The Lich chuckled as he walked through the streets of Astera, it had been a long time since he had last stepped into the Port. He stopped slightly to reminisce about the time he snapped an old lady's kneecap in the marketplace, that had been a good day. Astera had apparently gone through a lot in the time between Odin's last excursion. Kazimir Seiryu, the weird friend-not friend that the Lich had, had created a guild here before joining Fairy Tail and disappearing from the world. Phoenix Feather, the group acting as a replacement for the Rune Knights, who hadn't even once crossed Odin's path other than Kazimir, and the Nephilim had given Odin spells to copy so even that had been beneficial. Maybe the Lich just wasn't scary enough to warrant people hunting him down?

Regardless, he stood now on the pier waiting. His protégé, Genevieve, was soon to be joining him, as they made some money in Astera. Even in a place surrounded by good, there was always someone who was too desperate, someone who would pay anyone so long as they completed the task set out for them. Odin was one of the people who benefited greatly from the desperate, they made for excellent sources of income, and sacrifices.

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Genevieve was not far behind Odin. She was excited when she was asked to come and help with this job, something she knew he didn't have to do. For every one footstep Odin took, Genevieve was two steps behind him. At some point during the transit, Genevieve found herself drawn to a fruit stall. She had forgotten to eat breakfast due to sleeping so well in her room and she was caught off guard when asked to Join Odin on his job. Popping over to the fruit stall she quickly bought a few pieces, like grapes, sliced peaches, and some cubed pineapple. Once she had gotten her little snack she quickly caught up with Odin, meeting him at the pier, but of course not before rejecting many of the brave people who tried to woo her.

Quietly enjoying her late breakfast she awaited orders from Odin on what they would be doing. She didn't quite catch what the job would be but it was probably something that would require her to get her hands dirty. Genevieve looked around the pier and noticed a lone fisherman running up to the duo. He was a middle-aged man with mess seafoam colored hair and blue eyes. He greeted the two with a name before going over what the two already knew and offering his boat to get them where they needed to go.

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It was quite amusing to Odin, both walking with Genevieve and leaving her to walk herself. Due to her proportions, whether assisted by Asmodeus or simply genetics he wasn't entirely sure, many found her to be the most beautiful being they had ever laid eyes on. When left alone, many approached her to talk, ask on a date or, in some cases, propose. However, much like a protective father would do, the simple existence of Odin convinced even the bravest of suitors to change their mind. The Lich had some reputation, especially in Astera, and it seemed like they didn't want to meet the same fate as Judith had.

The fisherman approached them and introduced himself, apparently wanting to be known just as Price. It seemed more like a surname, but Odin simply shook the hand of Fisher Price as he told them about what they were doing and giving them use of his boat. Nodding his agreement of the terms, Odin walked past him as Price ran away, not wanting to be associated with the Lich anymore than he had to be. It was a fairly small boat they stepped onto, however it had more than enough room to accommodate the two mages, as they sailed out towards a cove.

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" How come everyone is so afraid of you? " She noticed, of course, she did. No one would get near her and no one got near him. It was a little depressing but Asmodeus was not amused because she liked the attention and Odin was being a natural repellant. One would think that Genevieve already knew why a tall-ass bone man would scare people away, but she really didn't as she saw him in a different light from others. He like Asmodeus was the beacon in the dark and she only felt the warmth from their presence. Though she was still getting to know Odin and Asmodeus she felt as if she had known them her whole life.

As Odin spoke to the man, Genevieve would hand him some of her fruit before he took off. He of course thanked her profusely but that was all he did and the two got on the boat. Once on the boat, she made sure to stand very close to Odin as she had never been on a boat until today. Her hand reached out and held onto his cloak and another question formed as the two rode on to the cove.
"...Have you always been made of bone? "

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Since having Asmodeus possess her body and learning all sorts of new things, including the Fiorian language, Genevieve had become more than happy to ask all kinds of questions, particularly ones that nobody else would dare to ask. She was almost like a new born child, finding her way in the world and trying to learn as much as possible about the man who had saved her, and the world he lived in, "There are many reasons some choose to fear me, but to most it is because I am different." The multiple homicides and terrorist attacks probably also had something to do with it, as well as his Wizard Lord title, but Odin knew he wouldn't be feared nearly as much if he were human. It was easy to hate and fear something if you didn't understand it.

On the boat, with Genevieve keeping close to Odin and holding onto his cloak as the Lich steered the vessel towards the cove, another question arose. Anyone who had known Odin for long knew that he had once been human, but he wondered if that information had been lost to time. Perhaps no one had made the connection between Odin Morningstar the vessel and Odin Morningstar the Lich. Perhaps people thought he had always been a Lich. However, he had no reason to lie to the girl, "No. Once I was human."

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She sort of understood what it meant to be different. In her case, it wasn't fear that drove those people of her past to do what they did to her, it was hatred. The wounds of her ordeal were still fresh and she couldn't get them out of her mind. Every night that she slept was a nightmare as that fateful day played over and over in her dreams. Asmodeus was a blessing but she couldn't heal those mental and emotional scars that were festering in Genevieve. Though even after having been freed from that life she was still dealing with the effects of being diffrent. Men and some women swooned over her as if she were some sort of goddess, while others oozed jealousy. Her beauty was something that most wished they had and Genevieve didn't blame them. Unlike the horrors of her past she liked being diffrent in this way to people, she liked being wanted and admired though she didn't know what to do with all the attention. Asmodeus usually took over that department and Genevieve had watched the demon in action as she pulled men's heartstrings like a puppet master putting on a show. No man had even gotten close enough to touch her with the way the demon worked her own special brand of feminine magic to bring them to their knees. Genevieve was often in awe at the way the demon worked and she too wanted to learn that power.

As the boat neared their destination Genevieve wondered what Odin looked like as a human. Was he a handsome man or a deformed beast? She wondered if it was the latter would she still see him in the same light as she did. Thinking on it only for a second she decided that she would and in fact she would cherish him no matter what form he took. Still, she was curious about it which lead her to another question. " How did you become all bone? " Her question was innocent enough as she had never met anyone quite like Odin. She assumed when you were just bones that meant you were dead but he was clearly alive. So the question is did he die and someone or something reanimated him or was this some diffrent form of magic? She assumed he couldn't eat so she didn't offer any of her fruit but she wondered if he could feel pain being just bones and all. In the light of the sun, her eyes became a green color as she turned her gaze towards him. Curiosity shimmering in her jade orbs as the questions flowed unfiltered. It was funny how a demon of lust chose someone so seemingly innocent, and one had to wonder why that was. The little boat bobbed up and down on the waves, the salty mist of the sea gave Genevieve a healthy-looking glow as she glistened in the sun. Most people would like a wet mop but this was only making her look better. They were about half way to their destination with the cove becoming more visible the closer they got.

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Genevieve was a unique soul in Odin's eyes. Not simply because she had formed a contract with a demon, as far as Odin was concerned that wasn't all that rare an occurrence, but because she was probably one of the only people the Lich would answer truthfully, and not reprimand her for asking questions. He wasn't entirely sure why he was so forthcoming with Genevieve, perhaps it was because she was one of the only people Odin had met who had no ties to anyone else more than she did with the Lich. There was no way in which he saw her betraying the knowledge he would give her. And besides, it wasn't like he was telling her anything about his Goddess or his true intentions. He could talk about his former life, why not?

"I stabbed myself through the heart with a knife." It was completely truthful, and Odin even chuckled as he recalled the ridiculousness of that decision. It was a good thing it had worked out well. For the Lich, it had happened over one hundred years ago, and yet it was perhaps only five or six years since he last had flesh. The people of Fiore had forgotten about the Lich's time as a human, most believed he had always been an eternal being, having lived through generations. It obviously wasn't true, but there was no reason to ruin the story.

They were getting closer to the cove, and were about to dock the boat on the land that was becoming clearer and clearer. It was quite a ways out from Astera itself, but that only meant they were in for a treat. If the creature, or whatever it was that was stealing fish, lived nearby to the Port, then it likely wouldn't end up being that large. This far out, with the deep ocean around them, the creature could be something a lot more impressive, and that was something Odin would be looking forward to immensely. "Ask any final questions you may have now, once we depart on the land we likely won't have time for pleasantries."

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Upon hearing his answer Genevieve was left with so many more questions than she started with. Why would he answer in a way that would leave her curiosity and thirst for knowledge about him unfed? Maybe he didn't want to talk about it? Or maybe she was just being nosy? She felt something inside of her l like guilt or embarrassment, she couldn't quite pin it down but Asmodeus found it amusing. Don't worry so much. I think it's cute he's playing tall, dark, and mysterious like that. Or at least I think he is. Besides he said you can ask more questions so try not to fret over it. Asmodeus's smooth voice slithered into Genevieve's mind, and quickly put the girl at ease. The lust demon was right but Genevieve thought it is best to hold onto some questions for another time. Unloading her brain on him might annoy him, and they were about to take on some beast so it was best to get her head in the right space for that.

As the little boat floated up on the shores of the cove, Genevieve let go of Odin's cloak and took a step out of the boat. Worry set in again as she was not well versed in any combat of any type. She wasn't sure how much use she would be and felt like a burden to Odin on this quest. Her lack of control over Asmodeus's power caused her to take much longer than it should have to master a few spells but she was sure even then she wouldn't be useful in a battle should she need to partake in one. If anything the best she could do was offer her support, something she was sure Odin didn't really need for this. Her mind wandered to what sort of creature could have been eating all of the fish or at least enough of it for the fishermen to be deprived themselves. Was it a big sea creature? how dangerous was it? did any of the fishermen ever see what it was? A few questions ran through her mind but she kept close to odin because she knew her questions would be answered soon enough. " I'm excited to see how this will turn out. I've never been on a quest before.. But you knew that already. " Her voice was calm as if she wasn't nervous but she was. This was her first quest and Odin was taking her to show her how it worked when it came to making money and gaining power.

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The naivety of innocence had, in the past, always been something that Odin had despised when it came to anyone else. He had killed people in the past for simply not knowing their place and asking for information they weren't privy to. And yet, with Genevieve, Odin found it almost cute. Perhaps because this was someone on his side, someone he could completely trust, a person who possessed no loyalties other than those towards Odin. However, her power came with a caveat that the Lich had considered, and was still working on accepting. He knew the power of the demon princes, and Asmodeus would be no exception to that power. The question then became whether Asmodeus had her own loyalties that would, if questioned, trump Genevieve's. There would be no way to know in advance so Odin, as they disembarked from the boat, simply put it to the back of his mind. For now at least, Asmodeus was a powerful ally, as was Genevieve.

Looking around the cove, there was nothing Odin could instantly see that would reveal the location of whatever creature was hiding from them. That was in no small part to the fact he didn't have a functioning nose, as the smell of dead fish permeated the air with a very obvious point of origin. It wasn't even that Odin couldn't smell, as magic allowed some of his normal bodily functions to work just as they had when he had possessed flesh, but rather he didn't notice the smell of death anymore. It was similar, albeit more fishy, than the smell that lingered around Odin wherever he went and, almost like white noise, it had been filtered out. In the end, it was only because of the visual clues of blood and dead fish leading into the dark cave that he noticed anything at all.

Genevieve was excited for their day, as Odin began to cross the sand towards the cave mouth, presuming that his protégé would follow him. It was her first quest, a way for the two to make some money as well as for Odin to see what Genevieve, and by extension Asmodeus, were capable of. "You'll do great, if anything gets rough stay behind me, we don't know yet what kid of foe we're going to be facing." There was a softness in Odin's voice that very few others had ever heard, and even fewer lived through. Perhaps he could've been good at this 'father' thing, perhaps he still could.

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Perhaps it was nerves, or perhaps there was something more going on, but regardless Genevieve seemed to take Odin's offer a lot more literally than the Lich had expected. For the remainder of the day she would stay behind him, allowing him to do all the work while receiving some of the pay herself. It was a bit unfair, but Odin was here to make money and kill something, he didn't really care about details or specifics right now. The dead fish lead them both into a cave system that could've easily spanned for many kilometres. Thankfully the blood trail didn't last as long as the caves did, however it went deep into the ocean. Apparently the caves weren't simply one long cavern: there were many layers and some of them could only be accessed by going underwater. For all Odin knew there could be an entire race of beings living in the watery caves, feasting on the fish from Astera and trying to make their way in life. And entire race for the Lich to genocide, oh today was definitely going to be fun. All he had to do was submerge himself, and follow the blood.

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Odin had always had an interesting relationship with water, as he dove down into the depths of the underwater cavern system, curious as to what kind of creature -or creatures- he would find beneath. The relationship had started long before Odin had become the Wizard Lord, the harbinger of doom Lich that he now was, synonymous with death itself despite refusing to succumb to it. He had initially been concerned with water, more so than with death amusingly enough, as it had been his greatest weakness while under the influence and utilising the power of Lucifer. The demon of fire was naturally wary of the power of water, even if it was one of the most underutilised elements when it came to mages. There were very few occasions where Odin had encountered someone using a water based magic, which had been good for Lucifer.

Giving up the power of the demon prince of chaos and embodiment of pride had allowed Odin to become more accustomed to water. He hadn't learned to swim up until that point in his life, having been given the demon's power at a very young age, which made for an interesting first few weeks of becoming a Lich, as he had gained the opportunity to learn.

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Learning to swim after becoming a Lich, and giving up on his mortal life entirely, had been a very interesting occurrence for Odin. He had gone from a human that avoided water entirely for fear of drowning and losing to the demon inside him, to a being that didn't have lungs, and thus had literally no reason to fear the ocean or anything of that nature. He hadn't even needed to learn how to swim, as it was now impossible for him to drown. He could sink to the bottom of the ocean floor and simply walk through it to get to wherever he wished to reach. Swimming had gone from a useful skill that he would never learn to a useless skill that he'd never need, which had been strange for the Lich.

Of course, he had still decided to learn, as he was well past the age of it being normal not to know how to swim, and it had been a relatively fun time, as he had to get used to swimming with a lot less mass than the average human, elf or even dwarf. But, after a few months of testing the waters, he had finally picked up the skill and, as he finally surfaced under the ground inside the cave system, he was glad for the skill. The currents had been pulling him in various directions underneath the small island, and walking would definitely not have covered it for the Lich.

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Having pushed against the currents and finally reaching dry land once more, Odin emerged from the water and into the underground cavern system, having followed the blood and, eventually, the light emanating from an unknown source. The blood had been hard to track under the water, but the light had certainly made it easier, as the Lich looked around. Apparently whoever, or whatever was creating the light was deeper within still. The Lich was about to delve even further under the ground. Whatever creature, or creatures, was stealing from the fishermen of Astera and eating their fish, it did not want to be found and was going through a great deal of effort to conceal themselves from any who sought them out. It was a good thing Odin was undead, and no amount of light, darkness or water could stop him from doing what he was getting paid to do.

As he walked through the caves, he came up with some idea of what he could be dealing with. Something slippery, like a giant eel but made of magic. It would need to be something that could survive both underwater and above ground, and ate fish. It was a difficult conundrum, as there were very few natural creatures who could do that, meaning it had to be a magical being. When he finally reached the light source, Odin saw something he definitely didn't expect.

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It wasn't just a single creature. Hell, it wasn't even just a single family. Hundreds of them, more than could ever be counted ran amok in this underground system. Men, women and children too, of all shapes and sizes. It seemed like this island was populated by an unknown species of water creature, using magic to light their way and keep themselves alive. They seemed to eat predominantly fish going by the bones scattered around: the men hunting the oceans to feed the rest of the populace. It seemed, as Odin approached them and their small blue heads all turned to face him, that the people of Astera had unknowingly encroached upon the lands of these beings, forcing them to steal the fish that the people of Fiore had stolen from them. They weren't hostile, they didn't mean any harm to anyone, they simply wished to exist.

Odin spared none of them. Within a few hours, he had completed his genocide, cutting through each and every single one of them. The men tried to fight back to no avail, the women begged for the Lich to spare the children, and the children accepted the fate, having no means to fight back after all the death they had witnessed. The Lich had been paid to find the cause of the missing fish and stop it, and so he did just that. The people of Astera would once again fish in peace, without concern for the now dead species of oceanic people who would never trouble them again.

-Exit-

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