"Obviously… I just read your memories. You forgot?" Tongue said, not even raising her eyes from the fluttering pages of that dark ominous book in her hands. She didn't even blink, didn't even give him the satisfaction of a glance, just kept flipping pages like she was reading some grocery list instead of absolute corruption incarnate.

"Ahh… yeah…And I thought maybe you knew about this book from even before." Razeal said, just standing there watching her examine it like she was judging the menu of some cheap restaurant.

"No, I didn't," Tongue replied instantly, still not looking at him. "Everything I know about this thing is from your memories. Though, I have no idea how you actually got this book. Your memory of that is… blank. Just like how you got your almost every other abilities. It's like someone took an eraser to the important parts of your life." She shrugged. "But whatever. Not my problem. But I can tell you.."

"Yeah…" Razeal didn't respond more than that, just letting her talk while he was still very confused, his gaze glued to the book in her hand. Something about seeing it outside his body like that made him uncomfortable. It felt like someone pulled out one of his organs and was now casually flipping through it.

System… how did the book come into system space? I remember you telling me the book can't come inside this place. What's happening now? Razeal's voice echoed silently in his head.

[Because the book has chosen you and has bound with you, host.] The system answered in its emotionless, matter-of-fact tone.

[After you became a vampire progenitor… and killed so many beings… the Book of Eventual Evil finally recognized you and decided to bind itself to you permanently. Now it doesn't matter what realm or place you enter, what place you cross into, or even if you enter system space. The book is part of your being. You can summon it whenever, wherever. Even inside system training functions.]

Razeal rolled his eyes hard. Of course the system didn't tell him. Of course. Why would it?

He had a long list of "things the system should have told him before but didn't," and he already knew that list was probably hundreds of pages long by now. So he just sighed and let it go.

He gave up on expecting proactive help from the system a long time ago.

"Hmmm… this isn't a good thing for you, kid."

Tongue suddenly shut the book with a sharp clap and finally looked up at him, her cosmic eyes staring through him.

"You shouldn't have something like this."

"Umm…? And why is that?" Razeal asked, blinking as he watched her toss the book around like it was a brick.

"If you gaze long enough into the Abyss, the Abyss will gaze back into you." Tongue said calmly, tilting her head slightly as she looked at him with those galaxy-eyes. Then, without any hesitation at all, she threw the book behind her like trash.

The book passed right through the invisible floor beneath them, then drifted downward into the cosmic void, slowly spinning away. It didn't fall just floated deeper into the endless space below, like some corrupted starfish drifting in a cosmic ocean.

Razeal stared. His SSS-ranked book was just… floating away... Gone.

He swallowed but didn't panic, remembering the system's words: he could summon it back anytime.

Still, seeing something you rely on drifting off into infinity wasn't exactly comforting.

"Umm… yeah, I've heard that phrase," Razeal said. Of course he knew it. Anyone who had ever touched a dark novel or philosophical quote online had heard that line at least once. It was everywhere.

"But what about it? Do you think there's danger? Becausem. honestly I've already checked it. And I'm a hundred percent sure the book won't do anything to me. There's no danger. At least not the kind you're implying."

He folded his arms confidently well, as confidently as someone could in front of an existence that created galaxies because she liked certain colors.

"Yes, yes, there's no danger like that." Tongue replied, waving her hand dismissively. "Well, at least not the kind you're thinking about. Like… no, it's not going to suddenly sprout hands, crawl out of your chest, take over your brain, or whisper ancient forbidden messages into your ear while you sleep."

She rolled her eyes. "And yes, I know that's exactly what you thought when I said those words."

"Umm…?" Razeal genuinely had no idea what direction she was going.

"Do you even know the real meaning of what I said earlier?" she asked suddenly. She rubbed her chin thoughtfully, looking at him with a kind of amused curiosity, like she was testing him.

"Well…" Razeal hesitated. "I think I do. But I also think… that's not what it actually means? Since you're asking. So… what is it? Is it something important?"

"If you gaze long enough into the Abyss, the Abyss would look back into you. …And that thing… that is the Abyss." Tongue said it quietly, her tone shifting into something strange and unsettling as her galaxy-eyes focused sharply on him.

"You mean literally?" Razeal asked, obviously taking her words at face value. He genuinely didn't know what the hell she was implying. Abyss? The book? It wasn't like anyone had ever given him a proper explanation. Now he was just confused.

"No, that isn't the Abyss," Tongue corrected, shaking her head slightly. "But it will become the Abyss for you. Because that thing" she pointed vaguely toward the drifting book"is filled with evil, pain, cruelty, suffering… and everything the world has that is dark. All the filth, every twisted idea, every corrupted thought, every inhuman thing that should not even exist… is inside there. And you were reading it. Looking through it. Absorbing it."

Razeal blinked once then twice and Still nothing.

"I am not understanding what you are trying to teach here," he admitted honestly. "Like… what are you even trying to get at? Isn't it obvious what that thing is? A book full of… whatever."

Tongue sighed, long and slow, as if she was dealing with a very small child.

"What I mean is," she said, voice dropping even lower, "you are staring into things that are genuinely not meant to be stared into. Things that are not important for your growth, things no one should willingly look at, things no one wants to be… and yet you read them. And you keep reading. And even if you know the contents are disgusting, hateful, vile… you still look."

Her eyes darkened. The galaxies inside them seemed to swirl, shifting shapes.

"Contemplation isn't passive, kid. Looking at something every day changes you. It changes the angle of who you are, the tilt of your thoughts, the little corners of your mind you don't even notice shifting." She lifted one finger. "And every time you open that book, even if you think you're ignoring the darkness inside, it still slips into you. Bit by bit. Day by day. Until one day, you look in the mirror and realize the Abyss isn't looking back at you because it's watching you."

She paused.

"It's looking back because it has become you."

Razeal just stared at her blankly.

"I just want to gain strength and power from it," he said finally, shrugging like it was the simplest thing in the world. "There's nothing like that that can happen. I'm not stupid enough to be manipulated by some words written somewhere."

Tongue let out a short laugh. Not mocking. Just… amused. Like he was a child insisting he could lift a mountain because he believed hard enough.

"Oh, you will," she said. "You are naïve."

"I haven't been persuaded by it as far as I can see." Razeal rolled his eyes. "I've stared enough into that book. Only a stupid, dumb person would get manipulated by a book."

Tongue raised an eyebrow as if he had said something unbelievably idiotic.

"What I mean is," she said slowly, "you don't have purpose. If someone doesn't know who they are, what they want to be, or where they're going… and instead of choosing a path, they just… look at something long enough… they risk becoming the very thing they're staring at."

She moved her hand in a gentle circle, as if drawing the idea in the air.

"Tell me. If you don't know whether you want to be a swordsman, a mage, or a blacksmith… but every day you watch people practicing archery, what happens?"

Razeal blinked again.

"Of course you risk becoming an archer?"

Tongue nodded once.

"Exactly."

"Then how is that a bad thing?" Razeal asked, genuinely confused.

"How is it a good thing either?" Tongue shot back. "If it wasn't your choice? If it wasn't your desire? If it wasn't who you wanted to be? What if you became something you didn't choose only because you happened to stare at it every day?"

She folded her arms.

"You're not choosing. You're just absorbing. And that's dangerous."

Razeal frowned saying nothing..

Tongue stepped closer.

"It's not about becoming an archer. It's about becoming the book. The darkness inside it. Its cruelty. Its way of seeing the world. It will rub off on you, and you won't even notice when it starts. Staring is fine if you have a purpose. If you have a stance. If you know what you want. But you.."

She tapped his forehead lightly.

"you don't."

A tiny silence settled.

Then Razeal suddenly lifted his hand, stopping her mid-sentence.

"Wait. Wait a minute." He looked completely done. His crimson eyes narrowed as he stared directly at her.

"You're talking about purpose too?" he asked, confused and a little irritated. "Why is everyone saying this? Why is everyone reminding me I don't have a purpose? First Zara… and now you?! What's happening here? Why is everyone suddenly after me to make me realize I don't have a purpose or pushing me to get one?"

He looked around at the cosmic surroundings as if someone else might pop out and say it too.

"Seriously. What is this? A conspiracy? A trend? Some weird spiritual enlightenment program? Why is EVERY person I meet talking like they're part of the same organization?!"

System… tell me you don't have something to do with this, right?.." Razeal asked in his head, genuinely feeling weird now. Like extremely weird. Because this couldn't be coincidence. There was no way every random being he met suddenly started lecturing him about "purpose."

[I have nothing to do with this, host!! Why would I? What do I have to gain from it? They say what they sayntrust me. And besides… even when Zara tried to have that whole conversation with you about purpose… you didn't figure anything out, did you…] System said, sounding annoyed.

"I mean… it wasn't really that important," Razeal muttered in his mind, rubbing his forehead. "And I tried. I just… didn't find anything. How am I supposed to magically know what 'purpose' I need?"

"Zara? Everyone?" Tongue tilted her head at him, looking weirdly confused.

"I literally just said you don't have a purpose because it felt weird to me," she added bluntly. "Like, I look at you and… it's just strange? You're standing here but you have absolutely no idea what you want. So I thought I should help you. I wanted to help you realize your purpose. It sounded soooo cool. Like one of those great teachers in stories who guide lost protagonists…"

Her expression suddenly shifted her eyebrows puffed cheeks puffed out her whole vibe suddenly became… pouty.

"I was feeling dramatic and serious and mysterious," she said, puffing again, "but then it got boring."

Razeal stared. "What… happened just now?"

Tongue was literally acting like a brat now total personality shift from cosmic goddess to sulking child.

"System," he asked internally, deadpan, "does she have some multi-personality disorder? Why is she acting totally different from before?"

[How would I know? I don't control personalities. Deal with it. And STOP disturbing me. You said you wanted to meet EX-ranked villains? Of course they're weirdos. Handle your own problems.] System cut off its voice immediately.

Razeal sighed deeply. Of course the system was useless as always. But he pushed the irritation down, focusing instead on what Tongue had said.

"So… you're trying to help me?" he asked slowly, looking up at her.

Tongue nodded proudly, placing both hands on her hips. "Obviously."

Razeal blinked. Then, without shame, without dignity, and without a single drop of hesitation, he went straight to the point.

"Then give me some powerful skill," he said. "How about the skill you have? The one where everything you say becomes true?" He leaned forward, eyes shining dangerously with hope. "How about you just say 'Razeal becomes the most powerful person in the world'? Or maybe 'Razeal can beat everyone with just looking at them'? That would solve all my problems. Just… say it. Easy."

Tongue blinked at him like he had just asked to borrow the universe.

"No!! Why would I do that?" she snapped immediately, face twisting like he'd offended her pride itself.

"But why not?!" Razeal pressed, stepping closer, hands raised in desperation. "You can, right? It's not even going to cost you anything! Come on, do it once. Please. Pleaseeeee. It'll fix everything. Just one sentence!"

He even gave her puppy eyes. Actual puppy eyes. His crimson eyes widened softly, shimmering. He even tilted his head a little.

Tongue stared at him.

Then blinked.

Then leaned in.

Then blinked again.

"I can," she said truthfully. "But I won't."

Another harsh shake of her head. Total rejection. Like he had asked her to hand him her entire soul.

Razeal sighed loudly, dropping his shoulders... Trying to act cute..

"But WHY?" he demanded. "At least give me a damn reason. You're supposed to be helping me, aren't you you just said? Isn't this literally the best, easiest way to do that?!"

Tongue raised her hand dramatically. Not to strike him… but more like she wanted to physically push his stupidity away from her face.

"You seriously don't get it?" she asked, eyes narrowing. "You genuinely, honestly don't get it?"

Razeal looked at her blankly. "No?"

She groaned like someone with the patience of the cosmos being asked to explain basic math.

"Because," she said slowly, tapping his forehead with one long finger, "if I give you something like that… something that powerful… something you didn't earn, didn't struggle for, didn't grow into… then you will break."

"I mean… why would you even want that??" Tongue asked, her face twisting as if she had just tasted something sour enough to kill a dragon. "It's boring to get whatever you want instantly. I've never felt good about it. I can get anything with just one word literally one word.. and you know what? It isn't fun. It never has been."

She leaned back, arms crossed, her expression full of disbelief toward Razeal's logic.

"I genuinely believe you can't sustain anything you receive instantly. Humans anyone.. beings whatever don't value things they don't struggle for. It's not the goal that matters, it's the process. The journey. The climb. The decades of work that make the final thing precious. If you get something with a snap of your fingers… you'll never actually care about it. It'll feel empty. Meaningless." She wrinkled her nose. "And why would I do something so horrible to you? Giving you everything you want? That's the worst thing I could do."

Razeal stared at her as if she had grown three heads.

"No, no, I won't!" he insisted immediately. "I won't be bored! Just do it. I don't care about the process. And believe me.. I haven't enjoyed the 'process' of getting stronger even a little bit. Not one second. I'm perfectly fine skipping the whole suffering part. Just give me what I want. I will be VERY happy getting it from just one sentence out of your mouth. Come on, just do it.. please."

His lips twitched as he spoke. She was talking nonsense. Absolute nonsense.

Of course everyone who gets what they want instantly is happy. What kind of deranged logic did she have? She was upset because she "doesn't get to work for things"? Did she not understand that no one wants to work? People work because they have no choice. If anyone had the ability to instantly achieve their desires, they would obviously be thrilled.

Tongue shook her head, unbothered. "No. And that's final."

Razeal's sighed."Then what? That's it? That's all the help?" He exhaled deeply, pressing his fingers to the side of his head. "At least help me with something, please. I have so many problems. You don't understand how badly I need solutions."

He pointed at his forehead.

"Like this! Because I became a vampire, my head keeps hurting, my emotions are going insane, everything gets heightened to ridiculous levels. Can't you fix that? If you won't help with the other thing, at least help me with THIS. Just this."

Tongue stared at him like he had just asked her the dumbest question in the universe.

"That's not a 'problem' in the first place," she said, tilting her head. "That's literally how everyone functions. It's normal. But…" she paused, squinting a little as if reading his soul again. "Ahhh. I figured out what your real problem is."

Razeal blinked. "Umm? I just asked for help. Can we not go in circles? Just fix it. I'd be happy that way."

He was genuinely seconds away from grabbing his head and screaming. Why couldn't these EX-ranked weirdos just LISTEN? Why did every powerful being he met start spouting philosophical nonsense instead of actually helping? Why did they always sidetrack and lecture and monologue instead of solving the actual problem?

Tongue lifted one hand and suddenly a sofa and table materialized between them. Made out of galaxies. Literal swirling galaxies. Nebulas for cushions. Star clusters for armrests.

Razeal didn't even blink at the absurdity anymore. He just walked over and sat as instructed, sinking into the impossibly soft cosmic material. It felt like sitting on warm clouds stitched with starlight.

Tongue sat across from him, tapping the table lightly.

"You know what your problem is?" Tongue said, leaning forward as her cosmic eyes narrowed on him, almost glowing with irritation and some weird mix of amusement. "You genuinely believe that if you become strong enough… you won't have any problems left. You think strength will erase everything. You think problems are… well… problems. But they aren't. Nothing in this world ..no matter the world is actually a 'problem.'"

She tapped the table lightly, each tap echoing softly like ripples in space.

"Tell me, do you really think that if you became the strongest being alive above gods, above devils and every existence you'd magically stop having problems? No. You won't. You'll still have them. Because these things you call 'problems'… they aren't curses. They aren't punishments. They're literally just things that need your attention. Things that need your awareness. Things you keep ignoring."

She sighed, looking at him with a mix of pity and annoyance.

"And that's why you think they're problems. Because you don't want to face them. Because all you do is run. You keep running from things that require you. Things that require your focus. Things that require you to actually be present." Her voice softened slightly, though her words stayed sharp. "And because of that, you're never satisfied. Never settled. Never at peace. You keep imagining that you need more more strength, more abilities, more power when that isn't even the real issue."

Tongue tilted her head, studying him like she was dissecting his soul.

"The truth is… you never give time or attention to the very things you call problems. Instead, you misunderstand everything and convince yourself that becoming stronger will make them disappear. That strength will magically erase the things that bother you, the things that hurt you, the things that confuse you."

She clicked her tongue.

"But that's the dumbest idea I've heard in centuries."

Her voice dropped, calm but firm.

"Problems don't vanish because you're strong. Problems vanish because you face them. Because you stop running. Because you deal with them, give them the attention they demand, instead of pretending power will solve what your heart and mind refuse to look at."

Her eyes locked onto his.

"That, my dear friend… is your real problem.. Not your strength. Not your enemies. Not your vampire emotions. You. The way you run, the way you avoid, the way you refuse to look at what hurts you. Fix that… instead of trying to bury it under more power. That is your problem."

Razeal just dragged one hand across his forehead, fingers pressing into his skin as if massaging away the headache this entire situation was giving him. What is this… therapy session? he thought, his expression twisting somewhere between disbelief and pure annoyance. Why was he even here? Why was an EX-ranked villain someone who should've been terrifying, overwhelming, monstrous sitting in front of him talking like some cosmic counsellor? He sighed again, louder this time. Problems aren't problems? What the fuck was that supposed to mean? He genuinely, absolutely had no idea what to even say about this bullshit.

"You know what will help you? Solving everything?" Tongue suddenly announced with such confidence that she almost sounded proud of herself. As if she truly believed she was some great teacher descending to guide a clueless student.

Razeal didn't even bother raising his head. "Please…" he muttered, tone exhausted, sounding like a man begging the universe for mercy.

"Finding what you want. That's the only thing that's going to help you," Tongue continued, nodding her head like she had delivered the most profound truth ever spoken.

"I want to get stronger," Razeal replied instantly, finally lifting his eyes to look at her. His voice was steady, sure, maybe even stubborn. "That's what I want."

"That is not," she answered without missing a beat.

Razeal blinked slowly. Then he took in a breath and said, "I know what I want. I have thought about it. My purpose is to be strong enough stronger than anyone. As for other purposes, I'll think about those later." He sounded tired at the end, tired in that way only someone who had been wrestling with the same damn internal question for way too long could sound. He didn't care anymore. He just wanted power. Everything else could wait.

Tongue suddenly leaned forward slightly, her strange galaxy-filled eyes narrowing just a little. "You keep growing stronger just because some part of you still hopes for the day you won't have to be strong anymore."

Razeal froze. His brows twitched. His jaw clenched just a tiny bit. He didn't even know why those words felt weird, but they did. It wasn't anger or surprise...it was like she touched something deep inside him without warning, something he didn't even know was there.

"Do you want me to help you find what your purpose is?" Tongue continued, completely unfazed by his reaction. "How about I make you realise it? Who knows, it might help you. Don't you think that would be the best thing you could want? To know why you're doing all this for?"

Razeal stared at her, blankly at first. Then slowly, his expression shifted. His shoulders dropped a little. His breathing steadied. He wasn't convinced, not even close, but he also didn't have the strength to reject the idea anymore. The same question had been chasing him since before Zara even mentioned it.

After a long, exhale-heavy sigh, he finally said, "…Alright. Go on. I hope it works too. I'm honestly tired of thinking about this. But I don't think it's going to help anything. It's not like this will magically fix anything."

"Alright then!" Tongue clapped her hands together excitedly, like she had been waiting for that answer since the beginning. Her eyebrows shot up playfully, her eyes glimmering like she'd just been given permission to start the world's strangest lesson.

Razeal, on the other hand, was seriously reconsidering every decision that had led him here. For a few seconds he genuinely thought about getting up and walking out. Leaving. Exiting the system space entirely. Because this wasn't what he came here for. He expected some ancient monster, some overwhelming source of wisdom or terror, maybe a method to gain inhuman power. What he got instead was… this. A woman who refused to help him get stronger even though she literally could reshape the universe with a sentence, who seemed more excited about acting like a psychiatrist than someone who could give him answers.

Still… something held him there. Maybe desperation. Maybe exhaustion. Maybe the tiniest sliver of hope that anything, even a cosmic weirdo's lecture, might help him somehow.

Tongue leaned back slightly and nodded to herself as if preparing for a dramatic beginning. "Alright, let me help you fix your emotions too while helping you realise what you actually want. And since I have your memories, this is going to be easy."

She smiled.. softly, almost gently. Her voice lowered into something calmer, warmer, like she was genuinely trying to guide him and not just mocking him.

"So," she said, "let's start with the first question."

Razeal swallowed without meaning to. He didn't know why. Maybe it was because she said it so seriously. Maybe the atmosphere shifted. Maybe her tone changed. He didn't know. But he felt something coming, something uncomfortable, something he didn't really want to answer.

Tongue tilted her head slightly, studying him. And then with absolutely no warning, no build-up, she asked:

"Did you love Celestia? Or are you still in love with her? Be honest about it."

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