Dead Man Walking: Living By Day, Dead By Night
Chapter 160: A New Monitor

Lilith was stunned by the fact that Bartholomew knew how Eliza had died. While it was a fact that Bartholomew's territory was the closest to Eliza's, the relationship between the two had been tenuous at best in the past. Nobody expected Bartholomew to actually be in cahoots with Eliza, nor did they expect him to be keeping an eye on her neighboring domain.

Because of this, Lilith went absolutely crazy, her eyes twitching as she stared into nothingness with a look of absolute lunacy on her face. It was almost as if her eyes were trying to pierce the vast difference between her and Bartholomew in an attempt to gaze deep into his soul.

But the tone in her voice was the most terrifying thing to Bartholomew. There was a high inflection, accompanied by a shrill tone as she questioned if Bartholomew had been withholding valuable information from her.

"Barty… Have you been hiding things from me? You wouldn't do such a thing, now would you? Tell me that Balthasar is playing a joke on us all right now!"

Though there was a distance of hundreds of miles between them, Bartholomew shivered when he heard the tone in Lilith's voice. She had always enjoyed picking on him and had even done her best to suppress his growth.

With such intense pressure on him, Bartholomew had no choice but to reveal what he knew to his brothers and sisters. Alarming them all with the information he provided.

"I don't know for sure… But Eliza and I have been keeping an eye on a group of these so called awakened survivors. They were initially from my territory but fled to Eliza's domain when things were getting rough for their kind.

This small group of survivors appears vastly more powerful than those in which I have encountered in my domain. And though I don't believe they are powerful enough to deal with Eliza, there is another matter that may have been the reason why they emerged victorious.

The leader of this small group of survivors… He has our mother's scent on him. Eliza and I both confirmed it. He also appears to have powers that are similar to our own. This led Eliza and me to conclude that Mother's disappearance and the sudden rise of these so called awakened survivors are somehow connected.

More specifically, this specific survivor seems to have some kind of personal connection to Mother even if it is a faint one."

This revelation was like a nuclear bomb. It left the horde of kings in a state of total silence and shock for several moments, before they all began shouting at one another again. Like they had done before, Lilith so viciously shrieked at them.

In the end, it was Balthasar who commanded his brothers and sisters to be silent. In the past, he had been calm, even with the news of Eliza's death. This was despite the fact that nearly all his brothers and sisters were panicking. But even he couldn't keep calm at the notion that their absent mother was secretly colluding with the living.

Because of this, Balthasar's voice nearly cracked as he demanded an answer from Bartholomew regarding this critical matter.

"Bartholomew… How certain are you that this man you mentioned is connected to our Mother's disappearance?"

Bartholomew gulped down the saliva that had pooled in his mouth. He was by no means certain of his conclusion; it was deliberately why he warned Eliza not to attack Gravestone. But Eliza had not listened, and now he was the one facing the consequences of her actions. Because of this, he sighed heavily before revealing his thoughts on the matter.

"Neither Eliza nor I were very certain. It's why I advised Eliza not to recklessly engage with this man or his fellow living beings. Unfortunately, Eliza became impatient as this man took the fight towards her and her horde, causing a significant decrease in her forces over the past three months.

Unfortunately, she became desperate after losing the majority of her Horde and decided to attack the settlement that this man resides in. The result of which you all know. I don't believe mother directly led to Eliza's death. And I am uncertain to the extent to which this human being is involved with her disappearance.

But regardless, this man and his fellow survivors are significantly stronger than the rest of the living beings we have come across. And we all know Eliza's tendency to fly into a blind rage. It is entirely possible that these humans used Eliza's frenzy against her, and exploited her weaknesses enough that they were able to deal a fatal blow.

Once more, the Horde Kings of the world fell into a deep state of contemplation. Remaining utterly silent as they debated within their own minds about how to deal with this situation. If mother was genuinely protecting this living man, then they should not interfere.

Mother's wrath was, after all, quite fearsome. Even Balthasar, as powerful as he was, feared the idea of getting involved with any matter concerning his mother, especially ones she kept a secret from him and his siblings.

It was because of this that he was quick to wash his hands of the matter. And by doing so silently communicating with his siblings that they should avoid provoking their mother.

"This matter does not concern me as it takes place on the opposite end of the world from where my domain lies. However, I would advise you all to think carefully about our mother. If she went missing of her own accord without telling us, and is indeed connected to this survivor in some way. It would be best for us all not to provoke her. That is all I have to say on the matter.

As for Eliza's fate, she will be mourned. Bartholomew, as the Horde King closest to her domain, which has now been taken over by this strange human. I will defer to your judgement on how you wish to proceed."

Bartholomew was stunned by the last part of what Balthasar had said. The man had essentially declared that Bartholomew was responsible for observing Zane and his settlement.

This also meant that Batholomew had a responsibility to report any future replaceings regarding Zane's advancement in power, and relation to their mother to his siblings, and more specifically, Balthasar.

Ultimately, this was not a responsibility he desired, but one that had been forced upon him, thus he could only accept it no matter how much he wished he could avoid doing so.

"I understand my Lord. I will keep a close eye on this strange human and will report anything I may replace out regarding his power and connection to our Mother…."

With this said, the Horde Kings ceased their collective communication. Leaving them all with differing opinions on Zane. Lilith herself was furious that her Mother would ever conspire with humans. And wanted nothing more than to march into Carson City herself so that she could torture Zane's secrets out of his mouth.

But Balthasar had made his decree, and of all the Horde Kings, Bartholomew was the one given authority over monitoring Zane. Something which only caused the otherworldly beauty to curse beneath her breath.

"Fucking bastard!"