Monarch of Gluttony: System of Sin

“You do have plenty of time. You are the King of your own destiny. The only restrictions that are on you are the ones that you place in yourself and no more.”

“If only that were true…” Azekiel answered. “Anyway, enough of this. You gave me some friendly advice. Let me give you one as well…”

“I think you should pick a side… Because things will be getting really messy in the tower quite soon. If you stay neutral in what’s to come, you’ll be the one who will be losing the most. So you better be fast.”

“I’m not interested in picking a side. I didn’t pick one before, and I’m not going to pick one now. As for the chaos that will be coming, don’t you think you’ll be the one creating that yourself? If you really worry about what’s to come, why don’t you stop and stay here?” The old man asked.

“As you said, this place is quite peaceful. Why return to the chaos when you can have peace? Stay here and enjoy your life. Raphael and Lia could do the same.”

“Peace?” Azekiel asked, bursting into a hearty laughter. “I was at peace. I had a family, but that peace of mind brought death to that family. As long as I don’t solve the problem from its core, I’ll never find peace in all my life. It doesn’t matter what I do; the chaos will find me.”

“You say I control my destiny?” he further asked. “I don’t control my destiny. But that’s only as long as I’m willing to fight. The moment I stop fighting, Destiny starts playing with me. I’m sure you know how… So you should understand me the most.”

“To make sure that I have peace, I need to embrace my chaos. For a person like me, chaos is peace. That’s why this Tower was…”

Azekiel stopped what he was speaking and turned around.

The old man watched Azekiel leave without even glancing back.  It was as if Azekiel only came here for a little conversation and nothing more.

“He’s still the same. Then again, maybe that’s for the best. Maybe that’s what this tower needs… Still, I worry for the future.”

Azekiel, Raphael, and Lia left first. Raphael and Lia kept looking at Azekiel for quite some time. They had seen an entirely different side of Azekiel. Something, he was able to manipulate space and bring out all the fishes. Moreover, he was on equal terms with the old man, who was the guardian of the Heavenly Prison.

Azekiel… He was more than just a kid that they used to think before. As for what more, that’s what they needed to know, but they couldn’t get themselves to ask.

After a long time, it was Raphael who asked.

“Did you lie to us?” Raphael asked.

“Lied to you about what?” Azekiel asked in return, as if not knowing what lie he had told.

“You said you didn’t exist in the future memories of Alion. You said that there was not even a mention of you.”

“And?” Azekiel asked. “That was no lie. In Alion’s memories, there was nothing about me.”

“Then how do you know that old man so well? Why did he seem to know you for a long time as well? Just where did you two meet? From your conversation, it was clear that you were almost as strong as him, if not stronger.”

“Not was… I still am.” Azekiel clarified. “I’m stronger than the old man. He isn’t as strong as he shows. Other than manipulating space and time, he can’t do much. That’s why he is quite weaker when it comes to the grand scheme of things.”

“Also, I didn’t lie to you about me. It was true that Alion’s memories had no mention about me. Before he died, he wiped half his memories, so I couldn’t get most of the things. It was like some safety mechanism that he had to keep the important bits of his memories safe. That’s why I only received a little bit of unimportant information.”

“How did you know about that old man?” Raphael asked. “Why did you look like you knew him for centuries?”

“Because I knew him for that long. I didn’t get anything from Alion’s memories, but after absorbing so much of his memories, there was a lot of burden on my head. That burden seemed to unlock my own memories that I didn’t know all this while.

“So I was right when I told you that I didn’t know anything about me from Alion’s memories. I knew about me from my own memories that were sealed.”

“Your memories were sealed as well? By who? Did you also die inside this tower and lose your memories like me?” Raphael asked, wondering if Azekiel’s past was similar to him.

Azekiel shook his head. “You’re somewhat wrong. I didn’t die inside the tower. In fact, I didn’t die at all. Things are slightly more complicated than that. Too bad I can’t tell you about that now.”

“Why not?”

“Because I don’t want to give you a headache.” Azekiel smiled. “Sometimes being ignorant is much safer than knowing everything. That’s why it’s better you don’t know. When you’re ready, I’ll tell you everything.”

“So you didn’t lie to us about anything? You just kept things hidden?”

“That won’t be entirely accurate either. I did lie to you about one thing for sure.” Azekiel explained.

“What thing is that?” Raphael asked. Just what did Azekiel lie to them about? Whatever it was, he wanted to know. He was really curious about it.

“When you asked me if I knew who made this tower? I told you I didn’t know. That was a lie,” Azekiel answered. “I know exactly who made this tower, and I also know why.”

“Who made this tower then?” Raphael asked, really wanting to get an answer to this question. This tower was the biggest mystery of his life, and he definitely wanted an answer, no matter what it took!