(7)

---glug---

A black cup on top of a wooden table got filled with hot brown liquid, tea to be more specific. The vapours of the cup travelled into the nose of a woman sleeping on a quadruple couch with two pillows, one below her head and the other below her feet. She was none other than Saki.

"Sniff!", the smell of the fresh tea made her eyes twitch. Slowly, she opened her eyes. Her blurry vision became crystal clear, thereby finding herself in a wooden compartment sleeping on a sofa.

In front of her was a long table comprising seven chairs. Sitting at the centre was me, "Oh, you wake up. That's relieving!", with Kendor on my left shoulder.

"!!!!", sleepy Saki shook looking around her. I commanded, "Stop freaking out, Saki. You're now in my lair!"

She then found herself in a white bathing robe, "Don't tell me. Did you-?!", but I stopped her from doubting me, ""Careful, kid. I have my pride as a deity!""

"Gasp!!", she shut herself in fear. I raised my left hand.

---snap---

With the snap of my fingers, a pink-eyed woman in maiden attire entered the hall and served the tea I poured to Saki. It was Xona playing the role of a maid. She exclaimed, "I'm Xona. It was me that got you cleaned!!"

She sighed in relief, "So no one saw me naked? That's a relief!!"

"Pffft, actually, you fainted at the outskirts of this periphery. If not for you containing a faint essence of Lord Adrian, you'd have been devoured by the Kuraks instead of being brought here!!", Xona emphasized. Saki attempted, "Oh, you mean those huge snakes with rhino-heads. But can I know why you just laughed?!"

Xona interpreted, "Those creatures are called Kuraks. Unless it's for climbing, they never use their limbs. Meaning they crawl most of the time.

One of the elder Kuraks brought you here by crawling. It held you by its mouth due to which your body ploughed the ground until here.

Half of your skin came off while the muscles were stabbed with hand-sized thorns. Not to mention some of your internals turning into juice!"

";;;;;;... How in the world did I live? Moreover, why aren't there any injuries as you've described?!", Saki asked. Xona exclaimed, "Because, Lord Adrian destroyed your defected body cells and reconstructed them from scratch!!"

Saki got up and shouted, "What? Can martial artists do that?!!!"

Xona stated, "He's a martial deity!", with a grin. Saki shouted again, "I don't see any difference, though!!!!"

Xona wondered, 'Her reaction is just like mine. But why is she looking so cute in that rude expression?!'

Xona then revealed, "Well, I and my two companions were asleep when you were brought here. However, this morning, I was freed from metal bands and escorted here only to find you lying totally naked in the bathroom tub. Lord Adrian ordered me to clean you up. I followed his command!!"

With eyes dripping tears, Saki commented, "So I was caught uncensored. Now I can't get married in this life!"

Xona wondered again, 'How the heck is she cuter than earlier?!!'

Kendor exclaimed, "There's no point in getting married in the afterlife!"

Saki became puzzled, "Huh, but I saw some children alongside their parents in the city!!"

Xona interrupted, "Take it, the entire family died in a misfortune. But dead souls do not produce babies!!"

"Haha, there's another fun fact about the afterlife!!", I said. Xona and Saki attempted, "What is it?!"

I elaborated, "When two dead souls mate with each other, their lifespan in the afterlife would gradually decrease depending on the number of times they engage in it!!"

"What??!!", both the women cried in shock after hearing my point. Kendor said, "This is the afterlife, not the realm of living beings. Laws of nature in this realm revolve around a different source of logic!"

---thud---

Xona surprised me and Kendor by kneeling in front of us. Her eyes were partially dripping tears. I questioned, "Are you crying?!"

She nodded left and right, meaning 'no'. She asked, "Does… Does that mean… I'll have to remain a virgin even after death?!"

[I can understand where she's coming from. She did so many good deeds yet met her end with misery. She's craving for love, to find someone who can comfort her sorrow.]

"Waahhhh!!!", a loud weep resonated throughout the hall. I was shocked since it was Saki, "Why is she the one crying and not Xona?!"

Saki attempted, "Sister Xona also died a virgin!!!"

Xona asked her, "Don't tell me, you too?!"

Saki nodded in which Xona also began tearing up with her, "Waahhhh!!!!"

[;;;;... They're being immature.]

I commanded, ""Cut it out, you two!!""

"Gasp!", the next instant, they zipped their mouths amid sitting on the couch firmly. I sighed, "Back to the main topic. Saki, what's your purpose in accepting my offer?!"

She replied, "To learn being a villainess?!"

I asked, "Have you wondered why I made that offer?!"

She responded, "A deity offering someone weaker than him could mean nothing more than subordination!"

I said, "Bingo!!"

After pointing my finger at Xona, I interpreted, "As I said in the tower, she's one of the three people whom I met!"

Saki asked, "Sister Xona, is it true that you took 250 years to reach the 10th earth?!"

Xona confessed, "286, to be more precise!"

Saki wondered, "Does that mean it takes three millennia to cross all 100 earths?!"

---smack---

By smashing her head, Xona yelled, "Stupid girl, the difficulty of trials will only increase as you go further above. Only a dozen people cleared this whole Artificiary!!!"

Saki countered, "That hurt, sister. Anyway, how long did it take for them to reach the top?!"

Xona exclaimed, "... Ten thousand!"

"!!!!", Saki blinked in utter disbelief. Xona repeated, "Ten thousand years. That was the fastest accomplishing record!"

Saki asked, "Wh-what happened after they cleared this entire sanctuary?!"

"Go to heaven and live millions of years in peace!", Xona stated.

[As if. That's a plain old lie. I'll figure out the truth myself. But 10,000 years was the fastest clear? How in the world will a low-key like me clear it all in a short time? The Lord of Existence will break out of her seal soon enough.]

"!!!!", that's when a bell rang inside my head. I asked, "Xona, tell me. Are pets allowed for trials?!"

Xona nodded, "So long as they have a purpose in battle!!"

Kendor jolted and looked at me with gaped eyes. I chuckled, "What do you say, birdy? Join or Stay?!"

The next instant, she hugged me on the face in her tiny form. Her feathers kept poking me. I said, "Stop getting too excited!!"

Saki interrupted, "Uhm… Mister Drake?!"

I and Kendor looked at her. She continued, "You two speak in a weird language which is impossible to learn even if I'm trying to. May I know what language it is?!"

Kendor told her, ""It's a dialect of the world that my master and I used to live in!""

Saki gasped, "Okay, I'm sorry for asking. Stop throwing your tantrum!!"

---flick---

Kendor spawned on her left shoulder, ""Tantrum? Are you calling me a child?!""

Saki cried in anxiety, "Help!!!!"

I said, "Stop freaking her out, Kendor!"

My celestial mount scoffed, "Did you see that, master? She might be young but her inner self is still that of a child!!", while pinching Saki's cheek.

"I won't deny it?!", I commented and then turned to the subject, "So, how many trials did you complete, you rude lady? 'Cause I completed 10 trials!"

Saki said in embarrassment, "Se… seventh trial!"

I questioned, "You lost against the giant golems?!"

Saki flinched, "Golems? I only fought one golem in every battle!!"

I exclaimed, "Sorry, I forgot you weren't an LLB!"

She became puzzled, "Why? What would happen if I'm an LLB?!"

Xona clarified, "The enemies you have to fight would have been 100 in all the trials and 1000 per last session of every 10 trials"

[So once in every ten trials, the enemy count would be 1000, huh?]

Saki quivered, "I went through hell just facing one golem but Mr Drake handled 100 golems until the 9th trial and 1000 in his 10th? He's so-so overbearing!!"

Xona asked, "Lord Adrian, don't think of me as rude but can I dare ask how a deity like you died?!"

Kendor interrupted, "After killing 10,000 ligons and wygers all by himself!!"

Saki asked, "Ligons and wygers what are they?!"

Kendor explained them the same as I did to the broad-nosed bartender a day before the previous day. Xona started thinking about something. I asked, "Is something bothering?!"

She responded, "Pardon my aggression. But based on your death, what I can confirm is that your powers can help you only until the 50th earth!!"

I blinked after hearing her. Xona attempted, "Was I too rude?!"

I questioned, "You and your cowboys are yet to cross the 10th earth. How in the world did you assess my extent to the people of 50th earth?!"

She elaborated, "From service providers like bartenders, itinerary sellers and whatnot!!"

[Now that I think about it, I never tried reading the memories of the bartenders or locals other than Xona and her buddies.]

I commanded, "Xona, Saki, show me your Artificiary panels!!"

Xona emphasized, "Auto-status!", while Saki repeated her phrase, "Auto-status?!"

---beep---

| Artificial Sanctuary's Autopad

Artificiary Status:

Name - Xona Remins

Age - 286

Species - Human

Soul - Light

History - Took the path of a murderer after entering this dimension. Defeated countless youngsters. Formed a gang with two people that came from the same world as her. Reached until the 10th earth. Has a long way to go.

Former Status:

Name - Xona Remins

Age - 24

Species - Human

Soul - Living being

History - Born in a rich family. Took the path of a righteous noble. Committed countless deeds of positive karma. Died due to misfortune, killed by one of her people.

<Further Info> |

__________

Xona's system tab popped out. Right after hers was Saki's pad.

---beep---

| Artificial Sanctuary's Autopad

Artificiary Status:

Name - Saki Sasaki

Age - 0

Species - Human

Soul - Dark

History - Accomplished less than 10 trials. Lost her grandmother right at the start. Chose the path of villainess by going against her fate.

Former Status:

Name - Saki Sasaki

Age - 19

Species - Human

Soul - Infinito

History - Born in a middle-class family. Lost her parents at a young age. Lived with her grandmother. Died alongside her grandmother in an accident.

<Further Info> |

__________

---fwoosh---

My yellow darkening flames engulfed the panels. I enchanted, ""Authority to 'understand'!""

---flick------tnnng---

With the flick of a second, numerous kinds of noises entered my ears. My eyes closed, "What is this place?!", thereby opening them in an unknown space with zero gravity. I funked my curly hair from blocking my vision, "What in the?!", only to jump in utter disbelief.

"Why are there so many crystals?!", I mumbled while staring at countless crystals glowing black and white. Made me feel like I was floating in between a cluster of twinkling stars.

[Kriassilis dodged my question when I asked him.

BUT TO THINK 'THE CRYSTAL OF DEATH' EXISTS, QUITE THE SHOCKER.]