I Died and Became a Noble's Heir

Chapter 553: Silence!

Jack stood in Draven’s domain, the lush grassland stretching endlessly in all directions under a sky that held no sun but radiated perfect afternoon light.

A gentle breeze moved through the tall grass, carrying the scent of flowers.

He’d been here enough times that the surreal beauty no longer captured his attention.

The impossible perfection of the landscape, the way distance seemed to compress and expand at will.

These were just features of divine reality now, background details to the actual purpose of his visit.

Draven and Death stood thirty feet away near a small rise in the grassland, their conversation pausing as Jack’s presence manifested in the domain.

Both gods turned toward him, their divine awareness registering his arrival before his form had fully solidified.

Draven moved forward first, his white robes flowing in the perpetual breeze as he approached with the casual grace that marked divine movement.

His face held its usual slight smile, the expression of someone who found amusement in mortal struggles while maintaining genuine fondness for his chosen champion.

"Jack! I wasn’t expecting..." The words died in Draven’s throat as his gaze tracked downward and registered Jack’s right arm.

The smile vanished completely, replaced by shock that transcended his usual careful control.

His gaze was profound and insightful, perceiving everything beyond mere visual data.

They went wide as they took in the blackened tissue, the rigid limb hanging useless at Jack’s side, the way his entire posture had shifted to compensate for dead weight pulling at his shoulder.

"What did you do?" Draven’s voice carried a genuine alarm that cut through his normal measured tone. "Your arm.... That’s Elemental Necrosis. Stage one, maybe approaching stage two based on the rigidity. How did you..."

His divine perception swept over Jack’s form, cataloging damage and recent power usage. "You used it. The skill. Sarin’s Judgement. You actually channeled it at full power despite your vessel’s limitations."

Death moved closer as well, his massive armored form approaching with steps that made no sound despite his obvious weight.

His burning eye sockets fixed on Jack’s blackened arm with professional interest, he was evaluating how close Jack was to requiring his services.

"That’s impressive," Death observed, his tone carrying a mix of admiration and concern. "Most people who develop Elemental Necrosis do it gradually, pushing their limits over years until the damage accumulates. You went straight for catastrophic injury in a single engagement."

Draven’s expression hardened, concern giving way to stern disapproval that reminded Jack of teachers lecturing students who’d done something monumentally dangerous.

"You cannot use that skill again. Do you understand me? Not until you reach god-level power, and even then, there would be backlash. Sarin’s techniques were designed for his unique physiology. A divine constitution that existed once in all of creation and will never be replicated."

His voice took on weight that made the grass around them still despite the perpetual breeze.

"Sarin could channel power that would vaporize normal gods. His body was a miracle of cosmic engineering, perfectly balanced to withstand forces beyond mortal comprehension. You are not him. Your enhanced constitution is impressive by mortal standards, but using his legendary skills without his divine framework is suicide. Seven days until that arm separates from your body is a generous timeline. Most people lose limbs within hours from Elemental Necrosis this severe."

"Silence," Jack’s voice interjected into Draven’s discourse, with a sharpness that caused both deities to halt momentarily. His eyes, a striking combination of yellow and orange, emanated a profound rage, transcending mere indignation and approaching a divine fury, despite his human form.

"I didn’t come here for a lecture about my arm or warnings about techniques I already used. I came here because I’m done with your lies."

Draven’s expression shifted, shock replacing stern disapproval as he processed Jack’s tone.

In all their interactions, Jack had never spoken to him with this level of raw anger.

"Jack, what are you talking about?" Draven asked carefully, his divine awareness cataloging Jack’s emotional state with growing concern. "What lies? I’ve been honest with you about..."

"Aurora," Jack interrupted, his voice rising with each word. "You cursed her. When she was eight years old, you personally cursed my fiancée to be unable to speak or channel mana. You’ve been lying to me this entire time, letting me think it was some random curse, some mysterious affliction we’d figure out eventually. But it was you. You did it deliberately."

The domain went completely silent. Even the perpetual breeze stopped moving, the grass freezing mid-sway as if reality itself was holding its breath.

Draven’s face went carefully neutral, the divine mask sliding into place as he processed what Jack had said and how he’d learned it.

His gaze meticulously followed Jack’s expression.

"How did you..." Draven began, then stopped as understanding flickered across his features. "Zephyros. He told you. I can smell him on you."

"He fulfilled his end of our bargain," Jack confirmed, his anger burning hotter at Draven’s lack of denial. "Unlike you, he was honest. Gave me information I needed without hiding behind half-truths and omissions. So tell me, Draven. My patron god, my supposed ally. Why did you curse an eight-year-old girl? What possible justification could there be for that?"

Draven’s expression shifted, genuine conflict bleeding through his divine composure. "Jack, you need to understand. It was for your own good. Everything I did, every choice I made, was designed to..."

"ENOUGH!!" Jack’s roar echoed across the domain with a force that made Death take a step back despite his primordial nature.

The fury in his voice transcended mortal anger into something that carried weight beyond what his level should allow.

"I don’t want to hear your justifications. I don’t want explanations about how cursing my fiancée somehow helped me. I want you to break it. Now."

The grass around Jack’s feet withered slightly, his emotional state affecting the domain’s reality in ways that should have been impossible for someone without divine power.

His blackened arm hung at his side, useless dead weight, but his presence filled the space with intensity that made even Draven hesitate.

Draven stared at Jack for several long seconds, conflict warring across his divine features.

His mouth opened as if to argue, to explain, to justify the choice he’d made years ago when Jack was still just a child.

Then he sighed, regretting his choice.

"Fine," Draven remarked softly, his tone conveying a sense of resignation intertwined with acceptance. "But understand this. I did what I thought was necessary. The curse served a purpose beyond what you can currently comprehend. Removing it now..." He trailed off, then shook his head. "But if this is what you want, I won’t argue further."

He raised both hands and brought them together in a single sharp clap.

The auditory phenomenon reverberated throughout the domain, its resonance transcending mere acoustic perception to evoke a sense of cosmic transformation.

Reality rippled outward from the point of contact, waves of invisible force spreading across the grassland and beyond the domain’s boundaries into whatever metaphysical space connected divine realms to mortal reality.

Jack felt it immediately.

A surge of power flooded back toward Draven like a dam breaking and releasing a pent-up reservoir.

The mana that had been locked away, used to maintain Aurora’s curse across years and distance, suddenly returned to its source with force that made the air around Draven shimmer.

The divine presence intensified significantly, with his aura expanding from a meticulously controlled manifestation to an emanation of power on a scale previously unexperienced by Jack.