Elrid gazed at the woman who was revered by his entire race in disbelief. ''Matriarch, I cannot allow you to do this, especially for the sake of a mere human'' he protested.
But Theia responded with a tender look, ''No, my little one. I must do this. The perils of the world are something that you are unaware of.'' Despite having saved her race through her self-sacrifice, fate appeared to have already predetermined their extinction, and to compound matters, all she could do was observe its aftermath, for she had no other course of action.
''But...But...You are the Goddess. There is nothing this insignificant mortal can do that you cannot,'' Elrid persisted.
''The statement might have held a couple of millennia back, but circumstances have changed drastically now,'' responded Theia. Despite her reputation for arrogance, she demonstrated a surprising willingness to clarify everything to Elrid.
It appeared that going through the experience of delving into the afterlife and coming back, only to discover that a sole member of her kind remained alive, could change an individual.
Additionally, it should be noted that Theia hadn't technically returned from the underworld yet, as her new vessel, Dante, was presently situated in a dimension that resembled the depths of hell as he battled a certain spider.
Elrid persisted in his objections, reminding Theia that binding her soul with Dante's would not bring any good. ''I cannot allow you to bond with a human's soul, especially if it is to protect me,'' he said. ''I would gladly give my life to guarantee yours, but this is not the way.''
Theia responded firmly, ''I cannot allow you to sacrifice yourself, and the child's parents would make it their life's mission to end me if anything were to happen to him. Furthermore, as you are aware, my objectives cannot be achieved without the child. I must go through with this.'' Her tone was serious, and she locked eyes with Elrid to emphasize her point.
Elrid realized that Theia's decision was beyond his control. Besides, Dante had already obtained the ultimate gift from the Abyssal Race, such as the legendary forsaken art, or at least that's what Elrid believed.
With her profound understanding of the race she essentially gave birth to, Theia would amaze both him and Dante as she imparted the true essence of wielding the catastrophic might of Abyssal Energy. Their minds would be blown away by the depth of her knowledge and expertise and how ignorant they were of its use.
Theia stated, ''I only require the child to be on the brink of death to fully awaken the forbidden art and bind with his soul.''
''Isn't he already close to death? How much closer can he get?'' Elrid inquired with the corner of his lips twitching.
''What is the name of the clan's forsaken art? Do you know about it?'' Theia asked something off-topic.
Elrid responded with a matter-of-fact expression, ''Of course, I know about it. It's called Curse of Theia.''
The traditions of the Abyssal Race brought great pleasure to each Abs, and Elrid cherished this particular knowledge since it was one of the few things he retained from his race before their extinction, along with his exceptional cosmic strength. Therefore, he considered these his most precious treasures and wouldn't easily part with them.
Theia asked, even though she knew Elrid didn't know, ''Do you know why it's called that?'' She asked to create a dramatic effect and showcase her prideful self.
Elrid's hollow eyes sparkled as he replied, ''No, I don't know. Can you tell me?''
''Well, you'll soon understand,'' she said with a sense of pride on her face. ''You're lucky to be able to witness such a glorious day.''
Gesturing towards Elrid, Theia took control of the Abyssal Energy flowing through Dante's unconscious body, which was currently fighting off the frightened spider.
Elrid's body was drenched in sweat, but a sigh of relief escaped his mouth as Theia took over. He knew that with Theia here, they had narrowly avoided what could have been qualified as the terrifying maws of death.
This conversation took place while what could now be accurately described as Dante's consciousness floated in the pitch-black void. Meanwhile, his body was still engaged in a fierce battle, but he had suddenly lost the upper hand.
The fog that had previously spread out in a wide radius had now concentrated into a round ball beside his spine. Perhaps one positive outcome was that the fog had fully dissipated, causing his body to regain consciousness and the gaping wounds left by the spider's legs to heal.
However, the aftermath of the fog left an astonishing sight as multiple scars resembling burn marks appeared all over his body. His tense muscles were unable to move even a single inch, and it appeared that his Oppressive Control ability had vanished, leaving him without even the most basic human control over his body.
To compound matters, the hostile environment had a severe impact on him as the cold and ominous wind swept over his numerous scars.
He was transfixed by the sight of the gooey trail of blood that led to the screeching spider with countless gashes on its body. Its sprawled-out legs littered the battlefield, but what astonished him, even more, was the absence of any evidence of a fight beyond the obvious corpses of creatures and the spider's body parts.
The terrain remained unchanged, and the flying creatures above them seemed indifferent to their surroundings.
Abruptly, he was jolted out of his daze by a deluge of memories flooding his mind. He struggled to make sense of everything and comprehend what had transpired in what felt like an eternity but had only lasted half an hour.
Meanwhile, the cunning spider realized that the human who had injured it had lost its powers, and its confidence was renewed. Despite the severity of its injuries, it knew that its chances of survival in this territory were slim to none. Therefore, it was resolved to go down fighting the human who had put it in this state.
Using its remaining two legs for support, the spider began weaving a web using the threads it had gathered. It collected as many of its detached legs as it could find before binding Dante's katana and tossing it away into the distance.
Just before the fog cleared, Dante had been on the verge of delivering the killing blow, but the chaotic events had left him disoriented, causing him to make a critical error that no swordsman should make.
Exploiting this, the spider took advantage of the situation and separated Dante from his katana, which was the cornerstone of his fighting prowess.
With three of its legs bound by the web threads, the spider's dismembered limbs floated above it. Its severed legs sliced through the air, aimed directly at Dante to impale him.
The piercing tips glistened with a purple liquid that coated the transparent threads, leaving behind a thin purple line connecting the spider and its detached legs. The other threads shot towards Dante in the same manner, each one poised to strike.
Instinctively, Dante managed to dodge most of the legs, but one grazed the side of his cheek, leaving behind a faint purple mark. The detached legs attached to the threads shot towards him with incredible speed and piercing force, and he barely managed to survive through a series of evasive maneuvers, including sidestepping and backflips.
Despite his agility, he couldn't escape unscathed, as small purple marks appeared on his skin. This ordeal was a testament to his human resilience, and it was evident that the spider was also on its last legs- literally.
As Dante continued to evade the spider's detached legs, he realized that he needed to act fast before he was overwhelmed. In a moment of clarity, he remembered the basic principles of combat and assessed the situation. The spider was weaker now, but its remaining legs were still a formidable threat.
Dante took a deep breath and steadied himself, waiting for the next onslaught of attacks. As the legs came hurtling towards him, he used his katana-less training to block and parry the spider's strikes.
Knowing that the spider was using mana in its attack, he anticipated trouble and was fully aware that he would face some difficulties. He realized he had only enough mana for a basic ignition spell, so he chose to utilize the resources available to him at the moment.
His reflexes were sharp and his movements were graceful as he dodged and weaved through the spider's legs.
Suddenly, all the grace he had exuded a moment ago vanished in an instant as he froze up, his body wracked with pain. At that moment, he comprehended the true meaning of taking responsibility for power beyond his capabilities.
The spider, sensing that it had Dante on the ropes, decided to make one final move. It let out a piercing screech that caused Dante's ears to ring, and in that moment of confusion, it lunged at him with all its might.
Dante, unable to fully register what was happening, was caught off guard as the spider's legs dug deep into his flesh, causing him to scream out in pain.
As Dante struggled to free himself from the spider's grasp, he felt a strange sensation coursing through his body. The purple liquid from the spider's legs had seeped into his wounds and was spreading through his veins like wildfire. He knew that he had to act fast before the poison took full effect, but he was already feeling weak and disoriented.
Summoning all his strength, Dante grabbed hold of the spider's remaining legs and pulled with all his might, tearing them off one by one. The spider let out a blood-curdling screech as it writhed in pain, but Dante didn't let up. He knew that this was his chance to finish the creature off once and for all.
Summoning the last of his strength, Dante made a final leap onto the spider's back, driving his hand into its body. However, he was thwarted by the creature's tough exoskeleton leaving his right hand mangled.
Determined to prevail, through gritted teeth, he focused his remaining mana, and a flickering burst of inky-black flames enveloped his left hand.
With his hand coated in flames, he plunged it into the spider's body, tearing out its heart. The arachnid let out a final screech before collapsing lifelessly to the ground.
[Ding!]
Dante collapsed next to the spider's body, feeling the poison coursing through his veins. He knew that he had to find a way to get help before it was too late, but his body was already beginning to shut down. In a last-ditch effort, he crawled toward his discarded katana as the poison ravaged his entire body.
Suddenly, a woman appeared before Dante, far more beautiful than any of the usual prostitutes that roamed the slum. She exuded an air of pride and dignity that commanded respect. Extending her hand, she beckoned to a katana that seemed to float toward her. This woman was naturally Theia.
Running her hand along the blade, the woman seemed lost in thought, lost in memories of the past. ''I know he's weak,'' she said with a proud voice, ''and I am proud that you allowed him to wield you. But now, your reins will be released, and he must prove himself worthy of you.'' As she spoke, the pitch-black blade of the katana vibrated, as if in response to the woman's words.
Finally acknowledging Dante's presence, the woman controlled him as he stood up straight and floated toward her. The multiple holes oozing with Dante's blood and the purple poison didn't faze the woman as she laid her hands on Dante.
A white dreamlike aura surrounded both of them as they floated in the air. The mysterious aura seemed to keep Dante conscious- albeit barely.
As the white aura surrounded them, it triggered a concentration of residual energy from the poison that had infected Dante. The energy coagulated into a small ball before being devoured by the Abyssal Energy stored around his spine. This would have been a positive development, but the merger of the two energies resulted in an unstable ball of energy that moved toward Dante's brain, corroding everything in its path from his spine to his brain.
Through the neural network, purple lines moved across his entire body, merging with silver and blue lines that it encountered around his muscles. The once stable energy within Dante had now become a volatile mix that threatened to tear him apart from the inside out.
As the coagulated energy merged with Dante's brain, its remnants dispersed, leaving behind violent lines with a metallic sheen that coursed across his entire body. After multiple revolutions, the energy dissipated, and Theia gently let Dante down as he collapsed on the floor.
A burst of energy suddenly erupted from Dante, creating cracks on his skin. His eyes bled as the energy ravaged his entire body, and a violet fog hovered around him. Despite the absence of the whitish aura, Dante remained conscious throughout the ordeal.
As the burst of energy erupted from Dante, it seemed to call out to the once-indifferent creatures around him. They descended from their place of superiority and landed on the ground, staring at the human surrounded by the alluring energy.
The creatures could only salivate as they gazed upon the being that was one of them. It was obvious that this being was Theia.
Even with his bleeding eyes, Dante was surprisingly able to see even as he underwent his evolution. It felt like a sixth sense as he saw everything in great detail. With the amount of pain, he currently went through he didn't have the luxury of worrying about the creatures.
And it seemed the woman would take care of him. For some reason, he felt some reverence toward her the more his evolution reached completion.
Suddenly a feeling of shock and dread covered him as the sight of meteors and comets raining down from the pitch-black sky filled his vision. The most shocking thing was the familiar Abyssal Energy that coated them.
And the mysterious woman that had somehow jump-started his evolution was the cause of it all. Suddenly his vision changed as he arrived on the cold hard road of the deserted town.
The sound of the hovering ambulance rushing toward him filled his senses as his vision flickered, his eyes now dried with blood, and his clothes nonexistent. All that remained was the flickering dungeon portal, as Dante struggled to stay conscious.