After enduring what felt like an eternity of torture and screams, Elysian remained hanging from the tree; his eyes still had that life in them even amidst all the agony—a faint thread of sanity, if one could still call it that. Was he ever truly sane to begin with? Many would argue against it. Despite the brutality inflicted on him, he still clung to his old self. Well, minus a few fingers on his right, of course. And a missing ear, for refusing to listen to that damnable creature's words. Also, there were plenty of broken bones; his left fingers were all shattered as if crushed by a millstone, while his left leg was twisted unnaturally. In terms of injuries, he had plenty; it would have been better to ask which part of his body was not covered by wounds. Some were even peeled, like some ripe fruit ready for picking.

What the creature did to the boy was truly a gruesome act. Yet, despite it all, he was still the same Elysian—arrogant and unwavering.

The creature looked at her handiwork. Instead of admiring it, she appeared rather dissatisfied. She did not like what she saw.

‘Why doesn’t this boy break?’

“For being so young, you seemed remarkably tough,” the woman remarked as she flicked the blood from his sharp fingers. “In fact, you’re the toughest I’ve ever encountered, regardless of age,” she admitted, studying him much more closely now. “I’m genuinely impressed.”

Suddenly, the boy stared deep into her eyes, delving into her soul, leaving her no choice but to meet his gaze in return. Instead of finding raging fury, she saw an endless darkness deeper than her own; those black, cold eyes sent shivers down her soul. The once innocent visage of the boy now exudes impending doom and retribution.

When she saw him grin, the creature froze. There was something in those eyes and smile that was troubling. Though she couldn’t put it into place, she felt it in her blood. When the boy suddenly laughed, his voice did not carry any trace of humor—only mockery and arrogance. Peering once more into his eyes, she did not find any fear, only hatred—pure and unbridled, not directed at her but at the world.

The boy’s unwavering and defiant gaze caused the creature to pause. A primal fear gripped her; its intensity was so foreign and unsettling that it made her retreat back. It was something she had never experienced before, stirring beneath her sinister being.

‘Did this unruly brat dare to make me feel afraid?’

Elysian smirked and responded, “Thank you. I’m constantly striving to impress.”

After hearing his response, the creature’s brow furrowed as her anger flared. “How dare a lowly brat like you act like that in front of me?!” she shrieked, her voice piercing and lethal, causing the boy’s ears to bleed. Suddenly, she lashed out and swept her hand across his chest, slicing it into ribbons. Despite the excruciating pain, the boy’s arrogant grin did not waver, so she stabbed her fingers into his sides, twisting them inside his body to maximize the agony. The boy looked down, grunting in pain. “How does it feel now? Do you still have the nerve to smirk at me, boy?”

‘Why did I become so enraged? How did this insignificant human manage to provoke such a reaction from me? Am I truly afraid of this brat?

Is this some kind of joke?

What can he even do? He’s trapped here in my realm, utterly powerless.’

When the boy looked into her eyes once more, instead of fear, she saw mockery. This reignited her fury, and she lashed out at him again, pouring all her wrath into the poor boy's tattered and broken body. Despite Elysian’s scream of pain, her furious gaze was met by a grin. This cycle repeated several times, yet the boy remained unyielding against her relentless onslaught.

‘Why doesn’t he break? Is he already insane?’

“I haven’t encountered anyone like you before. People typically cower before me, begging for their pitiful lives,” the woman remarked, her brow furrowing in displeasure. She didn’t like where this was going. “Who the hell are you?”

“Your doom—vengeance incarnate,” the boy quipped, chuckling at her reaction.

“False bravado,” the creature snorted, shaking her head. “I think I know now where that confidence of yours is coming from. I believe you’ve realized now that these injuries aren’t in your physical body, but only in your mind.”

Elysian did not respond to her question; instead, he only grinned at her.

Rather than being irked by being ignored, the woman grinned back with a sadistic gleam in her eyes. “It’s true that these injuries aren’t happening in your physical body. However, don’t be too smug about it. You might not know this, since you’re young. The injury in your mind is often worse than any injury in your body. They are often hard to heal, and even if they do, they leave behind scars that never fade. However, there are wounds in your mind that will never mend,” she declared, her voice resonating into the dark void as a sinister allure as a chilling smile crept onto her lips. “Some of them are worse than death itself. They will linger within you like an irritating gnat, gnawing away until they fester. Eventually, they will consume you from within until you are naught but a husk—a hallowed shell, drooling like a madman.”

Instead of fear, the boy just laughed even louder at her statement.

If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

Ignoring his laughter, the creature’s eyes remained calm as she spoke. “Laugh all you want, child,” she uttered, her voice sharp and ominous. “No matter how tough you are, you’ll eventually break. It’s only a matter of time. Once I’m through with you, death will be a mercy you’ll crave.”

Elysian abruptly stopped laughing, his gaze piercing and defiant. “Do your worst, foul creature. I do not break,” he declared, his voice unyielding and arrogant. “I’ve stared death in the face before, and I wasn’t afraid. Even when my soul had died—my will to live—I still stood tall. Now that I’ve been given life—a second chance— do you think I will bend? So, do your worst, you wretched beast. Let us revel in this grisly show together, and let us see who will yield first, shall we?”

As her brow furrowed, the woman remained silent, not responding to his provocation. Quietly, she started torturing him again, though this time there was no pleasure in what she was doing. It was purely business at first but gradually turned into frustration, then anger. No matter what she did, no matter how much pain she inflicted, the boy did not break, his mad laughter echoing through her dark realm, annoying her even more.

‘This dumb brat! Why doesn’t he give up?!’

Elysian’s legs were now gone, and the hollow socket where his right eye had been gouged out bore witness to the brutality he endured. Yet, amidst all the pain and torment, his will remained unbroken, a testament to his indomitable spirit. If anyone were brave enough to peer into his remaining eye, they would witness more than a mere flicker of life; within the depths of that solitary orb burned a flame of defiance. It resembled a candle casting its light amidst the encompassing darkness, a beacon of resilience that refused to be snuffed out.

The woman sighed before finally asking, “Are you not tired of this?”

“Tired?” Elysian asked, his remaining eye staring at her for a moment before blinking rapidly. “Are you tired? Well, if you kept hitting me with that arm of yours, it would eventually grow muscles. That would be quite unladylike,” he quipped, grinning at her.

“Are all things a joke to you?” the creature questioned, weary from all the boy’s provocation.

“Hmm… No,” Elysian mused, pondering the question for a moment. “But what can I do? This realm of yours is already bleak and morbid. If I don’t inject any humor into it, no matter how tasteless and bad, wouldn’t it be too depressing?”

The woman glanced around her realm, sighing in resignation.

‘Hmm… He’s right. My place is indeed depressing. But isn’t that the purpose, though? I’m a creature of dread and torment after all.’

“Well, that’s true,” the woman agreed. She couldn’t refute the boy’s words.

“Now, you finally understand that my humor brings some color into your place,” Elysian stated. As the creature was about to object, he quickly added, “I know I’m not funny, and my taste is lacking. But can you fault me for that? I’m just a boy, after all. In time, it will change.”

She snorted, but instead of annoyance, her expression softened a little.

“Why don’t we stop this already and let me go?” Elysian asked, observing her reaction.

“Let you go?” the woman repeated, looking at him without uttering another word.

“And serve me,” the noble offered, staring back at her directly in the eye.

‘The nerve of this boy!’

“Not only letting you go, but you also want me to serve you?” the woman asked. Her tone had a dangerous edge to it as she chuckled, devoid of any trace of humor. She couldn’t believe the audacity of the boy asking her that. “Your arrogance truly knows no bounds, brat.”

Rather than reacting immediately, Elysian simply observed her for a moment, allowing silence to return to the room.

“I know,” the noble finally spoke, his voice somber yet serene—warm even as the gaze of his remaining eye remained resolute. “This might seem brazen of me, but it’s a win-win for both of us. Look at what I’ve already achieved. You’ve been bound in your realm for ages, yet I’ve liberated you. You’ve languished in slumber within this bland and dreary place, yet I’ve roused you, infusing some excitement back into your existence. I’ve even sated your hunger, fulfilling that primal hunger of yours for blood,” he stated, pausing for a moment to emphasize his point. “If you serve me, I’ll promise to quench that insatiable thirst of yours.”

‘A promise to quench my thirst? Does he even grasp the gravity of that vow?

How naive.’

“Do you even understand the implications of such a promise, brat?” the woman questioned, arching a skeptical brow.

“I do,” Elysian said, his voice serious and calm. “And I will deliver. Since my path will be paved with the corpses and blood of those that deserve it,” he stated, a smile creeping onto his lips. “It shall be a banquet fit for your tastes.”

‘This boy is truly mad. With what I put him through, should I even be surprised?

Hmm… Yet, his words intrigue me… Stir something deep… Maybe…’

As silence reigned, the only sound was the dripping of blood from the boy’s feet as they stared at each other, neither yielding. They remained locked in this tense exchange for some time, each observing the other. Suddenly, the creature broke the impasse with a sigh of regret.

‘That would’ve been nice. I’m starting to like this brat, but…’

“Even though you’ve earned my respect, I will never serve any man,” the woman declared, her tone dripping with spite when she uttered the word ‘man,’ as if she had tasted something bitter or rotten. “Just the notion of it makes me want to gag.”

“Well, it seems you really despise men, then,” Elysian responded, nodding as if he understood her. “Perfect; I’m not a man but a boy,” he stated, suddenly grinning. “I don’t blame you for hating men. They can be disgusting sometimes. Ask the man I just killed. I believe you’ve tasted his blood just now. Isn’t it satisfying to quench your thirst with someone as vile as him?”

‘This boy.’

The woman couldn’t contain herself and burst into laughter, her expression softened considerably.

On the other hand, the young noble simply watched her in silence with a big smile on his face. Despite enduring torture at her hands, he held no grudge against her. Though he may not have known her story, he could feel that both of them were the same; they’re nothing but an amalgamation of broken pieces, hastily assembled, forming a grotesque, mismatched creature of hatred and scorn.

‘Could I really serve him? If I accepted his offer and then he turned out to be like those vile men, what would I do then?’

Elysian waited patiently until their eyes met again. “Have you made your decision?”

Looking away, the woman nodded and whispered, “I’m sorry.”

With sadness in his eyes, Elysian sighed and asked, “Is that your final decision?”

The creature just nodded in silence, refusing to meet his gaze as the weight of her decision hung heavily in the air.

“So be it,” Elysian muttered, his face furrowed as if accepting his fate.

Suddenly, the woman’s realm began to tremble, with cracks starting to appear in the dark sky above.

‘What’s happening?!’

“You're here at last, you b*stard!” Elysian shouted, his voice filled with irritation. “What the hell took you so long?!”