Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Chapter 2286: Interruption

"What are you going to do with her?"

Since she couldn't imagine Vahn going out of his way to kill someone that looked like a child, Sandora was curious about what Vahn intended to do. What she didn't expect was for him to answer, "You're the one that sealed her powers. Once this Gift Game has come to an end, she, and the rest of her Community, will be your responsibility."

Furrowing her brows, Sandora uttered a conflicted, "Nn…" as she looked at Black Percher.

Even if it were her decision to make, Sandora knew there would be many within her Community petitioning for Black Percher and her subordinates to be brought to justice. The lightest punishment they could expect was a public execution. In the event Salamandra intended to make use of them, they would either spend the rest of their immortal existences as slaves or something much, much worse…

Seeing the glimmer of pity in Sandora's eyes, Black Percher squinted her own, saying, "I don't need someone like you to pity me. We knew what we were getting ourselves into when we decided to face a Floor Master. Also, the Gift Game has yet to conclude. If your people cannot reveal the truth, it's only a matter of time before members of your citizenry become agents of Grimm Grimoire Hamlin. Deciding what you'll do with me after the game is simply arrogant…"

Though her words had lost a fair amount of their bite, Black Percher was still serious about subsuming Salamandra and seeking vengeance against all beings related to the Sun. Her feelings of urgency had waned, but she wasn't going to simply abandon the purpose she had carried with her for nearly seven hundred years.

Exhaling a sigh, Sandora resisted the urge to inform Black Percher that a subset of her Community would willingly torture her and her companions for information. A Royal Family couldn't govern for thousands of years on purely good intentions. She had previously ignored it at the behest of her brother, but Sandora was well aware of Salamandra's dark underbelly.

Turning to meet Vahn's gaze, Sandora asked, "What if my decision was to leave the members of Grimm Grimoire Hamlin to the Aldrnari Empire?"

"Hmmm…"

After 'briefly' considering his response, Vahn answered, "I'm not entirely sure that's the best decision. However, if it's the one you've decided, I'm not going to refuse."

Tilting her head to the side, Sandora asked, "What do you mean…?" with an adorably confused expression on her face.

Before Vahn could explain how certain people would accuse him of either staging the attack or protecting the culprits, Black Percher interjected, a severe and pouty expression on her face as she said, "I refuse! I would rather rot away in prison than become that man's pet…!"

Recalling how Vahn had unabashedly stabbed his hand in her body and caressed her head, Black Percher didn't want to be anywhere near him. Not because his actions had caused her pain or discomfort, but because they made her feel fluffy and giddy. She didn't really know how to put it, but Black Percher was sure she would eventually 'lose herself' if left in the care of Vahn. It had only been a few minutes since their initial encounter, but she already found herself questioning whether or not her vengeance was justified…

Feeling offended on Vahn's behalf, Sandora's expression morphed into a similar pout as she asked, "What's so bad about becoming Vahn's pet? If you did end up in prison, your treatment would be much worse. I'm not in a position to issue blanket pardons, so there is a good chance you would end up being tortured and mistreated just to assuage the people's anger. Is that really the fate you want for you and your friends…?"

Though her complexion paled, Black Percher managed an impish grin as she confidently asserted, "Your threats don't frighten me…even if your Community did want to torture me, neither you nor that man would allow it. Despite his unmatched power and authority, everyone knows the Sage Dragon Emperor is a soft-hearted fool. So long as I promise never to harm any women or children, you'll have no choice but to let me walk free…"

Raising his brows, Vahn inquired, "Women and children? I can understand people associating me with children, but women as a whole? That doesn't sound like me."

Snorting through her nose, Black Percher regained a bit of her confidence as she asserted, "Even if you send someone flying or slice them in half during a Gift Game, it doesn't matter unless you hold them accountable after the fact. Unless they went out of their way to antagonize you after the fact, I doubt you've ever actually killed a woman."

Though quite a few names and faces came to mind, Vahn didn't think it would help his situation if he spontaneously listed off all the people he had killed over the years. Instead, he adopted a deadpan expression as he said, "You're behaving pretty brazen for someone within easy petting distance…"

Before Black Percher could ask him what the heck he was talking about, Vahn cupped the sides of her face, gently massaging her cheeks with his palms as the tips of his fingers kneaded her fringe and scalp.

"Wh-wh-what do you think you're doing!? Get your grubby little hands off of meeeeee-!?"

Feeling a pleasant shiver run through her body, Black Percher summoned power she didn't know she possessed, breaking free from Vahn's clutches before promptly sinking her rather prominent canines into the surprisingly soft flesh of his hand.

Without attempting to pull his hand away, Vahn's expression softened as he said, "There is another option…give up your revenge, and I'll allow you to reincarnate into a world where you'll never have to endure the pain and anguish of disease. I can even send you back home…to a time when your mother was still alive, and your father cherished you…"

Furrowing her brows, Black Percher removed Vahn's hand from her mouth but kept a hold of it as she stated, "I didn't need the Princess's pity; what makes you think I need yours? I don't know what you did to me, but I owe it to the 80 million Spirits that gave me form to pursue my vengeance until the very end. Whether or not I'm able to obtain it doesn't matter. Until the Sun has repented for its crimes, I will never stop trying to make life more difficult for those who enjoy its splendor…"

As if it were the most natural thing to do in the present moment, Black Percher punctuated her words by sinking her teeth into the index and middle finger of Vahn's right hand. His blood was a lot sweeter than she expected, so even though it earned her weird looks from both Vahn and Sandora, she continued to shamelessly suckle his fingers with a 'serious' expression on her face.

Shaking his hand in a casual and ultimately vain attempt to extricate his fingers from Black Percher's maw, Vahn's expression became wry as he asked, "Enjoying yourself…?"

Instead of answering Vahn's question, Black Percher attempted to bite down even harder. When she did, Vahn's fingers spontaneously gained an immaterial quality as he pulled them free, ruffled her hair, and said, "Only people I'm especially close to are allowed to suck my blood."

Clicking her tongue, Black Percher averted her eyes, grumbling, "Only an idiot would want to be close to you…"

"If you say so…"

Retracting his hand from Black Percher's head, Vahn turned to Sandora and asked, "What are you going to do now? I've already neutralized the miasma that has spread throughout the city. We're still trapped, but the danger has largely passed."

Hearing Vahn mention he had neutralized her miasma, Black Percher's face formed into a scowl as she shouted, "Impossible! Even if you have a Gift related to purification, there's no way you could have prevented the spread of the pestilence without a Domain! You must have cheated…!"

Shaking his head, Vahn's expression softened as he explained, "While the rules you came up with were pretty comprehensive, there was something you failed to account for…"

Adopting an intense glower, Black Percher waited for Vahn to continue, her brow twitching when he explained, "The rules prevented the creation of Domains but said nothing about Domains already in effect. Though, to be perfectly honest, that wouldn't have prevented me from stopping the spread of your miasma. My control over all forms of energy far exceeds the common sense of this world…"

To make things easier for Black Percher to understand, Vahn created a mass of purple-black energy in the palm of his hand before promptly purifying and converting it into a ball of pristine white fire. When she saw this, the petite Demoness's carmine eyes briefly glazed over as she softly muttered, "You really are a monster…"

Shrugging his shoulders, Vahn promptly crushed the ball of holy fire in his palm, saying, "Call me what you will. I've rarely concerned myself with the titles others impose upon me. I am who I am, the person I choose to be."

Shifting his attention back to Sandora, Vahn waited for her to answer his previous question. Fortunately, she immediately understood the meaning behind his look, explaining, "I left the evacuation up to my brother and the members of Salamandra. Interrupting it partway through would just cause chaos, so I intend to return to the coliseum to wait for Izayoi, Asuka, and Yo to return."

Though he knew Izayoi had been watching them from the shadows for quite some time, Vahn simply nodded his head in response to Sandora's words. He had already resolved to let her and the No Names handle this particular incident, so, after thoroughly mussing Black Percher's hair, he kissed the petite Dragoness before whispering into her ear that he would be waiting for her back at the Palace…

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High in the sky over Kouen City, far beyond the invisible boundary that denoted the city as a Game Board, was a woman with bronzed skin, two-tone black and blue hair, reptilian eyes, and a truly remarkable physique. Her outfit did very little to conceal her form, but the thing most people would take notice of was her inordinately long and thick tail, a meaty, pitch-black appendage set with glowing blue spines.

"Pathetic…how could a 5-Digit Demon Lord be defeated by a brat that still smells of milk? It's no wonder the higher up are so desperate to do away with the Demon God. The power of recently manifested Demon Lords is a complete joke…"

Snorting through her nose, tufts of blue, flame-like energy emerged from the woman's nostrils as similarly blue, circuit-like lines began to spread across her body.

"Well, not that it matters…"

With an intense blue light emanating from her throat, the bronze-skinned woman adopted a smile that caused the sides of her mouth to crack. Two rows of razor-sharp, distinctly crystalline teeth came into view as the blue ridges along her tail began to pulse, minute spatial cracks forming around them due to the phenomenal amount of energy contained within.

"You'll all die, just the same…"

Immediately following the woman's words, massive, three-pronged wings erupted from her back as a complex, halo-like magic circle formed behind her. The energy condensing in her body reached the point that her entire chest had gained a prominent blue hue, highlighting the bones and organs within as she arched back and prepared to unleash a full-powered Dragon Breath.

If nothing appeared to hinder her, the draconic woman would have been able to erase the entirety of Kouen City from the map. The moment she attempted to unleash it, however, a vice-like promptly covered her mouth, suppressing the breath within as a very unamused Vahn asked, "What do you think you're doing…?"

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(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Salamandra has more than a few skeletons in its closet…','Black Percher is just one dragon meat away from falling…"','Not today, b*tch (O w O)…')