DING!

~----~

[Ascended Counter: 1,928/2000]

~----~

Leon paid little attention to the system notification that hovered in front of him, he was still trying to deal with his erratic emotions.

Lucian was still sobbing softly beside him and the crying sounds induced conflicting emotions inside of him- anger, hatred, pity, and deep rage.

He glared at the dying terrorist with a grimace. "You're so annoying".

Lucian didn't stop sobbing as more tears flowed from his eyes.

Leon wanted nothing more than to cut off his tongue but he knew that Lucian's tears were not just due to losing all his companions, it was also due to the extreme physical pain that he was going through at this moment.

At this moment, the Demon of Ozempic was a shell of his former self. Lucian was literally dying from inside out.

He was shriveled up like there was no water and blood left in his body, his bones were literally visible through his skin, and he trembled like his body could no longer support the weight of his bones.

His eyes were feverish and yellow, the look in his eyes was no longer vibrant and gentle but weak and filled with agony.

Lucian was one step away from dying.

Leon quietly stared at him for a long time as he died and in that moment he saw the tyranny of the Omnicore Federation.

Parasite was a product of the Federation's subtle support for slave trade, while the Demon of Ozempic was a result of religious fanatism mixed with the Federation's unhinged willingness to use humanoid test subjects for experiments.

Leon understood better why the Omnicore Federation had such a chokehold over the world, they were unhinged and would stop at nothing to achieve their goals- like the current ongoing invasion in the city.

Lucian was the result of their obsession.

Lucian was one of the most successful products of the Federation's experiments, his exploits since he escaped the underground laboratory was a validation of the work that was done on his body by his captors.

Staring at the dying Lucian, Leon easily envisioned the scientists of the Federation secretly monitoring him and his exploits, using data derived from him to aid in further experiments.

He easily envisioned 10 more laboratories or even hundreds like the one Lucian was trapped in for 3 years out there.

He envisioned more humanoids being trapped inside there like Lucian, he envisioned the scientists trying to improve on the box of trauma called Lucian to create the perfect Geneform soldier that could hold multiple racial DNAs with no side effects like Lucian.

Lucian was the defective product, maybe they were already working on the perfect products or maybe they already created the perfect product.

Lucian looked up at the distant burning skies of Leviathan Quay as the invasion continued, rocking the earth and making the sky tremble.

His eyes squinted in raw hate.

'I hate the Omnicore Federation'. He thought, his mind simmering with rage, frustration, and deep-rooted hatred.

Then he looked at Lucian again who was still sobbing in the throes of death.

In that moment that he looked at Lucian, Leon didn't see the Demon of Ozempic, instead he saw Lucian stripped of all his grandiose titles, all his powers, and all his privileges.

He saw Lucian in his barest form, in his weakest and most vulnerable form, he saw the true Lucian, a 19-year-old teenager with a lifetime of trauma.

Looking at the tears flowing from his eyes, Leon saw all the pain flow, he saw all the trauma flow non-stop.

He exhaled, then he said. "I'm still not going to spare you".

"I know," Lucian said amid gasps as his body slowly started convulsing. "I deserve it".

Leon didn't answer as he just looked at him.

More hot tears flowed down Lucian's cheeks as they soon became mixed with blood; blood and tears now flowed down his eyes.

Leon grimaced at the sight, then he asked. "Do you have any regrets?"

"No". Lucian replied as Leon kept his gaze fixated on his eyes, then he hesitated slightly before choking out the words. "I just… I-I just wished I didn't drag Xena into all of this".

He sobbed. "All she wanted to do was support me".

"Were you in love with her?" Leon asked calmly.

That question broke Lucian as he cried more, the he choked out the words. "I-I don't know".

Leon nodded calmly. For some reason, conversing with Lucian finally made his erratic emotions calm down.

Lucian struggled to look at him amid his sobs. "Before I die, please tell me, how are you a human?"

Leon looked at him and exhaled, then he opened his mouth and replied him.

Unlike the distorted version of the story that he told the terrorists previously, Leon told Lucian everything, the whole truth this time including the ChronoSystem and how his whole life was him essentially finding his past to piece together his fragmented memories.

Lucian was the first man in Neo-Tokara that Leon told the full truth about his life but he wasn't scared.

Afterall, dead men tell no tales.

At first, Lucian was taken aback, he never expected such a unique story.

But then amid the agony coursing through his body, he forced a smile. "T-thank you for telling me," he grinned but then he coughed blood due to the exertion.

Lucian rasped. "I-I can die satisfied knowing I met a real human".

Leon looked at him darkly. "That won't stop me from hunting down your whole organization, I won't stop till all of you are dead!"

Lucian maintained the twisted smile on his face. "I have no regrets," he rasped. "I-I have no regrets if it's a human that ends the Holy Movement, that means it's God's will".

Lucian finally became totally silent, he could no longer even talk.

He now looked like a stroke patient as with bloody tears flowing down his eyes, his body convulsed, his face twisting in pain and agony.

Leon silently watched this for a few seconds till he could no longer endure it. 'F*ck, I can't!' He moved his hand and stabbed the dagger into Lucian's throat, ending his suffering.

The Demon of Ozempic froze, then his body finally became limp.

10:23am, 11th July, the Demon of Ozempic died.

DING!

~----~

[You have completed System Mission: Holy War]

[Mission Summary:]

*You participated in the Holy War of the Extremist Movement against them.

*You participated in the battle of Compton District, turning a disaster that should have taken over a thousand lives into a much minor terrorist encounter, saving countless lives in the process.

*You bravely participated in the mission to invade the terrorist base despite the dangers involved.

*You singlehandedly thwarted the plans of the terrorists multiple times successfully, reducing the impact of their actions and propaganda.

*You fought an intense battle against the terrorists in a 1v5 encounter, singlehandedly dominating some of the best E Rank Ascended in the world!

*You killed Xena Rousey, an E Rank NetRunner, a Holy Champion of the Extremist Movement.

*You killed Blake, an E Rank Cyber Gladiator, a Holy Champion of the Extremist Movement.

*You killed Jake, an E Rank Cyber Gladiator, a Holy Champion of the Extremist Movement.

*You killed Ramirez, an E Rank Gene Augur, a Holy Champion of the Extremist Movement.

*You killed Lucian, the Demon of Ozempic, singlehandedly thwarting the terrorist threat in Leviathan Quay.

*You lost comrades.

…

Leon already experienced this once before but the experience the second time still felt novel after completing a major mission.

Seated beside Lucian's corpse, he watched as the lines of text appeared in his vision like he was in a Supreme Court where he was receiving judgement by the ChronoSystem.

The System continued.

...

[Mission Completion Rating: A+]

[You have qualified for bonus rewards!]

[You have been rewarded with the bonus rewards: +500 Data Points, 1 Mechanist Knowledge Scroll on Advanced Materials Engineering, and +200 Ascended Essence.]

…

[You have been rewarded with your main Choice Reward- Pick 2 from 5 random Racial Traits of the Demon of Ozempic.]

>Tuna Fish DNA Racial Trait- Sonic Navigation (Passive): You can navigate the world using sophisticated sonic pulses that map the environment in real-time, allowing you to perceive vibration, obstacles, and even distant landmasses with perfect clarity.

>Geneform Racial Trait- Bio-Enhanced Physiology (Passive): +15% END, +10% STR, -10% INT.

>Dog DNA Racial Trait- Rabies: Triggered through bite. When triggered, this trait causes extreme behavioral changes and mental disorder, irritability, rashness, extreme aggression and confusion.

>Cockroach DNA Racial Trait- Undying Roach: When triggered, +180% to +300% END and +60% to +120% HP regeneration depending on LUCK.

>Rat DNA Racial Trait- Danger Premonition (Passive): You can clearly perceive danger ahead of time.

…

Leon felt a bit anxious at first as the System began listing the 5 racial traits that were available for him to choose from.

Though he never really thought about it during his quest to take down Lucian and the Extremist Movement, the promised System reward was still at the back of his mind and after his 2 major battles against Lucian, he already had preferences.

After the first 4 racial traits appeared, he already felt disappointed till the last one appeared and he heaved a sigh of relief.

Reacting like this over Lucian's tragic death like picking loot from his corpse was a bit brutal, but Leon was not above doing this.

Afterall, in the end, his main goal in this world was getting as strong as possible so he could awaken his memories and find out the truth about what happened to his previous world.

Besides, Lucian was not innocent.

As for why he set his eyes on the Rat DNA trait from the onset, it was simple.

The difficulty of facing Lucian during his planning period for the final battle and how this specific Rat DNA trait exposed the mission of the elite squad, leading to so many of them dying was a testament to the racial trait's utility.

To Leon, Danger Premonition was Lucian's greatest and most important racial trait.

His first choice was Danger Premonition, only after that did he look over the others.

Leon felt a bit disappointed that the Komodo Dragon racial trait and the Arctic Bear racial trait were not displayed, they were Lucian's greatest offensive traits but the System gave him another that was even more important- the Cockroach DNA racial trait.

This racial trait was the reason why Lucian was such a menace to kill, it was the sole reason why Lucian was more tenacious than even E Rank Gene Augurs!

To Leon, even though the Komodo Dragon and Arctic Bear racial traits were important offensively, the Cockroach DNA racial trait was always his second choice right after Danger Premonition.

And coincidentally, the 2 appeared.

Leon made his choice and instantly the System lit up with more notifications.

…

[Congratulations! You have been rewarded with the 2 Rat DNA and Cockroach DNA racial traits: Danger Premonition & Undying Roach!]

…

[Current Data Points: 1042]

[Ascended Counter: 2000/2000]

[Congratulations! Trial Catalyst is synchronized!]

[Host can attempt promotion Trial anytime!]

~----~

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