“We were just kids who fell in love~
~Like the stars in the empty night~
Ohhh~ darling, just dive in, follow my leadddd~
Even if the world falls apart~
I’ll be right here, wherever you are~
Through every storm, through every fight
You’re my forever…rrrr..rrrrr…RRRRR!!~
So take my hand, don’t be afraid, little deerrrr~
We’ll paint the sky in silver shades~
Every heartbeat hums~ your~ name~
I fall fo–“
“I never expected you to be… so romantic, Victor.” A voice interrupted the song, carrying a tone both amused and slightly intrigued.
Victor’s eyes flickered toward the source… Master Snape stood there, watching him intently, his sharp gaze reflecting something unreadable.
Victor lay inside the cube, which rested on the surface of the Ebon Stone.
Victor smirked, tilting his head slightly as he met Master’s eyes. Unlike Aqualin and Celestia, who had been trapped in similar situations before and were left utterly blind to their surroundings, Victor could see and hear everything.
“Well,” Victor finally spoke, his voice carrying a lazy amusement, “even the hardest stones have cracks somewhere. You just have to know where to look.” His gaze lingered on Master’s face, catching the brief flicker of something—something unguarded—before it disappeared behind his usual stern mask.
Master exhaled, his shoulders rising and falling before he spoke again, “For now, all you need to do is… just stay there.”
Victor’s brow furrowed slightly. “Huh? Just stay here? You’ve got to be kidding me, Master. You dragged me into this mess, and now you’re telling me to lie here like some helpless prisoner? I was hoping for some action, you know.” His tone carried a tinge of frustration, the idea of being passive clearly did not sit well with him.
Master sighed, rubbing his temples, “Don’t worry,” he said, his voice carrying an edge of certainty. “Once we have her attention, I’ll let you… play.”
Victor let out a slow hum of approval before finally nodding. “As long as I get my fun, I don’t care what you do,” he murmured, leaning back against the smooth.
Master observed him for a long moment before speaking again. “Aren’t you even the slightest bit concerned about the Sovereign? The moment she finds out you betrayed them… she won’t hesitate to kill you.” His tone was unreadable, but there was something there—perhaps curiosity, or maybe even warning.
Victor simply shrugged, “Concerned? No, not really. I knew exactly what I was doing when I betrayed them.
I knew the consequences, and I accepted them the moment I made my choice.” His voice grew quieter, almost reflective, “Death is the last thing I have to worry about.”
Master studied him carefully, his expression unreadable, “I don’t understand you, Victor,” he admitted after a long pause. “Most people fear death, try to run from it, but you… you seem to embrace it like it’s just another part of your journey.
Do you really have no regrets?”
Victor chuckled, a low, almost dark sound, “Even I don’t fully understand myself,” he admitted, staring up at the ceiling—or rather, beyond it, “But regrets? No. I do what I want, and I live with what comes after. That’s all there is to it.”
Master’s lips pressed into a thin line.
“So, what are you waiting for, then?” Victor asked.
“Nothing… just waiting for a signal” Master answered smoothly, though the truth was far from that.
He wasn’t just waiting for a signal—no, he was waiting for something far darker, something Victor had no idea about.
Then—
“MASTER!!”
Master’s expression twitched, irritation flickering across his face. He clicked his tongue, ‘Tsk. Can’t even hold them off for a second,’ he thought.
Victor smirked. “That your cue?” he asked, his voice laced with amusement.
Master’s gaze snapped toward him, then nodded. “Yeah,” he said simply before lifting his hand. With a swift motion,
Victor’s vision went black. Sound faded into nothingness. He was cut off from everything.
Master stared at the now-silent cube and let out a slow, devious chuckle. “Who would have thought…” he murmured, his smirk widening. “You actually volunteered to get stuck inside… Haha.” There was pure amusement in his tone, mixed with something even more sinister.
He had spent time wondering how he was going to handle Victor, how he would keep him restrained—but now, it seemed the problem had solved itself. Victor, of his own free will, had walked straight into his trap.
Master clicked his tongue in amusement. “Just because I told you everything, doesn’t mean you should trust me, Victor. You still have a lot to learn…” His fingers twitched slightly, already imagining the things he could do to Victor once all of this was over.
Perhaps he’d carve into him, test his limits, see just how much he could endure before breaking. But… there was a small flicker of hesitation, a thought lingering in the back of his mind.
‘He’s actually a good subordinate. If I trained him properly, he might even surpass me one day… But that’s exactly why I can’t afford to let him roam free.’
Master pulled his hood over his head, concealing his expression before vanishing into the darkness.
Meanwhile, inside the cube, Victor found himself in an endless white space. The walls stretched infinitely in every direction. It was as if the outside world had simply ceased to exist.
Victor exhaled slowly, his eyes drifting toward the emptiness above him. But no, he wasn’t staring at the ceiling.
He was staring at something else—something only he could see.
!~🔔~!
[⚠ Warning:…]
Victor’s lips curled into a slow, knowing grin.
Meanwhile—
Dora tightened her grip around Jack’s throat, her brows furrowing with frustration. “Master? Bastard, I asked you—where the hell is Victo—”
“Why are you scaring the poor guy?”
An indifferent voice suddenly echoed through the desolate landscape.
Dora, Mary, and Lia flinched, their bodies tensing as they instinctively turned toward the source of the voice.
Hovering in the sky, a lone hooded figure loomed above them.
“…”
“…”
Both Mary and Dora exchanged wary glances.
Something about this figure was… unnatural. He radiated nothing—not an ounce of power, not a hint of killing intent, not even the faintest trace of life. It was as if he wasn’t even there, merely an illusion conjured from the void itself.
Mary’s eyes narrowed.
Dora, still gripping Jack, kept her stance firm, muscles coiled like a spring, ready to snap at any moment.
“You can let the poor guy go,” the figure spoke again, his voice utterly indifferent, devoid of urgency, emotion, or even the slightest flicker of concern. It was as if he was merely commenting on the weather.
Dora’s frown deepened. Instead of loosening her grip, she clenched tighter, making Jack wheeze and struggle for breath. “Who the hell are you?” she demanded.
The figure remained silent for a moment, as if contemplating his response, before finally speaking. “They call me… Master.”
“Master?” Mary arched an eyebrow, her lips curving into a smirk. A low chuckle left her throat as she shook her head slightly, “What a cute name~Fu~Fu~” she mused, her voice laced with mockery. She lowered her daughter to the ground, gently pushing Lia behind her before raising her crimson sword.
Lia, now safely positioned behind her mother, frowned. “M-Master? What is it talking about, Mom?”
A shiver ran down her spine. There was something disturbingly unnatural about this man—no, not a man.
It felt as if she were looking at an empty shell, something that shouldn’t even exist.
Master’s gaze flickered briefly toward Lia before shifting back to Mary and Dora. His voice remained eerily steady as he continued, “Master… Master Snape—”
BOOOMMM!!
Before he could even finish his sentence, Dora had already moved. In the blink of an eye, she was in front of him, her fist colliding with his gut at full force. The sheer impact sent shockwaves rippling through the air, and his body was hurled upward like a ragdoll, a blast of dust and wind kicking up from the force.
But it wasn’t over.
Before he could even register what had happened, Mary was already waiting for him in the sky, her crimson sword raised high. Without hesitation, she drove the blade straight into his chest, piercing through fabric, flesh, and bone. Her movements were fluid, controlled, and merciless. Then, with a sharp twist of her wrist, she yanked the sword free and followed it with a brutal kick, sending his body crashing back toward the ground.
BOOOMM!!
As his body plummeted like a broken meteor, Dora was already in position. The moment he hit the ground, she was there—waiting. Without missing a beat, she caught him mid-air, her powerful grip seizing his limp form. She twisted sharply before launching him downward, slamming him straight into the earth with enough force to shatter the very ground beneath them.
BOOOOMMM!!
Yet, even before he could move, before he could even process the pain, Mary was already standing over him. Her crimson blade gleamed ominously as she stabbed it clean through his foot, pinning him down like an insect caught under a hunter’s knife.
Chhkkk!
Dora appeared behind him instantly, her fist slamming into his ribs with brutal precision.
BAM!
Mary’s palm struck across his face in a sharp, merciless slap, her speed unforgiving.
Chuckkk!
Another punch from Dora, this time aimed at his stomach.
BAM!!
Another ruthless slap from Mary, her strength leaving a visible mark.
Chuckkk!
Another brutal strike, sending his head snapping to the side.
BAM!!
The relentless onslaught continued, neither of them allowing their so-called ‘Master’ a single second to react, let alone defend himself. Each blow was precise, calculated—executed with such flawless coordination that it was almost as if they could predict each other’s movements in advance.
Lia stood there, utterly stunned by the sheer brutality of it all. Her wide eyes darted between her mother and Dora, watching them attack with an almost hypnotic rhythm.
‘Are they sure they aren’t friends? Hell, even lifelong comrades don’t have coordination this good…’ she mused, her lips twitching slightly in amusement.
Her gaze then drifted toward Jack. He had been tossed aside by Dora earlier, his body ragged, his breath laboured. Now, coughing violently, he was attempting to crawl away, his limbs trembling as he tried to put as much distance between himself and the chaos as possible.
Lia’s smirk widened.
Without a word, she summoned her sword…. The blade shimmered into existence, the cold steel humming in anticipation.
Slowly, deliberately, she began making her way toward him.