in place despite his attempts to struggle free.

"Hah..hah...hah..."

The leader walked forward slowly, his breathing heavy from the mental battle but his expression victorious.

He grabbed Damian’s crimson hair, yanking his head up, forcing eye contact.

"Well... You were more troublesome than we thought. Who would have guessed you’d developed a Domain already? Even our family leader wouldn’t have predicted that."

Damian’s expression showed no emotion despite the pain, his crimson eyes staring back without fear.

"...Was it him? The one who manipulated Zavier’s family?"

The leader’s smile widened.

"Hmm? What, you want revenge? Kid, you are strong, yes. Very talented. But reality isn’t a movie where the talented one always wins. You’re weaker than us, so you die now. That’s how life works."

He released Damian’s hair, stepping back slightly.

"Your so-called Mafia that you made? It’ll vanish from the world within weeks. But rest assured – we’ll make sure to send your family to join you in the afterlife. Can’t leave loose ends."

Damian stayed silent, his mind strangely calm despite facing death.

’Am I really going to die here?... How funny! I was just giving a speech about being Godfather to eight thousand orphans. And now they’ll lose their Godfather before they even got to know him.

Well... at least now I’ll be free from every burden. From the guilt and responsibility and constant pressure.

Mother. Father. Thank you for everything you gave me in this life. It’s more than I anything I deserve.

Luna...’

His face softened slightly, a genuine smile crossing his bloodied features as Luna’s face appeared in his mind.

Her silver eyes, her gentle smile and the way she looked at him with unconditional love despite knowing what he was.

’I’m sorry I couldn’t return your feelings properly. Sorry... I’ll never get to see you become the amazing person I know you’ll grow into.’

He closed his eyes and waited for the end, accepting it with the same calm he’d faced every other impossible situation.

"..."

The Kestrel leader, seeing Damian’s acceptance, didn’t waste words on final speeches.

His fist glowed with concentrated Aura, charging a skill designed to obliterate the head completely.

He drew back, preparing the strike.

Then, his arm shot forward.

Thud

And... stopped.

Someone had caught his wrist mid-strike, their grip like iron despite appearing casual.

"Tsk tsk... Ganging up on one person. And being two whole ranks higher. Nobles really are becoming worse day by day."

The voice was unfamiliar, carrying amusement and contempt in equal measure.

Four people suddenly appeared around Damian, their presence announced by the displacement of air rather than any detectable approach.

A middle-aged man with greying hair, his expression showing mild disappointment like a teacher who’d caught students cheating.

A bulky man with scars covering his exposed arms, his hand still gripping the Kestrel leader’s wrist.

A young woman who immediately knelt beside Damian, her hands glowing with healing Aura far more potent than his own technique.

And a thin man with calculating eyes, standing behind Damian like a bodyguard, his gaze looking at the Kestrel Family men as if they were already dead.

The Kestrel leader froze, his face going from confident to horrified in the space of a heartbeat.

His men had similar reactions, their grips on Damian’s arms loosening as recognition dawned as they looked at the faces of the strangers.

"You... you’re the... Unnamed Four..."

The leader’s voice came out strangled, barely above a whisper.

The bulky man’s expression didn’t change. He just moved.

One moment he was holding the leader’s wrist.

The next he was standing in front of Damian again, his posture completely relaxed.

The heads of all four Kestrel Family members fell to the ground simultaneously, their bodies remaining standing for a moment before collapsing.

Thud Thud Thud Thud

Four A rank awakeners. Killed in less than a second!

Executed so cleanly their bodies didn’t even register death before it was complete!

The bulky man sheathed whatever weapon he’d used – too fast for Damian to even see what it was.

"...I don’t listen to the trash of Nobles."

His voice was matter-of-fact, like he’d just swatted mosquitoes rather than killed four people.

Damian stared at his saviors in complete shock, his mind struggling to process what had just happened.

’Who are they?’

The young woman’s healing Aura continued working on his injuries, bones setting properly, tissue regenerating at visible speeds.

The middle-aged man smiled down at him, his expression almost grandfatherly.

"Sorry for the dramatic timing. We were watching to see how you’d handle A rank opponents. I wanted to assess your capabilities before intervening. Didn’t expect them to pull out a Domain quite so quickly."

He extended his hand.

"I’m Gregor. This is Vash."

He gestured to the bulky man.

"That’s Yara."

The young woman nodded while still focusing on healing.

"And behind you is Castor."

The thin man inclined his head slightly.

"We’ve been looking for you, Damian Valcor – The leader of the Mafia."