The Sinful Life of The Emperor

Inside the bedroom, Felicity rested on the bed. She has fully recovered from the external injuries she suffered previously.     

On the chair beside the bed, Zed sat.     

"Are you truly fine?" Felicity asked.     

"Yes," Zed nodded, "I'm sorry for worrying you."     

"What happened back then?" Felicity stared into his eyes to make sure he didn't lie.     

"A psychic mutant attacked me," Zed truthfully answered. He knew he has to state some truth otherwise she wouldn't believe him. To ensure she didn't worry further, he continued, "Rest assured, he would never trouble me again."     

"I see," Felicity has an understanding look. She then grabbed a pillow from the bed, and without any warning, struck him on the face.     

"I didn't lie!" Zed backed away with a sore face.     

He believed he was being wrongly punished even though he was honest with her.     

"Now you didn't but what about the time at the cafeteria?" Felicity asked as she jumped from the bed.     

"I could explain!" Zed tried to reason.     

He was fully exhausted after his other form spent all his energy and stamina. He was anything but capable of defending himself against Felicity's anger.     

"I don't want an explanation," Felicity said as she took another pillow. "I only want to teach you a lesson for lying."     

-------     

Evening.     

Agatha's apartment.     

Kiba slept next to Agatha. Agatha was reading a book with complete concentration.     

Kiba's eyes moved from her face to her stomach. He placed a hand on her belly.     

"Hope, I'm so sorry for putting you in danger," Kiba muttered in his heart. "Please forgive me."     

The last thing he wanted was to risk her life. He didn't want to be a bad father, but now he realized, even before her birth, he almost failed in carrying out his responsibilities.     

He has promised to protect her... yet she was so close to death due to him.     

"I would kill everyone who was responsible for today's incident!" Kiba swore.     

After thinking about the incident with a calm mind, he was sure the initial target was Zed and not Kiba. He mainly guessed this due to how the monk acted when his memories of Castor Damon were played.     

"There is something strange though."     

Kiba contemplated further.     

"He sounded like he knew about Hope even before my transformation, yet he was startled when I transformed into Kiba. Only after the transformation, he became greedy about my power. This was definitely fishy... why would someone so powerful target Zed?"     

"What are you thinking?" Agatha asked as she placed the book near a table lamp.     

"Nothing much," Kiba answered. He rested his back against the headboard, and asked, "Would you like to go out for dinner?"     

"Not today," Agatha stretched her hands before continuing, "I'm tired."     

"We should just order delivery," Kiba said with a smile.     

He knew she was tired after using her powers to resist the pressure from dark clouds.     

Even he was tired but he has injected multiple energy serums to stay awake. He wanted to spend some time with Agatha and Hope before he rested for good.     

"Yeah," Agatha looked at him, "No hunting today?"     

"...No," Kiba felt awkward by her choice of words.     

Why does she have to call his habit of helping needy women as hunting!?     

"I don't want you to confine yourself," Agatha traced a finger over his chin. "Otherwise you might resent me and our child for stopping your pursuit of dreams."     

"I would never," Kiba disagreed, his eyes staring in hers. "I know I am not an honest man, but please trust me on this."     

It was his own decision to give priority to his role as a father over his dreams. He has a very long lifespan and believed he has all the time in the world to fulfill his dreams.     

Even if he could not, it would be fine as long as he could become a good father.     

"I trust you, silly," Agatha ruffled his hair in a loving manner. "If not, I would never have asked you to be involved in our daughter's life."     

Kiba smiled, his heart filled with happiness. He has always loved her words of motivation.     

He initially believed he was not capable of being a good father, but thanks to the trust and understanding she has shown, it made him realize he wasn't a gone case.     

Agatha took his chin in her hand before continuing, "But you should also believe me when I say parents resent their children for their incomplete dreams."     

"......................." Kiba understood what she wanted to convey to him.     

He would be lying if he said he hasn't thought about the effect of having a child on his dreams. Perhaps not today, but maybe tomorrow, he would resent them for binding him down at such a young age.     

The will of people change with time. The well thought out decisions of today might become regret of tomorrow.     

There was no telling about the future.     

"The biggest adventure you can take is to live the life of your dreams!" Agatha repeated the words he has said when he shared his dreams with her. "Surely you are not going to stop the biggest adventure of your life?"     

"...."     

"Besides there are husbands who are waiting to become good husbands!" Agatha said with a teasing smile. "At least for their happiness, don't stop your adventure!"     

Kiba was caught off guard by this remark.     

"Or was it turning a wife into a good wife!?" Agatha continued in a teasing tone. "You want a wife to complete her promise of making her husband happy, right!?"     

"...You know?!" Kiba's face was soaked with sweat.     

He has never given her the business card of Wife Pleasuring Service Pvt. Ltd. He was shameless but not so shameless to give her the card.     

They have known each other for years even though the affair occurred a few months ago. He knew her personality, and she was rather good to him long before, so he couldn't bring himself to use the card.     

"Yes," Agatha answered as she brought out a crystal card from a drawer. "You do have a gift with the words."     

"...Thanks?" He didn't really know whether she was mocking him or really praising him     

"There are four promotional videos with that ash-blonde woman," Agatha activated the crystal card, "I was most impressed with the one reserved for fiancee!"     

"...."     

The videos were directed at husbands, new wife, patron wife, and fiancee. Each video was shot with Natalie as the host, trying to recruit customers for Wife Pleasuring Service Pvt. Ltd.     

She would use her sweet voice and 'facts' to lure customers to their non-profit venture. A service that offered endless benefits and that too free of cost.     

Even Natalie was flushed red when Kiba brought the idea for fiancee. She had a hard time shooting the video with a straight face.     

"There was something I wanted to ask," Agatha said as she placed the crystal card back.     

"Yes?" Kiba sighed in relief. He was truly happy that she didn't play those embarrassing videos.     

"I could understand your dream of sleeping with every beauty out there, regardless if she was a virgin or not," Agatha looked at him in the eyes as she continued. "But I don't understand your dream of stealing wives for an affair while their husbands die of envy and shame."     

"........."     

"Is there a reason why you have this specific dream?" Agatha asked.     

She knew he hasn't truly started pursuing this dream of his. So far he has only had affairs in secret with husbands being ignorant most times.     

This dream was almost impossible to fulfill so she wondered why he would this dream in the first place.     

"There is a reason," Kiba replied as he remembered a meeting with an auburn-haired woman. "Do you truly wish to know?"     

"Yes," Agatha listened carefully as he shared a story of the past...     

-------------     

State of Avalon.     

The once peaceful and serene monastery was now filled with chaos as monks rushed from one place to another. Most of the buildings were now showing signs of cracks as they suffered sudden vicissitudes of time.     

Inside a camp-like structure, Kurtis seated next to five monks. Some distance ahead, Akshobhya was sleeping a few feet above the ground.     

Three monks continuously generating a force field to make sure Akshobhya didn't touch the ground.     

The revered Psychic Hunter was now an ancient man on the verge of death. His body was decayed and rotten, a host to innumerable diseases.     

Even with the force field, others could smell the foul stench his body was emitting.     

"Are you not going to share the details?" A monk named Asahi asked Kurtis.     

Asahi was the second in command of the monastery.     

"I already told you what I knew," Kurtis replied with a frown. "And I'm under no obligation to share the task Akshohya was carrying out."     

Asahi was annoyed by the attitude but he didn't dare use force due to the involvement of Dharma Chakra.     

"You should be pleased I'm not asking for compensation," Kurtis continued further, "My payment of Dharma Chakra coin and mutated fruits has gone to waste."     

"How dare you!" One of the monks stood up in anger, "Don't you see the destruction you have caused in the monastery? We have lost our ancient treasures!"     

"None of my business," Kurtis refuted.     

"Enough," Asahi turned his head towards the three monks, "Has the force of decay settled down?"     

"Yes," A monk answered.     

"Good," Asahi stepped towards Akshobhy and signaled the monks to remove the force field, "I would enter his consciousness to decide our next course of action."     

"We understand," the monks stepped back.     

A few minutes later, Akshobhya was placed on the ground. Asahi placed a finger on Akshobhya's forehead.     

Swoosh~!     

Beams of light enveloped their bodies as Asahi's consciousness entered Akshobhya's consciousness.     

The body of a person was mortal but consciousness, on the other hand, was immortal. Even a person on death bed would have his consciousness as strong as the day he was born.     

Most people in the world call consciousness as the soul. The eternal existence would exist even after death.     

When a person's consciousness was attacked, there was no destruction or damage. Yes, memories could be wiped out, or a person might be put to a coma or vegetative state.     

This was not due to damage to consciousness but in fact, it was damage to the brain. It was the brain where consciousness resides and any attack to consciousness damaged the brain.     

This was why Asahi wanted to directly enter consciousness to know the truth of the incident. He was a psychic just like Akshobhya so he knew about the workings of consciousness better than the others.     

"Impossible!" Asahi muttered in horror after entering the consciousness of Akshobhya.     

All his life, he has believed the consciousness was different from the body. It was eternal and couldn't be harmed, unlike the body, but now his entire belief was shattered.     

The consciousness of Akshobhya was decayed just like his body.     

No!     

His consciousness was still decaying, unlike the body which has stopped decaying any further.     

Even the pain of losing a limb couldn't compare to the slightest injury to consciousness. The pain receptors, which are responsible for pain sensation, were connected to the brain which in turn was linked to consciousness.     

From this, it could be imagined the sufferings one would undergo if the consciousness was harmed in the slightest.     

Now the consciousness of Akshobhya was slowly corroding. It was like a drop of acid was regularly dropped on the consciousness to make sure the pain never ends.     

"It is eternal torture!" Asahi dreaded the misery his friend was undergoing. "He is alive but in far worse condition than someone who is in a vegetative state."     

A person in a vegetative state would show no sign of awareness. Akshobhya was in a similar state but the corrosion of the consciousness made sure there would be only torment and discomfort till the time he dies.     

"His body has aged and decayed but he would survive for few years," Asahi contemplated, "If I was him, I would rather prefer death."     

What he didn't know was that Akshobhya has tried to choke himself to death but failed under the pressure of golden ripples. Akshobhya has realized Kiba's intention when the latter transmitted his power from the satellite.     

Asahi cautiously avoided the corrosive force. He sent his mental force around and noticed all memories were wiped out by the corrosion.     

"No! There is one memory!" Asahi was delighted.     

He was sure that this memory should be very important seeing how Akshobhya's consciousness has safeguarded it till now.     

"Maybe this memory is a clue to his current state?" Asahi thought as he linked with the memory fragment.     

----     

*     

Inside the hall of the monastery, Akshobhya was sitting on the crystal platform. Kurtis stepped towards him while activating the storage bracelet on his hand.     

Rays of light beamed out of the bracelet, and the next moment, mutated fruits with special properties materialized on the floor.     

Vermillion Fruit, Blood Revival Fruit, Essence Nourishment Fruit, and a few more. The vitality from the fruits filled the hall, making one feel rejuvenated just from the fragrance.     

Akshobhya looked delighted at the sight, and he inwardly laughed at the treasure fall.     

"Sometimes you should follow what you preach about greed!" Kurtis said in an annoyed tone.     

*     

----     

The memory ended right there and Asahi's expression turned ugly.     

"That's it!?" Asahi wanted to curse.     

What was so important in Akshobhya's preaching about greed?     

Was this really supposed to be the secret of Akshohya's current state?!