Chapter 68: Letter.

A sound reverberated through the soul space.

Azazel couldn’t tell whether it was a serpentine hiss or the aggressive gronk of the raven.

Whatever it was, it wasn’t directed at him, the chilling intent of both wills was aimed at Akathartos instead.

The pupil of his icy blue eyes narrowed into slits while a black tattoo manifested around his eyes.

He felt a foreign yet familiar sensation dance along his veins like an endless supply of mana.

Instinctively he knew what it was.

It was the infinite serpent Ouroborus.

Azazel felt like in this state, he could actively use all his abilities without worrying about mana depletion on even his stamina.

There were other effects of Ouroborus will which registered themselves into his mind.

Unlike the Ouroborus, the raven’s will was incomplete.

Azazel needed to hatch and bond with Huginn to fully unlock the full potential of the raven’s will.

Despite being incomplete, the raven’s will was extremely lethal and Azazel… couldn’t wait to test it out on Akathartos.

The tainted blade watched Azazel with quiet interest.

He didn’t utter a word but the slight tug at his lips betrayed the impassive façade he wore.

Azazel slowly got to his feet, he let his gaze brush Akathartos for the briefest second, then he grinned.

With a snap of his fingers, the ground beneath them became an inky puddle.

Akathartos reacted immediately.

He propelled himself into the air and almost the instant he did that, countless snakes burst from the inky puddle aiming to devour him.

The tainted blade didn’t look surprised, instead he smiled like he had been expecting it.

He drove down with startling speed disappearing into a whirlwind of steel.

The obsidian longsword glowed with an unholy purple aura and eviscerated every single serpent it came in contact with.

Akathartos allowed his leg to briefly come in contact with the inky puddle then he exploded forward.

Azazel tracked every movement with predatory focus.

He didn’t move.

He simply watched.

The moment Akathartos came into range, Azazel moved.

A long black feather intercepted the blade’s strike.

The feather trembled under the impact of the blade, sending ripples of dark energy across its length.

For a single instant, the blade stopped causing Azazel’s grin to widen.

Then he launched himself forward.

His claws—a manifestation of the raven’s will—slashed through the air with vicious speed aimed at Akathartos’ throat.

The tainted blade leaned back just enough for the claws to graze his skin, he didn’t avoid the attack, not entirely.

Black blood beaded across the shallow cuts.

Akathartos smiled.

“Interesting.”

The cuts showed a sickly green hue for a short moment, Akathartos felt the effects immediately.

It was poison.

Azazel pressed forward, now it was his turn to be on the offensive end.

The space rippled in front of him, then he vanished, reappearing behind the tainted blade.

Akathartos didn’t even turn around.

With a lazy stride, he positioned the blade behind his back to intercept Azazel’s attack.

“Finally using your mana, chaos bringer?”

Azazel smiled softly.

“Why? You’re not feeling confident!”

“Nonsense,” Akathartos replied with a side grin. “The more you struggle, the better…”

He swung the obsidian longsword with brutal precision.

Azazel snapped his fingers once again and the battlefield erupted in chaos.

The inky puddle expanded in a violent frenzy swallowing the ground, from its depths, colossal serpents surged upward.

Azazel gave a simple command, he designated Akathartos as the target and the snakes moved.

They didn’t strike blindly, they followed the tainted blade’s every move.

Akathartos spun.

Violet aura flared around his blade as he moved, his blade wreaking havoc upon the serpents.

The first serpent was split cleanly in half.

The second one lost its head.

The space rippled behind him and the third serpent exited out of it, then coiled around him before he could react.

But Akathartos simply smiled.

His aura flared shredding the serpents to bits.

Azazel didn’t give him a moment of repose, he lunged forward immediately, muscles coiling like springs.

A storm of black feathers exploded outward, with edges glinting like blades.

Akathartos chuckled then dashed forward.

****

Gasp!

“Huff… huff…”

Azazel opened his eyes as sunlight filtered into his room.

He looked around for a brief moment, grasped a handful of his hair then scowled.

“T-That useless piece of metal!”

The sheets shifted slightly revealing his toned body beneath the sheets.

He got up.

After all, he had a lot of things to ponder on, and well… let’s just say the dreamscape helped him a great deal.

Not only had he managed to get a glimpse at the image of his soul, he had also gotten a small grasp on activating his beast wills.

Well he wasn’t sure if they would actually comply if he wasn’t on the verge of death, still he remembered the feeling and he held onto it.

Perhaps he could try to tap into it on his own, but for now, that was going to have to wait.

He strolled towards the mirror.

A pale figure stared back at him.

His body was meticulously crafted, no doubt though, the previous Azazel had been a perfectionist.

Azazel ran a hand through his red hair, before narrowing his eyes slightly. His gaze fell on a red sigil just beneath his collar bone.

A mark.

Liliana’s mark.

During the ritual, she had sunk her fangs into him at that particular location on his skin.

While she did that, the sigil slowly took form branding him as hers.

Well technically he was her master now but she had full access to his body.

She could do whatever she wanted with it but surprisingly, Lily hadn’t spoken to him since yesterday.

But that was because he had gone to bed immediately after signing the pact.

He let out an exhale.

“Fuck! I still have to write those letters.” He lamented. “Should I just give it to— no, that would be disrespectful, sighs… i don’t want to do anything!”

He was about to take a step when a voice sounded behind him.

“Young master?”

“Eeeeekkkkk!”

Azazel flinched, startled by the sudden sound behind him.

He turned around to find Lily staring at him with an innocent expression on her face.

“W-W-What are you doing here.”

She tilted her head slightly.

“What do you mean, I’m here to arrange your chambers.”

Azazel frowned.

“What time is it?”

“It’s a little after noon.” she replied in a monotonous voice, devoid of her usual mischievousness.

Azazel noticed the slight change in her demeanor but didn’t comment on it, instead he spoke.

“Prepare my bath, and after that reserve a table for us at a good restaurant around.”

“Us?” She asked with a small frown.

“Yes, me and you, we’re going to eat.”

She nodded once then left to heat the bath.

“What’s up with her?” Azazel mumbled.

He walked over to the desk, grabbed a quill and ink, then started writing on the brown paper.

°°°°

Father.

I’m sure, by the time this letter meets you the word may have already spread that I departed the academy in the company of his highness Elias with an unknown mercenary, I can only imagine the displeasure such a news might bring you so I deemed it necessary to clear myself before you, I believe it’s only proper you know the story or at least a part of it.

I did not leave out of disregard to our house nor did I leave because I was scared of the exam as my reputation might suggest. I left to uphold my end of the deal I had with his majesty regarding the safety of the prince.

It is a well known fact that the prince could not awaken due to the condition he was born with.

But a few days ago I heard a strange rumor about an artifact or rather a relic which was embedded deep within a rock where two waters met, it died down quickly but I was able to gather a thing or two, since I devoured our library’s knowledge back at the duchy I could more or less identify the location of the place.

The journey wasn’t something I could handle alone while protecting the prince so I commissioned a mercenary by the name, Nathaniel Taylor to accompany us.

I’m sure you’ve heard about the changes of the fifth prince Elias, since rumors travel faster than any courier could. I know you still have a lot of questions to ask me and I promise I’ll answer them when I return to the duchy, please inform mom that I’ve returned from my voyage and I’m currently safe within the academy.

You once taught me, that an Astavore never goes back on their promise, I hope you understand that the journey was necessary for me in order to prove my worth to the king and our house.

°°°°

Azazel finished, then grabbed another quill which was dipped in invisible ink.

He wrote a strange set of letters below the paper then folded it neatly.

Lily was standing besides the mirror, when she noticed he was done she stepped forward.

“The bath is ready young master.”

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