The Dark Rebirth of Pandora: Revenge of the Abyss

Chapter 198: Betrayer

”...” After killing Vanessa and trapping her in the pocket universe within the core, I teleported to my castle and hid inside the treasure vault.

I didn’t feel like seeing anyone, I was mentally exhausted because I had been modifying the pocket universe for days, so when I fought Vanessa, I was already relatively ”mentally tired.”

That’s why I decided I wanted to spend the entire 20th day resting inside the treasure vault. I lay on the floor and fell asleep hugging my tail with the core in the middle of the embrace.

After a few hours, Lilith Nix Kaos came to see me. Apparently, she was the only one who noticed me in the castle, showing her abilities, but she didn’t bring good news.

She brought me a report that I had previously requested, and it confirmed what I thought I was right about who the traitor was, and Lilith found the final evidence.

It wasn’t that difficult to figure out, it just so happens that the traitor no longer has the color of loyalty; he lost that color in my eyes. So when Zephyra fled because of someone, I looked at the emotions of everyone close to me.

But I wanted to believe I was wrong, so I gave it a chance and only went to prove it. But now the evidence has been delivered to me, and I will kill the traitor.

Since I was already in the treasure vault, I took a look at what was good for me to use and ended up taking two things.

[Monster Hunter’s Blade] a bastard sword used to hunt large monsters, its blade has the ability to reduce regeneration and healing magic.

[Bloody Valkyrie] Armor that consumes the flesh of the wearer to change form and adjust to the user’s body. It has high defensive capability and self-repair ability.

These two things will be what I use to kill the traitor. I will give him a special death as a thank you for his services.

The bastard sword is quite strong, and since it helps reduce regeneration, it seemed very useful, and the armor is the highlight I’ve never used armor made by anything other than my shadows before.

Together with the mana armor, my defense will be incredible. After I chose everything, I talked to Lilith and made some requests while I stayed in the vault to continue resting.

And so we come to today, October 21st, which is my birthday. What a ”great” present the discovery of a betrayal.

”Your Majesty, where are we going?” Calypso asks me, as I’m taking several people with me to some place while my body is covered by a cloak, to the point where only my head is visible.

I’m taking Elena, Freya, Thalor, Lilith Nix Kaos, Calypso, and I don’t take Kaelith because she’s in the human kingdom, replacing me at the moment.

I even thought about bringing Zephyra, but she has nothing to do with this; it’s between me and my closest servants.

”Calypso, be quiet,” I say coldly. Everyone except Lilith is a little tense, as we’re descending to the castle’s underground to a reinforced area, and the path leads to the underground arena this castle has.

Arriving at the arena, we walk to the middle of it. I walk a little further and stop, looking directly at everyone.

”First, I want to thank each of you individually... Those who receive my gratitude can sit in the stands.”

”Lilith Nix Kaos, I am very grateful for all your help. You did a remarkable service, and for that, I thank you.” Lilith Nix Kaos smiles and goes to the stands.

”Calypso, although you are not a model of brilliance, I am very grateful for your help in my classes and in the administration of various different things.” My tone is cold, so the gratitude ends up sounding strange, especially with my serious face.

But even so, Calypso gets excited and goes to the stands, full of happiness.

”Elena... Although you have done many things I didn’t like, I am still very grateful to have you as my loyal military strategist and for taking care of the general administration of the castle.” Elena smiles excitedly while blushing and goes to the stands.

”Freya, you were a great teacher. I like your well-planned classes with interesting explanations, and although you are very cold on the outside, you are a really nice person, and I thank you for your loyalty.”

Freya thanks me and goes to the stands.

”...”

”Your Majesty... May I ask why you are staring at me? And why did you ask me to come wearing my armor and with my combat weapon?” Thalor questions, since I don’t thank him for his work and just stare at him.

I only ordered him to come in armor and with his combat weapon that he would normally use in a war or important battle.

”Thalor, today is my birthday.”

”Congratulations, Your Majesty, it’s your first year of life,” he praises me.

”Yes... You know, Thalor, I’m very selfish, so I want a present, and you’re going to give it to me.”

”Of course, Your Majesty, what do you desire?”

”Your head, could you give it to me?”” I say without a smile, my expression remaining serious the whole time.

”...” He remains completely silent at my request.

”Your Majesty, this joke isn’t funny,” he says with a smile.

”...Do I look like I’m joking? Thalor, why are you still talking? You should be decapitating yourself to give me my present, shouldn’t you?”

”...”

”I’m sorry, Your Majesty, but I don’t understand?” He says, taking a deep breath.

”...I’ll explain it to you.”

”I want a present, and that present is your head, so you should take this sword at your waist and cut off your own head to give it to me as a gift.”

”...”

”Can’t you give me that? And the reason is obvious if I go to any servant in the castle and ask for their head as a present, they’ll cut off their own head with a smile.”

”Do you know why, Thalor? Because they are loyal to me, and my selfish desires outweigh their mediocre lives.”

”Do you understand where I’m going with this? Or do I need to be more explicit?”

”...Yes, I understand perfectly, Your Majesty. Could you tell me what you’ve given me?”

”I don’t owe you that answer.”

”...” Everyone here has already noticed what we’re talking about.

”So, Pandora, can I know why you haven’t killed me yet?” Thalor says without addressing me respectfully as ”Your Majesty,” showing that he will no longer act.

”I thought of this as a thank you for your services and also a retribution. I told you in the past that I would hit you because of the terrible and painful fencing training.”

”I will kill you with the fencing that you taught me, and then I will discard this fencing, after all, I don’t need the fencing of a traitor this fencing will die with you.”

”So that’s why you asked me to come armed...” Thalor looks at Lilith.

”She won’t interfere. If you kill me, until you leave the kingdom, no one will hunt you, so killing me is your only chance to get out alive.”

”Pandora, do you think you can beat me?”

I throw off the cloak I was wearing, revealing armor that is basically a very revealing bikini. The bikini only covers my groin and part of my breasts, leaving the rest well exposed.

This is the [Bloody Valkyrie]. It took this form to adapt to my movement and flexibility capabilities, and it can quickly grow to protect any part that receives blows, thus maintaining adequate defense and flexibility for me.

Although it consumes my flesh to do so.

”I understand... Pandora has everything ready, so it will really be like this.”

”Yes, I will kill you here.”

”Pandora, you don’t seem sad about being betrayed,” Thalor says, while assuming a fighting stance, drawing his sword.

”Sadness? Why should I be sad? All I feel is disappointment, nothing more than disappointment. In the end, you are just another of the many servants, and your life has always been disposable to me.”

”I take care of what is mine in my own way. You, as a servant, are also mine, but... when I have something and can’t keep that something, I break it so that no one else can have it.”

”You betrayed me, so now it’s time for me to break you so that you won’t go after another just to bother me in the future.”

”I give proper value to those who deserve it, and you no longer deserve any value after trying to make my wife disappear and betraying me.”

”Pandora, won’t you even question the reason? Don’t you want to know why?”

”I know enough. You betrayed me just for the chance to recover the corpse of a demon king. It seems you loved her very much, since you are willing to betray me just to recover such a body.”

This is what Lilith’s research indicated Thalor made a deal with someone who could give him the corpse of a demon king from about 3 generations ago. Apparently, Thalor had already served this demon king and a bunch of other hateful nonsense.

But all that really matters is the fact that he betrayed me.

”...Lilith has always been good at finding things. It seems I won’t be able to surprise you, Pandora... You’ve really become monstrous at an alarming rate.”

I take an initial stance, the Vom Tag Stance, where the sword position is maintained in the high diagonal, with the tip pointed at the opponent, almost at eye level, a little above. This allows quick access to various strikes and facilitates defense.

”You know, Pandora, I never expected to have to fight you... In the past, when I trained you, you wouldn’t have had a chance... Would you like to know what I see when I look at you?”

”...” I don’t respond and don’t move a muscle.

”I’ll take that as a yes. When I look at you, I see your aura. In the past, your aura had no form, but now it has eyes and fangs a truly remarkable growth.”

”Your own aura is now like a monster, a wild monster ready to sink its fangs into what’s in front of it. Many warriors can give shape to their auras.”

”And usually they resemble animals or beings like dragons... But those who form their aura in pure malice and murderous intent are different their auras reflect them perfectly.”

”Ironically, your aura and you are identical a wild monster always ready to attack. Your aura is a reflection of yourself.”

”So, as a swordsman and a skilled monster slayer, I say, may the sharpest blade win.”

”May the sharpest blade win,” I say to him, initiating this duel to the death.