Werewolf Leveling: Building the Strongest Pack in the Apocalypse

Chapter 254: A True Immortal

"Something like this could devastate the entire city. When are you planning to attack?" Mariah quickly asked.

"In due time."

My attack needed to be perfect. My army was strong, but it meant nothing if I was killed by Damian. Even if I waited until the full moon again, I doubt I would have enough strength to defeat him.

My only hope was to level up and evolve before I face him. For that, everything has to be perfect. The moment I go on the attack, not even my pack can stand in front of Damian when he decides to come after me.

Damian had no friends or family that I could exploit. The only thing he cared about was this city, and maybe that was the key in him not killing me.

"I can’t rush this. I need to plan everything meticulously."

Mariah nodded, seemingly in understanding.

"Yes, you’re right. Damian Dracule is a force to be reckoned with. I spent years obsessing and idolizing him. I wanted to face him and see his true strength." For some reason, when Mariah spoke, I could sense that there was something more behind this obsession.

As if able to sense what I was thinking, she began to explain. She had a small smile on her face as she spoke.

"My infatuation with him actually began during the great war. Back then, I was young and wild, and a bit foolish at times. I used to be in an underground fighting ring just so I could experience the thrill of battle. At night, I would go out and kill to the point that there was a manhunt for an out-of-control vampire. They never found me, though," she chuckled.

"When the war started, I was happy. At that time, it was the happiest I had ever felt. During the war, I didn’t fight on one side; I killed anybody and everybody, and at some point, I started to get full of myself. I thought I was one of the top contenders to rule this city. My arrogance led me to think I could challenge Cassian."

She tried to challenge Cassian? That sounded like her, and that would explain how the two of them met.

"Fortunately for me, I was too late, and I happened upon a sight. That sight was a battle between Cassian Veylmont and Damian Veylmont. That was when I realized just how powerful the two of them were, but it was blatantly obvious that one of them was far more powerful than the other..."

She didn’t have to say more; I had a guess as to who was stronger.

"It was Damian Dracule, wasn’t it?"

Mariah looked up at me and slowly nodded her head.

"He was far superior in every way imaginable. Cassian wasn’t a weak man, but going up against Damian, he looked like an ant trying to push a mountain."

The difference was that great?!

Still, hearing her story, there was something I didn’t quite get.

"If Damian was that much stronger, why didn’t he kill Cassian?" I asked.

"He needed Cassian’s help to rule the city. With the Djinn gone, Damian was supposed to be the original ruler. But you know how he is; he isn’t fit to rule anything. So instead, he allowed Cassian and the four queen witches to rule the city instead."

So that was how it is. I wouldn’t say it was a bad decision. The city turned out fine under Cassian and the witches’ rule. You had the witches to turn the city into a technological marvel and Cassian to keep the people in line.

It was well played on Damian’s part, though it was a decision I would never make. I could see why he did it.

"During the fight, Damian explained all of this to Cassian. He told him the reason he didn’t kill him and instead let him live. Cassian was infuriated, of course. He thought that Damian was just looking down on him, so the moment Damian turned his back, Cassian struck."

Suddenly, Mariah’s voice started to tremble, and when I looked down, I realized her hands were trembling too. It seemed that this part of the memory was what left a huge impression on her.

"I watched it all happen. After Damian defeated Cassian, he turned his back and left himself open. Cassian, boiled over by rage, used the opportunity to stab Damian in the back. I watched as Cassian ripped out Damian’s heart."

Those final words from Mariah caused an uneasiness to swirl in the pit of my stomach. It felt as if everything I thought I knew was destroyed in an instant. All my plans...

"No living creature should survive having its heart ripped out. It’s just not possible," Mariah said.

If Damian couldn’t be killed, then it meant everything I’ve been doing so far was pointless. Immortality has been passed around quite a few times, but of all the creatures that have been said to possess immortality, Damian might be the only one that truly does!

If what Mariah said was true, then what should I do now?!

Should I run and leave this city?

For a moment, I thought about running, but then an image crossed my mind. It was the look on Damian’s face when he found out who Selthia’s mother was. It was definitely fear.

The question was whether it was fear of death or fear that the sea witch might destroy his precious city.

"If I went based on everything I saw, then I would’ve thought that Damian couldn’t be killed," Mariah continued, but this time her voice was calm and her hands stopped shaking. "But that would be wrong. The truth is that Damian can be killed."

"How?" I quickly asked without skipping a beat.

"That night, someone approached me. He told me that Damian indeed could be killed and the way in which it was possible."

’Someone? Who is this someone?’ I wanted to ask, but I didn’t want to interrupt her.

"This person told me there was a certain artifact that possessed the strength to kill Damian. The moment I heard that, I made the decision that I would be the one to kill Damian. That decision led me to create that gang that mainly consisted of ghouls. You see how badly they were treated, so it didn’t take much for me to convince them."

That’s right, she was the one behind the gang of ghouls I encountered when I first came here.

"The sole purpose of the gang was to find the artifact. In the process of searching for that artifact, I discovered several other artifacts, which led me to create the auction. That’s what led me t who I am today"

It all made sense. All the dots had finally been connected but I felt as if there were more things I needed to find out. Like who that person was that told her of the artifact but at that moment, there was one thing I desperately wanted to know more than anything else.

"Did you ever find the artifact?"