Reincarnated as an Energy with a System

Chapter 1961: Number 1

"I understand why you hate the law that pushed you aside the moment your brother was born. Spending fifteen years being raised as the future ruler only to suddenly be told that your gender makes you less worthy of inheriting the throne would make anyone angry, but murdering Tarian only lets you benefit from the same rule you claim to despise."

Ning looked around.

"If you really believe the system is wrong, then maybe you should start fighting that system instead, and if you actually manage to change it, you might still become Queen without needing your brother to die."

Elowen remained silent, her expression shifting through several emotions that Ning could not be bothered to interpret completely. She had spent most of her life resenting Tarian for something that had never truly been his decision.

Ning knew one conversation would not erase that resentment, but whether she chose to keep feeding it or finally direct it toward the laws that had caused the problem was no longer his concern.

He turned away, then stopped after remembering something.

"The man I killed on the stage, was he Number 6?"

Elowen looked up.

"Yes."

Ning nodded slowly.

That confirmed another piece of the Numbers’ hierarchy, leaving fewer of Tritus’ followers unaccounted for than before.

"Then only Number 1 remains."

He stepped away from the princess and spoke inside his mind.

"System, locate Number 1."

<Number 1 is currently within your immediate surroundings>

Ning stopped walking.

"Here?"

His eyes moved across the hall.

Despite the destruction, there were still representatives from dozens of countries gathered throughout the venue, some speaking with guards while others remained close to their delegations and waited to be told whether the summit would continue.

Ning scanned one group after another until his attention settled on a man standing far across the room.

The stranger was already looking at him.

He belonged to the delegation of a smaller nation positioned between Conjora and Bronveria, one Ning knew existed but had never paid much attention to because it rarely appeared in any of the political discussions he had encountered.

The man himself looked ordinary enough.

He had pale skin, light brown hair, and a lean build beneath a formal jacket, while nothing about his clothing suggested that he held a position important enough to attract attention during the summit.

Unlike nearly everyone else around him, however, he looked completely calm.

<That is Number 1>

Ning began walking toward him.

The man did not attempt to escape.

When Ning stopped in front of him, the two stared at one another for several seconds before Ning noticed that something about the stranger’s presence felt slightly wrong, as though the body standing before him was doing a very good job of pretending to be something it was not.

"You’re not human, are you?"

The man let out a quiet sigh. He removed his jacket, and two brilliant wings unfolded from his back.

The feathers were bright enough to catch nearly every nearby light, spreading outward in a broad white display that immediately caused several representatives standing nearby to step away in surprise, while a faint golden glow traveled along the edges before slowly fading.

Ning raised an eyebrow.

"So you’re an Angel. You must be the clairvoyant of the group," he said.

The several people around Ning stepped away, not wanting to get in his way. Some appeared worried about the angel, but not enough to step in for him.

The man folded the wings behind himself as much as the limited space allowed.

Ning studied him for another moment before asking the question that had interested him from the moment he suspected one of Tritus’ followers could see the future.

"Did you foresee your own death?"

Number 1 gave a small shrug.

"I knew I would survive today, but I also saw that almost everyone else connected to Tritus would die, so I suppose that depends entirely on whether you intend to prove my foresight wrong."

Ning smiled slightly.

At least the man had enough sense not to pretend ignorance after being discovered.

"I’ll give you the same two choices I gave Elowen. You can either continue doing what you’re doing and likely die by my hand. Or, you can work under me."

The angel stared at Ning for several moments, perhaps expecting another condition to follow, but Ning simply waited.

Eventually, Number 1 sighed.

"Is that it?"

Ning nodded.

"At the simplest level, yes, although I imagine it will become more complicated once I decide what I actually want you to do. You have done a lot of wrong, and I intend to make you pay for each crime. It won’t be an easy task."

The angel glanced across the ruined summit hall, taking in the guards, the frightened officials, and the remnants of everything Tritus had built only hours earlier, before finally looking back toward Ning.

Whatever future he had seen apparently contained no better option.

He lowered his head slightly.

"I do not want to die. Give me whatever punishment you can. I will work under you."

Ning accepted the answer without asking for anything more.

"You can return to what you’ve been doing. I’ll find you later."

The arrangement would need rules later, and Ning would certainly want to know exactly what Number 1 had done while serving Tritus, but none of that needed to be settled in the middle of a destroyed summit venue.

For now, the important part was simple.

Number 1 was no longer working for Tritus.

He was working for Ning.

With that settled, Ning went to talk to the members of Conjora shortly, telling them that he would have to leave for a while.

"What will you do? The summit wasn’t over, but I don’t suppose it will continue," Ning said.

"We will likely return to Conjora. We can continue all negotiations once we’ve returned," the president said. "You have caused us no small amount of trouble, though."

Ning chuckled. "I’ll be away for a few days. I’ll see you all around."

Before anyone else could say anything, he disappeared.