“Someone, anyone, please help me!!” Dwane screamed in his mind as his eyes turned blood-red, horror flooding his senses as crystal spikes protruded from his body.

“What the hell is happening?” He wondered, paralyzed as he watched his body melt and reform alongside the crystal spikes, red blood mixing with the horrifying transformation.

“Someone, please, I don't want to die!! What did I do to deserve this? Why? Why?” He wondered with the last of his breath as he now appeared as a deformed statue, his body melted inside and forming a grotesque figure.

A group of maids gently hummed as they opened the door and walked into Dwane's room, holding towels.

As they approached Dwane's bed, they felt extremely uneasy. Upon arriving, their eyes widened in shock, and they screamed in horror at the bloody crystal sight before them.

“Please … don't tell me… that's the prince,” a maid stammered, noticing the royal clothes inside the crystal monstrosity, confirming their fears.

Some fell to the ground, scrambling to get away, while others ran out of his room towards the guards.

“Ah, ahh!” The maid gasped, trying to blurt out her words.

“Why do you look so frightened?” The guard wondered, staring at the trembling maid.

“Help!! Prince, Prince Dwane! I don't know if that's him, but he's dead!” She blurted out, tears streaming down her face, as the knights stared at her in shock.

________

Inside a large empty room, Ralph lay on a flat stone, convulsing crazily with bloodshot eyes.

“Saintess Vanuer!” a group of healers chirped upon noticing the woman enter the room. “Please, may I ask why you're here?” a male human healer walked forward and asked, standing beside her. Vanuer, twice his height, seemed intimidating with her sharp eyes.

Before him stood a beautiful brown-skinned woman with short, straight blonde hair and a pair of lovely black eyes, with a golden cross in the middle. The large white wings on her back showed that she was clearly not human. However, despite her elegant appearance, she wore just a casual shirt and baggy trousers.

“I was just healing all the patients who were still here. Seriously, after all this time, you were unable to get rid of the poison,” Vanuer sighed loudly, noticing Ralph's situation as soon as she saw him.

“The poison is much more difficult to deal with than we thought, but luckily, all this time we've managed to keep him alive. That's why we requested the help of a Grand Healer or you, Saintess,” a female healer stated calmly with a bow, and Vanuer nodded.

“Crystal spikes?” Vanuer blurted out in confusion as she noticed parts of Ralph’s body quickly melt and turn into horrifying crystal spikes.

“Arghh, it hurts, it hurts!!!” Ralph screamed in pain.

“Calm down, let me deal with this,” Vanuer said calmly, “Heal him and let me see,” Vanuer ordered and the healer nodded and stood by Ralph's side. Her hand glowed with a golden color, and Ralph's body immediately returned to normal as though nothing had happened.

However, before he could appreciate the lack of pain in his body, the pain struck him once more as the crystal spikes appeared once more, ravaging his body more quickly, surprising Vanuer.

‘What? Why is the poison resurfacing? What's more, it's stronger than I thought. The person who poisoned him is probably high-leveled,’ Vanuer thought with a frown. ‘No wonder they all have nervous expressions on their faces.’

“Who would want to poison such a young boy? And why would they want this boy's life?” Vanuer blurted out.

“We don't know the details. But the person who brought him to us was a King named Girsal,” one of the healers nervously stated.

“And he is?” Vanuer asked, raising an eyebrow.

“The King of Sandeph,” a healer with a mature voice answered. He appeared as a tall, lean elf with a kind face and long, straight hair. He wore long white robes, and his golden-crossed eyes stared at Vanuer.

“A country allied with Paige, I see,” Vanuer’s eyes became displeased as she heard this. “You know I dislike that, Dion.”

“He provided us with a lot of weapons to heal his son,” Dion responded, and Vanuer flinched. “The weapons that can nullify a Saintess’ healing abilities.” he pointed out.

“Those new weapons? He's the one who created them?” She asked, surprised.

“Yes, Saintess,” he replied with an emotionless smile.

“So you're the one who agreed to heal the boy and keep him alive?” Vanuer asked, and Dion nodded.

“Why is that? You know every country allied with Paige is an enemy? What's more, I know that the weapons would probably not be the main goal,” she stated with a grin, revealing her shark-like teeth.

“And you know we must not turn our backs on the weak who need our help. What's more, he's a bit of a genius for someone his age,” Dion said, his hand resting on his chin.

“Hah, fine. I'll use my strongest healing on him. But I want him reformed once I'm done,” Vanuer said as she walked up to Ralph, who was almost near death.

“Ack!!” King Girsal coughed up red blood as he sat at his work table, surprising Yelina, who sat in front of him.

“Girsal, are you alright?” Yelina asked, her voice choking as her eyes widened in surprise, noticing Girsal vomit blood, his body shaking and his eyes trembling.

“Call the healers immediately!” Yelina ordered as she rushed to King Girsal’s side and supported him. The knights in the office quickly left and rushed off.

“Girsal, what's wrong?” Yelina asked with a worried expression.

“Poison,” King Girsal stated with a dim tone, and he suddenly noticed crystal spikes slowly starting to form on his body.

“A very powerful poison too,” he added through gritted teeth.

‘I'm just lucky that I'm half Mecha, if not, the poison would have done some serious damage to me. Who poisoned me? How did they do it? Why didn't I notice this?’ He wondered with a frown on his face.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“Girsal,” Yelina blurted out with a shaky voice, and he turned to face her with his weak eyes.

“I would probably be fine, I just need a healer,” Girsal said with a calm expression.

“Then let's go. If not, the other ladies would nag at me forever,” Yelina said with a warm smile.

“First, take me to Chu. He's at the lab during this time of the day,” King Girsal stated, and Yelina nodded as she helped him out of the office.

After some time of walking, Yelina arrived at the lab. It reeked of a bunch of awful scenes, but Chu, at the center of the room, seemed fine working alone. Steam came out of boiling tubes, objects floated in the air, and Chu was concentrating on his work.

“Please leave us alone, Yelina,” Girsal said as he motioned for Yelina to depart.

“But the healer,” Yelina blurted out.

“Just lead them here,” Girsal said before gently closing the door behind her.

“Chu,” King Girsal said as he immediately appeared at Chu’s side.

Hearing Girsal's voice, Chu turned to face him, but seeing King Girsal's body slowly melt caused his eyes to widen in horror.

“Your Majesty!” Chu shrieked, his expression much different from his usual composed demeanor.

“Here, take the Saintess' blood immediately!” Chu stated as he tapped his space ring and a bottle appeared in his hand.

“There’s still some left?” Girsal asked, a bit surprised.

“I have been managing the distribution to avoid misuse or waste,” Chu nervously replied, and Girsal eyed him before gulping down the whole bottle.

Girsal then turned his attention to his contaminated hand, which was immediately healed and returned back to normal. Feeling the relief of his body returning to its normal state, Girsal breathed a heavy sigh. The excruciating pain that swelled in him has disappeared completely.

“Thank you, Chu,” Girsal said with gratitude evident in his voice.

Chu nodded, still visibly shaken from the former sight. “It was my duty, Your Majesty. I'm just glad I could be of assistance.”

“I have a confession to make, Your Majesty," Chu said, adjusting his glasses with a nervous gesture.

"Please, go on."

"What you experienced just now happened to a slave I was experimenting on, to whom I administered Aurianna's blood."

"What?!!"

"I deeply apologize. My intention was to further study the properties of her blood. It possesses similar attributes to that of the Saintess, and in some aspects, it's even stronger and better. However, today..." Chu trailed off, his expression turning somber.

"Go on."

"I think it would be best if you saw it for yourself," Chu said, his voice tinged with apprehension, as he led Girsal toward a nearby cage. What they encountered inside left Girsal slightly uncomfortable.

Within the confines of the cage stood a horrifying sight: a grotesque crystal statue, oozing crimson blood. The remnants of the slave's body were fused within the crystal, twisted and it was unrecognizable.

"Aurianna's blood is strange. It possesses both healing and poisonous capabilities," Chu explained gravely.

__________

[ Dwane is dead. ] the system announced, and a satisfied smile played on Aurianna's lips. However, her smile quickly soured into a frown as her mind shifted to another target.

"But I still haven't received notification of Ralph's death. That old man of mine is probably keeping him alive. Tch. Once I get back, I'll make sure he's dead. I won't feel peace unless I hear of him as dead!" she mumbled coldly.

"Since you're done, let's dry ourselves up," Eva said, her tone calm but caring as she gently placed the towel on Aurianna's head and began to pat her dry.

_______

"Lady Aurianna!" a male crew member perked up, noticing Aurianna stepping out of the room in a new set of clothes.

"How long would it take us to get to land?" Aurianna asked.

"With our ship, it would take us two months," the crew member said confidently, nodding with his lizard-shaped head.

"Two whole months?!" Aurianna gasped in surprise.

"Lady Aurianna, we're quite lucky actually. We are using the fast waters of the dark sea. Normally, it would mostly take a few years to travel through this sea alive."

"What are fast waters?" Aurianna asked, unfamiliar with the term.

"In the dark seas, there's a specific lane of water that flows extremely fast, so taking this lane, the ship moves 10 times faster than normal!" the crew man enthusiastically explained.

"I see. Carry on, then," Aurianna said, dismissing him with a hand wave, and the crewman bowed and left.

"Lady Aurianna, please, would you like to eat something?" a crew women came forward and asked.

"I'm fine. I feel full. I just need some rest," Aurianna shook her head, and the crew woman nodded and left.

"I feel weird," Aurianna thought as she suddenly felt a familiar ache in her chest.

Sensing something was off, Aurianna quickly rushed to her room and immediately closed the door.

Suddenly, several black chains spiraled out of Aurianna's body and tightened around her. However, Aurianna only winced from the pain as she watched the chains tighten around her for a while before three shattered and all the other chains disappeared.

[ You've successfully digested the 234,577 souls you devoured. You have managed to break six of the One Thousand Black chain seals. Chain seals left: 992. ] the system reported.

"Six more, not so bad, I'll need to eat more," Aurianna blurted out with a grin. "Hmm, system, how many more souls do I have?" she curiously asked.

[ Due to the explosion caused by King's last attack, you gained 48,936 souls. ] the system replied.

"That's a pity. I wish there were more," Aurianna sighed as she stared at the screen before her.

"Well, time to eat.”

______

In a cramped storage room filled with a chaotic jumble of dry and dusty clothes, two children who had managed to sneak aboard the ship huddled together, nestled in a small space.

“The food was nice,” Lilian stated with a smile.

“Yes it was, I never had such delicious food,” Viny acknowledged with a nod.

"Even though everyone in the ship has been so nice, I still feel scared," the girl confessed, her voice trembling as she clutched her brother's rough hand tightly.

"I feel scared too," he admitted, his tone soft but resolute.

"Would she eat us like she did to them?" Lilian asked, her eyes wide with fear as they locked onto her brother's gaze.

"Lower your voice, Lilian. She might hear us," Viny cautioned, "I don't think she's as bad as we assume her to be." He added calmly, a warm smile briefly crossing his face.

"Are you crazy? Didn't you see that monster she was controlling?!!" Lilian exclaimed, her fear escalating into anger. "If not for her, Antonio would still be alive and here with us!" Her voice cracked with pain as she fought back tears, her grip on her palm tightening.

"There's no point worrying about what has already happened," Viny replied dismissively, attempting to soothe his sister's distress. "What matters now is that we're alive. We'll find a way to make it through this."

"Can we?" Lilian asked, her eyes pleading for reassurance as she wiped away her tears.

"Antonio managed to remove the collars and the slave markings. We have a chance at a new life," Viny reassured her with a warm smile.

"Then when we finally get to land, I want to open a shop and sell those things they call fruits!" Lilian declared excitedly, her spirits being lighting up.

"I'll make sure you get to sell as many fruits as you want," Viny promised, his voice filled with determination as he tucked his sister into a more comfortable position. "Now, get some rest. We'll need all the strength for tomorrow in case they ask us to work."

_______

After three days at sea, Aurianna was in her room, feeling bored and restless as she had nothing to do.

"After all this time, still no signal. I hate these seas," she muttered to herself, frustration evident in her voice as she paced restlessly. With a sigh, she made her way to the open deck, hoping to find something to do to relieve her from her boredom.

As she stepped onto the deck, she was greeted by the sight of turbulent seas, the waves crashing against the sides of the ship and seemed ready to swallow the ship, but thanks to the skill of the ship's captain, it remained unscathed and managed to sail smoothly.

"Lady Aurianna, is there anything you need?" Lilian approached her, her eyes wide with curiosity.

"I want to prepare lunch today," Aurianna announced.

"That's wonderful! I've been longing to your food," Lilian exclaimed, her enthusiasm infectious.

"Lilian, you must remember to address Lady Aurianna with the proper respect," Viny chided gently, stepping forward to correct his sister's behavior. "We apologize for any disrespect."

"Yes, of course. Please forgive us, Lady Aurianna," Lilian added quickly, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment.

Aurianna regarded them both with a cool gaze, her expression was aloof but not unkind. "Remember your place," she cautioned before turning to make her way to the kitchen, her elegant stride betraying the casual grace of nobility.

"Yes, Lady Aurianna," they chimed in unison, watching her walk away.

Lilian and Viny exchanged a brief glances before speaking to each other, “No matter how many times she cooks us food for all of us to eat, it still surprises me,” Lilian blurted out and Viny as well as a male crew man next to them nodded as well.

“Same ya know? Rare to see young princess gals that actually do something instead of being pretty,” the crew man blurted out.

“Indeed, I'm going to clean up the cabins!” Lilian said as she dashed off.

“I'm going to help out with sails,” Viny excused himself and he walked off.

“These young lads, very good help. What's more that lady is nice but extremely cold. Oh well why should I complain when be getting good food for these last three days, hahaha!!!"