For I Am A Side Character - 128: Toru Speaks of her Truth

One thing to understand about Dominion Overload is the fact that there’s no way of ever suppressing the very presence it brings once its activated.

Soril had tested this skill many times during his spar against Cecil. And in those moments, in each spar, Jessica was always there to witness the fight.

And simply put, the pressure brought upon by Dominion Overload was simply too much for anyone of even Jessica’s level.

If Soril were to release this skill near the academy or anywhere that is public, one effect that would be instilled in the area would be the suffocation of those who don’t have a strong body.

In his test in using it near Jessica, in but a minute, she had lost consciousness while his brother who was standing in front of him couldn’t help but remain vigilant. The power brought upon by Dominion Overload was simply too much for the common people.

So…to use it in a place like the Tail-Back Dorm Region, simply put…everything and everyone felt his presence.

He was like a light to a moth…everthing has caught on to his power.

Especially a certain someone who was watching from afar.

***

In the base of the academy’s camp, where the teachers and guild leaders were found barely standing on their own two feet, there was only one enemy in that field. The man in the brown robe.

His only ever objective was to keep them in line. And to keep them in line, this man’s ability was ideal in the sense that it takes away a person’s will to fight.

Simply put, this man’s ability was capable of pulling away the ‘Motivation’ of a person’s will to fight.

It was simply a mental attack called the [Loser’s Mindset].

And to escape such an attack, one has to realize the nature of his ability.

As long as he can keep this skill intact and active, the teachers, not even of an S-rank, will ever be able to escape it.

His name was Orhisel, the 12^th fallen seat of the Purity Order as well as the physically weakest member.

But despite his weak physical prowess, he was one of the strongest in terms of mental attacks. From illusions to dark mental breakdowns, he was capable of tearing away a person of weak will.

So in the case of this operations, he doesn’t need to attack the teachers, he only needs to keep them in their place.

He was confident that soon after, seeing as how there still wasn’t any sort of conflict being made in his vicinity, it was a positive sign that the plan was going well.

‘It won’t be long now before we can get the Elven Artifact, the Elvish Blood and the damn Nomadic Traitor…’

Who he mentioned now was the Miller Brother’s blood and the traitor known as Will Tucker.

But to his thoughts, came erupting a powerful force from the distance.

“!?”

This level of power was something that caught everyone’s attention.

Feeling this, he thought that maybe something had gone wrong in the operation.

‘I don’t recognize this power…this isn’t from Cas nor is it from Toru, this is foreign.’

He could feel that even from a distance, the others were still alive.

One presence he could feel from his distance was Toru who had a distinct aura that was more similar to that of a feminine presence that only she could create and Casitrix who had the resemblance of a wild flowing aura of a warrior.

Feeling those two auras, he thought that maybe they were still alive, but questioned himself on why they acted.

By how the plan was supposed to go, only the lower members of the group were to supposed to act on obtaining the necessary items needed on this region. That applies to both the elvish artifacts, the elvish blood and Will Tucker. By using the boss monsters as a distraction and by blocking the guild leaders and the teachers from ever going to the troubled students, they can obtain all of this without issue.

While Casitrix and Toru were only suppose to act when a certain danger was developing on the plan. So to feel their presences in the region could only make him assume that someone had caused change in the plan that made two of the fallen seats act.

So to feel their presences on the battlefield was nothing but a worry to Orhisel.

Having these doubtful thoughts, soon enough something strange happened.

The powerful force that appeared just right after had suddenly spiked again in power and soon, he noticed that Casitrix’s presence had disappeared.

‘…W-what?’ disbelief…he could not understand how it was possible.

To take down a warrior like Casitrix who was at a level near of a fallen angel, it was simply unbelievable.

Looking to the direction of the battle, he felt that something ominous was arising.

‘Who is causing this much disruption in the operation?’ he thought.

If someone was capable of defeating Casitrix who was one of the fallen seats, then there’s only one explanation to this disruption.

‘The Blasphemer.’

Feeling the cold sensation of doubt rising to his mind, he felt compelled to want to run away.

After all, Orhisel was the kind of man who would never take on a mission that had no certainty over success…he was the most cowardly out of the twelve fallen seats.

But despite it all, he braced himself.

‘…We’re not sure yet if this disruption is actually caused by the Blasphemer. It’s too soon to take that into account.’ he thought.

Unbeknownst to him, the blasphemer had already gained the upperhand.

***

As Soril stood on the cleared grounds, where the burned grass and fallen trees lay, he looked to Toru who was nervously trying to keep her sanity in check.

‘I can’t win…’ she thought.

As she stood a great distance away from him.

Even if she did run away now, it was pointless against this level of power.

She knows it well how pointless it is since this level of power was similar to that of a certain member of her group.

‘There’s no escape, so what can I do?’

In just a mere minute after Casitrix’s forced evolution, not a single speck of her own ash was left after Soril had rained down a powerful slash of light from his sword.

‘Unbelievable…this is unbelievable…’

Toru had completely underestimated Soril’s skill…

The damage he did alone from a single swing of his sword caused everything in the vicinity to be eradicated…

If Toru herself did this much damage with her own capabilities, she would have been worn out from a single spell alone, after all, she was simply human. But Soril was found barely with a sweat dripping from his body, making him clearly on the level of those that shouldn’t be considered a human.

“Y-you’re more of a monster than we are.” she said.

But to her comments, all she met in return was silence from Soril.

“…”

And what followed through his silence was a sudden light step…

*Tik*

And like so, he appeared before her in a blink of an eye.

“!!!?” she felt compelled to attack simply by her own instinct, but before she could raise her staff, Soril grabbed her by the neck and pushed her down to the floor.

*Boom!*

“Kh-Gah!!!” she screamed as her entire body was slammed down and to it, the strength of Soril’s hand not only pushed her down, but it also created a crater down on the floor.

“Talk…who else is here?” he asked as he was pushing so hard, he knew he could break her neck in just a smaller more push.

“.…ksh….sh-stop!” she couldn’t say clearly with how her throat was being crushed by his hand. All this pain caused her not only to shed a tear, but to feel fear as well.

He was more terrifying than any enemy she had met in her lifetime. No one had treated her this roughly before all to a point of death.

To her, he was more of a villain than anyone she had met.

The way his cold eyes looked down at her as if she was trash…the way his anger compelled to want to break her entirely…

Whoever he was aside from his strength, she knew he was a monster.

But even to his threats, she could not say anything that could disrupt the plan. She vowed her full loyalty to the group and she will not betray it to the end.

‘I can’t waste anymore time than I already have. Will Tucker is still out there and I’m not sure if he’s safe, but it’s clear that he’s one of their objectives.’ thought Soril as he was contemplating on his next action.

“Should I just kill you?” asked Soril as his voice sent a shiver down her spine.

“!!?”

“N-no! Don’t kill me!” she screamed as half of her face was buried in dirt.

“And why shouldn’t I?” he asked.

“D-don’t you want to learn the truth?! What we’re doing…what we plan to do in the future…no matter what you do, you can’t change the truth!” she screamed. From her tone alone, it was clear that she was afraid of dying. She valued her life…and that puts a bit of conflict in Soril’s decision to finish her off.

“…I already know what you’re planning. You intend to create a gate that links both a world that is conquered by the demons and have them invade this world yet again.”

“How do you know that?!” she sounded surprised.

“Huh, what did you expect? I thought you knew what I was after…I thought your cult knew the truth…I thought the cult knew who I was? Don’t think I didn’t hear you say that I was God’s agent.”

“…”

“I guess your cult is much of a sham as any out there in the world.”

“…”

“But I am curious though. Why? Why are you going this far just to side with the demons that clearly have no intention in giving mercy to the human kind?” asked Soril.

“W-what makes a demon and a human any different!? The way you are now…you killed my friend, you massacred the others before me…you’re no different from a monster!!” she screamed.

“…I can’t argue the fact that what I’ve done to your friend was…evil, but I can’t say that your group is any less innocent. You can’t blame me for acting the way I am…all I’m doing is stopping a more clearer evil, and that’s your group siding with an enemy against the human kind.”

“We sided with the truth!!” she screamed.

“What truth? Give me a clear reason?” he asked.

Toru gasped for air, her voice hoarse and shaky as she clung to the fragile hope that maybe, just maybe, she could buy herself a few more moments. Her hands instinctively gripped Soril’s wrist, trying to pry his iron grip from her throat, but it was pointless. His strength was overwhelming. He waited, his patience wearing thin, though his face remained eerily calm.

“Speak,” he commanded, his tone devoid of emotion, as if what he held in his hand was not a living person but a nuisance to be discarded.

“Truth…” she rasped, tears mixing with the dirt smeared across her face. “The truth is… we’re all damned… humans, demons… it doesn’t matter. Everything is a cycle, an endless war, over and over… and the demons… they’re the only ones who understand that!” She coughed violently, her body shuddering under the pressure of his grip.

Soril’s eyes narrowed. “So, you believe joining forces with them will break the cycle? Do you really think they’ll spare you when they’ve gotten what they want?”

Toru laughed bitterly, though it was more of a pained wheeze. “We… we know they won’t. But the difference is… we’ll be the ones standing on the right side of history. The world is already breaking. We’re just… speeding up the process.” Her eyes flared with a twisted conviction, the last remnants of defiance sparking in her. “You can’t stop what’s coming. Not the academy, not anyone…and especially not you who’s worked with a bigger sham than our cult.”

Soril’s grip tightened just slightly, causing Toru to wince in pain. “You’re wrong,” he said, his voice quiet, almost a whisper. “I don’t care about your so-called truth. If you think I’ll let your kind drag this world into another war, you’re mistaken.”

She spat blood to the side, a cruel grin forming on her lips despite the agony. “You don’t understand, do you? It’s already too late. You’re already part of a story that will never change…God’s plan for the world is never changing… You think killing us will make a difference even as a person who works for the church?! You’re nobody!!” she screamed as her desperation and anger was showing through and through.

But Soril’s expression didn’t churn to what Toru expected. The revelation that this entire fate of the world was already written in God’s plan, she thought that maybe that in of itself could change his perspective, but instead, he was unfazed.

He studied her for a moment longer, as if weighing her words, but in the end, it didn’t matter to him. She had already crossed the line the moment she sided with demons, the moment she became a willing pawn in their plot.

Without warning, he released her neck and stood up, stepping back as she coughed and sputtered, her body collapsing to the ground in a heap. She gasped for air, one hand clutching her throat as she tried to steady herself. For a brief moment, she thought he might show mercy.

But Soril wasn’t done.

Having heard her words, something didn’t clicked.

“You don’y actually think that being called a God’s agent meant that I work for the church, do you?” he questioned mockingly.

“…W-what? You don’t?”

“Well, I guess your group finds it hard to believe, but I actually work for someone higher than that.” He muttered, his voice chillingly calm as he raised his sword high, its edge gleaming in the dim light.

Toru’s eyes widened in horror, her strength too drained to even attempt to crawl away. “No, wait—”

The blade came down with swift finality, and in an instant, there was silence. Toru’s body lay still, her expression frozen in terror as Soril stood over her lifeless form.

He exhaled deeply, wiping his sword clean on the grass, and turned away without another word. There was no satisfaction in his actions, no triumph. It was merely one more enemy cut down in the ongoing war. One threat neutralized, but many more still lurked in the shadows.

As Soril sheathed his sword, he turned his gaze toward the distant horizon, where the base-camp stood in the fading light of the evening. There was still much to do. The battle wasn’t over. The Purity Order’s plans were far-reaching, and whatever they were planning, he needed to stop it before they could unleash something truly catastrophic.

The presence of the fallen seats in this region wasn’t just a coincidence, and now with Casitrix and Toru out of the picture, their remaining forces were likely to retaliate soon. And there was still the looming question of Will Tucker, the elusive traitor whose role in this mess was still unclear.

But one thing was certain—this was just the beginning.

As he turned his back on the battlefield, Soril’s mind drifted back to his companions. Jessica, his friends at the academy… they were all counting on him. He couldn’t afford to falter.

As he deactivated Dominion Overload, he dashed back at it again towards Will’s location.