Coming back to the Pyra Empire,
Sssshhhh!
Victor suddenly appeared along with Dora… pulling her close in a tight embrace. His arms wrapped around her waist as her soft, ample breasts pressed firmly against his chest, the sensation making his blood run hot in an instant. His grip tightened for a brief second before he lowered his head, suppressing the sudden rush of heat.
[+7000 AP]
Dora’s cheeks flushed a delicate pink before she quickly pushed him away, her voice stammering in disbelief. “I-I cannot believe you!! What do you think you’re trying to do to your Master!?”
Victor merely shrugged, his tone casual, as if nothing had happened. “Like I told you before, only I can teleport. Everyone else is restricted, and if anyone tries to enter forcefully, it’ll cause problems.”
Dora narrowed her eyes. “What kind of problems exactly?”
Victor let out a small cough before turning on his heel and walking away, avoiding her gaze…. he wasn’t exactly lying or true…
Dora gritted her teeth, her heart hammering against her ribs. Her fingers curled into the fabric of her chest, feeling the rapid thudding beneath her palm. ‘Damn it!’ she cursed inwardly before rushing after him.
As they entered the area and started searching… Victor frowned. There was no one in sight. Not a single soul.
“Where the hell is everyone?” he muttered, scanning the surroundings. Just then—
BOOM!!
A heavy tremor shook the ground beneath his feet. His eyes flickered toward the source, and without hesitation, he strode toward it—straight to the training grounds—only to be greeted with an unexpected sight.
“Arrhh! I am out, I am out, I am out!!!”
Thalia’s frantic scream echoed through the air as she flailed helplessly, completely trapped. Sandra had her arms locked tightly around Thalia’s neck, bending her backwards in a submission hold while casually sitting on her back like it was the most natural thing in the world.
Victor blinked. “What the…” His gaze shifted, landing on Raven, who was sprawled out on the floor, utterly defeated, unmoving as if she had been wrecked beyond repair.
“Oh wow,” Victor mused, a smirk playing on his lips as he took in the chaotic scene.
Then his eyes trailed to Emberlyn… She was lounging in a chair off to the side, wearing a pair of sunglasses—ones that, judging by their style, had clearly been left behind by Snowflake. She sipped leisurely from her drink, completely detached from the madness happening right in front of her as if none of it concerned her in the slightest.
Victor exhaled in amusement, shaking his head. “At this point, I’m not even sure who’s the actual captive here.”
With that, he took a step forward and called out, “Alright, everyone! That’s enough for now. Take a break!”
The moment his voice rang out, the entire group froze mid-action.
Thalia practically leapt away from Sandra, coughing and gasping as she stumbled to her feet. Sandra sighed, rolling her shoulders before standing up.
“You came back faster than I expected,” Sandra remarked, arms crossed, her tone laced with mild irritation as she stared at him.
Thalia hesitated for a moment before glancing up at Victor, her face slightly pink. “Y-You didn’t see anything weird, right?” she asked, hurriedly brushing off the dirt clinging to her clothes.
Victor’s knowing smirk told her everything she needed to know…. Here goes her name!!! ‘Arrh!’ She groaned, throwing her hands over her face in embarrassment.
Meanwhile, Emberlyn immediately removed her sunglasses and gave him a small nod with respect.
Victor’s eyes flickered toward Raven, still lying on the floor. “Raven?” he called.
“She’s dead as fu—” Sandra started to say with a smirk, but before she could finish—
ZZzzziipp!!
Choppp!
In an instant, Raven moved. One second she was lying there, the next, she was latched onto Victor’s neck, her teeth nipping at his skin, her tongue teasing over the bite as if she was marking him as hers.
Sandra’s lips twitched in irritation as she watched.
Victor let out a breath, pried Raven off his neck, and unceremoniously placed her beside Sandra.
“Anyway…” His gaze shifted toward Dora, who nodded in silent understanding. Her eyes glowed faintly with a pink hue as she turned to Sandra.
Sandra frowned at the way Dora was staring at her, feeling an odd sense of discomfort. Dora, on the other hand, narrowed her eyes as something unusual became visible before her—a thin, black thread flowing from Sandra’s body.
Then she turned her attention to Raven…. Unlike Sandra, Raven’s fate was more complicated. There was a red thread, a clear connection to Aether. But alongside it… was a black thread. Thin, barely noticeable, yet eerily similar to the one she saw on Sandra.
‘Hmmm… interesting,’ Dora mused to herself. The deeper she delved into fate, the more she realized how little she truly understood. ‘Looks like my comprehension of fate is still far from complete.’ The thought made her lips curl into a faint smirk.
Victor, noticing her expression, raised an eyebrow. “What exactly are you seeing?” he asked curiously.
Dora hummed before answering, “Just like Aqualina, her fate is connected to you. However, there’s another thread tied to her—a separate fate, one that resembles something I saw in the Stone.” She motioned toward Raven and then Sandra. “She has a distinct fate as well, but unlike the others, she isn’t connected to you.”
“Hmm…” Victor hummed inwardly, his mind racing with thoughts. ‘So my seal connects their souls to me, preventing them from being taken by others. However… when it comes to death… will they still die?’ He wondered, trying to link Maelon’s situation to theirs, searching for any possible clue.
“What’s going on here?” Sandra asked with a deep frown, her sharp eyes darting between Victor and Dora, sensing that something serious was at play.
“Hmm.” Raven nodded in agreement, her curiosity evident as she studied Victor’s expression. Whatever was happening, it was definitely important.
Victor’s face turned grave as he focused on Dora. “Can you cut it?” His tone carried a weight that made everyone go silent.
Dora’s brows furrowed. “Are you absolutely sure about this?” she asked, her voice laced with concern. “Cutting a fate means altering the possible future in ways we might not fully understand. Are you really willing to take that risk?”
Victor didn’t hesitate. His gaze was firm as he nodded. “Yes.”
Sandra’s frown deepened as she folded her arms. “Would someone care to explain? What exactly are you two talking about?” Her tone shifted from mild curiosity to full-on demand.
Victor turned to her. “With Dora’s help, we’re going to sever the fate that connects you to the Ebon Stone.”
Sandra blinked, stunned. “What? I’m connected to the Ebon Stone? What the hell does that even mean?”
Victor took a deep breath before answering. “I don’t know the exact conditions, but I have reason to believe that Master created you specifically for the Ebon Stone.”
Sandra stiffened, her whole body going rigid. “What?”
Victor continued, carefully explaining the requirements needed to activate the stone in the other empires.
“You’re telling me… from the very beginning… I was made for this?” Sandra’s voice faltered slightly, disbelief evident in her tone. Her mind reeled at the revelation.
Victor nodded slowly. “I’m not completely certain. If I had to guess, I’d say it’s a 60/40 chance. This is just a theory based on what I know. But considering Master’s obsession with the process, I think there’s a strong possibility that it’s connected to you.”
Sandra clenched her fists so tightly that her nails dug into her palms. A sharp, burning anger flared in her chest, but then, just as quickly, she let out a heavy sigh. As much as she wanted to be furious, that man had given her everything she needed to become who she was today. Getting angry at him now… it felt contradictory, almost pointless…. except for kidnapping her daughter!
Victor turned to Dora and motioned with his hand. “Dora.”
“Tsk, Master!! bastard!” Dora muttered under her breath, glaring at Victor for calling her name in front of everyone.
Aether, who had been quietly watching, simply smirked in amusement.
“…H-Hey, what’s going on between you two?” Sandra asked, her eyes narrowing. The way they spoke to each other, the subtle back-and-forth, the way Victor trusted her without hesitation—it all felt strangely… intimate.
Victor and Dora, of course, completely ignored her.
Dora exhaled sharply, raising her hand. A concentrated pulse of invisible force shot from her fingertips, aimed directly at the black thread that tethered Sandra’s fate.
“Hmm?” Dora’s brows drew together in a deep frown. The moment her energy collided with the thread, she felt an unnatural resistance.
It wasn’t breaking… It wasn’t even bending!
“Is something wrong?” Victor asked, his sharp eyes catching the slight tension in Dora’s expression.
Dora let out a small chuckle, “Nothing… It’s just tougher than I expected.” She adjusted her stance, summoning more power as both hands extended toward the thread.
Another wave of invisible pressure shot forward, wrapping around the fate thread like an unrelenting force trying to rip it apart. Dora pulled, her muscles tensing, her teeth clenched in determination.
“Arrrhhh!!” She groaned as she yanked harder, her body trembling from the effort.
To the others, it looked as though she was miming some sort of invisible battle, but in reality, she was struggling against something far greater than she had anticipated.
Victor’s expression darkened as he noticed small cuts forming on Dora’s fingers. Blood beaded at the wounds, dripping down her hands. “I think you should st—”
Before he could finish, Dora’s entire body flared with raw, untamed energy.
“FUCKER!!” she screamed, her voice laced with sheer frustration as she pushed beyond her limits, channelling everything she had.
Crack…
A tiny fracture appeared in the black thread.
Sandra gasped, feeling something shift within her—like a weight that had been pressing down on her soul had suddenly lifted, even if just for a moment. Relief washed over her in a fleeting instant.
But then—
Dora’s entire body stiffened.
A chill ran down her spine as a strange, ominous sensation coiled around her, crawling over her skin like invisible fingers.
Someone was watching her!
Slowly, she turned her head, every instinct screaming at her that she was being observed, and scrutinized. But when she looked—
There was nothing.
Nothing but a void!
Endless, consuming blackness stretched before her, a vast emptiness that defied reality itself.
Her breath hitched as her eyes darted around. Had she been teleported? Was she trapped?
Then, from the depths of the abyss, a sound emerged. A voice. Deep, guttural, and absolute.
[Nature has an Order… No one is above the law]
Dora barely had a second to react before—
BOOOOOMMM!!!
A deafening force exploded against her, sending her flying backwards with unimaginable power. The sheer impact cracked the ground where she landed, a shockwave tearing through the air as dust and debris erupted around her.
“DORA!” Victor’s voice rang out in sheer panic as he rushed toward her.
Dora coughed violently, crimson blood seeping from the corner of her lips. Her entire body trembled from the sheer force of the backlash, but it was her hands that sent a wave of horror through her mind.
Her fingers—
Broken. Twisted at grotesque angles. The bones beneath her skin snapped and contorted in ways that shouldn’t be possible.
Through the blinding pain, she forced herself to look at Sandra’s black thread.
The crack she had made—the small, fragile wound on fate itself—
Had already healed!!
As if it had never been there at all.
