Chapter 57 — The One Who Never Died
The silence stretched.
Heavy.
Unstable.
Scar stood motionless, his aura flickering for the first time since the battle began.
John watched him carefully.
He had struck something deeper than any attack.
"…you're lying," Scar said at last.
But his voice lacked certainty.
John shook his head.
"You felt it too."
A pause.
"That memory," John continued. "Someone was there… and they didn't die."
Scar's fist clenched.
The ground beneath him cracked.
"I saw him fall," Scar said coldly. "I watched everything burn."
"But you didn't see a body, did you?" John pressed.
Silence.
That was the answer.
The air grew colder.
Scar's breathing slowed.
His mind replaying that day
Not the flames.
Not the screams.
But the end.
A figure standing in the fire.
Unmoving.
Unafraid.
Smiling.
"…no," Scar muttered.
John stepped forward.
"If he's alive…"
A pause.
"Then he's the real enemy."
Scar's aura flared violently.
"No."
The word came out sharp.
Instant.
"You don't get to shift this," Scar said, his voice darker now. "You don't get to escape what you did."
"I'm not escaping it!" John snapped.
The ground trembled beneath him.
"I'm facing it!"
A pause.
"But I'm not blind anymore."
Their eyes locked.
"Neither should you be."
For a moment—
Everything stopped.
Then—
A slow clap echoed across the battlefield.
Both of them froze.
That sound
Didn't belong.
"…so you finally noticed."
A voice.
Calm.
Smooth.
Familiar.
But impossible.
John's eyes widened.
Scar's body went rigid.
From the edge of the ruined battlefield
A figure stepped forward.
Unharmed.
Untouched.
As if the war itself had never reached him.
"…you…" Scar's voice dropped.
The man smiled.
"It's been a while."
John's heart pounded.
He didn't recognize him.
But his body—
Reacted.
Fear.
Not the kind born from strength.
The kind born from memory.
"Who is he…?" John whispered.
Scar didn't answer immediately.
His eyes never left the figure.
"…the one who gave the order," Scar said finally.
Silence fell.
The truth had arrived.
The man walked forward slowly, hands behind his back, completely at ease despite the destruction around him.
"I was wondering when you'd figure it out," he said.
John clenched his fists.
"You're the one who ordered the massacre?"
The man tilted his head slightly.
"Ordered?" he repeated.
A faint smile.
"No."
A pause.
—
"I created it."
—
The air froze.
—
Scar's aura exploded instantly.
—
"You—!"
In a blink—
Scar was in front of him.
A direct strike—
Fast enough to tear space apart.
But—
The man didn't move.
Didn't block.
Didn't dodge.
The attack stopped.
Just like that.
Scar's eyes widened.
"…impossible."
The man looked at him calmly.
"You've grown stronger."
A pause.
"But not enough to reach me."
With a simple gesture—
Scar was thrown back.
Not violently.
Effortlessly.
John froze.
—
This presence—
It was on a completely different level.
—
"…who are you?" John asked.
—
The man looked at him.
—
For the first time—
Directly.
—
And smiled.
—
"You really don't remember anything, do you?"
—
John's chest tightened.
—
"…what?"
—
The man stepped closer.
—
"You were my best soldier."
—
Silence.
—
John's mind went blank.
—
"No…"
—
Scar's eyes snapped toward him.
—
"…what did you just say?"
—
The man's smile widened slightly.
—
"He carried out my orders perfectly."
—
A pause.
—
"Even when he didn't want to."
—
John staggered back.
—
"That's a lie—"
—
"It's not."
—
The man's voice cut through him.
—
"I broke you."
—
A step closer.
—
"I erased what I didn't need."
—
Another step.
—
"And left only what was useful."
—
John's breathing became uneven.
—
"…you… manipulated me?"
—
The man nodded calmly.
—
"Yes."
—
Scar's aura surged again, more unstable than ever.
—
"You used him…?" Scar said, his voice filled with something new.
Not just anger.
—
Hatred.
—
The man glanced at him.
—
"Of course."
—
A pause.
—
"Just like I used you."
—
Everything stopped.
—
Scar's expression froze.
—
"…what?"
—
The man smiled.
—
"You think your survival was luck?"
—
A soft chuckle.
—
"I let you live."
—
Silence.
—
"I wanted to see what you'd become."
—
A pause.
—
"Revenge makes people… interesting."
—
Scar's fists trembled.
—
"You're lying…"
—
The man's eyes sharpened slightly.
—
"No."
—
A pause.
—
"I'm the one who wrote both of your fates."
—
The pressure in the air became unbearable.
—
John couldn't move.
Scar couldn't speak.
—
Because now—
Everything made sense.
—
The war.
The pain.
The betrayal.
All of it—
Was planned.
And the one behind it—
Had been watching from the beginning.
"Who… are you?" John whispered again.
The man stopped.
Then answered.
"I am the reason your nation exists."
A pause.
"And the reason it will fall."
His aura expanded—
Endless.
Absolute.
"Come."
He raised his hand.
"Show me the result of everything I created."
John and Scar stood side by side
Not as allies.
But no longer as simple enemies.
Because now
They faced something far worse.
The one who made them both.