Killed Me? Now I Have Your Power Chapter 467: Your want vs Her want

Incompleteness.

The gnawing sensation in Kaden’s stomach had persisted ever since he exited the Church with the Malan tribesmen.

He wasn’t certain of the cause. Actually, he knew it perfectly well. A quick look at the modest hut the tribesmen had loaned him temporarily revealed the clear reason for that heavy dread.

One look showed the hut was deliberately incomplete. Certain sections were left unfinished on purpose, and examining the design, Kaden recognized the intent.

'It's not just this place,' he pondered, gazing at the stone bed. 'The entire village matches. Homes left partial, paths only halfway done, tribesmen sporting half-braided hair with the rest loose. Blood and ashes, their clothing is incomplete too.'

The wrongness of the scene sent an involuntary shiver down his spine. He had no clue what this place truly was, its exact location, or the threats that might hide nearby. Combined with his present frailty, the circumstances turned truly dire.

Still, a glimmer of hope existed.

'I can't say how or why, but the tribesmen view me as an injured passerby,' Kaden reflected, hobbling gradually around the room to adjust to this creeping debility. 'And there's more. They don't perceive Rea as Rea.'

To them, Rea shedding black tears on the altar seemed utterly ordinary. When their gazes fell on her, Kaden caught the gleam in their eyes.

The identical gleam one gives an item — devoid of feeling, judging only usefulness and sturdiness.

It disturbed him enough to almost spur action. Yet that wasn't the quest's demand.

'I must choose: complete the Tower or abandon it half-done,' he gritted his teeth. 'Put simply, pick between the Rea I desire and the Rea she desires to become.'

Undeniably, Rea understood full well the outcome of merging with the Woeful. She'd ascend to Goddess status, or something perilously similar.

Kaden felt no envy over her divine rise. His soul held no jealousy, since envy strikes only at what one lacks and can never claim.

That didn't apply to him.

He'd attain that height. Absolute certainty filled him.

The power itself didn't trouble him, but the cost attached to it. This specific toll was unbearable for him to witness.

He refused to see Rea transform into something unrecognizable.

But then a new question surged within, voiced by his longest, truest ally.

"What right do you possess to choose for her?" Reditha's voice echoed in his mind, resolute, without manifesting.

"I'm her fiancé." Kaden hissed in annoyance.

"Does that matter?" Reditha remained steadfast. "Would you force Lady Rea off her chosen path just because it clashes with yours? That's precisely what you're attempting now."

"Then what should I do?" He snapped. "Simply allow her to turn into a stranger? Someone unfamiliar? Someone I might fail to love, no matter her resemblance to Rea? Blood and ashes, Reditha! You've seen her face!"

His tone fractured, laced with terror at the edges.

"Her features are shifting, damn it! All signs point to a different person!"

The words burst out with fierce intensity and raw emotion, his frantic motions almost toppling him in his weakened condition.

And topple he did.

Furious, drained, and utterly defeated, Kaden swore and shoved a nearby stone vase. It sailed away, smashed into the wall, and exploded into jagged shards.

The crash rang out sharply. He ignored it. No possible event now could make him give a damn.

Exhaustion gripped him, and every time he hoped for improvement, matters deteriorated further.

Reditha stayed silent for an extended moment. Her face remained unseen, but the agony twisting her being was a seldom-felt torment.

No one grasped the burden Kaden shouldered like she did. It was the sort that shattered most men's minds or robbed them of any desire to persist.

Yet Kaden endured.

Each advance exacted a price, and whenever stability seemed near... chaos deepened.

When had he forged such an effortless connection? He and Rea appeared molded from identical earth, by identical creators, in identical moments. A bond so scarce it felt divine... discovering one who could embrace your shadows and ignite her fire from them.

Now, he had to relinquish that?

Kaden wasn't inherently selfish. Sacrifice didn't faze him. But this... he couldn't yield to it.

Still, Reditha couldn't abide him blocking Rea's way due to his emotions.

It was agonizing. For both.

But she dreaded worse outcomes if Kaden ignored logic and let fear-tainted selfishness dictate.

For she feared Rea's eventual resentment toward him.

'I don't wish to witness that day, Kaden. You couldn't endure it. And I couldn't endure seeing you break.'

"It's tough, Kaden," Reditha admitted softly. "I understand. Better than anyone, as your origin. Your pain and grief echo in me. But I'm sorry. You must consider it carefully."

Kaden remained mute. He slumped on the floor, face buried in hands, quaking and on the verge of tears.

Reditha bit her lip and continued. "Deep down, you know it. Choose between preserving your love pure and whole, or letting hatred and bitterness taint it. That's the risk if you pick your desire over what she wants."

Kaden's quiet endured, cold as ice and screaming like a silent wail of despair. Reditha realized he wouldn't reply.

She exhaled, blending irritation and sorrow, and fell silent too.

The eerie incomplete hut grew still, interrupted solely by Kaden's heavy shudders.

Then even that ceased.

The door creaked open. Light, rapid steps entered, tiny and soft, from either a child or someone with whisper-quiet tread.

"I'm sorry, Wounded Traveler!" A young girl sang out cheerfully. "I'm here to bring you food!"

Kaden jerked at the lively tone. He sighed softly, then raised his head with reluctance.

His eyes widened instantly upon seeing her.

"Saintess?"

The words escaped unbidden. The Whimpering Saintess's face gazed back — more youthful, yet beyond doubt.

The girl halted, surprise washing over her features. Then she cocked her head and queried with true wonder...

"Saintess?" She repeated, pointing to herself with her empty hand. "Me?"

—End of Chapter 467—