She suppressed its flames and ignored its voice. Bearing her soul to Igor was the same as allowing him to do anything to her. He'd not only be able to see all her memories and secrets, he'd also be able to modify her personality.
Should he so wish, he could turn her into a crippled woman, or a slut. She was giving him the keys to her entire essence…because she trusted him.
"Please search me thoroughly, Dimori-kun. I will not resist you."
.
|DxD|
.
A few moments earlier…
.
Rage? Confusion? Despair? Igor didn't know what to feel. He was angry at how he was seemingly being manipulated by a god. His confusion stemmed from whether he could believe Shuri's words. His despair was…what if her very words were further manipulations?
Gods could never be underestimated. Their divinity allowed them to do things beyond all logical reason. They shouldered concepts themselves. If Amaterasu enlisted a god of deceit, even he might find it difficult to nigh-impossible to spot any falsities.
If…if this Shuri in front of him was a honey trap, a sleeping agent designed to capture him through feminine wiles, he…he didn't know what he'd do. Her very words could be lies, a lead-up to his doom.
Was he too cautious? He had to be. Vasco's words still rang true to this day in his head. The supernatural world had many means. Not all of them would fight him head-on. If Amaterasu's goal was to pull him into her camp, then...was Shuri only a…puppet?
"..."
He couldn't hear a word Shuri was saying. Or rather, he could hear them, understand them, but couldn't process them. His eyes remained layered on her figure. She looked every bit the same as the Shuri he knew from '96---just a bit younger.
The eyes were the same. The colour of her skin was the same. Her smell was the same. Her soul was the same---just stronger with a taint of fire. No matter how he looked at her, she felt every bit the same as the woman he knew.
But…what if? Just…what if? That 'what if' gnawed him constantly. If she was truly the same Shuri magically compelled into loving him, then what would he do? If her existence centered around manipulating him, what should he do to combat that?
Should he…kill her?
"..."
He could do it right now. Her strength was poultry compared to his. He could incinerate her body and prevent the immortality of the Vermillion Bird from potentially reviving her. Akeno would hate him for a few years and Baraquiel certainly wouldn't forgive him, but he'd eliminate Amaterasu's pawn and the goddess herself in the future for daring to defile Shuri's body.
*Clenches Fists*
Nothing could describe the indecision in his heart. He sincerely hoped it wasn't a trick, but it was true he couldn't trust her anymore…atleast not for now. He'd take her back to Aurelia. His sister might have a seal she could use to verify Shuri's words--
"I can guess you won't believe me no matter what I say after this. So…please search my soul. I won't hide any secrets from you."
"..."
No matter how muddleheaded he was, it was impossible for him not to freeze when he heard "search my soul". Searching someone's mind was very easy, but also unreliable. Searching someone's soul, the very core of their existence was impossible or atleast overwhelmingly difficult.
At his level of strength, Igor would not be able to prowl a normal human's soul. He could read their memories, but could never read or alter the core of their existence. It was the same with Shiva. The god could destroy his soul, but never read or alter it without his permission.
"Please search me thoroughly, Dimori-kun. I will not resist you."
"...you…"
He couldn't believe she was casually offering the chance for him to delve into the deepest recesses of her existence. Something so intimate is something one should never show to even their closest twin.
So it stood to reason this could very well be a trick, a fallacy designed to make him take her words at face-value and trust her. As if it would be that easy to trick him.
"Fine."
He decisively grabbed her cheeks and pressed his forehead against hers. Tentacle markings spread from the diamond mark on his forehead and bridged towards hers.
"Ah?"
Shuri was surprised. She could feel something seemingly prickle her skull, but she was rendered mute by Igor's overwhelming presence suddenly entering her body and mind. If he wanted to search her memories or harm the Vermillion Bird in her, she wouldn't be able to stop him.
She relaxed her defences and opened up a pathway to her soul. There was no going back now. Once he entered, he could do anything to her. But…she trusted him.
.
|DxD|
.
A person's soul most often would reflect their deepest desires. Igor knew his soul depicted a battlefield coated in blood, corpses, and ownerless weapons.
Each of those weapons would hold some unique information about him, that could easily be modified. For instance, a bloodied sword could hold information about his love for meat. A person could change that and make him a vegetarian.
When he entered Shuri's soul, he was not surprised to see her home. The two-storey house looked the same as in the real world. Her soul realm was very small, completely incomparable to the size of his or Aurelia's soul.
But it was a given since logically, Shuri was still less than a year old. It was already impressive this wasn't a discordant void. As time passes and her strength increases, her soul may very well include the whole of Kuoh and not this small stretch of forest.
*Sniff* *Sniff* *Sniff*
He took a whiff of the air. The scent was fragrant…too fragrant perhaps.
[Just like Lia's…]
Igor lowered his head with a chuckle. There was no doubt about Shuri's intentions. She actually loved him, or atleast cared enough about him that her very soul was receptive to his presence. If it were the opposite, the smell would be pungent and he would feel as if someone was pouring acid on him, atleast according to the books he read.
Sigh…
He'd have to sort out this matter with Shuri when he came out. The longer he stayed here, the more he'd be influenced by her 'love'. He didn't want his decisions being influenced by a hallucinogenic effect on a spiritual level.
[I don't sense any compulsion factors influencing her decisions. So let's see if I can't flush out any foreign entities here.]
It was the least he could do. He wouldn't be surprised if Amaterasu left something nasty within her. He stood on the lawn with his eyes closed. Her presence was slowly melding with his own, slowly erasing parts of him and replacing them with hers.
She was attempting to soul-bond with him, but he wouldn't allow it, not when he didn't share the very same feelings.
Su Su Su Su Su Su Su Su Su
Golden aura came to life around him. He was in his soul state, but that didn't prevent him from using his Origin Mode. He wanted to go further and use his Kaioken, but her soul would not be able to bear his presence. Regardless, it would be enough.
FUUUUUSH!
His senses spread like a torrential wave. Her soul was barely the size of a large mansion, including the forest so his senses covered every single corner. Shuri would hear an uncomfortable screeching sound because of his actions, but he hoped she could bear it, atleast for a while.
There's no doubt he'd have to make it up to her after this, but he had to know she could be trusted indefinitely, that her soul wasn't left with a ticking time-bomb designed to harm her, him, or anyone else.
And what would you know? There was indeed a foreign energy signature, a divine energy signature.
[A god.]
Killing intent flashed around him. Having a god's fragment in one's soul was rarely a good thing. Before he could chase it down, it took the initiative to come to him.
Whuuuuu…
A small whirlwind of golden light formed before Amaterasu appeared out of it. She was dressed in golden robes befitting her status as a Sun Goddess. She hovered above the grass, her fair feet unstained by dirt. She oozed beauty and regality, yet there was a hint of seductive beauty in her godly visage.
"Oh my~. It seems you found me--"
Su!
"Die."
A parasite was a parasite. It could be gilded in gold and be the most perfect beauty, but fancy dresses and make-up wouldn't change its core essence.
BOOOOM!
He landed a powerful gut punch on her stomach, completely surprising her. Her body bent over his fist, but that wasn't the end.
Ka…DRUUUUUUU!
Right from his fist, Igor released a powerful energy wave that pierced right through her. Her body was tossed far into the air, a gaping hole the size of three heads in her abdomen.
She could be dead, but Igor didn't take any chances.
Su!
He appeared right above her with a massive golden orb the size of a room above him. It rotated menacingly and the pressure it released rattled Shuri's soul.
He'd make it up to her in the future, but he needed to completely eliminate Amaterasu as quickly as he could.
[Final Sun!]
Amaterasu's limp form was engulfed by the cruel sphere. The powerful energy contained within broke her body into pieces which were further incinerated.
Igor was apathetic to her demise. Her divine power was too small to resist raw might. It was overkill. She'd barely completed her sentence and her presence was erased. The tiny fragment of herself had no chance in stopping him.
The skies cleared from the blinding golden glow. Igor had made sure he'd tossed Amaterasu far enough into the skies to ensure the house didn't get damaged in the controlled explosion.
Amaterasu would hate him for what he did, but he didn't want anything in Shuri's soul, including himself.
"There shouldn't be anything else."
If there was something else, he would've sensed it when his sphere exploded. He'd have to visit Amaterasu before he left for Mount Kailasa. He'd probably lose a limb or three, but she wouldn't kill him because he was Shiva's heir.
Regardless, he'd be going to Kyoto soon.
Suuuuuu…
.
AN
.
Did he…did he just use Shiva as his backing? This counts as a political move, right? It has to! Sirzechs would have a field day if he was privy to Igor's thoughts.