The world around her twisted.
The portal wasn’t like the usual spatial transfers she’d seen before—clean, elegant, the kind of polished magic employed by someone proficient in space element or the transportation nodes of the Academy.
No, this one was primal, guttural, a ripping tear into reality itself that didn’t just displace the body but tried to peel the soul along with it.
Liana barely managed to keep her footing as she tumbled out the other side, her knees wobbling under her weight. Her stomach flipped like a dying fish; a bile-like taste rose in her throat. She barely refrained from vomiting.
The room she arrived in was anything but ordinary.
Pitch black walls stretched so high into the heavens they vanished into nothingness. They weren’t natural, nor built of stone or wood—each wall was marked with massive glowing runes etched deep into their surface.
The scripts pulsed faintly, like the room itself breathed with quiet, unyielding power. Above, a gigantic holographic orb cast a dim, cold light, illuminating the room in monochrome hues. There were no doors. No windows. Just this endless chamber, silent and terrifyingly vast.
From the tear in reality, the man stepped through after her, stumbling.
"Gods above," he groaned, clutching his gut like someone nursing a hangover. "I hate that type of teleportation. Fucking Heinau and his shitty portals."
Liana narrowed her eyes, immediately cataloging his reaction. "You can’t even control your own means of transportation?"
He coughed, a little embarrassed, scratching the back of his head. "Technically, that wasn’t mine. It was Heinau’s. I’m not used to his... uh, brand of chaos. It gives me motion sickness."
Liana didn’t miss the flippancy in his tone. "Heinau," she repeated. "You say his name like he’s an old drinking buddy. Isn’t he your lord?"
Then he tilted his head like a curious animal, eyes glinting. "No? Why would you think that?"
That answer took her off guard. "Then why... why are you helping him? You kidnapped me. Wasn’t that for his sake?"
"Well, yeah," he replied nonchalantly, brushing invisible dust off his coat. "I mean, technically, you’re right. I did kidnap you for him. But not because I serve him. I’ve got my own reasons—completely selfish ones."
She frowned, processing his words, noting the casual confidence in his voice. "You mentioned earlier you didn’t have time for introductions. What about now?"
He grinned, wide and smug. "Aww, don’t tell me you’ve fallen for me already. I’m flattered, really. But just so you know—I’m not into hags."
Liana didn’t so much as flinch. "I’m married. I don’t care for brats with delusions of grandeur. I just want to know why someone like you would associate with Heinau."
"Hmm," he hummed thoughtfully. "You say that like Heinau’s some villain in a children’s story."
"He is," Liana snapped. "He’s trying to ignite a war that Mythria will never survive. Alaris alone could reduce our continent to ashes. If he thinks he can make Mythria the strongest continent... he’s chasing a fantasy. The only Rank ★★★★★★ we have is barely enough to protect our borders, let alone win a full-scale continental war."
He chuckled, and not the way someone laughs at a joke. It was a deep, amused sound—borderline mocking. "Yeah, I think so too."
She blinked, stunned by the agreement. "Then why—?"
He cut her off with an exaggerated groan. "Because I don’t care."
There was no malice in his voice. No grand speech. Just truth. Plain and selfish.
"I don’t give a damn about Heinau’s ambitions, or his nation, or the political shitfest the world’s heading toward. I’m a selfish bastard, Lady Everhart. I want one thing and one thing only."
He raised a single finger. "A Rank ★★★★★★★★ monster’s ichor."
The weight of those words dropped on her like stone. "Why do you need that?"
He spun on his heel dramatically and threw his hands into the air as if acting in a play. "To ascend, obviously. You think one can just slaughter their way to ★★★★★★★★? Pfft. That’s child’s thinking. To become Rank Eight, one must consume a drop of ichor—monster blood—of a being on that level."
Liana’s heart skipped a beat. Her face paled.
"You’re Rank ★★★★★★★ already?"
He smiled, innocent as a boy but with the glint of a blade in his gaze. "Yes’m. I’m right on the edge. Just a nudge away."
"And... I suppose I’m that nudge?" she said quietly.
He clapped his hands like a child about to open presents. "Ding ding ding! See? You Everharts are so special or so I have been told, I sure if he had lied I’m going to skewer that dumb guy..... By the way, your bloodline’s old—so old it’s practically fossilized. Apparently, somewhere along the way, you got a dash of ancient beast in your veins. Nothing much. Just enough."
Her breath caught in her throat.
"If I torment you enough, maybe—just maybe—it’ll awaken. And when that happens," he paused, licking his lips with theatrical hunger, "I’ll kill you. Drink your blood. And rank up. Actually I would need to do the killing other creatures too, so a lot of time. Sad life."
It wasn’t fear in her eyes. Nor despair.
"You think I’ll break that easily?" she whispered.
His smile didn’t waver. "Nope. I’m counting on you not to. That’s the fun part."
She clenched her fists behind her back, nails digging into skin.
This wasn’t just about Heinau. It wasn’t about war. Or Mythria.
It was about her blood. Her existence.
And the monster who’d dragged her here?
’You are going to regret not killing me when you had the chance.’
He waved his hands in dramatic flair. "Just so you know, you will break. There is no question here whether or not you will break. It’s when."
He was smiling saying that.
And that made Liana flinch. ’Why is he so sure?’
His crooked smile returned. He pointed at gigantic hologram. "You see, we have a little story we would like you to see."
The hologram started buzzing with azure lights for several seconds it glimmered then it stopped.
Pictures started forming on it.... Of a boy... White hair.... Red eyes.
Liana’s eyes expanded in horror. She could only mutter a single word. "Rufus..."