Violet’s eyes fluttered open. The world buzzed and twisted around her, dancing to a tune that only it could hear. Her lips felt gummy and her head throbbed. Spider, on the other hand, didn’t even seem slightly bothered.

Violet swallowed. That was the only action she could manage to muster. Pain and new strength swirled into a churning mix in her soul. She’d managed to keep her misgivings wrapped when Spider had bought the Mind Meld potion.

If that had been the price for power, she’d been more than willing to pay it — but it quickly became abundantly clear that Spider didn’t have any plans of using the potion for its intended purpose.

He’d asked her a few dozen questions about her goals and what she wanted to accomplish. Violet could barely even remember what her answers had been. All she’d wanted was to be strong. To be able to protect Aylin and Edda and Rorick. Nothing else mattered.

Whatever Spider had wanted in return, she’d been prepared to give it. The demon had handed her Rune after Rune, ordering her to draw them into her soul.

Shame wrapped around Violet like a metal cloak at the memory. As it turned out, having absolutely no experience drawing in Runes had made her horrid at it. Even though the power had been right in front of her, it had taken minutes to draw in every single one.

The impatience in Spider’s posture made it apparent that Aylin had taken to drawing in the new runes considerably faster than she had. Everything Violet had wanted had been right in front of her, and she couldn’t grasp it.

By the end of the thirty-minute window Spider had warned her of, Violet managed to bring in Six new Runes and draw in energy from a rune the stronger demon shattered to fill her current Demon Rune.

Then it had come time to combine them. Even now, Violet’s stomach twisted. Spider had handed her everything — and she’d failed.

Even with Spider’s instructions, the combination had been horrible. She’d known it from first glance. The rune had been nearly sixty-five percent full. A complete failure. Then the potion’s effects had ended and Violet found herself sitting back on the ground of the tent.

It had been humiliating.

But, as her stomach twisted itself into knots so tight that they could have cut through metal, her defeated gaze had been met only by Spider’s hand holding a second potion.

A second chance. One that put her so impossibly deep into debt that she couldn’t even begin to comprehend the extent of it. Violet had taken it without hesitation. Shame did nothing. Even if she had a crippled rune, she couldn’t afford to do anything but take every advantage that Spider was willing to offer her.

She had no clue why he was willing to spend so much effort on a demon with no potential and no skill, but she didn’t care. Anything Spider wanted from her would be his if he could let her keep up with Aylin.

But when they had returned to her mind, Spider didn’t procure new runes. Instead, he simply ordered her to close her eyes and brace herself. Violet almost let out a scornful laugh at the memory.

She’d been so confident she was prepared for anything Spider would demand.

She’d been wrong.

Her memories of what happened next were a haze. There was a wall of pain, so immense that it threatened to swallow her completely. She’d screamed until her throat went raw, but not once did she open her eyes.

And then there was nothing. The pain had faded as if it had never been there. Spider gave her the order to open her eyes once more, and Violet had found herself in her soul, surrounded by the runes she’d failed to combine.

It was in that moment that Violet realized the difference between herself and Spider. He had undone her mistake as if it had never happened. She was a demon — but he was a god. That was the only explanation for it that her mind could manifest.

Violet didn’t mess up the second time around. She combined the runes into a Rank 2, and Spider’s only response was to manifest a new Rank 2 in her soul. And thus, they had continued. She was still far from fast at her work, and it took the entire thirty minutes to gather the rest of the Rank 2 runes in her soul. This time it didn’t faze her.

Spider didn’t care about how long it took her. Time was meaningless to a god. And, for some reason, that was a comfort. Violet focused, pushing away the fear and worry to completely train her mind on what mattered.

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Success. She was aided by a god. Nothing else was possible.

Her newfound confidence was proven right. When she combined her runes for the second time under Spider’s guidance, she made no more mistakes. The potion had worn off just moments later.

“Well?” Spider asked, his words shattering Violet’s thoughts like a fist through glass.

She looked down at her hands, flexing her fingers and swallowing heavily. Her body, similar to Aylin’s, hadn’t had any significant changes from the advancement to Rank 3.

That wasn’t to say she hadn’t changed at all. Muscle had filled in her thin form and, as Violet ran a hand a long her face, she found that her features had sharpened. Her body felt steady. Firm. Like the earth itself had risen up to fill her from within.

She felt unstoppable — and she knew that couldn’t have been farther from the truth. Violet stared up into Spider’s cloaked face.

Why is someone like this here? A god made flesh… just gifting power to street urchins? Is this just a game to him? Or is there something more that we don’t understand?

“I — I’m fine. I feel strong,” Violet said, not wanting to keep Spider waiting any longer.

“That would be all the Earth Runes,” Spider mused. “What about range of mobility? Stiff? Are your thoughts sluggish?”

Violet blinked. She lifted a hand and waved it around, then shook her head. “No. I don’t think so. I don’t know if I’d say I feel any faster, but I don’t feel dumber or slower.”

“I see. So the change is more related to your demon rune than the normal ones,” Spider mused under his breath. He looked to her again. “And what of your emotion? Do you know what you feed on? It’s fast, but—”

Violet knew. Before Spider had even finished, her heart had already set itself on the one thing in life that mattered to her. “I want to protect my family.”

That gave Spider pause. He tilted his head to the side in apparent curiosity. “That’s an interesting emotion for a demon. Kinder than I would have expected. It isn’t really an emotion either. Explain.”

What kind of question is that? Is he trying to see how much I understand of myself? Actually, it doesn’t matter. Anything he wants from me is his if it lets me become strong.

“It’s not just emotion. It’s feeling. The feeling of protecting what belongs to me,” Violet replied. “I’m not strong or lucky enough to eat pure emotion. Most of us have something more specific. A feeling that’s usually made up of a bunch of smaller emotions in combination.”

“But your feeling is protecting others. Do you consume your own energy?”

I don’t know if I can explain something that just feels completely instinctive… that must be why he’s asking. To make me look deeper.

Violet’s brow furrowed as she thought and searched for words. “It’s not the feeling I get. I want to feel their appreciation. Their understanding that I’m protecting them,” Violet said. “And it’s not just others. It’s my family. I want to protect the ones that belong to me.”

Spider’s head inclined. “I see. A powerful desire. A dangerous one, if you let it get away from you. Does any living being truly belong to another?”

“I… don’t know,” Violet admitted with a frown. Her emotion pressed against her logic as she struggled to find a way to balance them. “I don’t know how to say it. I want them to be mine. My siblings. They don’t belong to me, but they’re mine.”

“Interesting. Not too dissimilar from Lee, but… no. Never mind. I won’t tell you how your emotions work, but I encourage seeing how far you can push them. How strong you can become, not just in the ways you know, but in the ones you don’t,” Spider said. “I’ll be watching with interest. You have potential.”

Me? I failed to combine my runes. How do I have any potential? Is Spider just trying to be nice? But… why even bother? I don’t understand him at all.

They were silent for a few seconds. Then Spider blew out a small breath. He put a hand on Violet’s shoulder.

“Keep that family of yours safe. I haven’t given Aylin an easy task. He’s got a lot on his shoulders. He needs all the help he can get — and remember that you’re part of your family as well. I know the look in your eyes. You can only protect them as long as you protect yourself. I know you and Aylin are wondering why I’d do something like this. You’re probably trying to figure out what would cause me to choose you.”

Violet nodded mutely.

“The answer is simple. You were there,” Spider said. “Aylin had the curiosity and need to seek me out. I didn’t come with ulterior motives beyond the ones you have already seen. I need someone to fill Golon’s spot, and I need someone to control the gangs I bring in under my control. I will give you and Aylin everything I can to accomplish that. Your only job is to keep yourself and Aylin alive until then. And, when you do, you’ll have a choice.”

“A choice?” Violet’s brow furrowed. “About what?”

“You’ll figure it out when the time comes,” Spider replied with a chuckle. “Until then, just focus on the present. You’re stronger now, but we’ll be up against more powerful enemies soon enough. These next few days are just training. Bring the gangs under Aylin’s control. Learn how to use your abilities and protect him — and prepare for what comes next.”

Violet’s jaw set. Spider hadn’t had to say anything. His orders were the exact ones she’d already resolved herself to. It was strange. Despite the inconceivable gap between them, for some inexplicable reason, Violet felt safe with Spider.

It almost felt like he cared.

“I will,” Violet promised.

“Good,” Spider said with a smile. He held out a hand and helped Violet to her feet. Then he nodded to the tent flap. “Now, shall we go check on Aylin? I believe his fight is over, and I’m not above looking forward to watching his reaction when he sees you.”