Chapter 28 - A Beautiful Fork

— In the Realm of Retribution —

Nemesis picked up a beautifully sculpted knight and spun it around gently in her hands.

She stared at the smooth wooden platform in front of her, her eyes caressing an alternating pattern of black and white, and tapped the bottom of the tiny sculpture on the table repeatedly, deep in thought.

"Miss Nemesis," a soft voice said delicately. "Miss Nemesis? Are you there?"

An angel the size of the goddess's palm flapped her wings before landing on the deity's shoulder.

"Congrats on your release from house arrest!!!" she screamed happily, ringing her cowbell obnoxiously and tooting her party horn.

"Huh? Oh, sorry, Sera," Nemesis apologized as she gently cupped the little angel in her hand.

"What did you come here for, you naughty child? You know your father is just going to scold you again if you came to play."

"Did you forget, Miss Nemesis? You told me to remind you when it is about to take effect."

"Ahhh, that's right," she said, the realization finally processing in her mind. With a wide smile, she placed the ivory knight in the center of the board and jumped from her throne with glee.

Noticing the empty chair across the table, the little angel asked hesitantly, "Are you playing chess by yourself again, Miss Nemesis?"

"No, Sera," the goddess replied sternly.

Her eyes narrowed as she glared at the wooden board like a predator staring at her prey, the anger boiling in her blood.

"There is another player."

Her voice resounded chillingly across the throne room, and Seraphina cowered in fear, quivering like a fish in a shark tank. She had seen her master this angry twice before, but she was different now...more delusional.

Wanting to redirect the topic of conversation, the little angel flew over to the smooth ivory knight and began to count in her head.

'1 square down and three to the right. 1 square up and three to the left.'

"Oh! A fork!" Sera said excitedly, turning to face her master. "You're winning!"

Nemesis kissed the little angel on her cheek and spun around like a ballerina.

"I always win," she said with a wink. "After all, the pursuit of retribution is relentless."

The beautiful blond walked to her front door and swung it open, revealing the luxurious expanse of fluffy white clouds and clear blue skies. She stared blankly into a space of nothingness, an evil grin forming loosely on her face.

"Struggle for me, why don't you?" she hissed toward the clouds, laughter filling the air.

"Which will you sacrifice first? Your queen or your bishop?"

Eve clutched her heart in pain and woke up drenched in sweat.

'This pain…what was it?' she wondered as she grit her teeth, not wanting to wake her snoozing companions beside her. The gnawing sensation had begun to grow across her body from a few days ago, spontaneously appearing at night and disappearing in the morning, but today was the first day she had felt pain.

'Where did it come from? And why did it burn so much?' she wondered curiously.

Eve sat up and tilted her head toward the brilliant night sky. The stars glistened brightly above them as various insects buzzed in a happy dance around the Doom Monkey's head. Pushing her discomfort to the back of her mind, she giggled to herself and watched the monkey unconsciously swat at the air like a fool.

The silver-haired vampire released a heavy sigh and sliced through the irritating pests in one-fell swoop. Karl's arms dropped to his sides, and immediately, his deep snores filled the air once more. It had only been a couple of days since they had begun their second journey, but the Doom Monkey proved once again that his ability to adapt anywhere was among the best.

With a little smile, Eve got to her feet and walked over to her Big Brother. She caressed his cheek gently, and with a little pout, asked aloud, "Big Brother, would you be sad if I disappeared?"

The young vampire knew that Jason was obsessed with the beautiful princess that she had titled "pretty sister," but...she wanted Jason to care for her too. Her mind turned quickly as she second-guessed herself, a wave of despair forcing her on all fours.

She had already thought of them as family through their many adventures, but what if Jason didn't think the same? After all, if the silver-haired girl thought about it logically, she had dragged him halfway across the Isles to find her father, and immediately after, begged him to stay with her and save her father.

Wouldn't anyone hate her after that? Surely he had his own parents and friends that worried about him, right?

Eve let out a small whimper as tears rolled delicately down her face. Like raindrops, they moisturized the pasture around them, silently falling to the ground with a tender bounce before disappearing into the soil.

"You…you won't leave me after this trip ends, right, Big Brother?" she sniffled, struggling to get the words out. "I have so much fun with you, Karl, Alea, and everyone that…"

She glanced down at her brother's ugly sleeping face and laughed, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"I-I just want to go with you wherever you go," she said, a wave of drowsiness finally rushing over her. "I'll follow you, even to the ends of the universe, if you allow it…"

The adorable vampire's eyes rolled backwards as she fell to the soft grass, deep in sleep. Jason rolled over to his side and sat up, softly pinching the young vampire's cheeks affectionately.

Due to a loud notification ringing in his ear, he had awoken in fright thirty minutes prior but decided to play possum when he heard her emotional venting. After all, he had never seen his sister this worried about anything before and to think that the subject of the matter would be him!

"Of course I would be sad," Jason replied steadily, his deep voice unmoving. "You're my dearest little sister. I'd love to continue going on adventures with you, and maybe one day, if I'm still alive after all the trials, I will take you and Alea to my hometown to show you where I grew up hahaha."

Jason slapped himself in the face, furious that he had let his sister feel so undervalued when he had promised to treasure his companions in this new world.

"I'll be sure to reassure her when she's awake too," he thought slowly to himself.

Jason stared deeply into the night sky for a few minutes before opening the special notification. With a loud gasp, Jason fell on his ass and stumbled backwards with a thud.

"Second Hidden Curse Condition: Hater's Companions…," he murmured before closing his mouth.

His voice trailed, and in a flash, a wave of despair washed over him. Letting out a soft pitiful laugh, Jason got up and ran until his knees crumbled beneath him.

"No! This can't be!'" he yelled, the light draining from his eyes.

"PLEASE! STOP IT! I'LL DO ANYTHING!"

The hate reader screamed for hours into the empty pasture at the top of his lungs, but silence was his only response…

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