Reincarnated As The Diabolic System-Chapter 89 88. A Masked Man!
Somewhere else, a certain silver-haired girl dressed in muddy robes filled with blood stains. She wiped her face as she slashed another monster. Even though her face was cold, she looked even more exhausted and ruthless at this time. Her chest heaved up and down at a faster rate as if her lungs yearned for breath.
Her surroundings were filled with dried trees and the sky was darker than a night with only a blood-red moon hanging above in the middle of the sky. It almost looked like a horror movie with groups of powerful monsters coming close to her.
Those monsters were even more powerful than everyone Shane had fought until now, But this silver-haired girl could defeat every single one of them with just a move of her sword. She didn't even need to use spells at the moment
It was just that she was tired as her robes filled with a dense smell of blood, making her nose wrinkle. She just wanted to take a bath and get rid of this odor on her.
But she couldn't get out.
Or she should say she couldn't find an exit just yet. She let out a frustrated sigh as she continued to slash her sword against those monsters, venting her emotions fully to the swing.
Just then, a person appeared on one of the branches of a tree nearby. His face was hidden in the shadows as his lips curved up. "You have the nerve to displease your master. Is this the way you should act in a punishment?"
Echo's face paled as she took a deep breath and stopped fighting. she turned and bowed deeply with an expressionless face. "I apologize for the mistake. I have realized my mistakes."
"Oh?" The man jumped down from the branch as his face was covered with a mask, leaving behind black hair that looked thick and wavy. He was dressed in dark robes with silver lining and intricate designs that made it look almost dazzling to the eye.
The man's style of walking also seemed as if he had come straight down from the heavens and looked down on the systems. He sneered as he walked closer. His silver mask didn't give out a single trace of emotion he felt in his heart as he sniffed and said, "Your smell tells me otherwise, dear disciple."
"Master, why are you here in such a filthy place?" Echo suddenly became too obedient as she lowered her head. For some reason, even the monsters around them stopped thrashing about as the man in the mask flicked his finger and the monsters vanished from there without a trace.
He smiled from behind the mask and said, "Well done. You have successfully impressed me by fighting head-on for three days straight without filling up your stomach. It's just that the last bit of your frustration made me feel a bit off. What should I do with you?" 𝘧𝚛𝗲𝘦𝚠𝙚𝙗𝙣o𝙫𝗲𝚕.𝐜o𝓂
Echo's face paled for a second before she regained her cold expression and said, "Punish this disciple for being ignorant. This disciple should be full of reverence and gratitude for her master, and since I wasn't, I haven't learned my ways. I wish to fully equip myself with those values and submit to you fully."
The corners of the man's lips curved up as the smile reached his eyes. He seemed genuinely pleased at this time as he nodded and took hold of a strand of the girl's hair in his fingers. He rubbed it gently and said, "Be a good girl, and I'll reward you with more power."
Echo lowered her head, but from the direction no one could see, a hint of emotion flashed in her eyes as if she was finally going to fulfill the desire she longed for all this time. Her fingers curled up in an instant as she took a few deep breaths to calm herself and not let go of any emotion in front of the man.
She raised her head and filled her eyes with tears. "Master, I don't deserve this."
The man's palms caressed her head as he said, "I know. You can go back and rest."
A light flashed from his palms as the lady disappeared from there without a trace. As soon as the girl vanished, the masked man scoffed, "She takes me for a fool. Does she think she can manipulate me, the manipulator? I'll keep her around for a while before discarding her."
***
Echo did return to the system world, but she didn't go back home to take a rest. Her feet carried her toward the common dormitory for males as she hid outside in the bushes, and stared into the corridor through the windows.
The door she was staring at clearly belonged to someone whom she had been following for a while. Otherwise, how could she hide her tracks after sneaking on the tree, standing right in front of that particular door?
She knew her actions were a bit wrong, or could even be considered a criminal offense, but she couldn't help it. After all, she was originally here to keep an eye on this person despite what she was facing.
Just as she was trying to justify her actions, the door opened, revealing a red-haired man walking out with a blank expression on his face. He had his hands in his pockets as he walked with a lazy expression on his face.
Echo's face revealed a look of nostalgia for a moment before she jumped to another tree.
Shane paused his steps and quickly glanced in that direction and tilted his head. Why did he feel like he heard something from this direction? 𝗳𝗿𝐞ℯ𝙬𝗲𝗯n𝗼νel.𝒄𝑜𝘮
After a while of staring at the trees, he shook his head and continued walking.
Echo's shoulders relaxed as she squinted her eyes at the man's back walking through the lonely corridor. She muttered under her breath, "Is he him? Every action and even the way he speaks reminds me of him. Did I make a mistake?"
Her words remained unheard as she continued to sneak around while trying not to keep her eyes off the man.
Shane felt something was very wrong as he went to the cafeteria and went to the counter to take his food. He had an innate feeling that someone was staring at him from a distance, but when he looked around, it felt normal.
It was almost as if this feeling was his hallucination. He took a deep breath and suppressed those emotions to the depth of his heart as he made his way toward his sister and Frank.
As soon as Echo, who was hiding behind the counter, glanced at the table where Shane was heading, for some reason, her expression turned colder than ice as she glared at the people sitting at the table. After muttering to herself God knows what, she finally calmed down and continued her actions.
Shane sighed for the fifth time as he tried to brush off this feeling while continuing to eat. Tess observed this and kicked her brother under the table, earning a glare from the man.
"What the heck are you doing?"
Tess rolled her eyes. "I don't want to hear you sigh again and again. Did you become old or something?"
Shane wanted to speak his heart when he remembered he wasn't supposed to trust anyone. He lowered his head as a trace of complicated emotion flashed in his eyes. He sighed again, earning another kick from his sister under the table. "Can you act like a girl for once?!"
"Yes, I'm acting like a girl."
"Frank, manage your girl." Shane glanced at Frank, whose face turned blushing red at those words. "I can't handle her anymore."
"Y-You! What the f*ck are you saying?!"
"Exactly what I mean!" Shane glared at the blushing man and said, "If you two don't say it, it doesn't mean I don't observe you two. You're so obvious with your emotions. Just propose to one another already!"
"Brother!" Tess glared at her brother in turn as she made action to hit her brother.
Shane seemed to know that this girl was going to kick him again under the table. So he swiftly moved and avoided the action while standing from his position and sitting across her right next to Frank. He raised his head arrogantly and said, "You can't hit me anymore, Tess."
Echo's heart skipped a beat upon seeing that expression. She lowered her head and muttered to herself again, "Too similar. Two people can't have such similar facial reactions."
Her heart still throbbed as she concluded that Shane must have something to do with that person. These days, if it weren't for keeping an eye on the man herself, she wouldn't have found such a critical clue. Sure enough, subordinates couldn't be trusted at all times.
She cursed at her subordinates that she had left behind to keep an eye on Shane and decided to kick them out. After thinking of this, she was just about to get up from her hiding spot when she felt a tap on her shoulders.
Her entire body stiffened as she glanced back only to find Jake standing there with his arms crossed on his chest. His lips pulled up to form an amusing smile as he said, "Look what we have here. A certain boss-level princess stalking a guy. Tut. I didn't think you would stoop to such a low level for your mission."
Echo's expression cooled down as she quickly said, "If you don't want to be kicked out, better behave."
