“Jeffrey was taken out.”
A faceless servant kneeled in front Maria and gave his report.
“I see. You can go now.”
The servant nodded and disappeared into a black mist.
Maria then turned to the person beside her and spoke.
“It seems that we’ve failed, Lord Rouge.”
“You don't look like someone who failed.”
Rouge sat in his chair with an amused expression.
“Could it be that your Clan doesn't have any intention to truly capture her.”
“Truly you jest. My clan is doing everything it can to catch our traitorous daughter.”
“On the surface, yes. But I know your clan too well. After all I was friends with your progenitor.”
He smiled.
“You have no intention of catching your niece, but you still sent someone like Jeffrey to pursue her. Considering his serious personality, Jeffrey wouldn't purposely lose. That means that he fought with everything he had to complete the mission given to him. But why do I feel like you wanted him to lose?”
“Who knows. Maybe you're just cynical.”
She said with a smile.
“Hahaha, well I won't deny that. But..”
He suddenly put on a serious expression.
“Keep in mind that I don't like to be used.
“?!”
Maria suddenly felt like she was being choked. She started kicking her legs wildly as she was lifted off the ground by an invisible force.
Rouge spoke slow but clearly.
“If I want to destroy your clan, not even your father can stop my rampage. So I prefer you don't take me for a fool. Got it?”
Maria forced a nod.
“Good.”
The choking sensation stopped and Maria fell back in her seat.
“Cough! Cough!”
“Then as promised, its my turn to get involved. I'm sure that's what you wanted.”
He stood up from his seat.
“I'll try my best not to kill your niece.”
He began walking away.
“But keep in mind, accidents happens.”
With that, he disappeared from the room.
Maria held her throat and mumbled-
“Damn, monster.”
Zanis did as Ouroboros told him and headed west at top speed in his dragon form.
After hours of flying he arrived in front of an isolated cave in the mountains.
He landed at the entrance and walked inside.
“Hm?”
The moment he stepped in the scenery changed.
He found himself outside a different cave on an unfamiliar cave.
(This is a dimension I created thousands of years ago. During the War For Supremacy, this is where I came to recover the wounds I got from my countless battles. Well, most those wounds were from Thor though.)
“And your descendants are here? I didn't even know you had living descendants.”
(It's not something I can go blabbing about. Anyway, you should be safe here.)
“If you say so, I'll take your word for it.”
Zanis returned to his human appearance, and then opened a blackhole in front of him, and took something from inside it.
It was Lisa's dimensional cube.
He squeezed it, and Lisa suddenly appeared in front of him.
“Zanis.”
Lisa passionately hugged Zanis, and sunk her face in his chest.
“I'm so glad you're okay!”
Zanis smiled and ran his fingers through her hair.
“There's no way I'll die and leave you alone.”
Lisa nodded her head, and looked up at his face.
“What happened to Jeffrey?”
“After I won, I threw him into a space between dimensions. He's not dead, but he won't be able to return to this plane for a while.”
“I see. As long as he's alive, I guess it's alright.”
Lisa then separated from Zanis looked around.
“Where are we?”
“My world.”
A light flashed and Ouroboros appeared in front of them.
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“Come. Let's go meet the natives.”
The two nodded and then they all started to make their way down the mountain.
They leaped off cliff after cliff until they reached the ground.
Other than the mountain they were on, the entire area was flat.
There were mostly plains and a few forests. There was a lot of animals on the ground, and birds in the sky. There was even a river nearby.
“It's like the country.”
Said Lisa.
“I like nature, so when I was creating this space I tried to bring out the best in nature.”
Answered Ouroboros.
“There's a village upstream. That's where my descendants are.”
They walked at an unhurried pace, while Ouroboros spoke of all the times he came here, and the improvements he did every time.
After nearly a hour of walking, they could see the outline of a village. They arrived at the entrance after a few minutes.
At the entrance were a few middle age men who had a serious expression on their faces.
“Halt!”
They pointed spears at Ouroboros and the others, while cautiously glaring at them.
“Who are you people, and what business do you have with this place?!”
The moment they shouted Zanis and Lisa could feel countless gazes on their bodies.
They quickly looked around and noticed that they were surrounded.
“Getting passed Lisa is one thing, but getting pass my senses should be impossible. A stealth technique?”
Said Zanis.
“They hid their presence with a method different from magic. So it's no surprise you couldn't sense them.”
Saying that, Ouroboros stepped out and spoke.
“My children calm down, I just came for a visit.”
Ouroboros’ body gave off a holy light, and the symbol of a dragon eating its on tail appeared in the sky.
“T-The Father!”
The people who saw this immediately all kneeled in front of Ouroboros. Some even went as far as to slammed their foreheads on the ground, in order to show the deepest respect.
“Now, now. You don't have to go that far. I'm just a parent checking up on his children.”
“Holy Father! Please forgive us for the rudeness we've shown you earlier!”
The two guards came to Ouroboros and kneeled passionately in front of him.
“Yes, yes. All is forgiven. Now get up already you're all being annoying now.”
“Yes!”
All the people stood in salutation for some reason, which made Ouroboros sighed.
“This is why I don't come visit that often.”
Hearing him say that, Zanis and Lisa couldn't help but to smile wryly.
“Anyway, who is your leader?”
“That would be me, Holy Father!”
A young-looking man stepped out. He looked like he was in his early twenties but had a wise air about him, so he was definitely older than what he seemed.
“A [XX Class] as leader, not bad.”
“Your words means the world to me, My Father!”
The man immediately kneeled.
“Yes, yes. Enough of that. Now tell me what's your name?”
“Yes! My name is Owen!”
“Owen, huh? Well then, Owen. I want need a favor of you.”
“Yes! No matter your command I, Owen, will do everything in my power to complete it. Even if I have to sacrifice the lives of everyone here!”
Saying so, Owen pulled out a knife.
“Stop! Stop! I don't know what you're planning to do but stop it!”
“If that is what you wish.”
Owen put back the knife from where it came.
‘Damn, my descendants are fanatics! I can see why Tiamat said that if possible she never wants to appear in from her descendants again.’
Ouroboros thought.
“I would like to say that it's nothing you need to risks your life for, but the situation is really bad.”
“Speak and it shall be done!”
Ouroboros used his thumb to point at Zanis and Lisa behind him.
“I need you to hide these two here for a few years.”
“Yes! This is the world you've created so no matter if it is ogres, we will accept them with open arms if it is your wish!”
“Who you're calling an ogre?!”
Shouted Lisa.
“They aren't ogres or anything like that. They're my Proxy and his fiancé.”
“F-Fiancé?!”
Ouroboros introduction shocked Lisa and Zanis.
Ouroboros looked back at them with an annoyed look.
“What? You two went through all that trouble of making an enemy of an entire kingdom to be together. If you don't get married after all that, I'll personally tie you two with a bow and present you to Rouge.”
“No, fiancé is the right title! We're getting married! We're getting married!”
Said Zanis.
“We are?!”
But Lisa was surprised.
“What, you don't want to?”
There was disappointment in Zanis's voice. Seeing that, Lisa got flustered.
“N-No! I want to! I want to! There's nothing that would make me any happier!”
“I see. Then we're engaged then.”
“I-I guess so.”
The two started smiling like lovesick idiots. Well from Ouroboros’ point of view anyway.
“H-How could we have made such an error?!”
“Eh?”
The sweet moment was interrupted by Owen’s sudden shout.
“Not only did we offend our father, but also our most respected brother!”
Before Zanis knew it, he was surrounded by dozens of people bowing in front of him.
“Respected Brother, please forgive this insolent little brother for his continuous rude behavior!”
Owen pulled out the knife again.
“Let me repent with cutting my belly!”
“What are you a samurai?!”
The knife turned to dust before Owen could stab himself.
“Enough. Escort us to inside the village Owen.”
“Yes!”
Owen immediately stood up and threw away the knife and started escorting Ouroboros and the others. It made people think if he was ever even serious about cutting his belly.
When they entered the village they saw a lot of tall buildings and technology they've never seen before.
“As my descendants they possessed above intellect, physical and magic abilities, and talent.”
Ouroboros explained from the side.
“Then they're a bit like me?”
“No. You're by far superior. That's because you're my Proxy. So my blood is stronger in you. It would be like you're my biological child.”
Ouroboros then looked like he remembered something and then turned to Lisa.
“I don't know if you know this, but the children of Proxies inherit part of their parent’s abilities. In other words, your child will inherit not only Zanis's demon blood, but also a percentage of my abilities. Amazing, right? You're kid is going to be really talented.”
“Y-Yes. I can't wait to see our children faces.”
Lisa said while blushing.
Zanis on the other hand wasn't so happy, especially when he saw how few Ouroboros’ descendants were.
“I know what you're thinking. You're afraid that your child will be hunted down aren't you?”
Said Owen, who was seemly more calm now.
“What do you mean?”
Lisa asked.
“Ouroboros is the personification of infinity. Meaning that there's no end for him. We as his descendants inherit that trait. There's no limit to how much we can grow.”
Owen then looked around at his relatives.
“But that is also a curse for us.”
“A curse?”
Lisa asked.
“Do you think the other descendants of Higher Beings, would allow a Clan that can grow infinitely to exist?”
Lisa widen her eyes in surprise.
“You don't mean…”
“We were hunted. We were hunted and slaughtered like animals. Men, women, young, old, it didn't matter. We were indiscriminately hunted down by all the other clans in the world.”
He directed Lisa's attention to the few people in the village.
“We now number less than 1000. For a Clan that existed for over 10,000 years this is a pitiable amount. In the end, we had to receive help from our father, and he gave us this world to live in.”
Owen then stopped walking and looked up at the sky.
“But you know, I've never seen much of the outside world in my 1000 years alive. Is the sky the same color as the one here? Does the air smell the same? What kind of animals are there out there? What about their technology? Their music? Their culture? Just what kind of people are there? What is the world really like?....Everyone asks themselves these questions ever now and then.”
Owen turned and face Zanis.
“It was the same for you, right? You were hunted down as child.”
“?!”
Lisa quickly looked at Zanis in shock.
“Yeah. I was hunted and pursued by some of the worst people. However, I was saved by a man, who felt no threat from a child like me, and only saw a genius in the making. That man protected me under his wing and announced to the world that I was his son, and that anyone who dares to hunt me would become his enemy.”
Zanis suddenly faced Lisa with a determined look.
“I'm going to do the same for my child. I'm going to announce to the world that they're under my wing and whoever tries to harm them will become my enemy. I will definitely become a person whose name alone can protect my family.”
“Zanis...”
“Oh? Those are big words coming from someone who only knew how to follow orders.”
Said Ouroboros.
“Well, it just means that you've finally become a person after 100 years.”
He placed his hand on Zanis's shoulder and smiled.
“I'm looking forward to your future child.”
“Thanks.”
“Good. Go start making it.”
“Huh?”
“Don't huh me! You said that you were going become someone whose name can protect their family. You can't do that if you don't have a family to protect!”
“Wait a minute!”
Lisa and Zanis were visibly flustered.
“I'm not waiting! Owen!”
“Yes, My Father!”
Owen kneeled down in front of Ouroboros.
“Give these two a room, no a house! A house with a big comfy bed!”
“Wait, Ouroboros!”
“What you don't want a bed? You naughty kids! Okay, Owen! Forget the bed! As long as it has a floor it's all good!”
“That's not we meant!”
“As our father commands!”
Owen ignored Lisa's scream and clapped his hand.
Immediately a group of men surrounded Zanis, while Lisa was surrounded by women.
“Take them to the biggest house in the village! But wash them up first!”
The men and women responded to Owen’s orders and quickly dragged Zanis and Lisa away, while ignoring their protesting shouts.
“Owen prepare for a marriage ceremony to be kept in the coming days. We're going hit the iron while it's hot!”
“As you wish, Father!”
While Ouroboros was being a good wingman, Rouge sat in the throne room with his eyes closed.
He suddenly felt a presence and slowly opened his eyes.
At the foot of the throne was a one eyed falcon.
“Yo, Rouge.”
A high-spirited voice came from the falcon mouth.
Rouge looked at the talking falcon and frowned.
“Have you never heard of a phone, Gamiko?”
“ I had one but Kimiko made it explode on my ear, when I called her and told her Sasha ran away from home.”
“Sounds like you have it tough.”
“Well, I have people protecting her from the shadows, so I'm sure she'll be fine until her rebellious phase ends.”
“I see. So? What do you want? I'm sure you didn't contact me to complain about your domestic troubles.”
“What? I can't call my cousin for a little chat?”
“If it was Echo, Andreas, or even Alexus I might’ve believed they only wanted to chat, but not you. You're definitely up to something.”
“So you trust those heartless cousins who left the kingdom millenniums ago, but you won't me who stayed? How cruel!”
“If I remember correctly you were the first one who left saying that you're going to create an all woman country with you as king, and somehow ended up becoming history's first [Tyrant].”
“Did I say that? That sounds like a pretty good idea.”
“It was at that time that I realized that your words can't be trusted.”
“Come on, man. I told you it was a fluke, I just got lucky.”
“What do you want?”
“….You're going to hunt down Zara's kid right? I want in.”
“Denied.”
“Why?!”
“Because you'll probably use this as a chance to start a war with the Zebul Empire. Knowing you, you would probably set it up that Zanis kills Lisa, and send Darwin in a frenzy. And since Lisa was technically betrothed to my branch, we'll get dragged into war as well. Then you'll use the chaos to fight Zara one on one.”
“Wow. Talk about distrustful. I would never cause my friend Darwin such pain.”
“In other words, you had a plan that could start a war without killing Lisa. Maybe killing Zanis yourself and send his head Zara?”
“Come on, man. I just wanted an excuse to sneak out the country. I haven't left here in so long.”
“If you want to leave that badly, then I'll help if you answer my question honestly.”
“Oh? What question is that?”
Rouge paused and stared at the falcon keenly.
“What was your aim when you sought out the Higher Beings?”
“What do you mean?”
“Don't play dumb. I know the reason why you went out of your way to become a [Tyrant] was because you knew the Higher Beings wouldn't be able to ignore you if you started killing their Proxies. What did you want?”
Rouge paused before he continued.
“You couldn't possibly was aiming to kill them, right?”
The falcon remained quiet for a long time until-
“….On second thought, I've changed my mind. I don't feel like going out anymore.”
“Are you running away?”
“Hahahahaha! Don't be ridiculous, Rouge. I just realized that this entire Black Scripture affair is going blow up in your face.”
“What?”
“Try not to lose too much people, cousin.”
With that the falcon disappeared leaving a single black feather behind.
*Bam!*
Rouge angrily slammed his fist on the throne and broke the throne’s hand rest.
“Damn that, Gamiko! What does he mean try not to lose too much people?!”
Rouge got off the throne.
“Tsk! Even after 10,000 years I can never tell what he's thinking.”
Rouge soon knew that Nero's words weren't just random mumbling to change the topic.