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Year 16 AL, Latent Aptitude
All of Heaven gazed upon the visage of Luka. The image was one that Ilias had plucked from one of her own memories, showing the purple-haired boy standing in the Goddess's throne room after his Baptism. Appropriately, his clothing was close enough to mirror the garb worn by all the Angels who were now inspecting him, making his connection to them all the clearer.
This, paired with Ilias's proclamation of his Prophethood, caused a loud buzz of commotion to erupt throughout the congregation of Angels. The Ninth Order of Angels, being the largest group by far, gave off the loudest noise in Heaven as their excited words floated through the air.
"A Prophet? This is truly a blessing!"
"Wonderful! Finally, we will be rid of those evil Monsters!"
"I hope we get to fight alongside him, how exciting that would be!"
"Hey, does anyone else think he's kinda cute?"
All this and more bounced off the walls of the large expanse, the low roar growing louder and louder before it was suddenly silenced by Ilias's raised hand.
"Silence, my Daughters; I have not finished..." The large gathering of Angels obediently looked up to their Goddess. Ilias lowered her hand. "...The Prophet has already begun his journey towards the Monster Lord's Castle." Almost in unison, the Angels sneered at the mere mention of the dreaded Monster Lord. "With my Holy blessing and watchful eye, he will be victorious in slaying the Monster Lord!" The Goddess raised her hands up to waist level, her palms upwards.
"And once he does, then we will make our move. With the Monster Lord's death, we will rain down a final Judgement upon the World. The rest of Monster kind will fall to us, and any nonbelievers will be purged. For, that day will be their day of Judgement as well." The Angels cheered, their roar seeming to shake the very Heavenly realm itself.
Ilias smiled, finding great amusement at her congregation's enthusiasm.
"Until that day," The Goddess of Light continued, "We must sharpen the edges of our swords and minds. When it comes time, all of Heaven will descend to battle alongside Our Prophet." The Angels watched with bated breath as Ilias scanned her congregation, taking in their expectant looks with great satisfaction. "Yes, your thoughts do not betray you. Not only will he destroy the Monster Lord, but he will also be with us when we declare war against the Monsters once more!"
The Goddess of Light, the self-proclaimed Creator of All, lifted her arms high above her head. Behind her, the Goddess's wings extended in a majestic showing of her power. "Yes, on that day that the Monster Lord falls, I will be declaring a Second Great Monster War. But this time, there will be a clear winner and that victory will belong to YOUR GODDESS!" Another round of cheers rang out, all of the Angels becoming ecstatic at the thought of their nearing victory over Monsters...
...Well, most of them, as a certain Cherub and her growing group of cohorts were much more reserved in their reactions to the Goddess's news. Wormiel had a lopsided grin as she slowly clapped, doing the bare minimum to keep up her appearance in front of the Goddess.
Ilias lowered her arms, a grand smile on her face as she took in the adulation of her following. She turned away from her legion, gazing at the still-shining image of her Prophet Luka. 'And once you give me my victory, Heaven will rule over this World as it should have from the first place.'
The yells of her Angels had grown louder, but even with that Ilias's ears were able to pick up on something strange. At the edge of her hearing, the Goddess swore that she could hear whispering. Ilias turned to where she thought that the noise came from but found that it only led her to looking back down to her Angels.
'I... must've been mistaken...' She thought as she turned back to the image of Luka. The Goddess nearly shouted when, for just a brief moment, she thought that the boy's visage was nude. However, with a quick blink, the boy's naked flesh become covered once more.
With wide eyes, the now shaken Goddess scanned the congregation of Angels, her heart beating madly as she looked to see if anyone else had seen the brief distortion. However, none of the Angels seemed to have seen a thing, talking amongst themselves about what Ilias had just told them. The Goddess exhaled a long breath, shaking her head to clear those disturbing thoughts.
"My Daughters," Ilias started, bringing the Angel's attention back onto her. "Take this news and share it with any of your Sisters who could not be here to hear it themselves. Mark this day down as the start of our Victory over Alipheese Fateburn the First and her tainted bloodline. With Our Prophet and his Light combined with ours, nothing will get in our way to bringing peace to my World!"
With that, The Goddess of Light rose through the air to return to her throne room. With one last glance down, she casted a knowing look to her somewhat perturbed-looking Archangels. Knowing of the source of their confusion, Ilias reached out to Archangel Ariel in particular.
'Come with me, My Daughter. I will answer all of your questions.'
With that, the Goddess rose through air and exited out of the same parting of cloud she had entered. Ariel turned to the others briefly, "Return to the Eighth Level, I will be back with an answer from the Goddess." With that, Ariel took off into the air, following Ilias through the clouds. The rest of the Archangels eventually left as well, going back to the Eighth Level as they were ordered.
All but Valkyrie, who's blue eyes followed Cupid's retreat through the crowd of Angels...
Cupid, upon seeing Ilias leave, immediately left the still celebrating congregation to return to her living quarters. Pushing past the other Angels, Cupid finally found herself out of the Heavenly expanse after a few minutes of jostling. Zipping through the air, the Angel of Love quickly reached her designated "house" in the barracks of the common Angels, bursting through the door with a huff.
"Finally!" She exclaimed, closing the door behind her. The Angel of Love hovered across her room, looking next to her bed for a particular item of hers. In the far corner, sat Cupid's infamous bow and arrow on a blue-pillowed pedestal. Giggling mischievously, the lecherous Angel grabbed the bow and slung it over her shoulder.
Cupid rifled through the arrows, pulling one of them heart-tipped darts from its heart-adorned quiver. She held the Arrow of Love up to her face, the heart-shaped head shining in the light of her bright pink eyes. Cupid bit her lip in anticipation, 'Soon, very soon. Now, all I have to do is get him when he's all alone. Then, once I have him, one thing should lead to another quite easily.' She quickly stuffed the arrow back inside the quiver and slung it over her shoulder as well.
Cupid spun around, flying for her door excitedly. Grabbing the door with a hand and pulling it open with surprising strength. However, the Angel of Love had to pause, taken aback by the sight before her.
Standing in the doorway, hand raised as she was about to knock, was Dominion Endiel. Cupid tilted her head to the side, not prepared to see the significantly taller Angel at her doorstep. "Ah, Endiel! I wasn't expecting you to be here!" The Dominion flashed a friendly smile as Cupid moved over, beckoning the gray-haired Angel in.
"Greetings, Cupid. I had just got to thinking about things. For example, when I asked you to visit more often, it occurred to me that I've never actually visited your place." The Dominion looked around the heart-oriented decor, along with its deep reds and pinks. "I must say, I appreciate your choice of colors, although I prefer purple myself."
Cupid waved a hand, "Well, I'm glad you like it, I always figured I had an eye for detail." The gray-haired Angel nodded, her glowing red eyes falling back onto Cupid. The Dominion inspected the Ninth Order Angel, noticing that she had her signature weapon on her shoulder. Endiel's eyes lit up in realization.
"Oh, I apologize, I hope that I am not taking up your time." Cupid shook her head, "Oh no, Endiel, I'm not in that bad of a rush. The day is still young, after all." The Dominion put a hand on her chest, a look of relief on her face as she replied, "Good, I didn't want to take up too much of your time. Though I simply had to ask you your opinion of what Ilias just revealed to us."
Cupid smirked, thinking back to the image of her current target of passion. "Oh yes, Luka is a very interesting person, isn't he?" The Angel of Love honestly didn't care much for Ilias's primary plan for the boy. Erasing all of Monster kind from the planet was great and all, but it wouldn't solve Cupid's problem. This problem being that she was incredibly pent up and had no way of finding a release.
Endiel nodded, "Yes, this boy is very fascinating. A Prophet is not something I have ever heard of." The Dominion cast her gaze upwards, placing a hand on her cheek, "I must admit, though, I feel a tad bit smitten by the boy. Something about him was just so... enticing. Maybe it's the natural boyish charm? I'm not sure, but I have to say that his image is one I'll be putting to good use tonight..."
Cupid gave a sly smirk, understanding very plainly what the taller Angel was talking about.
The two Angel's mutual interest in auto-erotic pursuits during the late hours of the night was one of their most prominent similarities.
Cupid curled her face in thought as she regarded her superior with curious eyes. A very risky idea came to her mind, as even with the two's similar interests, Endiel could potentially react negatively to what Cupid was currently planning. That being said, the Angel of Love felt that having the Dominion on her side would give her an advantage in her pursuit of the Prophet Luka.
'They do say that two heads are better than one, after all.' Cupid thought, 'And I don't feel too against the idea of sharing, as long as I get first dibs...'
"Say, Endiel. You know there's something even more interesting about Luka, and it's gotten me thinking..." The Dominion uttered a quizzical hum, looking towards the shorter Angel of Love as she continued. "He is not completely Human, you know. His Father was, but his Mother - get this - was Lucifina. Which means he is Half-Angel." Endiel's red eyes grew wide, the Dominion having to take a step back to stagger, lest she fall from surprise.
"Really, how do you know this?!" Endiel asked while staring at Cupid unbelievingly, not knowing how to react to such a piece of information. Cupid started hovering towards the gray-haired Dominion, a mischievous smile on her soft face. "Oh, I've known about it since he was born. Ilias herself had designated me to watch over him for many years." The Dominion gave a tilt of her head at the information.
"Ah, so is that why I would see you less and less here in Heaven? You were watching over him?" Cupid nodded proudly, even though in actuality she would frequently use many of those extra allotted hours to go hunting for Humans to use as her own personal pornographic material.
"Absolutely! One might say that I am an expert on this adorable little Prophet of ours. In fact, being around him so much has given me a lot to think about. For instance..." Cupid turned away from the Dominion, looking towards a small plaque hanging on the front wall next to the Angel's door. It was the list of Ilias's Six Commandments to Angels.
"...I've thought a lot about this little law right here." The Angel of Love placed a finger on the First Commandment, "It is very straightforward in how we should behave with Humans. However, technically, it says nothing about..." Cupid gave a suggestive look back to Endiel, "... Half-Humans, does it now?"
Endiel's red eyes grew to an almost comical degree. "Cupid, are you..." The Dominion stopped, having to take a pause to collect her thoughts. "...Are you suggesting that Luka is an exception to the First Commandment?"
Cupid turned to face the Dominion fully with a confident disposition. She had put her cards into play, and there was no turning back now.
"Think of it this way, if you mix the colors red and blue together, then you get a new color, purple! This new color is then considered its own separate creation, right? Shouldn't that mean that Luka, a mix of Human and Angel blood, would fall under the same logic? He would be something that we Angels are not explicitly banned from having intercourse with, as there are no Commandments that mention such a thing!"
Dominion Endiel stood silent, her face flat with shock at Cupid's statement. The Angel of Love felt worried, the sweat beginning to build on her forehead during her explanation, now falling down her face. This was it for her. If Endiel decided to report Cupid for her traitorous thoughts, there would be little she could do to stop it. Slowly, the expression of shock on the Dominion's face melted away, being replaced by something sultrier.
"I really love the way you think, Cupid... Please, tell me more about this plan of yours..."The Angel of Love gave a wide grin, happy to oblige.
"Ha!"
Luka grunted, thrusting forward.
"Good, deeper next time, and don't forget to pull out a good amount. A proper follow-up thrust needs distance between you and what you're trying to impale." Alice advised, watching Luka's form intently. The purple-haired boy obliged, wiping a trail of sweat from his face. "O-Okay, like this?" He drove forward once more with a huff, leaning into it a bit too much this time.
"Okay, not that deep, you're going to hurt yourself. Get caught overextending, and you'll be finished before you even begin... And keep both of your feet on the ground! A good thrust starts from the lower body. If you haven't got both your feet planted, then your thrust will be pathetic... That's better. Now grip it tighter and really go at me."
Luka nodded, coming at her again with vigor. However, in his resolute approach, his hands fumbled a bit as he lost the firm grip of his sword and missed his mark. The mistake made his thrust go towards the Monster Lord's face. "WATCH IT! Don't poke my eye out! Honestly, I'm starting to think it's too big for a body as small as yours!" Alice said, irritated.
"H-Hey!" Luka exclaimed indignantly. "I-I can hold my sword j-just fine! As long as I use b-both hands."
The Monster Lord snickered humorlessly, "Is that so? I only needed the one hand earlier when I was showing you how to properly grasp it. You should easily be able to do the same. A Hero must be able to at least stab straight. You keep pointing to the side." Luka stammered, "W-Well, I can't help it. I think it b-bends to the right just a bit."
Alice scoffed, "Bent or not, it's your sword. You thrust it, not the other way around! Now, once more! Really come at me this time, Luka!"
Luka hmphed, "Alright, alright... Ha!"
He gave one more thrust, finally getting his stance up to Alice's standards. "There you go, that's an actually presentable stance and technique. Now you'll be better than anyone who just happened to pick up a sword, at least." The Monster Lord rattled off as Luka huffed, breathing in deeply. Noticing this, she released him from the training for a brief reprieve, "That's good enough for now, take a break and sheath that sword."
"T-Thank you." Luka said, putting the weapon away. He then promptly fell to the ground, his blue eyes looking into the sky. The young Hero watched the large white clouds float overhead, slowly crawling across the early morning sky. He exhaled loudly, something that gained the attention of Alice. The Lamia came into sight, white hair spilling over her face as she peered down at him. "What, already that tired? We've only been at it for an hour."
Luka turned his head a bit to look at her traveling partner in exasperation. "It's... o-only been... an hour?" The boy looked to the tree Alice had been standing behind, the multiple stabbed-in holes and cuts being a testament to his efforts. Alice's dismissive eyes appraised him briefly, "That's what I said. We've only gone through the basics here. We haven't even gotten to the hard part yet."
Luka gulped, "Did you just say the hard part?" He asked, incredulously.
The Lamia's golden eyes gleamed sadistically, "Oh yes, the hard part, which just so happens to be the step after this. As, since you had no knowledge of the basics, I also need to teach you how to use more advanced techniques." Luka sat up at this, hands pushing his body up to look into Alice's eyes. "Advanced techniques? What would that mean, exactly?"
Alice leaned back to stand up straight, crossing her gloved hands under her chest. "As in actually using some magic with your attacks. Good form and competent footwork will only get you so far alone. Especially when Monsters already have an advantage in being able to use magic by nature. For Humans like you, the process requires a bit more concentration."
Luka bit his lip, thinking quietly for a bit, before rising from the ground and grabbing his sword again. "O-Okay, well, if that's the case, then I'd rather start now. If you don't mind, that is."
The Lamia was a bit surprised at the boy's enthusiasm to continue so quickly, as he truly had been seemingly pushing himself quite hard earlier. Alice shrugged, "So be it, prepare your stance Luka." The purple-haired boy planted his feet firmly in the grass, whipping out his sword with practiced finesse. The blade slid with a ring out of its sheath, shining in the morning sun.
"Ready." The boy said eyes hardened with determination. Alice looked over the short boy, having to admit that he looked a tad bit more Heroic now that he had a better grasp on the sword. The Monster Lord nodded, "Okay, here goes. The technique I'm going to show you is called Demon Decapitation." Instantly, any and all toughness the boy had dissipated, his blue eyes wide in distaste at what he had heard.
"D-... D-Demon Decapitation? That's an awful name for a move. That doesn't sound Heroic at all!" Alice's face deadpanned at the purple-haired boy's complaint. She raised an eyebrow, questioning his comment. "Awful name? What exactly constitutes as a good name for you, then?"
Luka straightened up, losing the power in his pose. "Well, how about Demon Disarmer? Or maybe even Demon Disabler? Ooo, I know," He exclaimed as his face brightened, "Demon Dissuader? Yes, that's a good one!" In contrast to Luka's smiling face, Alice's was something closer to confusion, with a hint of disgust.
The Lamia closed her eyes, attempting to reign in the urge to bonk the boy on the head. "If you had only slimes, slugs, and perhaps even kittens or puppies to face on your way to the Monster Lord's Castle then maybe you'd have a point. However," Alice's golden eyes snapped open with the utmost seriousness. "Once we leave this little island of Ilias here, you're going to be facing real Monsters."
Luka flinched at Alice's tone, staying silent as she continued. "I'm talking about ruthless, vicious beings who won't hesitate to bring you to the edge of death to have their way with you." The young Hero looked away, not able to take the intense look in the Lamia's eyes. "I-I see your point..."
Alice kept going, ignoring his displeasure. "Now, as I said, using magic will not come easy for you. Humans have a much lesser talent for such things, so you're going to need to really concentrate. Otherwise, the attack will fail. Follow me."
The lavender-skinned Lamia slithered closer to the clearing in which the campsite used to be, only a large shoulder bag remaining. Luka was close behind, the two stopping once Alice turned around to face him. "Alright, so Demon Decapitation will be a good fit for someone of your size, as it'll allow you to duck through your opponent's guard. That way you can close the distance so that you can cut at their throat."
Luka gawked, "Th-their throat? But, w-wouldn't that..."
"Hurt? Yes, it will. Remember that the average Monster is much more durable than the average Human is. A fatal attack for you is not necessarily fatal for us. However, most Monsters don't take much resisting to discourage them from fighting. Many Monsters would rather cut their losses and flee than put up a fight against something that might actually seriously hurt them."
Luka brightened a fraction at the statement, "Ah, so I won't have to actually kill anyone, right? I feel bad enough having to hurt Monsters, I don't want to resort to something like that..."
Alice stared silently at the boy, 'You'll have to, at least once, if you get that far.' She shook the dark thought away. "No, you won't have to kill, I suppose. But you should be prepared to do whatever it takes. Understand?" Luka nodded slowly, although the Lamia noticed a sea of conflicting emotions in the boy's eyes as he looked up at her.
In the back of her mind, Alice couldn't help but wonder what seemed to perturb the boy so much about the thought of killing. 'One would think that with his Father being a victim of Monsters, he'd be more inclined to fight them...'
Alice lifted her head a bit, staring down at the young Hero. "Now, Demon Decapitation, like most magical attacks, has power in its name. That's why you need to say it right, or otherwise, you might just end up hurting yourself before anything else can." Alice pointed to the boy's weapon, "So, hold your sword tightly and get into your stance like before."
The purple-haired boy promptly did so. Unseen by either Luka or Alice - due to it being hidden beneath his glove - was how the silver ring on Luka's left hand began to glow.
Alice continued, "Good, now really focus and say the attack's name. Say it like you mean it, like you feel it. And, if you actually have any talent with magic, you should be able to-"
"Demon Decapitation."
Alipheese Fateburn the Sixteenth had been surprised many times by Luka thus far, despite the rather short time they had been around each other. His disposition, his ideals, his cooking, his insistence on friendliness towards everyone he met, it all screamed of someone completely and totally unfit for a World filled with so much danger and depravity.
However, something that surprised her during their training session, especially now as his body seemed to fly at her with a speed greater than any average Human should be able to do, was how quickly he seemed to learn.
Despite her mockery of him, Luka's claim to be self-taught in using swords should have made him a drag to teach. However, in that one hour of training they did, his technique had already become above average. It wasn't as nuanced as a master with years of experience, but she could tell that there was real potential in him.
Potential that was currently spurring him to swing his sword upwards, the trajectory making it shoot right toward her neck.
With wide eyes, the Monster Lord quickly reacted, jumping back a good amount to put a good amount of distance between the two. Luka's strike missed as the Monster Lord slid a couple meters back, having to thrust a hand down to the ground to steady herself, leaving a small trail of usurped dirt as she did.
Alice gulped, fighting the urge to put a hand up to her throat, not wanting to show how bothered she was by the closeness of the attack. Her white hair flailed as she snapped her golden eyes to the boy, who seemed stuck with his sword held post-swing in the air and both feet planted on the ground tensely.
Luka gazed blankly into the air where Alice's head used to be before finding the Lamia's eyes when he looked down in front of him. "Wow..." He said, "How did you dodge like that? I never even saw you move!" Alice's eyebrows furrowed at his question. 'How did I move like that? That's what I should be asking you! That isn't speed normally seen in untrained Humans...' Despite her thoughts, Alice stood up straight, wiping some errant dirt from her hand.
"Well, I'm not the normal Monster..." Alice found that she couldn't muster her usual attitude, having to take a couple breaths before she could continue. "...I have to say, that was very good for a first try." Luka smiled, very much appreciative of the praise.
"I'd hope so, I've never tried using Magic before, after all." He sheathed his sword, looking up to the sky. "I've always heard of some of the stronger soldiers in Ilias Village doing such a thing, but I-I never quite understood it myself." Alice drew near, her red tail trailing behind her silently.
'Never used magic before, and yet is able to use Demon Decapitation correctly on the first try.' Alice thought, before saying, "Well, as I said, Humans can use magic if they concentrate so that isn't surprising. Luckily for you, using Magic seems to come natural." The Monster Lord glanced around, feeling as though it was time for them to continue on. "Alright, Luka, I figure that it is well enough time to head out. I grow bored of staying here."
Luka nodded his head while making way for his traveling bag, "I agree, I'll grab this really quick, and we'll be gone before you know it!" Alice's golden pupils watched the boy as he grabbed the item, unzipping it quickly to retrieve something.
Alice called out to him after a moment of ruffling, "Hey, we don't have all day to walk, you know!" The boy waved a hand, "Just a second!" He called out, finally grabbing what he was searching for. "Aha, there it is! I meant to wear this the other day, but I couldn't find it until last night!"
Alice squinted, watching Luka pull out a very familiar-looking red cape from the bag and enthusiastically wrapping the garment around his neck and shoulders. The sight of the cape caused her heart to throb painfully. Memories of the last time she ever saw her Mother swirled in her mind dangerously. It wasn't exactly the same as the one the purple-haired man had worn when he killed her Mother, but it was very close.
That, coupled with the similar clothing the boy wore, made his resemblance uncanny.
Luka stood up and turned, facing the Lamia with a smile, oblivious to the Monster Lord's anger. "Ta-da!" He said, flapping the cape behind him with one hand. Alice openly glared at the cloth, something the boy noticed very quickly. Luka's smile faded as he asked, "E-Eh, not a fan of capes, I take it?"
"No, I'm not." Alice replied, "I suggest you either put that thing back where you got it from, or even better, just leave it lying in that patch of dirt over there. You won't be needing it." Luka became appalled at the demand, raising a hand to clutch the cape defensively. "I-I can't do that, not with this! Th-This was one of my Father's capes!" The poor boy was lost, completely unknowing of why the cape distressed the Lamia so much.
Alice slithered up to Luka, her face not even half a meter away as she tried to find a logical reason for reprimanding him. As blurting out the real reason could potentially be problematic.
"Because something like this being wrapped around your neck could easily become a weakness!" The Lamia grabbed the red cloth, tugging on it mockingly. "Very easily it can be grabbed or caught and next thing you know, you're being dragged to the ground, at the mercy of whatever Monster is looking to have her way with you. Believe me when I say that you'd be better off without it."
Once again, like when the two first met, the Monster's words stung Luka quite strongly. They were logical, but the tone of her voice and the look in her eyes were almost bordering on hateful. Luka looked away, suddenly feeling ashamed to be wearing the cape. His movements were awkward, as he tried to quickly unwrap the faded red cloth from his body.
Luka turned completely away from Alice now, his face heating up in embarrassment for reasons he didn't even quite understand.
Alice watched the boy hurriedly stuff the cape inside of his travel bag, a frown growing on the lavender-skinned Monster's face as she stood behind him. It didn't take long for her to recognize the fact that she had reacted too harshly, as Luka's demeanor had done a complete reversal from the confidence he had before to complete aversion. The Monster Lord sighed, making a mental resolution herself to keep her emotions better in line.
Luka, with eyes still downcast, turned back around. "A-Alright, I'm r-ready." Wordlessly, Alice followed as the young Hero began walking forward through the thicket of trees. He pushed through the bushes, Alice following close behind until they reached the main path that they had left a day ago. The Monster Lord continued to slither behind him, watching Luka take solemn yet quick steps down the dirt path.
So, in silence, the strange duo made a quick pace north toward Iliasburg.
Alice bit her lip, strangely enough finding herself wanting to break the quiet that had settled between the two. However, Luka beat her to the punch. "Y-You know, Iliasburg is the f-farthest I've ever b-been from Ilias Village before." Alice hummed, not necessarily surprised by the fact.
The young Hero continued, "I-It was a long time ago, though. I was v-very young, so I don't remember much. But I do know that it was very large. My Mother wouldn't dare let me walk more than five steps away from her... I guess she was afraid that I'd get lost, since there's so many different people there."
Alice nodded, still keeping pace behind the boy. "Indeed, I'm looking forward to arriving there, myself." The statement seemed to surprise Luka some, who replied, "Really? I wouldn't have expected you to want to be there."
The Monster Lord huffed, pulling out her copy of The Traveling Guild's Tour Guide to flip through. "Of course I am, in particular I'm wanting to visit this Sutherland Inn. I'm particularly interested in their Happiness Honey filled Ama-Ama Dango!" The Monster's voice became very cheerful once the prospect of sweets was introduced into the conversation.
Luka couldn't say he was surprised at food causing an uptick in the Monster's attitude, but he had his doubts about the accuracy of the ancient black book. "That does sound good, but do you think that this p-particular place would still be open after half a thousand years?" Alice seemed to become confused at his question, slithering a bit quicker to catch up to the purple-haired Hero. "Why would they not? It hasn't been all that long since this book was made."
Luka nearly had to stop in his tracks at the statement, not entirely sure if the Monster was serious or not. 'Five hundred years is not that long to her? Just how long can a Monster live for?' The boy nearly voiced his question but was forced to stop by way of an anomaly residing in the middle of the dirt path before them. Jutting up from the dirt pile, was a particularly large set of dark green leaves.
The two elliptical leaves stood about a meter and a half from the ground, one of them standing straight up while the other bent to the side. Despite their size, it seemed as if the plant had not been naturally, as the dirt around it seemed to have been dug quite recently. 'Huh, that's curious. Did someone plant this here on purpose?'
He drew closer to it, not noticing that Alice had already identified the "plant" and had swiftly yet silently hid in the underbrush beside the road. Luka, not knowing of this, called back to her. "Sorry, I'm not trying hold us up, I've just never seen... something... liiike..." He had begun to turn while talking back to nothing, realizing midway his mistake as he drew out his words.
"...This. Huh, wh-where'd Alice go?" Luka scanned his surroundings, not even seeing a sign of where she could've gone. Suddenly, he heard the shaking of leaves behind him. Turning around, he noticed that the two leaves jutting from the ground were waving ever so lightly as if swaying in the breeze.
However, there was no breeze.
Raising an eyebrow, Luka slowly approached the tall plant and crouched down in front of it. Taking off his gloves and stuffing them in his pocket, the boy very gently caressed the lower leaf, feeling its soft fringe with his fingers. "Surprisingly soft, weird, I don't think I've seen this plant before..." The boy leaned in more, pulling the large leaf a tad bit closer. He took one hand and ran a single finger down the stem.
"Hehehee."
Luka froze, alerted by the sound of a muffled giggling. He let go, standing straight up very quickly. Blue eyes searching wildly, he looked all around to find the source of the noise. Eventually, he found it. Or rather, it found him, as a pair of light brown hands burst from the ground, grabbing at his ankles. "Woah!" He yelled, moving just quick enough to avoid the pair of arms as they clawed wildly in the air.
"Wh-what!?" Luka watched as the arms planted themselves into the dirt beneath the leaves, pulling something out of the dirt. The leaves rose, a wild mane of auburn hair following underneath alongside the Monster's head. Then, popping out of the ground soon after was the woman's torso.
A bare-naked torso.
Luka quickly snapped to the dirt ground just below the Monster in an attempt to preserve her dignity. What he failed to realize is that this Monster, like most, has very little of such a thing. The Monster yawned, scrubbing at her eyes with each hand while she stretched, pushing her chest out in a purposeful display of her body.
Opening her brown eyes, the Monster smirked at the sight of the nervous boy. "Hmmm~" She hummed, leaning over to the side to prop an elbow in the dirt, holding her head sideways in said arm's hand as she did.
"Y'know..." The Monster started, fixing a half-lidded stare at Luka. "...Usually, I hate it when people mess around with my leaves like that. Someone will always come around and tug on 'em or try to mess 'em up, these things are more fragile than you think!" To emphasize her point, she used her free hand to gently flick the lower-hanging leaf. "But your hands were so soft, I actually kinda liked it. Of course, it does help that you're pretty cute, boy."
Still looking away, Luka gulped as he found to keep his face from burning up too much. "Ah-Ah, I'm... glad that it d-didn't hurt you." He wrung his hands together to push out some of his nervous energy. "Erm, I hope its not too much to ask if you... could maybe c-cover up your chest at least? I don't wish to compromise your modesty."
The Monster giggled lightly, shifting to lean forward, putting her chin in both hands. "Oh, what a sweetheart you are. But you don't have to worry about that," She lowered her voice to a whisper, "I have no modesty." The Monster snickered at Luka's slight recoil of realization.
"O-Oh, w-well, even still, I think I'll just keep m-my eyes down all the same." The Monster hummed again, watching the purple-haired boy shuffle in place. Her still somewhat tired mind began to formulate a plan of action as she continued to prob at the boy's fragile disposition.
"Don't worry about that!. In fact, I think I'd like for you to stare, it's flattering to a Mandragora like me. After all, you nicely appreciated my leaves before, so why not do the same for my fruits?~" The Monster said, reclining backward to sit up fully. Luka, not catching the Monster's meaning, gave a very slight sideways look to her, making well sure to keep his gaze on her face.
"Um, wh-what fruits?" The Mandragora gave a sly smirk, "What? you haven't noticed them yet? I've been growing them for years." The Monster twisted back and forth slowly, causing the ample "fruits" on her chest to sway from side to side. A fierce shade of red ignited on his face, all but forcing Luka to stare holes into the ground in front of his feet.
"Oh-Oh. No, I'm g-good, th-thank you." Luka whispered before furiously pulling his gloves back on as the Mandragora laughed at his discomfort. He swallowed, idly straightening his clothes to rid himself of his restless Monster seemed disappointed by his aversion, a frown coming to her face. "What, no looking and no touching? That's no fun..."
Her hair started to shudder; the Monster preparing to make a move towards the boy before an idea hit her. Instantly, her look of discontent morphed into something more pleading. "...Well, if you don't want to do that, can you at least listen to my song? I need practice, but nobody seems to want to be my audience." The non-lewd offer seemed to calm the boy, who now attempted to at least look in her general direction.
"Well, I suppose I could. Although I warn you, I don't have much talent for singing, so I don't know how good a judge I'll be." The plant Monster grinned dangerously, a little chuckle coming from her throat. "Oh, don't worry about that, just sit back and relax~" She cleared her throat with a cough, closing her eyes as she did. Then, the Mandragora opened her mouth wide.
"AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Luka's whole face scrunched up, his blue eyes clamping shut as the sheer force of the scream sent his hair and clothes flapping behind him. Faintly, for the second time that day, the silver ring around Luka's left pointer finger glowed ever so slightly. The Mandragora stopped, closing her mouth to quickly flash a suggestive grin.
"So, how was it?~" She waited, watching for when the boy inevitably attempted to move. Which inevitably caused her to freeze herself, when she watched him lift his hands up to his head to cover his ears a tad bit too late, otherwise completely uninhibited by her song. Luka's eyes opened slowly, his blue eyes looking at the Monster with great distress.
"A-Ah, well... How do I put this nicely..." He uncovered his ears, rubbing at them lightly before letting his arms fall to his sides. The Mandragora was speechless as he continued to move without issue. "...I think you may need some more practice... O-Or a tutor, perhaps? Or..." He raised his hands up defensively, worried that his words might insult the Monster.
"...Maybe, just maybe, you m-might want to consider exploring other hobbies. If you don't mind me saying." The purple-haired Hero looked at the Monster's still-stunned face with nervous eyes. "Sorry. I, uh, I gotta go now." He said lamely, after a small stretch of silence. He promptly walked around and then passed the Monster, who slowly turned to watch him leave. However, before he could get far, she called out to him.
"H-Hey!" Luka turned, raising an eyebrow at the Monster's voice. Her brown eyes were opened completely, all traces of tiredness now gone, looking up in down his form in confusion instead of lust. "What... Who are you?" The boy gave her a small smile, waving a single hand up. "My name's Luka, and I'm a Hero." He said simply, before continuing down the dirt path. "Have a nice day!" He called, effectively ending the conversation.
She contemplated his answer while his form became smaller, slowly fading into the distance. Truly, she could've attacked him while his back was turned, but the sudden shift in the encounter towards the end made her pause. Eventually, the Monster scratched at her head, unsure of the whole thing. "Weird..." She said, before eventually dipping back into the ground.
The sight of the Mandragora hiding back into the ground allowed the silent form of Alice to come out, her head jutting out of the thicket with a very bewildered look on her face.
Archangel Ariel stood erect in the throne room, quietly watching with sharp red eyes as Ilias stood a few meters away from her. Her Goddess was faced away, staring down through the clouds. Ilias stood completely still as she gazed down at the planet below. At the moment, Heaven was high amongst the clouds, hiding away from plain view of the Humans and Monsters below.
The Leader of the Archangels dared not to say anything, a rare break in her usual impatience, to allow the Goddess to take her time in addressing one of her most trusted Angels. After a few more breaths, the Goddess spoke.
"Archangel Ariel, join me." The white-haired Archangel quickly obliged, moving to stand next to her Mother. Ilias held out a hand in the direction of the planet below. "What do you see?" It was an abrupt question, one that almost made Ariel doubt the answer that would automatically leave her otherwise. "It's Your World, my Goddess." Ilias nodded in agreement.
"Yes, yes it is. It is My World." The Goddess paused, "It's unfortunate that some have not realized that yet..." Ilias's eyes stared hard down at the seeable surface of the planet, searching for something unseen. She breathed deeply, letting out a stream of air in a hiss. "...Which is why my Prophet is so important to me. He will be the one to help me prove to everyone my divinity. To prove my command is utmost, is unchallengeable."
Archangel Ariel glanced up at her Goddess, the obvious question on her lips, but found that she couldn't ask it. Fortunately, Ilias already knew what the question was. "I know you wonder why I missed the initial Baptism, Ariel. You have no reason to be shy in asking me about it."
At the spurring, the Archangel put her hands together. "Yes, I wish to know, why did you not appear during the time of Baptism? I don't understand." Ilias kept her gaze downwards, not looking at the pleading Angel on her left side. "Because, as I have told Eden, I had a Revelation. I needed to bring up Luka to Heaven for a much more special baptism. Something much more sacred than the ones for my past Heroes."
Ariel furrowed her brows, trying to understand Ilias's words. "I understand, my Goddess. But why, then, allow us to go to Earth in the first place? Why lead us on to believe that the Baptism would continue as first believed if you knew it would be different? And why not have us be there during his Baptism? We all wanted to witness the Prophet's coronation." The loaded question was met with an initial silence, as Ilias's blue eyes unwaveringly peered through the clouds.
"...Your Goddess knows what you do not. All things happen for a reason. Even if you cannot understand why right now." Ilias finally answered, her voice deliberately toneless.
Archangel Ariel bowed her head, kicking herself mentally for daring to question this. "Of course, My Goddess, forgive my brashness. I know not what I speak." Ilias turned to face Ariel, a benevolent smile on her face. She softly placed a hand on the white hair of the Archangel's head.
"Be not afraid of your Goddess, Ariel. I forgive you. Now rise." The Leader of the Archangels did so as Ilias retracted her hand, meeting her gaze. The Goddess regarded her with serious eyes. "Now that the Prophet has started his journey, preparations are needed. I want you and the other Archangels to double down on the training of the soldiers. Once the last Monster Lord falls, we will be taking back My World for good this time. No compromises, no matter the cost."
Archangel Ariel bowed once more, "Understood, my Goddess." The white-haired Archangel quickly left, leaving Ilias alone once again.
Ilias returned her gaze to the planet below, her blue eyes taking in the Worldly expanse. She could see the twinkling and shining of the souls below, however, only one kept her unwavering attention. It was the one on her continent, shining brighter than all of the rest. The Goddess of Light watched with great interest as it slowly crawled closer and closer to Iliasburg.
"Go, my Prophet, bring glory onto my name..." Ilias whispered, a familiar red glow illuminating her face. "And then, you will receive your Heavenly reward."
Larger and larger the tangled web grows, filling with depravity and deception. Woe is the one who finds himself caught right in the middle of it all.
Very soon, the action will pick up. The first three "fights" Luka has been in were on the easy side. But, being light on violence isn't my intention here. Once he meets a certain Heavenly Knight, things will very suddenly and very abruptly hit the ground running. So be ready for it, because when Luka faces actually challenging opponents, it'll be a lot less pleasant to read.
Can't give you too much fluff, can I? No, that would be too sweethearted of me. Can't have that.
Guest: I will periodically go back to fix up earlier chapters because of this. Because, honestly, most of that is because I have a terrible habit to write sparingly during the day, and then bomb myself with editing the "flow" at the early morning hours. Which isn't necessary the best time to do so, but is realistically the only time I can do so with my somewhat hectic schedule.
espioll: Ilias's case is a complicated one. Half of it is unhealthy obsession in Luka naturally spiraling downwards into depravity, but the other half of it is other corrupting forces at play. But those are details to later be revealed.
For the sake of this not becoming too perverse, Lucifina and Micaela will be excluded from that particular corruption. Lucifina, because her love for him is platonic and she's sealed away presently. Micaela, because she's a Fallen Angel which makes her separated from Ilias's influence and because she wouldn't view Luka that way.
So, while there will be corruption abound, not every single Angel will be affected in the same way. And some may not even be affected by it at all. It depends on how complicated I want things to get.