(Suggested Chapter song: The Night we met by Lord Huron)

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Yes.

Ivory had come back with a person.

She had gone into the woods and eliminated an entire family, save for a young boy.

—A young boy she named Alphine.

Surprisingly, her family didn't mind that she brought home a person instead of an animal.

In fact, her father saw this and smiled. He congratulated her for the effort.

At first, Ivory was cruel to him, attempting to treat him like she saw her mates treat their pets.

But he would not respond.

Even feeding him did no good. Then again, this was expected, as she did kill his entire family.

Regardless, things progressed. And over time, he eventually warmed up to her.

Surprisingly, the two shared a deep bond.

She named him Alphine, like the flower that grew regardless of its very toxic environment.

They would sit under the stars and plan their future together.

She believed with Alphine by her side, she could even reach the sky.

When it was cold at night, he would cuddle her, and when she was upset, he would make silly faces to cheer her up.

Alphine even helped her sabotage the pets of the other kids.

And in return, she taught him how to read, fight, and even act like a noble.

He filled her world as she did his.

In her life, she had never been so happy.

—Until that day.

The day the order came to kill all pets.

The day her world turned upside down.

The worst part was that in some twisted game by the higher-ups, Alphine was also given a dagger.

Not just to defend himself, but for the opportunity to kill her and take her place.

That day, their bond was not the only thing that broke.

As she watched his eyes drain of life, blood pooling underneath him, something else in her...

Cracked.

The tears fell, an unending stream of her unbecoming.

Her fingers had moved, closing the lids of his lifeless eyes.

And all she could think of was...

"So pitiful..."

As she presented the ticket that let her bond with her shade, she left behind anything that remotely made her human.

At least, that was the story she remembered...

....

Soren raised his head to her. "Do you think me, Alphine?"

"Do you think me a toy to twill in-between your fingers as you want? Or to strive to please you, after ruining my world... My friends... MY FAMILY!?"

Images flashed.

Alphine. Dried lips, skinny, in a cage, shaky fingers that bleed at the edge from scraping against the bars, begging her for food.

The image scrambled.

"Liar!" She muttered. However, her legs took several steps back.

"Oh, you don't remember? The reason you found him to be so... pitiful." Soren advanced towards her. He limped a bit, but his gaze was focused, as his words filled with the slaps of reality.

"You entered the woods, slaughtered a peaceful family of three, took their child, and made him become your emotional bin...

...to dump all your frustrations and pain. Then you gave him conditions to win your love... to hunt your brothers and sisters for you... to thin your COMPETITION."

The images continued flashing in her mind as she backed away. Some were of Alphine smiling, others skinning and begging to be ended.

"No... I... I loved him. He loved me... He did those things for me... Because he..."

She froze.

She remembered his words when the dagger had been handed to him—the opportunity to fight for his freedom.

"I. HATE. YOU."

~Silence.

Her soul energy exploded. "NO!!!"

Soren took a step back, and then another. But no more, leaning forward against the storm of soul energy pushing him back.

She had so much of it. No doubt, the more forms unlocked, the deeper the soul energy well.

It was getting difficult to breathe, but this would not stop him.

Her eyes had taken a redder color, veined at the edges. Her Shade's wounds were beginning to show.

Pupils suddenly moved on their own. Her skin went from pale to blistering green.

Now she looked more like a frog.

Her gaze settled on him. "I'll kill you."

Soren smirked, "That's my line. Do you remember when I said, 'We are finally alone?'"

He pointed his soul steel dagger at her, slowly filling it with his soul energy.

However, she chuckled. "Just because I called you a miracle worker, you have let praises go to your head. Right now, I am in my second form. Do you think a cadet, son of a Dungie... an F-rank trash like you would be able to touch me? I'll turn your skull into a bowl and your..."

Soren muttered, "First Form: Thief's Void."

-Silence.

The world suddenly turned gray.

Quiet.

Ivory could still move, but something was not right.

Then she noticed that the dust and stones her soul energy blasted away slowed in midair.

And then Soren appeared before her.

The first blow he gave was a blast of flames.

Booofffff...

She barely dodged to the right, but the flames scorched her entire left side.

One eye widened. Baffled.

How?

'Is he not F-rank? That is firepower comparable to an SS-rank's...'

—The next attack was ice, then a storm of electricity.

'No. A-rank. C-rank. B-rank.

Boom.

Boom.

Boom.

The colors kept changing: red, blue, and green.

Her mind could not wrap around the changes.

A flurry of different elements, no... it was different soul energies.

Soren was bombarding her body with all of them. If not that all the attacks were far below her power level, just one of those attacks should have ended her.

Still. How was he able to change soul energies like that?

There was no time to think. At this rate, she would die if she did not attack back. There was only so much her soul energy could take.

"Fourth Form..."

She coughed up a mouthful of blood. A failed attempt.

Her Shade was badly wounded because she fed it to the Eldritch. As such, she could not use its power like she normally would.

She had to do something. She panicked.

Soren's voice reached her. "Forgive me, I only recently learned this. I can tell I'm not using it to its full potential...

Unfortunately, I can't let you tell anyone about it.

The soul energy around Soren changed again. It glowed purple. Meaning he was now using the power of a B-rank soul.

But this was no ordinary one. Unlike the others, it had years of experience behind it.

He took the best stance, forcing all his remaining soul energy into his fist.

"Go cuddle your sins in hell, dumb bitch!"

Soren punched upwards.

The Bulb's soul.

The Punch's impact doubled, then tripled.

Breaking past her remaining soul energy.

Her ribs shattered.

Blood and meat paste bursting behind her.

She looked below.

Shocked.

A million words. Questions. But she would never have the opportunity to ask them.

She fell to the ground.

Dead.

Soren looked at her. He spat on the ground... "Pitiful!"

He staggered. He had burnt up all his soul energy using the power of all the souls Chronovore had consumed.

He fell. Fainted...

(Author's Note: Stay tuned, guys; it gets better. Also, please send gifts and Golden Tickets. Thank You.)

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