Delilah stood before them with a sly smirk across her face. She spun a tiny dagger around her fingers as she walked closer to them like a professional model.
"Well, this is quite the interesting group I've come across," she grinned.
"Delilah! I swear I'm going to shove my fist in that lying mouth of yours!" Cursed Avic.
Delilah chuckled, "Your aggression turns me on, my sweet. Instead of your fist, why not try something else?"
"Sorry, but you're frankly not my type. They say never stick it into crazy."
"Is that so? Well, it seems that I'll just have to find a way to win your heart then."
Custos watched as Avic and Delilah argued back and forth. He didn't know why but a bad feeling lingered in his chest. Something didn't seem right.
"Avic, is this the girl that betrayed you in the first exam?" Questioned Custos curiously.
"Yeah, she's Delilah. She might look like an innocent girl but don't let her looks deceive you. She likes to act nice but she's a total bitch on the inside!"
Before Custos could ask another question, Avic lunged at Delilah as fast as he could.
"You're attacking me?" She asked with a seductive smile.
Avic swung his dagger at her head. However, Delilah dodged the attack with ease. Avic hissed. She was more agile than he had expected. However, he was not about to give up. He quickly followed up with a powerful swing of his leg, driving a kick toward her gut.
"Custos, I have a feeling something isn't right here..." Muttered Chrono as he watched.
"I think so too!" Supported Eliisabet. "Something about her is strange..! I can feel it in my bones... It's like a cold chill running through my body."
Custos pondered. He could feel it too. There was a strange sensation in the atmosphere. It was like the lingering scent of very dark Hemo Energy. Not to mention that there was still the mystery as to who killed the dozens of Knights and Registered Sicarius around them. It wasn't adding up.
As Custos's eyes looked back up at Delilah, he remembered what Avic had told them the previous day;
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"So back in the First Round, this chick called Delilah stabbed me in the back. And I mean literally! She betrayed me and left me to die. But before that, she did the weirdest thing... She kissed me on the lips and tasted my blood... She was one crazy chick!"
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"Why would she..?"
Just then, Custos eyes broadened with shock as he came to a horrifying conclusion. He swung his head up and shouted at Avic.
"Avic!! Get away from her!!! She's the one Agni was looking for!! Delilah is Valkyrie!!"
Delilah grinned as she caught Avic's dagger with her bare hand. Avic's eyes broadened with shock. He couldn't believe it.
"Well, it seems that my identity has been revealed. Not that it matters anyway."
"What..? You're... Valkyrie..?"
Valkyrie then moved her lips close to Avic's right ear before giving him a playful nibble with her vampiric fangs.
"Sorry sweetheart," she whispered into his ear. "It seems our little date has come to an end."
With a single swing of her hand, Avic was sent flying 30ft backward into Custos' arms.
"Avic, are you okay?!" Asked Eliisabet in worry.
"Urgh... Damn it all... I should be fine."
Custos hissed, "It all makes so much sense now. That's why I've never heard about this Delilah before despite doing my research on almost every student in the Sicarius Faction. And that's why Valves stated that he smelled Valkyrie's scent on Avic, despite him never coming in contact with her. It was when she kissed you and took your blood back in the First Round!"
"What do we do then? We already had an encounter with Valves. I'm not interested in tangling with his female counterpart," Argued Chrono.
Custos gritted his teeth. They couldn't afford to get caught up in another fight. Just like Valves, Valkyrie was many times stronger than all of them combined. They needed to find a way to escape.
However, Avic didn't agree. He pulled Custos back and stepped toward Valkyrie with his fists folded.
"Avic, what are you doing?" Queried Custos.
"You're from the Umbra, right?" Avic asked Valkyrie. "I want you to tell me everything you know about the GSD that happened 10 years ago!"
A slightly shocked expression crawled over Valkyrie's face.
"The GSD? Why would you be interested in that old thing?"
"Ten years ago, my family was killed in that disaster..! For years, I've wanted to know what triggered such a catastrophe. And now I know... The Umbra was responsible! So just come clean and tell me everything you know!!"
"Oh my... You're quite upset, aren't you my sweets? Hmm... I'm sorry, but there's not much that I know. I wasn't there when it happened. The most I can tell you is that the leader of the Umbra, Dolor, had something to do with it. He doesn't really talk about it though. If you want to know more then you'd have to ask him yourself."
"Where can I find him?!"
"Sorry, sweetheart. That information is confidential. But I'll tell you what. Since you're so special to me, I'll propose a deal. If you can get strong enough to defeat at least one member of the Umbra's Top Brass by the next time we meet, I'll personally take you to see Dolor. What do you say?"
"I want you to take me to him now..!"
"Hehe! So demanding. I'm taking more of a liking to you than I ever thought possible. But the deal is still there to be taken whenever you're ready."
Custos then grabbed onto Avic's shoulder to calm him down. He couldn't allow him to lose control and do anything rash. They had to be cautious around Valkyrie.
"Avic, calm down. You know there's no point in getting riled up. We're all at her mercy. If she wanted to, she could kill us all in an instant. Just try not to do anything stupid."
Just then, Valkyrie appeared by Avic's side. She wrapped her arms around him and licked the side of his neck.
This left everyone stunned. She had moved faster than any of them could see. With her white vampiric fangs peeking from the sides of her mouth, Valkyrie smiled.
"You don't have to worry. Valves and I have already accomplished what we came here for. So I won't hurt you. I can't say that I'm very happy to smell Valves' scent on you, however. But I'm sure my Hemo Energy will prevail inside of you. Hehe... Until we meet again, my sweet..!"
And just like that, Valkyrie disappeared into thin air.