After Aris finished observing his body, Rasmus put on his shirt and suit. They didn’t feel fluttered from such intimacy or have any lingering feelings toward each other. Since Orthias didn’t have strong affections or emotions, they were pretty much individualists.

They both left the parlor and immediately Erlina, Eduard, Videl, and Carrion went quiet and stood still. Everyone except for Videl was petrified to see an Orthias in front of them other than Rasmus. They were intimidated by how tall she was, but stunned by her good looks at the same time.

“They’re friends of mine,” Rasmus looked at those four.

Aris stared at each one of them from top to bottom, but when she looked at Videl, her eyes narrowed. Videl could tell she had found him suspicious, but he hoped that she couldn’t tell who he truly was.

“They’re weak just like you,” Aris said in a cold tone. “Except for that guy over there. He’s not normal,” she pointed at Videl, her eyes staring into Videl’s eyes.

“This world is too big, and you have never been outside your hometown. There are strong people out here; it’s normal,” Rasmus responded, looking at Videl. He was as concerned as Videl.

“Perhaps…” Aris crossed her arms and kept her eyes on Videl. “My predecessor shouldn’t be dead by now if there were no strong humans,” she added and brushed it off so casually.

Videl and Rasmus shared a look for a split second and they both were relieved that Aris didn’t pry on it further. Rasmus immediately changed the topic and let them introduce themselves to Aris.

“What should we call you? Aristoria?” Rasmus looked at Aris. “Or do you have a name?”

Everyone’s eyes widened when they heard Aristoria because that name was the name of Rasmus’s mother. That name was well-known all over Neva for her gruesome brutality during the rebellion.

“Just call me Aris. Everyone called me Aris back home,” Aris answered as she looked down at her robe and decided to remove it from her body. “But that only applies to you since you’re an Orthias,” she looked at Rasmus. “These humans don’t deserve my attention,” she added and coldly stared at Eduard, Carrion, Videl, and Erlina.

They were surprised and didn’t expect Aris to be so hateful toward humans. They didn’t know the story behind Aris’s hostility both from the history of Orthias and what happened back then beyond the Blackcliffs. Knowing that she didn’t want anything from them, they decided to distance themselves from her.

Rasmus realized that having Aris around would be troublesome and beneficial at the same time. He found her interest was in him and his existence for being half human and half Orthias. He wondered how long she would stay by his side.

“Aris will be staying here if you don’t mind, Carrion. Would that be okay since this is your place,” Rasmus looked at Carrion with his brows raised.

Carrion glanced at Aris and she was staring at him with disgust. He had never been stared at like that by anyone, and it was a bit uncomfortable and unnerving.

“Yeah, sure. We have plenty of rooms for her to stay,” Carrion answered as he nodded with understanding. “I can prepare the room beside yours if you’re fine with it,” he suggested.

“That’s fine by me,” Rasmus nodded as he looked at Aris.

Carrion nodded and ordered the maids to prepare Aris’s room.

“Have you eaten?” Rasmus asked.

Aris glanced at Rasmus and shook her head.

“Let’s get you something to eat,” Rasmus said as he walked toward the dining hall.

Aris tilted her head slightly because as an Orthias and Aristoria, she didn’t require something like eating, drinking, or even sleeping. She decided to follow Rasmus since she didn’t mind filling her stomach with food. The others decided to follow them because they were still curious about Aris and for what reason she decided to stay with Rasmus.

Rasmus sat in the armchair, but then he noticed Aris sat in the armchair beside him.

“What?” Aris stared at Rasmus with a cold gaze.

“It’s nothing,” Rasmus shook his head.

Everyone decided to eat something light and enjoy a glass of wine. They waited for Rasmus to tell them what was going on. He could feel their gazes and decided to tell them what was going on, including what was happening out there in North Neva.

“You’re joking, right?” Erlina asked with a shaky voice, scared and anxious by the existence of the third saint and the powerful evil being.

“So as we speak, the prominent figures all over Neva will be gathering in Gratlan with the Councils of Neva…” Carrion crossed his arms, trying to suppress the tingling feelings on his fingertips and palms from anxiety. “That means my brother will be attending as well…” he sighed.

“You said that there would be a new religion with the third saint as its head. Does that mean, those organizations… they might join hands with them?” Eduard looked at Rasmus as he held the glass firmly.

“Yes, that’s possible…” Rasmus nodded and thought about the Wraiths and other underworld organizations that were presumed to be demon worshipers. “Highly possible…” he muttered to himself.

Videl’s eyes had been closed since Rasmus started explaining. His intuition was right when he felt a familiar presence when they both arrived at Eddenvilla. He had lost all his power and at the same time, Satan had come to Neva which frustrated him because he didn’t want to be powerless or to be inferior to Satan.

“What organizations?” Aris looked at Rasmus with a glass of wine in her hand.

Rasmus told Aris everything about the organization that hunted him down because of what Erglade and Aristoria did. He revealed that Erglade might have found out the rotten truth about the Refenus Kingdom which might be one of the vessels for demon worshipers to live comfortably.

“Is that so? Can you tell me about your past?” Aris shifted her body and completely faced Rasmus.

Everyone was interested in Rasmus’s past as well since he had never spoken about it. He never thought he would talk a lot in the morning, and so he told his past to them. With every word he said, his chest felt like being squeezed as if someone was begging him to not speak about it.

The hardship and the amount of pain from starvation, hydration, sleepless nights, sickness, and wounds. The amount of humiliation from being spat on, kicked, and thrown into the river just because he was a Blackheart was heartbreaking for everyone who listened to it. He was also affected by the story that he was telling them, the amount of anger and frustration that almost consumed his head and heart.

“That’s my past…” Rasmus sighed as he massaged his nosebridge, calming himself down. “I’ll excuse myself for a moment…” he said as he got up and left the dining hall. Videl followed him from behind.

Rasmus and Videl went to the garden at the back of the mansion, enjoying the sunlight.

“This is bad, Videl…” Rasmus sighed. “Every time I remember about Rasmus’s past, it affects me to the point that I almost lose control of myself…” he gripped the edge of the bench and cracked it. He was completely frustrated and furious by this.

“It’s not me who’s being played by God…” Videl chuckled as he stared coldly at the sky. “It seems he did this on purpose so you would lose your composure and affect your judgment,” he pointed out.

Rasmus was about to sit down but he felt a chill down his spine as if a danger was coming toward him. When he turned around, all he felt was a fierce wind that hit his face and the sound of bone cracking. He was stunned by what had just happened until he saw Videl block Aris’s kick with his arms. He could see that Aris was aiming her kick in Videl’s face but got blocked in the process.

“(She broke his bones…)” Rasmus was in disbelief as he stared at Aris with her usual cold and stoic expression.

“I knew it, you’re not ordinary human…” Aris muttered and used more strength on her foot. She pushed Videl away and sent him flying.

Videl landed and used his hands to support his body, but since Aris broke his arms, he felt immense pain. He didn’t expect to feel pain after thousands of years of existence. He slowly got up and glared at Aris with a wide grin on his face.

“What’s the meaning of this?” Videl asked as he walked toward Aris.

“Show me what you got,” Aris stared into Videl’s eyes and began to walk toward him.

“I’m planning to do so…” Videl smirked as he clenched his fists.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep