DISTORTED VOICES

"Concentrate!"

Kole heard a man's voice, whom he was very familiar with. The man who taught him martial arts in his second life.

Kole silently raised his wooden sword and bent his waist. With a twist of his ankles, he propelled himself like a hurling dart.

"Push mana toward your thighs. Let the pressure build-up!" He heard the man's voice again.

Raising himself, Kole brandished his sword again and followed the instructions.

"Honestly, the sword doesn't suit you! Though I will teach you all the weapons since it is necessary to be proficient in all, every warrior prefers some over the other, which is natural."

"What should I choose, teacher?" Kole asked with puzzlement evident on his face.

"A weapon that suits your personality—not your fantasies!"

With a bright smile, Kole chose a shield and spear.

The man was puzzled, and blurted his questions aloud, "Why?"

"I want to protect Humanity and those whom I care about—That's why I chose a shield. As for spear—I'll be the spearhead of my grand ambitions."

The man nodded with a slight smile. They fought again a few times. Kole improved by leaps and bounds in the following years.

Years passed, and the day he was about to die arrived. With a broken shield in his hand and a spear that was crushed to smithereens, Kole let out a hollow laugh.

[Did you protect what you wanted to?] Kole heard a distorted voice.

A cacophony of discordant music entered his ears, gnawing at his psyche.

[What about your so-called grand ambitions?]

[Hahaha!]

Kole's breathing tightened, a feeling of extreme sorrow developing in the pit of his stomach.

[I can give you power, that you so desire… Let me take over…]

Like the whispers of a devil, the distorted voice made a preposition.

[I will protect—if you can't. I will fulfill all your desires.]

Kole wanted to ask many questions. Why did he hear these voices? Where was he? What happened? This proposal is too tempting…

It only took a moment for Kole to collect his thoughts, before he remembered the golden words—Don't See, Don't Hear, Don't Speak!

His heart skipped a beat.

With difficulty, he put his 'hands' over his 'ears' to not fall into loss and become an abomination.

A feeling of extreme terror surged in his heart.

This is too scary… This Creation Seed is too risky to be left in the hands of the common populace! No wonder the Church regulates it!... Though he was partially correct—Kole didn't know yet that the 'loss' was just one of many factors that led the world's Churches to restrict its usage.

…

After an unknown amount of time, Kole's eyes fluttered open. He saw a familiar ceiling.

For some unknown reason, he felt pain in his eyes and ears. His mind hurt, and his throat felt parched. The exhaustion in his body felt overwhelming.

"W-water…" Kole muttered.

A beautiful face appeared in front of him, her expression worried and her eyes slightly puffy. She was wearing a maid's uniform.

Hearing his cry, Charlotte first helped Kole adjust on the bed and immediately brought a glass of water to his lips.

But Kole shook his head.

"Master? Are… Are you okay?" Seeing his weary eyes, she regretted asking the obvious.

Kole let out a small chuckle. "Feed me… through mouth…" A grin appeared on his handsome face.

The only solace he could find witnessing his rapidly deteriorating psyche—was pleasure…

Maybe it was an escapist strategy… but Kole didn't mind. At the very least, it distracted his thoughts from falling into the depths of madness.

Charlotte was surprised, and her face quickly tinged with red. Remembering something, she turned to glance at the other end of the bed and lowered her head, unwilling to say anything.

With confusion stretched over his face, he followed Charlotte's gaze—His eyes immediately turned as wide as saucers.

"M-Mother…"

There she was, calmly sitting on a stool with one leg over the other. Her clothes were as revealing as always.

If not for the fact that Kole knew she always dressed scantily, he would've thought she was trying to seduce him.

Faneia's expression didn't change; it remained impassive. A moment later, she revealed an indiscernible smile, "It is good that you didn't turn into an abomination."

"Your training will start tomorrow." She stood and walked toward the doorway. The sound of her heels echoed.

Kole breathed a sigh of relief. He was too embarrassed to say anything now.

Suddenly, she craned her neck, and glanced at her son, "Your eyes were badly hurt. I had to come myself to heal your injuries… What did you see?" A glint of curiosity flashed in her red orbs.

"I…" Surprised by her sudden question, Kole tried to answer instinctively, but he realized he couldn't remember. "—I don't know…"

With a nod, she left the room.

Kole let out a turbid breath of air.

With a small smile, he looked at Charlotte, "Well, what are you waiting for?"

The blush on her face extended to her ears. With a low 'Mn'—she drank water in her mouth and leaned over Kole.

Seeing her shy expression, Kole's heart raced.

Charlotte's lips touched his, and Kole's hand drifted to hold her lithe waist.

With some awkwardness, she parted her lips a little. Kole matched her pace and felt a warm string of liquid enter his mouth.

It was sweeter and more viscous than usual, but Kole didn't mind. The thirst—in his throat quenched—but in his heart increased even further.

He held her waist tightly, unwilling to let her leave. Charlotte felt his grip increase, she instinctively resisted a little but eventually gave in.

Without further ado, Kole pushed his tongue into her mouth, in search of more liquid—but what he found was a cute little tongue.

His tongue—like a snake coiled around hers.

Charlotte's movements were stiff and inexperienced but eventually, they smoothened.

They exchanged saliva, or more like, Kole was extracting every last drop of liquid from her mouth. Their lips mashed, and their breathing quickened.

Charlotte's eyes glazed over, and she couldn't control her train of thought and shut her eyes tight, feeling a unique sense of exhilarating pleasure coursing over her body and mind.

With that, the worrisome feeling she had been experiencing for the past few hours vanished, and her heart relaxed.

"Hah… Hah…" They separated as Charlotte panted in Kole's embrace. She didn't know when she straddled her master neither did she care. Right now, her mind was numb from devastating pleasure.

Kole gently stroked her hair as he blankly stared at the ceiling… Distorted voices echoed in his ears like a never-ending chant—sometimes mocking him, at other times inviting him—eating him from the inside out.

[Haha! You will lose again… Let me take over...]

Kole sighed internally, "This is really bothersome…"