The Valkyries all had a moment to glance over their new appearance. They all looked as if they were in disbelief.

"For years we have been chastised for how hideous we looked."

"They wouldn't even let us out into the outside world."

"In the past, humans threw rocks at us, burnt us at the stake, and committed all sorts of evil towards us."

Selice watched her people's reaction, and a warm smile bloomed on her face. She spread her wings wide to garner their attention.

"Things are not how they used to be in the past. We now have an alpha! One who cherishes us and cares for us deeply. One who we must serve faithfully and loyally."

Selice spoke to her people like a queen. The birds who were once trapped in a cage would finally be free. They finally found a master that would open their cages.

"In the past, we've been hated and disgraced. We traveled the world to find a home, but no one accepted us. Not until…"

Some cried, others rejoiced. Hearing their queen recall the pain inflicted upon them in the past, brought them to tears. Some were also excitement for the new life that awaited them.

They were desperately looking for a savior, and in their desperation, they chose me. They faithfully gave their lives to me, clinging onto the hope that things would be better.

What else could I do other than meet their expectations? To be worthy of the pedestal they placed me upon.

It took a while for things to calm down and for me to finally get a moment with Selice.

We settled in a room that I assumed must've been her bedroom. The room was mostly empty apart from a few crudely built pieces of furniture that were standing on their last legs.

They really weren't good at building things.

Her bed was just a pile of fur and twigs lying in the corner of the room. When I stared at where she slept, her face flushed red, and she hastily tried to block my view with her wings.

"You shouldn't stare so closely at a girl's private dwellings," Khalissi reprimanded.

"No, it's fine! It's just that umm…" Selice panicked, most likely thinking she had offended me.

I rested my hand on the top of her silky black hair.

"Don't worry about it; it's fine," I assured her. "As for what I want to discuss, about the curse."

Her body jolted the moment I mentioned the word curse.

"Oh yes, the curse. I don't really know much, considering it all started a few thousand years before I was even born. It was back when the only living creatures in this world were Djinns and spirits. They all lived in harmony under the guidance and protection of angels."

So there were more Djinns that existed, and not only that, they used to live in our world?

Wait, back when I was first learning about the existence of Djinns, my mother told me that the Djinn came from another world. That also was all the consensus around Purgatory; everyone believed the same.

"I thought the Djinn were originally from another world," I said.

"That's what he told everyone, but it's a lie. It was so everyone would think he was a God."

"Remember, you also learned that this Djinn was a trickster," Khalissi chimed in.

"He was cunning, and with the things he could do with his power, you wouldn't find it hard to believe that he was a God," Selice said.

"Anyway, the reason this curse came about was because a spirit, a wind spirit to be exact, offended one of a angel. As punishment, that angel turned the wind spirits into harpies."

So that's how they came into existence. When their curse came into contact with my primordial bloodline, it somehow triggered an evolution. An evolution that turned them into Valkyries.

"Thanks to you, we no longer suffer from that curse. You gave us the chance to begin anew. We are no longer harpies or wind spirits. We're Valkyries! Your Valkyries!"

Selice smiled warmly, took hold of my hand, and rested it on the side of her face.

Valkyries, huh?

I looked forward to seeing the warriors these maidens will develop into. I could already imagine them raining down hell on my enemies from the sky, with Selice as their commander.

With this, my pack had grown a notch stronger.

"We will train diligently for you, Alpha, until the time comes when you need us to fight," Selice whispered as her black wings covered the both of us.

"I expect a lot from you, Selice. Do your best."

She nodded, and her grip on me seemed to tighten.

"Can we stay like this for a little while? I need to recharge until I next see you again."

"Sure."

Khalissi rolled her eyes from the back of the room before exiting.

I saw a slight hint of anger on her face as she left, but I might've been mistaken since I could only see through the gaps Selice's wings created.

We stood like this for what felt like a few hours. Her wings shielded us from the outside world, creating a small haven for just the both of us.

She hugged around my neck tightly, and I held her waist to support her as she had long fallen asleep.

Soon she began to stir from her sleep, and her eyes slowly opened. A small smile bloomed on her face when she saw me, and her wings slowly opened, releasing us.

"It's time for me to go," I said.

Her expression turned cloudy, but she nodded in understanding.

"I'll keep an eye on you with my all-seeing eye. It allows me to monitor everything that is going on around the city. Also, I'll leave you with a small gift."

Saying that, she pressed her soft lips against mine. Her lips had a strong sweet taste to them. For a moment, I thought this was the gift, but I was wrong.

Suddenly, I felt this strange energy passing from her to me.

[Congratulations, shadow ravens have been successfully added to your phantom pack.]

My eyes widened when I saw the notification. Selice immediately pulled away and stared at me with a smile.

"What is this?" I asked in disbelief.

"Did you know that ravens and wolves have a symbiotic relationship?" She mused with a teasing smile. "The raven locates prey and guides the wolves towards the prey. Though they aren't involved in the killing aspect, they still play a crucial role. These shadow ravens will play the same role for you. They'll be your eyes around the city or anywhere you cannot reach yourself."

With just a single thought, I tried summoning one of these shadow ravens, and immediately one appeared on my shoulder.

"This ability allows you to see through their eyes, but you can only summon 25 ravens at a time. As I said before, their offensive power isn't that great, but I'm sure you'll make good use of them."

"Yes, thank you. This will help more than you know."

Saying that, I reached out and petted the raven sitting on my shoulder. It looked just like a regular raven, except for its orange eyes and its feathers that seemed to be blacker than those of regular ravens.

"KHAW!"

The raven made a loud noise as I petted it on the head.

"I think he likes you," Selice giggled.

I thanked Selice once again before wishing her goodbye. I then went to find Khalissi since it was now time to leave.

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