Died of old age

After dealing with the Wind-blessed, Kronos turned to look at Ernes.

"Are you in cahoots with them?" Kronos was already starting to feel the negative effects of the Distortion Gauntlet.

Harboring many dark and Greed thoughts, Kronos looked at Ernes in front of him and the Vampire in the distance with eyes full of Beyonder Characteristic.

Fortunately, Kronos's will was strong enough that he did not attack directly.

Ernes noticed that the man was acting strangely and immediately explained, "No, we have nothing to do with them. We were just passing by and happened to see your fight, so we came to check it out."

"You should still remember me. I'm the one who sold you the Potions at the Exchange Gathering just now," Ernes, trying his best to prove that he was harmless.

Kronos shook his head, trying to stay awake, and then looked closely at the person in front of him. Although he was wearing Mask at the Exchange Gathering, his figure and voice were indeed very similar.

"Is there something you need?" Kronos asked slowly, calming his negative thoughts.

"I have nothing to do; I was just drawn here by your battle." At this point, Ernes no longer cared about building relationships; he felt that Kronos might attack at any moment.

Seeing that Ernes really had no intention of making a move, Kronos relaxed a little and then took out a Charm from the Mystic Pouch.

This Charm wasn't bought from outside; it was taken from the Argel Family's Storeroom.

This Charm doesn't have any other power; it simply strengthens one's will. It's a matching device for the Distortion Gauntlet. With this Charm, even if one's mind isn't particularly resolute, one won't easily make unwise choices.

As for Kronos, whose mind is relatively sound, with this Charm, he's basically no different from a normal person.

After activating the Charm's power, Kronos felt a lightness in his head, as if a tremendous burden had been lifted from his shoulders.

After it was over, Kronos bowed to Ernes and said, "I'm sorry, I was affected by the negative effects just now, so my attitude towards you was very bad. Please forgive me."

Seeing that Kronos had returned to normal, Ernes was naturally very happy and said, "It's alright, it's alright, I'm glad you're okay."

Ernes wanted to build a relationship with Kronos, Kronos shared the same idea, because he judged Ernest to be a Sequence 5 Scarlet Scholar.

It's hard to tell if this is a Sanguine, but the Scarlet Scholar itself is quite significant, as it implies countless Potions.

Kronos initially wanted to build a good relationship with Darkwill, but he forgot that Darkwell first appeared in Tingen City and later came to Backlund, so by the time he wanted to find him, he had already disappeared.

This Darkwill is just a Sequence 9 Apothecary, but now, the one in front of him is Sequence 5, so naturally he can't let him go. He has to have a proper exchange with him.

"May I ask what your name is, sir? I would very much like to get to know you," Kronos spoke first.

Ernes was just telling the truth; after all, he didn't need to keep his name a secret.

When Kronos signed up, Ernes was completely devastated.

"My name is Klein, and I am very grateful for Mr. Ernes's kindness today."

Okay, I'll tell you my real name, and you tell me your fake name. Thank you.

Kronos hadn't expected his true nature to be so transparent in front of this person, so naturally he uttered a name that matched his appearance.

Just then, the Vampire arrived, dragging the Fire Thief along with him.

After throwing the Fire Thief in front of Kronos, the Vampire said, "He's badly injured; he probably won't wake up anytime soon."

Kronos frowned. He couldn't just keep waiting here for him; he might as well just kill him.

Sensing Kronos's displeasure, Ernes asked, "Mr. Klein, do you have any plans regarding him?"

Kronos replied, "Actually, I wanted to ask, but if it takes too long, then forget it. Let's kill him and leave as soon as possible."

Ernes chuckled and said, "It's indeed difficult to cure him directly, but if it's just to awaken him, that's something I can do."

Kronos asked with delight, "Mr. Ernes, you have a solution? That's wonderful! Please don't hesitate to ask if you need anything."

Ernes shook his head. "I don't need anything, just consider this a friendly chat."

After speaking, Ernes took out a bottle of Potions and handed it to Kronos. "This is a mental Potions. As long as he hasn't suffered any mental damage, he'll wake up quickly after drinking it."

After receiving it, Kronos said thank you.

As the Potions was poured down his throat, the Fire Thief began to convulse and mumble incoherently.

In this Cthulhu-esque world, Kronos was quite sensitive to things like ramblings. He immediately took a few steps back and asked, "What's going on?"

This style looks like it's been possessed by an evil god.

Ernes laughed, "Mr. Klein, there's no need to be so careful. This is the effect of the Potions. This kind of Potions is originally used in some Interrogation to strongly stimulate the mind of the person being Interrogation, thereby getting them to reveal certain things."

"So his convulsions and the words he utters are all caused by pain. His body hasn't reached the point where he can wake up naturally, so this is the only way. Once the pain becomes unbearable, he will naturally wake up."

Kronos had initially thought it was a Potions to nourish the spirit, but it turned out to be something else entirely. Well, that's good; it's certainly suitable for the current situation.

Sure enough, after the Fire Thief groaned for a while, he suddenly opened his eyes and woke up.

"What did you do? It hurts so much!" he muttered after looking around.

Kronos did not answer, but instead asked, "Why did you attack me?"

"If you relieve my pain, I'll tell you everything," the Fire Thief tried to negotiate.

But Kronos didn't say a word to him, instead stabbing him in the thigh with his knife. He didn't say anything more, just watched with a smile.

Kronos's series of actions sent chills down the spines of the three people around him. What kind of monster could do something like that?

After howling in Affliction for a long time, the Fire Thief simply gave up.

"I felt you were very wealthy, which is why I targeted you. Because you specified 'Sequence 7' in your application, we dared to make our move directly."

"As for James Rhodes, he only joined us because you offended him; we didn't actively seek him out."

"James Rhodes? The Dream Stealer?"

"Yes, it's him."

Kronos thought for a moment, then asked, "Is he a nobleman? Or does he have Demigod in his family?"

Based on this person's limited combat experience, Kronos came up with two possibilities.

The Fire Thief glanced at Kronos in surprise, then said, "I don't know if he's a nobleman, but judging from his boasting, perhaps his grandfather was a Demigod, but he didn't want to follow his family's Pathway, so he joined us."

"Rumor has it that his family was furious about his decision and no one was willing to help him, which is why he joined us."

Kronos scoffed. How foolish! Having a Demigod grandfather would be such a great help to one's growth, yet one would abandon such a help for the sake of personal preference.

Moreover, his family wouldn't have cared so much about any other Pathway, but it turned out to be the Error Pathway. A Demigod, unless he's a purely grassroots Demigod, would have a high chance of knowing the name "Amon" if he had any contact with other organizations, whether it's the True God Churches or Secret Organizations.

So when his family saw that James Rhodes had gone down the Error Pathway, they must have been furious. Why choose such a treacherous path when there were so many good Pathway available?

No wonder James Rhodes's combat skills are so immature; it's basically as if he's never fought before. With a Demigod grandfather and himself at Sequence 5, his father's Sequence must be quite high as well.

It seems I've really gotten myself into trouble.

But thinking about it, it's not so bad. This Demigod can't find me anyway. The Concealment of Time isn't something to be trifled with. He couldn't divine my whereabouts using any method, so he was helpless.

Having said that, Kronos looked at the Fire Thief and continued, "Now I have a question for you, and I hope you can answer it well. I want to know some information about the Hermits of Fate."

Upon hearing this, the Fire Thief fell silent instantly; this was not an information that could be easily revealed.

Seeing the Fire Thief remain silent, Kronos decisively plunged his blade into his other leg.

"Tell me, and you'll have a chance to live if you explain yourself clearly. Otherwise, you'll die in this Affliction."

At this moment, the Fire Thief looked at him as if he were a Devil —no, Devil are far more benevolent than he was.

Seeing that he still didn't speak, Kronos pulled the knife out of his leg and was about to stab him again.

"No, stop, I'll talk." Unable to endure this torment any longer, he finally decided to speak.

What do you want to hear? I'll tell you.

"I'd like to know roughly what your organization's strength is like?"

The Fire Thief gave a wry smile, "You overestimate me. How could I possibly know such things? I only know that they all say there's an Angel in the organization, He..."

Before he could finish speaking, the Fire Thief's face aged rapidly, and he died of old age in the blink of an eye.