“so you're finally awake"

Vanaker passed through the walls wearing a guilty smile. “how are you Death charmer? Are the chains too tight?”

Sef moved his shoulders, but the bindings did not budge. “they’re okay, and the room is nice too"

“you seem to be very comfortable to be a prisoner"

“I'm well aware of my powerlessness before fate. If this is the end of the road for me, then so be it"

Vanaker nodded. “good, that makes things easier then"

“easier for what? Feeding us to your daughter?

“the red lady will fulfill that role. Once my daughter comes back, you’ll be delivered to someone else”

Sef faked a frown. “wait, isn't your daughter the guardian prisoner thing?”

A spike shot out of Vanaker's hand and stabbed Sef's chest. “my daughter is not a thing"

“then tell me what she became so I can correct myself"

“as you’ve seen, she was tricked by that man"

“and?”

Vanaker bowed to hide his face, but failed to hush the sounds of his gritting teeth. “that man was a leader of a cult, and he turned my daughter...into the god they worshipped"

Sef chuckled. “and you think giving in to his demands will free her? I like you kid, but that's too stupid for someone your age"

“don't mock me, I know what I'm doing!”

“really? What's your plan then? Grab Celena while those crazy bastards kneel before her?”

“once the queen of heaven is transferred to the red lady, you'll be handed over to Parvanos as payment for our passage"

Sef laughed to mask his panic. This was worse than he expected. Aside from the risk of getting separated, he now has to deal with the problem of Erze being much more of a headache than she already was.

“listen Vanaker...”

“what? You want to talk me into a deal? Go ahead, I'll listen. Just don't expect me to bite"

Sef stared at the man's eyes with the most sincere face he could muster. “Parvanos can't be trusted. I don’t know how you missed that, but really, him and trust don't go well in the same sentence"

“you know him?”

“we go way back. That's probably the reason why he wants me now"

Vanaker smirked. “and just because of that, you expect me to trust you? I know your story Death charmer. You're just as slippery as the man you accused"

“it's not me you need to trust, but the king I serve"

“who? The king of this world?”

Sef grinned proudly. “the king of Hallows”

Anger burned away the curiosity on Vanaker's face. His hands balled to fists, and his breathes became loud enough to be heard. “after what my blood showed you, you still want me to believe in that so-called righteous king?!”

“No hallower reflects the king perfectly. Some fail while others fail miserably"

“why does he still chose servants then? If all fail to reach his standard, why does he risk staining his name with undeserving fools?”

The image of the white room returned to Sef, making him whisper the words he recieved on that moment. “I'm stronger than your weaknesses"

Vanaker blinked. “come again?”

“I'm stronger than your weaknesses. That's what the king said when I listed every reason not to make me a servant. It doesn't sound as good with me saying it, but trust me, if you saw what I saw, if you heard what I heard, you'll do what I did too"

“which is?”

“betray the man who saved you"

Behind Vanaker came a man in a red hood. He was shorter and was not as bulkier as one would expect. But his image alone, and the air that surrounded him nauseated Sef to the point of vomiting.

“so we meet again experiment one" he greeted, passing through the chains as he walked forward with open arms.

Sef leered away. “I don't go by that name anymore”

“so I heard. What was it again? Sed? Zen?”

“Sef! S. E. F!”

“so you two really know each other?” Vanaker asked.

Two golden orbs flashed underneath Parvanos' hood. “you should go to your daughter now lord Nightcount. The preparations are almost done"

“but our conversation isn't finished yet" Vanaker said.

“and ours barely begun. So if you please, give the two of us some privacy. I'll let you say your goodbyes after the transferring is done"

Though visibly defiant, it was fear that won over Vanaker in the end. He turned around stiffly and walked passed the walls grumbling to himself. A moment that distracted Parvanos briefly, but allowed Sef to link his brain with Vanaker using his forbidden authority.

“so, where were we?” Parvanos asked.

Sef rolled his eyes. “we're still here, in the underworld, inside an imaginary room...”

“oh this isn't imaginary, what you see is all real"

“you mean these walls aren't your work?”

“no, they're part of the castle my lastest experiment created"

“Celena Nightcount?”

Parvanos stroked Sef's hair. “it looks like the old man has already told you a lot.”

Sef put on a brave face. “I don't think he wanted to. Our bloody connection just keeps on showing things to me"

“no need to cover up for that old fool. I'll dispose of him and his daughter once I'm done here"

“just like that? My you haven't changed a bit”

Parvanos chuckled. “change is not something a want in my life"

Sef smiled nervously. “so how about the others? Do you plan exploiting them too?”

The golden orbs narrowed into thin lines. “which others?”

Sef measured his next words as careful as possible. He needed the right amount of truth to sound convincing, and the right coating of lies to hide his real intentions. “small Aurelius and his pet. What do you plan to do with them?”

“I haven't found him yet, but I did find a child in the spot I predicted he'd be in. Is that his pet?”

A relieved sigh masked as disappointment escaped Sef's lips. “why does it have to be the worthless that always survive?”

Parvanos sighed back. “don't ask me, I’m still clueless what to do with that little piece of meat"

Sef held his breath. “can I make a request?”

A kin to a chess player deciphering the opponent's move, Parvanos took a step back and studied Sef, breaking his silence only after one tensed minute has passed. “go ahead”

Sef endured the phantom's eyes and stared right at them with the closest thing next to unforced sincerity. “bring her to me. I'll need a companion once you lock me up again in some filthy cell"

“are you sure that's just it?”

“I'm over seven hundred years old. I know well when I'm defeated and I know better when I'm not"

Another pause went by before Parvanos gave his answer. There was no trace of doubt in him, but no hint of trust either. He merely nodded, and turned to the wall. “my brothers will pick you up shortly. You better prepare yourself to say goodbye to your dear partner. This will be the last time she'll recognize you for who you really are"

“wait!”

“hm?”

Sef bowed to hide his desperation. “please... let me talk to her in person one last time!”

Parvanos lifted his hood, uncoiled the white bun on his head and vanished, only to reappear seconds later grinning at Sef's face. “so you finally cracked that calm and collected facade of yours. Ha, I thought you're really going to lie to my face till the very end, but here you are now begging me like a proper prisoner"

“mock me all you want, just let me say my goodbyes"

“Myrno will be by your side in the transferring ceremony. He will read your thoughts and relay them all too me. Only the words I consider true will be whispered to her ears, while every word I deem as lies will be payed by her scream"

After his sadistic speech, Parvanos hid his head back underneath his hood left the room without a glance back, leaving Sef barely able to suppress the ecstatic grin rising underneath his defeated mask.