Lucian carried the caged Phantylia in one hand, and with a single flash, he returned to his quiet residence.
At this moment, the house itself was empty, with no one waiting inside to greet him. Instead, the sound of cheerful laughter and lively conversation drifted in from the courtyard, giving the otherwise tranquil residence a warm, welcoming atmosphere.
Jingliu, Baiheng, Himeko, March, and Stelle were all gathered there, chatting with one another as though they had known each other for years.
Among them stood one more familiar face—Evernight.
Stelle: "So you really are March's twin big sis? Oh! My! God!"
March: "Stelle, where'd you even pick up that weird way of talking? I'm not even the one who's surprised here! I actually have a big sis? Awesome!"
March truly didn't even know whether she actually had a twin older sister, which was only natural considering she had long since lost every memory of her past.
Still, Evernight looked exactly like her, almost as though they had been carved from the same mold, and even Himeko acknowledged the connection, so there was probably no mistake. Regardless of whether she could remember anything, the thought of reuniting with family—someone connected to her by blood—filled March's heart with a joy she had never imagined she would experience.
Himeko: "Ms. Evernight... I suppose I should say... it's been a long time?"
Even though the two had never truly met in reality before today, Himeko possessed memories from the script, which were no different from having genuinely spent a considerable amount of time together with Evernight, making them, in a sense, old acquaintances meeting once again.
Evernight: "I'm already quite familiar with all of you. Please continue taking good care of March 7th."
Baiheng: "Of course! We get along great. I kinda want her to marry into our family, too."
Evernight: "Don't even think about it. March's still young. It's out of the question."
Jingliu: "Baiheng, watch what you say. Don't leave people with the wrong impression."
Even though Jingliu acted somewhat differently whenever she was alone with Lucian, in front of others, she always maintained the image of a cold, ethereal beauty, as pure and untouchable as a snow lotus blooming atop an icy peak.
Her calm expression barely changed, yet the quiet authority she naturally exuded was enough to make others restrain themselves.
Evernight: "I've only just arrived. You don't mind if I look around a bit, do you?"
After giving Lucian's room a brief glance, Evernight quietly walked toward it beneath her umbrella.
Her footsteps were light and unhurried, carrying an air of quiet elegance as she made her way deeper into the residence, as though she were simply satisfying her curiosity about the place where Lucian had been living.
===
Meanwhile, Lucian paid no attention to the women's conversation in the courtyard for the time being, as his attention had already shifted entirely toward the captive confined within the tiny cage.
Setting the cage onto the table, Lucian rested a hand against his chin and silently studied the resentful heliobus with obvious interest. The tiny cage reflected flickering crimson flames across his face, while Phantylia's furious glare remained locked firmly onto him.
'What's the best way to deal with her?'
Lucian quietly pondered the question.
Phantylia had been unbearably arrogant earlier, speaking as though she were still the untouchable Lord Ravager she once was. Even after being captured and reduced to such a miserable state, she still refused to lower her head in the slightest.
If he didn't teach her a proper lesson, the lingering frustration in his heart would never truly disappear.
More importantly, she was still far too proud and defiant, making it clear that overwhelming pride was deeply rooted in her very nature. Unless that pride was thoroughly shattered, there was no possibility that she would ever genuinely submit to him.
As Lucian's thoughts wandered further and further down that path, with all sorts of colorful ideas gradually surfacing in his mind one after another, the light beside the room's window suddenly distorted ever so slightly.
The surrounding space rippled like the surface of a tranquil lake before a black figure holding an umbrella silently emerged from the warped space like a ghost.
It was none other than Evernight.
Her crimson eyes first swept across Phantylia's agitated true heliobus form trapped inside the tiny cage before shifting toward Lucian's face, where amusement and quiet contemplation mingled together.
"Trying to conquer an energy-based lifeform? I'd be willing to assist."
Evernight smiled faintly, having already guessed exactly what Lucian was thinking.
"One option is to use my power and sentence her within the sea of memories, though she'll most likely suffer the complete destruction of her consciousness."
"Or..."
She paused briefly before continuing in her usual calm voice, though beneath its cool tone lingered an oddly eager undertone.
"...seal her inside a physical body. Once she has a real, fragile body, I can amplify all of her senses and emotions countless times over, and then..."
She paused once more before turning her crimson gaze toward Lucian, her eyes briefly drifting below his waist.
"...you can make full use of your 'specialty.'"
As soon as those words fell, Phantylia's flames exploded violently inside the cage as she let out a shrill, furious scream.
"Who are you?! Vile! Despicable! Shameless! Lucian, you're no better!"
Lucian completely ignored Phantylia's furious curses and merely blinked in mild surprise as he gazed at Evernight.
He genuinely hadn't expected Evernight to come up with such colorful suggestions. He had always assumed she was simply decisive, arrogant, and utterly merciless. Instead, the very first idea she proposed was something that would undoubtedly be censored, the sort of scenario that usually appeared only in hentai doujinshi.
Still, he had to admit that it would be incredibly effective.
A heliobus possessed no physical body, which meant it couldn't truly experience pain, pleasure, or any other ordinary physical sensation. Simply imprisoning Phantylia or verbally humiliating her would never be enough to break someone as prideful as her.
If she were sealed inside a physical body, however, everything would be different. She would regain a complete set of senses, and if Evernight then amplified every sensation tenfold, the number of methods available to him would increase dramatically.
Whips, candles, clamps—the possibilities would become practically endless.
"Alright, lemme borrow your body."
Lucian casually extended a hand toward Evernight, causing her expression to stiffen almost instantly.
"Lucian!" Evernight frowned and immediately stopped him. "You promised me. Are you going back on your word?"
From the way Lucian had phrased it, wasn't he asking her to become Phantylia's vessel before carrying out all of those unspeakable ideas?
Evernight wasn't foolish, so there was absolutely no chance she would ever agree to something like that.
"Haha, just kidding."
Seeing her practically bristle like an alarmed cat, Lucian couldn't help laughing.
"Hmph, that wasn't funny."
Evernight shot him a flat, dissatisfied look.
Lucian merely shrugged as he put an end to the teasing, his expression gradually turning serious as he calmly constructed the image of a suitable physical body in his mind before activating Existence Anchor.
In the very next instant, a fully formed body materialized out of thin air before him. It was none other than the very same body Phantylia had possessed before Lucian destroyed it.
Without the slightest hesitation, Lucian securely restrained the body to the bed, fastening it firmly enough to ensure there wasn't even the slightest possibility of it moving.
"NO! I REFUSE!"
Phantylia roared in panic, struggling with every ounce of strength she could muster as she desperately fought against the inevitable.
Had this happened in the past, she would have welcomed the chance to obtain a physical body without the slightest hesitation.
Now, however, after hearing the conspiracy these two had calmly discussed—sealing her inside a mortal body solely so they could torture her—it had become the very last thing she wanted.
For the first time since her birth, Phantylia desperately rejected the idea of possessing flesh.
Lucian, naturally, had no intention of indulging her wishes.
He reached directly into the cage, seized her true heliobus form with one hand despite her frantic resistance, and forcibly shoved it into the prepared body.
Immediately afterward, he simultaneously invoked the power of three separate Paths, layering one seal upon another until they completely fused together. The reinforced restraints firmly bound both her soul and body as one, ensuring she could never escape from the vessel no matter what methods she attempted.
From this moment onward, Phantylia truly possessed a physical body once again.
The previously lifeless body suddenly convulsed violently as though struck by lightning before its tightly shut eyelids abruptly snapped open. A sharp gasp escaped its lips as life returned to every corner of the vessel, but the eyes that stared back burned with fury, humiliation, resentment, and an unmistakable fear born from the unfamiliar vulnerability of flesh.
Who could have imagined such a dramatic fall?
Only a day ago, she had still been the exalted Lord Ravager, an existence feared throughout the cosmos, whose very name inspired dread wherever it was spoken. Entire civilizations had trembled before her, and countless worlds had been reduced to ashes beneath her will.
Now, she had become nothing more than Lucian's prisoner, a powerless tool left entirely at his mercy, unable to even determine her own fate.
Seeing that everything was ready, Evernight calmly raised a hand and summoned a memosprite.
It resembled a black-and-crimson jellyfish, its translucent tendrils swaying gently as it floated weightlessly through the air. It silently drifted above Phantylia's head before slowly descending, quietly sinking into her body without encountering the slightest resistance.
"Evey will amplify all of her senses, and the baseline is tenfold. It'll also ensure her consciousness won't collapse, no matter how much suffering she experiences."
Evernight spoke as though she were merely explaining the details of an ordinary experiment, her calm expression never changing from beginning to end.
Even Lucian couldn't help raising a thumb in admiration.
He had to admit that Evernight really was ruthless.
As expected of someone capable of slaughtering her way through the Garden of Recollection and leaving countless Memokeepers trembling in fear.
"Lucian! I admit it... maybe I raised my voice a little earlier. I've already lost my Emanator powers. Please... let me go..."
Realizing that escape was impossible and that resistance had become completely meaningless, Phantylia finally chose to lower her pride. The arrogance that had once defined the Lord Ravager was nowhere to be seen as she desperately tried to suppress the panic in her heart, clearly unwilling to endure whatever horrifying punishment Lucian had in mind.
For now, pretending to surrender was the only option.
As long as she could deceive Lucian into lowering his guard and eventually releasing her, there would always be endless opportunities to take revenge in the future.
As long as she survived today, nothing else mattered.
"Phantylia, I actually liked you better when you were arrogant and stubborn..." Lucian flashed a pleasant smile. "So c'mon, go back to being that version of yourself."
As he spoke, he calmly laid several objects onto the nearby table one after another.
An expensive-looking candle.
A polished leather whip.
Two strangely shaped clamps.
And a stun device that crackled continuously with dangerous arcs of electricity.
The quiet series of clicks as each item touched the tabletop echoed throughout the room, making the already oppressive atmosphere grow even heavier.
Picking up the candle, Lucian casually rubbed his fingers together, igniting its wick with the flames of Destruction before slowly making his way toward the bed with steady, unhurried steps.
Watching the assortment of unfamiliar tools in his hands, along with the increasingly 'kind' smile spreading across Lucian's face, Phantylia felt the fear in her heart grow stronger and stronger.
A chill unlike anything she had ever experienced crept through her body, causing every instinct she possessed to scream at her that what awaited her next would be far worse than death itself.
"Y-You... what are you planning to do with those things?! D-Don't come any closer!"
===
[A bonus chapter for reaching 300 Power Stones]
[Support and get early access to upcoming chapters at: patreon.com/VALRRR]