Damien was dumbstruck when he heard she would basically abduct him. Knowing he didn’t have the strength to object, he had to reason his way out. He just didn’t know how it would work out.

“Um, I’m actually quite busy Miss Aya, and I need to get to Meteor Volcano so I can train. Then I have to return back to the academy. I’m sure you are too busy to take care of me. I will pretend this never happened!”

Aya didn’t even spare him a glance as Damien became increasingly worried he would be trapped by her side. Although it wasn’t a horrible proposition in hindsight, it just didn’t align with his goals. As Damien felt he was completely out of options, Aya made a surprising decision.

“Fine, I will go with you to this Meteor Volcano and assess if you are a part of my race.”

“And what happens if I’m not?”

Aya didn’t bother to respond with her words, instead a simple gesture of her finger running across her throat was enough to get the message across. Damien gulped in response and tried coming up with what to do.

‘I’m almost certain I am not from the Combat God race, but now I’m forced to make it seem like I am for the safety of my life. I need to ask her what they are like so I can mimic some qualities.’

“Miss Aya, can you tell me about the Combat God race? What are they like?”

Aya’s perfect face lit up for a moment, but it turned melancholic the next.

“The Combat Gods were a proud race of warriors. We were born along this planet’s creation as one of its first few inhabitants. We ruled over everything without opposition. Our only downfall was that we were too few in numbers. When the humans came along with the Dwarves, Elves, Demons, and the rapidly evolving beasts, we met our demise. They rose up against our rule with their superior numbers and gifts with the Dao. The world evolved faster than we could keep up and now I am here looking for others.”

Damien understood the world was filled with winners and losers, however hearing from the losing side made him pity her cause. Damien almost wished he could say he was a Combat God to give her some happiness. Thinking along these lines, he wanted to know how to figure that out.

“What makes you a Combat God? Or how do you know I could be one?”

“That’s simple. Your white hair color, the strength of your body, and the fact you only have a first name. Having just one of those features isn’t rare but having all three, well that’s why I’m here and you’re alive. As for what makes you one, you are just born one. Our bodies are created to be perfect, although we have near nil talent for the Dao. We make up for that with our bloodthirstiness. We are born to kill and the more we kill the stronger we become. The blood of our fallen foes become the nutrients our bodies need to advance to the next stages. It heals us, revitalizes us, and enthralls us. Our hair becomes red the more we kill and the deeper the shade the stronger they are. That is why I am skeptical about you. I smell the blood on your hands, but your hair is still pure. You may not be a purebred or you are just an anomaly, but the truth will come out.”

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Damien touched his hair reluctantly as he thought about the beasts he had slain. Aya was talking about the blood of the men he killed just recently, however those memories were locked away. Even still, he had never felt the urges she spoke about, but he did have an innate desire to battle to his satisfaction. Damien did not have much more to say, he could only accept that the truth would come to light eventually and he would have to answer for that.

‘Unless… I just fake it, until I make it.’

Damien was now thinking of the ways he could portray himself as one of them on this trip so he could continue on his life. What he didn’t think about was about the fact that if she found him adequate, he may never return back to his normal life. He thought he would have it all figured out by the time he reached his destination, but the mind of a child could only be so complex. The conversation between them was long over, so Damien dusted himself off and laid himself by the fire. It gave him a sense of familiarity along with a wave of sleepiness. He decided it was best to rest for the night and just begin with this madness first thing in the morning.

Damien’s eyes became as heavy as mountains before he started snoring loudly. Aya watched him with a sad twinkle in her gaze as she thought about her race. She was always searching for a meaning in life. She was taken in by rural farmers who found her by a river. It wasn’t too long after she could see, think and walk for herself that she found herself different from others. Her white hair and unknown origins caused her to be ostracized by the village. Not even her adoptive parents cared for her after she appeared to be feeble and not an able body to help with farming. Being ostracized was the norm for her until she started showing hints of maturing. Hints of her natural beauty flowed out, which changed her life. On a night back from being out with friends, she was attacked by one of her neighbors. He tried to force himself upon her and in her frightened state she unlocked something deep inside of her.

It was something primal, something that felt as natural as breathing for her. It was an innate desire to kill, and to make herself stronger. Once she tapped into those feelings, she also killed off her innocent self that didn’t know who she really was. That night she tasted how sweet blood really was. She came out of there with a tiny red splotch on the root of her hair and a satisfied smile. She now saw the world in a new light that would make others think she was insane. Eventually she was outed as the killer of her attacker since she did not hide any evidence. When they confronted her she gladly recounted to them the truth and how she eviscerated him. A few people vomited from the descriptions of feasting on blood and organs. It wasn’t soon after that a witch hunt formed to burn her at the stake for crimes against humanity. However, they didn’t realize she had long stopped saying them as people and more like livestock to feed her desire.

The farmers were wiped out personally by her hand and when she left the village, her hair was filled with a light shade of red. This happened when she was just 9 years old and the centuries that had passed by had seen her take the lives of thousands upon thousands of people. It was innumerable, to the point where she couldn’t bother to keep count. Only those of her race would be able to tell by the color of her hair. When she reached where she was now, she started to question the point of her existence and why there was no one like her. She found her answers after traveling the world which changed her meaning in life. She no longer cared to just kill and grow stronger, but to find kin. On this new path she found herself on the Zyres Continent and in front of Damien who could be her only hope. However, deep down she felt that he wasn’t the one that would fulfill that hope.

After she quickly reminisced about her past, present, and future, Aya found her composure. She suited herself back up and yanked Damien by the arm. She proudly interrupted his sleep without remorse or guilt. Damien on the other hand freaked out and put himself in a defensive position.

“We are leaving now. Get yourself ready, we have no time to waste.”

She did not care if he was flabbergasted at what was going on. Everything she decided would always be correct and that is strength. Damien got ready as he mumbled insultive gibberish since he did not dare say anything directly. Once he was finished, they looked like the perfect mysterious duo. He waited on her to make the first move, but she stood still watching Damien instead. They stood awkwardly around the fire without any movement or noise, which made Damien rather nervous. He couldn’t take the atmosphere anymore, so he finally made the first move. He faced her directly and waved his arms hysterically as to say what was going on.

“I’m ready whenever you are, so what are you doing?”

If he could see Aya’s face behind the mask, he would have seen the look of disappointment. She whispered quietly to herself about how she regretted saying he wasn’t stupid and sighed audibly for him to hear.

“Kid, I told you I was going to watch you and find out what you are. This is your journey and your test. I will follow you, but don’t expect me to help you. Go.”

Damien wanted to refute her but her claims were sound. He needed to prove himself and either way, he was going to do it by himself in the first place.

‘Then what if I wanted to leave tomorrow? I thought she said it’s my journey.’