Chương 124: The End of a Story - 2 - The Queen and the Fallen Archangel

"If you take these things away from me, I might be able to help end with the fallen."

The response from the knights and the three Valkyries, who were with Serien, was quick to protect the queen from the chained anemy.

They surrounded Serien with a solid barrier of shields, spears and swords aimed at Michael, just waiting for an order from Serien to dispose of Michael, but that order never came.

The order never came because as soon as she saw Michael, Serien froze in fear on the place as if she was seeing something terrify.

The fear she felt was the most primal there was, the fear of dying. It was a fear that makes you want to run without looking back. A fear that makes you tremble. A fear that makes you break out in a cold sweat and want to scream desperately.

However, Serien didn't scream, not because she didn't want to, but because she couldn't. Her throat was dry, what kept her from screaming and in a way, she was grateful for that.

This fear Serien felt wasn't unfounded, this wasn't her first time seeing Michael. It was purely by chance that Serien was there when Michael appeared in Basilian's sky. Then she witnessed he being beaten by Athena and given away to Lucifer like if he were a toy.

In that time, she had spent all day in her cabinet, working on the documents that came with the destruction caused by Gion and also the destruction caused by Athena when Yggdrazil showed up in the palace, but anyway.

Seiren was on her way to her room and, as she passed through the palace's outer corridors, she happened to witness what happened to Michael.

That night, with so many powerful beings in one place, Serien barely felt the pressure of Michael's presence, but as she seeing him, even from afar, she knew he was dangerous.

When she saw Michael's mana, his mana was like Lucifer's, no, although it appeared that they both came from the same source, Michael's mana was more intense, dense and powerful than Lucifer's mana.

Anyway, Serien was terrified, she could imagine what Michael was capable of and was afraid of her imagination coming true, but she didn't show that fear.

In her mind, which was troubled by stress, worry, anxiety and fear, Serien focused on the word "strong" and imagined how Athena would act in that situation.

Which wasn't much help, as she knew Athena would hit first and ask questions later. But even so, Athena was a great reference for Serien, who wore the coldness in her eyes and the calm in her face.

She also thought of her children, her siblings, her servants… her people. With all these people in mind, whether they were known or not, and with the inspiration that Athena was for her, Serien built up with her courage the solid camouflage that she was wear, a noble appearance, keeping her calm.

Of course, this courage was more for the good of her people than to maintain her noble dignity or monarchical pride, she never cared about that. Serien had built that courage for her people. She knew that if she collapsed, her people, who were already in a deplorable state, would descend into despair of no return.

In addition to the courage she built in herself for her people, what also maintained the dignity that Serien displayed were the brave and valiant warriors who were willing to die to protect her. That courage was also for them, Sahari, Lobana, Oliana, all knights and adventurers, that Serien held her head high.

The queen knew that even if she was terrified, she couldn't show weakness when she had people ready to throw their lives away to keep her alive. Serien had to honor their courage and she did.

From the moment Michael approached and spoke directly to her, Serien didn't look away. Her silvery black hair was disheveled, her robes were simple and she wore no jewelry, but Serien maintained the noble aura she had.

With her back straight, chest out and chin up, the queen stared at the archangel with her icy purple eyes.

The screaming fear inside her told her to run away and made her break out in a cold sweat, but then, after a few seconds of just staring at the man, Serien's voice was calm with a dignified authority.

"By 'fallen'..." Seiren narrowed her inquisitive eyes. "...do you mean those like you, who are hiding among my people right now?"

"Yes my siblings..." Michael responded with a bad taste in his mouth because of the queen's gaze.

He remembered seeing Serien as he was dragged by Lucifer through the halls of the palace and into the dungeons. He remembered the look of dread on her face, an expression that didn't exist on her face at that moment.

"As you can see, I've already killed some..." Michael pointed to the regenerated wings on her back. "But with these chains, I can't do anything but kill them."

Serien remembered Michael's wings being ripped off, though she couldn't remember who have done so. She also remembered Athena saying something about his powers, but she had too much on her mind at the moment and she couldn't remember what it was.

Anyway, the queen was sure that those wings shouldn't be intact and it started to haunt her mind with the possibilities he could use his powers even using black iron chains.

However, this time Serien's concern was unnecessary. Michael hadn't regained his powers and probably never would.

The fact that the archangel got his wings back was purely the result of what the angels themselves had caused, what could be called karma.

This is not an interesting story, it could even be seen as an act of childishness on Michael's part, but to him it was an act of betrayal on the part of his own family.

When the angels appeared, Michael was happy. Ignorant of the real events, he immediately thought he was being rescued when he saw his siblings, but...

The angels weren't there to save him. They didn't even look at Michael when they arrived and yet, when they saw him all ragged and chained like a slave, they made fun of the archangel and saw an opportunity for ascension in their older brother's death, which clearly didn't happen.

Michael was weak, chained, wingless and weaponless, but he was still an archangel and the angels' mistake was to underestimate him after making him their enemy.

Feeling humiliated and betrayed twice, Michael went on to kill his brothers and sisters even when they didn't come to him.

Using the chains, which weakened him, as weapons, the archangel lassoed his siblings, pulled them to the ground and killed them one by one without mercy.

In Michael there was no reason for mercy. They, the angels, no, all the gods, on your mother's or your father's side, they all deserved no mercy after so much humiliation.

And even as the angels pleaded with tears in their eyes, pleading for their lives, Michael tore at them with his bare hands and bloodthirsty eyes of pure hate. Michael had become the karma they couldn't handle.

This killing continues until, while killing a high ranking angel, Michael saw Lucifer hovering in the flaming sky and that was a beautiful scene in his eyes.

With the sky burning crimson flames overhead, the beautiful, sensual woman flew and rained blood in an endless waltz.

Michael was fascinated by so much beauty and wanted to fly with her. He wanted to be in the same sky as Lucifer was. He wanted to fight by her side even if it meant his death, but he didn't have wings and coun't fly.

Michael gritted his teeth in bitterness at not being able to fly and his fascinated eyes darkened as he looked down, at his agitated victim.

Michael was holding Ezekiel, a high-ranking angel, by the neck and squeezing tightly with the intention of killing him. As for the angel, he thrashed violently, trying to free himself from the hands that strangled him, struggling to live.

Seeing that his brother was still alive despite the force he applied, Michael had an idea of what to do and his golden eyes returned to a hopeful glow.

Ezekiel was one of the few angels who had skills and spells that resembled those of an archangel. He was everything Michael needed at that moment.

With his hands buried in his brother's guts, Michael recalled the sensation he'd felt when Athena had done the same to him and stripped him of his powers.

He remembered what it was like to be impaled and have something pulled out of him, of how he felt like he was mere prey, who was having it's organs ripped out while was still alive. Michael recalled every detail and repeated the same with Ezekiel.

However, even having the exact memory and minutely repeating with Ezekiel the same things that Athena did to him, the result was not the same.

The black iron chains attached to his body didn't allow him to use his mana properly and all he managed to get of Ezekiel's powers was a physical regeneration skill before finally killing him.

One way or another, luck hadn't left Michael yet, as his chains weren't pure black iron and therefore didn't nullify his mana completely as the chains used by the Valkyries on Athena did. On the other hand, he had taken too long to get Ezekiel's skill and by the time his wings returned to normal, Lucifer was already gone.

"You must be wondering what I want in exchange for killing my siblings." Michael continued. "Well, that's simple..."

While killing Ezekiel, Michael saw what he loved most and had long lost. He saw Lucifer's smile, a smile she always directed at him. A genuinely happy smile full of love and light.

As he delved his hands into Ezekiel's deepest interior, Michael was constantly looking up at the sky.

It was something irresistible, his eyes were always searching for Lucifer and, in his search, he saw what he loved most in his entire existence.

That was something he thought he lost a long time ago. Michael saw Lucifer's genuinely happy smile, a smile that was always aimed at him and only him, but no more.

At that moment, Lucifer was enveloped in a shimmering golden glow, her pure black hair fluttered, her red eyes glowed with each angel's death and her smile had the most absolute beauty.

Michael wanted that smile for him. He wanted her to smile that way at him when she looked at him and for that, he was willing to do anything.

"I want Lucifer to look at me again..." Michael said.

As he said this, Michael showed a longing melancholy with his faraway eyes, which made him look fragile with his fading smile, making him even more dazzling than he was.

As a divine being, Michael was already a very handsome man, but with that melancholy air around him, all those who looked at him at that moment were mesmerized.

That fragile, almost sad appearance made people's hearts heavy and warm in the midst of so much desolation. The people, who saw the archangel that way, wanted to hug and comfort the man, even though they were the ones who most needed comfort.

However, not everyone was fascinated by Michael and that was not even the archangel's intention.

Among the many people mesmerized, Sahari, Serien and Lobana made disgusted expressions at the sight of Michael's fragile appearance.

They didn't know Lucifer's history with Michael for sure, but they knew they were siblings and understood that Michael's feelings for Lucifer were impure. They are disgusted to see that, but not only that.

They weren't affected by Michael's unintentional charm because they had higher priorities than dazzling the archangel's fragile appearance.

Lobana was constantly thinking of the millions of children that were scattered across that valley. She thought of the sadness they felt, the despair they experienced and their senseless deaths.

She was so worried about the kids that it wouldn't surprise anyone if she ran to their rescue at any moment, but she didn't. In spite of all her worries, Lobana was aware that she wouldn't be able to save all the children in that place.

Moreover, Lobana also knew that as long as Serien lived, more children could be saved and so she kept calm and stayed by the queen's side.

While Lobana had a lot of worries, Sahari had only one person on her mind and heart for a long time now. She thought of nothing but the safety of her beloved Serien.

So for Sahari and Lobana, no matter how handsome and frail Michael looked, all they had to offer him was caution. They listened carefully to every word spoken by the archangel and carefully watched every move Michael made so that if he did something that put the queen in danger, they could react as quickly as possible and kill him even if it means one of them would die.

As for Serien, she saw nothing but a monster in front of her, and while she kept her solemn mask on, she only suffered in fear and she couldn't even think about what Michael looked like.

Aside from the fear that kept her from paying attention to the beautiful melancholy before her, Serien had a lot on her mind to worry about.

Stressed out by everything that had happened, anxious about what could happen at any moment, and worried about her children, friends, and her people, all Serien wanted was to end this conversation once and for all and continue saving those who could still be saved.

However, even with all this weighing on her mind, even though she didn't care enough to sympathize with Lucifer or Michael, Serien couldn't help but be baffled by Michael's claim.

"What did you say?" The queen asked, thinking she heard wrong.

Serien didn't know much about the history they had, but from what little she'd heard that night in the palace grounds, she knew that Michael was a damn pervert obsessed with his own sister and that he'd done something really bad to her to the point she hate him with all her might.

"What are you talking about?" Serien asked not understanding what Michael's purpose was.

The queen couldn't understand why he wanted the attention of someone who hated him so much. To her, well, to anyone who knew about that nonsense, it would all be irrational.

"I love Lucifer and I want her look at me again." Michael answered seriously.

"Why?" Seren insisted. "It don't make any sense!"

It made so little sense that for a moment Serien had forgotten her fear and wanted answers to something so irrational. She wondered if he was a masochist or if maybe this was a new way to torment Lucifer.

Well, not that she cared about Lucifer. Serien barely knew her and had no bond or sympathy for her, but Lucifer was on Athena's side and as such, Serien thought that the demon lord was also within her protective reach, even if she didn't need to.

"But why this matters now?" Michael questioned with some indignation.

Serien was so perplexed by the whole pointless situation, that she had forgotten what really mattered.

So when she heard Michael's indignant question, she momentarily closed her eyes and let go of her search for answers.

(Indeed, it doesn't matter...) Serien thought as she took a deep breath and turned to face Michael coldly. "You're right, I don't care if you want to please Lucifer or whoever else. All that matters is that you're asking for something impossible and..." Serien narrowed her eyes thoughtfully. "Let's say I agree with that..."

"Serien!? You can't be seriously considering this, can you?" Sahari asked with some bewilderment in her voice.

"Calm down..." Serien laid a hand on Sahari's shoulder and said. "That's just a hypothesis." Then she continued as intertwine the fingers of her hands together. "Let's say I accept your proposal and release you, but then, instead of fulfilling your end of the bargain, you kill us..."

"I would not do...-"

Michael tried to say something, but fell silent when he saw Serien's hand raised, asking him to shut up and he did. But it was not because Serien had asked for silence, normally he would have killed her for it, he had shut up because he was surprised at the authority she tried to impose on him.

"Of course you won't do anything, I know that..." There was so much going on, that Serien had forgotten that Michael had two major weaknesses, weaknesses that she only came to think of as she made her assumptions. "Me and you know that if you kill us, Athena will kill you even if she have to follow you through hell. Well, that's if Lucifer doesn't kill you first..."

Unlike Serien, Michael hadn't forgotten, he couldn't. After all, it was his heart, no, it was his life that was at stake and he was afraid of death.

Michael understood his situation well and was just trying to get a deal with Serien because he couldn't get rid of those chains with his own strength.

"I know that..." Michael replied. "I won't do anything to make Lucifer walk away from me any further."

With Michael's answer, Serien just muttered something inaudible to herself and kept her cool, superior gaze on Michael.

This made the archangel's blood boil in rage. Seeing a mere mortal, a mere human looking at him like that was demeaning, but knowing that killing her was one of the worst decisions he could ever make, Michael just blundered silently as he swallowed his pride.

As she faced Michael, Serien kept thinking about a plan that would allow her to use Michael for the benefit of her people. She wanted the best way to use Michael, as she understood that having him as a "hunter" wasn't a bad idea.

However, releasing Michael was simply too risky from the Queen's point of view. Even considering he was in constant danger having his life in the hands of Athena and Lucifer, Serien couldn't trust his words alone.

Having lived through what she had with her late husband, Serien had learned her lesson and wouldn't do something stupid like blindly believe a possible enemy again.

(How to restrain him while allowing him to use mana?) Serien wondered. (But before that... If he has free access to mana, will he regain his power?)

Serien thought of several possibilities of disastrous futures in which she freed Michael. This without knowing that Michael didn't even have the power to use the mana of the environment to recover the mana spent.

When Athena took his powers, she had also taken his natural ability to regenerate mana and because of that, even if he was freed from the chains, Michael was in great danger of dying if he used more mana than his mana core had.

Just like he did when he regenerated his wings, every time Michael used a skill or magic that he developed, he would have to spend the mana from the mana core that Athena had put in place of his heart.

The mana core was what kept him alive and if he used up all the mana in the core, he would die just like any mortal who used up all the available mana.

After much thought, Serien finally came to a decision. There was a way to restrain Michael without interfering with his powers, but she was going to need him to agree and so she started a negotiation.

"And what guarantee do I have that you won't kill us the moment we set you free?" Serien asked with no hurry.

Of course, her soft voice was just part of her mask. At every second spent in that conversation, there was a person she couldn't save. Then, without showing it, the anxiety was consuming her inside.

"Guarantee?" Michael asked thoughtfully, looking around, and after a few seconds, he looked back at Serien. "Wait for me, I won't be long."

It was very fast, when Serien and company blinked, Michael was already flying over the dark sky that was illuminated only by the beams of lights of vibrant chophors that came from the dimensional rift.

Then, as they passed, Michael dove to the ground, somewhere among the people, and reappeared in the sky while holding something that looked like a person.

At first, seeing what Michael had done, thinking he was one of her citizens, Serien made a grimly bitter expression, but upon realizing the person had wings, the queen sighed in relief and put on her mask of indifference again.

The angel was a beautiful woman with long, almost crystalline white hair. Her wings were of lifeless gray and her blue eyes were dull, as if they were already dead, but she was still young and beautiful as a painting.

Serien looked at the beautiful angel, who struggled and begged her brother for her life, and felt nothing seeing the woman desperately trying to escape her impending death.

Seeing the angel begging for her life, Serien only wondered how many of her people that woman had killed. How many children, women, husbands and parents were crying now because of her actions. For the first time that day, that expression Serien had on her face, full of indifference and cruel coldness, was not a mask.

"What are you going to do with it?" Serien asked and the answer came in an instant.

Michael made her look at Serien and then, while holding her thin neck, Michael started pulling her head up while pushing her body down.

Feeling and hearing her bones breaking and flesh tearing, the woman screamed desperately, begging Michael, her brother, to spare her life, but it was only cries for help in vain.

Then, as Michael severed the head from the body, pulling along a long length of the spinal column and smearing blood and organs onto the already blood-smeared floor, silence ensued for a few seconds.

"That's my guarantee." Michael said as he held his lifeless head in front the people there. "If I wanted to kill you all, I would have. These chains only prevent me from using mana, but they don't interfere with my physical strength, although I can't break them..."

Seeing that scene, Serien was sure of what she already knew. Michael was extremely dangerous and should be restrained as quickly as possible.

She only had one way to do that and keep Michael working for the good of her people. Serien decided that she would make a blood pact with him.

"How far are you willing to go for us to have a deal?" Serien kept as calm as her nerves would allow. "Seeing you rip out that woman's throat only strengthened my conviction that you are too dangerous."

Serien cleared space between riders and stood between Sahari and Lobana, coming face to face with Michael.

With that action, she wanted to show that she wasn't afraid to die and that she knew he wouldn't kill her for fear of Lucifer hating him even more by angering Athena.

"With those chains attached to you..." Serien continued as she looked down at the body between them and felt an icy shiver down her back. "...We might even lose some of our own, but I'm sure we can kill him."

"But you won't…" Michael said in a serious, and imperceptibly menacing, voice.

"Maybe…" Serien retorted. "Like I said, you're too dangerous…" Serien narrowed her eyes at Michael and smiled subtly. "What are you willing to do to have my trust?"

Looking into Serien's purple eyes, Michael answered without hesitation. "I'm willing to do anything if it's going to make Lucifer look at me again."

(Lucifer again... This is gross, but I can use it.) Serien thought with a victorious hidden smile. "Have you ever heard of the blood pact?"

As they heard Serien talk about the blood pact, everyone around her, knights and valkyries with haunted eyes, turned their attention from Michael to the queen.

"Serien, you can't be serious about this, can you?" Sahari asked with a shaky voice.

"It's okay, I know what I'm doing." Serien replied without looking at the woman.

"B-but..."

"Just trust me." Serien reaffirmed her decision with a steady gaze at Sahari. "I'll be fine."

A blood pact was an ancient and powerful magic that was mostly used by kings to keep promises between kingdons like a ceasefire during a war.

It was magic so powerful and dangerous that it affected even the mighty dragons and giants. This magic was such a dangerous magic that no one, for a long time, was willing to use it, making it almost a legend.

The side effects of making a blood pact were fatal most of the time, as it took a lot of mana just to survive.

In the process of making the pact, the souls of the beings involved were marked and this caused such intense pain that if they survived, whoever made the pact would wish they had died.

Michael knew nothing about the said pact, but for him, knowing it or not, it made no difference. If that leads to Lucifer looking at him with new eyes, Michael is more than willing to give up his arms and legs.

"I don't know what it is, but if it makes you believe me, I'll take it." Michael replied.

His main purpose in all this was to get a good image before Lucifer, but he also wanted power to be by his beloved's side. For that, he needed to get rid of the chains that for some reason were stronger than his old spear.

If it weren't for the black iron chains, Michael wouldn't even be there, stooping so low as to make a deal with Serien, who at that moment was trying to keep her joy in check.

(What luck!) Serien thought, hiding her smile, and then answered. "Don't worry. Making the pact will be pretty simple."

Serien had a perfect plan to handle the side effect of the blood pact and of course, she didn't explain anything about it to Michael, because if he didn't take it and died, she would still win.

"So what am I supposed to do?" Michael asked.

The blood pact, powerful as it was, was a simple thing to do. It was like writing a contract, but with blood after a little ritual.

"Wait a minute, I'll prepare everything." Serien responded by pulling a dagger from Sahari's belt. "I'll borrow this."

Without a second thought, Serien, who was wearing a simple light blue dress, ripped a piece of the dress's skirt and borrowed the goblet that Lobana carried around her waist for some unknow reason.

"Give me your wrist." Seiren asked as she approached Michael. "I'm going to need your blood."

Michael didn't question and Serien, with the borrowed dagger, slashed the archangel's wrist, which began to bleed instantly. Then Serien placed the goblet under Michael's bloody wrist and filled it to the brim.

The amount of blood was important to the blood pact. If it were an egalitarian pact, the amount of blood should be the same for both parties. But if it was a one-sided pact, the disadvantaged party should put in more blood.

With the goblet full with Michael's blood, Serien cut the tips of her index and middle fingers and dripped her blood into the goblet.

"Preparations are complete." Said Seren. "Now I need you to put your mana in the cup."

"Huh? How?" Michael laughed. "These chains keep me from using mana!"

"What are you talking about!?" Seren frowned. "You were still in those chains when you took the other angel's powers, right?"

"Is different!"

"How is it different? Didn't you use mana?"

"No!"

Contrary to what Serien thought, Michael had stolen Ezekiel's mana without using his mana. He couldn't use mana with the black iron chains attached to his body.

The chains absorbed mana and he was already glad he got the regeneration skill and even happier because the chains didn't affect the core that kept him alive.

"So how are we going to conclude the pact?" Serien complained after hearing Michael's explanation.

"I don't know! Can't someone inject mana into this thing instead of me?"

"No! It won't work!" Serien bit her thumbnail nervously.

Seeing the situation, Oliana, who had only been watching the situation until then, sighed and lowered herself to the height of the little ones in front of her.

"I can help with that..." Said the Valkyrie. "Of all of us here, I'm the one with the most mana and if I inject my mana into him, I can do a domino effect and push his mana out."

At that moment Serien's eyes gleamed at the idea and she quickly made Michael hold the goblet along with her.

"We are ready." Seren warned.

Oliana nodded and with her fingers on Michael's back, she began to inject mana into the archangel, who in turn was doing his best to direct the mana that was beginning to flow through him into the goblet.

Everyone watched the scene expectantly and cheered as the blood in the goblet began to bubble up as it absorbed the mana and changed color to a dark blue.

"Oliana, stop!" Seren said. "Is ready!"

"And now?" Michael asked with interest.

"Now I'm going to write the contract and then we'll both throw it in the fire." Serien replied. "Somebody lit a bonfire."

So, while writing the contract with a thin toothpick she carved herself, without anyone noticing Serien took one of the strands of red hair Mifa had given her and swallowed it. That was also part of her plan.

So, after everything was ready, in front of a bonfire made of semi-wet kindling and pieces of dry rags, without mention the contents of the contract, Serien and Michael throw it on the fire and it didn't take long for the sides effects to start to happen.

As the contract burned, the laws of magic marked the queen's and archangel's souls as if it were red-hot iron.

They both fell to the ground as screaming and writhing as if their bones were shattering as blood spurted from their mouths.

Sahari was the first to act and putting her weight on the body of her beloved Serien, who was not very strong, which made the task easier, she positioned her forearm in the queen's mouth so she wouldn't bite her own tongue.

Following Sahari's example, Oliana held Michael against the ground and Lobana stuffed a piece of cloth she ripped from a corpse's clothes, into Michael's mouth.

So all that was left was to hope and hope they survived this.