~~~ Volume 2 ~~~
So... until the last moment, I didn't expect this idiot to die so quickly... It's partly my fault, but still... he should have lasted a little longer...
He didn't have to do it. If he had survived even one more day, I wouldn't have to deal with him now... Ygh... what a pain in the ass... I can already see how hard it will be to convince him... After all, we are one and the same.
At least with looks, there will be no problem... we look almost identical.
Who came up with the idea to give him black hair with white tips... silver, platinum, ash... anything else would fit perfectly but white? What kind of moron one has to be to make such a basic mistake...
Who was bothered by the black color of hair... do they look that bad?
Annoyed, I grabbed a small part of my fringe in my fingers, looking at it carefully. No matter how long I looked, the conclusion came on its own. - Black is best.
I had experimented a lot with my hair color in the past, a big mistake I would never repeat.
Hmm... at least no one screwed up the eye color. Dark amethyst looks interesting and intriguing... I like it, I could leave them...
No, it's a stupid idea. No matter how I look at it, his eyes are inferior to mine in every way...
Tsk... I would have prepared the spell better if I had known that a small mistake would cause such a mess...
OOO... Our sleeping royal is waking up from his sleep. It took him a while... I'm curious what kind of face he'll make when he sees me.
My left hand immediately found itself on the armrest of a massive throne created from a condensed element of darkness. It may not have looked spectacular, but it was damn comfortable.
I rested cheek on clenched fist, relaxing muscles that were tense from sitting. My eyelids half-covered my eyes, and an indifferent and cold expression dawned on my face.
First impressions are the basis of successful negotiations. I would rather convince this idiot than personally take matters into my own hands... It would be terribly annoying...
" I live??? "
I understand that Ramiel has just died, and wonder how he got back in one piece... but for real? I expected something better than the usual - " I'm alive? " I was disappointed...
Did he really not notice anything strange in the surrounding space? We are literally standing in the middle of nowhere, shrouded in darkness.
Oh, I think he noticed something. The creation of the destroyed pillars turned out to be a good idea... or it was one of the children of the void trying to get to us.
This world is strange. It's better not to go into its details.
What's funny is how nervously it looks around, just like a lost child in the fog.
HAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA the expression on his face, when he saw me, is priceless. Never in my life have I seen someone so surprised and amazed simultaneously. Keeping a serious face suddenly became a task in the "mission impossible" category.
For someone who had just died and literally saw his kneecap, Ramiel quickly pulled himself together. Point taken.
Huh? What is he doing... Is he getting close to me? Didn't he get something wrong?
Where did he get that irrational self-confidence and that arrogant gaze... Ugh... it's driving me crazy... I feel like gouging out those amethyst eyes.
Suddenly, I was dazed... well, yes, he was me... no surprise...
His mouth slightly lifted. Ramiel probably wanted to say something, but I couldn't let him.
I must show him the disproportion in our strength if I want him to consider my words at least. After all, no one understands me better than I do.
It won't be easy for a simple reason. I don't trust strangers, and as far as I know, neither does he.
Although his soul's disintegration has made a little mess in his personality... but it's nothing that can't be fixed.
My cold and emotionless voice broke the prevailing silence. It was not a special procedure because I wanted to look cool. It's just that I became this way because of some past events. I don't want to dwell on it. This is neither the time nor the place.
" Don't you think you look too high? "
Swish
Good response and sense of the element of darkness. At the last moment, he knelt, avoiding the two blades cutting through the air. Hmm... there is something else... what is it called here? Intuition? She's not the worst, either.
Someone must have been scared or stressed. His heart is beating like crazy, and drops of fresh sweat gather on the tip of his nose.
" Immediately better, don't you think? "
I received a brief nod in response. Clever boy, he remembered the previous advice and did not rise. He was definitely scared and accepted the difference separating us, that is... my method works.
" If you want to keep your head, I would advise you to change how you look at me. Arrogance unsupported by strength is nothing more than stupidity. "
And I like that. With the contemptuous look gone, you can talk normally.
With a simple index finger gesture, I ordered him to come closer. I like how quickly he accepted his position. Like an obedient dog, he obeys all commands.
Although knowing me, he's already thinking about how to stab me in the heart with a sword or deal with me in the future.
His pride must be dying at this point, but that's not my problem, at least I think so.
" So... your name is Ramiel? "
His ears twitched, apparently realizing that the timbre of our voices was almost identical.
Had he forgotten his tongue in his throat? Why is it that the only answer I get from him is gestures... Oh, right. I indirectly told him to shut up.
" Tsk... it's annoying. "
Even from here, I can see the shiver running down his spine. This is going to be interesting.
" You don't have to be afraid. It's not like I'll kill you if you speak up. You can speak freely and ask questions. As long as you don't interrupt me and stay within the bounds of common sense. "
The change in attitude was immediate. I don't know if it was a good thing, but Ramiel felt at ease.
He stared at me for a long moment before asking his first question.
" You don't seem to be named Ramiel, do you? "
" ... " idiot, hold me, please. I take back what I thought of him. He has no future.
" Does it make any difference? " I sounded a little nonchalant and mysterious. I like that.
" So what's your name? "
" What my name is doesn't matter much to you, and you wouldn't understand it anyway, even if I spell it out for you. "
" What if… I want to know it? "
I sighed heavily, and the cold air filled my lungs.
" I warned, @#!%%!@#%!@#% !@#!@%@#^*. Does that tell you something? "
If I were to judge based on Ramiel's face, it doesn't tell him anything. Revealing a shred of mystery, I can say that he heard an unintelligible screech and hiss. Some things are meant to be hidden.
" Khm... can we pretend it never happened? "
" Tsk... Don't mindlessly waste my time... " Not that I have little of it.
The slight threat worked. Ramiel skipped most of the pointless questions, getting to the point. How do I know this? It's simple: I would have done it myself.
" So... are you me? I doubt that by pure coincidence, we look almost identical..."
Huh... Finally, something sensible.
The corners of my mouth lifted subtly, forming a barely visible smile.
" And yes and no, it's more complicated than you may think. You're right, but at the same time, you can't be more wrong. "
A look of surprise dawned on Ramiel's face. I didn't even surprise him. If it hadn't been me casting the spell, I probably would have wondered by now what had gone wrong.
" You are me, and I am you. We are one and the same, but different at the same time. How to explain it to you more simply ... "
" Just describe what the problem is, maybe I will understand... "
Swish...
Two blades landed millimeters in front of Ramiel
" Didn't I tell you not to interrupt me? "
" ... "
" Khm. Going back, technically, you are me... Around the age of sixteen, we had identical personalities, character traits, and habits, shared common values, and looked at the world around us in the same way. "
" However, from that point on, your development depended only on yourself. Fortunately, we are not so different from each other, but we are not perfect either. "
It seems to me that the boy easily accepted reality... Not being able to read his mind was stubborn.
" So, I am your reincarnation? "
" Sigh... no, you are not my reincarnation... Avi was right. You should stop reading so many novels."
" ... "
" Coming back, I think you are due a little explanation. After all, it's my fault. You see, Ramiel, the truth is that I don't come from here. To your world, I am someone foreign. I came here to help someone solve a problem. "
" Don't even ask yourself what the problem is and who asked for help because I won't tell you. Even if I wanted to, I'm limited by laws you haven't dreamed of. "
" In order to move freely here, I needed a body. I won't kid you. You came into existence through my mistake... and your predecessors, too. Although it's hard for me to admit it, I broke the spell. To simplify, I ignored some of the laws that govern your world, and as a result, it came out as it did. Instead of an empty shell, I created a new life containing two souls inside. Mine and its copy are prone to change. That's all. "
" Wait, I'm not the first? "
A pleasant surprise, the boy was one of the few who could swallow his pride and listen to the end.
" Your predecessors are fucking retards who got a little power and strength into their heads. They thought they were the strongest in the world until they met me. Do you think the throne on which I sit is made from whose bodies? "
I saw a brief flash of understanding in Ramiel's eyes. Most interestingly, I haven't noticed the slightest sign of fear in him since he stood up. So far, he is the most like me.
" Don't think about it too much. You should even be grateful to me. The one in front of you came up with a brilliant idea and wanted to take over your body by destroying your soul. He was even quite close. Unfortunately, he had to meet me. You can guess the rest. "
Ramiel hesitated, which I noticed with the naked eye. His concern was understandable.
" And, you ... what about you? Since you were looking for a container, don't you want my body? "
Smart boy, I changed my mind. I already like it.
" I'm not going to lie, I want it, and I want it badly, but to take it over goes against the principles that guide your life... At a certain stage of existence, you will understand that a man without principles becomes nothing more than a monster consumed by his pride and ambition. They define our actions and tell us who we are. "
Of course, I lied, in part. It was against my principles, but they can always be bent. I didn't do it because of the potential consequences. I can't take over his body just like that. To do this, certain conditions must be met.
Long suppressed tension escaped from Ramiel's mouth. He sat before me, maintaining eye contact as if that would help him.
" If I am you and you are me, why didn't you help me? Or at least warned me... "
He begins...
" Think a little. It doesn't hurt. Would you listen to me if I suddenly started whispering in your head about a failed spell, other worlds, conditions I can't tell you about for obvious reasons, or laughed at? Besides, it's not like I could do anything until you died."
" You know how to boost a person's self-worth by telling him that he died. "
" I never intended to boost anything. At most, I can hit you. "
" I think there is no need for that. Despite appearances, I like to live, no matter what form it takes."
He's teasing me? This shithead... I swear, if he doesn't stop right away, I'll tear him to pieces and take over his body...
And, oh yeah, I can't do that... ... ...
" Hmm... "
" I swear, if it is one more trivial question, you will end up as a footstool under my feet. "
Ramiel didn't seem too concerned about the threat. Maybe when he found out that he was dead, everything became indifferent to him?
" So this is the other side of the Styx, or the hell Azazel spoke of? This is not how I imagined it," he said. "
Maybe it will be easier to write a book for him and give him to read, rather than explaining everything... Sounds like a great plan.
" We are not even close to these places. If it intrigues you so much, we are in a specially designated area inside my soul, which is implanted in yours. That is as if you don't look at it, we are simultaneously in you and me at once. "
" Currently, you are drifting between life and death. You could call it stagnation. Look at this. "
I have created three spheres of different sizes floating freely in the air in front of Ramiel.
" The smallest and most pathetic of them all is you. "
I placed the smallest one between the two larger ones. Spheres of energy condensed to the limit revolved around it, like planets orbiting a star.
" The one in rotten green, consider it the world of the dead. It is divided... Sigh... I don't want to list it all. Just recognize that most of the lands described in myths, where dead souls go, are just real. But you don't have to worry. They are just a stop on the path of stray souls, of course, for those who can survive there. "
"The one with a pleasant, light green hue is the world you live in. Although, a better term is, one big square, divided into tens of thousands of smaller ones. For now, you don't have to worry about it. "
" The empty space between them doesn't concern you either. The less you know about it, the better for you. Take my word for it. You don't want to draw the attention of the beings trapped in it. "
(A/N First, welcome everyone to the second volume ^^. I hope you will have fun and leave lots and lots of power stones.
There will be many adventures waiting for us related to the world outside the dungeon, as well as a lot of dungeon development. You will finally see what I had in mind when I started this novel.
Secondly, if you don't like the change of perspective, you don't have to worry, you won't see it very often, but it will appear. I just wanted to experiment a bit. I feel that from a first-person perspective, I can show the character's character and emotions easier.
What more can I say? I invite you to read on.)