"So you're telling me you were part of the Tyrs' Royal Family?"
"Something like that." Zephyr admitted.
"Why kill them then?"
"They... It's a long story."
"I have time." Raven pressed.
Sigh-
"Well, if you really need to know, I was part of the Royal Family... That is not how the Tyrs refer to it, but we will refer to it as such."
Raven nodded.
"Part of the Royal Family, but not of the Main Line of that family."
"The Prince's... Or rather, the next King's cousin?"
"Essentially, yes."
Raven's eyebrows dropped.
"A common battle for the throne involving jealousy, resentment, and backstabbing? Is that what it was? Please tell me it wasn't."
Zephyr found the Vampire Lord's interest in the past affair strange. Extremely strange.
"What if it was?" He asked.
"Then my interest for the rest has died. I'll just go now."
As soon as Raven said that, he started walking away.
Zephyr laughed.
Something that had happened too many times already in such a short time interval.
It was something he usually did not do often. Rarely does he, in truth.
"They... Well, to make a long story short, they weren't fit to rule."
Raven's ears twitched.
"Why is that?"
"Complacency, sloth, arrogance... To name a few. The Tyrs are proud Warriors. And they were neither proud nor Warriors."
Raven raised an eyebrow.
"What made you think you had any right to judge them? To judge whether or not they were Warriors."
Zephyr stayed silent for a moment.
"Someone had to. And I defeated every single one of them, even though they..."
He didn't finish his sentence, which only made Raven more curious.
"They...?"
"Let's call them... Secret techniques that only the Main Line can use."
"Oh. Lightning, you mean? Red Lightning if I believe the rumors-"
At those words, Zephyr felt the urge to raise his Spear.
***
Even after he was left alone, Mark remained on the ground for a while.
Of course, it could be argued that he had been alone the whole time.
His body ached a bit less, but he could tell.
'I'd like to Devour some Monsters to recover faster but...'
Mark glanced at the lever to his side.
He was convinced that pulling it would take him back to the First Floor.
After all, there was no reason to assume the platform could only move in one direction.
Even though it would allow him to recover much faster, Mark did not move towards the lever.
He remained on the ground.
'If I go back to the First Floor, Nia... Or Draconia? Would be able to see me again. That guy leaving instead of acting as a Guide outside wasn't part of the plan. Draconia probably doesn't know about that, and going back would alert her.'
Sigh-
'Who knows what would happen next... That Armoured Man coming back would probably be the worst outcome. I have to let her assume that, according to her plan, I am leaving with Raven. Only way I can get out of here without being held captive... Though she really did her best to not make it seem that way.'
Mark tried pushing himself off the ground, but the pain made him think twice.
Tsk-
Every spot hit by the stone walls or floor.
Every spot hit by Zephyr.
Every spot pierced or cut by his Spear.
It all hurt.
Mark simply lay back on the ground and waited for the pain to pass.
His Health points were slowly going back up, just like Endurance and Mana Points.
'If I leave the Dungeon now, I might find weaker Monsters to Devour. That would help me recover quickly. But... Was I to find stronger ones...'
Leaving the Dungeon now was a risky gamble.
Going back to the First Floor was out of the question.
'Then... What now?' Mark asked himself.
Instantly, a torrent of thoughts filled his mind.
A battle he barely remembered glimpses of after a certain point.
His Underlings.
Selfishness-
His Underlings.
A cold and unwelcoming world waiting for him.
His Underlings.
Deadly Sins and Demon Lords.
eaglesnovɐ1,сoМ Monsters and Humans.
His Underlings.
Draconia, Raven, Zephyr, Gaavah...
Mark's mind truly resembled a web of tangled thoughts. Tangled thoughts abandoned halfway through thinking them.
And the fact that his mind was so chaotic irritated him greatly.
The fact that he didn't even have control over his own mind.
The fact that she could pop up and-
Mark took a deep breath in.
'Focus...'
He slowly breathed out.
'What can I do... Right now? What's the best thing to do...?'
Focusing his thoughts on such questions seemed like a much better use of his time as he waited to recover. A more productive use of his time.
But quickly,
'Elisa's Request. I'll have to hear it before leaving... I'll have to hear it...'
Mark was reminded of something.
'Now that I think about it, I can also Request something from her. Request... Request... What should I Request...? Anything I could need from her...?'
He pondered the question for a while.
An answer made itself known a bit later.
It's time to break away, Mark-
Something he could Request.
Something Elisa would probably agree to.
Knock-
Knock-
Elisa and Krista timidly peeked.
The former knocked on the wall a third time.
"Are you okay?" She asked.
"Yeah. Just need a bit of time to recover."
"Alone?"
Before Mark could answer, the Moonlit Feline walked over to him.
"You're not even going to give me the time to answer?" The Monster asked as it stroked the approaching Moonlit Feline's fur.
Purr-
Krista raised her front paws and lay them on Mark's side.
He winced.
As if that was exactly the reaction she was looking for, Krista nimbly jumped and climbed over his stomach.
Mark winced. It hurt. Still, he couldn't help chuckling at the situation.
Elisa watched them from afar, a smile on her face.
In truth, she was less than a dozen meters away from them.
But for some reason, Elisa felt like the distance was much, much larger.
A melancholic smile.
