Part Eighteen

Kael looks at Sera emotionlessly. "You're a parasite... Nyssa and the other cultists are also parasites, though they don't realize it themselves," he states flatly.

Sera glares at him with a mixture of anger and disbelief. "Liar..." she hisses through gritted teeth. "Why... Why do you know so much about us? Nyssa is the most vigilant... no one would know about her unless they're part of our group," she accuses as she charges at Kael.

Kael blocks her aggressive strike, countering with a series of precise slashes. Sera, not to be outdone, coats herself in more mana, circling Kael rapidly. "From your response, I can see that you haven't talked to Nyssa about it. You haven't mentioned anything about your existence. You didn't want to, did you? You want everyone to see you as Sera," Kael observes, his voice steady and analytical.

Sera clenches her fist, frustration evident in her movements. "I assume Nyssa and the others feel the same. There is no reason for us to talk about it," she retorts, launching a strike from behind.

Kael morphs his sword into a shield, blocking her attack. Sera's frustration grows. "I am Seraphina... I was born in her as her... I have no reason to act as a different person," she claims, her sword now coated in wind and ice magic.

As she tries to slice Kael, he counters with a swift kick to her waist. Sera jumps back, gathering herself. "Kael, tell me how you know. I... I kept quiet about you. I know Nyssa wants you. I know you're purposefully hiding your identity. I did it because... I don't know. But now I see that I have to hurt you," she admits, her sword flashing with consecutive slices.

"You still haven't answered me. Is it wrong? Is it wrong that I want to live?" Sera implores, desperation creeping into her voice.

Kael's expression hardens as he coats his arm in aura, making a feint only to deliver a powerful kick to her face, sending her crashing into a wall. "What do you think? Is it wrong to take someone else's life for your own sake?"

Kael approaches Sera, his demeanor calm yet firm. "I'm sorry about your clarity. The reason you are aware of yourself is my fault," he confesses.

Sera, struggling to stand, spits out blood and retorts with a cracked voice, "Our lord made me who I am." Clutching her sword, she charges at Kael, fueled by a mix of anger and desperation.

Kael, touching his mask contemplatively, counters her belief. "No. You are a parasite created by that thing, but your clear conscious state is my fault." He infuses both mana and aura into his legs and rushes beside her, catching her off guard. Seizing her arm, he forces her to drop her sword.

Sera's eyes tremble, unable to process Kael's revelations. "Liar!" she shouts, attempting to kick him in retaliation.

Kael, however, overpowers her, pushing her to the ground. "You... are the highest grade parasite they have. I knew it the second I saw Sera on her bed," he reveals, his voice steady. As she struggles, he applies more pressure, forcing her deeper into the ground. "In order to keep you from completely taking over her body, I had to intervene before you entered her brain. I cut out a memory shard from her to prevent you from fully killing her off... That made you search frantically through her brain, leading to your confusion until you realized you're not her."

Tears stream down Sera's face as she continues to struggle, slamming her hand on the ground and breaking it. "I-It's your fault!" she cries out, her voice cracking with emotion. "You're the reason I exist!" She covers her eyes, overwhelmed by the revelation. "Why didn't you just kill me before I became conscious!"

Kael, feeling the weight of her words, presses down on her arm, gritting his teeth before exhaling a heavy sigh. "There's no point in explaining it. I'm going to end you now. But before that..." He flips her over and grabs her neck, ensuring she can't retaliate.

★ ★ ★ 

I look down at Sera, my thoughts swirling in a whirlwind of unexpected revelations. I didn't think it would be like this... I thought she'd end up like Nyssa and the others, not feeling, not fearing. If any other cultist were in her shoes, even if they discovered they were a parasite, they wouldn't feel fear or pain like this... They'd probably just laugh about it with malice. Hey system, what the hell is going on here?

[By sealing one of Seraphina's core memories, the original parasite searched and viewed all of Seraphina's memories in a loop, slowly gaining consciousness until the parasite evolved into experiencing and feeling emotions similar to humans. You are in fact the bastard responsible for this. If you asked me for a method to solve the issue, you could have prevented the parasite from evolving into a larva. Your actions brought forth conscious life, yet here you are, taking it away like a playboy God.]

Tsk, you stupid fucker. You asked me for way too many points! Like, seriously, I don't have enough points to give you. And what the hell is a playboy god? Forget it...

I look down at Sera again. She's not really struggling anymore, it's more like she's having an existential crisis. My stomach churns uncomfortably... Why does it always feel like this when it comes to stuff like this?

"I won't apologize for what I'm about to do... I can't let Sera die out," I mutter, my voice barely above a whisper.

Sera looks up at me, her eyes filled with tears and trembling with unspoken words. "You're... y-you're... I-I... I can't even say it," she stammers, her voice choked with sobs.

I bite my lip, feeling the weight of my actions. In my hand is a vial, glowing faintly blue. First things first, I can't just kill off the parasite. Not until Sera is back. I need to purify the corrupted mana in her brain and push the parasite back.

I break the vial above her face, watching as the liquid cascades down. Her face contorts in panic, her eyes trembling as the liquid seeps into them, traveling behind her eyes until she passes out.

Reaching into my pouch, I pull out a picture of Ash. Just then, Sera starts to stir, groaning and hissing in pain, clutching her head. "Oh, she's back already. That's a good sign," I think to myself.

"Hey Sera, sorry for making you wait so long," I say, preparing the next step. I grab a talisman and place it on the back of Ash's picture, then take out some holy water.

Sera sits up abruptly and barfs non-stop. She wipes her mouth with her arm and gives me a glare. How mad is she going to be? When I visited her before, she should've been able to hear me.

"Kael... I-I saw a monster... no, a human... no, it was neither—" she starts, but I interrupt her.

"Don't think about it, it only makes it worse. Now look here, I'm going to get rid of that parasite in your brain," I tell her, trying to be reassuring. But her eyes widen in terror, and she clenches her fist before punching me with all her might, sending me crashing back.

"Fuck, that was unexpected," I cough out, feeling a rib crack. I quickly cut off the aura supply to the broken rib. What's going on here?

"S-sera, what are you doing?" I ask, trying to understand her reaction.

She's coughing, looking down at her own body, confused and scared. "I-I can't let you do it, Kael. I saw everything... Even through the pain, I could see it all."

She saw it all? That's not impossible. It's highly likely she heard it all as well. She must have a strong mentality to have managed that.

"Then you should know that I need to kill that paras—" I start to explain, but before I can finish, Sera coats her legs in wind, dashing at me. She tries to kick me from above, but I lift my arms to block. The force of her attack pushes me into the ground, creating a crater.

My arms tremble under the pressure. "Shit, why is she attacking me? This is bad," I think. I could beat the parasite because it didn't truly understand fighting, but Sera... she's on a whole other level.

"S-sera, what are you doing?" I ask again, pushing her back with effort.

She flips and lands on her feet, panting. "I-I won't let you kill her... I-I can feel her emotions, Kael." Her voice trembles with a mix of fear and determination.

I turn my sword back into a glove and slip it on, weighing Sera's words and the situation. "It's too dangerous to have a parasite in your brain. It'll slowly grow back, and corrupted mana will flood your brain again, restarting the process you went through." Plus, if she keeps the parasite, the cult will always be able to track her down.

Sera, her hair wet from the storm, runs a hand through it. The wind and lightning intensify, mirroring the turmoil of the academy. She grits her teeth and looks at me with a mixture of resolve and pain. "Kael, you created her... I won't blame you for what you did; you did it to save me. But you can't just kill her like that. She's a living being. She's crying... I can feel it."

I rub my eyes, the weight of the situation pressing down on me. "Sera, she has to die. If she doesn't, she'll end up killing you," I say, my voice tinged with frustration and a hint of desperation.

We stand there, looking at each other, the only sounds are the howling wind, heavy rain, and thunder. Sera walks over to her sword and picks it up. "Kael... I'm sorry," she says softly, her grip tightening on the hilt.

"You're hiding your strength, aren't you? Ash said I'm weaker than you. You're smart, I know that. You're responsible for creating her the way she is. I-I know I have no right to do this, but I don't want her to die; she didn't hurt me willingly. I will fight you until you figure out a way to save her." Her voice is firm, her decision clear.

I stand there, taken aback by her determination. Fuck, this is complicated. How am I supposed to deal with this? Sera's ready to fight me, to protect the parasite that's threatening her life. I know Sera's a good person but come on... 

Breathing deeply, I try to calm the chaotic thoughts swirling in my mind. "Sera... Look around," I say, returning the picture of Ash to my pouch. "I'm doing my best here, for Ash's sake. I'm too busy trying to prevent that thing you saw from being freed to worry about saving the parasite. Please, don't make this more difficult than it needs to be." I glance at my watch. Damn, I've got about 30 minutes before I need to be in position to set the array.

Sera tightens her grip on her sword, her eyes fixed on me. "You've always been a mystery to me, Kael... I knew you weren't normal when I saw you break my sword back then," she says, pointing her sword at me with a determined glare. "I didn't question it because Ash seemed happy working at your store. You take care of him, giving us a life we never had. I'm indebted to you. It doesn't matter who you really are, because to me, you're a good person. And because of that, I trust that you won't hurt my brother or anyone else. I know you'll find a solution, so you better start thinking, Kael!" She then charges at me, her sword slicing through the air at full speed.

A good person? Me? That's a laugh... I'm far from it. But there's no time to reflect on that now. I coat my legs in aura and leap back, narrowly dodging her strike. This is turning into a real mess.