Kind and gentle as a feather floating on air, she was known throughout as the Child of Sacrifice. Every action she took, every path she chose, existed solely to serve others, no matter the harm it brought her.

This sacrifice should have been the highest good, but not for her. Others had mocked her gentleness and consumed her essence until she became a stranger to herself.

The endless self-harm for others' sake hollowed her out and left her bleeding internally. Alone, hidden from sight, she planned revenge… not to aid anyone, but with a fierce, burning need to see those who'd exploited her gasping for breath.

In this world, though, the Child of Sacrifice found herself trapped by the very thing she despised, sacrifice.

***

Halo's new quarters were significantly more spacious and comfortable than the dingy inn room, which hadn't even had a mirror or a decent bathroom.

He'd slept well enough, but waking brought confusion about what came next. Skipping his library session felt wrong, and he'd never told Boss he was quitting the cleaning work. Not that Boss would've noticed, the man rarely cared.

But still, the matters at hand needed more attention.

"You weren't easy to approach, so I waited until the moment felt right. I'm sorry for that."

Iris said, gently resting on a sofa opposite Halo.

He couldn't figure out the reason, but Iris kept apologizing relentlessly. Each apology came with a bow as if she stood before a monarch. Liam's nervousness had seemed severe, but this surpassed it completely.

"Don't worry about it… and stop bowing."

"Okay, please…"

She bowed again.

He rubbed his temples in exasperation. Her actions made it clear this was her Flaw at work. All he could do was tolerate it.

"Your Flaw is Coldness. You can create clones, and your posture alone tells me you're skilled in close combat. You read situations quickly."

Halo's expression darkened with his mouth slightly parted.

'How long has she been stalking me?'

Her intel on him wasn't particularly surprising. She'd made her intelligence obvious the night before. What truly concerned him was discovering he'd been monitored without his awareness. Again, last night, he hadn't detected her presence until she opened her mouth.

"I know all the important things about you. So you should know mine."

She took a deep breath.

"My Flaw is Self-Sacrifice, and I am what you will call a genius."

Immediately after she spoke, she began counting her fingers.

"I'm good at… well, tactics and strategy, even academics. But I'm really not good with people. Or emotions. Sorry."

Halo frowned.

"What about your True Ability?"

Iris weighed her thoughts for a second.

"It's not something we can use so often, but if you want me to tell you, then I will."

Halo gave her a nod.

"It's called Limit Break. Serving the God of Trickery comes with a price, torture. I can't use my ability unless I've taken enough pain, mentally or physically, that I'm practically finished. When my chances hit zero or go negative… that's when Limit Break shows me the perfect way out. Or the perfect way to win."

Initially, it seemed promising, but Halo grasped the danger inherent in her ability. Being a genius, she could manage losing her powers during a critical moment, but the torment involved?

"Don't worry about the torture. It's nothing. The greatest trick is making your enemy believe they've already won… and that's exactly what the God of Trickery delights in."

Halo shrugged his shoulders.

"It makes sense."

Someone with her brilliant mind should have no trouble determining who orchestrated the Chaos Eaters. Unless she already had that figured out.

"I'm sure you've heard about Aeliana already. So… what's your take? Do you think she's the one?"

Iris gave his words a beat.

"I genuinely don't know…"

She replied with a saddened expression.

He shot her a skeptical look, then paused. The truth was, he didn't know either. He had no right to judge her for their mutual ignorance.

He exhaled.

"She told me something strange, that maybe something takes over her and she isn't conscious of it. If that's true… what if her ability is acting on its own?"

Iris shook her head.

"Impossible. Every ability requires the user's full awareness to manifest. And as for the Chaos Eaters, they aren't the product of any True Ability."

Halo's expression darkened.

"How's that?"

Iris adjusted herself on her seat.

"Abilities come from within… from personality, Flaw, and the desire tied to your Only Sin. Everything you went through as a child shaped what you hoped for. Your Sin simply turned that hope into power."

Her eyes began darting on the floor as though weighing her thoughts.

"When I was little, all I ever wanted was to have the last laugh. When people hurt me, I wished I could make them feel that sting the moment they thought they'd won. That desire is what became Limit Break. Even if I'd been under a different god, that same longing would've turned into some other version of this ability."

Her golden eyes darted into Halo's lazy blue ones. She immediately tried to explain again, but Halo's lazy look wasn't because he didn't understand, he actually did.

If Iris served any other god like Darkness, her ability wouldn't have emerged at the brink of defeat, it would stem from darkness itself. And if she served the God of Despair, it would come directly from her inner loneliness.

He never knew how True Abilities were issued, but at least now he knew it wasn't random. Though he couldn't fathom what childhood wish gave him the Death Clone ability, at least he knew the gods weren't playing favorites.

"It's impossible for someone to have willed the Chaos Eaters into being… we didn't even know this world existed."

She paused for a moment and bowed her head.

"I'm very sorry. I have a theory."

Halo gave her a subtle nod.

"Whoever is behind this is either using a divine gift to make them… or they were a scientist in their past life."

With everything handed to him on a plate, Halo finally understood. If Aeliana couldn't use her ability unconsciously, she must know something valuable.

But something else remained elusive: how were they going to fish answers out of Aeliana? He was ready to torture her, but based on the mysteries surrounding her, she had to be quite formidable. He was short on decisions.

"What should we do now?"

"They could be tracking you. I'm not sure, so we'll hold off for now."

Halo ruffled his hair. He knew these actions were too reckless, too exposed. He wasn't as smart as Iris, the best he could do was fight, and that's exactly what he did. If the Chaos Eaters were created in a lab, then obviously their numbers had been noted.

But while thinking about this, something struck him. They were supposed to be three, so where was the last person? Or had he been wrong all along?

"Aren't we supposed to be more than two?"

Iris was distracted before turning to him.

"Yes, we are three…"

"Where's the last one?"

"He said he had matters of great importance. He will arrive when he believes we are worthy of his service."

Halo's face began twitching with annoyance.

"Cocky, huh?"

Iris nodded.

"Yes, that's his Flaw."

Halo rose to his feet. With nothing to do, he intended to tour the house.

"Why don't we work on something important while we wait?"

He asked and turned to Iris.

"Right."

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