Chapter 36: Flames of the past
Inside Orion's room was Uriel jumping from place to place with device in her hands that looked like smartphones from the earth. Each time she touched the screen of the device bride light flashed from its back.
She was currently taking pictures of Orion dressed in gorgeous attire, her face looked strangely focused and there were hints of drool on her lips. Each of her movements was refined and swift like a photographer who was accustomed to taking photos of dangerous animals. She was moving at high speed without any sound trying to find the best angle. Without even realizing it over time she became a professional stalker!!
He wore a unique purple-colored suit with golden embroidery on sleeves and dark purple shorts that typically young noblemen wore. The best tailor in the city made it for him on the order of lord Theodore. Orion was curious how it fits so perfectly to him because he doesn´t remember anyone taking his measurements. But decided to ignore it for the peace of the world.
Orion was trying to ignore her and eat his pudding in the silence. As an angel, he didn´t have any basic biological needs like sleeping, eating, or even breathing air. But he loved sweet food so he fully used his body that couldn´t gain any weight and ate from 7 to 11 bowls of pudding daily.
Suddenly both of them stopped moving as if someone froze the time.
Orion´s eyes turned sharp and in Urie's hands appeared a golden hammer that was bigger than her. Hammer had a long golden shaft and in the center of its head was a big golden gem that looked like a diamond. Around the gem were runes that shone with faint light, the pressure the weapon emitted would be enough to scare ordinary humans to death.
It was her personal weapon that her master gave her the day she was born....its name was [Celeastis Justicia].
"Uriel that was..."
"Demonic Energy...." Uriel whispered
Both of them suddenly felt a wave of unpleasant energy. It was as if thousand of ants were crawling on their skin and the only way to stop it was to kill the source.
For angels, demonic energy was so unpleasant that it could even make them lose rationality and go berserk. That was the reason for their undying hatred and why they killed every demon on sight. The same was for demons for whom dividing energy was like poison. Two races couldn´t coexist and because of that, each of them lives in their own dimension to avoid contact.
"Put that hammer down...it was not real demon only, the remnants of its energy" Orion said as he pointed at the gigantic hammer that she held in her hand as if it had no weight at all. But Orion knew the truth.
That hammer weighs more than 5 tons... it's just her physical strength is ridiculous which made it look easy to hold.
"That thing.. it's part of your plan? This is why you were silent the whole week?" Uriel asked as the hammer in her hand turned into golden particles and disappeared as fast as it appeared...
Orion turned to her and smiled. It was a smile she knew very well. The same smile he showed when she woke up chained to the bottom of the dungeon he created for fun or better said he created it as an excuse for training. Or when he blackmailed her master Cerys that he will reveal her secret to Duncan if she won´t teach him techniques of seduction and etiquette of nobility.
"It will be no fun giving spoilers!! Just watch and enjoy the show~"
Uriel sighed when she saw his playful attitude returning. She would normally let it like that since he had fun but this time it was different because it was directly related to their mission.
She came closer to him and crouched a bit so they could be at similar eye level.
"Do you realize I was ordered to follow you here to help you?..but you didn´t tell me anything about your plan until now and done things on your own." She said in a serious tone
Orion´s playfully smile disappeared when he realized she was this time serious and she is right.
"Uriel I know what I am doing and believe me this time it will be better if I will do everything alone. I promise I will tell you everything next time...So believe in me" He said and looked her straight into her gem-like golden eyes.
Orion knew that aside from her trashy acting skills Uriel was a capable woman that was great at gathering information and above all she was strong. But the plan he had in his mind needed to be done solo. After all, he was now only building foundations for the future.
"I know that your every action has its own purpose so I will believe you but remember...right now in this world it's just two of us"
Orion at this laughed and kissed Uriel on the cheek which made her serious expression disappear replacing it with a slightly embarrassed expression as she didn´t expect a surprise attack.
"Oh my, perhaps embarrassed from a little kiss? Where did all that seriousness disappear hahaha~" Orion laughed as he patted her back while Uriel was just avoiding eye contact
'This was dumb of my thinking he will take me seriously..' she thought to herself
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Pov. Orion
*Ballroom*
Cing! Cing! Cing!
The sound of metal hitting the glass echoed through the ballroom full of nobles that were chatting.
The whole place fell silent and everyone focused their attention on the balcony.
From there they could see count Theodore dressed in a white suit with big smile on his face holding a glass of wine. Few people who were close to him wore surprised expressions on their faces when they saw him genuinely smiling.
"First of all, I would like to thank everyone who decided to bless us with their presence today, It's a real honor to have all of you here."Lord Theodore said thought a magic artifact that functioned as the microphone.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
He spoke as respectfully as he could so he will please the egos of the nobles present. Which apparently had a great effect as their smiles grew every time he flattered them.
I saw this a lot reading novels and everything but these people are really simpletons. All it takes to satisfy them is to throw a few cheap praises.
Better to remember his words ...this it could be useful for the future.
After a few minutes of boring speech about how the kingdom is safe due to their efforts and bullshit that none here believed it was finally time to introduce me.
I was standing 3 meters behind him so they couldn´t see me. It was the old man´s idea, apparently, it will add dramatic effect.
"Now I would like to introduce you to the main guest of this event...Orion Von Astrape" he said that and signaled to me with his hand to come closer
I came to his side and looked at the nobles present with a smile that could clear the sky on a rainy day. One of the best smiles in my arsenal.
But all I got was silence...
Hm?
normally they are supposed to welcome me with applause and everything...but they were simply silent
Man, woman, children all of them simply stood with their mouths open looking at the balcony as if they saw divine revelation.
I looked at my side asking for help but the old man has just looked at them with a smug expression that was the same as if he was saying "I told you!!"
Old man why are you looking so proud??
Do something this is your banquet!!
He didn´t show any reaction even after I pulled his sleeve
Useless...
I looked behind me where one of the maids that often bring me pudding stood.
She was wiping small tears from her eyes with her sleeve looking like a proud mother.
The fuck?
These people are no good.
Should I say something?
Even though I learned etiquette from that loli after I blackmai- Ahm after she voluntarily agreed to help me. But she never mentioned a situation like this.
"I am really greatfu-" I decided to speak to see their reaction
"It spoke!!" One of the nobles broke the silence and cut me off before I could finish my sentence.
Oy...what do you mean by "it".....?!
—So it was not my imagination???
— I too thought this was a dream...
—To think duke hid such a gem for himself!! That is sin!!
—Isn´t he actually more beautiful than 1 princess??
—If only I was younger...I would devour his small body every night
As if a chain reaction occurred most of the nobles started to speak. Because my senses were miles better than the senses of humans I could hear pretty much everything. Few praised me for my beauty and called me a new gem of the kingdom while others started loudly planning to sell their daughters as concubines to me to which their daughters didn´t react negatively at all and some even suggested the idea first. A few elderly women whispered among themself about some pretty hardcore stuff that even I a person who received sex education from the goddess of love had no idea existed.
I was a bit scared at first that something I wasn´t aware of happened behind the scene which resulted in their reaction.
Well, I should probably say something so the banquet can officially start.
"I am really greatfu-"
"Princess Laila Adair von Malphas in entering!!!"
The voice of the servant interrupted me again. Everyone in the room shifted their attention to the door from which a girl with blond hair walked in.
Soft blond hair.
Red eyes like blood.
These were symbols of the royal family that ruled over Malphas kingdom. These unusual features were apparently inherited from their ancestor that was one of the angels.
As the girl walked into the ballroom followed by one maid, my heart started beating unusually fast.
With her every step..the floor burned and the flames spread from the carpet to the tables and from tables to the curtain. None seems to react even though half of the hall was already burning.
The voice that I didn´t hear for so long again echoed in my head.
It was the same.
Same as the scene I saw that time Dalia read through my memories.
It was a memory that wasn´t mine. Something that should be impossible.
As the flames continued to spread through the whole room.
The girl just continued to innocently walk towards the balcony as if nothing was happening at all.
The flames finally reached my feet but I didn´t resist.
I let the flames devour my body
Because I already realized its identity...
"Time to take care of the ghosts haunting me from the past..."
As I said that flames already devoured my whole being.
They violently devoured my very existence and after they were finally full they dissipated like a lie leaving me in an unknown place.
I started looking around realizing that I was no longer inside the ballroom.
The place looked more like some sort of tower.
The only way I could go was up the old stairs.
I walked up the stairs until I reached the end. In front of me was a room that was completely destroyed, the hole in the wall and destroyed furniture was scattered everywhere and there were a few bodies that were badly burned among them was a maid that I knew very well ...
So you were among the servant that decided to follow him that day...Sylvie
From the look of the aftermath, it was probably a mana bomb. I knew that since I often used it as traps in dungeons I created it as a hobby to pass my free time.
In the middle of the destroyed room were two people leaning against each other. Both of them were on their knees. A boy with purple hair missed one of his legs and had almost half of his body burned. It was a miracle he was still breathing.
The girl with blonde hair had badly burned one hand but she was in better condition than the boy.
This was both a familiar and unfamiliar scene for me. It appeared to be a scene after the ending where Orion kidnapped the princess and tried to die together with the prince and protagonist. In this ending, you were using clues to find Orion which was pretty annoying...after you finally found him you triggered a boss fight where servants tried to stall for time so that Orion can activate a bomb that will kill everyone present with him.
After you defeated all the servants the cutscene starts playing where the bomb exploded and the prince used his last bit of mana to use teleport to save himself and the protagonist leaving Orion and his sister behind. There was no scene that exposed what exactly happened after but the prince mentioned that they found both bodies burned to chalk.
What was in front of me was probably what happened after.
Creak!
The sound of the building that was on the verge of collapse woke me up from my thoughts.
"Y-ou need to .....leave" Original Orion said to Laila
It seems like some rouble pierced his lungs because it looked difficult to speak. When he spoke a bit of black blood left his mouth. His body which was already sick was holding on just with the power of his will alone.
"I´m not going anywhere...without you!!!" The girl screamed and tore her skirt apart and used it as a bandage for her burned arm. She looked to be in great pain when textile touched her burned hand but with gritted teeth, she was able to wrap it around her arm.
"W....hy?" Original Orion couldn't muster anything more than one word as he felt his lungs being slowly filled with blood.
I too was staring at Dalia waiting for a response. This tower was about to fall at any moment and as a bonus fire was slowly spreading through the room. Orion was clearly done so why would she choose to stay here for him when she had a chance to leave alone?
"You covered me didn´t you?....from that explosion," Laila said with a smile as she tried to pick Orion from the ground probably so she can carry him on her back.
From the originals, Orion's eye started pouring tears. He didn´t say anything. Perhaps he couldn´t because of his lungs...or maybe because he didn´t have any energy left....or because of the sense of guilt that filled his heart.
After multiple failed attempts where Orion fell off over and over ...Laila was able to pick him up from the ground.
Even though the room was burning and it was difficult to breathe. She was able to take a step forward.
"S....y"
Orion tried to whisper something but no voice came out... but Laila understood.
"We will leave this place...so you can apologize later...." see said and kindly smiled trying to reassure him
The victim tried to reassure them someone that tried to kill her. Something that wouldn´t even pass as a bad joke.
With each of her steps room was getting hotter and hotter.
The flames were growing and with her small steps, there was no hope she will be able to escape.
Maybe there would be a chance if she threw the trash she was carrying on her back and run with all her strength. But such an idea never crossed her mind.
She believed...that with each step she is closer to a safe place.
She believed that one day she will laugh at this incident with Orion as an old lady.
After a few minutes of struggling she was able to finally reach the staircase.
"Orion we are here!!...we just need to claim down huh?... Orion?" a brief moment of happiness was broken when she noticed that Orion was not responding...
She couldn´t feel his breath on her neck anymore...
She carefully placed Orion on the ground and checked his pulse.
As she thought he was no longer breathing and there was no pulse..he was already gone
Laila leaned her head on his chest.
Crash
One of the wooden beams supporting the roof of the tower fell on the stairs blocking the only exit.
There was no place to escape anymore.
Like that her story came to end.
She spent her last moments in his cold embrace but there was no hatred in her heart only regret because wasn´t able to notice his pain sooner. Maybe then she would be able to lead him on a different path.
[Villain Trivia 3- The highest ranking angels serving the gods were 7 Heavenly Virtues before the rebirth of Orion whose rank as Archangel is Higher which makes them his direct subordinates.
If you like the story please comment..and gift pwerstones]
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