Losing to Gain.

The statue didn't do justice to her.

She was a deity of perfection.

Hazel was a goner for beauties, mostly beautiful males. But now, staring at the Goddess, who staring back at her. She was questioning how straight she was.

A princess of an empire turning into a simp was going to be hell a disaster.

She could only feel sorry for her mate. Whoever he was.

Goddess Anne's crystal dark eyes shone in reserved amusement under her forest long lashes that lightly brushed her cheekbones. Her perfect facial features looked like they were sculpted from the finest marble. Her flawless skin glimmered in bright radiance of the sun.

Almost ethereal. With all natural grace that fairies would dream of.

Hazel felt so unworthy looking at her. She bowed in awe of her.

"Oh no, don't do that please"

Her voice was akin to the famous rare ambrosia in the Monster realm. So sweet to listen to that anyone would die a happy death by just being graced by her voice.

It sounded like many waters in one place.

Hazel trembled, heady in fear. She couldn't dare to gawk at her again.

"If you are here, now. It means am no longer alive and you seek for power."

Hazel gasped. So the gods were truly dead?

There were always speculations on the gods' welfare. Whether they travelled to a whole new dimension for exploration or they simply died with time. Many believed the former because gods couldn't just die.

But now Hazel wasn't so sure anymore.

"You maybe surprised about the fact of my death. Which it's story is in depth and can't be touched this timeline for it's effects on the future. But I can only say am not a god but infact an imposter or so the real gods call me. Am a daemon. And we are at war."

War? Daemons? Imposter? What was she saying?

"You are infact one of the few people that knows this Princess Sirae. But I won't waste your time and mine by answering why I decided to tell you or the full story of my death."

Anne yawned clearly bored watching Hazel's brows deepen into a thin line.

Hazel suddenly felt Goddess Anne's aura shift into something deadly. Darkness emanating from her wrapping around her like a cloak. She could feel the arrogance that filled those depths of her boundless dark eyes.

Hazel felt strangely irritated and an urge to destroy her and protect herself.

What happened? This can't really be her and why was her intuition screaming not to trust her.

"I see your divinity has alerted you of me."

A scrowl formed in her beautiful face.

"You are not Goddess Anne, who are you?"

Hazel partially transformed ready to attack. She didn't understand what was happening anymore. This wasn't what her Grandpa told her about in his own ritual. Normally, he was placed in a trial as a peasant to conquer a kingdom, alone. Which toke him three months to achieve. He became one of the ten, ninetailed foxes in the Monster realm, a testimony of how hard it was to achieve one. Ninetailed foxes where granted power to travel between realms but because of his responsibility as a king he denied himself that right, leaving him the only ninetailed fox remaining in the Monsters realm. But in all stories of the trials she heard there was none about meeting the gods.

When she was given a horde of monsters to destroy. In each waves more deadly than the last. She still thought of it too easy but didn't put any necessary concerns even though she fought the Fox that claimed her identity and entered her!!

How could she forget. Meeting the fake goddess distracted her.

"Its time for business. Am naturally a business prodigy but I will cut you some slack cause am feeling generous, what do you think?"

Goddess Anne smirked at her.

"Why did the fox join my soul?"

Hazel questioned. A bit stiff with the tension in the air.

The fake goddess perfect brow rose up mockingly.

"You were rumored to be incredibly smart but I see it's only rumors. You have to keep up... Princess."

Her head lowered a bit. Staring down at her in utter disdain.

"It joined you because it's yours."

She then relaxed in her throne. Stepping down heavily the head of Emperor Darden. Which broke into a pile of bloody mess.

"For one to gain, one must lose in return. It's the Balance Scale of Truth. And Truth is one nasty god, trust me. With time you might understand everything. But for now I require your attention. All of it."

Truth is a god? Hazel was stunned by this revelation. She kept silent, shutting down all of the questions that flooded her mind. Sharpening her senses to notice every minuscule of everything revolving around her. Her eyes spotted the other supposed statues. She could sense their powers but none made a move. Silent as if...Waiting.

For something.

Her eyes lingered more on the masked statue of the witch. The mask seemed to have molded into his face becoming one.The eyes revealed was boundless of darkness. A fog-like suction to eat souls. Her soul trembled under it's unintentional gaze. That eyes wasn't humane.

Anne moved cocking her head in a mocking stance. Staring into her soul.

"What will you lose to me, you puny fox in exchange for the power I will give you?"

The sinister nature of the goddess baffled and befuddled her. Wasn't she supposed to be generous, kind and a sweet warrior? Instead she behaved like a Demoness.

Was it her element? The reason why it was prohibited? The reason why she was committed suicide? The cause of her Death?

Did the darkness she possessed eroded her soul and left itself to control? Was everything she knew of the goddess true?

As if sensing her thoughts. The goddess smirked.

" I lost my soul for this power to save my people. What will you lose in return?"

'What will I lose in return?' the thought rang in her mind.

The Goddess sighed. Her slender neck lowered as she let out a chilling humorless laugh. Blood spilled out from her crystal dark eyes. She cleaned it up clearly unfazed. She stared down at Hazel longer than she remembered as if she was merely an ant in her sight before turning towards the Witch.

"The scale?"

The witch nodded. His slender fingers snapped itself, a balance scale appeared in his grip.

"This is the Balance Scale of Truth. I stole it from him."

A mischevious glint lit up in her gaze.

"Now for every enlightenment from the Truth. One must be balanced. Your loss for enlightenment will be decided by the Scale"

The golden scale shimmered in golden radiance intertwining with the radiance from Anne. The goddess eyes glimmered in awareness.

"Your fate has been decided. You have three options or more like two. You choose from one of them if you don't you die and that's was supposed to be your third option, Death."

Hazel gulped down her saliva. Steeling herself before nodding slowly.

"Your options are ...."

*********************************†††

Roan stiffled a groan. The stench of fresh bloodied corpses around him wasn't appealing. He always thought his years constant killings would reduce the allergies of genocide but it only increased, unfortunately. His body was broken beyond repair and his regeneration abilities could not keep up especially when the masked man kept on targeting the same places over and over again. A plan to break him apart.

He couldn't protect them especially when the assassins trooped in his blind spot to kill his granddaughter.

By now the blue shimmering stream was crimson red of blood. And the sight of his granddaughter in the whole chaos was disturbingly beautiful...

"You have the leniency to drown in your thoughts as you fight me, King Roan. I hate that you are not taking me seriously."

The masked man complained. Landing a heavy blow towards Roan's skull in attempt to crush it. In which Roan deflected.

The masked man clapped his right hand to the freshly cut bloody left wrist that smelt of fried blood to change their positions again which potency reduced greatly since Roan could now avoid it. But was still annoying since he had to multitask and can't focus solely on him.

Roan was considering cutting off the other wrist. He was slowly getting irritated.

His life was hanging in a very thin thread the Fox infront of him was deadly. He got lucky taking him off guard while amputating his left wrist but in return the masked Fox became overly concious.

And for some unknown reason they both can't fully transform.

If things continue like this he would infact...Die.