Rise of the Lustful Evil Monarch (Re)

Third Person's POV

However, the Silvershroud Essence that sealed and preserved the crystal was just as valuable.

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It had been a gift from the little duchess to Virelle on her twenty-third birthday and was indeed a rare treasure.

Their moment of victory was interrupted by Virelle's movement.

She gestured toward another massive object taking up most of their space.

The full corpse of the basilisk had been removed from her spatial ring.

Frozen in its final moments, the massive creature lay still with its head gone. The black poisonous and corrosive blood had dried at its severed neck.

Ethan observed the petrified snake for a long moment as his sharp eyes glinted with greed.

"We harvest it," he said simply.

"Dreadstone Basilisk parts are worth a fortune."

Virelle grinned.

"Now you are speaking my language."

Velcy's tail wagged excitedly.

"Ooooh! Does that mean we get to eat basilisk meat?"

Ethan chuckled in amusement.

"No, Velcy. Basilisk meat is poisonous."

She pouted sadly as her ears drooped.

"Aww."

Virelle smirked.

"That fight was intense but worth it. Dreadstone Basilisk materials are priceless. We will make a fortune selling them."

Ethan nodded and retrieved his tools.

Carefully, he harvested the sharp obsidian-like fangs first as each one was imbued with petrification venom.

Next, the thick black scales, harder than steel were meticulously removed.

Lastly, he removed those yellow slit eyes. The yellow eyes were a bit damaged but still remained an alchemist's dream material.

As he worked, Velcy watched intently and learned the process.

She may have been young, but Ethan was determined to ensure she understood every aspect of survival, from battle to resource gathering.

Once the harvesting was complete, Ethan dusted off his hands and stored the materials in his spatial ring.

He waved his hand and the basilisk's remains froze into a dark sculpture before they crumbled into black powder at the slight touch of Velcy and dispersed into the wind.

Ethan glanced at the horizon and noted that dusk was approaching.

"Alright, we are done here," he announced.

"Let's move before the bigger predators come sniffing around."

Virelle stepped closer and wrapped an arm around his waist as she pressed her body against his.

Ethan wrapped an arm around her as Velcy clung to him from the front again.

With a powerful flap of his Dark Storm wings, he propelled them into the air.

The wind howled around them as they soared toward the castle and left behind the remnants of their battle deep in the heart of the Stygian Woods.

---

When he reached the castle, the sun was already setting on the horizon.

Ethan landed on the dreary castle's courtyard with a whoosh, and the DarkStorm wings dissolved into the dark energy that retreated back into his body.

Virelle straightened her stretched hunting attire, while Velcy reverted to her earlier scarred form.

Her shining white hair dulled into gray, and her tails and cat ears vanished as if they had never existed.

Ethan was used to it but Virelle still watched in slight amazement as she had never seen or even heard of a beast kin capable of fully concealing their features at will in her whole life.

A sudden cold sensation crept up Ethan's neck and sent goosebumps across his skin. He turned abruptly as his eyes narrowed at the dark silhouette standing atop the castle wall.

Crows cawed in the distance as their cries echoed through the dreary courtyard.

Despite the daylight, a lifeless chill spread through the air and was thick with an unnatural presence.

But instead of growing wary, the three of them sighed in relief.

In the next blink, the tall shadow was now standing before them.

The outline of a busty and curvy womanly figure could be seen from the shape of the shadow.

Ethan and Virelle greeted her with practiced formality while Velcy clung to Ethan's clothes and simply kept her gaze lowered.

"Good evening, Lord Altheria."

"It's good to see you, Master."

A quiet hum escaped the shadowy figure.

Virelle's tense shoulders relaxed at the familiar mature voice but Ethan's expression on the other hand was slightly odd as he was one of those who knew the true reality behind the duchess's curvaceous form and velvety voice.

"It is time, isn't it, little Ethan?"

The mood shifted instantly. The casual air disappeared and was replaced by a heavy sense of seriousness and anticipation.

Ethan nodded as he was fully aware that the time had finally come for his entrance into this continent's grand stage.

At eighteen, he was finally ready.

"For your journey to the Abyssal Sanctum, your Master was supposed to accompany you," Altheria continued speaking in her deliberately cool and unreadable tone.

"However, due to an emergency on her part, she will not be with you. But fret not as I will ensure you three reach your destination."

Ethan exhaled softly as he carefully restrained his emotions. He had already come to terms with his Master's sudden disappearance before his eighteenth birthday.

Still, the disappointment lingered in his heart and had yet to fade.

He had been eagerly awaiting her promise which she had made to him two years ago on that steamy night.

That time he had been on the verge of claiming her as his own but she had stopped him for some reason and had promised him with full seriousness that on his eighteenth birthday, she would finally make him a man.

But now, that promise lay broken and was lost with her sudden disappearance.

Not only had she left him aching in more ways than one but she had also disrupted their plans to travel together to the Infernal Citadel where he would finally begin his time at the Abyssal Sanctum.

Ethan knew that any type of delay was no longer an option.

He would not be given any type of preferential treatment by the ancient abyssal spirit that monitored the induction with its eagle senses.

Ethan knew that the new batch of students would be inducted within the next month.