I called her; my demon. Which, as usual, manifested behind me with a chilling gust of icy wind. Though, this time, the cold felt far sharper and penetrating, as if whips of ice scorched through my skin and flesh, forcing their way into my bones and down to my soul.

  It rushed past me, going towards Crimson, who promptly moved her orb in front of her, successfully shielding herself from the demon's cold claws. In turn, a loud thud and a little shockwave echoed through the air from the impact.

  At that moment, I saw her: Bianca… taller, larger, bigger.

  No... she was none of that. But then, what was it? That dreadful sensation... Such overwhelming mana enveloped her, like molten ice set ablaze. It was fleeting. It was a blink of an eye the way she rushed past me, and it was enough to make me shiver, pulling the breath out of my lungs as if it were my soul leaving my body. I wrapped my arms around myself as my teeth chattered from an unutterable cold, goosebumps rising on my skin like never before.

  Death. I have summoned Death.

  "Snowflake!"

  And yet, that annoying voice took priority over Death grazing me.

  "Don't kill her, demon, but make her suffer," I commanded, regarding Crimson without the slightest attention.

  The bitch jumped backward before propelling herself onto her orb, ascending off the ground. Bianca screeched, a noise so piercing it threw me off balance for a second. She then leapt into the air, aiming for Crimson. Unfortunately, that bitch avoided the claws again by the skin of her teeth.

  "Such incredible mana!" Crimson exclaimed up above, laughing heartily. "Oh, I want you even more! I can't get enough! You really are full of surprise!"

  "I see you can still spout nonsense... Demon, don't miss her."

  Bianca twisted, getting in position for another attack, propelling at full speed to the sky towards Crimson, who in response opened her codex. "Matriarch's Authority."

  As Crimson invoked that spell, a massive and blinding red sphere of fire materialized above her. The sudden force of the wind nearly knocked me off my feet as the fireball descended, igniting the ground and sending a shockwave through the air.

  Shielding my eyes, I squinted against the light. After which, I turned my gaze to the sky; Crimson had changed. Not only did her aura greatly increase; a black halo hovered above her head, bestowing her an even more haughty presence. Her hair appeared to be slightly longer, and a peculiar red dress now adorned her, empowering her already commanding aura. If that wasn't the most blatant enchanting spell I've ever seen...

  "However, now you're thinking too highly of yourself," she sneered, sounding more arrogant than ever, "Do you seek punishment so badly, you mongrel?"

  "Hah?!" I bitterly shot back.

  "Tripletta," she cast, and where I expected to see two more orbs, four were summoned instead. "Emarginferno," she then followed.

  Several small fire spheres materialized around me. "Felincloak!" I hastily cast in response.

  I leaped backward. The fire spheres collided with each other, creating a massive explosion; way more powerful than how I experienced it the first time. Luckily, my cloak protected me from the worst of it.

  Crimson clapped mockingly as Bianca made another futile attempt to strike her. Hovering so high in the air, she was frustratingly out of reach...

  "Huh...?"

  As I thought of a tactic, I noticed my white cloak occasionally flickering to a dim purple, and so did the aura coming from my codex.

  "Are... my spells still getting used to the change?" I murmured to myself.

  Crimson cast again. Snapping to attention, I darted away; avoiding explosion after explosion.

  "Distracting yourself, Snowflake?" she taunted.

  I glared up at her. She wouldn't be laughing with that stupid grin on her face for much longer if I used the new spells in my codex. I literally had no idea what any of them would do, though...

  Do I even care...?

  I pondered for a moment before shaking my head.

  No, I don't...

  "One of the first ones should work…" I spun the codex around me, randomly choosing a spell to bring it to life. "This seems understandable and harmless enough… Screams Of The Hollows."

  As the words left my mouth, twinkling black lights surrounded me, scattering around the area. A flash followed, shooting up into the sky before crashing down with deafening screeches that forced me to cover my ears. And with one eye closed against the chaos, I noticed Crimson falling from the sky.

  Shivers ran through me; the spell must've affected me too. After taking a deep breath, I approached. Bianca didn't go after her; she just stopped. And two minutes had definitely passed by now...

  "Looks like you're still alive," I remarked, standing before her.

  She raised her head, propping herself on her elbow. "You're really stupid, Snowflake," she scoffed. Though pain adorned her words, she still had nerve...

  I glared down at her. "So, are you accepting the fact that I'm a monster now?" I asked, raising my dagger. "Choose your next words wisely."

  "You're not going to like my answer."

  I tighten my grip. "Crimson..."

  "So your mother gave you some spells and made you strong like you deserve to be!" she exclaimed in a mocking tone. "So what?"

  "So what?!"

  "Why does that matter?!" she shouted, slamming her fist against the ground. "Why is that important? Why does that make you a monster?! You can't change what happened, Snowflake, and you can't change my mind! Accept it! I don't give a shit about the color of your codex! I couldn't care less why your mother did what she did! The only thing I care about... is you," she said, her voice dropping into a lower, strained note. "It's us! That's why I came here! But damn it, Snowflake! It's clear as day that something is eating at you, so just say it! If you want to talk about your mother, then do it! Do you want to talk about the new cover of your book? Do it! I'll listen! Do you wish to kill me? ... Then do it, but you still won't get a lie coming out of my mouth, and you'll have to accept that, and live with it."

  My teeth gritted. Despite everything, she still had the energy to say nonsense. "You..."

  I raised my dagger to the sky, while my breath caught in my throat as rage consumed me. "You..."

  My fingers clenched the dagger so tightly that my hand ached. "I HATE YOU!"

  With a groan, I threw the dagger away. And gasping for breath, I walked away...

  None of this was what I wanted. Nothing was going my way, and all my convictions were crumbling down like little and fragile sandcastles swept away by a passing wind, completely indifferent and uncaring to the efforts that had built them.

  Nothing made sense anymore...

  And the worst thing is that... perhaps my mother gave me numerous hints all along about her true nature, and I was just a stupid little girl who couldn't see any of them. Or perhaps I saw, and Ignored them, blinded by love and affection, by the only thing that granted me some real joy in this ugly and nasty, unfair world.

  I couldn't understand anything about myself now, and to think I knew myself so well at the beginning...

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  "Ha, haha..."

  How ironic. How stupid. How imbecile.

  I couldn't grasp my mother, myself, my spells, my codex, and even... my weapon; her dagger...

  "What even was that...?" I murmured, to no one in particular, really, as I recalled it.

  I couldn't see it before, but even my dagger had a weird stand-alone aura, threatening to shatter it from the inside. During the fight, for a fleeting moment, it almost looked like it was absorbing my mana. It didn't promise anything good at all.

  "Well... whatever..."

  Yet, I didn't care.

  I couldn't care...

  Or did I, and I was just fooling myself?

  No, I didn't care.

  I couldn't bring myself to care anymore...

  "How long do you plan to stay there?" Crimson's voice broke through my thoughts.

  She was still here... I had moved far away from where we fought, climbing to the top of a tall tree to be alone and breathe in some fresh air, as it became exceedingly difficult not to suffocate down there, to breathe in oxygen to fill the lungs and keep them working, allowing the body to continue its useless, meaningless, and aimless job.

  Yet... even here, she followed me.

  Why go to such lengths? For what purpose?

  And exactly like Crimson, why would even my body do such a thing? Why does it naturally go against its bearer, such empty vessels we are? Just what strives this cold, shattered heart of mine to keep beating?

  Hateful. So noisy and intruding. What do you have to gain from going against your container? Are you perhaps beating to escape this pitiful cage you got yourself trapped in? Or are you actually the one pulling my strings, my little puppeteer? Haha, but you should watch yourself, little one; the lion gets the whip even when caged if disobedient to its master.

  Ah, I lost myself in my thoughts again… What was it I was thinking about?

  Hm, yes, I remember now… the bitch.

  Didn't I tell her to go away...?

  Ah, good question... Did I?

  I have no clue...

  "I'm tired..."

  "Hmm? Did you say something, Snowflake?" she called out.

  "I want to rest..." I murmured as I looked up at the sky. The clouds looked fluffy; comfortable like a warm and inviting bed waiting only for me, ready to lull me into a deep, serene sleep... "I just want to close my eyes and not think about anything anymore..."

  "SNOWFLAKE!"

  Crimson's arms wrapped around me, pulling me close as she fell back against the tree. She managed to catch me... and now she was holding me tight, while her back probably hurt from the impact.

  There was a hint of relief in the sigh she released. "Snowflake..."

  "I'm tired..." I lamented; not even trying to mask it, my voice cracked completely as I leaned into her.

  "I know," she whispered.

  "I'm really tired..."

  "I know, Snowflake... I know."

  "I don't know what to do anymore..." I whined against her shoulder. "Nothing matters anymore..."

  "There's a lot we can do together," she softly replied.

  "No... there's nothing. It's all meaningless. It's not interesting anymore... I'm nothing but a..."

  I wasn't even able to find words anymore...

  "You're wrong, Snowflake. You're above the kind of concerns that you're letting weigh you down."

  "You're not listening to me..."

  "You're right, I'm not."

  "I hate you."

  She stood silent for a moment. "I know you don't mean it."

  "I mean it. I hate you."

  "Is that so?" she whispered, stroking my hair, her voice sounding slightly amused. "Then, I'm also fine with that."

  "I hate you..."

  Why is she still here...?

  "I know, I know," she continued.

  "Didn't I tell you to go away?" I asked, barely hearing my own voice.

  "I'm not leaving you," she softly replied.

  "Why…?"

  "Because I love you."

  I don't get it…

  "But why…? After all you've seen, after all I've done...?"

  "There doesn't need to be a reason."

  Is it only to add insult to injury? To twist the knife deeper, like the sadistic bitch she is?

  "The way you reason makes no sense..."

  She chuckled softly. "You told me that already, during our first fight."

  That brought back memories. Both pleasant and not. Back then, I lost. But now, that would probably never happen again, and not thanks to my efforts…

  So, why…? Why was she still here? I fought her... I treated her horribly. Why…?

  "I don't understand you…"

  "Then, just understand that I want to be the reason behind your smile."

  It doesn't make any sense...

  "You're a sadist. You don't like smiles."

  "Not when it comes to you," she said softly, holding me tighter. "Unless you allow me to, I'll never hurt you."

  And why was she so damn comforting? I had to fight my weary eyes from closing completely as I nuzzled into her shoulder. "Creep…"

  "Hmm-hm, you're right. I am a creep."

  In the end, that was the undeniable truth... She really is nothing but a crazy bitch.

  "Crimson..."

  I gave her pain, I'm giving her harsh words. Yet, she still refuses to let me go...

  "Yes, Snowflake?"

  She saw me for what I really am. She saw my demon. And yet, she was still accepting me, despite what I've done, despite my situation, despite the anomaly that I am... Despite everything, she chose to accept me...

  "... I love you."