Chapter 174: Looking For Trouble

This was a stupid-ass idea.

We were currently on an airship with a large detachment of troops...two weeks later... The Enforcers decided to stay behind with Vakra and Rastair was currently still being experimented on.

We were alone and Cassandra was still stuck to my arm happily humming to herself.

The problem wasn't even Cassandra. It was the fact that we were searching for a needle in a world-sized haystack.

We didn't have a single lead or any reports of Corruption-related activities.

Warping landscapes, monsters, or anything else...nothing.

This was the other problem with magic worlds, as Vakra put it.

Worlds that had magic typically relied more on magic to make life easier than technology. Worlds without magic tended to be more advanced in technology.

There were exceptions to every rule, of course. But I digress.

On the other hand, Corruption thrived in worlds of technology because they were easier to infect. The only downside was that information got around faster and the people were usually ready to fight fairly quickly...not that they were really a threat to it...

Magic worlds didn't usually have highly advanced forms of communications. And if they did possess some form of long range communication, it wasn't normally available to the public.

Which meant...

The infection went widely unnoticed by most of the world for a long period of time.

And usually when people started to notice a significant problem, they weren't able to get properly organized. By the time they did, it would be too late. The world would be fully infected and nothing could stop it.

The Corruption was truly diabolical...

At the same time, the only thing we had to go on was...

"Oh! Mizik! I felt it! The impending doom!" Cassandra suddenly said.

As she spoke, she instinctively pressed herself on my arm.

"I felt it too...and stop pressing your chest on my arm," I said.

"Why~? Do you like it too much~? Haah...am I making Mizik feel warm and tingly~?" Cassandra asked playfully.

She squeezed me harder as she spoke.

No, dammit! It's weird! That's Isabella's body!

"Just let go of me..." I said.

Cassandra obediently let go and smiled.

"But it's still Isabella's body! I can help you catch the sample, too..."

"Cassandra, that's enough! Besides, you're not equipped to handle this sort of thing. You're better at killing things as opposed to catching them," Isabella said.

"Oh, good. You're back," I said.

"I never left! She kept forcing me down whenever I tried to get her off of you! I mean...she's not wrong about it being my body, but still... If I'm going to do that to you, I want to be the one doing it!" Isabella said.

I silently wondered to myself how and why people wanted large numbers of women to run after them. Dealing with one was enough for me.

And I had two sharing the same body. They never gave me any rest. I simply didn't understand.

What was the appeal supposed to be!?

Especially if all they did was fight over you! It had become so annoying that it made my head spin. It was a giant pain in the ass!

Regardless, I loved my wife and her sister...as a friend or a family member, of course.

"She won't listen to anyone about it, though," I said.

"Because you...made it seem like her feelings had been returned..."

"What else was I supposed to do...? I don't want her to turn on me... Besides, she knows I still have you," I said.

"I could never turn on Mizik! Never! Not in a million years! Or even an eternity! That would be an unforgivable sin!" Cassandra said.

"Mizik...you have no idea how many times I've tried to talk to her internally... She just doesn't understand the concept. She only cares about pleasing you," Isabella said.

"What else is there to care about? After all, I belong to Mizik. His wish is my command! And telling me to stop loving him is like asking me to stop breathing. I can't do it!" Cassandra said.

Aren't we forgetting something? Like the Corruption?

"What if he asked you to give your life for him? Could you?" Isabella asked.

"I-If I disobeyed...that would be a horrible sin... But if I died...I couldn't...be with...uwaaaaaa!!! It's too much to bear!!!" Cassandra said as she suddenly started crying her eyes out.

"Please stop crying... I won't order you to kill yourself on my behalf...or even for no reason at all. You have nothing to fear..." I said.

"Mizik is so merciful and loving towards me!!! I'll definitely follow you for eternity!!!" Cassandra said as she continued weeping and started squeezing my arm.

"I know. You keep saying it! Now let's find the Corruption!" I said angrily.

"Yes sir!" Cassandra said.

"Stop that! We agreed that it was my job. Besides, I want to impress Mizik with my new powers! I haven't gotten the chance to yet!" Isabella said as she smiled proudly at me.

You don't have to impress me, Isabella. I only heard about them and that was enough. But I would like to see it with my own eyes...

* * *

We managed to inform the captain that we detected something and he stopped the ship. Then we went to the ground to search for signs of the Corruption.

After we were lowered to the ground, I could immediately tell that it was nearby. Isabella pulled Bravery from her inventory, then cloaked her combat suit in the beautiful Aegis Armor and Shield.

It seemed to fit perfectly.

Meanwhile, I readied Vengeance in the form of a single sword. Anything more would probably be overkill right now.

After all, I wasn't dealing with a gigantic infestation and all we had to do was collect a sample.

As Isabella and I surveyed the area, Cassandra would occasionally switch in and check on me.

"Are you feeling okay, darling? How is your head doing? If you're feeling tired, you can rest on my lap! Or even my chest...anything for you!" Cassandra said.

"I'm fine. Don't worry about me. But please allow Isabella to remain in control for now. I need her power in order to trap the Corruption," I said.

"O-okay... I love you!" Cassandra said.

"Yeah..."

"Honestly...that girl...!" Isabella mumbled angrily.

I could tell Isabella was feeling jealous, so I took hold of her arm and pulled her close to me.

"Oh? M-mizik!? Is there something you need?" Isabella asked.

"Stop worrying so much about Cassandra. I just feel like I need to comfort her because she's had a rough life."

"I know... I just...I saw you first! I don't like her constantly fawning over you..."Isabella said.

"You're too greedy, sister. There's enough Mizik for both of us!" Cassandra said happily.

"Shut up! Get out of my head!" Isabella growled.

"Please stop fighting... The feeling of impending doom is getting closer..." I said.

At that moment, Isabella readied herself again and we saw a tree that had been infected.

I immediately slashed through the tree and burned the wood to ashes.

After that, Isabella manifested a barrier of light around the Corruption and pulled it close to her.

"Will this be enough?" She asked.

"That should be fine. Also, great work. Your control over barriers seems to be even more amazing than before," I said.

Isabella puffed out her chest proudly.

"Ehehe...well, I think you're pretty amazing too, my love! And now that we have the sample, we don't have to keep looking!" Isabella said.

She was right.

I wasn't going to hunt for another two weeks to a month just to find only enough to fill a wine glass. Vakra would have to make do.

Shortly after that, we made our way back to the ship.

Before we boarded, a tentacle rose from the ground in front of us.

"Well well...you think studying my power will be of use? What more do you think you can learn from it?" Cain's voice said.

"That isn't our problem. We were asked to do this, so here we are," Isabella said.

"Awww! That's a good little doggie! Doing exactly as you're told! You won't learn anything new this time. You already understand how it functions, right? The ultimate power. Corruption."

"Is there a reason that you're bothering us?" I asked.

"Since you're apparently looking for trouble, I thought I would send some your way. Aside from that...aren't you interested in hearing an offer of mine?"

"Offer?" I said.

"Oooohhhh... Very good, yes. Now I have your attention! I'll get straight to the point. Why not join me?"

"Absolutely not!" Isabella said angrily.

Rather than immediately decline his offer, I was more curious as to why he made it.

"Why are you asking something so ridiculous?" I asked.

"It's not ridiculous at all, Mizik. You're a pain in the ass to deal with because of this damned reset that keeps happening every time I kill you. Rather than just throw you into the Abyssal prison, it would be better if you retained your freedom. I could make you one of my Generals. Just like Kyriel, there..."

My eyes went wide in surprise as he chuckled.

"Oh, yes...that expression is beautiful. Simply priceless! YOU SERIOUSLY THOUGHT I COULDN'T TELL!? THAT'S HILARIOUS!!! Kyriel has my mark of ownership. I would be notified immediately if her soul was destroyed. And that didn't happen on Ignitus... Which means she escaped somehow. When we fought a while ago, I noticed that Isabella had two souls...interesting..."

"What's your point? She's out of your reach now. You can't take her away from us," I said.

"Maybe not, but it would certainly be fun if I could. That damn ability of yours seems to have infected her through Isabella. A shame that I didn't realize it sooner... Kyriel was, by far, my most potent killer...and the most fun to mess with. She was so loyal because of the possibility of seeing her beloved Mizik again!"

Suddenly, Cassandra switched over and the barrier of light holding the Corruption faded. It fell harmlessly to the ground and stayed there.

"I SERVE MIZIK! Get your filthy presence away from me, you monster!" Cassandra growled.

"Oh? So she can bark? Want me to tell Mizik all of the embarrassing things you did while thinking about him in the past? Or even the fantasies you had while under my control? I still have your memories copied into my mind."

"Mizik is allowed to know everything if he wants to. I have nothing to hide. Especially if he would enjoy thinking about it!" Cassandra said.

This is getting weird... Why does she always make it weird?

"Hmm...that's not what I expected... Although it makes sense that you would say that. Why not join me, Mizik? The Dark Army has great benefits! WE HAVE COOKIES!!!"

"ARE YOU MAKING FUN OF ME!?" I yelled angrily.

"ABSOLUTELY! I DESPISE YOU, YOU PILE OF SHIT! WHY DON'T YOU JUST GO TO HELL!?"

After he yelled at us, the tentacle disappeared and a field of Corruption spread out beneath our feet.

Several monsters rose from it, but Isabella switched back in and smiled.

"Thank you for your assistance," she said.

There was a bright flash of light, and a portion of it was trapped in another bubble. The rest of it crumbled to dust.

Moments later, the tentacle sprouted again.

"Huh...that is actually problem... So it really is true. Well, I suppose I could try to curse you as well, but unfortunately, only my main body can do that. And he's...not here..."

"Where is Difar?" I asked angrily.

"Even if I told you, you would have no way of reaching him. I'm not saying a damn thing!"

"Fine."

I activated my blessing passive and obliterated the tentacle with my sword.

It wasn't as potent as Isabella's light, but it would be enough to destroy any Corruption I came across...hopefully...

Although, the real question was whether or not it would be enough to kill Difar, himself... Only time would tell.

"Do you have enough Corruption?" I asked Isabella.

She nodded and gave me a proud smile.

"Cassandra might have caused a disturbance, but Cain doesn't seem to be very smart. He delivered a sufficient amount right to us," Isabella said.

"Good. Let's go back. The airship can make its own way," I said.

I made sure to communicate our plans to the ship just before leaving and the ship slowly began to move back towards Elysium.

After that, we teleported back to home base using the crystal I left.