Chapter 176 - 176: Heartless
"The world knows me as Warlock King Varant," Varant told Lucifer, raising him in the air by his neck.
Lucifer had tried to attack Varant with his lightning even before knowing his name, but he was shocked to learn that his powers weren't working.
No matter how much he tried, his lightning didn't come out of his hand. What was happening? He didn't understand anything.
He looked around to find Caen as he struggled to breathe, only to find Caen near the helicopter.
Caen was lying on the ground, seemingly unconscious. There wasn't any wound on his body. Moreover, a man could be seen standing near him who was none other than Warlock of Shadows, Riali.
That wasn't all. Assassination Emperor Rowen was also standing near Riali. These three seemed to be the only ones here.
"Stunned? You made us run behind you so much, but that was fine. You hurt our men, but that was fine too. Then you hurt Xander. That was a little less fine. None of that deserved death but then you showed your eyes, which was not at all fine," Varant told Lucifer as he sighed.
"Now that I look at you from close, it's true. I see a hint of Violet in your eye. I still don't believe your father could be this stupid. It doesn't matter. You need to die so that this chapter of our lives can end," he said as he started crushing the neck of Lucifer.
"The one who will die is you!" Lucifer said, struggling to breathe as he clenched his fist and punched Varant's chest, trying to use his entire strength in the punch.
As the punch landed on Varant's chest, it didn't go as Lucifer had expected. Varant didn't go flying; instead, he stood there, expressionless.
It seemed like his strength wasn't working either.
"That did hurt a bit. Not bad for a kid. But that's not enough to save you," Varant said as he started walking towards the helicopter of Variant Uprising.
They did come here in a helicopter of their own, but they landed in the distance to make sure that Lucifer and Caen couldn't know about their arrival.
Riali used his shadows to knock Caen out, removing the first line of defense of Lucifer. After which, it seemed as simple as taking candy from a kid.
Lucifer didn't even know as Varant closed in on him. Letting Varant come close was said to be the worst mistake a man could make.
Lucifer didn't have his lightning. He didn't have his strength. He wondered if he still had his decay. He wanted to test.
As Varant took Lucifer closer to the helicopter, still keeping him grabbed by the neck, Lucifer removed the black gloves from both his hands and placed them in his pockets.
He touched Varant's neck with both hands, trying to use his Decay while simultaneously strangling him.
"Won't work. Even gods can't save you today," Varant replied as he tightened his grip, making Lucifer gasp for breath.
"Want to see something before you die?" Varant asked, glancing at Lucifer.
Lucifer didn't reply, but it didn't matter. Varant brought a knife out of his pocket and slit both the wrists of Lucifer with which he was trying to grab onto his neck.
There was pain, but that didn't phase Lucifer. What actually phased him was that his wrists weren't healing. Let alone healing fast; they weren't healing at all.
"What did you do?" Lucifer asked, still struggling to breathe. His face had turned red as the pain of not being able to breathe was visible in his eyes.
"I took away your powers. Unfortunately, your powers are a bit too strong, so I could only take them away from you temporarily. Two minutes I should say, but those two minutes are enough for you to die," Varant said, explaining.
"You know why you kept coming back to life? Because of your healing. But if you die when your healing isn't there, you'll die forever. It won't be like when your powers first awakened. No coming back from the eternal slumber this time," he continued.
"Only one minute left before the effects of my power are over. Enjoy the last one minute of your life. And please don't blame me for your death," he further said.
"I'm not enjoying killing Zale's son. No matter what others say about me hating your father, this isn't what I like either. But albeit, I have no choice. Your life will bring the death of others in the future. And I can't let that happen."
Varant stepped inside the helicopter as he started the countdown. The helicopter started flying in the air, but instead of going towards the city, it went towards the Sea.
"D...did you kill my fa...ther?" Lucifer asked, realizing that he really had no way out. He didn't have strength, but he also couldn't use any other powers. And the one he was facing was Varant. His normal strength and techniques he had learned were also useless.
At least he needed to know the answers, even if it was going to be his last moments as per Varant.
"Not really. The short answer is no; I didn't kill your father. As for who killed your parents, I would suspect the Variant Uprising. The guys you helped? They killed your father and mother. So do you regret it yet?" Varant asked, smiling.
"You're lying," Lucifer replied as his heartbeat slowed down even more. His gasps for breath were intensifying, but he didn't seem scared.
"I wish I were lying but that's something I'm sure of. Even though I have no clue to prove it, I'm sure they did it."
"Why would I lie to someone who's about to die? Right? Anyway, last ten seconds. Time is over as I can't wait for your powers to come back," Varant said as he sighed.
"Goodbye, Lucifer Azarel... Son of Zale Azarel. I wish things could have been different," he said before he used all his strength to crush the neck of Lucifer.
That wasn't all as he inserted his hand inside Lucifer's chest to pull his heart out, to make sure that there was going to be no returning ever again.
Lucifer's eyes were still open as his heart was pulled out of his chest, but there was no shine in his eyes as he was once again killed, possibly for the last time.
There were no tears in his eyes, though. Nothing like the first time he died. He didn't scream like the first time; he didn't ask why they were doing this like the first time; he didn't wonder why people were so cruel like last time.