***
Inside his Soul, Eris waited.
She sat on Her couch, before the sa hearth.
The projection position didn’t change as well; only She seed to be different.
Around Her, the entire world shifted in rhythm with Ignotus’s steps.
Or perhaps it shifted with each thump of what would’ve been Her heart.
Again, She could see through him literally and otherwise, and right now, She didn’t know what She was supposed to feel.
"Marriage..."
Eris’s tone was too soft.
Through the projection, She saw him moving across the city, humming, his cloak trailing while he played with a pouch filled with coins that jingled from his "honest business" and "entrepreneurship."
He looked as he always did—foolish and infuriatingly brilliant—but to Her eyes, that felt... bad.
She didn’t know what else to say to describe how She felt about his "marriage" move of his. Her heart felt... constricted, but She still didn’t know why.
A strange ache that didn’t belong to Gods.
Eris raised a hand to Her chest and pressed lightly over where Her heart should’ve been, and though she hadn’t felt it beat in epochs... it twisted a tad.
"What is this?"
Was it because he was going to get close to another woman? Gaia? Why only her? Why didn’t she feel the sa with rlin?
She didn’t know, Her power, Her very Divinity, was ant to overwhelm all emotion other than a certain few belonging to said Divinity.
Gods were made that way... pruned and purified until only essence remained.
Yet this mortal had beco a crack in Her perfection, sothing on which Her obsessive self could latch.
Through him, She felt emotions so strong that again, they ca through Her shield—irritation, laughter, warmth, and now this strange, infuriating ache.
Indeed, only now, with him, was She able to think of such things...
Only now, and sohow, in Her eyes, that was, again, far from a good thing.
Eris hated it. And hated even more that She didn’t want it to stop.
Yes, She knew that Ignotus was only doing this for the land.
She knew that he never thought of anything beyond that, but still...
It almost felt like it wasn’t just going to be the two of them anymore.
Perhaps that was sothing She had grown attached to in the weeks since She had t him, sothing that She didn’t want to ever change.
’...am I afraid to be alone again?’
Such a question got no answer as through the shimr of his Soul’s window, the image expanded, grabbing Her attention.
Ignotus now walked along the cobblestone path that led to House Gift’s manor.
He, of course, didn’t rush; that was sothing he seldom did.
His every movent was asured, and his posture was neither proud nor humble, simply his, sothing that She found in almost everything he did.
And while he seed carefree, humming along the path, She clearly saw his eyes scan everything: the gates, guards, and the walls, asuring where to strike if things went wrong.
One might not think he was on his way to propose.
Still, the manor he scanned was beautiful in that predictable, aristocratic way.
Tall white columns, gardens lined with beautiful flowers, and House Gift banners.
...how ironic was their banner?
A hand holding a lantern.
Eris only felt darkness from it.
She felt Her teeth ache to break sothing.
That was how She dealt with most of Her problems.
And yet, She couldn’t now, as that would only hinder Ignotus.
So naturally, left with no outlet to relieve such frustrations...
"...why do you smile like that?"
Eris began to obsess even further.
He didn’t answer the question, of course, but She didn’t need him to. She already knew the reason; it was his little thrill, that madness that always humd in his mind.
It was what made him so dangerous and so utterly his own. But now that sa smile made Her feel annoyed as well.
Was he that happy to be ruining their duo?
This was his plan?
To slowly push Her out?
In Her right mind, Eris would’ve never had such thoughts, but all this frustration and anger She felt had compounded into sothing dangerous.
If not released soon, She might just fully explode.
Ignotus, none the wiser, reached the gate where two guards stepped forward, one tall and armored in white, the other smaller, holding a staff that glowed with Divinity.
It was obvious they were strong, at least of the Shepherd Class, but Ignotus was far from intimidated, caring not for when they crossed their weapons before him.
He didn’t even look annoyed; he only tilted his head and waited.
Seconds later, the taller one grunted and led him through.
"Follow us."
Eris’s projection shifted along with him as they walked through a long path lined with white rosebushes. Every petal shimred, no doubt kept this bright by an irrigation spell.
Ignotus admired their taste in decoration while walking through.
’The red ones remind of your eyes.’
Almost instantly, Her cheeks went bright red while Her ruby eyes trembled and Her chest tightened, though this ti, for an entirely different reason.
Yeah, that relief She needed?
Ignotus had provided it just like that.
Without even knowing it, he saved both his life and Hers. A cycle that repeated many a ti without his knowledge.
’T-Thank you.’
Ignotus humd back as the doors ahead of him opened.
They revealed a hall of ivory, too polished to be anything but pretentious.
At the end of it, a familiar man waited, the sa blonde, long-bearded noble She’d seen before through Ignotus’s eyes.
Theodore Gift.
Eris’s gaze darkened, Her blush disappearing.
Her Will rose just a fraction, enough to make the Soul around Her quake.
If She had a physical form and if She were there in the flesh, She would’ve erased that man from existence for even looking at Ignotus in the way he now did.
But She wasn’t there... not yet.
"Ah, Lord Theodore~."
So She watched.
"It’s nice to see you again."
The blond noble’s expression soured further.
"Be thankful I didn’t kick you out at the gate."
He didn’t even try to hide his disdain.
"What are you here for, you Demon?"
That word made Eris’s fingers twitch.
’How dare—’
But Ignotus only scoffed and bowed slightly, in that mocking way he loved to pull off.
"I’m here to propose to your bastard."
Eris paused, and the projection flickered.
’This...’
It had nearly failed from the sudden surge inside Her.
’...this really hurts.’
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