The Kind of Evil

Chapter 98 World's Essence.

Rasmus and Aris silently stared at each other for almost a whole minute since Lenin and Novia left. Neither of them showed any expression, but they still couldn't believe what they were seeing.

"You're small," Aris said, breaking the silence as she crossed her arms.

"Are all Orthias tall like you?" Rasmus asked with his eyes slightly narrowed. "I remember my late mother wasn't as tall as you. She was only a bit taller than me if she's still alive by now."

"Yes, we are taller than humans in general, for the warriors at least," Aris nodded and kept observing Rasmus's appearance.

Rasmus tilted his head, intrigued by the conversation because he could ask everything related to Orthias and who they actually were. He poured tea into his cup and one for her as well.

"Warriors? Now that I think about it, Lenin said something that you were an Aristoria. My mother's name was Aristoria as well, so does that mean it's not a name but rather a title?" Rasmus asked as he grabbed his cup of tea and took a sip.

"It's not that simple," Aris answered as she grabbed her cup of tea and stared at it for a moment. "Aristoria is more than just a name or a title, it's a different existence in a way," she explained and took a sip of the tea.

"Not an Orthias?" Rasmus tilted his head a bit with his brows furrowed.

"What's an Orthias that you know of?" Aris put down the empty cup and her eyes never left Rasmus's.

"An ancient race that has roamed Neva long before humankind and other living beings," Rasmus answered and put the cup down as well. "It was said that Orthias are as old as dragons themselves," he added.

"Yes, we can be called ancient, but we are not a race. And yes, we are as old as dragons themselves," Aris answered as she made herself comfortable on the couch. "We don't reproduce like humans or other living beings, and that eliminates the criteria as a race. You can call us an anomaly or an entity," she explained.

Rasmus raised his brows as he crossed his arms, he had never felt so confused by an explanation before. The only beings that he could compare Orthias with, would be demons and angels because they didn't reproduce and exist. After all, an omnipotent being created them which explained their existence.

"Then what are you exactly?" Rasmus asked as he sat straight and stared into Aris's eyes.

"Orthias isn't a name of our race, it has a meaning. Orthias means World's Essence. We exist because this world exists," Aris answered. "It's hard to comprehend for a human like you," she said as she poured tea into her cup.

"World's Essence? Isn't Mana also an Essence of this world?" Rasmus narrowed his eyes.

"So are dragons," Aris answered stared at Rasmus, and took a sip of her tea. "Mana exists because it's the process of decaying of Dragon Veins," she pointed out and emptied her cup again.

Rasmus closed his eyes, leaning back, and massaged his nose bridge. Aris could tell that Rasmus was trying to understand it, but she knew that he wouldn't be able to understand it immediately.

"Are you a dragon?" Rasmus asked as he opened his eyes and stared right into Aris's soul.

Aris who was about to put the cup on the table, suddenly froze still. She slowly moved her eyes and pointed them at Rasmus. She didn't expect him to find out the truth about Orthias from that simple explanation. She wondered if it was a lucky guess or if he was smart and keen just like what Lenin described him as.

"Yes, I'm a dragon, but not all Orthias are dragons," Aris answered as she put down the cup. "How did you find that out?" She tilted her head with her brows furrowed.

"Because you described it so vaguely to the point that it's similar to how dragons exist in this world. The fact Wyverns, Drakes, Amphipteres, Wyrms, and Lindwrum are the remnants of dragons is a giveaway that they exist not through normal reproduction but because of the remnants of dragons," Rasmus explained as he clasped his hands and rested his elbows on his thighs.

"You also acknowledged my statement that you're as old as the dragons themselves which means you're not inferior to them. Based on that, I assume that Orthias and Dragons are the same, we humans never expect that and call your existence by two different names," Rasmus added as he poured tea into his cup and hers.

Aris formed a smirk as she grabbed her cup of tea, amazed by how sharp his intuition was. As an Orthias, Aris and the others were blessed with such intuition. She was convinced that Rasmus was indeed an Orthias and not completely a human being.

"But you said that not all Orthias are dragons, what does that mean?" Rasmus asked and took a sip of his tea.

"That's why they called me Aristoria, and your mother as well," Aris answered. "Aristoria is the warrior of Orthias that only appears once in a few decades. The dragons that humans described and saw back then, they were us, Aristorias," she explained and grabbed her cup of tea.

"So you can turn yourself into a dragon?" Rasmus raised his brows and swirled his cup.

"I can, but the risk of failing is almost 90%. If I failed, I would disappear and my essence would turn into a new Aristoria in the future," Aris explained and took a sip of her tea. "That's why dragons were rare back then and humans thought dragons went extinct," she added.

"And as an Aristoria, you're obligated to do that process?" Rasmus raised his brows and stared into Aris's eyes.

"Yes, and every one of us failed. I understand why your mother, my predecessor decided to walk away because she realized that her life wasn't hers. She was responsible for the future of all Orthias," Aris answered and nodded. "But there should be more to it, and how did she manage to produce an heir, with a human nonetheless."

Rasmus hummed as he looked at his reflection in the cup of tea. He tried to process everything before he could ask for anything else. He didn't expect something like this to exist in this world, and why did God make it that way. He remembered that Videl mentioned that God made this world more complex than Earth, but he didn't expect it to be this complex.

"I'm curious, am I also an Aristoria?" Rasmus asked as he pointed at his face.

Aris slowly got up from her couch and walked around the table to approach Rasmus who sat across from her. She stood in front of him and beckoned him to stand up.As soon as Rasmus stood up, Aris grabbed his hands and looked at his palms with a serious face.

"You do have our bloodline..." Aris muttered, her face right in front of Rasmus, but her focus was on his palms. "But your human body is limiting your growth..." she added as she began to squeeze his arms to feel his bones and muscle structures.

"Lenin said something similar that the fact I'm good both at magic and have a strong physical body to endure Aura," Rasmus answered as he nodded. "Is there a chance that I can break that limit?" He stared Aris in the eye.

"I need you to remove your clothes so I can observe your body thoroughly," Aris answered as she removed her hands from Rasmus's arms.

Rasmus didn't expect that kind of answer, but he didn't hesitate to remove his suit and unbutton his shirt. He revealed his toned and muscular upper body to Aris. He let Aris check his muscle and bone structure on his body. He felt her cold hands on his chest and back at the same time.

"You have a human body structure..." Aris muttered as she pressed her hands on Rasmus's chest and back. "We Orthias have methods to optimize our bodies when we are still babies. Your body has fully developed, but that doesn't mean anything since I can optimize it. The issue is that your body is too weak and if I try to optimize your body, you'll end up cripple or dead," she pointed out as she put her hands on Rasmus's shoulders.

Rasmus was disappointed with the answer and with his body. He thought there was a chance for him to grow stronger and beyond his limits.

"Wait..." Rasmus furrowed his brows as he looked out the window. "There's a method called Primal Force from East Neva. They can modify a human body to break that limit. If I can learn that, my body might be able to undergo such intense pressure to optimize my body," he said and looked at Aris.

"That might work..." Aris nodded as she placed her hands on the back of Rasmus's neck to feel his spine.

Aris was busy understanding Rasmus's body until suddenly someone barged into the parlor.

"My dear patron, I heard about...." Erlina paused when he looked at what was going on in there.

Erlina, Eduard, and Videl were shocked and they all immediately looked away.

"I'm so sorry..." Erlina grimaced and closed the door.