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Chapter 26 - For War [Part 02]

Hours, days, weeks, or maybe even a month, blindfolded most of the time, Manila no longer knows how long she has been in this prison. Her body is weak due to the inhumane treatment she has been suffering, little food, only a bucket of cold water for her hygiene every morning, and the daily mistreatment by Luccio before the incident.

If it weren't for her gigantic reserve of mana, she would probably have died already, but nothing is eternal, and she knows that. The absence of Luccio's physical punishments for some time gave her an extra boost of strength.

"When will the time come? If you take too long, I won't be able to help you." Restless, Milla, her inner voice began to speak.

"I don't know, but if I try something now, we won't cause the necessary damage." The exhaustion in Manila's voice was palpable.

"Ahhh, I like the way you're thinking now."

"I've been listening to you too much these days, maybe I'm getting that from you."

"Okay, okay, don't forget to call me, it seems like someone is approaching."

The metallic footsteps that she has become accustomed to hearing echo through the walls, the creaking of the rusty gate, indicate that someone has entered the same room as her.

Every day this same person came with her meal, well, calling it a meal is a cruel joke, a small loaf of wheat bread and a cup of water, she was lucky when they left insects or larvae in the bread, for them it was a method of torture, for her it was just extra food.

This time, something was different; the person fed and took care of her in a way she hadn't received since she was put in this prison, and to her surprise, a familiar voice came to her ears.

"What a waste, Manila. If you had accepted the young master's whims, you would be free, but you are stubborn."

"W-woltur..." Sadness and hatred grew inside her.

"This bastard." Milla's voice echoed in her head with a frightening intensity, making her head hurt.

She had never been very close to Woltur; they exchanged a few words during the days at camp, but she never thought he could be a lackey of Luccio. The feeling of betrayal corroded her inside, making her weaker.

"I..." He interrupted her before she could say anything else.

"Don't waste your energy talking, you made him very angry after the last visit, he's probably planning something to punish you, I think tomorrow he'll finally gather the courage to see you again."

"Why?" She was confused; they were laughing and having fun at the festival. Now he sounded like a stranger.

"Why? Come on, don't be silly, did you really think Commander Boltu could protect you against the resources the Felnatus family has? I, you, or anyone in the regiment doesn't have the power to go against the will of an archduke."

"Well, get ready. Tomorrow, Luccio will come here alone and ready to do everything necessary for you to do his will. I suggest that you give up and accept your fate. I don't think you will survive his wrath."

"It's not... I, who will die... you... him... and everyone... in this damned... family... will pay..." Her voice had changed, thicker and more irritated, with an energy that she hadn't shown before.

"Ha! I would love to stay here and continue listening to your ravings, but I have my business to attend to." He got closer to her ear and whispered. "Miss Amiliath sent her regards. She said it was a shame that you ended up like this, but she appreciates your contribution to helping her become the heir of the house."

Without looking back, Woltur closes the metal door, his footsteps echoing until everything becomes silent again. Manila was tired, her body had little strength, and her will was already exhausted.

"Milla..." She said in a weak voice. "Tomorrow will be the day..." Speaking slowly, trying to conserve as much energy as possible. "Tomorrow I will call you... I want you to destroy... everything... and... everyone..."

Her internal mana stirred, causing discomfort, and a euphoria that she rarely felt took over her body. This helped her smile a little before giving in to exhaustion, falling unconscious where she was. In the complete darkness of her unconscious, images began to form. She saw herself in the middle of a circular room alone, small, sitting on the floor with her head resting on her knees.

Flashes with images appeared randomly around her, images that she wished she had forgotten. The first time she had bruised her hands from scrubbing the floor, the mistreatment of other employees under the orders of Luccio or Amiliath, but one of the most painful memories was locked inside her. It was then that an image of herself appeared in front of her, her skin all wrapped in a dark mist.

"Who are you?" She asked innocently.

In silence, her "shadow" watched her without any emotion. Other images began to emerge involving them, and both grew as time passed, but the intensity of the mist around her shadow increased frighteningly. What had previously been emotionless began to bother her; she felt hatred, anger, and frustration in the air.

Then, she remembered the day her shadow said the first word. While she worked alone in the kitchen peeling potatoes and carrots for dinner, she heard two other maids talking.

"Poor Laura, she didn't deserve what happened..."

"What did the young master do now? Last time he made her carry him on his back like a horse."

"Didn't you hear? Gosh, she was taking new clothes to that girl she liked, and when she was about to start going down the stairs, the young master pushed her."

"Pushed her?! Is she okay?!"

"Unfortunately, after many days in bed trying to recover, due to her age, she didn't survive her injuries."

"What did the master do about this situation?"

"Well, he punished the young master by sending him on a training expedition with the shield regiment, but other than that, nothing that I know of."

"How absurd..."

The young Manila then dropped the knife she was using and couldn't hold back her tears. Upon seeing that memory, her shadow cried tears that looked like blood and told her the first thing she ever said.

"I'm going to burn them all; they're going to suffer like I did."

A familiar noise woke her up, the metallic sound of the metal door told her two things: it was time to eat or suffer. But today, a different sound accompanied by an aroma made her mouth water immediately. The sound of metallic wheels is not entirely unfamiliar to her. If she is right, this is the sound of a small cart used to serve food.

"Manila, Manila, Manila..." Luccio said with his usual arrogant tone, but with a slight hint of fear.

"I hope you rested well because until you obey me or die, I will stay here in this cell with you." He smiles nervously and sits down on the only wooden chair in the cell.

"For years, you have defied me, making sure to make me angry with your actions. Well, my patience has run out. I know you think you are important because my father gave you certain privileges, even though you are an abomination, but I am different. I will not let you continue this farce."

"I can't stand how much this worm talks, he talks, talks, talks, talks, talks, TALKS!" Milla said in a voice not much different from Manila's, something strange for her normal. Manila remained quiet, not giving Luccio the satisfaction of an answer or reaction, who became even more irritated.

He took a piece of pie from the cart. The smell was divine, something she hadn't smelled in a long time. Without ceremony, he took a bite, enjoying that piece, and with his mouth full, he began to speak.

"You know, since you've been here, all your meals have been appropriate for your level, a mere dry bread and a cup of water. Abominations like you don't deserve to eat the food that normal people have the right to, but I'm a good owner, if you stop being so stubborn, I'll let you eat a piece of this wonderful pie, of course, wonderful for you, for me, it's far from being what I really deserve."

The smell that was already making her salivate intensified. She could taste the creamy texture of the pie just by listening to Luccio's chewing, a meat pie with mild spices, and some well-cooked vegetables. The last time she even had something like it was during the festival. It reminded her of Elzen; she missed him and wanted to know if he was okay or even alive.

She then smiled, the memories she had of the moments she shared with him gave her joy that sustained her senses and her will to continue living. They were the best moments of her life, the experience of living with a person who always treated her well and showed her a love that was unknown to her. However, tiredness took over her; today would be the day of her escape, but she didn't know if she would escape.

She hoped that Milla, her other half, a being made of all her emotions to an extreme level, would escape with the help of her immense power. After she took control of her body, maybe she wouldn't be able to return due to the stress accumulated.

Luccio saw her smile, and that made him even more furious. How dare she laugh at him? It seemed she hadn't learned the lesson she should have learned, and he was so generous in giving her one last chance. Imbecile, she's going to experience firsthand what it's like to try to fight against those who are superior to her.

He threw the piece of pie on the floor and approached her, holding her face with one hand.

"I see that my generosity was not accepted. I will make you understand your mistake, in the way that an abomination like you can finally understand."

"Goodbye Luccio..." Manila said with a smile. "It's a shame that I won't be able to see what will happen to you, the last thing I want to tell you is that soon your entire family will join you."

Manila's emotionless voice sent a shiver down Luccio's spine. There was something different about her at that moment; he felt it for the first time coming from her, bloodthirstiness. Instinctively, he hit her face hard, making some blood fly from her lips, and even with her eyes blindfolded, she turned as if to face him, from her lips then came a single word.

"Milla..."

Like a lifeless doll, Manila's body falls to the ground, surprising Luccio. He remained frozen in the same place; that feeling he had before had not disappeared, on the contrary, it intensified and left him confused. It was then that a sound coming from her completely haunted him.

CRACK!

The sound of bones breaking was excruciating, so Manila stood up in a single movement, and a strange laugh came from her lips.

"Yes, leave it, he will pay." With a sadistic smile, she drops the rope that tied her hands.

"Look, Luccio, look what you made me do." She then stretched out her arms and showed her hands dangling lifelessly, her wrists were bleeding, and the little skin that was around them had the marks of the rope that tied her.

He was paralyzed; he wanted to scream and run to call the soldiers who were outside, but he couldn't think of anything or even move a muscle. The frightening aura surrounding Manila was strong enough to make him feel like a rodent facing a ferocious predator.

"You know, Manila was never good with magic, but the explanation is quite simple: it was because of me. All her emotions live inside me, or better, I am her emotions. So she could never control her mana efficiently, but now that I am in control." A blue glow envelopes Manila's hands and wrists. After a few seconds, all the wounds were healed, and her hands moved normally again.

With impressive speed, she grabbed him by the throat and squeezed it tightly.

"Now you won't be able to scream." Luccio's eyes widened, and the pressure in his throat made it difficult for him to breathe, but not to the point of suffocation; she wanted him to be conscious.

"You raised me, yes, you, your damn sister, and your miserable father, we could have been so happy, but today only I will be happy." With her free hand, she tightly grabs Luccio's left arm and then, in a quick and brutal movement, his arm is ripped off and thrown against the wall.

The intense pain makes him try to scream but his efforts are in vain, he tries to struggle and free himself, but Milla's firm hand doesn't let him do anything, when he is close to losing consciousness from the pain, that blue glow envelops the torn part and heals it completely, closing the wound and stopping the bleeding completely.

The relief he felt when the excruciating pain ended was quickly replaced by the terror at the sight of Milla's sadistic smile. For the first time in his life, Luccio felt helpless. It was then that she continued her revenge. She tore off his other arm and healed it, then his left leg, and then his right.

Consumed by the horrible experience, Luccio no longer had the strength to resist. He just wanted it to end soon. Milla was not satisfied, but she knew she didn't have much time. Soon, they would find it strange with the silence in the cell.

"You deserved much worse, much, much worse. However, our time is running out, and others here deserve to be punished too."

Unable to say a single word, tears ran down his face. Then, in a quick movement, he saw the room spin for a few seconds before seeing his limbless body fall to the floor, and Milla laughing when she saw his head in a random corner of the prison.

"Goodbye forever, you useless worm, don't worry, I keep my promises, and soon your family will join you."

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