Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

"What are you going to do with her?"
Since she couldn't imagine Vahn going out of his way to kill someone that looked like a child, Sandora was curious about what Vahn intended to do. What she didn't expect was for him to answer, "You're the one that sealed her powers. Once this Gift Game has come to an end, she, and the rest of her Community, will be your responsibility."
Furrowing her brows, Sandora uttered a conflicted, "Nn..." as she looked at Black Percher.
Even if it were her decision to make, Sandora knew there would be many within her Community petitioning for Black Percher and her subordinates to be brought to justice. The lightest punishment they could expect was a public execution. In the event Salamandra intended to make use of them, they would either spend the rest of their immortal existences as slaves or something much, much worse...
Seeing the glimmer of pity in Sandora's eyes, Black Percher squinted her own, saying, "I don't need someone like you to pity me. We knew what we were getting ourselves into when we decided to face a Floor Master. Also, the Gift Game has yet to conclude. If your people cannot reveal the truth, it's only a matter of time before members of your citizenry become agents of Grimm Grimoire Hamlin. Deciding what you'll do with me after the game is simply arrogant..."
Though her words had lost a fair amount of their bite, Black Percher was still serious about subsuming Salamandra and seeking vengeance against all beings related to the Sun. Her feelings of urgency had waned, but she wasn't going to simply abandon the purpose she had carried with her for nearly seven hundred years.
Exhaling a sigh, Sandora resisted the urge to inform Black Percher that a subset of her Community would willingly torture her and her companions for information. A Royal Family couldn't govern for thousands of years on purely good intentions. She had previously ignored it at the behest of her brother, but Sandora was well aware of Salamandra's dark underbelly.
Turning to meet Vahn's gaze, Sandora asked, "What if my decision was to leave the members of Grimm Grimoire Hamlin to the Aldrnari Empire?"
"Hmmm..."
After 'briefly' considering his response, Vahn answered, "I'm not entirely sure that's the best decision. However, if it's the one you've decided, I'm not going to refuse."
Tilting her head to the side, Sandora asked, "What do you mean...?" with an adorably confused expression on her face.
Before Vahn could explain how certain people would accuse him of either staging the attack or protecting the culprits, Black Percher interjected, a severe and pouty expression on her face as she said, "I refuse! I would rather rot away in prison than become that man's pet...!"
Recalling how Vahn had unabashedly stabbed his hand in her body and caressed her head, Black Percher didn't want to be anywhere near him. Not because his actions had caused her pain or discomfort, but because they made her feel fluffy and giddy. She didn't really know how to put it, but Black Percher was sure she would eventually 'lose herself' if left in the care of Vahn. It had only been a few minutes since their initial encounter, but she already found herself questioning whether or not her vengeance was justified...
Feeling offended on Vahn's behalf, Sandora's expression morphed into a similar pout as she asked, "What's so bad about becoming Vahn's pet? If you did end up in prison, your treatment would be much worse. I'm not in a position to issue blanket pardons, so there is a good chance you would end up being tortured and mistreated just to assuage the people's anger. Is that really the fate you want for you and your friends...?"
Though her complexion paled, Black Percher managed an impish grin as she confidently asserted, "Your threats don't frighten me...even if your Community did want to torture me, neither you nor that man would allow it. Despite his unmatched power and authority, everyone knows the Sage Dragon Emperor is a soft-hearted fool. So long as I promise never to harm any women or children, you'll have no choice but to let me walk free..."
Raising his brows, Vahn inquired, "Women and children? I can understand people associating me with children, but women as a whole? That doesn't sound like me."
Snorting through her nose, Black Percher regained a bit of her confidence as she asserted, "Even if you send someone flying or slice them in half during a Gift Game, it doesn't matter unless you hold them accountable after the fact. Unless they went out of their way to antagonize you after the fact, I doubt you've ever actually killed a woman."
Though quite a few names and faces came to mind, Vahn didn't think it would help his situation if he spontaneously listed off all the people he had killed over the years. Instead, he adopted a deadpan expression as he said, "You're behaving pretty brazen for someone within easy petting distance..."
Before Black Percher could ask him what the heck he was talking about, Vahn cupped the sides of her face, gently massaging her cheeks with his palms as the tips of his fingers kneaded her fringe and scalp.
"Wh-wh-what do you think you're doing!? Get your grubby little hands off of meeeeee-!?"
Feeling a pleasant shiver run through her body, Black Percher summoned power she didn't know she possessed, breaking free from Vahn's clutches before promptly sinking her rather prominent canines into the surprisingly soft flesh of his hand.
Without attempting to pull his hand away, Vahn's expression softened as he said, "There is another option...give up your revenge, and I'll allow you to reincarnate into a world where you'll never have to endure the pain and anguish of disease. I can even send you back home...to a time when your mother was still alive, and your father cherished you..."
Furrowing her brows, Black Percher removed Vahn's hand from her mouth but kept a hold of it as she stated, "I didn't need the Princess's pity; what makes you think I need yours? I don't know what you did to me, but I owe it to the 80 million Spirits that gave me form to pursue my vengeance until the very end. Whether or not I'm able to obtain it doesn't matter. Until the Sun has repented for its crimes, I will never stop trying to make life more difficult for those who enjoy its splendor..."
As if it were the most natural thing to do in the present moment, Black Percher punctuated her words by sinking her teeth into the index and middle finger of Vahn's right hand. His blood was a lot sweeter than she expected, so even though it earned her weird looks from both Vahn and Sandora, she continued to shamelessly suckle his fingers with a 'serious' expression on her face.
Shaking his hand in a casual and ultimately vain attempt to extricate his fingers from Black Percher's maw, Vahn's expression became wry as he asked, "Enjoying yourself...?"
Instead of answering Vahn's question, Black Percher attempted to bite down even harder. When she did, Vahn's fingers spontaneously gained an immaterial quality as he pulled them free, ruffled her hair, and said, "Only people I'm especially close to are allowed to suck my blood."
Clicking her tongue, Black Percher averted her eyes, grumbling, "Only an idiot would want to be close to you..."
"If you say so..."
Retracting his hand from Black Percher's head, Vahn turned to Sandora and asked, "What are you going to do now? I've already neutralized the miasma that has spread throughout the city. We're still trapped, but the danger has largely passed."
Hearing Vahn mention he had neutralized her miasma, Black Percher's face formed into a scowl as she shouted, "Impossible! Even if you have a Gift related to purification, there's no way you could have prevented the spread of the pestilence without a Domain! You must have cheated...!"
Shaking his head, Vahn's expression softened as he explained, "While the rules you came up with were pretty comprehensive, there was something you failed to account for..."
Adopting an intense glower, Black Percher waited for Vahn to continue, her brow twitching when he explained, "The rules prevented the creation of Domains but said nothing about Domains already in effect. Though, to be perfectly honest, that wouldn't have prevented me from stopping the spread of your miasma. My control over all forms of energy far exceeds the common sense of this world..."
To make things easier for Black Percher to understand, Vahn created a mass of purple-black energy in the palm of his hand before promptly purifying and converting it into a ball of pristine white fire. When she saw this, the petite Demoness's carmine eyes briefly glazed over as she softly muttered, "You really are a monster..."
Shrugging his shoulders, Vahn promptly crushed the ball of holy fire in his palm, saying, "Call me what you will. I've rarely concerned myself with the titles others impose upon me. I am who I am, the person I choose to be."
Shifting his attention back to Sandora, Vahn waited for her to answer his previous question. Fortunately, she immediately understood the meaning behind his look, explaining, "I left the evacuation up to my brother and the members of Salamandra. Interrupting it partway through would just cause chaos, so I intend to return to the coliseum to wait for Izayoi, Asuka, and Yo to return."
Though he knew Izayoi had been watching them from the shadows for quite some time, Vahn simply nodded his head in response to Sandora's words. He had already resolved to let her and the No Names handle this particular incident, so, after thoroughly mussing Black Percher's hair, he kissed the petite Dragoness before whispering into her ear that he would be waiting for her back at the Palace...
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High in the sky over Kouen City, far beyond the invisible boundary that denoted the city as a Game Board, was a woman with bronzed skin, two-tone black and blue hair, reptilian eyes, and a truly remarkable physique. Her outfit did very little to conceal her form, but the thing most people would take notice of was her inordinately long and thick tail, a meaty, pitch-black appendage set with glowing blue spines.
"Pathetic...how could a 5-Digit Demon Lord be defeated by a brat that still smells of milk? It's no wonder the higher up are so desperate to do away with the Demon God. The power of recently manifested Demon Lords is a complete joke..."
Snorting through her nose, tufts of blue, flame-like energy emerged from the woman's nostrils as similarly blue, circuit-like lines began to spread across her body.
"Well, not that it matters..."
With an intense blue light emanating from her throat, the bronze-skinned woman adopted a smile that caused the sides of her mouth to crack. Two rows of razor-sharp, distinctly crystalline teeth came into view as the blue ridges along her tail began to pulse, minute spatial cracks forming around them due to the phenomenal amount of energy contained within.
"You'll all die, just the same..."
Immediately following the woman's words, massive, three-pronged wings erupted from her back as a complex, halo-like magic circle formed behind her. The energy condensing in her body reached the point that her entire chest had gained a prominent blue hue, highlighting the bones and organs within as she arched back and prepared to unleash a full-powered Dragon Breath.
If nothing appeared to hinder her, the draconic woman would have been able to erase the entirety of Kouen City from the map. The moment she attempted to unleash it, however, a vice-like promptly covered her mouth, suppressing the breath within as a very unamused Vahn asked, "What do you think you're doing...?"
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(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Salamandra has more than a few skeletons in its closet...','Black Percher is just one dragon meat away from falling..."','Not today, b*tch (O w O)...')

Unable to respond to Vahn's question via words, the shapely Dragoness grabbed his forearm before attempting to wrap her legs and tail around his waist and torso. At the same time, the vibrant blue runic halo behind her back began to emit thick bands of similarly blue lightning that ripped apart the surrounding space.
Though he managed to hinder the woman's tail with his free hand, Vahn's expression morphed into a deadpan as her thick and powerful legs locked around him. She was nearly 210cm tall, so, in his base form, the woman's thighs were almost as thick as his admittedly slender waist.
As his body began to swell up, Vahn pulled the woman's face closer to his own before pushing her away with enough force to send a small moon out of orbit. Due to her comparatively small size, she ended up tumbling away from him at relativistic speeds, her body crashing through the vibrant blue halo and energy-formed wings that had previously anchored her in place.
Not affording the woman any time to rest, Vahn instantaneously appeared in the path of her flight, his hands briefly gripping the tip of her tail before promptly letting go due to the massive gashes caused by her electric blue spines.
"Hmmm..."
Staring at the blood streaming and subsequently evaporating from his hands, Vahn allowed the mysterious Dragoness to arrest her momentum as he remarked, "Your body pulses with the energy of destruction...you're no ordinary scumbag..."
Snorting through her nose, the dark-skinned Dragoness flicked her tail to produce a large, crescent-shaped gash in the fabric of Space-Time as she said, "The heathens of the Little Garden believe you possess the Origin of all Pure-Blooded Dragons. However, I know of at least three that reign far beyond you. You may be powerful, Vahn Aldrnari Mason, but you will soon find out how truly inconsequential you are..."
Following her words, the dark-skinned beauty appeared to be trying to escape through the portal she had created. Vahn stopped this by raising his hand and closing the portal, but, at that exact moment, far exceeding the limitations of perception itself, a pitch-black bullet pierced through his heart.
Under normal circumstances, a blow to the heart would have very little effect on Vahn. However, when this particular bullet pierced his body, it was as if the concept of mortality itself had been superimposed onto his existence. It only persisted for a fleeting moment, but it was more than enough time for the bronze-skinned woman to charge forward, her body transforming into that of a black and blue eldritch monstrosity that only vaguely resembled a serpent-like dragon.
With a body hundreds of kilometers in length and a maw large enough to swallow a small mountain, the massive serpent was able to devour Vahn with a single snap of her jaws. The moment she did so, it was like he had been transported to a completely different world, one comparable to the hellish dimension generated by Azathoth.
Though there were spire-sized teeth infinitely undulating in an attempt to pull things towards the back of the Dragon's impossibly large throat, the things that left the deepest impression were the millions, if not billions of assimilated corpses reaching out in an attempt to restrain and tear apart anything that entered within. They were like an endless ocean of people, animals, and magical creatures crying out in pain yet eager to dispense as much as possible to anything unfortunate enough to find itself within their grasp. To make matters even worse, the Laws present within the strange dimension robbed anyone within of their powers...
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While Vahn was being pulled further into the hellish Realm that was her stomach, the dark-skinned Dragoness had an uncertain expression on her face as she tentatively caressed her exposed abdomen.
"Is it done? Did we get him...?"
Manifesting next to the woman in an outfit comprised almost entirely of ashen bones, pitch-black leather, and a shadowy shroud was a man with a helmet or, more accurately, a head resembling a demonic skull. In place of eyes, hellish flames burned within two malicious-looking sockets.
"I don't know...I can feel him within me, but he isn't being absorbed like a normal person..."
A stark contrast to the bold front she had put on earlier, the dark-skinned Dragoness felt more uneasy with each passing moment. She was immune to even the most potent poisons and toxins, but she was experiencing the same existential dread an ordinary person might feel upon learning they had just consumed something that would kill them.
Observing the Dragoness's reaction, the demonic, reaper-like individual paused for a moment before exacerbating matters as he manifested an ornate pistol carved from blackened bone and pulsing with ghostly blue energy.
"Do you have him under control or not...?"
Baring her razor-sharp teeth at the man, the paling Dragoness growled, "Death, you son of a bit-"
Without waiting for the woman to finish, the reaper-like man, one of the Avatars of Death itself, squeezed the trigger of his pistol. A pitch-black bullet traveling far beyond the speed of light emerged from the ghostly blue chamber, instantaneously piercing the center of the woman's head as he muttered, "No loose ends..." in a ghastly, bone-chilling tone.
Though she was immortal under normal circumstances, the bluish light pulsing through the draconic woman's scales instantly dissipated as she fell backward and started falling toward the ground thousands of meters below. Her body curled up in an instinctual fetal position, but the light had completely faded from her previously luminescent golden eyes...
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Noticing the surrounding space collapsing, much like the destruction of a Realm, Vahn ceased purifying the billions of damned spirits that had been trying to subsume him.
Furrowing his brows, Vahn spoke aloud, "Was this part of their plan? If so, they have successfully broken through the very foundations of my bottom line..."
Following his words, Vahn's domain exploded outward like an unstoppable sphere of glorious golden light. Wherever it passed, the destruction of the Realm altogether ceased. At the same time, the fleshy environment began to dissolve into motes of golden light as the tormented spirits within were instantaneously purified...
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Just as Death was preparing to return and report the completion of his mission, a golden light spontaneously erupted from the body of his former companion. Instead of pulsing with an electric blue, the ridges along her tail began radiating the purest, most glorious golden light that Death had ever observed. He could feel the energies within his body being purified, the hue of his eyes shifting from a hellish orange to a marginally lighter color as he remarked, "Impossible..."
In defiance of Death's utterance, the draconic woman's eyes snapped open, a similar golden glow emanating from her irises as she shouted, "I don't care what it takes! I'm going to rip you apart, you son of a bitch...!"
Moving far faster than her previous maximum, the draconic beauty tore away the arm Death had raised to summon his pistol. In the same motion, she sent him flying with a cataclysmic tail sweep that sent him crashing into the seemingly endless expanse of plains below with enough force to produce a crater several kilometers in diameter.
Far from finished, six sets of golden, distinctly angelic wings of light emerged from the draconic woman's back as a multi-tiered halo formed behind her. Death's eyes appeared to widen when he saw this, but due to his severe injuries, he couldn't so much as twitch his remaining pinky as a &nbsp;Dragon's Breath that seemed to blot out the entire sky promptly reduced him to dust...
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Immediately following Death's destruction, a young man with pure white hair and heterochromatic, ghostly blue, and fiery orange eyes awakened atop a throne comprised of the bleached bones of various creatures. He appeared no older than ten years old, but his true age predated the very concept of Time.
"Leviathan...that damned fool completely forgot our objective."
Exhaling a tired sigh that caused the few organic plants in the vicinity to rapidly age and decay, the youthful-looking boy alighted from his throne before manifesting a total of twelve wings; six covered in black feathers and the remaining comprised entirely of white bone.
Despite manifesting wings, Death didn't attempt to fly to his destination. Instead, he pulled out a deceptively simple-looking black scythe that was more than twice his size in length. The blade was long, thin, and black but otherwise nondescript. However, were anyone unfortunate enough to see their reflection in the blade's pitch-black surface, they would immediately find themselves staring back at their dead body, their soul trapped within for so long as the concept of Death itself existed.
Similar to Leviathan, Death opened a portal by slashing at the fabric of Space-Time. The difference was that Death's gave off a terrifying aura reminiscent of the Abyss. If anything 'living' attempted to pass through it, they would emerge from a shadow of their former selves; a being Death oft referred to as a Hollow.
Immune to the effects of the 'Abyss's Call', Death moved through the portal before immediately wincing as his body began to hiss, almost as if acid had been poured onto him. The cause was an indescribably beautiful woman whose only identifying feature was her veil of pure white hair. The rest of her features changed depending on the person observing her. In Death's case, she resembled the non-existent woman he correlated with his mother, a peculiar entity whose features and voice he could recollect despite the fact she had never existed.
Though staring at the woman caused the fluids within his eyes to boil and evaporate, Death didn't so much as blink as he calmly stated, "We failed to kill or capture the Sage Dragon Emperor. Leviathan's Avatara may have also betrayed us."
Without saying anything, the indescribably beautiful woman waved Death away. His body was forcibly expelled from the pristine white throne room before a woman with features nearly identical to Leviathan's appeared in his place. Then, with a wave of the light-formed beauty's hand, Levithan was seemingly erased from existence as tens of thousands of Gift Cards spread across the floor of the throne room...
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Feeling her connection to herself spontaneously sever, Leviathan's pupils contracted to thin lines as she nervously whispered, "That petty piece of shit really went and tattled on me..."
With her original likely erased from existence, the only thing preventing Leviathan from disappearing was the mysterious energy surging through her body. She knew Vahn was the source, but she was unfamiliar with the concepts contained within. She assumed it was an amalgamation of Light and Creation Energy, but that didn't really explain how the collapse of her inner world was prevented.
Placing her hand on her abdomen, Leviathan's complexion regained a bit of its vigor as she muttered, "Well, whatever he's doing, I hope he doesn't stop. I may be a being of misery and destruction, but I'd rather not cease to exist..."
Noticing golden light gathering wherever her fingers grazed, Leviathan began drawing on her exposed abdomen. As far as she was concerned, she was already dead, so all she could do now was wait for Vahn to finish whatever he was doing inside her body. So long as she was able to retain her sense of self, she didn't mind serving a new Master; She sure as Hell wasn't going to go running back to the one that had erased her...
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(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Vahn is exceptionally experienced when it comes to dealing with female Dragons (O w O)...','My Concept of Death can't be this cute...!?','Once Vahn gets inside of them, no woman is ever quite the same...')

"Give up. I am empowered by the spirits of the more than 80 million victims of the Black Plague. You cannot hope to defeat me."
Though revealing information related to her origin could place her at a disadvantage, Black Percher wanted to see Sandora despair. Many of the spirits comprising her existence had been burned alive or cremated after death, so while flames were effective against her, they also served to stir the anger and resentment of her constituent spirits. These were the very emotions that powered her Divinity, so, the more pain and misery she was forced to endure, the more powerful Black Percher became.
Indicative of this, Black Percher's body was slowly yet visibly maturing. At the beginning of the fight, she resembled a girl no older than ten. Now, as a result of Sandora's attacks, her height had increased from around 131cm to 143cm. Her figure hadn't changed all that much, but it was beginning to show the signs of transitioning from a prepubescent girl to a teen.
Noticing the changes in her opponent's body, Sandora narrowly evaded the massive, 50m long scythe that attempted to bisect her at the waist. In the same motion, she stabbed her trident into the space next to her, the tip completely disappearing into the void as she asked, "Why are you attacking my Community? With power like yours, you could have gained a foothold in the Outer Gates. It doesn't make sense for you to antagonize a Floor Master in your debut as a Demon Lord..."
Furrowing her brows, Black Percher dissipated her giant scythe, replacing it with a pair of sickles attached to chains. Instead of attacking, however, she began to retreat backward, her eyes narrowing as she scrutinized the glistening golden trident in Sandora's possession.
In an attempt to cut off her opponent's path, Sandora formed a seal with her left hand, shouting, "I don't think so...!" as rings of fire formed around Black Percher's biceps, ankles, and neck.
Feeling the weight of her body increase by several orders of magnitude, Black Percher clicked her tongue as her dress spontaneously burst into dark purple flames. When they faded away, a rather stylish suit of black and purple armor replaced much of her previous outfit. The top was a form-fitting black breastplate that left her shoulders exposed. As for the rest, it consisted of black tassets that followed the contours of her skirt, a pair of black greaves with rather prominent heels, and a head guard that protected her neck, cheeks, and chin but left the rest of her head largely unprotected.
Dissipating the sickle in her left hand, Black Percher reached up to grasp the collar of fire around her neck. She still had her oversized sleeves, but a black and purple gauntlet came into view as she tore away the ring with a simple tug.
"You dare try to collar me...?"
Since her opponent had previously ignored her, Sandora responded to Black Percher's question by cutting her fingers towards the ground. The rings around her arms and legs caused her to fall towards the city streets as Sandora removed her trident from the void to reveal its tip glowing like the core of a star.
One of the 'secret techniques' Sandora had learned from Vahn was how to absorb energy directly from the void. There were places where Elemental and Spiritual Energy simply didn't exist, at least not in a tangible form. The void, however, provided a functionally infinite supply as it was a domain of endless reserve. It was just very, very difficult to access, much less use.
"Though I'm sure you have your reasons, I cannot allow you to endanger the lives of my friends and companions! Take this...!"
Though she managed to get out quite a few words, the interval between the start of Sandora's attack and the moment she stabbed her trident into Black Percher's chest was only 0.00000003 seconds. She could go much, much faster, but she was holding back to try and limit the damage to her surroundings. Each of the buildings encircling her was someone's home or place of business; Sandora didn't want to destroy their hard work.
With this in mind, Sandora controlled the energy released from her trident to pierce nearly Black Percher's breastplate, body, and 3km of the ground beneath her. The ambient temperature increased to the point that several buildings caught fire, but that was promptly resolved thanks to the storm incited by Black Percher and her Stroms.
Grabbing the shaft of Sandora's trident, Black Percher rasped, "So long as our grudge remains...we will never perish..."
Instead of refuting Black Percher's words, Sandora nodded her head and said, "That may be. Unfortunately for you, this trident wasn't made to take lives..."
Punctuating her words, Sandora twisted her trident as if she were turning a key. To Black Percher's immense shock, there was no pain produced by this action. Instead, she felt as if all the power had drained from her body as Sandora removed the trident to reveal unblemished, fair white skin and an intricate tattoo resembling a keyhole.
"Vahn is far kinder than you can imagine. He imbued this trident with four different enchantments. The first, Mercy Strike, ensures that even a fatal blow would always leave an opponent with enough life to recover. As for the other three, the most relevant to this situation is its ability to seal the power of people it otherwise would have killed."
No longer injured, Black Percher attempted to leap to her feet, but the weight of her armor prevented her from so much as sitting upright. The material appeared thin and form-fitting, but even her gauntlets weighed as much as 60kgs. With her strength reduced to that of a pubescent girl, all she could do was glare at Sandora as she shouted, "Don't think this is over! You may have defeated me and destroyed my Stroms, but I've been releasing my miasma throughout the city for weeks! Unless you can clear the game and restore the light of the Sun, it's only a matter of time before my pestilence claims every member of your Community!"
Though she furrowed her brows, Sandora didn't take the teary-eyed Demoness's threat seriously. Vahn would never allow something like a plague to run rampant throughout the city. Even if it took days for them to complete the game, there was no danger of anyone dying or surrendering to escape illness.
Believing in the man, no, the God she had spent the last seven and a half years living with, Sandora repeated her earlier question, asking, "Why did you target my Community? Even if there was a personal grudge between us, attacking with Vahn present was incredibly foolish."
Snorting through her nose, Black Percher attempted to turn her head but found the action impossible due to her headguard. Her only option was to avert her eyes in a vain attempt to evade Sandora's line of sight.
"..."
Realizing her opponent wasn't going to reveal anything of her own accord, Sandora briefly considered her options before calling out, "Vahn? Can you hear me?"
Hearing Sandora talking to herself, Black Percher was about to ask if she had gone soft in the head. Before the words could leave her lips, however, &nbsp;the space next to her wavered as Vahn appeared out of thin air, a relaxed smile on his face as he answered, "Of course."
Not expecting Vahn to appear directly, even Sandora was surprised until she realized the reason, asking, "Did you predict this outcome...?"
Shrugging his shoulders, Vahn casually replied, "The rules prohibit killing. I also know you're not the type to strike someone down without knowing the motive behind their actions..."
Shifting his gaze away from Sandora's, Vahn briefly met Black Percher's carmine eyes before pulling out a blanket, covering her body, and adding, "Your subordinates, Ratten and Wesser, have already been defeated. Are you certain you wish to continue this farce...?"
Adopting a glare that was more cute than terrifying, Black Percher replied, "So long as I draw breath, I will never cease seeking revenge against all those related to the Sun. No one deserves to receive the Sun's grace after what we were forced to experience...!"
"Mmm...is that so?"
Crouching next to the enfeebled Demoness, Vahn disregarded her literal hissing as he placed his palm on her abdomen. There was a thick blanket, a thin layer of armor, and a dress separating them, but his hand was able to pass through all of them before sinking into her body directly.
With a wave of panic washing over her, Black Percher's breathing began to accelerate as she anxiously exclaimed, "Wh-what the hell do you think you're doing!? Get your hand out of there...!"
Without ceasing his actions, Vahn asked, "If our positions were reversed, would you listen to my pleas? Or would they simply make you excited...?"
Though the only sensation she felt as a result of Vahn's invasive actions was a feeling of warmth spreading through her abdomen, Black Percher did her best to writhe about as she exclaimed, "You...you don't know what you're talking about!"
Even with her Divinity sealed, Black Percher was so used to speaking the truth that she didn't consider lying. Instead, she was doing everything in her power to avoid answering Vahn's questions. If he knew the truth, that she would delight in every moment of his suffering, she had no doubt he would return the favor in excess.
Seeing through the panicking Demoness's thoughts, Vahn had to resist the urge to roll his eyes as he used his Godhand and Hands of Nirvana to purify the amalgamation of negative energy encompassing and polluting her Divine Core. He was unable to change her nature as a Divine Spirit of Vengenace, but he could easily purify the negative energies contained in the 80 million Spirits comprising her. He had done something similar with Weiss, and she had well over a billion...
Feeling a warm and fuzzy sensation permeating her body, Black Percher gradually ceased her struggles. She had no clue what Vahn was doing, but, whatever it was, it wasn't painful. In fact, it was feeling better with each passing moment. As outlandish as it sounded, it evoked the distant memory of the time when she would rest her head against her mother's lap, the warm rays of the Sun beating down on her as a cool breeze blew over the meadow where they frequently picnicked...
In a markedly calmer voice than before, Black Percher listlessly inquired, "What are you...doing to me...?"
Retracting his hand from Black Percher's body, Vahn's smile softened as he replied, "I'm fulfilling the sincerest desire you and the eighty million Spirits within you have harbored these past seven centuries. I'm healing you..."
Despite the indescribably pleasant feelings permeating her body, Black Percher managed a severe pout as she softly complained, "You have no right..."
Without missing a beat, Vahn ruffled the petite Demoness's purple hair as he retorted, "I have about as much as your right to infect others..."
Unable to avoid Vahn's palm, Black Percher's pout amplified as she tried, in vain, to snap at him with her small but prominent fangs. With her horn-like hair accessory vaguely resembling the ears of a cat, she gave off the impression of a stray yet declawed kitten. She was very, very aggressive, but ultimately harmless...
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(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'The bad guy, moments before their defeat: "You cannot hope to defeat me!"','Black Percher's behavior reminds me of that 'very angry frog' meme...','Now she is going to be running around like Eula, screaming, "Vengeance!" without any genuine animosity xD...')

Chapter 2284: Interruption