Azrael crouched, examining the soil. It bore so resemblance to the human world; there was dirt and grass growing atop it. However, just as he expected, the lands didn’t look fertile.
The earth wasn’t brown in color, but black. Dense and solid as stone.
’I don’t think it has ever rained in here,’ he analyzed, glancing back at the lava ocean.
The idea of lava rain passed over his mind, which made his spine turn cold.
Shaking his head, he focused on the grass.
Since they weren’t in the human world, every form of life was bound to be different. The grass wasn’t green but had a hue resembling pure gold.
"Planting seeds here is out of the question..." he muttered, eyes trailing towards his system, or more accurately towards Gravebloom.
The weapon was said to be able to harvest even in the harshest climates—maybe the gift that Seyra had rewarded him with could very well save his life.
He observed the nearby trees. Just like the ground, they weren’t normal—trunks and branches pitch black, while their leaves were the sa color as gold.
After inspecting their nearby surroundings, he summoned Cinder and climbed upon its back. In the span of a few seconds, he ascended high in the sky, eyes locked north. This was where Isolde had told him she felt human souls.
Azrael may be going there, but that didn’t an he wasn’t going to scan the area ahead.
The lava ocean was still pulsing to the east. When he glanced west, he saw how far the golden lands stretched. At the edge, when he squinted his eyes, he saw ice—or at least he thought he did, since it was too far away to tell.
’So I am in the golden lands. At one side is a lava ocean, and at the other, raging blizzards. What a perfectly friendly environnt,’ he mused.
To the north lay the ruins of a kingdom—small houses near the edge that grew larger the farther his gaze traveled, until his gaze reached the fallen walls. There he witnessed an imposing, breathtaking structure—a large cathedral. This was the most majestic thing he had seen in his life, no doubt.
To the south he saw a colossal canyon, with darkness so vast he struggled to think what could be hiding there.
’I’m not going there, that is certain,’
With his observation done, he dived and joined Isolde once more. While he did have faith in Cinder for being able to fly, he didn’t want to risk being spotted and attacked by anything that could fly.
"When we et those humans, keep in mind that they can be hostile." He traced his words over her palm, making sure that they were on the sa page.
"Don’t disclose any information about my or your abilities. The less they know, the better."
Even if he had to share information with the other Chosen he was stuck with, he wasn’t bound to reveal any of his potential weaknesses.
Isolde simply nodded, deciding to conserve her energy for when they really needed it.
The two began to walk, Azrael with a scythe in hand, ready to be attacked from any possible angle. Isolde was next to him, as calm as ever. She might have told him that she didn’t sense any monster souls, but that didn’t an he was going to relax.
’Could the flora harm us?’ His eyes hovered over the black trees. The more he looked, the eerier they seed with the way they were twisting into unnatural angles.
’On our planet there are at-eating plants—maybe there is sothing like this here too? Would Isolde be able to sense them, or are those things without a soul?’
His mind raced, too alert to let him relax even for a second. He had survived a lava tide—he wasn’t dying to an ambush.
Silently, as they moved farther north, Azrael’s ears picked up the sound of movent. A nearby bush with pitch-black branches and golden leaves rustled not because of wind, but because of sothing in there.
The Death Heir’s eyes darkened, getting ready to attack—only to be halted by Isolde’s words.
[Humans... three.]
She spoke with the intention to calm him down, but it had the opposite effect.
Monsters, while vile and cruel, were easy to gauge. Humans, on the other hand... were unpredictable.
The mory of Troy still lingered in his mind. He had taken the young, arrogant Chosen as nothing more than a nuisance that he would kill one day—only for him to sacrifice his life in an attempt to kill as many other Chosen as he could.
What bugged Azrael the most was he still didn’t know the whole point of his sacrifice.
With his guard up, he dropped into a defensive stance.
’Even if I were to relax, this would show the other humans that we have a way to differentiate humans from monsters from afar. For now, this information is better left as a secret.’
Just as the blind girl had predicted, three figures wearing golden armor erged from the bushes.
Azrael used [Inspect], since it had beco second nature by now. First, he focused on the blonde in the front—clearly their leader.
Na: [Jas Vaelthorn]
Race: [Human]
Ascension Level: [Marked]
Purity Rank: [Blessed]
Then his eyes went to the tall girl on his right.
Na: [Rachel Vaelthorn]
Race: [Human]
Ascension Level: [Marked]
Purity Rank: [Blessed]
The last one looked the weakest, his head was low, and he was visibly fidgeting.
Na: [Logan Vaelthorn]
Race: [Human]
Ascension Level: [Marked]
Purity Rank: [Chosen]
What caught his attention most was Logan—the nervous one. His Purity Rank was still just Chosen. That might have been normal when they were in the Moon Breakers, or their so-called Elite School. But here, on the corrupted planet? Everyone should have fought sothing by now. That ant one of two things: Logan was unlucky... or incapable. Either way, Azrael had found a possible weak link that he could exploit.
He took a step forward.
The trio were of the Vaelthorn clan—that ant at the very least there was so kind of mutual respect going on between them. He doubted pitting them against one another would work.
"Don’t move!"
He halted mid-step as Rachel raised her head towards him and looked to the side. A visible hue of red growing on her face.
He frowned. ’Did she just... threaten ?’
Jas, the leader of the group, arched an eyebrow, taking a peek at his companion before staring at Azrael for a few seconds.
"I am sorry for my teammate’s outburst," he spoke formally, making a small bow. "It’s just that your attire doesn’t really leave much to the imagination..."
Now it was Azrael’s turn to raise a brow as he glanced at himself. The Maiden Skin covered his back, but one could hardly say the sa about the front. His whole torso, with well-defined muscles and veins running all over, was on full display—with the only exception being the parts hidden behind hardened monster blood.
Since Isolde was blind and paid no mind to his outer appearance, he had forgotten how little he was wearing.
"Not much I can do. My uniform was destroyed when running towards the Rift," he spoke coldly. The word embarrassed wasn’t in his vocabulary. His guardian had only taught him a few things—how to survive and be heartless when the situation demanded it.
"Yes, of course," Jas bowed again before summoning a clean attire.
The man stepped closer, about to hand the clothes over to Azrael, before his gaze landed on the deadly silent girl that stood behind him.
"Miss Isolde!" he exclaid, dropping to one knee. The second the words left his mouth, his two party mbers did the sa, getting into a kneeling position.
’Oh yeah, I almost forgot that she is supposed to be so kind of celebrity.’
Jas spoke again—either without knowing that the woman before him was deaf or too stunned by seeing her to realize it.
"Miss Isolde, you must co with us at once!"
Azrael arched an eyebrow. "And why is that?"
Jas t his gaze, unwavering. "Miss Seraphina has instructed us to bring her friend to her, should we manage to find her across the golden lands."
He hesitated for a few seconds before continuing.
"And she also told us, should we find a white-haired man accompanying her, to take him with us too."
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