Dante stopped at the door, his gaze sweeping over the room. The elves—both the dark and the so-called "pure" ones—followed behind him in quiet submission.
Hands tucked into the pockets of his martial robe, he walked with an air of nonchalance, as if he had not just broken in, murdered the guards, and stolen their so-called "merchandise". His movements were fluid, his demeanour calm, almost elegant, making the massacre he had orchestrated seem like a fleeting illusion.
As they moved through the hallway, the scene became almost comical—a neatly dressed young boy flanked by a strikingly beautiful but slightly skinny elf. Her long red- brown hair cascaded over her shoulders, contrasting against her robe. Every movement she made was precise, controlled, exuding a quiet grace. Yet, despite the serene outward appearance, the air between them was thick with an unspoken tension.
Without turning back, Dante spoke.
"So, will you be my subordinate?"
Vexion's mind stalled for a moment. Had he truly directed the question at her? She hesitated before responding, her voice soft yet alluring, carrying a touch of hesitation. "My lord, have you any need for subordinates?"
Dante chuckled, his voice rich with amusement. "There are times when I will need to wipe out a village or a city or two. I can't do all of that by myself. This world… it is simply too vast. Moreover, what king walks without subjects?"
Vexion's brow furrowed slightly. "Do you intend to be a king, my lord?"
Dante smiled—a gesture she could not see but felt through his tone. "No. But I intend to to ascend to greater heights, for that I will need resources. Resources require funding. Funding requires subordinates who will work to acquire it."
He continued walking in silence before tilting his head just slightly, just enough for his sharp gaze to catch her in his periphery. "You must understand how much I value you, apart from family and the palace , who don't quite know me. I do not take kindly to excessive questions—unless they come from those close to me or my subordinates."
His words were accompanied by a kind smile, yet Vexion felt a cold shudder run down her spine. Fear. It gnawed at her resolve, unfamiliar and yet intimately known. She had been afraid before—many times. She had felt it most vividly when the man who killed her parents, an Ascended Saint on the brink of Sagehood, had hunted her down. That fear had been overwhelming, all-consuming. But now…
Now, as she looked at this boy—this monster in the guise of a child—the fear she felt dwarfed everything else. That past terror seemed insignificant, like a bee sting compared to the abyss that stood before her, and she didn't know why. All she could assume, was that he was an unfathomable existence keeping himself hidden.
Her gaze flickered to the man floating in the air ahead of them, his body limp, his subordinates barely clinging to life. Her throat felt dry. She swallowed hard, trying to suppress the growing dread gnawing at her mind.
Unbeknownst to her, the fear she felt now was only a fraction of what she should have been experiencing. Like the dark elf before her, she had unknowingly received a mental fortification when Dante healed her.
Vexion paused, she wanted to be careful, yet nonetheless, she wanted to ask one more question. "Thank you for your patience my lord, if I may ask 1 more?"
Dante shrugged, "sure".
"Why did my Lord kill the elf in the chamber, I'm curious as to why you sought her death with no reason".
Dante paused, his expression etched with trace of confusion before he answered as if he were a victim who had to answer the obvious "Eh? What do you mean with no reason? She annoyed me, in fact irritated me, so I killed her, there was the reason."
Vexion paused, her expression laced with amusement. She nodded before considering the question she had yet to answer.
Her thoughts raced as she considered his offer. Out of curiosity, she cautiously asked, "My lord, if I were to refu—"
Before she could finish her sentence, an invisible force gripped at her windpipe. She was lifted off the ground, feet kicking helplessly in the air.
Her eyes darted to Dante in panic, but to her horror, he wasn't even looking at her. He had stopped at an intersection in the hallway, appearing lost in thought.
He hummed absently, "Hmmm?"
She clawed at her throat, struggling for air, desperate to make him notice. But he seemed completely absorbed in whatever was on his mind.
And indeed, Dante was lost, both in thought, and actually lost physcially.
He remembered the direction of the Archduke's meeting room, but not where the living quarters were. He was confident that the remaining guards were actual guards and not mercenaries like Xavier and his subordinates. That much had been deduced by the system.
But that didn't change anything.
He had to kill them. That was simply the way of things. There was no need for hesitation, or remorse—just necessity. They were obstacles, and obstacles were meant to be removed.
Or so Dante said when he was in reality making an excuse, after all differentiating between those who he had to kill and those he had to 'knock out' was hassle, just sweep everything away that was much easier.
Dante let out a light, almost theatrical cough, as if to clear an awkward silence rather than acknowledge any weight to his actions. Killing them had been faster, easier. Whether they lived or died, how exactly was that his problem to consider—it simply wasn't relevant, he could only hope if wont alert his father. As much as he accepted their love he still wished to live life according to his principles, yeah, sure there weren't any principles, but that was not the point.
[Master, the layout is still the same. If they head left, they should be able to see or navigate their way out even if they don't see it. We are on the first floor, so without a doubt, they will find the exit.]
Dante nodded in agreement. He just hoped they weren't dumb enough to mistake stairs leading upwards as the way out.
"My lord! She is dying!"
Dante was interrupted by the dark elf carrying her sister in her arms. She shouted at him, her tone sharp—too sharp for his liking honestly. He turned his head to look at her and noticed the sister resting quite peacefully.
'What is this fool on about?' Before he could dwell on it further, a swinging foot came at his blind-spotted right. 'Oh, shit.'
Reacting instantly, he stopped using his telekinetic skill, causing Vexion to collapse to the ground, gasping for air. Dante gave a wry smile as he bent over slightly, reaching out to touch her.
She instinctively flinched away.
He chuckled.
"Something like that might occur," he mused, adding with a polite and kind some "but remember, it is still your choice."
He placed his hand on her cheek again, this time using his skill to help her stabilize her breathing. Her body adjusted, shifting from short, panicked gasps to slower, deeper breaths. She calmed quickly and, after a brief hesitation, nodded, still carrying the weight of fear in her expression.
Clearing his throat, Dante addressed the others. "Head left and continue straight until the exit is in sight." He pointed at the dark elf in front of him. "If you still can't find it, follow her. She managed to sneak in before, so she can lead you to the door. Once outside, stay hidden. We don't know if the guards are also on the Archduke's hush money."
The group hesitated, reluctant to separate from their leader, but fear of disobedience and its consequences outweighed any second thoughts. They moved as commanded.
Once the two groups split, Dante floated a few feet above the ground, then leaned in close to Vexion. She froze again, expecting punishment, but instead, delicate fingers traced along her jawline and down her neck. The young boy smiled.
"You and that, brown-skinned elf are truly gorgeous."
For a moment, Vexion was unimpressed. She wasn't sure if she should be disappointed that she knew exactly which dark elf he was referring to, or that he had said it so shamelessly.
But then, her eyes widened. He had called her gorgeous as well, her? a half elf, half demon, half beast, half human "abomination"?.
Apart from her parents, there were probably no people in this whole continent who didn't look at her in disgust, to say less of finding her attractive.
A faint heat crept into her face before she quickly suppressed it. Instead, she let out a self-deprecating smile.
"My lord, sooner or later you will regret taking me in. I—"
Dante's fingers traced the collar around her neck as he looked directly into her eyes. "Vexion, you're being far too difficult.
I simply want you. Who dares to stop me? If I say be mine, the only words left for you are those of obedience."
Vexion's breath hitched. "Y-You kn-know my name?"
Dante chuckled and nodded. A foreign, mystical energy pulsed from his fingertips into the steel collar around her neck. Her eyes widened as she felt power beyond her understanding spread across the metal. The collar—crafted to restrain even a low-level legendary warrior—crumbled like dust. With a masterful display of telekinetic control, Dante broke it down at a fundamental level, reshaping the matter until it simply dissolved into pieces.
"Wait, my lord! I haven't answered you ye—!"
Again, she was interrupted as a warm, comfortable energy coursed through her body. Dante's healing ability surged through her mana circuits, undoing the suppression caused by the collar. Normally, they would have recovered over time, but he preferred efficiency.
Floating back, Dante crossed his legs mid-air, his hands slipping into his pockets as he smirked. Suspended above the ground, he hovered over Xavier's limp body. The man had long since resigned himself to death.
"You have no way to fight me. You stand no chance of survival if you try. To me, there's no difference between you now and you with that collar on. The effort to deal with you remains the same."
Vexion hesitated. She knew his power was beyond anything she could hope to match. Yet, why had he not even waited for her answer? Was he that confident she would agree to be his subordinate?
But even so… could she be useful to him?
Vexion wasn't sure.