The Kind of Evil

Rasmus woke up and saw Aris sitting beside him, staring into his eyes. For a moment, he thought it was his mother, but then he realized that he wasn't in the past anymore. He was about to stand up, but to his surprise, he couldn't move his lower body, not even his back. He was a bit panicked when he couldn't feel his lower body, but then Aris pushed him down again, preventing him from sitting up.

"It didn't go well because your body could barely endure the process," Aris said with a serious expression. "The good news is you have awakened your bloodline. However, you might not be able to use your legs for a while," she continued as she stared at Rasmus's legs.

Rasmus lifted his head up and looked down at his legs, realizing how bizarre it was when he could see his legs but couldn't feel them at all. He closed his eyes as he took a deep breath, processing the bad and the good news. He didn't expect that he would become a cripple, however, he believed it was worth the price since he could regain his mobility once again later on.

"What did you see?" Aris asked, curious about what he saw during his awakening.

Rasmus opened his eyes and slowly lifted his right hand, staring at his hand that was no longer small and weak. His encounter with his mother was so vivid and real that he couldn't believe that he had relived the past. He still couldn't get rid of the gentleness of his mother's voice and the hum that put him to sleep as if she were haunting him in a good way.

"I went back to the past..." Rasmus muttered as he stared at Aris. "I met my mother, your predecessor," he continued.

Aris didn't say a word or react to Rasmus's answer as if she already knew about his encounter with his mother. On the other hand, Rasmus tried to see through her expressionless face, trying to find out if she could see her past life as his mother, just like what his mother had said to him earlier.

"Out of curiosity, Aris. You came to me willingly. Is there another reason other than curiosity that an Orthias, or to be specific, an Aristoria to give birth to a human? And that Aristoria was your predecessor, a same existence in a different mind and body," Rasmus asked as he stared into Aris's eyes.

Aris stayed quiet, and for the first time, she tried to avoid a question and averted her gaze. Her expression was too hard to decipher, and Rasmus would never be able to read her unless he could read her thoughts. Knowing that she didn't want to answer, Rasmus didn't try to pry on it anymore since she must have had her reasons.

"Now what, Aris? You know I can't walk on my own, right?" Rasmus asked with his brows raised. "And it's getting cold being naked in the morning winter like this," he continued.

Aris glanced at Rasmus for a moment before she suddenly lifted him up and used her shoulder to help him stand on his own. She helped Rasmus put his clothes on, and then she accepted Rasmus's request to help him walk, even though he couldn't feel his legs at all. She was basically dragging Rasmus rather than helping him walk.

"Is this a rare case?" Rasmus asked.

"No, there were a few cases where some of us couldn't walk for a while after they went through the awakening process," Aris shook her head and kept helping him walk. "Just so you know, this is still the first step, there will be more of them until you're fully awakened. It's normal if you don't feel any different from before," she continued as she looked down at Rasmus's limp legs.

"I trust you," Rasmus responded simply.

‎Aris turned her head to look at Rasmus's eyes and expression. She narrowed her eyes a bit when she saw the vulnerability in his eyes once again. She then responded with a simple nod because no words were needed. She didn't know what he saw when he fainted, but that made her curious.

‎Aris brought Rasmus back into the village, and everyone was wondering about his condition. They saw him every day, and he looked healthy, but then he became a cripple which worried some of the villagers. He was their savior, and they believed that his well-being was their utmost priority.

‎After sending the villagers away politely, Rasmus went back to his inn with Aris's help. Aris's demeanor turned cold immediately when she saw Videl and the Saint, Serena, in Rasmus's room. They were both waiting for Rasmus to come back, and he knew that they would look for them sooner or later.

"Rasmus Blackheart," Serena got up from the chair and slowly approached Rasmus. "It seems you're in trouble," she looked down at his limp legs.

Videl looked at Rasmus's legs, and he wondered what had happened to him. He then looked at Aris, thinking that she might be the one who caused Rasmus's legs to limp. He decided to join in and stood beside Serena, but then Serena pushed him away, not wanting him to be near her. At that moment, Aris smirked, realizing that the woman he brought back to life didn't like him. On the other hand, Rasmus was quite shocked that the soul that possessed the Saint's body dared to push Videl away when she was supposed to know that he was the Devil.

"Saint Serena," Rasmus nodded his head with a straight expression.

"Can we have a private conversation, just the two of us?" Serena asked, her eyes never leaving Rasmus's.

Rasmus reached the bed, struggling to sit on his own without his hands supporting his torso. He looked at Aris and nodded his head, signaling to her that he would be fine on his own with Serena. Aris left the room with Videl, but then she did the same to Videl, pushing him away as soon as they left the room. Videl brushed it off since he never tried to be likable to the others, including Rasmus, since he knew he was superior to any of them.

Serena created a divine barrier that prevented anyone from listening to their conversation, especially the mischievous Videl. Once she was sure that the barrier was strong enough to prevent anyone from eavesdropping on her. She stood in front of Rasmus with her arms crossed, staring down at him arrogantly.

"For a human, you're quite knowledgeable, I heard. For the Devil himself to recognize you is both interesting and terrifying," Serena said.

Rasmus stared back at Serena and realized she was trying to judge him and read through him just like Kiel did. He realized the way she used her words, her stare, and her arrogance were similar to those beings.

"I couldn't agree more..." Rasmus answered as he kept trying to move his legs, but he couldn't feel anything. "I don't know what you want from me or Videl, and for you to be here in this world. I'll say that I'll answer every question you have in mind without hiding anything," he continued.

"Good, that's what I want to hear," Serena responded coldly, belittling Rasmus. "My question will be, what's your thought about this whole mess. This ridiculous bet between the Devil and God?" She asked.

"It's nonsense," Rasmus answered without hesitation as he stared into Serena's eyes. "To be dragged into this mess, using the cosmic power to overwhelm me, manipulating me because they both think I'm nothing but a pawn for them to play with," his words were harsh, but his expression was still calm and collected.

Serena narrowed her eyes, seeing no lies or deception in Rasmus's words. His gaze and his tone were similar to hers when she realized she was a plaything for cosmic beings to fulfill their scenario, to be used and thrown away after. However, the difference between her and him was the fact that he didn't mind it at all as if he had accepted it but she knew it wasn't really the case.

"And?" Serena asked, still with her arms crossed.

"There's nothing else," Rasmus shook his head. "Do I even have a choice?" He asked back and stared into Serena's eyes.

Serena smirked as she started to chuckle, which slowly turned into laughter. She leaned against the wall and began to laugh louder and covering her eyes with her hands. Rasmus was watching her, and the way she laughed and the aura within her body were quite unnerving, similar to when Videl laughed.

"I see..." Serena said and cleared her throat. "We aren't that different after all," she continued as she lowered her hand from her face, staring at Rasmus.

Rasmus furrowed his brows, finding her words to be interesting and piquing his curiosity.

"And who are you?" Rasmus asked.

"Lilith, the Mother of all Demons," Serena answered with a big smile on her face.