The voice was like a tangible mist that integrated into the Wraith King’s body and completely stopped it from moving. However, the Abomination hiding within didn’t even pause before trying to forcefully cut off the connection between itself and the Wraith King in the next moment, not even caring about the possible large amount of time it would take to find another host that it could take control of. Its instincts were telling it that It had to flee and to flee immediately, and that was exactly what it would do.

But the result was failure.

No matter how much it tried, it could not destroy the portion of its consciousness residing within the Wraith King at all. In fact, it couldn’t do anything! The Wraith King’s body had been hijacked and any attempt to do anything other than speak was no longer under the Abomination’s control.

How terrifying!

For the first time in a very long time, the Slime Abomination felt fear completely flood its mind. No, even before it had become an Abomination it had never once felt like this. Never even encountered something like this! What on Eridius was this light and where had it come from?!

Alas... There was nothing it could do other than to helplessly watch as the golden light, which had been endlessly growing and filling the entire Forest with its presence, suddenly began to contract.

It was like it had imploded, collapsing into itself so quickly that before the Abomination could even make sense of what was happening, what looked like a very tall male human with long white hair and golden eyes had taken its spot and all the light had vanished. But that notion only lasted a second or 2 before the Abomination realised that the man WAS the light! The terrifying aura was originating from him!

‘How could this be?! How could anybody be this strong?!’ The Abomination inwardly screamed with shock and fear.

Its memories as the calamity that had single-handedly almost wiped away all life on the North Continent let it know that other than the… strange talking Cloud that it had once encountered, nobody else should be stronger than itself. But what was the situation? What seemed to be a human– a human of all things!– was standing before it and relegating it to a state that it didn’t even dare to make a single sound!

‘HOW?!’

“Good, good. You can still feel fear to such an extent.” said the man.

His hands that were peacefully crossed behind his back fell to his sides and he began to walk closer, each step making the Slime Abomination feel like a portion of its existence was being scrubbed out.

“I was wondering. After all, most emotions can only be truly felt and processed by the Soul. But I suppose that even your many brains can help you to understand that you are mere seconds away from nihility.”

‘Nihility is… Nothingness! Non-existence! The absolute end! But how?!’ The Slime Abomination thought with rising horror as the System helped it to comprehend the meaning of the word through the magic of the [common language].

The man finally stopped walking closer when he reached just 2 metres away, which in proportion to the Wraith King’s 13 metre height, was very close.

“I don’t expect you to understand too well, but what you are feeling isn’t just the threat of your body, or should I say bodies– dying, but something more than that. You are…” The man paused and then for some reason raised both of his arms up. Was this the attack?! Is this the end?! Little did the Abomination know, it was just for dramatic effect.

The man blinked as if in confusion… and then his lips twitched as a wry smile spread across his face, seemingly comprehending something that caused him to once more drop his arms to his sides.

“Wow... Although I am unable to read the thoughts that are no doubt flickering through your mind, I don’t need to to be able to see how much your fear is rising. The Wraith King’s ethereal cloak is practically about to fly off! How could you be so… pitiful?” The man said with a sigh.

Unfortunately, the words brought the creature nothing other than increasing fear. It couldn’t feel ethereal things like embarrassment or humiliation because ultimately, there was no pride or dignity to protect in the first place. The Abomination didn’t have a Soul at all.

“Fear so dense that I’m half expecting to feel it.” The man said with a slow shake of his head. “But what’s more interesting is that despite my sincere attempts, my voice isn’t changing that at all. How wonderful, I have learnt today that my voice's ability to affect emotions requires the target to have a Soul. Or something like that.”

The man just kept talking and talking but most of it was just flying over the Slime Abomination’s head.

“Anyways, as I was saying before, what you are feeling is not just the threat of your body dying, but actually the threat of everything that you are completely ceasing to exist. Nothing of you would remain, and if you had a Soul to erase along with everything else, it could only be imagined the state you would be in. You might have even comprehended the intent of fear!”

‘Yes! That is what I am feeling! I’M FINISHED!’ The Abomination inwardly screeched with terror, still not daring to speak outloud despite being capable. The Wraith King’s ethereal body spazzed out even more and looked a few seconds away from distorting out of its humanoid shape and dispersing into the wind.

“But no need to worry, I have no such intentions.” The man said with a sudden cheery smile as his aura abruptly vanished, taking along with it the feeling of destruction that had been plaguing the Slime Abomination’s mind.

“I have come here with a proposition. A deal so to speak. And spoiler alert, you are not allowed to refuse. Otherwise despite my noble and loving heart that could not bear to even harm even a single blade of grass… I really will be forced to erase you.”

The man said with the brightest smile that the Slime Abomination had ever seen.