162 Ephemeral..... or Eternal?
Arthur followed his Father back towards the Clan Leaders residence, entering inside and greeting his family members as they gathered around him.
It was obvious at this point, but Arthur was the fourth child and the third born son of the Clan Leader.
First was Dominic. Second was Leon. Third was Chensa. Fourth was Arthur and lastly came the twins, Ivan and Ivanka.
Chensa had already found herself a partner, although due to the unstable political and social situation within Parachenko Village, she had yet to marry into his family.
Other than that, Arthur, the third born son was the only other person within the entire family who had any other direct family members. He had accidently impregnated those two girls, Nadia and Natasha, whom were currently spending their days quietly and happily with Arthur's mother.
She was eager to see the first, out of hopefully many grandchildren and didn't once find herself disappointed in the mindsets of these former servants.
They knew their place, as mistresses or concubines, whichever one Arthur preferred, and didn't once try and get into the Madam's good books or push themselves beyond their current rank.
They were both playing the long game, and knew that Arthur was the one that they had to attempt to please.
Not that Arthur even gave a single though to the wellbeing and safety of either of them. As far as he was concerned, both of them, just like everyone else in this Village were only still alive due to their current value.
For the time being, it was safer for Arthur, a Rank 2 Fae Master to stay in a large group and protect himself using cannon fodder and meat shields to put between him and his enemy.
Once he was a Rank 3 Fae Master, or had the capability to kill Rank 3 Fae Masters..... well, he didn't even need to finish that thought, now did he?
Arthur smiled and hugged those people who considered him "family", eating dinner with them and laughing alongside them as they talked and tried to pull Arthur closer and closer back into what many would call a "family".
Niklos had raised them all to put family ahead of themselves, and to put the Clan ahead of family. This wasn't something that decided the fate, or the destiny of the Clan, so it was up to the rest of them to put Arthur before themselves.
Arthur only smiled gently, his heart as still and as cold as an unforgiving winter.
As the sun slowly dipped over the horizon, the members of Arthur's "family" retreated back towards their rooms, and Arthur was "encouraged" to stay with them for the night.
Going along with the situation Arthur nodded before returning back to his room. He didn't even need to open the door to heart the sounds of two heartbeats coming from within, causing him to narrow his eyes before smiling slightly and entering.
The two heartbeats were beating much faster than any sort of assassin or murderer should, and considering that there were two of them, the only other people that would dare to enter his room without his permission would be-.
Arthur closed the door behind him, locking it as the undulating figures of two half naked young girls could be seen through the dimly lit candle flame.
The shadows only added to the haziness, and the sweet scent of wine filled the room.
The two girls gently sat up in his bed before gesturing to a spot between them, as they smiled and flickered their eye lashes at Arthur.
The thousand year old demon couldn't help but chuckle at the two girls before shaking his head and gesturing for them to come to him.
Considering that there wasn't any sort of soundproofing or noise cancellation fae on his person, Arthur was lucky that all the occupied rooms in the house were quite a few doors down from each other.
No matter whether they were a thousand years old, or a million years old, one would always feel something inside of them. It might just be greed, or perhaps pride or wrath. Hatred or Love, it didn't really matter.
There was nothing eternal in this world, regardless of whether it was regarding forms or feelings.
All physical existences would gradually feel the wrath of time, and all types of emotions would eventually be snuffed out after waves upon waves of numerous new experiences.
Arthur like so many other Humans, or just demonic path Fae Masters, didn't neglect his desires, or bottle them up over long periods of time. He was unlike Randolf, an immature young man, just starting to find his own path, and was someone who knew the weaknesses and strengths of the demonic path.
Never restrain ones emotions for too long.
Never do anything that didn't benefit himself in the long run.
And to never trust anybody to do anything that he couldn't do himself.
It did make for what many could consider to be a lonely life.
But, at the apex of existence, at the zenith of cultivation.... everyone was lonely.
Ephemerality was temporary. And everything in this world was ephemeral.
What Arthur sought..... was something eternal.
Which is part of the reason why he never forgot what it was like to be "alive".
This is where he differed from the traditional demonic path.
If he forgot what steps he took, or what actions he did in order to reach the top, then what was the point? He would be forgetting who and what he is.
He would take everything, all of his sins, all of his desires, all of his karma and all the things in the universe if he had to.
People, like Fae and knowledge, were just objects to Arthur. Regardless of their beauty, their potential, or their strength, all of them were just.... temporary.
Even if they got left behind in the annals of time, Arthur would remember.
If he one day forgot something important.... then what was the point of coming so far.
The end result was what mattered most, but if he didn't accumulate anything on the way there then....
Wouldn't he just be empty?
Arthur didn't once stop, despite the cries and screams of the two girls to do so. His Rank 2 Fae Master cultivation was so much stronger, and possessed a much higher endurance and stamina than any mortal woman, so it was obvious that the two girls had bit off more than they could chew.
Wrapping himself up in a thin, ebony coloured robe, Arthur sat peacefully on the roof of the Clan Leaders Residence, the wine from his room in hand, and his eyes gazing upwards towards the starry night sky.
There was a legend.... about a legendary Human Rank 9 Fae Master.....
Falling Star Immortal Sovereign.
Unlike Twilight Obscurity Demonic Sovereign, Falling Star Immortal Sovereign was a member of the righteous path, although he did reach the apex with a new type of Fae that he had discovered, and created.
Thief Attributed Fae.
He was originally a demonic path Fae Master, who then switched to the righteous path after ascending to a Fae Immortal. His powers were so immense, and so strange that he could apparently easily defeat Rank 7 Fae Immortals as a Rank 6 Fae Immortal.
When he overcame the distance between Rank 8 and Rank 9, an immense and powerful existence from one of the other Thirty Three Heavens felt challenged by his power, and used his Fae and Laws to move several stars in the sky out of place, all directed straight towards Human Heaven.
The nine balls of multicoloured crimson fell hard and fast towards Human Heaven, and threatened to destroy all life within it.
But then-.
Falling Star Immortal Sovereign flickered all over Human Heaven. His speed was blinding, and his movements were unrivalled.
With a single flick of his wrist, Falling Star Immortal Sovereign captured the falling stars and stored them away, saving Human Heaven from inevitable destruction.....
From that day forth, nothing within the Thirty Three Heavens was safe from Falling Star Immortal Sovereign. He stole Fae... knowledge.... Laws.... time.... even Origin Fae were no exception.
There was apparently nothing in the Thirty Three Heavens that Falling Star Immortal Sovereign could not steal.
Nothing.... except Sovereign Boundary Physiques.
Arthur raised his hand, gently cupping the image of the moon in his palm.
If he ever forgot the beauty of the moon on that starry night sky.... Arthur vowed to end his own life.
