When did I start calling him father? Scarlet wondered to herself after the Keeper had left her palace. It was only after he was gone that she noticed how informal she was with the man who created her. Such a thing would typically not be odd, except for the fact that she was the Empress of Bloodhaven, and he was the Keeper of all worlds. Such was why she had originally convinced herself to be more formal with her maker.

Was it because of Jenna’s influence? Scarlet thought back to the time she spent with an avatar attached to a mortal. Unfortunately, her lycan partner had perished in a battle against a half-god, with Scarlet unable to exert her full power until Jenna’s death. She had always believed that her core had not changed from that event, but now she found that she had become more aware of familial ties.

She stood from her throne, walking towards her office as she clutched the book against her chest. The Keeper had come bearing gifts, magnificent gifts for her. The potential to become a goddess, and a guide on how to expand her powers. Each of these alone would be things that she could only dream of.

Perhaps due to the nature of his past visits, she had expected him to ask a favor of her. Yet, he had left before asking her to do anything. He had told her that there was a need to bolster the power of the world, but had not actually asked her to take any particular action. To Scarlet, this showed a level of trust that she was not familiar with.

As soon as she reached her office, she went to the desk fashioned from red wood and set the book down atop it. Flipping it open, she began to read through its contents. At first, she questioned its authenticity, as she had already discovered the information within the opening pages.

However, as she continued, she noticed that there were more and more topics that she was unfamiliar with. Biting her lip, she even realized that the information was referencing lesser knowledge she had never learned.

Just as she was faced with the worries of being unable to fully absorb this information, a thought occurred to her. A long since forgotten right bestowed upon the representative of each race. Although the custom of appointing representatives had fallen out of practice, Scarlet herself was the original Voice of the Martial Spirits.

Goddess Aurivy. I humbly ask permission to enter the Citadel. Scarlet prayed for the first time in countless years. And as she did, a golden mist spread out from her feet, wrapping around her body. When the mist cleared, she was still seated, but now at a large table. Across from her was an unfamiliar elven girl that seemed to be drawing something on a large sheet of paper.

When Scarlet appeared, naturally the elf noticed her as well, blinking as she lifted her head. “Oh! Uhm… hi?” This elf wore the same attire as the Keeper’s servant, so naturally Scarlet assumed that she was part of the staff for the citadel. “Let’s see… red hair, red eyes…” The girl’s eyes drifted slightly downwards, and then back up. For some reason, her lips tugged downward and her cheeks puffed out in a pout. “You must be Scarlet?”

“I am… I’m sorry, have I offended you in some way?” Scarlet asked in confusion, seeing the sudden shift in the girl’s mood.

“No, no, it’s fine.” The girl grumbled to herself, shaking her head. “Anyways, I’m Dana. It’s good to meet you. You came here for something specific, right? We don’t really get casual guests.”

Scarlet gave a sharp nod of her head. “I would like to read all of the texts concerning ki.”

You sure you want to go through with this, boss? A female voice spoke up within the mind of a black-haired woman. This woman sat within a deep forest, light streaming through the canopy in thin strands. It’s not just your hide on the line here, remember. You still have a chance to back out.

“I know.” She spoke softly, her legs crossed with her hands in her lap. “But we’ve reached the point of stagnation. None of my shadows can achieve perfection if I do not lead the way. And without that, we no longer have room to grow. I’m sorry, Maria, but I have made up my mind.”

In order to achieve her perfection, they had left Fyor to rest in Deckan. Fyor had yet to unlock the Perfect Self class, so doing this there would be pointless. Unfortunately, her shadow was the Shadow of Fyor, so she could not hide within it to achieve her breakthrough.

Okay, then… if you’re sure. Maria’s voice spoke out again, before going quiet. She didn’t want to be a distraction for Thelsa at this time, afraid that one wrong step would spell the end for her.

Thelsa was glad for her concern, happy that there were people who cared enough to worry over her wellbeing. It had been too long that she was left alone with only her own shadows. And so, she closed her eyes.

The darkness around her seemed to stir in response to her attempting to break through and achieve perfection. She stimulated her ki and her mana, each fused fundamentally with her spirit. For years, she had prepared, merging these energies to increase her chances of success.

And now, it was time to put it all to practice. Thelsa grit her teeth, pushing her ki to the limits and causing her body to explode in a burst of visceral carnage. The trees around her shook from the impact, but it was ultimately Thelsa herself that was left the most shaken.

What?! Thelsa’s metaphorical eyes went wide at the string of messages. She could feel her energies steadily coming back together, guided by the vitality that had been absorbed from Sora. However, the realization that one of her closest friends had just died, that she was ultimately the cause, shook her to the core.

Once again, her energy began to destabilize, the ki and mana swirling within the air to become chaotic. Then, all of a sudden, her energy calmed once again. A new surge of vitality flowed into her. This time, her energy was forced to reassemble whether she willed it to or not.

Thelsa stared at the words that appeared before her, her body as still as a statue. Her eyes were shaking, wet from tears threatening to spill forth. Maria and Sora were her two oldest shadows, the ones that she was the closest with. And now, they were just gone. No warning, no great lead-up, their lives snuffed out like a candle in a storm.

Although she could create ‘copies’ of them, they would never be the same. The memories and personality that those two had built over their many years together could never be brought back. At first, she didn’t want to believe it. It had to be some cruel joke. The power she had been given had always benefited her.

But it was true, she could no longer feel the presence of either Sora or Maria within her shadow. Slowly, a figure rose out from Thelsa’s shadow, a demon girl in her early teens. Petra Carna, the third shadow. Most likely… the one that would have been lost next, if she had still failed to achieve perfection.

Thelsa suddenly remembered Petra’s title, the Demigoddess of Shadows, and looked at her as if she were a ray of hope. “Petra, please… Maria, Sora… help them.” Her voice cracked as her tears began to fall, her shoulders shaking.

However, Petra as well was crying, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I can’t… I tried… they’re gone.” Petra lunged forward, ignoring both the gore that littered the ground and Thelsa’s state of undress. She wrapped her arms around Thelsa and began sobbing pitifully into her shoulder. Her horns brushed against Thelsa’s face, but she couldn’t ask Petra to stop. Not when she needed to do the same thing.

For the first time, Thelsa truly hated her own power. It had taken away two of her best friends at once. Ultimately, she knew that the fault rested with herself, and in time she would be able to accept this. But for now, the Shadow Saint was at her darkest hour.

Ashley closed her eyes as she watched the scene of the two girls crying in each other's arms below. She had known that her champion was preparing to break through to unlock the Perfect Self, so she had been watching to cheer her on. She didn’t know what was really about to happen.

The Shadow Saint title was something granted by the system itself, and even as the Goddess of Darkness she had no real control over it, or power to discern its abilities. While she had expected some type of life-preserving ability to be included, this was… not what she had in mind.

From what she expected, when Thelsa died one of her shadows would step up to become the Shadow Saint. Logically, that would go by the order of their birth. Instead, the shadows themselves became fuel to save the Shadow Saint from whatever was tormenting her.

She wanted to offer some words of encouragement, comfort the two of them in their time of need. But deep down, she knew that if she showed herself, she would only become an outlet for them to vent their frustrations. If that happened, they may attach the blame for this event onto her, and become unable to change that perception.

So while it hurt, Ashley could only watch from above, clenching her fists. If it were possible, she would plead with Irena to return the souls of the two shadows so that they could be reborn. The only problem with that was… there were no souls to return. Everything had been used by the power of the Shadow Saint.

As a goddess, and one who had lived numerous mortal lives, she was all too familiar with the concept of death. She herself had died over a hundred times over. But it never became easier to lose someone that you cared about. To realize that you would never see them again.

Thelsa and Petra sat there for hours, crying until they had no more tears to shed. Even then, they didn’t move, leaning against each other and seeming to just rest. Due to the concentration of her energy, as well as the ‘supplements’ provided by two of her shadows, Thelsa’s body had been reformed at its natural size.

“I’m sorry, Petra… I shouldn’t have done this.” She knew that it was not strictly necessary to achieve perfection. Research showed that even becoming a god without stepping into perfection was possible. It simply increased the difficulty drastically. “If I didn’t… they’d…”

“I know, Thelsa…” Petra whispered, her shoulders shaking. “But you didn’t know. None of us knew… They can’t come back… they’re gone, and we’re here. I… I think Maria would want us to be happy.” As she said that, she brought her hand up to wipe at her eyes. Only making them more red in the process. “Stupid eyelashes…”

Realizing what she meant by that utterance, Thelsa let out a helpless smile. Part of her knew that Petra was right. When Maria warned Thelsa of the danger previously, it wasn’t her own life that she was concerned for. Rather, she had been worried for Thelsa, Sora, Petra, and the countless other shadows that had been created over the past years. 

Just like Thelsa herself, she wanted to protect everyone. And she had given her life to do just that.