"I'll let you choose first," Valcina whispered. "Will you be the prey or the predator?"
Azariah looked at her, eyes trembling slightly, the grip of the ghostly figure loosened as he stood straight.
[Choose what you want, Azariah, I will protect your mind from collapsing.]
A voice echoed in his head, a sense of calm washing over him as he took a deep breath.
"...Prey," he whispered softly, looking at her. "...I am a spider, born to prey on weaker beings."
His vision turned blank, his eyes blinked softly, turning into the eight eyes of a spider, his mind going numb.
His life as the spider started, filled with killing to survive, hiding, and waiting for his prey in his web.
In a split second, he lived the life of a spider for over a year.
His behavior slowly turned that of a spider.
...Until.
"I am a wasp," Valcina whispered, looking down at him with amusent. "...Devourer of spiders."
Gasp!
Azariah gasped for breath as he saw and felt the 'spider' being eaten alive by a wasp.
Sweat trickled down his head as he took deep breaths to calm himself down.
"...I am a bat," Azariah mumbled, staring at her. "...Killer of wasps, predator of night."
His eyes blurred again, turning pitch black, a grunt escaped his mouth, helping him navigate in the dark.
Before he could even notice, he had already been absorbed in his life as a bat.
Killing wasps and eating them, he lived like that for years, adapting to the life of an animal.
"...I am a serpent," she whispered softly, unaffected. "...Preying on bats, even at night."
Azariah's eyes snapped open, his breath caught in his throat.
The sensation of dying, swallowed alive by the serpent, still lingered in his mind.
Taking in a deep breath, he gulped down his saliva as Valcina observed him, deep in thought.
'...How is he still holding up?'
She wondered, looking at him.
Living two lives, even though it doesn't sound like much, could already kill one's mind.
For her, who had lived for thousands of years, these lives didn't matter much, but for him, who was just a child, even a year of living as an insect could have been deadly.
"...I am a phoenix," Azariah whispered, making her focus on him. "...Holder of life, closest to immortal."
Azariah's mind blurred again, his vision changed, and so did his body, turning into that of a phoenix with blazing purple flas.
Holding a serpent in his claw, eating bits of its flesh, devouring it.
His life as a phoenix began, living like the mythical beast it was, dominating everyone and everything within his reach.
Until...
"...I am Morningstar," Valcina whispered, smiling softly as she gazed at him, changing the rules she herself had set. "...King of dragons and killer of phoenixes."
"Huff... Huff..."
Azariah's knees buckled as he fell face-first onto the ground.
His breath slowly started to decrease, his consciousness slipping away.
The majestic dragon that killed him was sothing he had never seen.
A being so beautiful, its image etched in his mind clearly.
He couldn't hate it, even though that very being was the reason for his death.
"...You cheated." With whatever consciousness he had left, he whispered weakly, glaring at Valcina. "....There is no way you can even live... his life."
"You lose, boy." Ignoring his words, she said proudly, standing up from her throne.
"...Even if you didn't lose your mind, you can't continue... because no predator is born that can kill him."
"...Liar," he whispered softly, his eyelids feeling heavy. "...You didn't say anything about using—"
"Did you forget whose vessel I am?" Valcina cut in mockingly. "You are foolish to expect to tell you everything truthfully."
Azariah bit his lips, stopping himself from falling asleep, his mind slipping into darkness.
"Bring him to my lab, daughters," Valcina smiled softly, looking at the ghostly figures. "It's ti to see what he truly is."
They laughed, grabbing his hand to make him stand back up.
[...Sigh.]
A tired sigh escaped from El's mouth, echoing inside his mind.
Azariah's gaze flicked open as he felt a calming sensation in his mind.
His dizziness stopped, his muscles jolted back, feeling a rush of energy in his body.
[...Get ready, Az.]
El's solemn voice echoed in his mind as he looked at Valcina, turning around.
A crystal-clear drop of water materialized in front of him, parallel to his temple.
Gravity pulled the droplet down.
But as the droplet fell, the world around Azariah started to slow down.
Valcina's turning body increasingly started to move slower.
...And just as the droplet hit the ground.
The world stopped moving.
[Ten seconds.]
Azariah snapped back from his daze, unfolding his wings.
His body propelled upward, moving toward Willis.
Willis remained frozen like a statue, not moving an inch, hovering in the air.
Too many questions filled his mind, but right now, he just wanted to run away.
Grabbing Willis mid-air, he flipped his body, folding his wings before he propelled toward Tiffany.
[Move up.]
As soon as he grabbed her, he listened to El's words, moving upward.
While continuously flapping his wings, he reached the far end of the ceiling.
[Don't stop.]
He continued to move, glancing back at Valcina.
...Even when the world halted, she could still see him.
Azariah's entire body turned cold as her gaze t his, dread filling his mind as his body penetrated the ceiling, returning to the normal world.
...
...
...
"..."
Valcina's cold gaze shifted to the ceiling.
It had been so long since soone had escaped her grasp.
The feeling of losing him made her blood boil.
But she controlled herself, letting out a frustrated sigh.
"Isn't it rude to visit soone's place without permission?" she whispered, turning around to look at her throne. "....Esray."
Esray leaned against the throne, her emotionless grey eyes staring down at Valcina.
Her platinum hair fell freely behind her, and a sword embedded with countless runes lay on her lap.
Placing her elbow on the armrest, she made herself comfortable.
"I told you, didn't I?" Esray said, her eyes fixed on her. "...Don't touch him."
Valcina smiled softly, but her eyes remained cold. Glancing around, she asked, "...Why kill them?"
Esray also looked around, gazing at the headless bodies of the ghostly figures.
...They were all killed, even though Valcina stood right beside them.
"I didn't like their faces," Esray replied calmly. "...And they also tried to harm my son."
"...Is the mother inside you waking up now?" Valcina asked mockingly. "...Where was this care for him when he was here, getting experinted on?"
"...Do you have a death wish?" Esray asked coldly.
"Haven't you gotten cocky, girl?" Valcina asked, an absurd look on her face. "Threatening a godde—"
"You are not a goddess, Valcina." Esray cut in, her gaze crucifying.
"You are just soone close to godhood, with so divinity... A coward, refusing to awaken the fifth ti because you fear losing yourself."
Valcina's face hardened, anger blazing in her yellowish eyes as she stared at Esray.
Noticing it, Esray grabbed the hilt of the sword in her lap, placing it down.
"Elohim's sword," Valcina whispered, recognizing it. "....So it wasn't Ragnar but you who possessed that sword."
"...So what?" Esray questioned, looking at her.
"Why are you here?" Valcina asked, clasping her hands behind her back. "Surely you didn't co just to say hello."
"...You touched sothing that belonged to without permission." Esray replied calmly. "I want compensation."
Valcina scoffed. "...What value does he even have?"
"He has more value than you," Esray rebuked, looking at her.
Valcina walked closer. "I've seen his condition. He is a walking corpse with a broken life source and only a few years to live."
"Still more valuable than you." Esray repeated, remaining firm in her words.
"If he didn't have a broken life source." Valcina agreed, nodding.
"Honestly, if he were normal, I wouldn't have just returned him to you after conducting my research. I would have done everything to keep him with , and you wouldn't have been able to stop back then."
Esray remained silent, gazing at her, no speck of emotion on her face.
"No one can save him," Valcina comnted, smiling. "Not even Lilith. The only thing I can think of that could cure him is—"
"Tears of eternal love—Dumal-Hubb." Esray completed her sentence.
"But surely you won't join hands with her." Valcina cryptically comnted, looking at her. "...Not when we all are—"
"I want compensation," Esray interjected sharply.
"And what if I don't give you one?"
Esray stood up from her throne, her hand gripping tightly on the handle of the sword as she walked down. "Then I will take one of your hands."
Valcina smiled at her words. "Do you have the strength to back it up?"
A silver crown started to erge just above Esray's head, constructed from sliversh lace and sharp, spiked structures.
The front featured circular lace patterns that hung down, covering part of her face.
She looked at Valcina, whispering, "Shall we try?"
Valcina calmly looked at her. Even though she was confident she could win, uneasiness filled her.
'She's growing faster than I thought.'
She finally parted her lips. "What do you want?"
"Call Isis out," Esray replied, a vicious look passing through her eyes. "I have an offer for her."
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