Death seemed to surround them at all corners, swallowing the whole world in its wake.
A dark shadow, or perhaps the abyss itself, was cast over the forest, engulfing it entirely in a tight swath. Despite this harrowing truth, two figures loomed in the darkness, one tall and one small.
The smaller figure spoke, his voice seemingly swallowed by the inky blackness. Unease permeated every corner of his body.
"Harita, this place is…"
Not bothering to finish the thought, Lieren let the words trail off into the abyss, uncertain where they would go.
The taller figure responded as if he had read the young boy's mind.
"Yeah, I know," he responded. "Stick with me, all right? Who knows what's in here."
Lieren nodded, cladding himself in Fortification magic.
The two, moved… weaved? Swam? Traversed? Anyways, whatever they were doing, they were certainly growing closer to the source if this chaotic mess of a situation. Lieren's eyes grew wide in utter shock and perturbation.
A ghastly moan echoed in the faraway distance.
"…! What was that?!"
Harita pulled the surprised boy closer to him, narrowing his eyes. His vigilant gaze swept over what remains of the world remained, taking it in furiously like a madman in a mental hospital dreaming of his various hallucinations. His eyes were bloodshot wide.
'So even he can feel fear.'
Lieren watched this all unfold intently; eyes wide-open.
"There's something here."
Harita grimaced from his own words. Now that he had said it, there was no turning back. He just had to swallow all his feats one more time just like the previous million. He heard the wail again, this time much fainter and more ominous.
'Of course there is.'
The pair waited for a minute, then continued. After having come this far, they couldn't simply back away now.
Harita summoned Night Eater in his grasp, pointing the sharp, dangerous edge in front of him.
The darkness seemed to be appositely swallowed by the pitch black sword, eaten by its midnight blade. It was as if Harita was holding a piece of darkness itself, barely kept together by the grip he clutched so tightly that veins popped in his hand.
The sword shook for a moment, trembling in what looked like the excitement of a child seeing the circus for the first time.
"Ha... Harita…?"
Lieren, noticing this sudden bout of fear, looked at his Aegis, upturned. He didn't seem to be as affected as the latter, but the remaining terror still left him quaking.
The darkness had always been inside of him.
But that did not mean he liked it.
"It's nothing. Let's continue"
Lieren only nodded sternly, making sure to reduce as much of the mental effects that this horrific domain cast unsparingly on both of them, through their link. It might not be as much as earlier, but from what he could tell, it was helping somewhat to keep his Aegis sane despite the never-ending reminder of the inevitable doom that the heavens above mercilessly cast on the world: certain death.
He took a deep breath and looked on, pinching Harita's shirt.
Something was coming.
◇◆◇◆◇
Red stood tall, her matted fur and many freshly-bleeding wounds still oozing out black sludge of Liquid Death as her scarlet eyes cast a wrathful glare at the beautiful figure in front of her.
Pure white hair betrayed the darkness, swaying despite the lack of wind currents.
"Tired already, my dear? I'm afraid you lasted shorter than I thought. Such a shame. I expected great things from you."
A serene expression grew from the woman's face. She looked… older, more mature. Though she still kept a youthful appearance, it was less pronounced, replaced by mature sensuality and grown-up charm. She carried an air of grace and beauty about her. Masked by her unreadable poker face, it wouldn't be difficult to mistake her as the queen of a powerful kingdom.
In fact, she very well could have been. Nobody this beautiful escapes the vigilant eyes of the lustful noble houses, especially House Passione.
Red wiped the oozing black liquid from her injurer mouth, singing her own fur. She paid no mind to the damage.
"What the hell are you?"
The woman smiled serenely, her face gracious and magnanimous. Her beauty beamed with a horrid foreboding that assailed Red in unending bouts.
"I think you already know by now."
Red's brows furrowed, choking on her words. Never before had she felt so tense, rigid, and vulnerable.
She did know what the beautiful woman was thinking about, she just refused to accept any of it; like a fruit that she knew was tasty, but precluded herself from partaking in its juicy flavor because of some rumor she heard or read from somewhere.
Red bared her bloody teeth and roared powerfully, informing the entire world of her presence, her existence, and the tremendous strength she possessed. She looked wild and uncontrollable, her snarl seemingly enough to age a man one-hundred years in the blink of an eye.
The woman smiled coyly, her charm somewhat seductive. She was not impressed in the slightest.
"Feisty child. You should know your place before you bare your fangs on your elders. If I wished for it, you would have already been dead seven times over."
"..."
Red watched all her moves intently, taking note of the slightest twitch and the most infinitesimal reaction. At the very least, she had to gather as much as she can, no matter how microscopic it may be.
"Heh… hahaha… hehehehe… HAHAHAHA!!!"
The alluring woman suddenly laughed, her voice echoing like a ghastly whisper in the darkness the enchanted forest rested on. For once, her profound evil and infinite malevolence seemed to be more pronounced than ever before.
"Ah, you are quite the entertaining incarnation, indeed. To think that you would choose to bare your measly fangs at me. With your full knowledge and inherited wisdom, at that. If you had stopped to think about it for a second, you'd have realized the grave mistakes, the foolish consequences, and the pitiful inevitable results of your actions. If only you were not such a fool, you may have lived another day."
Then, she stopped, and the shadows grew still. Even after all that she'd said—other than her foreboding laugh—she was still as graceful as ever, the bravado of beauty and excellence never once dissipating on the face of the world. Something seemed to be obfuscating her vile character, Red figured.
'Something powerful to alter the fabric of reality itself.'
Then, her serene beauty flipped to an ice-cold persona. She was still graceful… just less defining and emotional. She extended her had and thrust out her palm at Red.
"…!"
Without any indication of an attack except for her previous motion, a powerful bludgeoning force struck Red's abdomen, shattering her bones and damaging her organs, completely passing through her impenetrable pitch black hide. Black vile shout out of her mouth as she felt her body reacting immediately to the damage.
'There it is again: that powerful invisible force.'
With this mysterious ability, and the inclusion of a few minor ones involving druidcraft, she was easily beaten, bruised, and cut in just a few short minutes. In a way, that was a great achievement; in another, it was devastating failure. Red considered herself the latter.
'Dammit…!'
At this rate, she'll fall—which was less than ideal, but more than enough to deal with. She need only to buy more time.
'Just a little longer…'
The alluring woman's voice echoed right beside her lupine ear, as if she right beside her.
"I already told you: it's futile."
"…?!"
Red jumped, her dark hide standing on end. She reacted so suddenly that she too much power in her leap, causing her to come tumbling into a tree. With a quick flourish, she masterfully manipulated the branches to pull her back up mid-jump, in preparation of the next attack to come.
She needed to be ready at all times, never once yielding her concentration.
However, it never came. And that's exactly when the cold chill caught up with her, permeating throughout her spine.
Something was terribly wrong.
The alluring woman craned her head to the side, and Red couldn't help but follow her gaze. As she did, she noticed two figures through her Domain, one tall and one small.
"No…"
Her voice was like a desperate whisper that caught the world in its grasp.
She felt the entire world fall on her head and crush her as she took note of the smaller figure.
His black hair seemed to blend into the darkness of the world. The pale skin that looked on the verge of unhealthiness and the thin limbs that accompanied them, which she would always berate him about: telling him to eat more and drink more was all there. Moreover, his striking blue eyes that glowed with the ocular powers Manavision, as well a the deep intelligence that it held, barely tapped into by its owner… were all there, just as she had etched in her heart and mind.
The alluring woman laughed wildly once more. This time, her voice echoed instead of dissipating in the darkness. There was a glint of madness in her silver eyes.
"Hahahahahaha!"
She wiped a tear from her eye, truly savoring the moment.
"Ah~ this is rich. To think that you would make such baseless assumptions on people with the lowest of experience is truly a sight to see. It's quite refreshing, actually. With the intricate politics and the never-ending conflicts that Stories these days seemed to wrapped around in, it's a joy to see the natural naiveté of a budding young maiden."
Red began sweating bullets, her arms growing weak as she felt her transformation becoming undone as she fell to her knees. She hung onto the last hope she knew.
'If only Grandmother was here… she'd know what to do.'
The alluring woman smiled wildly as she regarded the two quickly approaching figures, licking her rosy lips. A scent of seduction drifted about her.
"…And it looks like one of them brought something very interesting."