After finishing breakfast that Be had provided for me, I decided to move around a bit; I was feeling a little restless for some reason.

“Human, you’re doing it again.”

“Hm?” My thoughts were interrupted by the eyeball as they stared at me.

“You’re biting your fingernails,” they pointed out. Only just realizing it now, I quickly retracted my hand. “Ah.”

The yellow-winged eyeball shook their head. “I’ll tell you what, why don’t we—“ they abruptly stopped. Confused as to why they didn’t finish their sentence, I opened my mouth to ask but they immediately hushed me.

“You—“

“Shh! Someone’s here.”

My eyes widened. I spoke in a quieter tone. “In the dungeon? It’s not Ai this time, right?”

“Not the dungeon, no.” They answered before phasing into the cell bars to look out the hallway. I could see the small frown begin to appear on their face. “Hmm, you may have a visitor.”

“A visitor…?” Although the eyeball didn’t seem to like it, internally I hoped it would be a close relative visiting Raphael to tell him what was going on outside. I didn’t think talking to only flying eyeballs was healthy, even if they seemed to know the most at times.

Sure enough, I could begin to hear light footsteps approaching the cell I was in. I turned to Be to ask them if they knew who it was first, but I was taken aback when I could no longer see them.

“What… hey, eyeball? Where’d you go?” I hissed, looking around everywhere, from the top of the ceiling to the ground, and then turning around to see if maybe they were hiding in a corner.

“I’m here.” I heard them whisper. I turned to face the area where I believed the voice was coming from. “Oh, I’m invisible right now. Other humans are not allowed to see me, so I must take caution.”

I pursed my lip. I was hoping I wouldn’t interact with the visitor alone but… at least they would be watching to make sure it wasn’t another assassination attempt. As if noticing my unease, the eyeball had the audacity to chuckle.

“Dear human, don’t worry. I’ve been tasked to watch over you by my superior so I’m not going anywhere. I will be accompanying you everywhere, just like I said before.”

“Sure…” I didn’t know whether to find that comforting or creepy; surely that didn’t mean everywhere. I didn’t think I would appreciate having a flying eyeball monitoring my every movement.

I didn’t have time to question further when the ominous footsteps stopped right in front of my cell, and I turned around to face the most beautiful woman I’ve ever come across.

Whether it was because I haven’t seen another human in so long, or because this was a world completely different than my own, there was one thing I was sure of; that the girl standing in front of me was extremely pretty by high standards. I couldn’t stop staring at her, taking in her long luscious black hair that almost glistened in the dim lighting, and an enchanting pair of violet eyes that stared directly at me without the slightest hint of hesitation.

Even her velvety cloak and simple black skirt made her look like an otherworldly being. I was convinced that if she appeared wearing a garbage bag in front of me, I would still find her attractive.

‘I could never get my hair to be as silky as hers.’ I thought, growing a little jealous. I couldn’t turn my eyes away as I continued to scrutinize her beautiful facial features that complimented her fair complexion. ‘Honestly, she’s even got me head over heels.’

I must’ve been lost in thought because the girl suddenly cleared her throat, her eyebrows narrowing a little while still maintaining direct eye contact.

She opened her mouth. “Well, doesn’t the little cage suit you?”

Startled, I broke out of my inner dialogue, completely confused by her abrupt comment.

“It’s unfortunate that I cannot use magic here,” she continued, her tone suddenly shifting to venom as she carefully placed her hand on the metal bar. “I would’ve made sure you could never use those legs again.”

‘Ah. I take back my previous comment.’ I cringed. Maybe it was a good idea to avoid some people sometimes, especially those that clearly hated your guts.

I wanted to reply but I didn’t know what else to say; thank you for paying me a visit? I’m sorry that you feel that way?

‘No way, that might piss her off even more,’ the logical voice in my head told me as I cautiously scanned her angry expression. Just by that short conversation, I was already feeling exasperated. However, it seemed that she was not appreciating the expression I was wearing.

She glared at me. “What’s that look for? Did you really you’d get away with all the shit you’ve done?”

Ideally, I wanted to correct her and tell her that I wasn’t the real Raphael, but I knew the scenario that followed would not end well. “Answer me!” she demanded, growing frustrated by my lack of communication. “Did prison make you into a silent mouse or something?!”

I bit my nail; she probably wouldn’t leave until I gave her what I wanted. “… What are you doing here?”

I sighed out of relief when it seemed like I made the choice. She smiled, if I could even call it that, and bore her cat eyes right through me. “Well, I didn’t obviously come here to have a pleasant conversation with you,” she started, “I came here to warn you.”

“About what?” I asked, genuinely confused. The girl also looked surprised by my response but she quickly replaced her expression.

“My, my…” she giggled, holding her mouth. “So you kidnap me and that’s all you have to say?”

My eyes widened. ‘Ah, so it was really was true what Be said; this must be the noble Raphael kidnapped… for some reason.’

That couldn’t be any good.

I got worried when her grin grew bigger. “But don’t worry, I’m not one to hold grudges against those who hurt me… until they involve Idris.”

And that was the ticking bomb pushed me to take a cautious step back. I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a scarier expression on a person before—it was like as soon as the protagonist’s name was uttered, she turned mentally unstable.

I was starting to have an idea of who this person might be despite not quite remembering the name, and I prayed to god that I was wrong for once; I did not want to interact with her.

It seemed the universe wanted to confirm my thoughts because a guard suddenly showed up from afar, calling for the noble’s attention.

“Lady Nevaeh? I wanted to let you know that only 10 minutes remain.”

My heart dropped when I recognized the name. This would be one of the first main characters I encounter in this fictional world and it just had to be her.

“I understand,” the young woman (now called Neveah) responded, her sickly sweet voice echoing in the hallway. “I’ll finish up before then.”

And just like that the guard was gone, leaving the two of us alone again.

Neveah turned her attention to me again, scanning my face for some reason. “Hmm… I see the mark is treating you well,” she smirked.

I placed my hand on my cheek, finally realizing where the deep cut had come from; she must’ve been the cause of this. I frowned. “You sure seem to be enjoying this.”

“Why wouldn’t I? Oh, but I’ll let you know that I had more fun back there. If we had more time, I would’ve made sure you died in that fight.”

“Ha… don’t pretend that you didn’t already try!” I snapped, not really holding back much. “I know you tried to kill me again here, but you should’ve done it with your own hands rather than working with… others.”

I knew I was playing with fire here, but at least for once the strict dungeon bars would protect me from her fury.

However, I was not expecting the confused look on her face when I mentioned the attempted assassination from earlier.

“… Others?” she repeated, her eyebrows furrowing.

‘Was she not working with a Seer to eliminate me?’ I questioned myself. I didn’t have time to ponder the possibility further because Neveah seemed to break out of her lost state in a second.

“Ahahaha!” she started laughing, throwing her head back. I watched with a bizarre expression, wondering if maybe I caused her to actually snap. Once she seemed to have had enough, she turned back to face me, the look in her eyes revealing the craze hidden beneath the multiple layers. “I’m jealous. To think there would be a bastard who’d want to kill you too… I can’t let them take that pleasure away from me.”

She gripped the cell bar. “Remember this, only I could kill you. If I see you dead, I’ll make sure to resurrect you so that I could make you experience hell a thousand times before I end your pathetic life.” With every shake she made on the bar, I could almost see some of her mana seeping from her hands. I didn’t want her to back me in a mental corner but I found myself having a hard time fighting off the dangerous aura she emitted.

“And then I’ll make sure you never find peace, even in death, Raphael,” she continued in her acidic tone, dark eyes still boring into mine, “so don’t you dare run away.”

I shuddered. She was fucking insane.

No, Raphael was the insane one for even messing with her! How could he dig the hole even deeper for himself? Did he really just chase after trouble?

‘He must’ve had nothing else to lose,’ I concluded. ‘Except he’s the one dead and I’m dealing with his mess!’

“You—“

“I’m finished with you,” she interrupted me before I could even start. Usually, this pet peeve would’ve frustrated me and I would’ve snapped at them, but I didn’t think I had the confidence to continue the dreadful conversation anymore.

“See you in hell.” She left without a second glance at my direction, the footsteps growing quieter until I was back to hearing nothing but the water leaks in the corner.

I realized that I didn’t really like the unbearable silence. Hanging my head down low, I slumped against the nearest wall.

“That’s three now… I wonder how long the list will get by the time I’m out of here,” I laughed weakly to myself. It was obvious that the 2 guards and Neveah were only crumbs in the basket of bread of people that hated me.

And unfortunately, for all the right reasons too.

“Human…” the familiar voice spoke again. For a moment, I had forgotten that I was technically not the only one in the cell. I quickly rubbed my eyes, making sure I didn’t look like I was going to cry.

“…What?”

The eyeball looked like they wanted to say something but held back their tongue. Instead, they summoned a bit of their magic and before I knew it, a cup of custard appeared right in front of me.

“You like these, right?” they asked.

“Heh,” I nodded, a small smile forming on my face as I took the dessert and started eating it with the provided spoon. Sugary snacks really did help.

Be let me eat in silence for a while before they started the conversation. “I think it’s best we don’t tell Ai about the girl.”

Confused, I swallowed a piece before opening my mouth again. “Huh, why not?”

“They might break another rule.” I saw Be let out a small grin that I couldn’t fully understand. Whatever it was, their response told me it would be best if I didn’t ask.

“Break what rule?” The both of us jumped at the sudden voice. Speak of the devil…

“Ah, we were just joking around—“

“Tch, nevermind that,” they eyeball sent an annoyed look at their employee before bringing their attention to me. “I have news.”

‘Been getting a lot of those lately’. I sighed, wondering what awaited me next.

“Good or bad?” the yellow-winged eyeball inquired, curiosity peaked.

“Does it matter? I’m away from my home and locked in a dungeon where I could be executed at any time,” I turned to face Be in order to avoid the other eyeball’s gaze. “At this point, it can’t get worse.”

“I don’t know what your definition of ‘worse’ is, but your trial is tomorrow.”

***

A/N: Neveah is a lil crazy but she’s great, trust me guys.