Dante’s Immortality – Chapter 68
Melisandre’s attack smacked against his mind with devastating momentum. The pain was reminiscent of what he felt in the predatory dungeon. Succumbing almost seemed like the best decision at this point.
He continued to revolve the mana in his mind, trying to press Melisandre’s attack back, but the attack only seemed to burrow further into his barrier every time she sent it forward.
In the periphery of his vision, Olivia twitched, and he flinched, still on edge from the note he read the night before. The momentary lapse in concentration allowed Melisandre’s attack to shoot directly into his mind.
Thankfully, there was no pain. There was just Melisandre. Perfect, beautiful Melisandre. She was-
“For your first try, that was somewhat shocking.” As Melisandre spoke, his mind cleared, and he could now focus on what was really happening around him.
“Not really, I only lasted a few seconds against you.”
Olivia had both arms crossed over her chest as she pouted. “Stop being modest after you completely ignored my attack.”
That was true, he was happy to discover that the glove still aided him against mental attacks, Melisandre’s and Olivia’s were just a different type. Instead of the brutal frontal attack that the dungeon boss had used against him, their attack was almost the complete opposite. Their attacks almost stealthily slipped past someone’s mental barriers, sliding in without giving the slightest warning that they are even there. Defending against Olivia’s attack was easy. As soon as he discovered it, he could stop it effortlessly. Finding it was the hard part.
After blocking out Olivia’s attack a few times, Melisandre decided it was her turn, and Melisandre was unstoppable.
Dante watched Olivia warily. “I wasn't modest, I couldn’t move her attack back at all.”
Melisandre nodded. “Our attack works through surprise. It’s only natural for Dante to be able to stop yours when he knows it is coming. I think we will stop training now, we have a long day ahead of us.”
Her words seemed to placate Olivia, but Dante couldn’t help but frown. They had only been training for half an hour at the most.
“Warlord Auron’s celebratory feast is tonight, and we are expected to be there.” Melisandre gave him a pointed look. “We have a lot of work to do if we are going to make you presentable.”
Dante cleared his throat. “Do you think I could, um, not go?”
Melisandre looked aghast. “Absolutely not! All of the eligible ladies of Desas will be there, and you have a reputation to uphold as my temporary apprentice.”
It seemed that the feast would be a tribulation.
“Olivia, take Dante to a blacksmith and have him properly armed.”
Dante opened his mouth to say that he already had weapons, then stopped himself. It was unlikely that his opinion on the matter would influence things much. “I’ve meant to ask. Olivia, why isn’t your sister here? Shouldn’t the two of you be training together?” Hannah seemed normal, and at the moment, normal sounded almost angelic.
He wasn’t ready for the reaction to his question. Both Olivia and Melisandre froze.
Then Olivia quickly stood up. “I’ll wait for you in the main lobby.”
Olivia practically ran for the door, tearing it open and stepping out of it as quickly as she could. Shortly after, they could hear the sound of the door to Olivia’s adjacent room slam open, then closed.
Dante turned to Melisandre, unsure of what was going on. “Did I say some-”
Melisandre crossed the room in an instant, then smacked him in the head. Hard.
“Next time you ask a question, use a little tact.” Melisandre was staring daggers at him, and she seemed to be visibly restraining herself.
Dante spoke carefully, doing his best not to offend further. “I’m sorry, but I really don’t understand what I did wrong.”
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Melisandre continued to glare, then let out a sigh. “It isn’t your fault, Olivia is just going through a difficult time. Just… don’t mention her sister again.”
Dante looked at Melisandre for a moment, unsure of how to respond.
“Could you explain why? I saw the two of them together when I met Olivia.” He couldn’t understand how he should have known that the subject was sensitive.
“The only reason they were together was because I arranged it with Hannah’s master. Otherwise, Hannah wouldn’t have even acknowledged Olivia’s existence.”
“Um, could you explain why?”
The glare was back. “Did Victoria not explain it to you?”
Instead of answering, he dug through his pocket for Victoria’s letter. After pulling it out, Dante handed it to Melisandre. He was more than happy to push the blame for the current situation onto someone else.
Melisandre scanned the letter and began to mutter angrily. Then she looked up from the letter, the anger now focused on him. “Victoria hasn’t changed much. It’s no wonder she left you with me.”
He wasn’t sure how to respond, he felt trapped.
“Do you even know what a variant Classification is?” Melisandre’s words were almost venomous.
Dante shook his head, he hadn’t attributed much importance to that word in Victoria’s letter.
“A variant Classification generally has a chance to be acquired after fulfilling certain conditions prior to receiving your Classifications. They almost always alter the personality of the person who receives them, and they can’t be leveled like other Classifications.”
Variant Classifications were interesting, and he was already connecting the dots in his head, Victoria’s letter made a lot more sense.
“To even have a chance of getting the Succubus Classification that Olivia and I have, a girl needs to kill a specialized combatant that is forcefully taking her virginity prior to receiving her Classifications.”
Melisandre’s candid words knocked the air out of him. That was way too sudden, and the strange detachment in Melisandre’s tone spoke of deep emotional trauma. How was he even supposed to respond to that?
“Wouldn’t-” He struggled to find the words. “I mean, shouldn’t she- Shouldn’t you-” He stopped talking, there was no way to respond to Melisandre.
“Shouldn’t we hate being around men?”
Dante nodded, that was what he wanted to ask. After that, he didn’t see how they could even stand to be around the opposite sex, much less act the way they do. Even with a Classification’s influence.
“Generally, we do. But we can’t fight our nature. Most who receive the Succubus Classification either commit suicide or put themselves in harm’s way purposefully.”
“Why wouldn’t Hannah understand? I mean, if anything, she should be supporting her sister.”
“It isn’t that simple. Hannah and Olivia were both raped by the same person, at the same time. That hatred may have brought them together at one point, but Olivia’s change in behavior after getting her Classification destroyed any relationship they had. Add that devastation to any mixed feelings she has because of her Classification, and you may understand why what you said may have hurt her so much.”
She said each pointed word bluntly, likely trying to make him feel worse. He did, and he deserved it too. Even if there was no way he could have known, he felt incredibly bad for even bringing Hannah up.
Melisandre stood. “I don’t care if you are Victoria’s apprentice. If Olivia harms herself because of you, you will be held responsible.” Melisandre exited the room, leaving him alone with his thoughts. He could hear the door to Olivia’s adjacent room open again, likely Melisandre going to comfort her.
A Classification that influences someone’s personality… He had first-hand experience of what that might be like, and it was horrible. In his case, it wasn’t even that bad. He may have made poor decisions because of his glove’s influence, but Olivia’s Classification was likely making her want something that repulsed her.
And that was without mentioning the social stigma that her actions might bring her. Even her sister didn’t want to be around her anymore.
After a few minutes, he heard the sound of Olivia’s door opening. Dante shot to his feet, then headed straight for the hallway. He was going to apologize, but upon opening the door, he was greeted by the sight of Melisandre carefully shutting Olivia’s door.
Melisandre saw his expression and seemed to approve. “She is fine. This happens occasionally, it’s not really your fault. I was just upset and lashed out.” She let out a sigh. “Just give her a few minutes to calm down, and she will be out.”
Melisandre walked down the stairwell. Leaving him alone in the hallway. He considered waiting for Olivia in the lobby, but decided to stay where he was. Letting out a sigh, he sat against the wall of the narrow hallway and waited.
He didn’t think he could feel any worse, but was quickly proven wrong. The muffled sound of crying would occasionally leak into the hallway. The guilt was overwhelming.
Eventually, it stopped, and he continued to wait, but Olivia still didn’t come out.
It was a few minutes later when her door slowly opened, revealing Olivia. She looked like a mess. Her usually neatly curled blond hair was in disarray, as though she tried to quickly make herself presentable after ruining it, and her eyes were red and puffy. When she saw him, Olivia smiled, and not seductively like she usually did. Her smile made him feel even worse.
“Olivia I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to-”
“It’s fine. It was my fault.” She rubbed one of her eyes and sniffed. “And this stupid Classification’s. It seems like it makes all my emotions conflict with each other.” She said it jokingly, but the words came out full of bitterness.
Dante looked at her hesitantly. “Still, I should have been more careful.”
Olivia stepped forward and latched onto one of his free arms. “It’s fine, really.” She continued to smile, but it seemed forced. “I should be the one apologizing, I wasted so much of our time. Let’s go.”
He was unsure of how to respond as she led him down the stairwell.