14 years after Van's departure...
"Are you... Sure this is what you want, Esteemed Bishop?" The hooded individual murmured, gulping. His heartbeat thundering in his ears. He was unable to meet the Bishop's eyes.
"...." The Bishop did not respond. She merely looked up to the ceiling blankly.
"... You... You will lose your SOUL!" He reminded, "I know I've said it, but... This is serious...!! Especially for someone like you! You WILL lose your divine powers from the Goddess! Not only that, you will be deemed a heretic if anyone found out... And... You will no longer be in any God's grace. You might get cursed..! Since you've lived your whole life in Her grace, there's no way of telling what—"
"Emerson." She cut him off calmly, yet firmly.
"..." He swallowed again, "Yes, ma'am?"
"I've never thought a Black Market dealer would be so worried for me. Don't I belong to the group of people you absolutely despise? And... Please, this warning after all this time? All those preparations?" She asked with a smile, looking over at him...
... From her place in the middle of hundreds of runes on the ground, and several more powerful runes embedded onto her. Several bizarre artifacts surrounding her in a circle, her entire body is riddled with dark ink and runes.
"You've come here for 4 years straight to begin this process, and gather the materials, Esteemed Bishop. Call it professional courtesy. This... This really is insane after all. Even if you stopped right now, it wouldn't be half as unreasonable as going through with it. You may die! And... If you die, a bishop such as yourself, it's bad for my business. It's my head on the line, as well."
"Worry not," She sighed, "I've cast a dead-man's switch on my body in case I perish. I will wither away, leaving no trace I was here."
He flinched.
"Follow through with it." She ordered calmly.
She took a deep breath. "I'm prepared to face the consequences. And if you'll bring my daughter up again... I've told you. She wants nothing to do with me anymore, so it's alright."
Mika and Rika stood in the corner, unmoving... though they solemnly lowered their heads. They appeared as youthful as they always had.
A memory stirred in their minds.
------- 4 YEARS AGO -------
"How do we..."
"...keep our youthful..."
"...appearance, Amoria?"
The twins had chimed together then, hesitant.
"Yes. Tell me," Amoria had replied calmly.
They looked down, biting their lips.
"Salem Dyke wanted us to be... pretty," one of them whispered.
"So he used a forbidden ritual," the other continued.
"It cut us away from the Goddess's embrace."
Amoria's gaze sharpened. "How?" she asked, cutting them off—her voice calm, but her forced smile made it clear: she would not be dissuaded.
The twins flinched.
"...Amoria," one whispered.
"Don't," the other urged.
"It's not worth it."
They exchanged a glance before continuing, voices trembling:
"We're susceptible to curses now..."
YOU ARE READING
Betrayed, I Met The Demon Lord
FantasyVan and his friend Magus had reincarnated in another world with magic. Tasked to kill the demon lord, they set forth. Van was granted very rough skills that made life for him in that world a living hell, yet he muscled through. Magus however, was be...
