Take Up the Cross – Chapter 88: Last Call at the Call and Homeward Bound

“Grandpa has a way of staying stuck in his own ambitions. He’s actually pretty fun to talk to if you can get him going about his life before, well, this.”

The Call’s subdued atmosphere after the earlier festivities is a bit thrown off by the reactions of the slayers Lycia and Adris walk past.

Many leave their path after noticing the two and promptly find other business, discovering that they like Lycia a bit less than they thought.

Those that remain have varied thoughts which they try to hide beneath neutral expressions, but fail to conceal from a trained beast’s senses.

But the really bizarre ones linger in Lycia’s path, sizing her up as she is forced to wait for them to break first and allow her to pass.

(Disgusting. I had the worst effect…)

[TAKE WHAT YOU NEED AND LEAVE A SHELL.]

Almost always men, these bravado-soaked fools breathe heavily as her odor is near them, turning red-faced as they no doubt imagine suffering the same abuse as the boy traveling beside Lycia.

Trying to earn her “displeasure” truly displeases her in a non-amused way.

“Of course, anything shared with us is…”

“We’ll keep our mouths shut. Especially about the mayor!”

“… That’d be helpful. Though you already knew what she is coming in, it’s not public knowledge, right?”

“Not that I’m aware of.”

The two drunk boys, one in appearance and the other in spirit, continue to yap at each other. Such familiarity between bizarre existences causes Lycia to stay tense, for she can’t feel the same draw and security that Adris does.

(I don’t like people that don’t make sense…! If you want me, then try to take me!)

[SO EAT THEM.]

That thought almost becomes the chosen one when Lycia is confronted by a group of slayers who bleed strength in their scents and spirits. She keeps her panic contained, instead lifting an eyebrow as she leers at them.

Egotistical women, with self-confidence and surety of their own status as they flaunt their artful styles, form rows to confront her, with sharp men who seem just as focused flanking them at their edges.

Eager claws beg to slide out, looking to prove lethality still existing which has been stripped from them. Lycia chews on the need to remind the Call of who is boss.

(I hate feeling trapped!)

[CLAW YOUR WAY OUT!]

For a creature that has lost so much, to be confronted by the stern gazes of monster hunters as they…

““““THANK YOU VERY MUCH, SISTER! GOODNIGHT!””””

(Who the fuck is your sister!?)

[PROVE IT BY OFFERING FLESH.]

Rather than have a contest of wills, every one of them bows low while parting for her to leave.

So surprised that she tiptoes, Lycia stalks between them.

(I… I need to say something?)

[TEACH THEM TO FEAR THIS HUNGER.]

Bringing a finger to her lips, she lets it slide off before baring her teeth as a warning.

“… Ingrain upon yourselves what I’ve demonstrated to you about my true nature!”

““““OF COURSE, SISTER!””””

Outside and down the steps between pillars, Lycia stares out into the night.

To her eyes, day is what is blinding, while the darkest night for humans is the same as a memory from very long ago, where a shining orb overhead didn’t harm her with its rays.

“I don’t understand you people.”

A voice filled with frustration causes the foolish Castile to just laugh uproariously while slapping his thigh. All of the drinking affects him the hardest, for he let loose the most.

“Miss Lycia, you just don’t understand the kind of impact you’ve had! Rather than frightening or dominating them like you intended to, half the Call has fallen deeper in love with you.”

“… You all should be wiped from the earth. I get being sexually attracted to me, but to offer affection toward one who shows open disgust…?”

A slap on Lycia’s butt causes her to reflexively try to cuff the source of it with the back of her hand, but the imp responsible easily ducks it.

“You least of all make sense.”

“Thanks for confirming I still have my mystery, sis.”

With his hands behind his head, the masked manipulator who claims to be from another world eagerly rejoins her when she calms down. Like Castile, he took his share of the master’s cabinet. Though avoiding her advances earlier, the boy now relishes in feeling over her body when he can be sure she won’t catch him.

(I don’t like being the one attacked. I wish you’d get the hint.)

[ONLY I CAN TAKE WHAT I WANT.]

Sharing the same night sky after only hours before trying to end the life of the other, their growing familiarity is in defiance of her way of life before now and what she knows is the proper way to live for herself…

(Too much has happened. I’m still not sure how I feel. It’s still weird to have this thing creeping along with me, without wanting to strangle him…)

[THEN REMOVE EVERYTHING THAT DOESN’T MAKE SENSE, STARTING WITH…]

Thoughts which buzz between her ears are harder to ignore, but centuries of practice make it possible to do so even over her own inebriation. If she were truly committed to solving the lingering problem, guts would already be splattering the floor.

Instead, the boy attached to them finishes his last words with the top slayer who has somehow grown attached to him, while she reminds herself that the undead cannot claim to suffer the same intensity of loss of reasoning that alcohol causes.

“We’ll be going to the Tree of Life soon. There, I’m hoping to give Kol more support, so she doesn’t carry so much by herself.”

“Be cautious. It’s a mystical labyrinth, despite how ‘open’ it appears within the limbs.”

Shaking hands, they finish the minutiae of their next meeting and intentions.

“I look forward to you showing me what you can do, Starr! When we enter the Castillo, it will be a dive like no other!”

“… Let’s hope that’s only true in a good way.”

(It better be, or you’re going to need another “big sis” to rescue you!)

[HE OWES EVERYTHING TO…!]

“Shall we go, sis?”

“… Stop pretending to be so servile.”

“Hah! … Sorry.”

Once finally out of earshot and sure that they’re not followed, both…

“Hah…”

“Woo…”

Sigh in unison, before looking to each other in shock.

(I see. It wasn’t just me…)

[CAN TASTE YOUR FEAR.]

Just as Lycia, this abomination was trying his hardest to stay in control.

Despite constantly flitting between “an all-powerful existence that wields a black cross which can call forth a darkness Lycia has never tasted before tonight” and “a simple boy”, instead of being a mind disturbed by the authority he uses, Adris is unusually articulate and refined, despite the random coarseness.

Putting on airs while at the Call, the boy who hides the spirit of a problematic man inside remains as energetic as before, but…

“They’re all so easy to mess with. I don’t know who they think I am, but I will endeavor to make the best use of the legacy my ‘predecessor’ left behind while discovering who he was.”

An evil boy curls his lips while ringing a narrow window with a thrown stone.

Though outwardly innocent in many ways, his smell and heartbeat show that his inner thoughts are as twisted as his words.

(And here I thought you were “refined”. You’re just an evil jester.)

[WHO CAN’T TAKE JOKES DIRECTED AT HIM.]

“Honestly, who would believe in me just because some details happen to line up? They have only themselves to blame for giving me such a good opportunity, right~?”

“… They believe because they don’t have a better choice, from what it sounds like. Blackmailing them gently is still blackmail. Are you really so confident that you think you’ll pass their test with flying colors?”

At her calm question that ignores his revelry, Adris only rubs his chin before smiling cockily.

“All they asked me to do was prove I can get them in. I’ve got the perfect way to prove it. Hey, getting to the second tier, though?” Snickering at that, the dark thing just fixes his voice to a deeper tone, letting his real thoughts decide the “joke’s” conclusion.

“That’s on them to prove they have the strength to do it. I won’t be the deciding factor there. They’re not my compatriots, only mutual interests at best. The moment things go wrong, I’m not sticking around.”

The sureness of his convictions causes Lycia to gag, making her fan her face to escape the stench.

“Uwaa… you’re just…”

“Lovable?”

(Too confident.)

[UNAWARE OF YOUR FRAGILITY.]

Any creature that smells as uniquely weak and strong as this “Adris” causes Lycia to want to flee.

Standing within a room containing weapons which could easily end him, the boy had remained placid despite the Call’s Master proving his absolute control over his…

([Demesne]. Drache and the Call are linked by cruel wrongs. Those weapons would’ve come alive to protect him, guided by the spirits lingering around the man.)

[COMPETITION!]

A charlatan had stood amid a cloud of revenant souls which clung to the angry man who bantered with him, daring his bluff to be called.

As they stared him down, too, he returned their looks without flinching.

(If he even knew they existed.)

[HE’S NOT ALL POWERFUL!]

“Do you know how close to dying you were several times?”

“… I’m always close to death. No Vigor, remember?”

“That’s not what I meant, but also yes. Are you… no, why are you always so…?’

Taking up her hand, he squeezes.

“Confident?”

With an impish lilt, he brings her hand to his lips to kiss it.

“…

… so inclined to risk shuffling your mortal coil for temporary gains or pleasures, but sure.”

Almost ready to knock his head off, she’s forced to sigh…

“… hah, you’re the first man who’s ever bothered stealing a kiss from me like that.”

“Good! … I’ve gotta get something fresh out of an ancient spinster like you.”

(You disgusting little… hah…! I can’t hate this teasing brat! Especially when he doesn’t know how the V.O.D. is still affecting him~?)

[END. HIM.]

“GAH!?”

Yelling when she backhands him lightly, he totters a bit before laughing.

When he laughs, carefree and loudly, she…

“Haha! Your face when I sat on you was the finest…”

“I wish I’d have seen yours when I jumped you.”

“Only disgust was on it. But you like all my faces, don’t you~?”

Sharing a brief talk about the night, Lycia feels a growing sense of dread as they saunter down the main street toward the outer areas of the frozen city.

Like two new, fast friends who met at an inn while traveling different paths in life, they continue their loud, playful bantering to the detriment of those now sleeping.

“Castile is ‘in charge’ of things, just like all the rest, is that it? You stand behind them, arms out and letting the invisible strings play.”

“That’s rude. I’m just supporting them in what they want to do anyway. If I profit off their success, too, then it’s not malicious!”

“You act inoffensive, but I can smell it, now.”

“Smell wh-hhaaaTTTT!?”

A light brat is easily scooped out, held to her breasts as she princess carries him.

While he blinks in surprise, she can feel his heart racing.

(Good. Let’s break through the bluster, shall we?)

[CRACK HIS SPINE.]

“There’s no more secrets you can hide from me, kid. Your pleasant little smile, the one you offer when you’ve got a mind frying from the multitude of plots running through it, means nothing to me.”

“… That’s not…!”

“True? It absolutely is.”

“Hey!?”

Swinging him around her back, she forces the boy to hang on from behind as he tries to jump down.

Lycia stalks through Petripolis, recalling the sights and smells of a previous excursion in place of this one.

(That was fun.)

[A FELL OMEN.]

Put into an embarrassing place, her drinking companion fights back by finally giving in.

Reaching around, he grabs onto her tits for support, bringing a chuckle from her.

“You’re still the same boy I rescued, just a little more used to here. A little more adventurous.”

“… No, I’m not. I may be able to act like this around you, but…”

(Right. Break down. Accept your limits! If you don’t…)

[YOU’LL BREAK.]

No matter how resolved, a human is still a human.

Even one possessed by some darkness from beyond existence must eventually succumb.

All mortal life must grow infirm and weak, before regaining its strength.

(… Let me… help. For some reason, it’s sad seeing you like this. I want to…)

[DESTROY.]

His mood turns sadder, before…

“Hahaha! Do you really think you can stop this, Lycia!?”

“Huh!?”

… he laughs evilly, causing the woman to fluster.

“‘Adris of Xin’ is dead. It took a long time to realize it, but meeting you again proved it. I can’t feel the same way as before, even with you being so kind.”

“… How so? You’re just as light.”

“No! I mean… the man who could act carefree can’t anymore. While this night was a thrilling and… infinitely rewarding experience, in the end, it is just one night.

I don’t think I need a tall, blond woman to rescue me, anymore.”

He taps her on the shoulder, causing her to stop walking.

Then jumps down, before joining her at her side again.

“I am [Adris fehl Dain, True False God]. I can’t go back, only forward, with or without your permission. The only thing I can say about us is that… I’m happy to have someone that finally sees through me!”

“… I’m glad that I found someone who sees through me, too.”

“Ah…?”

An awkward moment is shared, with Lycia feeling too vulnerable as she speaks her mind before considering the implications.

Before she walks away.

“You’re not my type.”

“You already said that! … Why, though?”

Three fingers are raised as she poses over her turned shoulder for him.

Letting her breasts sway for him to follow, she returns his evil smile with her own, perfected for circumstances like this one.

“Boy, your fingers dance like a violinist’s and your tongue plays like it’s tasted sweet cream, that I’ll give you.”

“So you have fallen for me?”

With a masculine, sultry sort of walk, the disconnect between a boy’s innocence and a man’s overwhelming ego causes Lycia to laugh, stopping him in his tracks.

“But I’m not a woman to you. I’m a challenge!”

“… No, that was because I only had one chance…!”

“Shut up, brother.”

Left gaping at her order, he does so as she sighs before continuing.

“There’s a woman you wanted to beat, so you challenged her constantly, right? I assume she felt the same way, so she returned that heated, antagonistic energy.

But me?”

Letting one finger drop, Lycia stops acting coquettish.

Only serious.

“I want to be made love to, not at. You are incapable of that right now. No, probably forever, with me, at least.”

“… I…?”

“I am not that woman and I never will be.”

For a moment, just a moment, the implacable giant who wields a cross that can cleave magic and holds a mind that ruined her life threatens to break.

“I am not her replacement. Stop looking for trust in me. Look somewhere else.”

(Feel something! Something… fragile! Know how badly you need real love! What I definitely cannot give!)

[HE NEEDS PUNISHMENT, BECAUSE LOVE IS SOMETHING I CAN’T GIVE. ONLY FEASTING. OFFER ME YOUR HEART, SO I CAN

DEVOUR IT.]

“… I’m sorry.”

In only a moment, that fragility expires.

“You could never be that woman until you murder me first, Lycia~.”

Rather than breaking, a great pain is turned into a joke that he hits her with.

(Stop using humor as a crutch!)

[STOP HIDING FROM THE PAIN I WANT TO TASTE.]

“That’s a given. Stop looking for her in others, either. You’ll never have her again.”

“… I know.”

Strength returns instead as he admits that, as the boy’s eyes look at Lycia as if…

“I’m not someone for you to beat, too! So stop looking at your sis like that if you really care about her.”

“… I…

… I do want to beat you, though!”

When the truth comes out, his mouth turns downward, with a bleakness bleeding into him.

But, only for a moment.

A boy who has always hid what he’s thinking is too efficient at it, even while decidedly unsober.

“Shut up. You never can and you never will. I’ve got… too much practice ahead of you. Find some other obstacle to crush. Or do you only love me if you can conquer me?”

“No, no! … Well…”

At first sure, he then wavers in an instant, looking past her.

“I’m… sorry, I’m not sure.”

(Ruined boy! This is why I can’t leave you alone, you know? You need someone…)

[I WOULD NEVER WASTE THIS TASTE.]

“Better to be honest than not. As long as you’re honest, I won’t leave, so stop smelling like you’re ready to chase me right now.”

“… You see through me all the time!? Haaah… It’s scary, but not too bad, too?”

Left scratching his head, the boy can’t seem to sort his thoughts, either.

Under the pale violet light of the false moon that once brought ruin to Zennia, Lycia is desperate to make this conversation anything other than awkward.

The boy she’s trying to help ends up being one she lambastes with demands. A pep talk she tried to start instead becomes an ultimatum.

“Those girls can never see this ‘me’, only what they’re used to. As useless as it is to want more, I’ll keep making more, ever so slowly. Stop worrying so much, I’m right about how I’m doing things: unlike with you who saw me at my worst, they have only seen the best, so that’s all I can show if I want to keep them by me.”

“… Even if you’re right, you can’t keep it up forever.”

Sheepishly he smiles, offering a hopeful expression that doesn’t match his cynicism.

“As long as I have you around sometimes to remind me, maybe I can?”

(Just kill me! Again! I’ve… never had a family, much less a close friend!? How does this work!? Stop trusting me…!)

[SO END THE DISCORD.]

(SHUT THE FUCK UP!)

[ALL LIFE IS SUFFERING. ONLY DEATH IS ABSOLUTE!]

A boy who desires the undead.

One who fears not undeath.

A loving creature that is incapable of loving, finding comfort in the fallen who rose. Such a romantic mood is inherent in those ideas to Lycia, unsettling her in a way she’s never felt before.

Even his plain face seems a little more inviting, as if it’s handsome so long as Lycia sees him as a boy, instead of the man he really is.

Never before has the temptation existed, so to face it now…

(… Maybe I can find something. I’ll just… take a little taste…)

[FEAST ON THE MARROW, THE SOURCE OF THE FLAVOR.]

“Sis…?”

“AH!?”

The boy can feel it, judging by his sweat.

Only moments from acting to defend himself, his heart is holding out even now in its trust of her.

With Lycia almost succumbing to a ravenous need, something in the darkness of an alleyway also threatens to stir, before going quiet once more.

Hoping it wasn’t noticed, but failing utterly.

Rather than biting through his neck, she just kisses it.

Pulling away, only now does she realize the lapse in time and the strange, craning posture she has currently.

“… Two: sis isn’t a good girl.”

“I know.”

“No, you don’t. You only brought me pleasure because you were… interesting. If not for that, I’d have nothing to do with you sexually. I’d call you a failure and laugh at you.”

She pushes him roughly, before stalking away once more.

“Just like you dip into other women, I’m equally thirsty to try new boys. No matter how much you cry about it inside…”

Her hand idly moves over her body, tasting the form of a figure she’s known for a long time. Every new touch sets her heart beating, if only for a moment.

(It’s one of my few joys…)

[FEW HUNTS.]

“Look! I’m not going to complain.” That call brings her to turn once more, giving him a smirk as if to disbelieve. “Well… maybe before I would’ve, but after trying you out, I’m pretty sure I’d die if you had only me to rely on…”

“You’d be drained within days.”

“Right? So… go have fun. After all, I’m just a brother you fuck, right?”

Though he giggles at this, there’s a hint of reservation with how his eyes look away at the last moment.

(You don’t want to be “nothing”, is that right? Idiot, I can smell your desperation~. It’s…)

[IT’S LOVELY.]

“… No, you’re a brother I’m here for, since you earned that much; but, that leads into the third reason.”

Letting the last finger stay up, she points toward the direction of a snake’s holy scent and the musky smell of dog.

“Reason three: you haven’t apologized to those girls.”

“Fuck off! Who is apologizing to who!?”

For the first time, her “little brother” fights back for real.

Stomping toward her, he flippantly waves his hand as his true thoughts spill out.

“I do fucking everything to keep them moving along, and they nearly get us killed again because they can’t bother anticipating some things being out of their control once the fight starts in earnest!?”

The way he whines is almost petulant to the ear, but it comes from a place of deep dissatisfaction.

“… You little monster, you kept who and what I am from them!”

“And so?”

As if it’s no one’s business but theirs, Adris just huffs.

“I gave them all the relevant hints and details. If they knew what you were, do you really think they would’ve confronted you?”

“Obviously not.”

With knowledge of her own power relative to theirs, Lycia can calmly examine the situation. Though powerful enough to defeat her, it was only due to…

“… It’s a strong effect, that cross. To drag one down to your level so that they must fight equally.”

“Insidious, isn’t it? I’ll admit… I have no idea why it chose…”

Almost ready to share, Adris grows obviously haunted by the memory of what bestowed this power to him as he runs his finger along the obsidian chunk.

“No, nevermind. It’s safer for you if you know less.”

“… That’s how you treat them, too?”

“How else can I!? Only… only one of them is any good for understanding the bigger picture. That’s… why she’s my partner.”

Pride flows into his features as he smiles arrogantly.

A boy who grew up wrong looks for a weapon and finds one.

“… Right. Sis is sis, but… I’ve only got one [partner]. She always knows there’s more going on. When I keep something from her, she knows… and… reacts just fine.”

(The way you nod at your own bullshit pisses me off! And stop ignoring what I am to you!)

[SHE’S NOT GOING TO SAVE YOU.]

“Still will be there for me when it matters, even if she won’t be when it’s not important. We dance our little dances and conspire in the shadows to get back at the other, but… she…”

“She’ll make everything right~? Stupid child. Is that what you did? Hide behind a woman who is stronger than you your whole life~?”

“… You…”

When his heart goes wild, Lycia knows she’s struck the truth.

The moment she tastes that affliction, she lunges for more.

“Still looking for a woman to save you~? Is that what I became for youuuuu~? How unmanly!”

The way she bursts into laughter afterwards really seals in the pain written on Adris’ face as his veins bulge.

(… I don’t mean it that way! You have to save yourself…! Don’t rely on…)

[TASTE YOUR MORTALITY!]

Just like her, the boy shows his teeth while taunting back.

“Says you!? She shanked you pretty good, sis.”

“She’s not gonna be here fast enough to sew your head back on if you keep mouthing off.”

“I’m pretty fast myself, or have you forgotten? Want me to unhinge your jaw again?”

“Let’s see if your feathers save you in reality~.”

Almost ready to start forward to punish him, Adris looks suddenly haunted by that thought.

Haunted enough to drive the fight out of him. Clutching his chest, fear is what Lycia tastes on his perspiration. That terror mimics what she felt earlier, when…

(This boy… spared me…)

[…]

A creature that had never trusted another implicitly, or claims to have never before, put his life into her hands.

(… No, he also saved me.)

[WHY?]

All for the pointlessness of saving her in the best way possible.

“… I’m sorry.”

“… Sure.”

Almost speaking at the same time, Adris gives in first, which causes him to smirk a moment after.

“Can we just… stop? I get it: ‘you can never show them who you really are, or it’d kill the dream they’ve made up’? Okay, I can appreciate that.”

(It’s just… the alcohol anyway. This is meaningless to me… You’re just a…)

[THE EMBODIMENT OF A TASTY LONGING.]

“Both are still wild from the drinking” is what she immediately settles on, as he nods at her change in composure.

“This is stupid. Be seeing you soon anyway, little bro~! I’ll be sure to pick on you then when you inevitably lose your fight with them~.”

“Wait! Where are you going to stay!? The Castillo isn’t…”

At that hurried question, she only snickers while sashaying away.

“I’ve got someone I’m going to ask about a place to stay~! Don’t worry about me.”

“… I see. Have a good night… sis.”

The boy who has no idea how to act around her either waves her off while looking sad on the inside, before he shows resolute eyes in the direction she pointed.

Distance grows as she gets ready to turn the corner, calculating the timing before she turns and yells back.

“A handsome man is the kind that knows that he’s right, but still manages to apologize~!”

That comment completely throws off his steps, causing him to wave a fist at her.

“… Shut up! Only someone naturally gorgeous can say shit like that…!”

“Thaaaaanks~!”

(Too right~! You can never win against me, because I’m the pretty sibling~!)

[YOU MONKEY.]

Almost skipping as she leaves, the Lycia who bantered with Adris on the streets lingers in this childlike feeling of “being alive”,

But only for a moment, until it’s passed.

The red heartbeats Lycia can feel all around her, ones which mark sources of unreaved vitality, ever beckon to her.

In the early days they were impossible to resist.

But the numbered soldier of the Alchemaster died a long time ago, just like the “Adris of Xin”.

She will…

“Hey, hey, I was thinking we might meet again to decide things for real, but you sure are antsy!”

Long claws rush out as the catty woman twirls in place, choosing to let her seductive qualities infuse her battle stance.

Directing her voice at a distant shadow, that deep darkness can’t hide the way it shifts and undulates in Lycia’s supreme vision.

(ALL DARKNESS IS JUST LIFE IN A DIFFERENT FORM!)

[LOOKING FOR A PLACE AND TIME TO FEED.]

The disparate thoughts unite for a moment, letting Lycia give her trademark cheshire grin to greet the cloaked monster that stalks from the pool of darkness.

“Ahhh, I get it, I get it. After hearing his honest thoughts, it really makes the lack of heartbeat change, if only for a sec, right!?”

She chooses now to breathe, a rare occurrence turning into a feast of scents.

“I almost couldn’t help it, sorry. He’s… different in a way that makes me hate him. Makes me like him. When they become the same… well…”

Without speaking the whole time, the figure merely flicks its arm.

A lazy extension reveals a flame-bladed shortsword as it bursts from her hand.

“… I almost had a nibble. That’s why I keep away. How about you?”

Lycia’s clawtip snaps off as she bites it, unable to fight the feeling of combat flushing through her lifeless body.

Bringing with it one of the sole feelings of being alive.

“oR hAvE yOu AlReAdY tAsTeD!?!?”

That question causes her opponent to flinch, leading to Lycia’s sense of fulfillment at digging under her mesh.

“Of course you have! I smelled it on him!?

… Just like you smell him on me~?”

A whistling sound is the thing’s sole answer as it flicks its other arm.

The smell of burning flesh causes Lycia to only feel more alive as she holds a silvered dirk between her fingers, having plucked it from her path.

A moment later, it explodes into blinding, silvery powder.

“AHHHH! I LOVE HONEST GIRLS LIKE YOU! YOU RECOGNIZE A THREAT TO WHAT YOU WANT FOR YOURSELF, SO YOU DIVE RIGHT AT IT LIKE A HUNGRY LIONESS!”

(YOU’RE A BAD GIRL, TOO!)

[JUST ANOTHER MISERABLE CORPSE DELUSIONALLY TRYING TO FIND LOVE.]

Its remnant pieces clatter as they drop, with the ghoul rubbing her smoldering face while her flesh reforms.

The cloaked pretender who challenges her leans forward, ready to dance.

“NO WASTED TIME ON POINTLESS BANTER.

NO THREATS OR POSTURING, AS IF YOU WERE EVER GOING TO LEAVE WITHOUT MURDERING ME.

NO DRAMA OR LIES, JUST SINFUL, OLD-FASHIONED, NAKED BRUTALITY!”

A dozen dirks stream to pepper her in the next instant, producing a scream of pain when they sink in and catch her flesh on fire. Lycia’s bright, green eyes flash their contentment at the one trying to murder her as she lunges forward to return the favor.

Sharp claws leave four, long scar grooves in a porcelain mask, followed by a flying, flaming macehead exploding the entire stone alleyway as the lithe body she tried to smite hops off walls to stay out of reach.

“OH, TWO FOR THE PRICE OF ONE!?

BROTHER, I THINK I’VE FALLEN IN LOVE WITH SOMEONE ELSE, TOO!”

Curling her claws invitingly while she yanks back her Pocket Belmont, Lycia then leaps upon her new obsession.

“LOVE IS WHEN YOU WANT TO CARVE OUT THEIR HEART AND MAKE IT YOURS FOREVER, RIGHT!?

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA, HAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!”

Within an alleyway whose entrances are affixed on nearby surfaces with parchments bearing strange, red runes, a forgettable, pointless struggle takes place in absolute silence.

All while the longest night finally comes to its conclusion.

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