Villain's Valor: A Noble Fantasy Resurrection

77  Chapter 77: Nigrothor the Ancient

The heavy air, infused with the stench of decay. Twisted trees rise above a viscous ground of mud and stagnant water, while the withered vegetation whispers ancient secrets. The sky is shrouded by ominous gray clouds, plunging the place into perpetual twilight. The cacophonous chorus of insects and predatory birds adds a touch of terror to this realm of hopelessness and desolation.

I've been in this place for a few days now, and there haven't been any problems so far, but the smell is unbearable even for someone like me.

The trees of the swamp present a picture of deformity and despair. Their twisted trunks emerge from the mire like gnarled hands eagerly seeking light. Skeletal branches intertwine in a macabre dance above, forming a dark canopy that captures the scant light venturing through. Covered in moss and lichen, they seem to silently murmur under the weight of the surrounding desolation. Each tree resembles a contorted, withered creature trapped in an eternal lament for the land that has seen them deform.

In this place, life should be impossible, at least for uncorrupted creatures, but for the creatures inhabiting it, this place must be a damned paradise. Even some swamps with deadly traps are filled with acidic waters that are deep within.

Among the dense undergrowth of the swamp, a titanic presence rose, emerging among the twisted trees with ominous majesty. The creature, with a wingspan easily surpassing twenty meters, was a simultaneously awe-inspiring and grotesque sight.

Its body, enveloped in sickly dark green skin, seemed to be in a constant state of decay. The greenish fluid oozing from its arms and flanks, like venomous pus, contributed to the already decadent and putrid atmosphere saturating the swamp air.

A tattered green cloak hung from its back, waving with each of its movements. Atop its head rose twisted horns reminiscent of a goat's, giving it a demonic and unhinged appearance. A rusted crown adorned its brow, perhaps symbolizing a past of greatness now lying in ruins alongside its body.

But most terrifying of all was its face. The skin, as putrefied as the rest of its body, showed the ravages of time and corruption. Its teeth, long and sharp as blades, formed a grotesque smile that seemed to exude pure malice. In its eyes, sunk into dark and deep sockets, shone a green light, like dancing flames in the blackness of the night.

Around the creature, space seemed to distort, as if its mere presence challenged the very laws of reality. The trees, silent witnesses to its appearance, began to groan and weep, their twisted branches moving with unsettling agitation. The stench of decay intensified, enveloping the entire environment in a nauseating cloud that assaulted the senses.

And then, like an echo of its own corruption, the place began to crumble from within. Cracks appeared in the muddy ground, while the trees seemed to twist and shrink as if consumed by an invisible fire. It was as if the very essence of the swamp were being devoured by the abomination that had emerged from its depths, a living manifestation of the destruction and chaos lurking in the deepest recesses of that accursed place.

I looked into its eyes, I felt nothing, I didn't feel its presence, the only thing I could hear was the creaking of the trees and the slight trembling of the ground, I didn't feel any kind of danger, I didn't feel its murderous intent, I felt nothing... I know who this creature is more or less, I know it very well, but it's not making any move, it's just staring at me, watching attentively with its terrifying sinister smile.

It was terrifying, I couldn't feel its presence at all, this is bad, if it wanted to, it could have killed me without me noticing, no, WAIT!

"The information is wrong. It's in the Maximum-Ancient range, it's the only way such a high-level being can completely hide its power, only beings on the same level can identify each other."

"What a surprise to find a being lurking in my lands," Nigrothor the Ancient said with a hoarse, broken voice. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Speak! It's speaking! It definitely speaks our language.

"Surprised? You shouldn't be. You know, in fact, we, the 7 plagues as you call us, have the ability to speak, after all, we were all like you once, humans, elves, but... we fell into decay or corruption as you call it, it corrupted us from within, our soul, I hear voices in my head that tell me many interesting things all the time, they never stop talking, I always hear whispers in my mind telling me what I have to do, they tell me secrets of the world and much more, do you want to know?"

After all, I could feel my soul trembling, I felt in danger, I felt that if I listened to his secrets, I would become one of them.

Shaking my head vigorously in fear.

"You're no fun," Nigrothor the Ancient said with amusement, beginning to move slowly toward me, I wanted to use the scroll my lord gave me, but I couldn't move, it's as if invisible chains were imprisoning me in my position.

He approached me close enough and said, "What were you doing here?" he asked curiously, his voice erratic and dangerous.

My thoughts raced at maximum speed searching for a way to escape from this place.

"You won't be able to escape, better answer my question, how about that?" he replied, in his eyes the green flames intensified even more.

"I'm looking for the creature 'Implacable Buzzing the Ancient'," I replied sincerely.

"Well done, telling the truth is very good, you're very naive," his smile became even more terrifying.

Although I had my suspicions, this somehow confirmed it, he can read my mind, so if I tell a lie he can know, but how...

"So you're looking for that bastard, huh? They gave him a good name I suppose," without turning his head, his hand twists in an abnormal way and he points with his finger behind him, "He's over there, but you'll have to walk many stretches of my swamp if you want to reach his area."

"What do you want from me?" I finally had the courage to ask, damn it, even though I am a highly respected being in the empire because of my Middle-Mythical rank, this creature treats me like a child...

"To be honest, I'm not sure, but... you know, I've been alone in this place for a long time and it's very boring... tell me, what if you stay with me?" the smile on his face begins to distort as if he were an animal, the green pus on his face and hands begins to ooze out in heaps, the air and the whole place begin to groan even louder.

NO, please! I scream desperately, I can't do anything, my body doesn't react, it's trapped, I feel insignificant right now after so many years of training and fierce battles to die like a rat...

"HahahahaHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA you'll be my companion for all eternity," The greenish pus enters my body with increasing desperation and palpable fear, I find myself trapped in a whirlwind of terror as Nigrothor the Ancient inexorably approaches me. Every step he takes seems to resonate like an ominous echo in the swamp, sending shivers down my spine as my heart pounds in my chest with unbridled force.

My mind screams in panic as I try to find a way out, but I feel paralyzed, as if trapped in a terrible dream from which I cannot wake. Every muscle in my body is tense, my hands trembling impotently as I watch Nigrothor advance toward me with a grotesque and sinister smile on his deformed face.

The air around me seems to thicken with a suffocating oppression, as if the swamp itself were conspiring to keep me trapped in its viscous embrace. The smell of decay and rot grows stronger, enveloping me in a nauseating cloud that threatens to make me faint.

I try to scream for help, but my vocal cords seem to be frozen by fear, drowned in a sepulchral silence that envelops me like a shroud. I squeeze my eyes shut tightly, desperately wishing to wake up from this nightmare, but when I open them again, Nigrothor is still there, his overwhelming presence filling my entire field of vision.

Every fiber of my being screams to escape, to find a way to break free from Nigrothor's relentless grip, but my efforts are in vain. His hands, cold as death, loom over me, ready to drag me into eternal darkness.

And then, in a moment of absolute despair, I feel Nigrothor's corruption begin to invade my being, enveloping me in a frigid embrace that drags me toward damnation. My soul as bright as sunlight quickly collapses, darkness surrounds my whole being, my soul of a dark color but with small specks of green. I scream in agony as my consciousness fades away, consumed by the darkness that surrounds me, leaving me trapped in an endless abyss of despair and desolation.

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