...
{3rd Pov}
The words echoed in their minds.
Oni God.
That was the title they had just heard from her lips.
It was not a term that appeared often in modern discussions, but those who were educated in history recognized it immediately.
The title belonged to a figure from ancient legends—an entity worshipped by the Oni clans long ago.
According to old records, that being had once stood as a monstrous power said to rival the very first Sword Saint.
Even though that ancient Oni God had ultimately been slain in the end, the legend surrounding him had never truly faded.
The mere association with such a title carried an absurd weight.
Which was exactly why the claim sounded so outrageous.
The Wise Men stared at Ram with a mixture of disbelief and irritation.
To them, the idea that a mere maid standing in front of them could casually refer to herself using the title of a legendary god was beyond ridiculous.
"Oni! Surrender yourself!" Bordeaux barked harshly, his voice full of contempt.
He snorted loudly, clearly unimpressed by her declaration.
"Making such an absurd claim will not save you!"
Unlike some of the others, Bordeaux's reaction was not purely political.
His hostility carried something deeper.
He had always held strong racial prejudice toward demi-humans due to events in his past, and the sight of an Oni standing proudly before the Council only inflamed that bias further.
And now this same Oni was threatening them while claiming the title of Oni God.
To Bordeaux, it was nothing more than an insult.
First it had been Zero.
He had absurdly slaughtered dozens of nobles and merchants under the suspicion that they were involved in illegal demi-human trafficking and other serious crimes.
There had been no formal trial, no legal procedure, and no consultation with the authorities of the kingdom.
From the perspective of the Council, such actions greatly undermined the official authority of Lugunica and directly threatened the established command structure of the nation itself.
Now the situation had escalated even further.
The maid who had calmly delivered the news through the metia's mirror transmission was now openly threatening them while displaying an overwhelming surge of magical power.
On top of that, she had made the outrageous claim of being an Oni God.
The Wise Men were old, but they were far from foolish.
Each of them possessed considerable knowledge of history, politics, and the various demi-human races that existed within the world.
Their positions required such understanding.
They were not easily intimidated by dramatic displays or grandiose titles.
Naturally, they knew quite a bit about the Oni race.
And that knowledge immediately brought a contradiction to their minds.
Ram only had one horn.
Among the Oni, a single horn was traditionally considered a mark of weakness or disgrace.
Two horns symbolized strength and lineage, while a one-horned Oni was often looked down upon even within their own kind.
Because of that cultural understanding, the Wise Men struggled to take her declaration seriously.
Yes, their instincts were screaming at them.
Their bodies clearly sensed danger from the power radiating around her.
But they rationalized it quickly.
Perhaps it was simply a natural reaction.
After all, they were humans facing an Oni radiating magical energy.
It was entirely possible that their primal instincts were merely responding to the racial difference and the sudden surge of magic rather than to any true threat she posed.
"Is that so?" Ram replied calmly, her voice steady and completely devoid of fear.
"I am acting under strict orders from Lord Zero. My instructions are simple—to protect myself and eliminate anyone who attempts to obstruct his cause for justice."
Her words did not waver.
"Justice?!" Bordeaux snapped furiously, his voice rising in outrage as he pointed accusingly at her.
"You dare call this justice?! No formal trial! No petitions! No lawful judgment! Slaughtering people like animals is not justice, you filthy Oni!"
The insult had barely finished leaving his mouth.
In the very next instant, his head separated cleanly from his neck.
There was no dramatic movement that anyone could clearly follow.
One moment he was shouting, the next his body remained standing while his severed head dropped away.
Blood erupted violently from the exposed stump, spraying across the chamber floor, splattering onto the robes of the other Wise Men and staining the surrounding walls.
For a brief second, no one moved.
The Wise Men stared in disbelief, their expressions frozen as the reality of what had just happened slowly sank in.
Bordeaux—one of the most influential figures within the kingdom's governing body—had just been executed in front of them.
"Knights! Get her!" Marcos shouted, snapping everyone out of their stunned silence.
The Royal Knights and guards reacted instantly.
Steel rang out as more swords were drawn in unison.
Without hesitation, they rushed toward Ram with clear killing intent.
Some aimed to strike her down immediately, while others prepared to cripple her first.
After all, she had just committed the unthinkable.
She had killed a Wise Man.
The winds surrounding Ram intensified the moment the knights charged.
What had initially been a swirling aura of chaotic air now became something far more violent.
The currents sharpened, compressing and accelerating until they resembled invisible blades moving at terrifying speed.
The Royal Knights barely managed to take a few steps toward her before the storm around her responded.
They did not even reach striking distance.
The wind tore through them effortlessly.
Armor split apart as if it were made of paper.
Steel plates twisted and burst open.
Bodies were shredded before their swords could complete their swings.
In mere seconds, the charging knights were reduced to scattered gore across the chamber floor.
Ram had not even lifted a hand.
She did not need to.
The wind itself butchered them, leaving nothing behind except mangled flesh, shattered armor, and blood spreading across the stone floor.
Marcos, the commander of the Royal Knights, stood frozen as he witnessed the scene unfold.
His breath caught in his throat, and for the first time since the confrontation began, genuine fear took hold of him.
This was no longer a political standoff or an arrest operation.
This was a massacre.
Behind him, the Wise Men were trembling in their seats.
The confidence they had shown earlier had vanished completely, replaced by pale faces and shaking hands.
Two of them abruptly stood up, panic overtaking their composure.
Their chairs fell backward as they tried to flee the chamber.
They never reached the door.
The same raging wind that had destroyed the knights swept through them as well.
Their bodies were torn apart mid-step, ripped open by the invisible blades.
Flesh, bone, and organs were scattered violently across the room, painting the walls and floor with blood.
Within moments, the once dignified council chamber had turned into a gruesome slaughterhouse.
"Stooop!"
Miklotov's voice rang through the chamber, filled with urgency and unmistakable fear.
The shout cut through the sound of wind and chaos, echoing across the bloodstained hall.
Ram stopped.
Not in the sense that the power surrounding her vanished entirely, but rather in the sense that she no longer attacked anyone simply for standing in the room.
The violent currents around her calmed slightly, though the oppressive presence of her magic remained.
She turned her gaze toward the remaining Wise Men.
There was no fear in her eyes.
"Oh?" Ram said calmly, tilting her head slightly as if the entire situation was merely an inconvenience.
"What might you want, Sir Wise Man?"
Miklotov remained seated for a moment, trembling where he stood.
His aged face reflected a storm of emotions—shock, disbelief, grief, and restrained anger all fighting for control.
His gaze drifted to the body of Bordeaux lying on the floor, headless and surrounded by blood.
Bordeaux had been one of his closest colleagues for years.
For a brief moment, Miklotov closed his eyes.
Pain and anger flashed across his expression, but he forced himself to suppress it.
Acting rashly now would only make things worse.
When he finally spoke again, his voice was no longer commanding.
"I… I wish to negotiate with Lord Zero," he said slowly.
Ram raised an eyebrow.
"Negotiations?" she repeated, a faint sneer forming on her lips.
"Lord Zero had already provided you with a path to resolve this matter peacefully."
Her tone carried clear criticism.
"However, it was you people who insisted on making things unnecessarily difficult."
She paused for a moment before continuing more neutrally.
"But as a maid, my personal opinions do not represent my Lord's wishes.".
"Very well," she said calmly.
"You will be allowed to negotiate with Lord Zero as he instructed me upon him reaching the Royal Capital."
The winds swirling throughout the chamber gradually weakened as Ram accepted their request.
The violent currents that had previously torn through the room settled into a calmer state, though the lingering pressure of her power remained present in the air.
With the immediate threat paused, she turned slightly as if preparing to leave.
But the moment her back shifted away from them, Marcos made his move.
Without warning, without even a word of signal, the commander of the Royal Knights lunged forward from behind.
He swung his blade with every ounce of strength he could muster, aiming directly at Ram's neck in a desperate attempt to kill her before she could react.
"Stoooppppp!"
Miklotov's horrified shout echoed through the chamber.
His voice cracked with disbelief and panic, his throat nearly tearing as he witnessed the sudden betrayal unfold in front of him.
But it was already too late.
Marcos's blade never reached its target.
The sword stopped mid-swing.
Ram had already turned around.
Her movement was so fast it seemed almost unnatural.
In a single smooth motion, she raised her hand and caught the descending blade between two fingers.
The steel edge pressed firmly against her skin but failed to advance even a fraction further.
The force behind the attack was enormous.
The impact traveled downward through her body and into the floor beneath her feet, causing the stone tiles to crack and fracture outward.
Yet Ram herself did not move.
Marcos stared at the sight in disbelief.
His sword—his full-powered strike—had been stopped effortlessly by two fingers.
It was a feat that should have been impossible.
Even a legendary warrior like Wilhelm van Astrea would not casually attempt something like that.
For a brief moment, Marcos's mind refused to accept what he was seeing.
Then the wind returned.
The calm air around Ram suddenly erupted outward in a violent explosion.
The same deadly currents that had slaughtered the knights earlier expanded across the chamber with overwhelming force.
The result was immediate.
Everyone still present in the room was torn apart.
Bodies were shredded into fragments before they could even scream.
Armor, flesh, bone, and blood scattered in every direction as the invisible blades of wind butchered everything within range.
The massacre ended as quickly as it began.
When the storm finally settled, the chamber was silent once again.
The floor was covered with torn remains and scattered gore.
And standing at the center of it all was Ram.
Not even a speck of dust had settled on her clothes.
Ram let out a quiet sigh as she looked around the chamber.
What remained of the Wise Men were no longer recognizable as people.
The floor was covered with scattered pieces of flesh, bone, and blood—unidentifiable fragments that had once belonged to the men who ruled the kingdom.
These were the same individuals who had governed Lugunica after the death of the Royal Family, the highest authority within the nation for months, and had been governing beside Royal Family for years.
Now, nothing remained of them.
Not even complete corpses.
The chamber that once hosted the most powerful political figures in the country had been reduced to a gruesome scene of destruction.
And all of it had happened because of a single mistake.
One wrong move made in desperation and anger.
Marcos Gildark, the Commander of the Royal Knights, had chosen to launch a sneak attack.
Whether it was born from fear, pride, or blind loyalty no longer mattered.
That single decision had triggered everything that followed.
Ram shook her head slightly.
The consequences were unavoidable now.
For the moment, she had used wind magic to isolate the entire chamber.
The currents she controlled formed an invisible barrier, preventing any sound from escaping outside.
The screams, the destruction, and the slaughter had all been contained within these walls.
But that measure would only delay the inevitable.
Soon enough, people would discover what had happened here.
And when they did, the entire nation would be thrown into shock.
The deaths of the Wise Men and the Royal Knights would spread like wildfire across Lugunica.
Fear, anger, and confusion would follow.
Worse still, the blame would inevitably fall on her.
On the Emilia camp.
To the outside world, it would look as though they had just massacred the leaders of the kingdom.
And in the eyes of many, that would make them villains.
Although they weren't wrong.
*Ahem*
Subaru—known as Zero—suddenly appeared inside the chamber through teleportation.
Ram was momentarily surprised by his sudden arrival, though the surprise was brief.
She was already well aware that he possessed a wide variety of unusual abilities, including powers that allowed him to move instantly across large distances.
The moment she saw him, she immediately straightened her posture and bowed respectfully.
"Lord Zero," she said calmly.
"Please forgive me if I have overstepped my boundaries. However, I acted according to your earlier instructions. You had ordered that if they refused to cooperate, I should eliminate those who attempted to obstruct your cause."
She kept her head lowered as she spoke, her tone polite and controlled.
"I carried out that order and killed them when they chose to resist. If I have made any mistake in my judgment, then please punish me accordingly."
Ram said this without hesitation.
In truth, she did not believe she had done anything wrong.
From her perspective, she had simply followed the instructions given to her.
The outcome had been harsh, but the responsibility for that escalation had not started with her.
Even so, she did not want to risk disappointing him.
Her loyalty to Zero was absolute, but there was also another complication she rarely admitted openly.
The quiet crush she held toward him made her far more concerned about his opinion of her than she would normally allow herself to show.
Because of that, even the possibility of disappointing him—even slightly—was something she wished to avoid.
Zero calmly surveyed the room after arriving.
His gaze moved slowly across the chamber, taking in the destruction without any visible shock.
The scattered remains, the blood covering the floor, and the broken bodies that had once been the ruling authorities of Lugunica were all carefully observed before his attention finally returned to Ram.
Instead of showing anger or disappointment, he simply smiled.
Then he reached out and gently patted her head.
The gesture caught Ram slightly off guard.
A faint blush appeared on her face as she instinctively closed her eyes, quietly breathing out in relief.
The tension she had been holding inside loosened the moment she realized that she had not disappointed him.
"You did great," Zero said calmly.
"If they were willing to backstab even after everything that was explained to them, then it simply means they had no intention of negotiating from the start."
He paused for a moment before letting out a small sigh.
"Although I did not want things to escalate to this point."
Subaru rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he glanced around the ruined chamber again.
"It seems we may have to prepare for a civil war," he said quietly.
"Of course, there are other options available to me."
His thoughts shifted briefly.
"I could simply go to Volcanica and take control of him directly," Subaru muttered under his breath.
"But doing something like that would only make our cause look far worse than it already does."
His expression remained calm as he considered the broader implications.
Subaru did not particularly mind if the Dragon Church continued to exist and spread its faith among the people.
Religion itself was not the problem.
However, what he refused to tolerate was the church influencing the governance of Lugunica or interfering with the nation's political structure.
From his perspective, their role needed to change.
They could continue operating as a religious organization—providing healing, spiritual guidance, and other useful services to the population.
In return, the nation could offer protection and financial support to maintain those institutions.
But they should remain exactly that.
A religious faction.
Nothing more.
At the same time, Subaru also wanted Lugunica to gradually move away from its overwhelming dependence on the Divine Dragon.
For far too long, the nation had relied on that single existence as the foundation of its stability.
If the country was ever going to grow stronger, it needed to stand on its own rather than leaning entirely on an ancient dragon for protection.
Unlike Crusch's earlier proposals, Subaru did not intend for the solution to be shallow or temporary.
His approach involved creating real alternatives to the Divine Dragon's blessings that had sustained Lugunica for centuries—especially the blessings that ensured the fertility of its lands and stable harvests.
Rather than simply cutting off the dragon's influence and hoping the nation would somehow survive, he had already begun demonstrating practical replacements.
One of the simplest examples was the method of fertilizers he had introduced.
By applying knowledge that was almost commonplace in his past world, he had already shown that Lugunica's farmland did not need to rely entirely on the Divine Dragon's blessing to remain productive.
With proper agricultural techniques and improved soil management, the land could remain fertile through human effort rather than divine dependence.
After thinking through these matters for a moment, Subaru's expression relaxed slightly.
Then he noticed Rem.
She was standing nearby, still holding the metia, quietly looking at him.
Her gaze lingered for a moment longer than usual, and a faint blush had appeared on her face without her realizing it.
Subaru noticed immediately.
'Another one goes down,' Subaru thought in a completely deadpan manner.
Over time, his natural charm had increased far more than he originally expected.
Between his accomplishments, his influence, and the strange aura he carried, more and more women had begun developing feelings for him.
At this point, there were already dozens of women who clearly showed interest in him.
Ram, somewhat unexpectedly, had now joined that growing group as well.
It was not entirely surprising when he thought about it.
He had saved her life, given her a purpose beyond simply living for her sister, and treated her with a level of trust and respect that few others had offered her before.
At the same time, Rem herself had begun showing subtle signs of developing feelings too.
Looking at the situation objectively, Subaru could not help but think that the future might end up bringing both Oni sisters into his life as his women.
Until now, Subaru had tried to ignore Ram's feelings toward him.
He had initially dismissed them as simple gratitude—something natural considering the circumstances.
After all, he had saved her life and given her a new purpose. In situations like that, it was not unusual for emotions to become complicated.
However, he could no longer pretend that was the case.
It had become obvious that her feelings had gone far beyond mere gratitude.
The way she looked at him, the way she worried about disappointing him, and the way she reacted to even small gestures of approval made it clear enough.
Ram was in love with him.
And that realization only made things more complicated.
Subaru was already dealing with enough problems in that area.
The situation between Gloria and Reina was far from simple, and now Priscilla had openly declared her intentions as well.
Managing even those dynamics was already giving him a headache.
Subaru quietly rubbed his temple.
Apparently, a harem was far less stable in reality than what anime tended to portray.
In stories, everything usually worked out with convenient harmony.
In real life, however, emotions were far messier.
For the moment, he decided to set that entire issue aside.
There were far more urgent matters to handle.
Without saying anything further, Subaru simply gestured to Ram.
In the next instant, he activated his teleportation ability and both of them vanished from the chamber.
They left the ruined council hall behind.
It was nearly an hour later when Royal Knights finally entered the room.
They had been sent to check on the meeting after the long silence became suspicious.
When they opened the doors, they froze in place.
The chamber was filled with blood.
Gore and scattered remains covered the floor and walls, leaving no doubt about what had happened inside.
An absolute, terrifying, fucking massacre.
…
"Crusch-sama, we are ready!" Felix said confidently.
Crusch stood a short distance away, her sharp eyes fixed on the mass of pitch-black substance slowly advancing toward their position.
The ground itself seemed to recoil from it.
The disgusting, tar-like substance writhed and expanded as it moved forward.
The Black Serpent.
Or more accurately, a portion of it, though they didn't knew about it.
With the combined resources of the Crusch and Anastasia camps, it had not taken long to gather information about its whereabouts.
Anastasia's network of merchants and informants had proven extremely effective, while Crusch's military connections helped verify the sightings quickly.
Once they confirmed the location of the Black Serpent's fragment, the decision was made almost immediately.
They would eliminate it themselves.
Part of that decision came from pride.
Another part came from urgency.
After all, Zero had already been responsible for destroying several other major threats.
If they allowed him to deal with this one as well, it would only further widen the gap between the Royal Candidates and make their own achievements seem insignificant.
So they mobilized.
The joint operation consisted of Crusch Karsten's militia forces along with Anastasia's hired mercenaries.
In addition to the soldiers, several key members of both camps had gathered to participate directly in the battle.
The plan itself was relatively straightforward.
First, they would bait the Black Serpent toward a designated battlefield that had already been prepared in advance.
Once the creature entered the attack radius, they would unleash a coordinated barrage of magical artillery designed to overwhelm it.
Crusch herself would support the bombardment with her wind magic, amplifying the power and range of the attacks.
Julius would provide additional support using his spirit magic to stabilize and direct the magical assaults.
Meanwhile, the triplets would unleash their signature Roaring Wave, an attack that was particularly effective against large or distant targets.
If everything went according to plan, the combined firepower of both camps should be enough to destroy the monster.
As soon as Wilhelm successfully baited the creature toward the designated location, the entire battlefield shifted into action.
Crusch had been watching closely the entire time, waiting for the exact moment the Black Serpent entered the prepared attack radius.
The instant it crossed the invisible boundary of their trap, she raised her hand and gave the signal.
"Fire the artilleries!" she shouted.
The response was immediate.
Rows of magical artillery units unleashed their attacks simultaneously.
Brilliant flashes of light erupted as spell projectiles were launched one after another, raining down upon the mass of writhing black substance that formed the Black Serpent's body.
Explosions of magic slammed into the creature repeatedly, causing the pitch-black goo to ripple and deform under the impact.
For a brief moment, the monster tried to retreat.
The Black Serpent's body began shifting backward, attempting to escape the concentrated bombardment.
But the moment it started to move out of the designated kill zone, Mimi and Hetaro reacted instantly.
"Roaring Wave!"
The twins unleashed their attack without hesitation.
A powerful surge of sound and force blasted across the battlefield, striking the retreating mass and pushing it back toward the center of the trap.
The Black Serpent produced a disturbing screeching and gurgling noise as the black substance trembled violently under the impact.
Forced by the pressure of the attack, the creature was driven back into the prepared position.
Then it attempted to escape in another direction.
Julius had been waiting for exactly that.
"Al Clauzeria!"
His spirit magic erupted forward in a focused blast, striking the Black Serpent with tremendous force.
The attack tore through a large portion of the creature's body, ripping away a significant chunk of the writhing black mass.
But the battle was far from finished.
Crusch stepped forward immediately, her eyes locked onto the opening Julius had created.
She raised her blade and unleashed a powerful strike empowered by her wind magic.
The compressed air surged forward like a blade itself, slicing cleanly through the Black Serpent and severing another portion from its main body.
"Quickly! Focus on that portion!" Anastasia Hoshin ordered sharply.
The moment her words rang out, every artillery unit redirected its aim.
Magical blasts began concentrating on the severed fragment, bombarding it relentlessly to prevent it from reconnecting with the main body.
Meanwhile, Mimi and Tivey coordinated their movements and joined their power together.
"Roaring Wave!"
The combined attack surged forward with far greater force than before.
The shockwave slammed into the battlefield, ensuring that the detached portion of the Black Serpent remained separated from the main mass.
Finally, Julius stepped forward once more.
"Al Claurista!"
His finishing attack struck the isolated fragment directly.
The magical blast tore through the unstable black substance, completely destroying the severed portion before it could regenerate or reconnect.
The fragment of the Black Serpent collapsed and dissolved almost instantly.
"It's working, Duchess! Repeat the process!" Anastasia Hoshin shouted excitedly, unable to hide the grin spreading across her face as she watched the battlefield unfold.
Their plan was actually working.
The strategy they had devised was not something they had come up with casually.
For hours, both camps had gone over every piece of information they possessed about the Black Serpent.
Every known detail about its behavior, regeneration, and combat abilities had been analyzed repeatedly.
After all that discussion and planning, they had finally arrived at what initially sounded like a ridiculous idea.
But it turned out to be extremely effective.
Crusch stepped forward again, her focus sharp and unwavering.
She swung her blade and released another invisible wind slash, the compressed air slicing cleanly through the writhing mass of black substance.
Another portion of the Black Serpent was cut off.
Immediately, the rest of the group repeated the same coordinated sequence.
The severed piece was isolated, bombarded with magical artillery, and prevented from reconnecting with the main body by the combined efforts of Julius and the triplets.
The process was repeated again.
And again.
The battle dragged on for nearly an hour.
It was not a quick victory, but a long and exhausting struggle that demanded constant coordination and focus.
Each time a fragment was cut away, the entire team had to react immediately to ensure the creature could not regenerate or merge back together.
Slowly but steadily, the monstrous mass grew smaller.
Eventually, after the final portion was destroyed, the battlefield fell quiet.
The remaining traces of the Black Serpent's body dissolved completely.
For a brief moment, there was silence.
Then the entire army erupted into cheers.
"We have defeated one of the Three Great Mabeasts!" Crusch declared loudly, raising her voice so that everyone present could hear her.
The soldiers responded immediately with loud shouts of victory.
Even though the cavalry and the foot soldiers had not played a direct role in damaging the creature, they had still performed an important task.
They had formed a massive circle surrounding the battlefield, ensuring that no portion of the Black Serpent could escape unnoticed.
But the plan had worked so well that it was not even necessary.
With the core fighters—Wilhelm, the triplets, and Julius—working together under Crusch and Anastasia's strategy, they had managed to bring down such a monstrous creature without needing additional containment.
"Impressive, Duchess. It seems your command skills are truly remarkable… And with this victory, we finally have something concrete to place under our name. This will certainly boost the reputation of our camp," Anastasia said with a sly smile, clearly pleased with how the battle had turned out.
Crusch nodded in agreement.
"Indeed. At last we will be able to—"
Her words suddenly stopped.
Her eyes widened as she noticed something strange.
A massive expanse of pitch-black goo had appeared around them without warning.
What they had believed to be the remains of the destroyed Black Serpent was not gone at all.
Instead, an enormous body of the same tar-like substance had silently surrounded their entire army.
The black mass slithered and shifted across the ground like a gigantic serpent.
The movement was unnatural and disturbing, the substance rippling as if it were alive in every part.
Then flowers began to bloom across its surface.
Strange, twisted blossoms formed throughout the creature's body, opening slowly like grotesque decorations across the endless black mass.
Crusch barely had time to understand what she was seeing.
Before she could shout a command or issue a single order, the creature struck.
The poisonous goo surged inward from every direction.
It swallowed the entire battlefield.
Soldiers were engulfed instantly.
The cavalry, the foot soldiers, and even the elite fighters were caught in the sudden attack.
The black substance rolled over them like a living tide, devouring everything in its path.
Crusch herself was swallowed before she could react.
Inside the suffocating mass, she struggled desperately.
The substance clung to her armor and skin, burning and dissolving whatever it touched.
She could hear the screams of her soldiers all around her—cries of terror and agony echoing through the thick, poisonous darkness.
She heard familiar voices as well.
Ricardo shouting.
Felix screaming.
Even Wilhelm's voice somewhere in the chaos.
'Why?' she thought weakly as the pain spread through her body.
Her skin began to melt first, the flesh dissolving under the corrosive poison.
The burning sensation spread deeper into her muscles as they began to break down as well.
'Why did this happen?' she wondered again.
Tears rolled down her face, but even those tears did not last long.
Her eyes themselves had already begun to dissolve.
The world faded into darkness as her organs melted, followed by the slow destruction of her bones.
In the end, nothing remained.
Not her armor.
Not her clothes.
Not even a single trace of her existence.
The Black Serpent had finished its feast.
To be continued...