Robert Vlaho
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[1% LIFESTEAL] Chapter 200 - Apostle
🕑 Added 2025-08-23 16:26:34 +0000 UTC[mini-note]
200th chapter, yay! đ„ł
[end of mini-note]
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Freddy paused at the adjudicatorâs words.
Technically, heâd already killed a Lord once. Technically. But that was only possible with an unreasonable number of things lining up perfectly. Sure, he was far stronger now than heâd been back then, but as things stood, most of his real power was locked behind favorable circumstances.
In a fair one on one duel, most Lords would kick his ass. Hell, even four-stars who hadnât made Lord, like the adjudicator, would wipe the floor with him. It was, frankly, a bit unreasonable. âThis is absurd,â he said. âIs there really no other way?â
The adjudicator scoffed. âThere are a million ways to prove your potential, Mr. Stern. But if you want to justify owning a city at the second star, even in a subordinate territory, there needs to be a lot of guarantee that the investment will pay off for the empire. And as it stands, having three spirit abilities is considered a devastating obstacle for progress. Thus, the only way you can justify having the privileges of a Lord is if youâre already able to stand beside them.â
âAnd what if I canât do it?â Freddy asked.
âThe city might be taken from you,â the adjudicator said. âIf thereâs anything to even take after this is all done.â
âBut it might not?â Freddy noticed.
The adjudicator hesitated. âThe thing is, very few people are even trying to go up a star with three spirit abilities. Most people who take a third spirit ability have completely given up on ever ascending. And those who are trying to ascend consider crippling themselves like that a horrible idea. ButâŠâ The man sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. âTechnically, there is no hard evidence that it's impossible.
âSure, it might take you something like a century, but if there is any hope of you reaching that kind of level, the empire might want to stay on your good side.â
âSo I donât have to beat a four-star as much asââ
âYou have to put up a really, really good fight at the very least. But Iâll also be honest with you. I donât really know what will happen. The situation is a bit complicated. If the whole Northern Belt is wiped off the map⊠well⊠they might consider it water under the bridge. And before you do the usual thing where you assume the worst of meâno, Iâm not suggesting we give up the fight.â
âI didnât say anything.â
âBut you did think it,â the adjudicator accused, pointing at Freddy.
âOkay, yeah I did,â he admitted.
âHmph. Anyway, your main problem isnât the city, per se. The high adjudicators can be a real pain in the ass when they want to, and there is a serious, non-zero chance you might not be allowed back into the empire proper. Remember, people are only allowed back at the peak of the third star.â
Freddy scowled at that, but frankly, he didnât appear too concerned. After all, if that happened, he always had the choice ofâ
âAnd donât get any funny ideas.â The adjudicator interrupted his thoughts. âRemember, I know your real identity. And I found no record of a Freddy Stern ever legally crossing the border into the Northern Belt.â The man turned to stare directly into Freddyâs eyes. âWhile I might be tethered to you to some degree, donât forget who I am. I donât uphold the law just for convenience, I truly believe in what I do.
âImperial policy often encourages⊠letâs say, closing an eye when it comes to⊠âvictimless crimesâ committed by those with potential to serve the cause. But what youâve done is a crime nonetheless, and should you be shown to be lacking, you might just get in trouble with me.â
Frankly, Freddy was a bit exasperated by the adjudicatorâs attitude. The man wasnât an outright villain, but he wasnât exactly the morally upright hero of justice he tended to play sometimes. Regardless, he chose to respect the guy and simply nodded. âUnderstood.â
âAll right, then. I wonât keep you any longer.â
Freddy gave the man a polite nod, after which he left the office.
Bloodshed, he called mentally, focusing on his connection to the skeleton. Howâs the form serving you? The form Bloodshed ended up taking grew unstable past a certain size. It was less crazy than it used to be, but two arms on one side and a split leg was still far from optimal.
It is serving me well, Master, Bloodshed said, punctuating the statement with a loud crashing sound that echoed for miles, likely as it struck down an approaching monster. However, my essence control is quite limited. I can gather blood to maintain my form. But I can do little else.
What about blood mist? Freddy inquired. The more predators you can attract to you, the better.
I can scatter some if I wish, the skeleton said. That much isnât a problem.
Freddy nodded to himself. Heâd decided to summon a giant Bloodshed for two reasons: first, it was a lot more intimidating; and second, the bigger it was, the greater its range of movement would be.
If it was at its minimum size, the area it could cover would only span a relatively short section of one wall. This way, it had a lot more freedom to roam around, even if it couldnât reach the south side of the wall.
With many of the elites going away, the structure of the defense was going to change. For starters, there would be no one to fight the bigger threats ahead of time, so they would have to stick much closer to the wall. With that in mind, the structure of Freddyâs party was about to change.
It was time to start taking care of that.
First, his hired mercenary helpâthe three-stars who were forced to stay due to being under the direct purview of the adjudicator.
As he walked out and met up with them, the scout and support gave him neutral looks. While they were elites, they werenât directly involved with the administration of the mercenary group they belonged to.
Thus, Freddy turned to the porter.
The man gave him a pensive look. âMr. CliffâŠâ
âI donât care,â Freddy said, âabout anything you have to say. Not one bit. You and your brother and all those other fuckers who own the other companies know what they did.â Freddy pretended to struggle for a moment. âWhat was it you said to me when I first met you? I step out of line and youâll bury me in lawsuits?â
âYou should be able to understand,â the man said, âwhat it means to want to protect your people.â
âOh, really? Protecting your people, are you? Or are you just protecting your assets?â Freddy asked.
The manâs gaze turned hostile as he took a step forward. âI wonât hear you talk about our men like that!â
Freddy met his charge, bumping chest-first into the man and putting his superior body density on display as he pushed him back. âDonât you dare give me this self-righteous bullshit! You people sell the service of your help. I paid ahead of time. Youâre all too happy to take money when you have nothing to lose, but when it's time to earn that money, youâre nowhere to be seen.â He pulled back, shaking his head. âWhen this is all done, Iâll sue every single one of you out of existence. Mark my words.â
âYouâll be compensated for all the work we failed to deliver,â the man claimed.
âAnd Iâll also be compensated for all the damage that lack of help caused,â Freddy asserted, staring at the man and waiting for him to challenge his words. Naturally, he wouldnât be taking that money for himself. Heâd be giving it to the city. Whatever was left of it, at least.
The porter shrank back. âI understand.â
Given that he still needed these peopleâs help, he decided to throw them a bone. âI do get why you people did this,â Freddy said. He thought of the city, and why he was even still here, still fighting.
No matter how much he reasoned with himself, ultimately, it wasnât that complicated. He felt responsible for the lives of the people of Repentawa. Even if it was just a stupid title that might very well be taken away soon, for what it was worth, at that moment, he was the leader of the city. They were his people, and they needed him. That was there was to it.
His expression fell a bit as he hesitated. âJust⊠Donât take it personally. You have your tough choices, and I have mine. Iâll do the right thing for the people who make it to the other side of all this. And you three do your part in making sure thereâs people left. Youâll be more useful helping the rest of the vanguard. I can handle myself, and I wonât be going far from the city, anyway.
He looked at the porter. âIâll still keep my supplies with you and drop by when I need them.â Then, he turned to the support. âAs for you, try to keep some essence for an Unholy Blessing in reserve, just in case I need it.â And as for the scout, he gave him an appreciative nod. âTake care of yourself. And good luck.â
They all gave him a respectful nod.
Freddy turned around, leaving them to their work. He looked for Sophia first to consult her on what sheâd be doing.
âIâll keep making more, further out,â she said, not specifying what, just in case someone was listening.
Freddy nodded, then mouthed, Be as subtle as you can.
While Bloodshed was going to help a lot, if Freddy was being honest, Sophia could contribute a lot more.
Ultimately, the biggest threat to them werenât the few elite monsters that appeared every once in a while. It was the sheer number of the weaker ones. To maximize the odds of success, they had to focus on culling as many as possible. That being said, it was critical for her to stay under the radar. The people might notice the undead, but as long as their source remained a mystery, there should be no problem.
And if she made them far enough from the city, there was a real possibility nobody would notice them at all. They were quite temporary by design, and might very well be unable to even make it close enough to the city to be discovered.
It would be optimal for the undead to kill a couple dozen monsters each and then simply die off before anyone could notice their presence. âJust be careful,â he said.
She nodded, turned around, and left.
Drake was nowhere to be seen. While Freddy wanted to inform him that their party was splitting up, he couldnât afford to waste the time in looking for him, so he hoped heâd figure it out on his own. For what it was worth, Drake had grown a lot. Might even be close to the second star, if he wasnât already capable of ascending and just holding out for a better talent upgrade.
Regardless, even at the peak of the first star, he was already a powerful fighter, and someone who could contribute a lot to the defense.
As for Lily⊠well, Freddy wished her luck. He didnât judge her for running away. It was an understandable choice to make, especially given her complicated relationship with Drake.
Sighing, Freddy turned to the final people of interest.
It wasnât hard to track down Georgie and Emily. For her part, Emily was giving him a smug, shit-eating grin. âSo itâs three spirit abilities, then? Oof, thatâs rough,â she said with a chuckle. âLooks like you and I wonât be competition after all.â
Freddy raised an eyebrow at that. âCompetition?â
âNothing for you to worry about anymore,â she said with a self-satisfied smirk. âMaybe when you finally make it to the third star in about a century or two.â
âOkay, then,â he said simply, refusing to bite the bait as he turned to Georgie.
âI must sayââGeorgie turned to face Bloodshed, who was in the process of swatting a giant grasshopper-like monster out of the airââIf I found a spirit ability like that, even I would be willing to risk the triple block to have it.â
âSorry,â Freddy said. âFor failing to mention it before, that is.â
The two of them had previously discussed the possibility of forming a new subordinate state in Faralethal, and from what Freddy guessed, the woman had likely expected him to be quite a bit more powerful by the time they started. Still, again, he was confident in himself, but he decided against looking arrogant before the woman.
She smiled at him. âDonât be. Even if you get dead stuck at where you are, something like thatââshe pointed at Bloodshed againââwould be a huge help with my plan. If anything, I want you even more now.â
âGet a room, you two,â Emily said while making a buzzer sound.
To their credit, both Freddy and Georgie managed to ignore her.
âAnyway,â Freddy said, changing the topic. âWe split up and meet if thereâs a big threat?â
âItâs worked so far,â Georgie said.
âMight be good to split the cardinal directions,â Emily suggested. âWe can have the big fuck-off skeleton stay here, and the rest of us take the other sides of the city.â
âIâll go South,â Freddy said. âThat part isnât covered by Bloodshed, so Iâd like some extra safety there.â
âSo it has a name?â Georgie noted. âBloodshed, huh. Pretty cute.â
âUhm, excuse me?â Emily glared at him. âIf you need extra safety, send me.â Her glare intensified. âUnless you seriously believe youâre actually stronger than I am?â
Freddy honestly didnât know whether he was stronger than her. But he was a lot more confident in his combat ability with Bloodshed in play. He pointed at the skeleton. âThat thing is my ability, so it triggers my talent with any damage it does. Perhaps Iâm not stronger than you, but my survivability has just increased by an order of magnitude. I wouldnât say Iâm quite immortal, but anything short of mushing my brain, and Iâll be fine.
âIf something too strong appears, Iâm probably the most likely to survive long enough to call for help.â
Her stare lingered for another moment. âThatâs an annoyingly good point. Okay, do whatever you want.â
They arranged some other details, like how they were going to communicate, and what to do with breaks, and then set off to their positions.
The South part of the wall wasnât in direct line of the coming invasion, but plenty of monsters were circling around. Perhaps that was a strategic choice by whatever force guided them, or perhaps they were simply scattered enough. Regardless, it was good to keep an eye on it.
Once there, he leaped off the wall and ran past the vanguard, conjuring Sanguine Avenger and starting the fight. There was a long way to go until it was all over.
***
Meanwhile, in the middle of the city, among the numerous non-combatants and other civilians, there was a small, dilapidated apartment. Within it was a man, his limbs twisted the wrong ways, and his skin littered with aching blotches of sickly colors.
The doors creaked open, and a woman wearing sunglasses stepped inside. She walked up to him and took a knee, taking her sunglasses off and revealing creepy, square eyes. âApostle⊠we have a problem.â
Comments
Jake Burkett
It's already been explained every new soul ability compresses the amount of latent aura. So he's above 66, but under 100.
The_DemoCorgin
Can you explain a bit about how star ascension works when they put it off? In the Century of Solitude, it said "His star. It was overflowing. At that moment, he could ascend to the third star." Since it seems like he can't anymore, is it that putting it off purposefully sets it back somehow? Or was that just a hallucination by Freddy? Sorry - thanks!
Meir Banon
Tftc
joshua milllett
They were his people, and they needed him. That was (all) there was to it(.)
Fury
I agree wait almost two months for a back log and its all gone in couple of hours
Azayrian105
And now I am officially caught up. What a terrible place to be.
Azayrian105
Think of it as resigning himself to the circumstances. You hate them for their actions but you use them because they are there. What happens after is when the hatred matters.
Keven Leigh
I agree, seems more like a plot device to slow MC progress so he can work on his other abilities. Plus Freddy is dumb enough he wouldn't think of that.
Brian Tripp II
Just pre-ordered book 3 cannot wait to be able to listen while I work. Sept can't come soon enough!!
Jan Ullrich
The u-turn of the mercenaries is a bit jarring, for me. Just the âwe are going to sue you into oblivionâ to âletâs work together even if I donât like it, but your the bossâ in a pretty short conversation.
Random Guy
Yeah I also would just delete the part where he sees him but I already said so back then.
Gio
Two notes: 1. It does't make sense that Freddy doesn't tell the ajudicator things because he thinks the ajudicator won't believe him. He can summon bloodshed, and if bloodshed explains things the adjudicator will have to believe him. Maybe he doesn't want to summon bloodshed like this for whatever reason, but that is a different question. You've written yourself into a bit of a corner in this regard: If spirits can't lie -> Spirits are great witnesses. If Freddy commands Bloodshed to explain why Freddy choose to accept a third spirit ability, the adjudicator will have to believe bloodshed. 2. While Freddy can't directly sense how much progress he has made towards the next level; there is still a way to keep track of things. His ring generates coins, and for each coin generated, there is a an amount of latent aura that is generated as well. So, for example, you could say that with 100% efficiency, for each coin generated, Freddy gains 1 unit of latent aura, the lower efficiency, the more latent aura that is generated per coin. The formula would then be: (100 divided by efficiency) units of latent aura per coin. And while probably isn't 100% efficient, you can still guarantee how much minimum latent aura is generated per coin. That means if you have a good idea of how much units of latent aura it takes to go from 2 star to 3 star for a person without a spirit ability, you can have an upper bound on the maximum amount of coins that need to be generated for a 2 star to go to a 3 star. For example, you could maybe say: For a person without a spirit ability: at most 100 coins (100% efficiency) to go from 2 star to 3 star For a person with 3 spirit abilities: at most 10000 coins (100% efficiency) to go from 2 star to 3 star If freddy has these numbers, he can have an upper bound on the amount of coins that he needs to generate to get to 3rd star. While probably an overestimation on the amount of coins he needs to generate, knowing the upper bound can be quite useful, and it's something to work towards.
Pal. ie
That was there was to it. Missing âallâ
Brian Tripp II
Been waiting for this ! Happy 200th!!!
BubblyGhost
Still can't believe Fred boy let the incredibly evil aura/madness guy into his city when he saw him earlier. Downright silly
J
Congratulations on the 200!
J
Yes
MagnitudeX
Is the apostle one of the refuges that came in that was radiating insanity?
Robert Blaise
It indeed is. I haven't mentioned it, but he isn't wearing the ring for it to not be a distraction. Might include that part somewhere for clarity tho
pratticus maximus
Thanks, really enjoyed it! Wouldn't the coin ring be going off like crazy with bloodshed killing everything? I thought he kinda counted like an ability, so all that essence would be directed to him?
Logan
TFTC, happy 200th
Inderpal Kooner
200! đ
ì íì€
Gracias, and to the 200th đ«Ą
Compendium
Wasn't expecting one today lol, ty and gg
