“From what my friend told me… the contract is supposed to be on equal grounds,” Xara muttered, her voice low but firm. “It’s meant to be a mutual agreement between two individuals—not some twisted form of slavery or forced submission.”
Aether’s frown deepened as confusion and unease crept into his expression, “If what you’re saying is actually true… then why do I have a slave mark?” He rubbed the back of his neck with a restless hand, trying to make sense of it. “That doesn’t sound like something formed from mutual consent.”
Xara looked straight at him, “Are you absolutely sure… it’s a slave mark?” she asked, her voice careful and steady.
Aether blinked at her, baffled.
“What do you mean? What else could it be? I seriously don’t get it,” he said, frustration leaking into his voice.
Xara let out a slow, thoughtful sigh.
“After hearing your backstory… what my friend told me was finally confirmed, The contract…” she said slowly. “The connection between you and some unknown entity—something you said took interest in you out of nowhere.” She gave a slight shrug, continuing, “Maybe that mark you saw as a slave mark is actually something you agreed to… a part of the contract you didn’t realise you were making.”
Aether’s brows knit tighter. “But… I never signed any kind of deal. Especially not with any gods. And why the hell would I ever want to make myself a slave?”
Xara gave another shrug, her tone thoughtful now, edged with curiosity. “That’s exactly what makes it so damn strange, Aether…” she nodded slowly, expression clouded with confusion. “From everything my friend told me, the Eternal Contract isn’t like any normal contract. It’s something ancient… created for dealing with powerful beings. Especially gods. Because they always find loopholes in normal contracts. They manipulate words… twist meanings.”
She leaned closer slightly. “The Eternal Contract was made to prevent that. It’s a binding agreement that doesn’t break. Not even after death. Once you’re in… there’s no walking away from it. Not unless you fulfil your part. That’s what my friend said, anyway.”
Aether stood still, eyes slightly widened, as he tried to absorb her words. He blinked slowly, processing everything.
Xara hummed quietly, her arms crossing over her chest. “The only reason Velc was able to activate that contract… was because of that unknown thing that got interested in you.
Without that?
It wouldn’t have worked at all.
No matter how much power he threw at it. It wouldn’t have activated,” she said, her voice darkening slightly. “Now that makes sense… Velc and Alfred’s arcane levels were completely drained. Sucked dry just to trigger it. And if that unknown being hadn’t intervened… ha…” her smirk grew as she chuckled softly, “They both would’ve dropped dead. I’d have loved to see the look on his face when that plan failed… ahah…”
Aether stayed quiet, turning inward as he calmly called out, ‘Okay Log, now it’s your time to finish explaining the details.’ After all, the Log always knew more than anyone.
But there was no response.
‘Tsk,’ he clicked his tongue in frustration. ‘So I made a contract with this… unknown being… and somehow made myself a slave? Seriously? What the fuck?!!’ he screamed inwardly, disbelief spiraling in his head.
Xara suddenly turned to him, eyes gleaming with interest, smirking like a predator eyeing something exotic. “Now… what kind of deal did you make?” she asked slowly. “You said you’ve gotten stronger than anyone else, right? That has to be a part of the deal. Power always comes at a price. So… what did that thing want from you in return?”
Her gaze lingered on him as though he were some kind of rare, fascinating creature she couldn’t wait to unravel.
Aether swallowed hard, his throat suddenly dry. A flicker of anxiety twisted in his chest. ‘What the fuck did I do now?’ he thought, dread slowly creeping up his spine.
Just when things seemed to calm down, just when he tried to live peacefully… another cursed mystery popped up to screw with him again.
Xara tilted her head. “Didn’t you say… you somehow made the slave mark disappear?”
Aether nodded slowly.
She frowned. “A slave mark that vanished… hmm…” Her frown deepened, her mind clearly racing. “Tell me… how did you get rid of it? What exactly happened?”
Aether paused, thinking back. “Well… it happened when I saved the Empire,” he said after a moment. But the truth was more complicated than that. He hadn’t done it out of heroism. In fact, to survive being selected by the Ebon Stone, he had desperately poured a massive amount of affection points into one of his skills—
Then he froze.
Aether blinked, mind reeling. “Wait… don’t tell me…”
Xara hummed again, as if reading his mind. “Yeah… it must have been written into the contract. Saving the Empire… that probably fulfilled a condition. And as a result, the mark was removed. That has to be it. Just one part of the deal you made—whether you realised it or not.”
Aether stood there, blank. His brain stopped. Thoughts collapsed into themselves, like a crumbling tower.
‘So all this time… everything I’ve done… I’ve just been fulfilling the contract without even knowing?’ he thought, a cold chill spreading through him. ‘Don’t tell me… Iteration No. 27… did he—’
Before he could finish the thought, a hand landed gently on his shoulder.
“Don’t think too much in one direction or another,” Xara said softly, her voice steady, almost comforting. “Eventually, you’ll find the answer to everything.”
Aether snapped out of his spiraling thoughts and looked at Xara, who was softly smiling at him.
He gave her an awkward nod. “Yeah… no need to worry about the spilt beans,” he muttered, trying to sound casual.
But deep down, his mind was far from calm. His life… this strange contract… his bloodline—everything felt like it was twisting into something he couldn’t understand… And that unknown fear, faint but persistent, sat quietly in his chest.
Aether let out a slow sigh. He was nearly about to fall into panic over… something that still felt important, something just beyond his grasp. But whatever it was… he just had to be ready for it.
No matter what.
[Yup, that’s all you need.]
Aether’s lips twitched when his Log finally answered. ‘Fuck you, bitch!’ he cursed inwardly with a scowl.
[😏]
His lips twitched again, this time with restrained irritation. Choosing to ignore the smug response, he turned back to Xara.
“So, this friend you mentioned… can you tell me who it is?” he asked, his curiosity rising. After all, he had scoured every source he could get his hands on and never once had he come across information like this.
Not even whispers.
Which could only mean—her friend must be something else entirely.
Xara flinched slightly at his question, caught off guard.
“Well…” she averted her gaze, clearly hesitating. Then, after a moment of silence, she smirked slyly. “You still have your own secrets, don’t you?”
Aether sighed. Of course. He knew exactly where this was going.
He shook his head softly, conceding defeat.
Xara smiled, pleased. “But to think… you’re so messed up,” she said with a teasing note, her eyes scanning him with fresh curiosity.
Aether gave a small smile. “Messed up? Maybe…” he said, then leaned a little closer, his gaze fixed on her.
Xara’s eyes widened slightly. “Wait! What do you think you’re doing now?”
He tilted his head with a sly grin. “Well… I figured, a messed-up me and a messed-up you might make a pretty fitting messed-up life together.”
Xara blinked, caught off guard. Then she chuckled and smirked back. “Oh? And after being so afraid of me before?”
Aether laughed awkwardly but then added with a bit more seriousness, “Well… I was worried back then that you might do something to our child…”
Xara’s expression shifted as those words settled in. ‘Child? He’s already thinking about that?’ she thought with mild surprise. She stared at him for a moment, trying to gauge how serious he was.
Then she slowly nodded, as if understanding the depth behind his words. But her brows furrowed slightly. “Before? You were worried before? Not now?”
Aether slowly shook his head.
A dangerous smile curved across his lips.