237 237: A clash of ideals [pt1]
“This is not funny in the least. But if you think that an illusion of this caliber will stop me then you are sorely mistaken.”
Seraphina took in the illusion that she had been brought face-to-face with. The fact in front of her looked scared and lifeless but the child was still alive.
His eyes were covered with the help of black cloth and his body trembled with fear of being killed off. But the child still held on to his beliefs, his mouth shut tightly to not let any sound out.
The life-like illusion would have confused anyone but Seraphina was a little different. Her anger made her notice the lack of emotions emitting from the person in front of her.
“H-Hello, is anyone there? I-If there is, then can you help me out?”
Joseph sounded scared as he asked for help but Seraphina just raised her sword and slashed through the illusion. As she had expected, her sword passed cleanly through the body without harming even a single hair on Joseph’s head.
Asami’s voice reached Seraphina’s ear in the form of a whistle. She sounded impressed with Seraphina’s cold and effective method of dealing with her stress.
“Look at that! There was no hesitation in your swing. Would poor Joseph have been killed had he been standing there instead of his illusion? This poor abandoned child is making me feel sorry for him.”
Asami was speaking too much and it was getting on Seraphina’s nerves. Asami had no right to say anything to Seraphina in this situation.
After all, she was the one who had kidnapped Joseph in the first place and brought him here.
“Quit your yelping and face me head-on It is your fault that we have come down to this in the end, right? Do you not have anything to say for yourself?”
Seraphina glared at Asami but her eyes softened as she looked at Joseph. She had never been good at maintaining an aloof face when it came to her children.
She might not show it but Seraphina did love those two to bits.
‘But are they worth throwing away my revenge for? Do I want to avenge Mei more or to save Joseph more?’
It should have been a no-brainer for most people. Mei was dead while Joseph was alive and alright in front of her. He should have taken priority in Seraphina’s life but she still found herself hesitating to follow through with this rescue.
Revenge and anger were just this strong of emotions and had taken a hold of her. And Seraphina had always been weak to her emotions and easy to bow before her anger.
“Joseph, I told you before, right? Your birth mother doesn’t care for you at all. She left you all alone all those years back and even now she’s the reason you are being tested like this doesn’t this make you angry at her?”
Asami sure had a talent for speaking in riddles and confusing people. Her voice was sympathetic and lonely as she broke down what was happening for the kid to understand.
Seraphina did not know why but it filled her chest with soft white-hot anger and dread hearing those words. Even after all this time, she did not want Joseph to hate her.
“Joseph I…”
But Seraphina could say nothing to make the situation better for her. She had been a lousy mother and a lousy friend. Her actions left no room to misunderstand her actions and even a blind man could tell that she was bad news.
Still, Seraphina found herself seeking out Joseph’s eyes behind the illusion but he had gone still.
“Don’t you feel anger and frustration fill your chest as you remember your position? This all happened because of your irresponsible mother.”
Asami continued her criticism without stopping to even think. A wiser man would have noticed that she was projecting her one situation over this one. But Seraphina had always been a bit slow on the uptakes.
She knew she was not a good mother or a good partner by any means but she had hoped to keep her kids out of the mess. Even then, the most she could have hoped was for the girl to inherit her powers and that would be it.
Joseph needed to stay out of the goddess’s life or it would make Seraphns go crazy. It was already driving her crazy as it was.
If the one person she tried so hard to keep out of this life also criticized her choice, then Seraphina would end up losing it for real and attack someone. She would go on a rampage, no longer being able to keep her calm.
“Now Joseph, don’t you have anything to say to your mother? I am sure you have a lot of things piled up in your chest.”
The kid looked scared as he faced the direction Seraphina was likely to be in. But because his eyes were covered, he looked slightly to the right of her head.
But despite that, Seraphina felt herself standing still, waiting for the child to speak his words.
“I….know it’s not your fault. When I stepped into this life, I accepted the risks that would come with it. I knew it was a possibility to be used like this against you but I don’t regret making this choice.”
Joseph’s words came as s shock to her. And not only to her but to Asami as well. The other goddess looked like she did not believe the bullshot that was coming out of Joseph’s mouth.
“What are you saying? I can feel the resentment and anger deep inside you. Why don’t you let it out finally and show your mother how you feel.”
Asami sounded mad and she had a right to be. She had spent too much time and effort on arranging this insurance, only for things to end up against her. This situation was beyond any sort of prediction she could have made.
‘I doubt it’s something even Lady Dheva could have seen coming. I should not get too discouraged.’
Asami tried to console herself but it was not that reassuring.
“Of course, I feel resentful and angry at what happened. I am a human after all and I have emotions as well. But I know it was not my mother’s fault and blaming her is not the right thing to do. Besides, despite everything that happened, I am happy to be born in this world.”
If Seraphina would have been capable of it, she was sure she would be crying right now. But there were no tears in her eyes, nor did her eyes look wet.
They just looked determined to save her son and take her revenge.
“Fine. If you’re going to be like this then I will have no choice but to use you as bait. Your life is going to get a lot more complicated all of a sudden.”
The child gulped his fears down as his eyes shined with determination. She could read the message of ‘bring it on’ in his gaze and that made Asami smile.
The child was a worthy opponent as well and Seraphina could read some of herself in the kid. But there were huge differences between her and the kid as well, namely – the beliefs they shared.
“Joseph, sit tight. I am coming to save you.”
But even as Seraphina said that she was not sure she would be able to take it there in time. Asami had a lot of leverage and time to mold Joseph according to her will.
And despite everything that happened, Joseph was a human child and was delicate. He did not even have his sister’s magic to protect him.
But at that very moment, a miracle happened. The door broke down and dust descended around the illusion. Something had affected the real room where Asami and Joseph were currently at.
“Wow, my luck must be absurdly high today. I managed to find the only other room with a goddess in it.”
Both Asami and Seraphina looked startled to hear the familiar voice heading toward the later. It was a familiar face that followed as well.
“Karan? What are you doing here? How did you even find this place? This should not be present on any map of this place.”
Asami sounded justifiably confused as she closed the illusion. Seraphina’s heart went cold as her only method of keeping tabs on her son was cut-off.
‘How dare she do that to me? I guess Asami is tired of living.’
Magic build up inside Seraphina and took the form of a familiar bow. She had always used bows and similar weapons, forgoing the bow since it was something that carried the memories of the past. But it was time to start showing her real power.
She would have to believe that Joseph will be alright in the end and push ahead for herself. And maybe then this sinking feeling in her heart would go away forever. She just had to believe enough.