Chapter 17 - The Course Of Our Lives

Within this cursed forest of survival.

A trio thrived with all their strengths through every challenge they encountered.

…

"HAAAA!!!"

Vera swung her arm that brandished an improvised knife towards a moderate sized wolf!

The wolf evaded her strikes easily, and lounged!

*GROWL!*

The wolf moved its claw at a speed to abrupt for her to react and three deep wounds appeared on her arm.

"AAHHH!!" Vera groaned miserably but refused to back down, this has happened many times already, this time she has to at least kill one!

'Remember… You're weak, you don't have fighting instincts, you don't have the strength, you don't have anything… But you have your will to thrive and survive, you have a mind capable of scheming, use it!' Fayette's words resonated in her mind and she ran towards a nearby tree!

Nearby at least four corpses of wolves lay on the ground, dismembered.

Fayette and Valentine stood on their spots, witnessing Vera's progress… In several months she had changed from being a helpless girl, to a woman capable of defending herself with a knife.

They discovered that it was imposible to improve themselves physically… Their bodies regenerated, but it is as if they always regenerated to the stage they were when they arrived in this world.

If a man lost a leg on earth and came here, he wouldn't ever regenerate that leg.

They had witnessed one such case.

Another thing that had changed, is that they were forced to ingest several of the stones they took from animals, they tasted worse than shit and even made them feel Ill sometimes, but there was no choice.

Eating their own flesh had resulted to be a bad practice that had to be stopped.

Valentine had even perceived an increase of his vision while Fayette had experimented, according to her, 'An increase in the size of her mammal organs'

Something he could joyfully confirm even as outrageous as it was for her breasts to increase in size even more… He hoped they stopped growing or they would reach a stage where they would no longer be appealing for him…

Aside from that she said her sense of smell also increased, something they couldn't test just like his vision, it was simple a perspective, after being adapted for so long to their own bodies, they were bound to know when something changed.

Vera wasn't different, she seemed to have obtained a 'spatial sense' or what experts like them call, the capacity to sense their surroundings to some extent.

It's an ability that Valentine possessed and Fayette envied.

For the past months they had been training her.

At some point she would have to grow her winds and leave, and after gaining a certain degree of likeness for the girl, the two expected she would be able to hold herself by the time they separated.

Valentine had sensed Vera's gazes, she obviously had a deep crush on him.

But Fayette's presence kept her at bay like a ghost in the night. Totally frightening.

The two had deep thoughts even as Vera fought for her life.

This time they decided to not help her, she has managed to deeply injure the wolves before, but never killed them… This time, her task is to kill it.

The wolf tried to chase Vera around the tree, but she always made sure the tree was always between them, she would make a fake, strike and retreat… It wasn't as optimal as she'd like, but it worked.

Eventually the wolf was so injured that it thought about retreating, but there was no way the outraged Russian would allow it!

*SLASH!*

*WUUUU!!!*

She disregarded all cowardice and threw herself above the wolf, plunging her knife on the wolf's back!

She kept her ground even as the wolf struggled to be released, but she dragged the bloodied knife all along with a vengeance until the wolf fell on the ground helplessly with a deep wound that went deep to the marrow!

*THUD!*

"I DID IT!"

Vera Sidorov would look so cute were it not for the blood all over her body.

The two applauded briefly, something that made her sulk… Truly, for her this was an achievement, but for them…

"There is no need to sulk~ Come, it's time for your reward." Fayette wrapped her arms around the girl's neck, with the latter pouting at the lack of praises and the walked up to a small pool of water.

"You can clean your face and hair after drinking water, but that's about it… We just drank, afterwards we will clean ourselves… You can go first, you won it~"

Vera's eyes shone, it had been weeks ever since she washed her face!

She stared at Valentine for confirmation and he only nodded in acknowledgement with his arm crossed.

"YAY!" The woman jumped and got naked straight away!

"Hey what are you doing!?" She's supposed to clean just her face!

Vera however didn't care, she took whatever small scoop of water she could to clean her face, her nethers, her butt and some more!

It was nowhere near enough to complete clean herself, but at least she felt as fresh as a monkey drinking a tablespoon of water in the desert!

By the time she finished, she fell on her knees and apologised! "I'm sorry, but I couldn't help it!"

"Is that so? Then you're sleeping with the wolves!" Now how could they clean themselves in that water!?

"Forget it… Let's go." Valentine said casually and turned around, but Fayette sensed the briefest glimpse he gave to Vera's body… And it made her grit her teeth!

'Control… Control…' she repeated her mantra, the mantra that never worked.

'Vera, next time you're fighting two wolves!'

***

Several more months took place, it's been more than a year ever since Valentine and Fayette arrived in this forest.

And finally… They caught something.

After eating their batch of animal's stones to sate their hunger, they walked, once again following the flame.

Until something happened.

In front of them in a narrow path full of trees… The forest suddenly… Stopped.

…

"V-Valentine do you think…" Vera's lips quivered!

"We did it… It has to be!" Fayette continued!

But Valentine restrained his joy, there is no forest, but… There is nothing!

A dense fog covered the plan land in front of them… Behind them lay that accursed forest where they had lived for what they believed was more than a year.

The three of them gulped heavily before staring at one another.

Now what?

"This is the time of the truth, we finally reached the end…" Valentine began, and taking a deep breath, walked forward!

The two women gulped heavily, their gazes fixed in the fog!

And so, they walked.

For the first couple of minutes, there was nothing except fog.

They looked back and still a very vague silhouette of forest tree could be seen.

Fayette and Valentine shook their heads and kept walking but Vera…

"What if it's worse?" She couldn't help but stop and ask!

"…" The couple stared at one another and sighed.

"If it's worse… We will cope." Valentine answered confidently, he didn't know if it would be worse or not, but one thing he knew for sure.

This had been a riddle, and the riddle had been solved… It's time for the next stage.

Vera gazed at their departing gazes, with a bag of fur on her back, full of crystals, stones and knives…

The three of them had one each, it's their survival equipment.

After thinking deeply she slapped her face with both of her hands softly.

'With them… Wherever!'

She followed behind and caught up shortly after.

…

For hours, they walked… Aimlessly, there were no changes, no change of land, on the fog… Of nothing.

Hours passed and passed, and it was always the same.

When they were about to lose hope, something showed up that managed to make them totally awestruck.

In front of them, two massive boulders with a message engraved in stone awaited them.

Each saw it in their respective languages and they didn't know what to think.

'Welcome to Hell'

…

"W-What does this mean…?" Vera stuttered once again, her gaze fixed at the signal.

If before they were theorising, now, there is no denying it, however…

"Are you telling me until now… We weren't even in hell?" Fayette mumbled in total bewilderment.

If someone told her that what they lived for a year, wasn't even hell to begin with, she would probably slap that person and cry… As a matter of fact, she felt like crying!

"Let's… Continue…"

"Do you want to continue?!" Vera yelled, maybe, there is still a way back!?

"We have reached this stage already… Let's go." Valentine's voice left no root to denial.

The three walked inside for several minutes until they saw a silhouette?

Quickly they guarded, taking their knives!

The silhouette of this person was on his back within this fog.

As they approached cautiously, they noticed… There was another person in front of that person!?

"What the frick is going on?" Vera held her knives in bewilderment as they approached, so far they had seen ten people, all of them wearing rags and with knives in their arms.

"Who are you!?" Suddenly a voice came behind them and they turned around as fast as lightning!

Two men wearing fur with lances pointed their spears at them!

"Who are you, where are we!?" He was a blonde man, with a frantic expression and a dirty appearance!

The other was also a blonde man, but he appeared to be much older!

'W-What?! When did they get behind us!?'

"Back off! We don't know what's happening! Just keep your distance and-!" Valentine yelled, pointing his knife at the man, but then his eyes opened like saucers when without any apparent explanation, his body moved on its own!

'W-What!?' He wanted to speak, to call for Fayette and Vera, but couldn't!

The two girls were exactly in the same predicament.

The two men also walked towards the queue like somnambulists!

Eventually they got neatly in a queue.

'I don't like troublemakers~' A chilly voice devoid of life, terrifying enough to frighten heroes, resonated in his mind!

His complexion paled, never having heard something so horrible.

'I-Is this some kind of queue?' He managed to stutter in his mind, not really knowing if hoping for an answer.

But the answer never came.

Fayette's expression screamed 'Outrage!' They're making a queue to enter the worst place in existence!? She wouldn't want to enter there even if paid!

It took several hours, the queue moved and moved until a voice was heard, the same terrifying voice from before!

"Andrew Mayers, Carbon, Greed, 151 years… A good one."

"Sarah Patterson, Carbon, Greed, 284 years."

"Shuang Mei, Carbon, Treachery, 121 years. Interesting."

…

"Samala Laminko, Carbon, Gluttony, 332 years."

"Marshall Spencer, Onyx, Heresy, 110 years."

"Harrison Delaware, Bronze, Lust, 90 years."

…

When it finally came his turn, Valentine's whole visage paled… In front of him, stood a figure.

At least two metres tall, with blue flames brimming all over him.

He had what looked like a heavy armour and a book in his hand, the book's letter shone onto the… Thing's face.

His gaze got immediately attracted to the thing's head.

There, two hours blazed with blue flames!

The things skin was crimson red and he couldn't see its legs as they were covered in a silver and black robe.

'D-Demon…' He couldn't believe it, it has to be a demon!

…

"Valentine Wagner-!" The 'demon's eyes widened like saucers, they were slitted, purple and shiny!

He gave Valentine the deepest glare, and his lips curled into a malicious grim, his sharp yellow teeth clanked in a brief laughter.

"Haha… It's been so long since I saw someone like this… Poor fool, your life won't be easy. But, hahaha! We're in Hell, aren't we?" His deep voice spoke as slowly as a turtle, as deep as the abyss!

"Valentine Wagner, Gold, Anger… 1 year."

Upon finishing his words, something mysterious shone and imprinted itself on his palm!

His body moved by itself and a red shining circle appeared in front of him!

"I wonder what kind of surprises will you bring me, Valentine Wagner, HAHAHAHAHA!!~"

!!!

The next second, Fayette saw her lover's body disappeared inside of a gate!

'Valentine!' She wanted to yell but couldn't… Her eyes were fixed on that thing!

Her reaction was no less than Valentine's!

"This is really a golden batch, huh? What a pity… You could have been perfect without 'that' inside of you." The 'demon' sighed upon reading his book.

"Fayette Blanchet, Silver, Anger, 1 year…"

Her body moved towards her unknown destiny in that red circle and she disappeared.

The cicle repeated with Vera who also couldn't believe her eyes when she saw what stood in front, there is no doubt now, this is hell.

"Vera Sidorov, Bronze, Anger, 2 years…"

***

Just like that, the trio finished their long journey through the cursed forest, and began the true journey, into Hell.

"Let's see how long will you last, Valentine Wagner~" The 'Demon' smirked and kept doing his job, if one looked behind him, his abyssal shadow extended to the infinite… and within the shadow an object shone with maliciousness, covered in a dark hue.

A Scythe.