Music is an ethereal force that defies all limitations, as a master artist's brush defies the boundaries of a canvas. It transcends time and space, creating a bridge between people and cultures, and establishes itself as a universal language. Its ability to evoke powerful emotions is a testament to its enduring power and magic, much like the art that speaks to the soul. It is a reminder of the boundless potential of the human spirit.

The music somehow reminded me of the hobby that I had halted spending time with because of the recent events that occurred in my life. It reminded me of the sketches and drawings that once brought me solace and joy. Perhaps, one of these days,I shall once again take up my pencil and create art.

As the melodies of the orchestra flowed through the air, enveloping me in their soothing sounds, I closed my eyes and surrendered myself to the music. Classical music has always held a special place in my heart, a source of solace in times of turmoil.

"Are you enjoying it so far?" My companion Raphael's voice interrupted my reverie, and I opened my eyes to see him gazing at me with a pensive expression. He handed me a bottle of wine and added, "I hope you don't forget why we're here."

"Of course, I won't forget that," I answered, returning my gaze to the stage. "We may have come here with a different agenda, but I wanted to enjoy their performance as much as I can." I met his crimson red eyes and smirked. "Besides, you worked hard to get us tickets after detecting the intense negative energy here, right?"

"Rory, that's not my intention upon bringing you here," Raphael reasoned out, frowning. "Although it is a fact that I did detect great negative energy and someone must be in a lot of pain now as we speak, haven't I told you to lie low and wait for the right time to feed yourself? Aren't you alarmed that the Angel of Death is after you now because you're so reckless?"

I raised an eyebrow in confusion. "If that's the case, then what's the real reason you brought me here? You've never been interested in artistic events like this before. And for your information, if that angel really wanted to harm me, she could have done so when we first met. But it's been days since I saw her, and she hasn't made an appearance again."

""Well, that's...good," Raphael said, seemingly at a loss for words. He looked at me intently and reached for my hand, interlacing our fingers together and giving me a gentle smile. "Despite my lack of enthusiasm for artistic pursuits, I know how much you love art. It's one of the few things in this world that has truly captured your attention, and I wanted to use that to distract you and give you a bit of joy. So please, Rory, can you just enjoy this moment with me?"

"What the hell are you saying?" I scowled, pulling my hand from his grasp. I looked at him in the corner of my eyes and his soft expression only continued to baffle me. "Stop looking at me like that. I'm not really convinced at all. Yes, I will be enjoying this concert, but we're still going to reap someone's pain today.."

"Fine, seems like there's no changing your mind," he replied and took a sip in his wine as a form of surrender. A moment of silence has divided us from one another, setting boundaries from our conflicting views.

I sighed and averted my gaze, focusing on the performance of the orchestra. Once again, I felt myself being drawn into their music, lost in the beautiful melodies of the orchestra, causing memories to suddenly flood my mind.

I stood on the stage, feeling the weight of the violin in my hands. As I ran my fingers over the smooth wood and tightened the bow, I couldn't help but feel a sense of connection of home and peace between me, my instrument, and the theater.

The sea of faces in the audience seemed to stretch on forever, and I knew that each and every one of them was waiting eagerly for my performance to begin. Among them were Raven and Dabria, the talented soloist and conductor of the orchestra that had just performed. I gave them a quick smile, feeling a sense of camaraderie with my fellow musicians.

Turning my gaze towards my accompanist, I saw a man with a blurred face sitting at the piano, ready to join me in the performance. I nodded at him, signaling that it was time for us to commence. I lifted the violin to my shoulder and began to play, letting the melodies of the violin fill the air. The music flowed from my heart, pouring out into the audience like a river of sound. Despite the weight of their stares, I was completely immersed in the music, consumed by the magic of creation. My fingers danced over the strings, completely absorbed in the moment and letting the music guide me.

As the final notes of the piece faded away, I lowered the violin and took a bow. The audience erupted into applause, and I couldn't help but feel a sense of pride and accomplishment. I had done my best, and now it was up to the music to speak for itself.

"Rory, are you okay?"

I was brought back to reality when I heard someone call me. I looked beside me and saw Raphael checking up on me. "You're acting weird. What happened?"

"Did I..." I struggled to come up with the right words, contemplating if it was alright to tell Raphael what I saw in my memories. I pursed my lips and met his gaze. "Did I always know how to play the violin?"

"What?" His crimson red eyes became puzzled. "Rory, you never played an instrument."

Then, why? I still wanted to ask him that, but I stopped myself and remained silent. I could feel his stares over at me, but it wasn't enough to bother me because of the thoughts scattered in my head.

I was certain that the memory that I saw just now is mine, but why is Dabria there? Why is the man that I saw from my dreams with a blurred face also with me? And why did I have the chance to perform a violin recital when I didn't even know how to play that instrument?

That memory was definitely mine, but it doesn't make sense. Is it from one of my victims from the past and I just happened to mix them altogether? But then, why do they know the angel of death and the man that I was seeing from my dreams? If the memory doesn't truly belong to me, could it be a sign that the vessel I am in is deteriorating, like a thread stretched to the breaking point? Is it possible that my powers are on the verge of collapsing?

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If that is the case, thenI should really feed and gain my energy back again.

"Can you tell me who it is?" I asked Raphael, my voice barely above a whisper. ""Which member of the orchestra is carrying such a heavy burden of emotion?

"And here I thought that you'll just savor this wonderful moment." II felt him remove his stares at me, scoffing in disappointment. "It was the cellist with the chestnut-colored hair," he stated, pointing to the middle section of the stage. "Her name's Airis Redel."

As the last strains of music drifted off into the night, the audience erupted into thunderous applause. I then glanced over at Raphael, who was looking at me with concern. "What are you going to do?"

"We're VIPs, right?" I rose from my seat and packed up my things. "Make use of our privilege and help me get close to her," I said in a low voice. "Arrange a meeting with Airis."

***

"Welcome, our dear guests," the attendant greeted us as we entered the backstage area. "You must be the ones who requested to see Ms. Airis. Please follow me."

We followed the attendant down the hall and knocked on the door to Airis's dressing room. "Ms. Airis? Our VIPs are here to see you," the attendant called out.

The door swung open to reveal the tired and drained figure of the cellist. The attendant quickly guided us inside and bid us farewell before departing.

"Can I help you?" Airis asked warily, eyeing us up and down.

I stepped forward and offered her a warm smile. "Hi, I'm Aurora, and this is my boyfriend, Raphael. We're both learning the cello, and your performance really captured our attention."

Airis's expression softened slightly, but I could still sense the pain emanating from her. "It's nice to meet you," she said, forcing a smile. "I'm sorry, but I'm really tired right now. Maybe we can meet another time?"

I shook my head firmly. "I'm sorry, but this can't wait. I can sense that you're in a lot of pain, and I want to help. I have the power to take away your suffering, if you'll let me."

"Blasphemies. I find it really funny for you to say those words in such a straight face." She quickly averted her gaze. "Don't make me laugh. This pain is an abyss, and it has no end. You're just wasting your time here. Go now before I ask the guards to take you away."

"You're wrong," I insisted, raising my hand. I showed her how it was enveloped in light, forming into one of my enchanted flowers.

I looked at her again and saw her staring at me in awe. "I'm the Pain Reaper," I said, taking her hand and focusing on the wounds on her wrist, "Tell me your wish and I'll grant it."

I tightened my grip on her as I spoke. "I can remove all the pain in your heart if you pluck the petals of this flower. In exchange, you'll have to give up your most precious memories."

"I swear, you'll regret taking my pain. You'll go insane!" she yelled, grabbing the flower that I have given her. Tears flowed down her cheeks. "But that won't be my problem anymore, right?" she said, plucking the petals. The floor beneath us then softened and the pages of my grimoire flipped on their own.

"Roses are red." Time stopped for the beings surrounding us as I began to speak.

"Violets are blue." Airis's tears never stopped falling.

"Memories are dead." The lids of her eyes became heavy.

"The soul is anew," I said in the final word and the fallen petal was finally swallowed by the floor. The black light surrounding me slowly disappeared and the concrete floor I was standing on returned to normal. My grimoire, which was previously just hanging on my left wrist, has also disappeared.

I didn't hesitate to leave the room, worried someone might see us inside. But as soon as I stepped out the door, my knees weakened and I had to lean against the wall. The surroundings spun, and I couldn't even bring myself to take a step forward.

Suddenly, images appeared in my mind and it felt like my head was being split in two. I squeezed my eyes shut. What is happening to me?

I saw Airis sitting on a couch with two older men, her face lit up with excitement as they played a video game together.

"Thank you, Uncle Troy and Uncle Mike!" she yelled, throwing her arms around the two men in a grateful hug.

But as I watched, the surroundings around me seemed to warp and shift, and I found myself transported to a different scene. I looked in horror when I saw Airis sitting alone on her bed, naked, silent tears falling from her eyes. Her lips were trembling and her body was wracked with shudders, as if she couldn't stop quivering. There were also marks in her hair, evidence of some sort of trauma or abuse.

"Uncle Troy, Uncle Mike...why?" she cried out, her voice laced with pain. "Why did you do this to me?"

"Rory!"

I was jolted awake when I heard someone calling out my name, and then there was Raphael, him standing in front of me, his eyebrows furrowed in worry as he held my cheeks. I tried to push him away, but my body wouldn't cooperate, and all I could manage was a weak moan. My throat was dry, and no words came out of my mouth. I lowered my gaze and saw that my hands were shaking as I wiped them on my clothes. I also noticed that my vision was blurry, the tears that had gathered in my eyes blurring my surroundings.

Why do I keep experiencing this? Why do I feel like I'm the one experiencing all the pain?

"Rory, take a deep breath," Raphael said, his voice soothing. My body automatically followed his instruction, and I felt myself trembling even more. Raphael suddenly wrapped me in a comforting embrace, stroking my hair as he held me close.

"R-raphael...what is happening to me?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. He smiled at me, his eyes filled with concern, and helped me stand up.

"Maybe you're just having a bad day," he said, trying to reassure me. "Let me take you to the dorm."

Without waiting for a response, he scooped me up in his arms and started walking. I wanted to protest, but I felt like all my strength had been drained from my body, and I couldn't do anything but let him carry me. The lids of my eyes were also becoming heavy, as if I couldn't keep them open any longer.

"Rory, I'm sorry," I heard Raphael whisper, his voice laced with guilt. Droplets of moisture fell upon my face, and the realization dawned on me - Raphael was crying. But before I can even reach out to him, darkness had already swallowed me whole.

"Are you Aurora?"

A voice echoed out inside the void, where I found myself stuck in an infinite loop of nothingness. My eyes strained to see the figure that spoke, but I couldn't even catch a glimpse of their face.

"Don't try to find me, for you won't be able to see me," they whispered, as if reading my thoughts. I couldn't help the fear and confusion that gnawed at my mind. Who was this person? How did I end up here? What was happening?

"I will punish you for the sin you have committed. Are you ready?" The voice was stern and unforgiving. My tongue felt heavy in my mouth, refusing to form words. What did they mean? We demons were the embodiment of evil and sin. Why was I being judged for something that was natural to our nature?

"Yes. I am ready to face all of that," I heard myself say, my lips moving of their own accord. I wanted to clamp my mouth shut, to stop the words from spilling out, but my body seemed to have a mind of its own.

"Then, I will begin the punishment," the voice declared.

"No!" I shouted, my senses finally returning to me. I gasped for air, my chest heaving as if I had been running. Sweat coated my skin, making me feel sticky and uncomfortable.

I glanced at the clock, the hands telling me that it was already six in the evening. I pressed my palm to my forehead, trying to rub away the headache that had formed there. "What is happening to me?" I muttered, feeling disoriented and lost. "I used to be indifferent to all my victim's pain, but recently, it feels like I am starting to absorb all of it, and I seem to mix up all their memories with mine."

I tried to find Raphael but he's nowhere in sight. I heaved a sigh. His actions continued to bother me, and yet, I could not bring myself to ask him about it. These feelings that I have–they're all foreign, and they felt wrong. The more I tried to navigate them, the more they didn't make sense to me.

How can an empty vessel anchor such emotions?