MIDNIGHT PRINCE: Empire of Sin

Adam did not know where he was at the moment.

It was a place filled with the color white, stretching as far as the eye could see, seemingly into an infinite distance and perhaps even beyond.

For him who had obtained authority over Dreams, it should have been easy to change this place using his newly obtained powers. However, for some reason, he did not wish to change this scene. It was as if this place was as it should be. As if it was in its most complete and perfect state and doing anything to change it would be blasphemous.

He looked down and could see a white-colored board with cheese pieces riddled about.

Facing him was a figure with faceless features, entirely white from head to toe as if it could fuse at any moment with the surroundings.

Even though the figure had no face, merely shape, Adam was able to recognize who it was.

"Genesis."

"It's intriguing that you were able to recognize me this time. I believed this attempt at true communication would once again fail. It means that your Soul has grown enough to this point. Or was it the fact that you faced a godly entity that enabled you to perceive me?"

Genesis continued to ramble on and on, causing Adam to chuckle out loud…

"Where is this place?"

The figure finally stopped his useless ramblings and got straight to the point, "This is my home, so to speak… You could also say that it's a place between the realm of dreams and the membrane of reality, drifting aimlessly in the void and the direct corridor to the Library of Akasha."

"I see."

"Technically speaking, no, you do not see, Adam… As you are not in your physical body at the moment, the conventional five senses do not exist here. It's only your mind replicating them and confusing you into thinking that you are able to see."

"...You do know that it's just an expression, right?"

"I do. But I loathe such unreliable and inaccurate expressions."

"Sigh… I have been meaning to ask for some time now… Do you hate me? No… Do you perhaps despise me?"

"Neither of the two, in fact. I judged that while you are, physically speaking, the most appropriate host for me, your moral hangup and lack of desire for improvement severely limit how fast you, and by extension— me, could actually grow."

Genesis approached him with fluid steps.

"I am the first key. The one who holds the power toward the concept of perfect transcendence and opens the way to the paradise of unlimited and ever growing knowledge. If you had accepted to fuse with Buddha's consciousness, for example, you would already be as strong as your other siblings… At the minimum."

"For someone who is supposed to be emotionless, you speak way too much."

"That isn't all… Let's say that you do cherish your personality and did not wish to be affected by Buddha's influence. This is beyond my comprehension on so many levels but let's accept this scenario. Why then did you not use my power more freely?

"The Ordeals that you were challenged with should have already clued you in, but the actions that are judged as morally wrong by your society are those that bring the greatest benefits to you."

Genesis continued calmly and with the utmost sense of rationality, "Fear, lust, hatred, all those negative emotions are more easily generated than love, faith, and respect. In terms of pure efficiency alone the difference is so great that it cannot even be compared to the virtuous emotions. I was proven right today when you inevitably chose the Black Knight's path."

"..."

"Emotions make humans weak and limit your potential for evolution. If you truly wish to become strong as fast as possible. You should discard all the useless baggage that holds you down and focus on what is important. The women you love, your family, and all this… How many years do you think they will be with you in your inevitable path of immortality?"

Genesis did not wish to hold back anymore. There were many things he could not say when Adam was in the external world. Back there, he could only act as an assistant rather than an adviser. But in this place, in his domain, he had more leeway to share his true opinions.

"The girl called Sae is a Cambion. I guess 700 years? At most 800 to 900 years would be the most her lifespan could stretch. Natasha, the werewolf, should have between 300 to 600 years left to live. As for your mother… Even if you manage to save her, as a powerful hunter, she will only be able to live for one or two hundred years at most. Not more, not less. I do not even need to speak about an ordinary Mortal like Shuri."

For humans, those numbers were so high that it was shocking. But for an entity like Genesis, those were just a blip in its long and everlasting existence.

"Adam Gospel. You need to remember a fact that you are blindly ignoring from the start. You may look like a human, but you are not one. You are a superior being that is as close to the divine as is possible for any entity of this time and you should act as such. Discard your useless humanity and embrace your true nature."

The space slowly began to tremble. Fractures appeared everywhere due to the irreversible instability of the realm that was forcefully enacted to host another mind apart from Genesis' own.

"I believe the time that was imparted to us is coming to an end."

The featureless eerie figure advanced toward Adam.

"I have been created to bring the birth of a new King to this world. But for now, you still think like a mere commoner."

"You truly act as if you are all knowing, huh…"

"I am not. But I do know that more and more supernatural events will revolve around you in the future. Surely with your current powers, you will be able to handle most of them. When you unlock your third chakra this will be even more so. But the probability of another event like the one with Asmodeus happening around you is extremely high and this time, I wonder if luck will still be with you.

"But… You understand this already, right?"

Adam stayed silent at those words. But, he eventually nodded in agreement. He had already realized that he couldn't stay as he was.

It was impossible for him to fall as deep as Genesis was suggesting he should go. It was impossible for him to discard his humanity in its entirety. But there were many ways he could change things in order to accelerate the speed at which he is obtaining Karma.

Genesis stopped as it looked up and the infinitely stretched world seemed to be on its last dregs.

"Do not forget, Adam Gospel, my master. Fate and Luck are cruel mistresses that can abandon you at the moment you need them the most. Our survival is now tied to each other. Will you hang on to your morals or will you walk in the path of darkness and power? The choice is yours at the end of the day."

With those words, everything went dark once more.

———

When Adam opened his eyes in the real world, albeit with a lot of difficulties, he was immediately swarmed by a flurry of notifications.

[For you who have looked at the incarnation of a divine being and can now see between Reality and Dreams, the amount of information now accessible by the 『Eyes of Truth 』 has increased tremendously. Your mastery of the skill has permanently increased many folds.]

[For you who have power over Dreams and Reality… A synergy between The Magician and The World is now established. Increasing the efficacy and might of both skills by a large margin.]

[The skill named Death failed to establish a synergy with your other EX Ranked skill.]

[For you who have unlocked a new power from your lineage as the Son of Cain, the curse reacts and is closer to a new and permanent change.]

[Your current Karma is 13400.]

[The second Chakra can be obtained by paying 10000 Karma] [1]

[Do you wish to open the Chakra?]

[Y/N]

[Warning: The opening of a chakra is irreversible and the cost of each subsequent Chakra increases exponentially. Make your choice carefully.]

"Adam!"

Adam had no time to observe all the notifications with a keen eye, as he was hugged by someone with a tight embrace.

Recognizing the voice of his mother, Adam squeezed her against him with equal enthusiasm.

"I am alright, mom…"

Cecilia hugged him hard. She had been very worried about him and had not been able to sleep well for the past few days.

The situation with Shuri did not help her at all on top of that. She was in a world of stress and it was nearly breaking her.

"Yeah, now that you are awake, everything is good… Adam?"

Cecilia tilted her head in confusion as she saw Adam opening his mouth wide while looking at her with a shocked gaze.

"Is there something the matters?"

Adam was struck speechless by what he saw. After all, he had just used the newly evolved Eyes of Truth on his mother and the result was astonishing, to say the least.

『 Name: Cecilia Kaminari/Gospel

Affiliation: Mei Kaminari

Alias: Mad Hound || Destroyer || Vermillon Knight

Race: Human

Age: 43

Affection: Familial Love (MAX) 』

『 Stats

Strength: F (D+)

Speed: F (D-)

Dexterity: F (D-)

Endurance: F (D+)

Prana: C (SS+)

Charm: C

Willpower: S+

Luck: B

Weakness: Unable to gleam

Acquired Power: Unable to gleam

Innate Authority: N/A

Unique Skill:

Skills: Unable to gleam

Overall Combat Capacity: B (SSS)

Remark:.....Whoah…. 』 [2]

[1]: Adam's Crown Chakra was opened by himself rather than through Karma. So the Book doesn't consider it.

[2]: This screen is honestly pretty long. If I was a reader I am sure I would skip a part of this. Don't worry. I will only show the full screen of a new character once and never again as long as they don't have some serious upgrade.

As a reminder, D+ is the absolute limit of what is humanly possible. Most humans can not even dream of reaching this level. With D+ strength, Cecilia can easily fold even the strongest man in our world and her speed makes her faster than the fastest human alive.

(AN: So we start Vol 6 with a showcase of what Cecilia was at her peak. Vol 6 will be more about Adam finally doing what he should have done and entering the underworld more deeply.

Vol 6 is called Gigolo. Hah. I also wish to get your opinion about Genesis's words and reasoning.)