Artemis was holding back tears, not tears of joy.
Raul, holding a stick, smacked her on the Ass: "Come on, this guitar won't wait for you to play it," he said, giving her another smack with the stick.
Blood formed on Artemis's hands.
Raul had brought her an acoustic guitar and an electric one, but these were special. The strings were made from Pegasus' tail feathers.
Her fingers were bleeding.
Artemis hadn't expected music to be this hard.
"Don't people use something called autotune these days?" she stammered.
"Please, Raul… enough."
Raul had given a god-level being PTSD.
If her worshippers saw Artemis like this, they'd use all their power to kill Raul.
The music was already prepared—Raul had done everything.
Raul played the instruments himself, using the electric guitar because Artemis had a wild spirit and loved rock music, though around Raul, she was tamed like a little kitten.
That's why Artemis wanted to try her luck to learn playing a guitar.
Now, though, she deeply regretted it.
She strummed the strings, but Raul raised his hand to stop her.
"What's wrong, Raul? Why'd you stop me? I was doing it…" Artemis looked at him, but Raul was staring at the world below.
His eyes narrowed.
Artemis looked where He was looking and saw the dungeon.
Then he snapped his fingers. The entire solar system seemed to freeze.
He grabbed Artemis's arm, and they vanished from the moon.
Meanwhile, in a dungeon in Nocthral.
Lara Lightbringer POV
Damn it, I hate being in this situation.
I'd found worshippers of the demon god near Nocthral, but something happened.
The worshippers I'd normally defeat caught me, chained me up, and locked me in a dungeon.
How could this happen? I don't use mana or aura.
My power is life force.
As Tiamat's chosen, and since she's the mother of all, I have an infinite source of life force.
A cut on my arm or even losing my head wouldn't matter; I'd heal regardless.
But my body couldn't handle it without intense training.
There are 10 tiers to mastering this power. In just three months, I barely reached the 3rd tier—an insane feat.
Thinking about Tiamat's true power terrifies me.
In the dungeon, they gave me food and water, but it was disgusting.
The demon god worshippers were talking about their voices and who would "break" me.
Then I heard it: the one to "fuck me" should be a bandit type, so for them, a hero being raped by a thug would break more because heroes usually see bandits as low life, at least in history.
I was waiting for that day, scared but silent.
I didn't want to speed things up by crying.
One day,
Then a bald man entered the dungeon. He looked hideous, like an orc.
He opened the door and gave me a vile smile.
I prayed to Tiamat, but nothing happened—not even a sliver of power.
I wanted to break the chains, even if it meant ripping my arm off, and escape. I was hungry and thirsty, so I didn't have the power to do it.
"Oh, hero, you look so pathetic. I can't wait to fuck you," the bald man said, approaching. I tried to punch or kick, but I couldn't do anything.
He tore the cloth covering my chest, exposing everything. I felt sick.
Please, someone, help.
Then I remembered that Entity would help me, but would it take my soul?
I'd try anyway: "HELP! I'M BEGGING, I'LL GIVE ANYTHING!" I screamed.
The bald man laughed: "No god is here." But everything stopped. The bald man froze in place.
I was trembling. Two people appeared before me.
That Entity and… a woman?
The woman was breathtaking, but as she tried to hit the entity, it smacked the back of her neck: "Idiot, I'm working right now. You'll watch. I gave you the break you wanted."
"Uh, sorry to interrupt, but I need help right now," I said, terrified.
The entity turned to me.
It was smiling—a warm, comforting smile…
"Little girl, I don't want your soul, but I'll help you. You know, there's no such thing as a free lunch, though, right?" it said, crouching to look me in the face.
Seeing the frozen bald man still disgusted me.
The woman with That Entity was definitely a goddess. I was sure of it.
I tried to speak but stammered. The entity touched my head, and I felt calm: "Anything you want, just get me out of this damn place," I said.
"Alright, here's the deal: I save you, and in return, you go to someone I made a deal with. Do what he asks. His name's Micah von Everic, a fallen noble. He has three wishes. Don't worry, I'll help you when the time comes. Hopefully, when it's all done, the three of us can meet and part ways for another journey," it said.
The goddess watched us with narrowed eyes. "Deal. Where do I sign?"
"Oh, first, a reminder of our agreement." My face started burning, and a strange symbol appeared on my face.
I coughed, out of breath. Then the entity snapped its fingers, and the chains fell away.
Was breaking the chains that easy?
My arms, legs, and everything hurt. I slowly stood, but the entity pulled out a paper.
I read it.
It was exactly what we discussed.
Without thinking, I let my blood drip onto it.
Anyway, my soul wouldn't be taken.
The paper burst into flames and vanished. "Perfect. At the end of your journey, you can ask me for anything you want," it said.
"Uh, before that, I want to know you. Please, I just want to know my savior. What god are you?" I said. Who had saved me when even Tiamat ignored me?
The woman interrupted: "Kid, you're asking too much. That wasn't in the deal!"
"Hold on, I'll tell you. But if you describe my name, appearance, or write it down, or say my name, I'll take your soul instantly. Got it?" the entity said, stopping the goddess.
The goddess gave the entity a weird look.
I held out my bleeding finger, and the entity pressed its own against it.
Then its face appeared, and I was shocked.
"Greetings, Lara Lightbringer. I'm Raul von Vance, or Raul Cainhurst. People love calling me Entity. Nice to meet you," it said, bowing slightly.
It was a noble's greeting.
I felt his gaze on me and, realizing he was looking at my chest, quickly covered myself with my hands.
But then he snapped his fingers, and I was dressed in simple, comfortable clothes; at least they covered me.
"Ahhh, I don't know what to say. You're not human? How can you have this kind of power? Are you a god hiding among humans?" I asked.
Raul gave me a strange look: "You're close. Step back a bit."
I realized I was too close and took a step back.
Then the goddess spoke: "Since Raul gave his name, I'm Artemis, goddess of the moon and hunting. Nice to meet you, mortal," she said, looking arrogant.
Oh, she's gorgeous.
But then Raul smacked the back of her neck again: "Idiot goddess, why'd you give your name? You'll put this mortal in danger."
"I do what I want, Raul! You're not my dad!" Artemis snapped, pointing at his chest.
Raul pointed back: "Don't act like your dad's so responsible! Zeus fucked a tree, you can't deny that. Or your brother? He's just like your dad. The only one I respect even a little is Hades, and even that's for a reason."
They were yelling at each other, and the whole place was shaking. I stopped them: "Uh, sorry, Sir Raul, I swear I won't tell anyone about the goddess and you, too, but you two make a great couple."
"What? No way I'd marry this old virgin. I'm sure she's already hit menopause," Raul said, but he caught an arrow as Artemis fired it at his head.
Artemis clearly meant to kill: "Idiot…"
I laughed a bit, but froze when they both looked at me. "Now, I'm giving you the location. Go to Micah von Everic. He's in Sylvarion at this location: XXXX," Raul said.
But then he did something. He took the arrow and slowly drove it through the frozen bald man's eye.
Then he clapped his hands, and both he and Artemis vanished.
Oh, for God's sake, what have I gotten myself into…
(We will see lara pov for Micah Arc. Be ready to read a dark story, and don't forget to comment.)