As his surprised guest left, Kiniro was isolated once more, with nothing to do but stare at the sinful, paper-covered walls and think about how much his life had changed over the last couple of days. He still didn't know the specifics, but Kiniro knew the Following had been discovered with most of the leadership and inner council arrested while the rest of the congregation had scattered to the winds.
The community that had raised Kiniro for as long as he could remember was gone, and all he could feel was minor disappointment. Not once, even when he was just a child, had Kiniro believed the cult's inciting doctrine that painted him as their savior with a Christ-like ability to save their souls.
Kiniro never believed it because he could see what no one else could: the corruption that lingered, the innate mark on the soul, the source of temptation that led to sinful behavior. For some, the mark was a barely visible stain, while for others it was an emboldened tattoo impossible to ignore.
And after a while, Kiniro realized something that would become the basis of his worldview. Those with the darkest marks, the ones compelled to sin the most, were the ones with the most influence and the most power. For the longest time, Kiniro had believed it was simply the difference in mindset, the corruption twisting their psyche and removing their inhibitions. Creating those with ambition and greed, with a lust for power and the willingness to unleash their wrath on anyone who challenged their pride or drew their envy.
But now Kiniro understood that in reality, the truth was far simpler; sin itself was power. The people who had captured him possessed more sin than anyone he had ever encountered; even the weakest had the equivalent of several thousand people. Not only that, but Kiniro's captors somehow managed to control the sin within them and use it to accomplish feats that could only be described as magical.
Kiniro had also noticed that their marks of corruption were nearly consuming their souls. 'That must be the key, the stronger the mark, the greater the sin.'
Kiniro felt himself dawn upon a new revelation as, for the first time, he turned his gaze inward. Up until that very moment, Kiniro had assumed that any sin he devoured was destroyed, ceasing to exist. The Following claimed that Kiniro's ability to absolve the sins of others stemmed from his soul's absolute purity, making it impossible for him to commit any sin.
And in some aspects, they were right, Kiniro had glanced at his own soul and found it void of the mark responsible for creating the delicious corruption. But in exchange for being born without a mark, Kiniro was granted the heavenly power to consume the sins of others.
But what the Following did not understand was that this power did not make Kiniro a pious savior; no, such a power made Kiniro a greater sinner than any of the murderers, rapists, drug lords, and psychopaths that came flocking to him for salvation. His vice was sin itself, craving the exhilarating rush of devouring the inherent evil of others; had he wanted, Kiniro could have led the congregation towards salvation, seeking to purge the very corruption from their souls. But instead, he left it to fester, knowing it would drive them to sin again and seek out absolution once more, bringing him an endless feast.
The Following had believed that they were using him for their own benefit when it was truly the other way around. Kiniro had manipulated thousands to satiate his own lust, gluttony, and greed, 'Making me the ultimate sinner…and what willful sinner would ever let go of their vice?'
Looking within himself, Kiniro found his soul, a black sphere wholly fused with the essence of corruption and surrounded by an ocean of sin, the accumulation of years spent devouring the transgressions of others.
Reaching out with his mind, Kiniro tried to control the power within himself, seeking to copy the technique his captors had used. Surprisingly, there was some resistance, and for a moment, Kiniro couldn't figure out why until he realized that the issue wasn't coming from within.
"So that's what the paper is for," Kiniro muttered as he stared at the talismans covering the wall and the sin imbued within the ink, "So many applications…I can't wait to discover them all."
A giddiness made Kiniro's entire body buzz with excitement as he imagined the world of sin awaiting him. 'I really can't wait.'
Giving in to his urges and excitement, Kiniro felt his eyes shift as their true nature was revealed: seven points, one for each deadly sin, allowing Kiniro to physically see what others could only feel and consume what others could only succumb to.
'They were probably hoping that my ability Devour had to be initiated through touch,' Kiniro thought, feeling the heavy, tight ropes around his wrists as he opened his mouth, 'But that limitation only applies when I'm absorbing the sins of a person; there's no way some flimsy tattered paper could withhold such a delicious feast from me!'
Kiniro's eyes flashed with a magenta light as his hunger manifested as an irresistible pull, stripping the talismans of their sin, forming pink, turbulent rivers that streamed through the air and poured into his open maw. With hundreds of talismans covering the room, Kiniro was treated to a small feast, sharpening his mind and senses with a brief but powerful burst of euphoria.
Still, the meal was over far too quickly for Kiniro's tastes as he drained all the talismans in the blink of an eye, leaving him craving even more. 'Now there's no way I can wait around anymore.'
With a manic smile, Kiniro reached and grabbed hold of the sin inside him, and without the oppressive seal of the talismans, felt it flow through his body for the very first time.
Kiniro's eyes widened as an immense strength filled every fiber of his being, and a baleful aura surrounded him, draping over his body like a heavy shroud.
With a slight pull of his wrists, Kiniro snapped the thick, coarse ropes tied around his hands, causing them to explode into a cloud of fibers.
It was then that Saturo decided to intervene, opening the door and staring at Kiniro, who was massaging his wrists, "Now, how did you manage that?"
Kiniro stared back at Saturo, his smile broadening, "I copied what I saw in the ones you sent to capture me. I'll have to thank them one day for being such an inspiration."
"That shouldn't be the case," Saturo muttered under his breath as he stared at Kiniro and the cursed energy surrounding him, 'I doubt any of them had a level of control that rivals mine…no I take that back, Kiniro's control…it's better. The infinitesimally small amount of cursed energy that my Six Eyes cannot capture, his eyes can…because there's no flow. He isn't producing any cursed energy.'
Saturo then glanced at the talismans on the wall that were now just regular pieces of paper that would need to be recharged before becoming useful again, 'In exchange he's able to absorb the cursed energy of other users and items and make it his own to use with absolute efficiency…and it looks like touch isn't a requirement…at least for cursed items.'
"I hate to break it to you, but I'm not the one who sent a team after you, and the proper name for what you're calling sin is cursed energy," Saturo replied, his deduction of Kiniro's abilities only taking a split second in real time.
Kiniro paused, "I don't understand…you seem strong…very strong. Shouldn't you be in charge?"
Saturo grinned, "You have a good intuition, kid, but I'm still not the one who decided to chain you up. That decision was made by the higher-ups and the clans. They're the ones who will either call for your execution or turn you into a walking, talking breeding stud…and then kill you after you produce a hundred heirs or so."
Kiniro clicked his tongue in disappointment, "That didn't sound so bad until you brought up the execution part. Do you know how backed up I am?! I couldn't even risk touching myself back in the Following, one slip up, and my whole pure soul persona would have fallen into fucking shambles."
"Are you even going to ask why they would want to subject you to such a fate?" Saturo questioned while completely ignoring the boy's statement, 'Clearly he's not as oblivious as Masamichi made him out to be.'
Kiniro shrugged, "Greed is greed; the reasoning doesn't matter. A guilty sinner will always find some way of justifying their transgressions."
Saturo couldn't help but smile at Kiniro's method of thinking, "Reason or not, shouldn't you be worried?"
"Not really," Kiniro said as his eyes slowly shifted back to normal and his cursed energy receded, "After all, I can tell you won't allow it."
"Oh, really, and why is that?" Saturo asked.
Kiniro smiled and looked into Saturo's covered eyes, knowing that he could see him, "Because, as I said, you're the strong, perhaps the strongest, meaning your greatest sin is pride. Your worldview centers on personal strength above all else, but the world doesn't work that way. Nepotism, inheritance, legacy, wealth, that is how people display their power. But, as the strongest, why should you accept a reality that doesn't benefit you? You want to restore the natural order, where the strongest rule. But short of tearing everything down with your own two hands, something I'm sure you're capable of, you needed another way. And I believe that having me live will go a long way towards accomplishing that."