He's so close... why not kill him? You know you want to~
The voice slithered through Eloisa's mind like poison. For a moment, her control wavered, her grip on reality loosening like sand through her fingers.
"Hah... Ha... Hah..." she panted, her body trembling as she fought to remain standing.
It was inexplicable—this indescribable hunger clawing at her insides. Like an addict desperate for a fix after too long without. She craved it. No, she needed it.
The screams. The cries. The pleas.
She wanted to watch him squirm, to see him bleed and writhe helplessly beneath her. She wanted to break him, crush every bone in his body slowly. She longed to inflict the kind of unimaginable agony that would shatter his mind, only to let it heal and break it again, over and over, until his very existence crumbled.
Her hands shook. Her body quaked under the weight of these twisted desires.
He was so close. Too close.
Tap.
She took a step forward. The distance between them began to shrink.
Yes~ It's time to satisfy those desires~
Her knees nearly buckled under the sheer force of her craving. Just a few more steps and she would have him. Her mask of indifference cracked, barely concealing the maniacal grin threatening to surface.
"Isa!"
The sharp voice cut through the haze like a blade, shattering the chains binding her mind. Reality snapped back into focus.
Eloisa turned to see Ariana waving from the front row, concern written across her features.
Sigh.
She exhaled deeply, forcing her trembling hands to steady. Walking toward Ariana, she slipped her mask firmly back into place.
He's really here, she thought, fists clenching at her sides. Why now? Why did he come back?
"You missed such a perfect chance to end him," the voice hissed venomously.
You're making these urges harder to control.
"Kill him and end it all."
It won't be long before he's dead, she promised herself, forcing a composed smile as she approached Ariana.
Meanwhile, Lorelle stirred. Or rather, pretended to. His eyes remained closed, breathing even, but he was far from asleep.
He had felt it—that raw, unrestrained bloodlust washing over him like a tide.
Smart move, not looking in that direction.
[That level of hatred...] the voice in his mind murmured. [It surpasses anything I've encountered. Perhaps it rivals even your... obsession.]
Lorelle snorted softly. "Don't compare the two. I might be a little obsessed—fine, completely obsessed—but it's nothing like her desire to see me dead."
[What exactly did you do to her?]
His brow furrowed in genuine surprise. "You don't know?"
[I've told you before, I don't remember much of your childhood. You weren't of interest to me then. Not until I realized you might actually survive this long.]
"Survive this long?"
[Most with my blessing... lose themselves. They become cannon fodder.]
Lorelle sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Let's just say I broke her."
[How?]
He shook his head. "I thought she was someone else. Someone I was searching for."
[That girl with Ariana. You know her too, don't you?]
"Why wouldn't I?" He scoffed as memories surfaced like shadows.
[Good or bad news?]
Lorelle's smile turned cold. "Worse than bad. She's a villainess—and she earned that title."