"Does my eye at least look like hers…? I mean—the details…"
After Sylvia's revelation, Azazul couldn't get his mother out of his mind. He wanted nothing more than to see her with his own eyes and maybe… just maybe… feel a mother's embrace.
But Akiko kept slipping into his thoughts too.
"I hope Akiko is okay… wait—am I actually missing Akiko? I never thought this day would come…"
And then there was Matthew.
Azazul thought about him far too often. Every time he pictured Matthew's face—whether in memory or in dreams—his heart ached. He lost the only mentor he ever had… the only person he felt he could talk to about anything.
He missed him, and that longing was a heavy weight to carry.
Killing that woman didn't help either. It didn't ease the burden. It didn't fill the emptiness. It brought him nothing.
And what hurt even more wasn't just losing Matthew… it was the questions Azazul never got to ask him. The questions he had saved for "later," and fate simply never gave him that later.
At the start of this deity-killing journey, he had the Saints with him. But now? Matthew was gone, leaving everything on Azazul's shoulders.
He had to think, plan, protect—alone.
Sylvia was still beside him, but he wasn't sure if he should trust her. Though… he couldn't deny she seemed trustworthy.
Still, Azazul knew he needed to stop playing checkers and start playing chess. His first move? Build a team. Not just any team—people with very specific qualities.
Unfortunately, that would take time, something he lacked.
For now, he had to work with what he already had… which wasn't much.
He wasn't even the strongest in his current group. Akiko probably held that title. The Eye of Darkness turned him from a pathetic weakling into a cold, ruthless killer—but Akiko had no such luxury, and she still beat him more times than he could count.
Pathetic.
Azazul paced around his room, thinking.
"I should also try mastering my other heritage… or at least gain some control over the power of the God of Creation. And the God of Life, too."
"And ever since I started using the power of the God of Death… I feel weird. Killing feels easier with this damned eye. Is there a side effect? Did Uncle lie? No… no he wouldn't lie. Would he?"
He spat angrily at himself.
"Azazul, that's a stupid question. How dare I doubt Uncle? He protected me, and this is how I repay him?"
Maybe Matthew didn't know. He was human after all. His information about this war was barely 20% accurate. It made sense that he didn't know everything about Azazul's powers and lineages.
But surely his mother would have made certain the right information reached him… right?
"The power of creation is molecular-level manipulation… that's gonna take forever to master. But I'll manage. Probably."
He sat on his bed and began meditating.
He wanted to enter the place of darkness—the "Inner Void."
He cleared his mind, steadied his breathing, relaxed every muscle…
Twenty minutes passed. Nothing.
He kept trying.
Forty minutes. Still nothing.
"Yeah, this isn't going to work…"
He got up and began pacing again.
Stopping in front of his mirror, he stared at his reflection.
"Wait… weird question. Why does the Eye of Darkness appear on my grey eye instead of my gold one? Sylvia said my gold eye comes from the God of Death—who originally had solid gold eyes before becoming the Demon of Death. So why is the Eye of Darkness on the creation eye?"
"Is the gold eye rejecting it? Or… is the Transparent World actually not an ability of the Eye of Darkness at all? Maybe it's the God of Creation's power amplified for combat. Creation magic works on a microscopic level, after all. And when I use the Eye, I can see muscle tissue, mana channels, and spells…"
"Wait… wait—THAT'S why the Eye of Darkness is on my grey eye. So what else can this combination do?"
He placed two fingers on his chin, thinking deeply.
"…I'm actually making progress."
Then he smacked his palm into his face.
"I'm such an idiot… why didn't I think of that earlier?"
And that's how Azazul discovered he could read the microscopic information of objects through the Eye of Darkness.
---
Later…
"Hey Sally… how about we bust through a door? That sounds fun, doesn't it?"
He focused on summoning the Eye of Darkness.
Four weeks of failure, but today he felt confident.
Mana to the grey eye—that was the key. Or at least, it felt like it.
Today, he would push it further.
He saturated the grey eye with mana, focused hard…
A strange sensation flickered. He grabbed onto it.
It grew stronger… stronger… until—
He caught it.
His eyes opened. He stared at his sheath. Mana colors danced everywhere, but he ignored them.
He could see the microscopic structure of the sheath clearly.
But just as he tried to look closer he noticed something....the runes imbedded in the sheath shined with braight light blurring his vision....and overflowing his mind with imformation....but before things got worse...
The Eye vanished.
His mana reserves dropped to nearly nothing.
Cold sweat dripped down his face.
He looked at his shapeshifter.
Crap.
Then he collapsed on his bed.
---
When he woke up, it still wasn't night.
"How long was I out…?"
He tied his hair tighter, wiped drool off his face, and headed for the door. Summoning his shapeshifter, he walked with his panther toward the cafeteria.
It was his first time seeing it.
About thirty benches, most filled with groups of three or four. Past them was a long counter of dishes behind glass.
It was self-serve—for everyone except Azazul.
A woman in her twenties waved at him. Unsure if she meant him, he checked behind himself. He was alone.
He approached.
She smiled.
"Did your food not arrive in your room, my prince?"
"Well… no. But that's not why I'm here. Has Rin arrived yet?"
"You must be starving. May I get you something to eat, my prince? Oh—and Miss Rin will be here shortly."
"Anything good is fine thank you. I'm starving. And I'll have tea while I wait."
"I'll bring it soon, my prince."
He took an empty bench. Shortly after, she brought him his tea—and Rin sat across from him.
Weirdly, now that Rin was here, the whole cafeteria seemed to stare at them.
Seeing Rin's uncomfortable expression, Azazul asked,
"What's wrong?"
"…Nothing."
"Oh. Well, if something bothers you, you can tell me, you know."
Why does she always give short replies? Damn it… now she's proving my point that females are weird.
His food arrived—a mix of meats with rice and vegetables.
Seeing nothing brought for Rin, he asked:
"Rin, what do you want for lunch?"
Rin immediately stood. "It's okay, I'll get it myself—"
"Rin. Sit. She'll bring you the same as mine."
The woman gave him a strange look, but before she could speak, Azazul added:
"If you can bring me food, you can give my partner the same treatment."
"Yes, my prince!"
When she left, Rin said, "You know, I could have gotten it myself."
"I know you could."
Before she could say more, a boy around seventeen or eighteen walked over. Ashy brown hair, dark eyes.
"Hey Rin, why are you sitting with this loser?"
Rin didn't even blink.
"I always sit alone and that's never been a problem. He's my partner, so he sits with me. Why is that an issue? Get lost, turd."
"Rude as always…"
Azazul didn't react. He was too absorbed in his meal, cheeks warm, tastebuds celebrating.
This is so good… I need more. I need more.
Then the boy reached over, snatched a piece of his meat, ate it, and smirked.
"That's really good meat, my prince."
Azazul froze.
Wiped his mouth.
His hand moved on its own.
He stabbed the butter knife straight into the boy's right eye.
Before the boy could even scream, Azazul was already on his feet.
He grabbed him by the face and slammed him through the next bench. The people sitting there jumped back instantly.
The boy blinked up at Azazul's mismatched eyes, terrified, as Azazul said—calm, cold, deadly:
"If you do that again, I'll kill you."
Shock tore through the room.
He wasn't even twelve.
But this wasn't the strength of a child.
"You'll pay for that…" the boy growled, trying to stand but too disoriented.
Rin stepped between them.
"If you touch him, I'll kill you. You know the rules."
A tall man approached—orange eyes burning brightly.
"Don't forget," he said.
"He made the first move. So me and my team could kill you both right here."
He raised his hand to summon a weapon—
Azazul's hand moved to his sword hilt.
Bloodlust rising.
Body moving without permission.
What is happening? Stop moving—damn it!
The man glared down at him.
"You think you can stand against me?"
Azazul's mouth spoke on its own.
"Correction. I don't think I can stand against you.
But I'm certain I can kill you."
Gasps filled the room.
The deity smirked.
"We'll see about that, young death."
He turned away with his team.
Rin exhaled and said, "Come on. We'll get you a fresh plate."
Azazul grinned.
"Yeah, sure."
After both got new food, he quietly asked:
"Who's accompanying you to the Celebration tonight?"
"…Nobody."
Azazul scratched his head.
"Uh… mind if I tag along?"
"Okay."
"…Wait—you actually said yes? I thought you were gonna say no."
"If you want me to say no, I will."
"No! No, it's fine. I'll meet you there."
"Azazul… what's your favorite color? You're always in that black scaled armor."
"Black. But I also like blue. And I don't have any clothes here, so I don't have a choice."
He then met her eyes.
"Don't kill me… but I think your eyes are really beautiful."
Still not as cute as Akiko's though… wait—what?!
"…Thank you, Azazul."
She actually said thank you? I thought she would kill me… or kill me with attitude.
After the meal, they both went to their rooms.
Azazul was so full he could barely keep his eyes open.
He took a nap before the celebration. The chain on his right arm shining a dark black color....the light slowly turning silver then back to black ...