".....You must die."
Aries stared at the fire in front of him, and he seemed to be recalling a fire scene from the past. Seeing that sight, his mana suddenly exploded, covering his entire body.
'How dare she...how dare she start a fire right under my nose, huh…?'
"Shit!...that freak is activating his bloodline. Couldn't you have done it while my headpiece was on?...my veil can't help in this situation...." Knowing full well his father's bloodline, she ripped her skirt and covered her eyes before his transformation was fully activated.
The magical circle representing the bloodline of the fox tribe appeared under his feet, swallowing the out-of-control mana and showing Aries's true form.
[Ad Tergum Originis]
It's a state in which the non-human species who have monster lineage transform back to their original form while keeping some of their human qualities intact; it's a power unique to bloodline users whose purity is over 70%.
A black fox with golden lines all over his body and forth tail, his shining black fur and alluring looks with eyes that switched to golden, the entire aura around him shifted to that irresistible existence that draws you without you even realizing it.
Aries laid his eyes on Garb; the next second, he was right behind him, surrounding him with his nine tails, with one on his head and the other on his chin.
"It's over," he said, then snapped his head clean.
-snap-
-fall-
He looked at the dead body on the ground full of disgust. "One is gone..." His sharp eyes landed then on Caroline as he pointed at her. "You're next."
Caroline suddenly started clapping, eyes smiling as she stared at him.
-clap, clap-
"That look is addictive," Caroline said, all fascinated by him, but her tone shifted to serious. "Too bad your seduction doesn't work on me."
Fear crossed her arms, standing full of arrogance.
"If I were you...I wouldn't count on that."
"What do you mean?!" Caroline actually got confused by her words and quickly turned her gaze towards him, scanning him upside down. 'That boy, apart from his insanely good looks, his chanting is no threat to me...but why is fear actually not the slightest bit worried?...This is what's actually strange…'
Not until their eyes met and her body froze in place as she started sweating heavily, 'Are those fucking eyes?...I am absolutely sure that man killed me dozens of times in his head...'
She tried to move, but his gaze never once left her, nor did he even flinch, and without realizing it herself, she was standing right in front of him.
"Fuck!?"
'Is it normal for someone's gaze to be glued on another like that?' She thought
Using her fire magic, she was watching everything by monitoring their body heat.
'All that they know about the Alkana's bloodline is that they are charming foxes with a Vox ability to control sound, but what they don't know is that an Alkana in his true form is like a wild beast; his only purpose of existence is to hunt.' She thought
'The silent rule in this world: the Alkanas are the tenth royalty who never cared about the crown.... Even for me, I need to stay humble when dealing with any of them, yet that idiot dared to threaten none other than the Alkanas' heir; she's fucked for sure.'
fear thought as her lips suddenly curled watching as caroline's body heat suddenly disappeared
"What the hell did you do?" Fear said removing the cloth over her eyes slowly opened her eyes; his pupils dilated from the horrifying scene.
Aries was holding a bounding heart in his hand, still freshly dripping blood on the ground. She turned her gaze towards Caroline's eyes, full of concern, but all she saw was a corpse lying on the ground with a huge hole in her chest.
'....They are not just any charming vessels; they are dethroned kings that should never be underestimated,' she thought.
Apparently the sight of Aries throwing the bloody heart on the ground and wiping his hand from disgust made her feel what the word "fear" means; she stumbled to find suitable words and was even more hesitant to say them ,'that kid's potentials are even greater than his parents '
After Aries deactivated his bloodline, he removed his white gloves and threw them on the ground and stomped on them.
Then from his dimensional ring he took another new one and wore it; his deep, raw voice said,
"No matter the reason why you keep staring at me like that, you better stop before this turns ugly..."
"Ugly???!!" She suddenly shouted and then pointed at the corpse lying on the ground, "Is there something uglier than this?"
Aries made direct, intense eye contact with her just as a slow, wicked smile found its way to his charming face.
"Want to find out?"
That moment made fear shiver inside, but she dared not to show it ,'i really do want to hit him'
instead, she raised both hands, making a playful face.
"No, thank you; I chose to pass."
Seeing him stare in silence, she had absolutely no idea what's going on in his mind. 'So is it a pass or not?!'
Inside she was truly terrified he might spot that split second of weakness, 'Damn it, this kid is way harder to deal with than his father; I need to change the subject...'
"So...what exactly is your magic exactly?" She asked.
"I knew it ... something fishy is going on in that family." Seeing his expression change, she continued her questions, "I have seen your father use his bloodline before, and I can tell yours is different ... this is not the Alkana's bloodline I know."
Aries brushed his lips, then he smiled, showing his perfect teeth, then his cold voice snapped her out of it.
"If you want to know, it's not impossible."
"Really?"
Fear's happiness couldn't last long seeing that he is no longer standing in front of her. "Where did he go?"
She started turning her head right and left, but she suddenly froze as she felt Aries's breath on her neck.
"Give me a life, and I will tell you."
His low, creepy voice made her unable to react, but seeing her like that made him lose his interest instantly; he walked away from her.
"Boring... I knew it, sis is the only one who could play with me."
'That OCD motherfucker actually wanted to kill me just now.... Imagine him being like that and a sister alcoholic on top, who wants to play such dangerous game with you?.' She swallowed her breath, forming a dark thought inside her, 'Just how can she control such a freak...?'
Aries placed a new mask on his face while thinking, 'This place turned into such a mess, so I need to get to serenity before someone does... But there is still a problem ahead of me...'
He turned his head in fear.
"Take me to my sister's dorm now."
"Huh?!.... The situation is already like this, and I still have other people to save. Go by yourself; at least that way I can guarantee the dorm's safety," she said.
"You want me to act alone? Fine by me, but first..." He took out a paper and a pen and started writing. "I documented all you said; sign it before I let you go."
He handed her the paper, and she stared at it in disbelief.
"Is the situation really suitable for this shitty etiquette?"
Aries answered firmly, "It doesn't matter the occasion; this is not Avalor. I won't do anything without a proper process."
'Those old-fashioned freaks...sometimes I really envy their courage' she thought, then snatched the paper from his hand and signed it. "Can I go now?"
"I'm not holding you, so why are you asking me?" He said, folding the paper and placing it into his pocket, leaving her all shocked.
"That tonge really needs to be cit" she said in anger but he wasn't focused on her so he heard nothing
'Now that I got the paperwork done, I can move on my way without trouble...' he thought, looking at the gloomy sky over his head.
[Avis]
Fear looked at the place where Aries teleported in a daze; unlike her previous playful cowardly aura, her demeanor changed completely to a calm, sharp look in her eyes, like the world had shown her enough.
'My dear friend, fate won't go easy on you as long as you insist on protecting them.' Her silent gaze turned to the sky as she started walking away past that place.
Her every step drew a small fire lily burning the ground to ashes. Standing in the middle of beautiful orange-red mixed yellow flames, she pushed her cloak from her shoulders to the ground, removing her glasses and black veil and throwing everything to the ground.
"I truly don't know if your kids are a blessing or a curse, Jevon...but good luck dealing with what's next," she said.
She brushed her long fire ombre hair backwards; the transition from dark black roots to fiery red, vibrant orange, and softer bright yellow tips, along with those golden eyes, made her charm irresistible.
As she raised her hand, the fire lily under her feet suddenly grew in size, swallowing the entire area around her.
Her cold, demanding voice suddenly echoed through the battleground.
"If you don't show yourself, I don't mind burning you alive..."
From inside the flames, a mysterious figure came rushing into the sky, spreading her black bat wings into the air, showing her shiny dark night hair, and wearing an elegant gothic black dress with that spotless porcelain-like skin, but she couldn't hide that cold, undead, dark yet alluring presence.
Fear said with a helpless tongue,
"Caroline...the vampire queen you are."
Caroline smiled, answering in a cold eerie voice.
"I will take it as a compliment."
Caroline pointed at fear using her long silver sword, "But no matter what you say, this fight I must come out of it victorious...no matter the cost…"
Fear stayed silent for a while before saying,
"You're doing it like this really breaks my heart...Does your daughter know you're even here?"
Her bloodshot eyes narrowed as she lunged at her with full force, but before her sword touched her, Fear closed her fire lily, locking herself inside, making the attack worthless.
"You should know I am the last one to be afraid of that sword in your hands... you can't even touch me," Fear said.
Caroline landed on the ground with her red high heels, throwing that sword onto the ground.
"I never thought it would work against you anyway..." Her gaze slowly turned to fear, "...you're the so-called 'Gloriosa' after all."
With Caroline unarmed, fear removed her fire protection, and she watched as Caroline clapped for her.
"A flower that evolved absorbing the flames...now that's what I call a miracle."
Fear looked at her totally emotionless.
"Hearing those words coming from a heartless person like you who abandoned his own flesh and blood doesn't feel like a compliment."
"She's his daughter, not mine," she said.
Caroline's aura was released at that moment, covering the entire area with a dense, disgusting aura that was heavy enough to reduce the small stones around them to ashes, but Fear wasn't the least bit bothered.
"You say not your daughter but his, and he says not his daughter but yours ...hah, what kind of hell of a parent are you?"
Those words coming from her mouth seemed to have struck a nerve for Caroline that she lost her cool for a second and started laughing hysterically, clutching her stomach.
"Hahahahahahhahahah...what kind of a parent, you say?" She looked up at Fear with red glowing eyes, and the smile on her face disappeared in an instant regaining her cold stone like face. "Where were you then?"
She walked towards her sword slowly with an expressionless face.
"Where have you been when I was forced into that damn marriage?...When that bastard abandoned me for that so-called love of his life, where were you?...When I was almost dead giving birth to that jinx, why didn't I see you?..."
She grabbed her sword from the ground. "That so-called friendship ended a long time ago when I found all of you do not exist in the time when I truly needed you...fine, like this, at least I am alive."
"Alive, you say...as a mother, doesn't your consciousness hurt seeing your daughter living the hell you ran away from? I have seen parents, and that's not the way they act." Fear turned her gaze away from Caroline. "Don't play the victim card on me. It's no use; in my eyes, you are just the most worthless and vain person I have ever seen."
"The real worthless thing is them," pointing with her sword at the two corpses Aries left behind, "just a little mind controlling and they completely lost their minds."
Caroline threw the sword, aiming for the head of the woman's corps, but as fear turned around and saw how the sword was stuck, she felt genuine sadness. 'Just what did the owner of that body do in her life to meet such an end at the hands of those two maniacs?'
"Using your mind ability, knowing it causes permanent damage to the others ...I take it back; you're not just worthless and vain but a ruthless bastard who deserves no mercy."
Seeing how fiercely fear was looking at her, she felt bitter in her heart.
"How lucky you are...not being in my shoes, I mean, but...this shit has to end."
Caroline bit her finger and used her own blood to draw a line on her forehead, and a gush of blood started coming from under her feet, wrapping the whole area in a huge dark red bubble.
Inside there was a small world with everything colored in red; Caroline's voice echoed throughout the realm.
"Welcome to my bloodline world.... [RATNO]
Standing right before the bright red moon was Caroline, waving her giant wings and wearing a gothic, elegant, slit, red and black dress.
Fear came out from under the red sand.
"Cough, cough, cough...Seeing this situation, I'm glad I sent that clean freak kid away; he would've complained nonstop, and I would've had to hit some sense into him, which is...not a good idea with that other freak joining the game."
"Don't relax too early…" Caroline said.
"Why not?....Can't I be happy?...." Fear looked up at her, "You might not know, but that kid is quite a hassle to deal with when agitated."
Caroline slammed her head in disappointment, "Whatever, as long as you're trapped here, my mission is done."
Fear's gaze narrowed, looking at her with a direct killing intent for the first time.
"What do you mean?!?"
"Shit, it slipped...Since that's the case, then there is nothing to hide," Caroline smirked, saying, "No matter the outcome today, you won't be able to save anyone, 'cause you can never get out of here."
"What the hell have you done?"
The black lily birthmark burned with flames, from her chest all the way spreading on her whole body, burning the entire outer bright skin, turning it into a smoky gray one as her anger kept flaring up. "Why have you come here, Caroline?"
"So now you're showing your true form," Caroline mocked her. "You seemed pretty interested in Jevon's kid just now, yet all along you were using a clone... Don't you think he would've been hurt if he knew about this?"
"Hurt or not being alive is what matters," she said while thinking, "Lying about the true realm of an eighth-circle magician with a bloodline purity of 77% is considered a white lie, I guess."
"For once we're on the same page." Caroline nodded, but her cold attitude was restored in less than a second. "Give up fear; today will be the end of REGIS whether you like it or not."
Fear stomped her feet into the ground, igniting another much larger fire lily, spreading It's leaves all over the closed domain.
Fear kept shaking her index right and left in denial. "Tut, tut, tut...I don't think so."
"Huh!?! "
A sly smile curved its way through Fear's lips. "At least not for a while ago...some variables happened to awaken; this battle today might not turnturn out as you imagine."
"You're actually that confident?"
'Did she see something again? Caroline shook her head, removing the entire idea from her brain. "Whether they can or not is none of our business. With two people strengthening this domain from the outside, your fire can never help you break free, not even if you killed me."
"What's the use of keeping me here? I'm not the ace of this fight anyway, not to mention..." Fear slammed her fists together. "Whether you have the ability to keep me trapped here or not is another story."
Fear slammed her fist into the ground, chanting,
[IGNIS]
A cyclone of flames spread across the entire field, cracking it like a glassy mirror, for them to fall on the ground while half of the dark red bubble turned into pieces of broken glass.
Caroline stood there in the air watching as he rtwo companions tried to ambush fear but both ended up beeing pushed two meters away.
"ThAt was a bad idea for sure"
Fear's skin went back to normal, and as she started to wipe herself clean from the dust, she turned her head towards the stadium, feeling the surge of dark aura gradually increasing from there.
"Don't tell me their target is there?"
In a panic she spread her wings and wanted to fly over there but was stopped by black threads of dark energy that caught her off guard, tying her up in its spider web.
"What the hell is going on here?"
"Lilia~, you didn't do a good job.....the fire almost burned us."
A little lolita girl with curled dark purple hair and a small spider bag on her shoulder, standing behind her, a man wearing servant clothing and a face covered with black bandages and a smile drawn with blood on it
'Shoot, another two... I am outnumbered, and this might not be good. I need to get out of here quickly .' The panic finally hit her, but as she tried to use her fire to free herself from the webs, she found no response at all.
"No use; you better stop before you hurt yourself," the little lolita said and followed with a slight tilt of the head. "I am not that woman Lilia, so forget about me leaving any kind of opening to you."
The man in black that was assisting caroline hurried to defend himself. "Lady Victoria, I didn't hold back on anything."
"Then why is she still alive and well?"
"She's just strong ...that's all."
"Strong, huh..." After thinking for a while, she suddenly smiled, looking at both of them , giving them the fright of their life.
'What's wrong with that lunatic?' And sure enough; in that split second, a sword came flying into the man's back shoulder.
Victoria used her webs to move that silver sword. Knowing who did it, they dared not make a sound or move even a little.
She was clearly pissed, even glancing at caroline made her angry ,'if that bitch wasn't with the master i would've killed her myself.....but i hate not even being able to question her'
the angrier she got, the deeper her sword got inside his flesh, talking with them but her words are cleaclearly for caroline. "I gave you the sword to kill her, not for you to chat with her over your past together."
While the kid looked cute, she's actually a monster. The man emitted a creepy air around him, especially the dead silence he was loyal to.
"I am sorry; that won't happen again. Please give me a chance to atone for my sin," he said.
Victoria thought about his words for a while and then removed all her webs. "Okay, we will see about that."
Before he could even relax, Victoria grabbed the sword from his back ,and sliced the neck of the other man then pressed it onto his neck. "Failure this time will cause you more than just your pathetic life, I assure you."
"Don't worry; I won't fail this time."
"Enough " caroline said and flew with utmost speed till she landed onto the ground
From the ground underneath her as she walked , a strange silver liquid gathered onto her body, forming a tight armor. This time she didn't use the pouring silver sword but instead a bloody red one with a black hand, clearly a bad sign.
This time without uttering a single word, she moved toward the tied fear and pointed her sword at her.
Fear though being unable to use her magic, she didn't show a hint of weakness and stared at the sword in her hand, saying coldly, Nothing like her life is about to be lost,
"You can never kill me, Caroline."