"Huff... Huff..."

Azariah drew deep breaths, his eyes snapping open.

His body trembled with fear, hands reaching towards his neck.

He patted it continuously, ensuring his skin was still attached.

He calmed down, his eyes stopping their trembling as he looked around.

Christina stood beside him, protecting his body while he was unconscious.

"Taishareth..."

He mumbled, grimacing her name as he stood up.

Using the divinity attached to Andarnaur's ring, he tried to sacrifice Faye's soul to her.

But his plan didn't work.

"Why does she have so much power?" he questioned himself, stopping his body from trembling.

...The one who spoke to him wasn't even the real goddess, just a part of her divinity.

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His face hardened as he remembered her last words, his head snapping as he looked at Faye.

She slowly crawled to her feet, her eyes pure white without any pupils, welling up with tears.

"Shit..."

Azariah whispered, Faye's lips curling into a twisted, creepy smile.

"Azariah."

Christina's voice echoed in his ear as he glanced at her.

"What happ—"

"Run," Azariah whispered, grabbing her hand.

"Wha—"

"RUN!!"

He yelled, dragging her away with him. She flinched slightly before a voice echoed.

"I will kill them!!"

The shrill and terrifying voice reverberated.

It was loud enough to make everyone on the bridge halt and look at Faye.

But Azariah didn't. He kept running until he reached Ashlyn.

And just as he did, Faye's body blurred into motion.

She extended her clawed hand, grabbing the neck of a second-year student.

She twisted it, separating the head from the body.

With a 'thud,' the headless body fell helplessly.

She lifted the head, drinking the blood dripping down.

The blood from the headless body pooling on the ground trembled violently before it turned into a large chakram.

Faye's head snapped again as she looked at a chubby boy standing on the side, his entire body petrified.

Her body blurred again, reaching towards him.

"Az!!"

Christina yelled as Azariah rushed toward the boy as well.

'Fuck, fuck.'

He cursed in his mind as he could tell...

...He wouldn't make it in time.

The world slowed down for him as Faye's clawed hand reached for Seth's neck.

"Move, fucker!!"

Azariah yelled, but Seth couldn't hear him.

And just as he thought Seth had died, a portal opened behind him, pulling him inside.

Faye's claw whistled through the air, hitting nothing.

Azariah snapped his head around, finding Oliver beside Christina and the others.

He rushed back to them as Faye's gaze landed on him.

But...

She didn't touch him.

She moved again, the large chakram in her hand cutting down the men in grey clothes.

"Who freezes in front of an attack, fucker!" Azariah snarled, kicking Seth's thigh.

Seth yelled in pain, coming out of his daze.

"Where is the other vampire?" he turned and asked Oliver.

"Look back," Oliver replied, making him turn around.

Flair emerged from the purple portal right beside Faye.

"He talks a lot," Oliver mumbled, rubbing his chin. "They are siblings, so I thought he might be able to stop her."

"Ahh."

A slap on his back made Azariah turn back and glare at Christina.

"What!?"

"Why did you run towards her!?" she complained, glaring back at him.

"Not the time." Azariah snarled, looking back at Faye. "We need to move away."

He turned to look at Willis in Olesia's arms and whispered to him, "Willis, come back."

Willis shook his head, snuggling deeper into her arms.

"Tch."

He clicked his tongue as he looked around, catching a glimpse of Daphne rushing back to protect the remaining students.

Fewer than had arrived here.

"Oliy, make a portal and bring them out," Azariah instructed, looking back at Oliver.

"Why should I?"

"Just do it, your highness," he asked politely, to which Oliver nodded in approval.

"Daphne, here!!"

Azariah yelled, catching her attention. She looked at the opening portal before nodding.

"Sister!!"

On the other side, Flair yelled, dodging her large chakram as it sliced through the air.

"Snap out of it!!"

He yelled again, grabbing a man to use as a shield.

The chakram sliced the man in half, and Flair threw him aside, desperation on his face.

He ducked under the chakram before rushing in to restrain her.

But the kick that followed sent him flying.

BOOM!!

His body collided with the burning tower in the middle.

Cracks on the tower started to enlarge, a creaking sound echoing.

"Shit!"

He yelled as Faye threw herself at him, the wall of the tower breaking, sprawling them both inside.

Crack! Crack!!

The tower started tilting towards the waterfall.

Slowly but surely, it began to fall.

"Ahh, fuck this shit."

Azariah mumbled, looking at the falling tower.

They stood on the opposite side, but they were still not safe.

"Get in faster!!"

He yelled at the students who entered the portal one by one.

For a brief moment, his eyes met Ivan's as he entered the portal.

A desire to kill him right then lingered in his mind, but Daphne's presence made it difficult.

When all the students were through, he threw the chubby boy inside.

"Az—"

"Go in." He twisted his body, grabbing Arianell, who was trying to say something, and threw her into the portal.

"Are you not coming—"

"I'll be right behind." Saying so, he pushed Ashlyn inside the portal as well.

"Wait, wait."

He tried to do the same to Christina, but she stopped him.

"What now?" he asked, clearly annoyed.

"Come with me."

"No, go inside first!"

"No!"

"Go in; we don't have all day!"

"I'm not goin—"

"Okay, fine."

He covered her mouth with his palm before circling around, her back to the portal.

"Don't hate me."

Azariah whispered with a bright smile before pushing her inside.

Oliver's golden eyes flickered, and the portal broke as he fell to his knees.

"Hey, are you alright!?" Azariah asked, concerned as Oliver gasped for breath.

"I don't have much time," he whispered softly, opening another portal. "Get in."

Azariah nodded, turning around to look at Olesia and Willis.

"Get in—"

BOOM!!

But before he could finish his sentence, the bridge beneath them started to crumble.

They lost their balance as the bridge broke, sending them falling into the water.

The roar of the waterfall echoed in their ears. Azariah grabbed the edge of a hanging rod, using his other hand to grab Olesia's.

The endless bottom of the waterfall lay just below them.

"Azariah!" Oliver yelled, standing on the edge of the broken bridge.

He tried to move the portal below them, but his golden eyes started to flicker.

"Wait, Oliver, go away!!" Azariah yelled, noticing it. If he stayed, they would all be stuck here.

"Willis, come back!!" He looked back at Olesia firmly holding Willis.

But the little boy refused to listen, his gaze now fixed on the bottom.

BOOM!!!

The tower fell onto the bridge, breaking it into pieces.

"Az!!"

Oliver yelled as Azariah's grip on the rod weakened, sending him falling helplessly with Olesia and Willis.

Oliver jumped after them, throwing a purple circle at them to open a portal.

But the circle froze midway.

It moved, opening the portal, engulfing Oliver's entire body before breaking into pieces.

"Shit."

He whispered softly as he grabbed Olesia by her waist, turning her around.

His back was now facing the bottom as he glanced at Willis, sandwiched in between.

He smiled at the boy, whose eyes were filled with fear.

Then he looked up at Olesia's face, staring at him.

Falling into the darkness, he whispered softly,

"Amun-Ra's blessing: second form."

He curled up his body, reducing his surface area.

...And in the next instant, his body collided with the flowing water.

The water splashed around them, engulfing them.

....

....

....

....

....

'Huh?'

Azariah felt his consciousness slipping away as he found himself in complete darkness.

He tried to move his body but found he couldn't.

Angel slew angel as we fought our way up.

A whisper echoed in his ears, the voice indistinct between male or female.

All power corrupts. And God's divine power is no exception.

The whisper echoed again in his mind.

I'm no puppet! I fought. I rebelled. I tried to be free!

The voice screamed in his head, numbing his mind.

I know what you are. You're nothing. Nothing but common thieves, liars, traitors, rapists, murderers.

This time another distinct voice echoed in his head, a female voice.

Angels are monsters, fearsome embodiments of wrath.

The most terrible things we did, we did on His command.

God. A vengeful, jealous, sadistic murderer and hypocrite.

The voice echoed again and again, telling him things he did not know, things he did not want to hear.

Poor, proud, pitiful things. I've seen the best and worst men can be. And I assure you, even the lowest human has more heart.

The female voice screamed, contradicting the other voices.

When we were sent to slaughter the favorite, we wept.

When we delivered death, we wept.

But beware of him! That boy, when he killed every firstborn of Lumina, his eyes were dry as the desert.

Oh, Another Fallen, beware of him!

....

....

You came back, Azariah.

A voice echoed in his head.

...A familiar voice.

...Esmeray's voice.

....

....

"Brughh."

Azariah's consciousness returned to his body as he tried to scream but only felt his mouth filling with water.

He groggily opened his eyes to look at Olesia and Willis still within his hands.

...Dying.

They were dying.

Azariah threw his arms and legs to move up towards the surface, but the complete darkness around him didn't help.

'Huh?'

He let out a startled sound as he felt something emerging from his back.

Something feathery.

His instincts kicked in, something moving behind him propelling his body upwards.

It moved and moved until his body broke the water's surface, levitating in the air.

Still holding Olesia and Willis, he slowly looked back.

"...What is this?"

***

***

***

On the surface, kneeling on the broken bridge, a man with black hair and crimson eyes looked at the body laying in his hand.

...A body with a broken brain.

"...Sister." Flair whispered softly, hugging her unresponsive body.

"What happened to you?" he asked, tears welling in his eyes.

He wept, his face filled with sadness.

"...I will kill him," he whispered softly, his eyes burning with revenge, "...He will not live for long...I will avenge you, sister."

"No, you will not." A voice echoed from behind, making him turn around.

A beautiful lady with black hair, highlighted with red at the ends, stood, her hand rising up.

A wet slap, punctuated with the crunch of bones breaking, and he was gone, unrecognizable, just a pile of shattered bones in a sack of skin.

Blood hung in the air like mist.

"Urgh."

The lady groaned before jerking the blood from her hand.

Taking out her phone, she dialed the number.

"Have you completed your task, Sypha?" Adaliah's voice echoed from behind the phone.

"Yeah," Sypha replied, turning around, "The emperor had forty concubines, all of them are dead."

"What about the Dukes?" Adaliah asked.

"I killed one of them," she replied, walking towards the edge, looking down, "The rest are hiding now."

"One is enough," Adaliah replied, "We don't want all-out war, not for now."

"Hm, I wanted to kill the emperor though," she grumbled, "...How dare he threaten the young master."

"Leave him be," Adaliah replied, "His father is a demigod; we don't want them involved in this."

"I see," she whispered as she looked down at a silhouette rushing up. "...What now?"

"My lady has called you back."