Wolf of the Blood Moon - Book 4 - Chapter 88 - A Spark to the Flame (Patreon)

                                                Scarlet’s Room in the Demon King’s Castle

Raiden Akuma stands at the edge of Scarlet’s room with her hands held neatly in front of her and her eyes closed, her nine tails completely stationary behind her, merged so that they appear to be only a single tail as a matter of convenience. And she continues standing in silence as she listens to the ongoing events within the throne room, uncaring about whether or not she might draw Arkaz’s ire. Because she knows he would never harm her for a matter as simple as eavesdropping. Not when she’s been serving as his head maid for years upon years now, and not when her mother is the clan leader of one of the seven clans.

After several seconds of eavesdropping, she frowns ever so slightly, making a perfect mental image of the screen the Demon King is looking at showing the demon forces finally beginning to push past the clockwork golems made by the monster of the humans. Showing the humans beginning to lose the battle, and therefore the entire war.

And showing the Knights very nearly defeated, Black, Blue, and Red all lying on the ground struggling to get up while White barely manages to stand with her hand covering her gut, her hair completely unruly and one eye squeezed close from a major burn that runs partially into it.

This…

Akuma opens her eyes and glances at Scarlet, feeling a strange emotion running through her mind. One similar to her usual Greed making her want to play with the young girl as if she were her own little sister or child, but still different.

A feeling that has her unsure. One she has never felt before.

I want to…

She takes a step away from the wall closer to the bed before glancing back in the direction of the throne room, briefly noticing the Demon King’s attention turning to her. And when she notices his brief curiosity, the man not showing any indication that he rejects her current line of action, she focuses on Scarlet again and steps through the room, still maintaining her perfect posture and mannerisms.

Then when she reaches the bed, she plays a screen showing the current events on Earth and says, “Princess Scarlet, humanity will fall today if you do not wake up.”

Scarlet twitches at that but doesn’t show much other reaction.

Hmm… a little half-truth couldn’t hurt.

“Princess Scarlet, your friends may very well be in danger on Earth, as is your mother,” Akuma states, telling only a half-truth.

But Scarlet clearly doesn’t know that as she begins to shift as if in extreme discomfort, the black and red flames dancing across her body and the blood dripping from it growing more active as the flames grow and more blood drips, coating the bed. Then bright light shines from several random points on her body where Akuma suspects the girl is fixing her DNA, most of which being in her extremities. And the lights slowly begin to dim as well.

Looks like my job is done. She should now be using her Sin to control the Demon Light.

Akuma bows slightly towards the bed, then towards the Demon King who is smiling in the direction of the room, and then returns back to her corner of the room where she closes her eyes and retakes her original position again.

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                                                        Scarlet
                                            A few moments ago

I focus all of my attention on splitting my DNA, determined to finish it while I still have this boost in power. But out of nowhere, I hear a voice speaking. One that I unconsciously fear from my time with the kitsune.

“Princess Scarlet, humanity will fall today if you do not wake up,” Akuma says, making me pause for a second in my task at hand. I then continue pushing forwards again with more urgency.

I don’t know why she’s telling me this, but if there’s one thing I know about Akuma, it’s that she never lies. Or at least, she’s never lied to me.

Although she has told half-truths.

I push myself to separate my DNA as quickly yet still carefully as possible.

Then I hear her voice again and freeze in place.

“Princess, your friends may very well be in danger on Earth, as is your mother,” Akuma states, her strictly polite yet ambiguous voice echoing in my mind. And the moment I hear it, I feel something snap, along with the sound of my Sin of Pride shouting louder than ever before in my mind.

“DO NOT LET OTHERS TAKE WHAT IS UNDER YOUR PROTECTION!!!!”

And for the first time ever, I agree with it.

A shattering sound echoes in my mind as I feel a wave of power flood me along with a wave of heat to match it. There’s also a strange sensation as if my body is getting soaked in some sort of liquid, but I ignore that sensation as I focus on the power and begin shattering the fractured boundaries between strands of DNA back to back at a speed several dozen times faster than before.

I don’t know what the hell is going on out there, but I will not let them die!!!

Emotions I’ve never really felt before fill me from head to toe as memories of times I’ve spent with them – memories I didn’t care too much about before but now feel are important – fill my mind. And along with those memories, I feel a burning sense of Pride. One driving me to protect all those I consider my pack. My kin.

And as if driven by my Sin, the power I feel flooding me grows even stronger, finally making me realize what it is.

The only thing that is fed this strongly by a demon’s Sin.

Demon Light.

For the first time since I fell into the coma, I feel my lips quirking up to form a full grin as I push through shattering fracture after fracture between my DNA strands.

Time to finish this.

I’ve been asleep for long enough.

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