Dead Man Walking: Living By Day, Dead By Night - Chapter 193

Chapter 193: A Convention of Horde Kings Part II
While Elena was undergoing the process of corruption with Zane by her side, there was another convention among the various Horde Kings in the world. Once more, it was being held telepathically via the hive mind that they all shared as siblings.

Just like when Eliza died, there was complete and utter madness among the various hordes of kings, who shouted over one another and yelled obscenities in their panicked states. A rather maddening situation to be in, one that only ceased when Damian finally spoke, and in doing so demanding that his anxious siblings remain silence.

“Enough! Shouting at one another won’t bring our dearest brother back, nor our fallen sister before him! So how about you all give me some peace and quiet so that I can properly think this matter through?”

Upon hearing Damian shout at them all for their mindless drivel, nobody dared to speak any further. At least not anyone below his own level. But Horde Kings were by nature arrogant and conceited. None perhaps more so than Lilith, who, like Damian, was also an all powerful Tier V Horde King.

It was perhaps because of this that Lilith had never feared Damian. Not truly sure she respected his power. But she would never submit to him fully. Especially at a time like this. Because of this, she was quick to voice her opinion on the matter, despite the man wanting to be given some time to properly internalize the information he had just moments before been given.

After all, the moment Zander was killed, it was like a jolt across the spine of every Hord King. They knew that one of their siblings had become deceased on a deeply instinctual level. And it did not take them long to find out which among their siblings had perished.

Even if they knew that it was Zander who had suffered his second death. Nobody knew how it had actually happened. Right now, it was mere speculation about who was responsible for their sibling’s demise.

And while many of the lesser Horde King’s knew little about Zander’s territory, or what his goals had been leading up to his second death. Lilith knew a thing or two about what was going on within the New Reno area. Perhaps more than any of her siblings, except for perhaps Bartholomew that was.

After all, she had always been obsessed with her little brother, and because of this naturally had her ways to monitor Bartholomew, as well as the living beings in the area. Because of this, she was quick to point out what the more educated members of her siblings were actually thinking.

“It was him again, wasn’t it?”

Only silence remained when Lilith spoke these words. Even those on her own level did not dare to speak against the woman most well known for being among the most vicious and violent of their kind.

After a few moments of dreadful silence, Damian finally thought of something, and was about to respond when Lilith spoke again, cutting him off as she did so while directing her attention towards Bartholomew.

“Although certain groups of the awakened have proven to be gaining significant strength over the past few months, not a single faction of humanity has yet to gain the prowess needed to kill one of our brothers and sisters, let alone two of them. That is with the exception of one man.

If memory serves correctly, it was Bartholomew who was tasked with keeping an eye on the one living being who appears to have this level of power. A man who appears to have gained some form of connection with our mother.

So tell us, dearest brother? I mean, surely we are all curious about why this little pest that hides just outside the borders of your territory was allowed to kill Zander? And since you have so horribly failed to protect your brother, should our other siblings in the area be worried for their safety from now on?”

Bartholomew knew he was well and truly fucked when Lilith referred to him by his name, instead of the little pet name she usually called him by. Knowing this, the Tier II Horde King who ruled over the ruins of Old Reno knew he would need a good excuse to explain why he had failed to properly monitor Zane’s actions, or prevent him from attacking Zander. Which he tried to give voice to immediately in his defense.

“Sister, please…. I know how this looks, but there is something strange about this man. I have sent my Banshees time and again to monitor him, but every time I do so, they disappear. I only have so many of them to act as spies. And yet I haven’t heard from any of them after they make contact with the human in question. Aside from the first one who went missing, that is to say.”

Bartholomew’s words were shocking, to say the least. Generally speaking, a Tier II Horde King would have a limited number of Tier V Undead Servants beneath their command. Meanwhile, a Tier I Horde King like Eliza or Zander would not even have one at their disposal. Hell, if they were on the weaker side of the spectrum, they might not even have any Tier IV servants as well.

And while it was possible to slay a juggernaut through normal means, especially if one was capable of killing a Tier I Horde King, spectral undead were a different matter entirely. No weapon wielded by mankind, at least not one which the Horde Kings had yet come across, could truly harm them.

No, if a living being wanted to slay a Banshee, they would need something else, like a powerful spell perhaps, or maybe an enchanted weapon. Yet Killing one of these spectral monsters with spells alone was easier said than done.

Not only would you have to rely entirely on a powerful offensive spell to get the job done. But by doing this, you would also have no means to defend yourself from the Banshee in question. Which could prove to be fatal during an encounter.

Even then, assuming you managed to accomplish this, you would first have to find a way to defend against the Banshee’s crippling shriek. One that could not only deafen and paralyze an opponent, but should their constitution be low, prove to be utterly fatal as well.

And while the Horde Kings debated among themselves about how it was possible for a living being to slay the likes of a Banshee, Balthasar who was chief among the Horde Kings, and who was always known as their Mother’s favorite child spoke in a grim, and almost envious tone.

“Perhaps this man is not responsible for the deaths of your Banshees Bartholomew, but rather, they have simply left your service because Mother has commanded them to do so. After all, we know that her scent is upon this peculiar human, and as much as it pains me to think about it, she could very well be protecting this man for reasons known only to her.”

When Balthasar said these words, nobody dared speak, not even the likes of Lilith or Damian. They simply remained completely and utterly silent, dwelling on the dreaded idea that their mother had forsaken them for the likes of a wretched human.