Chapter 76 - AMoriA OBSCURUS (Magus Veil, FINALE)

Magus knew that no matter what he forced the queen to do, the king would oppose him—even with the Goddess looming overhead.... So, he branded the king, with the queen standing silently beside him. He made her husband her slave; he was controlling her through his passives. And she agreed. She stood by and watched, her gut twisting at her husband's suffering, yet unable to place him above Magus.Soon after, the king 'allowed' the knights involved in your torment to be punished, and you were transferred to the second battalion for the final month of your training under Sir Brennan's command.Amoria explained all of this while watching Van closely.'He's... really attentive,' she thought, noticing how carefully he absorbed every word. 'He doesn't even seem shocked at this point... Did he accept Magus's mental state by now...?'"Yeah, I remember," Van said, his tone even. "Brennan was a Greatknight and the king's right hand—ranked above Nickelson in the chain of command. But he was a noble man, preferred to stay out of politics, and was always humble when he worked with the Second Battalion. I doubt he knew what I was going through, but..." Van paused, reflecting for a moment. "He was empathetic enough to ask. Eventually, he even looked past my passives—just before we left for the mission. He was a good man."Amoria cleared her throat. "...Back to Magus. When the two of you set off on that journey together, the more time he spent with you, the more stable he became. You surrounding yourself with women? I get it now. His passives would naturally turn every man into your enemy, but every woman into your ally."Van's gaze sharpened. "Why didn't he ask the Goddess to remove the passives?" he asked, his voice steady but deliberate. He noted how Amoria's face tensed—how her posture shifted under the weight of the question."He... H-he did..." Amoria murmured, her voice faltering slightly."And?" Van pressed."She told him she couldn't, and that..." Amoria trailed off, visibly uneasy."That... what?" Van's tone was quiet but firm.Amoria hesitated, struggling to meet his gaze."She said that changing a skill would require sacrificing some of her life essence... so she refused," she admitted reluctantly, guilt lacing her voice.Van's expression remained neutral—cold, almost detached."When was that?" he asked, the question slipping out effortlessly, as if her discomfort didn't matter to him.Amoria shifted uncomfortably. "...Around the time he took his own life," she whispered, her words barely audible.Van nodded slowly, a sharp click of his tongue breaking the silence. "Alright... Now get to the part where the two of you getting together wasn't just some accident. What was special about Millina? And why did he sleep with you?" His voice was cold, every word precise and measured, his patience visibly thinning.Amoria's breath faltered. 'I thought he'd hesitate... but he didn't. It really matters to him, doesn't it?' She stared at Van, a flicker of awe creeping into her thoughts as she realized how deeply he wanted the truth."Well... Like I said, it wasn't an accident," she murmured, her voice uneven.Van remained silent, his gaze steady, waiting for her to continue.Amoria's brows drew together, "He never liked Millina. He never truly loved any of us..." she admitted as she swallowed hard."Him being broken over Millina... loving her... That's just what he wanted you to believe.""In case..." she hesitated, the words catching in her throat, "in case you ever found out..."Van's expression remained unchanged.She swallowed again, her hands tightening on her lap. "... In case you ever found out he was sleeping with me."Van's eyes narrowed, but his voice remained calm, almost eerily so. "Why?"Amoria met his gaze; unflinching. Her own eyes damp. Her lips trembled as she spoke."Because of you, Van."=================================='... I can't wait until it's over.' Magus thought as the group moved through the dense forest. 'I wonder if we'll live close to each other once this whole demon lord thing's over?'His eyes drifted toward Van, walking several steps ahead, side by side with Amoria.'She doesn't hate him. She doesn't even avoid him, huh...?' Magus's gaze lingered on Van, catching a faint chuckle from inside his helmet as he spoke with Amoria. 'He seems...'His eyes loosened. 'Better.'Memories stirred—back to when they first gathered their party. Magus had offered to send some his way, but Van kept saying he wanted something genuine. Authentic... He remember calling Van old fashioned.Magus's gaze shifted to Amoria.'She tries to hide it, but I can tell.' He sighed, 'She tries her hardest not to look my way... Hah, she really cares about him. She really does. Good for you, man... Finally found something... Authentic, huh?'He pursed his lips quietly.I don't think I have to tell you this, but... You were that authentic connection for him, Van. You weren't affected by his passives, and stayed by him throughout it all, when you had every reason to leave. You were everything to him... and for a while, Magus had been happy for you, Van. As long as you two were together, he could keep himself stable.He could stay away from me... By then, he was an expert when it came to using his passives.But then... you pulled him aside.And you said this.======== CHAPTER 3 =========="Listen, man, Amoria has... feelings for me, as you know," Van started, somewhat reluctant."I think we need to split up the party, at least until we get to the Demon Lord. I'll take her and-""What!? Dude, no—I can't fight bosses without you!" he interrupted, eyes wide with panic.'Wait— WHAT!? No... Nononooononononono, You can't... You can't leave me with these dolls...!! You can't leave me alone!!!' He growled internally as he reached out for Van in desperation, cupping his palm as he leaned on the table they spoke.Van glanced down at his hand, raising an eyebrow beneath his helmet."S-sorry..." he mumbled, quickly letting go and leaning back awkwardly in his seat.'You're seriously... Seriously thinking about leaving...?! After... After everything...!? No... You can't leave me!!' He thought as he recalled Fohrd walking away from him."L-look... Don't worry, I would never steal your girlfriend. I would never do that to you," he added, his tone a strange mix of sincerity and urgency."Dude... Look at your passives. It's bound to happen sooner or later if we stay in the same party," I said bluntly, not sugarcoating the truth.But then, something shifted in him. He looked desperate."Look, I've been with a lot of girls, so I know," he said, reaching out again—this time, placing a hand on Van's shoulder."Amoria truly loves you. For real. That's something I'll never have, and something I can never take away. It's not about passives or skills; you won her over without any of that. You're better than I'll ever be in that regard," he admitted, his voice heavy with honesty. "So... stay, alright? Please... Please." He paused, then added, almost pleading, "I... I really do need you with me... m-man.""... Fine," Van sighed, "I'll stay."========================Magus had been relieved when you said you'd stay. He even respected it, understanding your concerns—they were valid, after all.But soon, a realization crept in.You would leave him eventually.To be with me.And that truth... It killed him inside. He understood it—accepted it, even—but he couldn't handle it. It pushed him farther over the edge, unraveling what little control he had left."So...""... While fighting the 4th Demonic General, he abandoned Millina. Left her for dead. He never gave me the details." Amoria revealed.Van's voice lowered. "And that night... He..."=======================Magus slipped into Amoria's tent, his eyes wide, gleaming with intent. He leaned down over her, as he had with the queen. His breath whispered against her ear, his hand sliding across her body with deliberate care.At first, Amoria resisted. Van's face flickered in her mind...But the resistance didn't last. It never did.Not more than a few seconds passed before she surrendered. Her resistance lasted longer than that of any woman Magus had ever touched—but in the end, it still crumbled. The last of it escaped through a single tear, trailing slowly down her cheek.All night, Magus toyed with her, and she responded to every move. She matched him, willingly.Yet, his mind was elsewhere.'If I control you...' Magus growled to himself, his thoughts dark and frantic. 'Then I control him.'His hand lingered on her skin, but his mind churned with obsession.'I'll make you mine... And through you, I'll make Van stay. Forever. He will NEVER... NEVER leave me alone. NEVER!'Magus's eyes burned as he looked skyward, visions of Fohrd and Lala swirling in his mind.'I'll do this RIGHT this time...! He won't leave! He CAN'T!'==================Van exhaled slowly, his arms folded tight across his chest. His gaze dropped, and he sat there for a moment, weighing everything in silence; his teacup is now freezing cold, dead."And then..." Amoria cleared her throat, her voice brittle. "And then, we settled in the capital. The Goddess forbade him from leaving the city, forced him to stay and protect it. She wanted Varolon safe, and having him within the walls ensured it." Her words dragged with exhaustion, "She... She sealed him there. The rest... you know. Sixteen years later, he took his own life." She paused, then whispered, "He's... gone."Van said nothing, a long pause between the two.Amoria's voice softened, almost hesitant. "He told me everything. Because, I think... I was the closest thing to you that he had left. And... maybe he hoped for something from me. A real reaction. Something... genuine." She lowered her gaze. "But I accepted him, regardless... As I always have... As I... You know."Van's fists tightened, his knuckles whitening. "I see." His words came slow, deliberate. "So... you're saying he killed himself because he was lonely? Is that it?"He leaned forward, his glare piercing through her. Amoria faltered under the intensity of his gaze, unable to meet it."Y-yes..." she whispered, nodding slowly.'It's not... not a lie,' she told herself.Van's eyes darkened. He raised his head, the moonlight casting shadows across his face. "Then tell me..." His tone sharpened, shifting into something colder—something dangerous. "Why did you tell me you rode his cock after we beat the Demon Lord? Did he tell you to say it? Was there some reason for it?"His voice was laced with venom now, each word dripping with contempt, as if someone else entirely had taken his place.Amoria held steady, bracing herself. 'This is just anger. He has every right to feel it...'"No," she said softly, shaking her head. "I wasn't even... feeling guilty at the time. I just thought you deserved to know." Her voice cracked slightly, but she forced herself to continue. "I... I can't explain it. Or why I did it. He even told me to lie about it. Logically speaking..." She took a breath, steadying herself. "I would never have told you."Van stared at her, his expression unreadable, a void of emotion."Anything else...?" He asked. She gripped her gown tighter than she ever did beneath the table."... That's... That's the story of Magus. You wanted to know... That's it." She concluded, her voice barely above a whisper.Then Van let the silence stretch—uncomfortably long—before rolling his eyes, a bitter sneer twisting his lips."... Fuck you, Amoria."His words cut through the air like glass, jagged and unforgiving."W-... What...?" She murmured as she raised her gaze in confusion."No... fuck all of you." He shifted on his seat, "But you..." He pointed at her, his gaze sharp and unforgiving. "You, in particular, deserve the biggest punch to the face."Amoria lowered her head, biting her lip. She didn't respond. 'What... W-what is he saying...?' She shivered inwardly.Van's voice turned low, simmering with restrained rage. "I know you're hiding something," he muttered, almost to himself. Then, louder, he added with a sneer, "And I know exactly what it is.""...!!" Amoria let out a soft gasp as she heard him speak.He rose fully to his feet, turning his gaze toward the moon as it bathed the scene in pale light.Amoria kept her head down, her lips pressed together in silence."Hearing all this shit, piecing together how he only has daughters in his family, how he never had anyone... This time, I'll tell you exactly how that motherfucker killed himself. And why he did it 14 years later and not earlier. And while loneliness was a part of it... I am sure it wasn't the whole reason," he said with a growl as he leaned in. "I've pretty much figured it out from you and from what you told me about that bitch of a Goddess... and something else you're still keeping from me, thinking I wouldn't notice. But I'll save that for later.""...!" Amoria's head snapped toward Van as he began detailing the past.===========================Magus probably—no, definitely—loathed his life. Hated everyone. Hated everything. Saw you all as dolls, just like you said...And, most likely, since the Goddess wouldn't let him leave, he wanted to check out early—especially after I left.But then... he held Liz in his arms. The eldest. Yours.He looked down at that baby, smiling so vibrantly at him... and something changed. Right there, in that moment, he decided to live—for her.=============================Van's gaze sharpened, his tone turning almost triumphant as he studied Amoria's face, which grew pale with his every word, staring at him in disbelief."So far, I'm hitting all the shots, huh?" He didn't give her the chance to answer—her expression already told him everything he needed to know."Good. I'll continue." Van spat, his voice sharp and relentless.==============================Magus watched that child grow. He clung to her—because of his loneliness, because he wanted to be a part of her life as much as he could. She was his. His blood. He'd have gone to the end of the world for that child. He would do whatever it took to make sure she never felt the same way he did. Lonely. Terrified.But then... something changed.When that child turned 14.==============================="PLEASE, STOP!!" Amoria begged as she tugged at his shirt, but Van pushed her off, his fury unwavering.And as she fell on her behind, Van continued;"Instead of crushing on some kid her age, or some other attractive adult..." Van's voice dropped, laced with venom."She was attracted to her father, wasn't she?" His words were a slow, deliberate drawl, dripping with disgust. "Those passives... Those vile, shitty passives—they affected all your daughters, too, didn't they!?""And Magus noticed it. He saw the same thing in his daughters—those girls he loved so much—beginning to look like dolls to him, too." Van's voice was low and deliberate, each word sharp as a knife. "He must've run straight to you with that realization... hoping you'd help him. Or at the very least, reject him. After everything you knew, after everything the two of you had gone through—it wasn't just his burden to carry, was it? He wanted it to be yours, too. But..."Van leaned closer, looming over Amoria as her breath hitched, her face draining of color."This is how you reacted," Van sneered, and without pause, he guessed it:"It's alright... If it's with you...""I don't mind..." You smiled. "Despite those passives... I love you for who you are... And I suppose Lizzy and the others feel the same..."Amoria's arms buckled under her, and she collapsed onto them, barely able to hold herself upright as Van's words hit like blows to the chest."And from what I know about that whore of a goddess..." Van continued coldly, "...he must've gone to her when he noticed how his daughters acted—probably around the time they hit puberty. But like you said... Changing his skills would've cost her a piece of her lifespan. And she? She DEFINITELY deemed it unworthy." His voice darkened further."So she told him to deal with it... or..." Van's gaze narrowed, his voice dropping into a dangerous growl."... Embrace it, huh?"Amoria trembled, her head sinking lower as the weight of his words bore down on her."And with no way out..." Van continued, relentless, "...he took his own life. Not because he was lonely, no... but because he wasn't a fucking psychopath like her. He took his life because he wanted his daughters to have a future—a real one—and not become his mindless dolls."Van's voice steadied, turning almost contemplative. "Whether it was Liz he held that day, or one of the others, it didn't matter. What mattered was that he realized those passives would poison them too... So he ended it—before it got that far. Because yeah... he was a control freak, and maybe even a borderline psychopath..."Van's gaze flicked toward Amoria, sharp as glass. "But the only real thing in his life was those girls. They were the only thing that was ever authentic."He let the weight of his words hang in the air for a moment before continuing, his tone shifting—sharp with accusation."But that's not even the real kicker," Van said with a humorless chuckle. He turned his gaze back to Amoria, his face shadowed in the pale moonlight, a cruel smile playing on his lips. "Because none of this adds up to your behavior, does it?"He leaned in slightly, the faint light casting his face in harsh angles. "Don't think I didn't notice," he whispered, a jagged edge in his voice."Marcy wanting to fuck me after telling me I reminded her of him was the first clue, but you..." Van claimed."The way you said, how I wasn't the first thing in your mind,' or how you casually threw in that 'Fortunately' when Magus avoided trouble... And the way you've been trying to make me sympathize with him this whole time."Van's eyes bore into hers, unwavering."You still love him, don't you?"He tilted his head, his voice dripping with disdain. "And let's be honest—nobody would've really loved that harem fucker. The passives did all that for him. And you know he brainwashed you—and your daughters. So, if he's dead, you should hate him, since there's NO PASSIVES that dictate you should love him. But you love him still. Why?"Van leaned closer, his sneer twisting into something darker. "I'll tell you why."He paused, letting the silence stretch just long enough to feel suffocating."The reason you don't hate him... is because..."Van's mind flashed back to Magus's passives—two in particular:Passive: Godly AttractionYou are instantly more interesting to women of your species than any other male in the vicinity or afar.Passive: Godly CharmYou will charm any woman of your species simply by existing, outshining every other male around you.Van's jaw clenched as the realization settled over him. His voice dropped, trembling with rage:"That harem fucker..."His breath came slow, deliberate."He's still alive, isn't he!?"Then, a small voice pierced through the heavy silence."M-Mom...?"Both Van and Amoria gasped, their heads snapping toward the hallway, where Lizzy stood frozen. Her wide eyes darted between her slumped mother and the towering figure of Van."W-what's... happening?"[DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWN DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWN, WASTING YOUR EMOOOOOOOOOOOOOTIONSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS, LAAAAAY ALLLLL YOUR LOOOOOOOOVE OOOOOOOON MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE~]