novelraw Chapter 482 – Love Conquers All.
Chapter 482 – Love Conquers All.
One would think that a Cultist meeting a being that was the closest thing in existance to their God would be a happy occasion. You would think that they would let out cries of joy, excitement, and exhilaration at meeting a True Demon Lord in the flesh. However, when Tanya eyes met Akagi's, she could only feel one emotion in her heart: fear.
"Ah... Ah..." Tanya stammered as she instinctively stepped backwards as her body trembled, finding it hard to breathe while in Akagi's presence before finally tumbling over and landing on her backside.
"What's wrong?" Akagi asked with a nasty smirk, enjoying the sight of the trembling beastkin. "Are you not a worshiper of my Brother? Should you not be excited to bask in the presence of a true Demon Lord?" She asked as the Ninja exploded out from behind her and began their mission to subdue everyone in the base. A few Cultists attempted to retaliate, with one in particular rushing the Demon with his spear only to find himself eviscerated without Akagi seeming have have moved a muscle.
{I suppose this counts as a hallway scene.} (Akagi)
{Making that joke now of all times...} (Yumi)
"I... You..." Tanya was completely overwhelmed by Akagi's presence, her eyes shaking as she struggled to hold it together. Her ability to detect souls was normally a great asset since it let her discern information about an individual far in excess of what was normally possible with magic, but what she saw when looking at Akagi's was enough to nearly melt her mind and churn her stomach.
*BLARG*
"How rude! To vomit at the mere sight of me." Akagi shook her head in disapproval. "Ah, that's right. Your friend here mentioned something about your ability to detect souls." She said before snapping her fingers and restraining her presence, which visibly took a load off Tanya, who while still wretching, wasn't as overwhelmed."That should help you out a bit. Seeing everything that I am this close, well. It's a miracle you didn't just die on the spot. I'll commend you for staying sane."
"Y-You..." Tanya stammered as she tried to pull herself together, still shaking as her mind tried its best to orient itself. "Your s-soul... W-What..."
"Is it not beautiful?" Akagi smirked, her razor sharp teeth momentarily visible. "Its purity is truly... breathtaking." She continued. "But enough about me, let's talk about you. Well, more specifically, let's talk about your Boss. I want to speak with him, but you were saying something about his absence, were you not?"
"I-I have nothing to say to you. I w-will n-not betray L-Lord Labrys!" Tanya tried to act defiant, but her trembling served only to amuse the Demon more than anything else.
"Cute. And while I admire the dedication to your Master..." Akagi paused as she picked Tanya up by the throat, dangling the beastkin off the ground as she tightened her grip. "I asked you a question, mortal, and you will answer it." The Demon said as she pulled Tanya in and met the beastwoman's gaze "The only variable is how much suffering you go through before I get what I want out of you. So how about we save everyone's time and you answer me before I make you regret your very existence, and believe you me that's not hyperbole I can actually do it."
*ACK* *COUGH* *GURGLE*
"I don't think she can answer you like that." Halifax quipped from behind Akagi. “You kinda need to breath to talk.”
"I don't know, let's find out." Akagi smirked as she continued to choke the life out of the beastwoman. "What will it be? We can make this simple and easy, or hard and fun. Fun for me, of course, not for you. And as you can see with your little friend over there, your willing cooperation is not required, and don't think you can die just to spite me since your immortal soul is most certainly not safe from me." She said as she tilted her head as she indicated toward Valuru. "If you won't do as I ask, then you'll force me to do a bit of tinkering with it to make you a bit more... Shall we say, pliant." She laughed demonically.
"Gods, that's horrifying." Halifax shivered. She'd seen what Akagi did to Shiroe and a few others and understood just how horrid such an outcome could be for someone. "I still can't believe you can overright someone's entire personality. Brainwashing magic is a thing, but that..."
{Its something far worse...} (Halifax)
"I don't exactly like to do it all the time since it feels lazy, but I'm more than willing to do it to get what I want if certain people don't play along with my demands." Akagi said as she turned back toward Tanya, who was trying, and failing, to break free of the Demon's iron grip. "But don't worry, I'll make sure to replace the love and adoration you feel toward that Demon Axe with affection toward me! It'll be like the world finally makes sense, and the life you lived before was little more than a bitter lie compared to the sweet truth that is Demon Lord Akagi. Just ask the pet how it feels to be at my beck and call." She said as Demonic laughter echoed in Tanya's mind.
{Yeah... Ladies and Gentlemen, my friend... I tell you that she's not as evil as she sounds... Probably...} (Halifax)
"I... Lord Labrys... I won't..." Tanya struggled to speak as Akagi continued to hold the beastkin by her throat. "Betray...."
"Akagi still intends to let this world perish, though to be fair, it's doomed even without her intervention." Halifax spoke up, the beastkin's eyes drifting to the Divine Blade.
"Y-You're... Sister..." Tanya glared at Halifax. “You... Betray...”
"Ease off the gas a bit, please. I can't exactly have a conversation with half her throat caved in." Halifax sighed as she pat Akagi on the shoulder.
"Fine." Akagi said as she weakened her hold on Tanya's throat to allow the beastwoman to breathe, though only just. "But I will go through with my threat if she won't cooperate. This woman's life matters not to me, and I have no problem with twisting her to suit my own needs."
*COUGH* *WHEEZE* *GASP*
"If she wasn't one of the heads of an evil organization out to destroy the world, I'd honestly feel bad for her." Halifax shook her head, putting those thoughts aside as she walked up next to Tanya, who continued to glare at the Divine Blade. "Ready to talk? Because let me tell you that becoming one of her playthings is a fate I wouldn't wish on anybody." She said while pointing to Valuru, who stood motionless in the corner.
"You betrayed Lord Vikes and Lord Labrys!" Tanya said between coughs. "I have nothing to say to a traitorous whore like you!"
"I didn't 'betray' anyone, and my previous familial relationship to those two isn't important at the moment." Halifax rolled her eyes, deciding to let that whole comment go. "We just need to find Labyrs. Anything?" She asked Akagi if her Ninja had found anything.
"He's not here. I can't sense his energy or anything else like it nearby and the Ninja haven't reported anything useful yet." Akagi said as her eyes shifted to the Divine Blade. "Perhaps he's gone into hiding? No, based on this one's comment before I entered it, it seems he's vanished. Even from the Cult's watchful gaze."
"I won't tell you!" Tanya growled. "Certainly not someone who will just use and toss him aside! You might be a Demon Lord, but-"
"But what?" Halifax interjected. "Listen, the reason I even sought him out in the first place was because we need his help to destroy the Gods. Isn't that what he wants? Doesn't he want them to perish for what was done to his Master?"
"You know nothing of what Lord Labrys wants!" Tanya yelled. “Don't you dare go thinking you understand him!”
{I am 100% sure he just wants to kill everyone in this world and then die.} (Halifax x Akagi x Yumi)
"And besides, it's your fault that this world continued to exist in the first place! It's your fault that every single one of us has had to suffer this painful existance!" Tanya hissed as she flailed in Akagi's grip. "If not for you, I wouldn't have been born in a world that hated me! I would've never existed and been spared all the pain and suffering of this miserable life!"
"Well, she's got you there, Halifax." Akagi laughed and was flicked in the side of the head for her trouble. “How are you going to take responsible for birthing this poor child into this horrible world?”
"I do not regret my role in Vikes' destruction." Halifax replied, ignoring Akagi's comment. "Though it's true that many were born into this world and suffered harsh lives since then, that doesn't mean the world was better off not existing."
"Hah!" Tanya scoffed at her comment. "You only say that because you've lived a comfortable life! A life where everyone appreciated you. A life where you were wanted. A life where everything was handed to you!" She continued. "You never had to suffer! By what right do you get to decide that my suffering was acceptable?!?"
"None." Halifax replied curtly. "I do not claim a right, nor do I claim some moral superiority over you. I simply believe it's foolish to throw everything away just because the world is not perfect." She said with a nod to Akagi. "That's something I've come to understand ever since I met her. Our world... Our lives may be filled with pain and happiness, but if we focus solely on all the bad that's happened to us, we're only hurting ourselves." She continued. "There's been much pain in my life, despite what you might think, but I've decided to quit focusing on all that and simply enjoy life. Doing that has allowed me to finally appreciate all the good it has to offer me."
{I'd been so consumed by nihilism and self-loathing that I convinced myself that nothing really mattered. Sherry always told me that life was worth living despite the pain it could bring, and that without pain, we couldn't understand what true happiness is. I nearly forgot that lesson, and it almost led me to make an unfixable mistake. But honestly, maybe going through all that and ending up where I am now was for the best.} (Halifax)
"The preaching of a fool." Tanya huffed. “Or perhaps pure sophistry.”
"A fool I may be, but if I am one, then what does that make you?" Halifax grinned. "If you hate living so much, if you're constantly in pain because of this world, then why are you still alive? Why have you not taken a blade and run yourself through?"
{Oooh! That's literally the best answer for those online nihilists that hate everything! Its the good version of telling someone to go kill themselves! Ahh, the good old days of bulling people online.} (Akagi)
{You... Nevermind.... Its not worth it.} (Yumi)
"Because-" Tanya tried to answer, but was interrupted by Halifax who wasn't about to give her the chance to retort.
"Because you don't actually want to die." Halifax said with absolute certainty. "Listen, I know what it feels like to be at the end of your rope, to just want to end it all and embrace the sweet release of death... Hell I just had such a thing happen recently.” She said with a small laugh. “So I can say with complete certainty that you don't actually yearn for death."
{She lacks a certain... Air about her... Perhaps a sent is the best way to put it. One can always tell if someone is truly ready to die, and I don't sense that from her. She's clearly been abused and broken, but there's something strongly tethering her to life. I can see it in her eyes.} (Halifax)
"What do you know about me?" Tanya growled as her eyes ignited with anger. "I've gone my whole life hated by people because of my abilities to sense souls. I was called a freak, a witch, a Demon. This world didn't want me, so why should I want it? Why should I care about it? Why should I continue to suffer?!?"
"But you didn't continue to suffer, did you?" Halifax asked as the Ninja brought several other members of the Cult into the room, each bound in heavy chains. "You found the Cult. An organization filled with people who treated you without prejudice or disgust." She paused before taking a breath. "But more than that, you fell for my Brother."