"..." An eerie tension lingered in the air as Aseria watched the motionless Esperia standing in the living room of the house they had just entered. It took a moment before she started to notice the change in the Demon Queen, the way her skin seemed to change color and her lower body regained its serpentine like nature... Was this the true form of the Demon Queen of Debauchery? "Master your true form is showing-" But Esperia merely replied with. "Aseria, can you please wait outside?" The fallen Seraphim nodded her head lightly, opening the door and stepping outside as she closed it behind her.

Meanwhile Esperia slithered closer to the table, the table her family used to eat at. "Is this karma?" Esperia asked feebly. "Punishment for my attempts to prevent a war by seducing her?" Tears started to gather in her eyes as she turned her gaze toward the chamber that she and Priscilla had used for their bedroom all these years. "I promised I would always return, and yet... now there is no family to return home to..."

Sliding onto the bed she curled up onto it, soft sobs escaping from her. "And again it happened... Again the one I love ends up disappearing without a word." She truly had wanted to settle down, to finally be able to raise their family properly, which was the very reason she didn't want to see Hargeon consumed by war. "I'm an idiot... if I knew I would feel this pain again..."

She rolled onto her stomach, burying her face into the pillow and sighed softly, the tears continuing to trail down her cheeks as she whispered feebly. "I wish you never appeared in my life."

She cried, for hours it felt like all she could do was cry as she understood the reason for why she couldn't find a trace of Priscilla or Hasani: They didn't want to be found.

"It hurts... Loving someone and caring so much for them hurts so much." And yet she knew a being like her couldn't ignore these feelings either. Love was an incredibly strong motivator as well, one that could often allow her to grow past her normal limits.

It seemed at least several hours had passed since Esperia had entered the residence. Memories and regrets continued to pile up within her being, till at last she cried till there were no more tears to shed.

Her family was no more, and as such she had no home to return to. Or was that truly the case? She knew there was still a place she could call home, a family she could return to but. For now she needed a bit of time. This was not the return she had anticipated, nor the welcome she desired.

She could hear footsteps nearby, her magical sight allowing her to see Aseria standing at the doorway. "I thought I asked you to stay outside?" Aseria nodded her head lightly, an apologetic bow being made. "I apologize for intruding Master, but I was worried about you."

Esperia sighed audibly, turning around as her tears had already faded away. "It's fine~ Come here~" Esperia patted the blanket beside her for a moment, after which the angel took a seat and looked worriedly at her.

"You must be wondering what this place is, what it means to me... Right?" The angel nodded her head lightly in confirmation as Esperia continued to speak. "It used to be my home, or rather the place my family once called home. You see: I don't have blood relatives anymore. They died when I was little, but I found a family years ago in the companionship of a woman I adored immensely. But... they left me behind."

She sighed deeply and then smiled weakly. "I guess it's karma for having gone on so many dangerous adventures, when all I truly wanted was to finally settle down. Not that these desires matter any longer."

She shook her head lightly and continued. "For now we'll be resting here. Tomorrow we'll be heading to the Blue Pegasus guild to seek out my mentor and dear friend Alisa, she might hold some important advice for my current situation."

With these words her decision was made. For now she would stay and rest till dawn, and the next day? She would take the opportunity to leave her past behind her.

Later that night...

Despite it already being dark outside she could still see very clearly, and she could see that she was not alone. Lying beside her was the fallen Seraphim, seemingly having made herself comfortable. She couldn't help but wonder if it was the power of her influence being at play here. She would have thought the idea of a Seraphim sleeping beside a Demon to be outrageous.

Whatever the case might had been, it did help ease the feelings of loneliness a bit. Making her close her eyes as she tried to let her mind drift into a state of slumber. Part of her hoped she wouldn't be forced to experience a dream or memory of the past. But instead it seemed she would be experiencing something quite different.

The demon felt like she was simply experiencing a trance of sorts, neither dream or nightmare, nor memory filled her consciousness. Just... a blank dream. However, when she suddenly smelled the delicious scent of a roasted chicken she couldn't help but open her eyes and whisper softly "meat?" Her stomach growling as she rose from her bed and slithered along the ground toward the kitchen where a most surprisingly sight awaited her.

"Good morning Master!" The Seraphim announced cheerfully, and yet Esperia couldn't help but blink in bewilderment. "What... are you doing?" Esperia's words earned a sheepish smile from the angel. "Cooking breakfast?" To which Esperia chimed in response. "I get that, but why the apron?" The Seraphim replied with an innocent cheerfulness. "I thought you might enjoy this sort of thing~" To which the Demon Queen muttered softly. "Yes, but put on some clothes, or you're going to become breakfast instead..."

WC: 1030
Total WC: 1030/1500

She rolled onto her stomach, burying her face into the pillow and sighed softly, the tears continuing to trail down her cheeks as she whispered feebly. "I wish you never appeared in my life."

She cried, for hours it felt like all she could do was cry as she understood the reason for why she couldn't find a trace of Priscilla or Hasani: They didn't want to be found.

"It hurts... Loving someone and caring so much for them hurts so much." And yet she knew a being like her couldn't ignore these feelings either. Love was an incredibly strong motivator as well, one that could often allow her to grow past her normal limits.

It seemed at least several hours had passed since Esperia had entered the residence. Memories and regrets continued to pile up within her being, till at last she cried till there were no more tears to shed.

Her family was no more, and as such she had no home to return to. Or was that truly the case? She knew there was still a place she could call home, a family she could return to but. For now she needed a bit of time. This was not the return she had anticipated, nor the welcome she desired.

She could hear footsteps nearby, her magical sight allowing her to see Aseria standing at the doorway. "I thought I asked you to stay outside?" Aseria nodded her head lightly, an apologetic bow being made. "I apologize for intruding Master, but I was worried about you."

Esperia sighed audibly, turning around as her tears had already faded away. "It's fine~ Come here~" Esperia patted the blanket beside her for a moment, after which the angel took a seat and looked worriedly at her. She must had really been concerned about her earlier outburst...

"You must be wondering what this place is, what it means to me... Right?" The angel nodded her head lightly in confirmation as Esperia continued to speak. "It used to be my home, or rather the place my family once called home. You see: I don't have blood relatives anymore. They died when I was little, but I found a family years ago in the companionship of a woman I adored immensely. But... they left me behind."

She sighed deeply and then smiled weakly. "I guess it's karma for having gone on so many dangerous adventures, when all I truly wanted was to finally settle down. Not that these desires matter any longer."

She shook her head lightly and continued. "For now we'll be resting here. Tomorrow we'll be heading to the Blue Pegasus guild to seek out my mentor and dear friend Alisa, she might hold some important advice for my current situation."

With these words her decision was made. For now she would stay and rest till dawn, and the next day? She would take the opportunity to leave her past behind her.

Later that night...

Despite it already being dark outside she could still see very clearly, and she could see that she was not alone. Lying beside her was the fallen Seraphim, seemingly having made herself comfortable. She couldn't help but wonder if it was the power of her influence being at play here. She would have thought the idea of a Seraphim sleeping beside a Demon to be outrageous.

Whatever the case might had been, it did help ease the feelings of loneliness a bit. Making her close her eyes as she tried to let her mind drift into a state of slumber. Part of her hoped she wouldn't be forced to experience a dream or memory of the past. But instead it seemed she would be experiencing something quite different.

The demon felt like she was simply experiencing a trance of sorts, neither dream or nightmare, nor memory filled her consciousness. Just... a blank dream. However, when she suddenly smelled the delicious scent of a roasted chicken she couldn't help but open her eyes and whisper softly "meat?" Her stomach growling as she rose from her bed and slithered along the ground toward the kitchen where a most surprisingly sight awaited her.

"Good morning Master!" The Seraphim announced cheerfully, and yet Esperia couldn't help but blink in bewilderment. "What... are you doing?" Esperia's words earned a sheepish smile from the angel. "Cooking breakfast?" To which Esperia chimed in response. "I get that, but why the apron?" The Seraphim replied with an innocent cheerfulness. "I thought you might enjoy this sort of thing~" To which the Demon Queen muttered softly. "Yes, but put on some clothes, or you're going to become breakfast instead..."

WC: 1030
Total WC: 1030/1500

It was fortunate that Aseria had been there, because honestly she was not certain how she would have some to terms with the matter otherwise. Nonetheless, after some time she finally was able to enjoy a peaceful breakfast with her new servant. Quietly eating the chicken Esperia tried to figure out her next course of action. It would make sense to seek out Alisa for advice, especially if the denizen of the Lucent were truly out to hunt her. Still, equally curious was the behavior of the corrupted Seraphim. She had honestly not expected it to have that much of an influence on her personality, but overall the fact she wasn't trying to kill her was already a huge positive point in her opinion.

But still... She couldn't help but gaze quietly toward the window that cast a view upon the garden. Did that much time pass since she had died? For some reason the garden looked more bewildered, almost as if it had become part of the forest. "Aseria, can you pack some spare clothes for us? I'm going to look around the garden for a bit till we depart.

Slithering toward the window the Lamia slid it open and slide herself outside, her gaze drifting among the flowers and the trees. However, more peculiar was the sight of several large trees, trees that had previously been clearly not in her garden! But even more mysterious was the fact there was a tent of sorts constructed from various branches and leaves. It did make her curious, since she had not expected to see such a sight in her backyard. Quietly slithering closer she opened the entrance to the tent as she whispered playfully. "Sorry for the intrusion~" But what she found there? Was something she had never ever dared to even imagine. Rapidly slithering out of the tent she closed it again and looked around in a panic.

"Who abandoned a stray naked elf in my backyard?!" This was simply getting beyond ridiculous! First her family disappeared without any warning. Then a bunch of trees popped up in her backyard and a camping naked elf was found among them?! Who was she?! AND WHY WAS SHE CAMPING NAKED IN HER BACKYARD?!

"This must be a trick... a trap prepared by a rival demon king to lure me to my demise... Or it might be a mortal seeking to get a laugh out of it." Hearing her yelling Aseria quickly came dashing toward the window, but Esperia merely shook her head at her, slithering back inside. "Let's go Aseria, my head hurts too much to make any sense of what I just seen."

Aseria turned toward her in bewilderment. "You saw something in your garden?" To which Esperia nodded her head firmly. "A naked elf... camping in my backyard. If I didn't know better that Tree was placed there to conceal her, like some well-planned prank. A Tree-styled prank perhaps?" Poor Esperia, clearly she was distressed...

WC: 500
Total WC: +1500/1500