David's mind whirled with questions. The titanic system notification, the opulent chamber, the revelation that this legendary figure knew his original na—it was too much to process. Yet of all the important questions he could have asked, what tumbled from his lips was:
"You're a woman."
The chamber fell silent. Even the handmaidens froze in their positions, eyes widening at his blunt observation. The only sound ca from the gentle wind that swept across the open skyscape beyond the columns. For a mont, ti itself seed to pause.
Then Solomon broke into lodious laughter, the sound echoing through the chamber like silver bells. Behind David, one of the handmaidens twirled her finger near her temple, giving her companion a knowing look that clearly said: This is the chosen one?
"Did you imagine as a man?" Solomon's form dissolved into a mist of blue motes of light, only to reappear directly before David.
Her slender fingers traced a line up his chest as she leaned close enough that he could feel her breath against his skin. "How... disappointing."
David remained silent, unsure how to respond. Her eyes held him captive—those shifting pools of violet and midnight blue seed to peer directly into his soul, compelling him to confess every secret he had ever kept.
Around them, the handmaidens had apparently lost interest in the exchange. So gathered in small groups, engaged in whispered conversations that occasionally erupted into giggles.
Others reclined against the columns, fingers entwined as they cuddled. Two of them—the ones David had heard called Thalia and another with hair like spun gold—shared a passionate kiss that made heat rise to his cheeks.
Solomon noticed his startled expression and smiled, leaning even closer. "Sothing exciting you, First Son of the Fla?" Her hands trailed down to his waist, her touch electric even through his clothing. The temperature around them seed to rise several degrees.
David stumbled backward, breaking contact with the empress. "I'm—I'm taken," he managed, trying to regain his composure. "I only have eyes for the won who want to be with forever."
Solomon vanished again, this ti reappearing behind him. Her fingers traced lazy patterns across his back, each touch sending shivers down his spine.
"How noble," she murmured, her lips close to his ear. "I might have been interested myself, if I wasn't technically dead." Her laughter made the hairs on his neck stand on end.
"Technically?" David couldn't stop himself from asking, a tremor in his voice.
"Walk with ," Solomon said, ignoring his question as she glided toward the edge of the chamber.
David followed, his eyes widening as they approached the open expanse. There were no railings, no barriers—just columns framing an endless sky, with nothing visible below. A strange sense of déjà vu washed over him, as if he had stood at the edge of infinity once before.
"You're cleverer than you look," Solomon observed, watching his reaction.
"What do you an by that?" David asked, carefully keeping his distance this ti.
"Aren't you curious?" She turned to face him fully, her expression unreadable. "About how I know your true na?"
David considered his response carefully. His plan had been to act carefree while determining exactly how much this being knew. Did she understand he had transmigrated into a novel? Could she perceive the truth of his existence?
"Trials of Valor," he said aloud, watching her reaction closely.
Solomon's lips curved into a knowing smile. "There's no need to test , David... or Mark. I don't know everything." She turned back to the endless sky. "But I know enough about the body you're inhabiting, and why it drew your soul across the boundaries of worlds."
David studied Solomon's ethereal face, a puzzled frown forming on his own. "How do you know so much? We've only just t."
Solomon giggled, the sound incongruously youthful coming from a being of such obvious power. "I'm not called the wisest for nothing, First Son." Her eyes sparkled with mischief.
"Did you think this eting was re coincidence?"
David sighed, thinking to himself: Is eting Solomon so kind of reward for clearing the tower?
"Yes," she answered imdiately.
David froze. "Yes... What?"
"eting is indeed part of your reward," Solomon confird, twirling a strand of her silver-lavender hair. "Though the dungeon was designed for the last of my blood. But I'm satisfied with this outco." She studied him with renewed interest. "You're far more entertaining."
A chill ran down David's spine. Can she read my thoughts?
In a heartbeat, Solomon dissolved into mist again, reforming so close that he could feel the cool aura emanating from her form. She floated gently before him, her toes barely skimming the marble floor as her slender fingers stroked his chin.
"Again, wise," she whispered, her lips curving into an enigmatic smile.
David trembled inwardly. What kind of monster am I dealing with? He had faced gods and demons, but this ancient empress made them all seem predictable by comparison.
Steeling himself, Mark recalled his agreent with the original David—to protect and give Angelica a better life, while David would eventually reveal who they really were. But facing Solomon, he felt utterly outmatched in obtaining information that might help understand his situation. Still, he had to try.
"What do you know about ?" he asked, injecting confidence into his voice that he didn't feel.
Solomon's form drifted upward, and she perched herself casually on his chest, her weightless body sohow still pressing him backward. "You should be careful, Mark," she whispered, her breath cool against his face. "You're a successful experint gone wrong."
Shock rippled through him. "What do you an by—"
Before she could answer, a small crack appeared in the space between them—a hairline fracture in reality itself. Solomon clicked her tongue in annoyance, floating backward.
"It seems the Hero of Blight doesn't want to spill the beans," she said with a dramatic sigh.
David felt as if the floor had fallen away beneath him. "Hero of Blight?" The title belonged to the original David—the character whose body he now inhabited. "Why would he—"
"He helped once," Solomon said, drifting back toward her throne. "And I owed him. Debts must be paid, even between the dead."
Damn you, David, Mark cursed inwardly, frustration mounting. Just when he was about to learn sothing crucial, the original owner of this body had sohow interfered.
Solomon settled onto her throne, her expression becoming more serious. "The truth will eventually be revealed, First Son. But for now..." She gestured elegantly, and the chamber seed to shift around them. "We should attend to business before they notice your presence in my domain."
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