Asahi and Devlin fixed their eyes on the neat lettering imprinted on the silk pages.
After scrutinizing the chapters, they found a sketch of a castle perched on a cliff, its horizon outlined to the side. As Devlin hesitated, Asahi narrowed his eyes, awaiting his answer.
"Hey, are you going to read… or…?"
Devlin's face turned red, and his eyes shook with embarrassment. He paused, shuffled back a bit, then peered through the pages as he confessed.
"I-I am not a good reader."
Asahi's eyes widened.
"You're not a good reader? But… judging by your previous act and vocabulary, you sound like a person who can read."
Devlin's lips quivered, and his heart thumped rapidly. He closed his eyes and sighed. "I-I'm not. My parents prevented me from attending academies in Destia. They feared the Queen would punish them. I overheard my parents talking about a neighbor's child who disappeared after enrolling in an academy. That's when my parents decided it was too risky. I had to teach myself, but I didn't study often. It's a long story, and I'd rather not talk about it. Say…"
Devlin slowly shifted his gaze toward Asahi, tilting his head to signal him silently, filled with hope.
"Asahi, how about you read instead? Are you a good reader?"
Staring into Asahi's vivid gray eyes, Devlin thought.
(Is Asahi... a nerd? He can't be… with that appearance.)
At a glance, Asahi stood up with a proud chuckle. Displaying a confident posture and smile, he gave the impression of someone self-assured. He cackled and shook his head.
"Of course, I know how to read and write. Before returning to my, or rather... our world, I learned nearly four hundred languages upon my travels."
"Four hundred languages?!" Devlin exclaimed.
Asahi stroked his chin, closed his eyes, and smiled. As he rambled, the book slipped from his hands.
"Well, yeah, my sister and I have traveled many worlds for a decade."
Devlin interrupted with a loud, creaky voice.
"You have a sister?!"
Asahi nodded his head and chuckled.
"Of course I do! We're just separated, that's all. But I'm sure we will reunite soon. Anyway, back to what I was saying. Language is a priority when communicating with people from different worlds. Demon language was complicated, since those worlds were the most hostile."
He continued to ramble.
Asahi said, "I've studied in libraries and even bolstered my memory with potions. Eight hundred books? That sounds right. I also carry a fully handwritten record." He reached into his Soul Storage, withdrew a slim black hardcover notebook, placed it beside him, and flipped to a random page.
"This is Aroga—a world I've traveled, overrun with swamps and creatures. Honestly, the whole world seems to be one vast swamp. You'd understand if you had seen it yourself…"
Devlin tried to pay attention to Asahi's explanations; He couldn't fathom how well-written and clear Asahi's handwriting was. Each letter was pointed and precise, with no mistakes in any word or symbol.
It was shocking for Devlin to see that the boy he previously made a fool of was a universal world traveler, let alone his Ruler.
Devlin, surprised by Asahi's stories, lowered his head and continued to listen to the lengthy explanations, his respect slowly growing.
"If our systems went down, this book would be our backup. My sister and I also have an electronic device to archive everything. Some duplicates might even be out there—maybe others are watching my journeys right now."
Devlin yawned. Asahi's fascinating info had gone off course.
"A-Anyways, that's not the point…." Asahi said as he placed the notebook back into his pocket. "I apologize if I went off-topic; let's actually get to read the story."
Devlin released a sigh of relief.
"Thank you. Now that I have heard your explanations and considered your past experiences, my perspective of you has changed significantly. I swear I won't mess with you again, that is… if you want that."
Asahi picked up the brown book, placed it on his lap, pulled back the cover, then nodded and smiled at Devlin.
"It's okay if the jokes are harmless. I sometimes need some comedic relief to forget my failures. You know what? When I met you, I realized there is a wide variety of people in my changing world. So, thank you for that. You have my gratitude."
Devlin nodded his head and celebrated in his head.
(Yes! More fooling with feces face! I-I mean Asahi. He is gradually becoming more wordy now. Maybe I should hasten up the process…?"
After a minute of thinking, Devlin pulled to the exact page they left off and tapped Asahi's shoulder, signaling him.
"Hey, now that you have given your rather lengthy explanation, can you read the book?"
"Absolutely!" Asahi exclaimed as he pressed the brown book on his lap.
Asahi scrambled through the pages, searching for their spot while he and Devlin rested against the cold stone wall. Once relaxed, they anchored their eyes to the book as the light illuminated the pages. Asahi then began to read.
"The Ruler of Purity and his beloved wife birthed…."
* * *
The Ruler of Purity and his beloved wife gave birth to a beautiful, mocha-eyed girl with a fluffy tail and pointy fox ears, reverting to the chaos that had previously prevailed.
For the upcoming years, they prospered above the peak of Mount Edith, a precious land filled with resources, gems, and beautiful vegetation.
They sought to expand their palace and invited new visitors to wander among their wealthy rooms. In contrast, a beautiful traveler from afar served as Narcissa's tutor. He taught her math, language, and common sense.
For seven years, Narcissa grew more attached to her tutor every time she had a class with him, to the point where she turned away from her parents just for him.
However, it was soon realized that this tutor was deceitful. He took advantage of her loyalty by demanding that she perform complex tasks, such as killing her butler.
When Narcissa's parents were away, a comet descended from the heavens one fateful day. It created rich, artificial land and granted blessings to those who prayed upon its soil. But when Narcissa's tutor urged her to travel there, a tragedy ensued.
She TOUCHED the mysterious crystal.
Narcissa saw her reflection on the sacred object. The world glowed as the crystal absorbed Narcissa's humanity right before her eyes.
What she absorbed wasn't just an everyday item, but one of the Forbidden Angel Factors kept sealed and locked from everyone.
The crystal dissipated after it was absorbed, followed by its land. A small, crystal-clear lake appeared out of thin air. Her tutor was nowhere to be found.
For months, Narcissa's transformation remained unnoticed. Even she, herself, never felt dubious or anxious from her absorbed Angel-Factor. That was…
* * *
Before Asahi could turn the page, he whispered, confused.
"Angel Factors? I have never heard of those before."
"Oh, really?" Devlin replied with doubt.
"Just follow along…."
They continued reading.
* * *
Sharing a young face, young Narcissa raced down a hill with her absorbed Forbidden Angel Factor attached.
"Wow! So cool…"
She was all alone with no one but her in... sight.
Despite being the king's daughter, Narcissa was lonely, waiting for the day her tutor returned.
One day, Narcissa was bored, so she traveled to Deepenpond and relaxed there. It would be... that in this exact place, the Angel Factor would awaken entirely.
The sun peered from the thick white clouds as it knelt at the lake. Its rays shone vibrantly onto the lake, reflecting its light like a mirror.
The wind pushed her long mocha hair, and her young face peered deeply into the water.
"Whoa!"
Her brown eyes widened in shock.
A beautiful face with long mocha hair, round cheeks, coffee-colored eyes, and pointed fox ears shone under the surface.
Her heart stopped, having seen her face for the first time. She couldn't handle the adorable face she saw, almost as if she urged herself to touch it.
"Whoa!"
And then, that's when the Angel-Factor ignited.
(Activation Succeeded)
As soon as her silk fingers touched the surface of her clear reflection…
"Oh, hello!"
The reflection transformed into a solidified figure.
A figure emerged from the waters, and young Narcissa helped by grabbing their hand and pulling them out.
Each detail and element of Narcissa was reflected in the clone.
The clouds swiftly darkened. Young Narcissa stood, staring in fascination at her living reflection, now standing before her. Overcome with curiosity, she reached out and touched her clone's face and hands, marveling at each detail.
"You're so pretty!" Narcissa screamed cheerfully with wide eyes.
This adoration was unhealthy. Narcissa's obsession with her own reflection grew daily. She sensed a struggle between her fascination and a quiet voice of doubt. Part of her questioned if her feelings were safe. Even as a child, Narcissa was absorbed in her appearance. But beneath her obsession, she felt a sense of insecurity. She wondered if her self-love kept her isolated from others.
However, her father stopped her as it started to rain, abandoning her clone in the lake.
Years later, older than she was, her clone followed young Narcissa down the hill; she reached toward the waters and fabricated another reflection. She eventually began abusing her ability, going to such lengths to create a group of clones and… making love to each one of them.
This event would eventually lead to something even worse than the tutor.
Asahi turned the page.
As Narcissa was about to race out of the palace to 'play' with her clones, she heard her father.
"Narcissa, I thought I saw you in the town, and now you're here? Is there something you're hiding from me?"
In which his daughter lied.
"N-No… that's just your imagination."
By the same token, as Narcissa was about to play with her reflection clones, she discovered that only one of them was there. She ignored the warning and ran down the hill, accidentally stepping on a brown, sticky mud pile. Upon realization, the substance smelled… like herself.
. . .
"Herself?!" Asahi interrupted, jotting the book down.
Devlin nodded his head and replied in an aggravated manner.
"Yes, herself. Please, follow along and continue reading."
"Okay…" Asahi said, deeply invested in the book.
* * *
The next day, Narcissa's father asked why he saw her everywhere, and the outcome was always...
"That's just your imagination."
Every time she lied, Narcissa would always see a pile of mud appear in Deepenpond, followed by the loss of her clones.
After years of abusing her ability, Narcissa's father was slowly shrinking, followed by his appearance slightly deteriorating and being consumed by a black substance.
Narcissa hung pictures of herself all over her room, followed by hundreds of mirrors to fabricate even more clones. This led to a degradable mindset that she could never return from.
Another year had passed…
"Narcissa, I don't… feel well. Could you…" Her father said as he wilted in agony.
Narcissa showed no concern for anyone but herself and continued to play with her clones despite the corruption. When she tried to go to Pladtioa city, she would be spat on by the people because they thought she looked ugly.
But in reality, she did look beautiful; however, she was cursed to look 'ugly' to everyone but herself.
Narcissa wept and cried for the coming days, watching her clones vanish into dust. She ignored her father's agony, abandoning her own daughter and his nation.
Every time Narcissa tried to birth a new reflection, it swiftly vanished into dust.
This led to her superstitions consuming her thoughts and causing her to blame the people.
So, given control and sovereignty for Pladtioa, Narcissa slaughtered towns and ruthlessly razed forests in anger from her deteriorating power. In the midst of her rampage, a part of Narcissa's mind clung to the lingering memories of her once-innocent childhood.
She grappled silently with the shadows of doubt, questioning whether her actions were truly the result of the power she wielded or the fear it instilled in her.
Each violent act seemed to both alleviate and deepen the chasm of anxiety and loss within her heart.
This was pure sin, so in contrast to her actions, Narcissa's 'Angelic' power got corrupted.
During one dark day, after slaughtering and destroying segments of her own nation, she tried desperately to peer into the pond and catch a reflection. Though it worked, she quickly realized…
Banging on the invisible surface, Narcissa realized that her reflection had replaced her.
At that moment, Narcissa's soul would replace her reflection clone every night, while her dark reflection would control her body during the day.
Though late, her tutor finally returned, grasping a bottle. He indignantly slaughtered Narcissa's father right before her eyes, then trapped his soul inside one of his vases, leaving the corrupted God of Purity to roam the world.
The only words the descending tutor gave after this tragic event were…
"Narcissa, if you were to find true love with your curse, your father would be set free from corruption, and your father's will dissolve."
Narcissa stepped forward and screamed, tears falling from her eyes.
"Do you have any part in this?!"
The tutor remained silent and vanished into thin air.
And it would be after that that Narcissa and her Clone would wander and rule Pladtioa ever since.
* * *
Devlin closed the book, pivoted his thumb to the floor, and remarked.
"And that's why I never thought that you were the only one Narcissa was attracted to out of all the people in the world. Does it have to do with your status?"
Asahi shook his head in doubt.
"No, I don't think so."
Asahi's eyes shrank. He would never have believed that this book would justify Narcissa's actions. Asahi closed his eyes and muttered, his tone one of disbelief.
"S-So… there are Forbidden Angel Factors? I have never heard of those before. And this girl, Narcissa… Could she make clones using her reflections? That's interesting, fascinating even. I feel so bad about what happened afterward. It seemed she endured a tragedy."
Devlin shook his head and sighed, tapping his fingers against the wall.
"You're missing another thing."
"And what's that?" Asahi asked, shocked.
"The Day and Night thing, ya' know… her clone possessing her body during the day, while her actual soul is active in that exact figure at night."
Asahi backed up to the wall and exhaled heavily.
"Oh, right, yeah… that. Well, now that I think of it…." Asahi turned to the window and continued. "Her actions were a lot more zany and inhuman when I awakened. Perhaps we have to wait until nightfall to generate an elaborate discussion."
Devlin raised an eyebrow.
"Do you really think it would be that easy?" He sighed deeply, shaking his head and slapping his face. "You're even dumber than I thought. Say, how about you read that last paragraph aloud? Perhaps that would get your bookworm brain working."
Asahi grabbed the large brown book and slammed it back onto the ground, pulling all pages toward the left toward the last paragraph. There were no sketches, let alone the absence of diagrams, only this one paragraph that gleamed daringly from the sun's rays.
After a brief silence, Asahi read the paragraph aloud with a soft voice.
"Undeserved death of his wife, the corrupted king went on a rampage and forced all of his comrades to be buried and cursed into the nation's soil. Mount. Edith lost her throne to the army of dragons that emerged from Obrus…."
Devlin's eyes shrank. He raced to Asahi and pulled to the very last page, whispering anxiously.
"T-That wasn't the right paragraph."
Asahi scratched his head and nodded.
"O-Oh… okay."
He saw Devlin's fingers point to the bottom of the page.
"Now, read that."
Asahi nodded silently and wetted his lips, then the silk fabric of the page. He slowly inhaled and deeply exhaled, starting from the first word.
"To enumerate, the Ruler of Purity, who was corrupted, made the Fountain to make one pinpoint for her daughter to recognize only during the night, and unfamiliarity in the day. No matter what Narcissa does, she will always remember that request… 'to find the suitable interest.' Out of envy, she stole all reflections in Pladtioa and kept them inside the mirrors of her eroding palace, to ensure that no one else would share her powers. On account of her selfishness, Narcissa's superstitions led her to assume that 'if anyone were deemed disgusting to her, they would be sacrificed.' It would be realized that it would be almost impossible for her to find her 'suitable interest' with the people in Pladtioa…."
The ink, followed by the wording, was stopped with the word 'but' shriveled in screeching lines. It seemed to Asahi that the one who had written the book had either lost their lives or run out of space.
But what further exacerbated his questioning was how desperate Narcissa was to be in the room.
Closing the book, Asahi scratched his chin and pondered quietly.
"Narcissa could have lacked communication skills, which would justify her questionable actions. But if it were true love, she wouldn't include her 'father' in this. However…"
Asahi stepped forward toward the bars and lowered his voice.
"... if I'm suitable enough to relieve her from her curse…."
As Devlin stared at him confusedly, Asahi peered at the opening beyond the cellar, clenched his fists with determination, and raised his voice confidently.
"Then I will ensure that I will save her… even if it doesn't involve my goal."
* * *
Meanwhile, staring in one of her ten mirrors…
"It's almost evening…." Said Narcissa to the reflection.
The reflection itself nodded her head and answered.
"I have a feeling that you have found… the one."
While gazing at sunset over the horizon, Narcissa nodded her head and reached for the mirror's surface.
"I did… origin. Your father will return. I guarantee it. When night falls, make sure to release that white-haired boy from the cellar. There is something more important in him than you realize."
"Okay…" The reflection replied as her arms solidified.
Narcissa mumbled while glancing at the front door, fondling a vase covered in black.
"It's time for my father to return… Hopefully, you know what you're doing… Mr. Adtraic, Junior."