“This is a pleasant surprise. To think that Lady Bloodweaver survived that terrible battle.”

 

“Likewise, Lord Asmodeus, but I regret to inform you that I did not survive. I did indeed die that day. It was through some unknown magic that I came to be resurrected. There is also no need for formalities, my clan died out with me. I am no longer a vampire lord but a void human like my sister here, just Aurelia will suffice.”

 

“What do you mean by you are a void human? How can that be possible? Allynna, here should be the only one!”

 

“I became one after making a familial contract with her. My race changed to match hers. So in a way, I am related to her by blood now. That’s why I just call her sister. I even got the same system thing she has.”

 

Asmodeus scrunched up his face as he sat there deep in thought as he looked in-between Aurelia and me.

 

“This could actually work in our favor, but the risk will also be large. By using you, we could bring back the void humans. If you know of or come across anyone else that you trust, I would think about possibly converting them. The power your race holds is immense and would be valuable to bringing order back to the heavens.”

 

I nod in response. I know he is not wrong, but right now, I don’t have many allies.

 

“But we will cross that bridge when we have to. The main reason for bringing you here, Aurelia, is to do things around here such as cook and clean the house. We will also need you to go into town on errands, which you will also gather information. I will be teaching Allynna here how to cultivate eldritch mana. Since Aurelia is also a void human, I will teach her too when she has free time.”

 

“It is late now. You two should get some sleep. You girls can use the bed, I will sleep outside for now. I will work on building an extension for my self in my free time.”

 

Asmodeus left the small hut leaving Aurelia and me alone. I start to undress as I have a shirt I can use to sleep in. Usually, I would just sleep in my clothes or in the nude in the past, but I didn’t feel like that was appropriate with someone else in the bed.

 

As I stood there in my underwear, I heard an audible gasp come from Aurelia.

 

“Lynn! Why do you have so many scars, and why is there a branding on your back?”

 

At the mention of that branding, I remember that day and can’t help but get angry and grit my teeth. I calm myself down by taking in a few breaths. Since Aurelia is like a true sister, one that I can trust, I decide to tell her my story.

 

“Those…scars are from the time my ‘sister’ kept me locked up in her dungeons and…tortured me. I was born with black hair, and because of that, I was treated like trash. Neira, my sister, is a megalomaniac and was further empowered by our father. I received the branding the day I died. I had enough one day and gouged out her eye. That day she branded me and stabbed me in the heart. I was 8 when that happened, and I have been living alone in these woods since then.”

 

I go into further detail about my story, and I can hear the tell-tale sound of crying from behind me once I finish. I then feel arms wrap around me as I am pulled into a hug from behind.

 

“I am sorry you had to go through with that. I promise I will treat you better than that. Both of us have no real family anymore, so we need to stick together.”

 

I feel something wet on my cheeks and raise my hand to my face. I notice I am crying, just like that time when I was with Teona. A thought then flashes across my mind, they are my new family, something I haven’t had in a long time.

 

After we broke the hug, I put my large shirt on and crawl into the bed after Aurelia and blow out the candles. We lay there in the dark for a moment before Aurelia breaks the silence.

 

“That is still so messed up! All because of some lazy gods, you got punished for crimes you didn’t commit. Although, I am curious as to what you think about being a girl now.”

 

“I haven’t really thought about it too much. I just got used to it as I was too busy being tortured or trying to survive.

 

“Still, you deserved to have a second childhood. Yet yours was robbed from you by idiocy. It’s things like this that make me want to be the older sister.”

 

“I am fine with that. Having an older sister to rely on would be nice.”

I said while drifting off to sleep.

 

Aurelia looked down at Allynna with teary eyes as she brushed some hair out of Lynn’s face and kissed her on the head.

“Goodnight then…little sis.”

 

The next morning, I woke up with my new sister wrapped around me. She had a peaceful expression on her face as the morning sunbeams danced across her face. As carefully as I could, I unwound myself from her and crawled out of bed.

 

I put my usual clothes on and head outside. I see Asmodeus sitting on a carved wooden chair sipping a drink out of a small cup while reading a book.

 

“Morning, Lynn. Glad to see you are awake. You ready to get started?”

 

“Morn’in. I’m ready as I’ll ever be. So what are we doing today?”

 

“Today, we need to tear down your existing soul palace. Arcane mana is strong and all, but you are going against gods. You need something with a bit more punch. That is why you will be cultivating eldritch mana. I believe some worlds called it dark matter; to be honest, it is something that eludes even the gods.”

 

We both sat down on the ground and assumed a meditative posture. Asmodeus held his hands out towards me and gestured me to grab his hands.

 

“I will now guide you on how to tear down your soul palace. If you do it wrong, it could cripple you. Now close your eyes and focus within yourself.”

 

I closed my eyes and focused on my palace. I found myself floating in darkness, surrounded by emptiness. Then my old apartment room was gradually phasing into existence. Suddenly a voice rang out from around me.

 

“Not a bad palace. Like the idea, you did with your computer to hold all that arcane mana. Unfortunately, it will not hold the eldritch mana properly, so we need to rebuild this. You need to visualize a small part of this room being destroyed. You need to leave the computer for last as that is the container for your mana.”

 

I felt Asmodeus’s presence leave me alone in my palace. I sat down on my bed and started to visualize, taking down my room, small pieces at a time.

 

---

 

Asmodeus stood up, staring at a meditating Lynn. He walked inside the small hut and found Aurelia dressed and tidying up the place.

 

“You wouldn’t mind going into town and picking up some supplies? I got my cookware back from Lynn, so we can use that, but we need some food and other supplies. Oh, also, if you could let the guild know that Lynn is undergoing some training under the tutelage of Eldor the Enchanter, so she won’t be available for a bit.”

 

“Will do. See you later.”

 

Arriving in town, Aurelia made her way towards the guild first before doing any shopping. She arrived at the guild and walked in and made her way to the counter. A girl with short brown hair greeted her.

 

“Hello, miss. How can I help you?”

 

“I am just here to let you know that Lynn will be unavailable for a while. She is training under Eldor the Enchanter.”

 

The girl stood there with a dumbfounded look on her face before she was able to respond.

 

“Wait!? She is getting trained by Eldor the Enchanter? Actually, now that I think about it, it would make sense with how strong she is. Are you his assistant or something?”

 

“Yes, I am. You could also say Lynn is something like an adopted sister of mine too.”

 

“Ok, I guess that makes sense. I’ll let the guild master know then.”

 

Aurelia left the guild and continued with her shopping.