Helix stood in front of the man he knew as Morgan Abaddon, his older brother and one of the three protagonists from the game [Angel Battle].
A pained gasp left Helix’s lips as he took in his brother’s condition, a maddening anger surging through his veins. He had known about the severity of Morgan’s curse, but memory was tame compared to reality.
Morgan looked like a dried-up husk, his skin pale and lusterless, devoid of both blood and life. His cheeks were sunken and hollow, bones sticking out like white spears.
His stature was relatively short compared to Helix, and his tired onyx eyes held no trace of life.
What cruel monster would do this...
All of a sudden, as if it were a revelation, the stakes of everything felt much more...real. The enemy, The Fallen, had done this to his family. A bloody angel had cursed his family, and at that moment, Helix knew with stark clarity what his goal was.
I must become strong; only then will I have a fighting chance
Clenching his fists, Helix tried to put on a smile for his brother, but it was hard. All he could think about was his brother’s condition.
"Pitying me, little shit?"
Morgan grabbed Helix by the collar, pulling him closer.
"Did that little incident make you forget who I am?"
With a boastful smile on his beautiful face, Morgan started on about how he was the greatest Abaddon.
"I’m the wisest and strongest and most handsome descendant since Abaddon himself. And you, little asshole, have no right or reason to pity me. So if I ever see your eyes or face like that in front of me again, I’ll slap you."
What an unreasonable demand it was, yet Helix found himself smiling. With an equally smug smile, he flicked his elder brother on the forehead.
"Sure, you are Morgan. Even a skeleton could achieve more than you."
Shrugging, Helix turned around, leaving a stupefied brother behind him.
"Good luck, little shit! If your purity is below mine, I’ll force you to eat a mouthful of shit."
A challenge!
"Deal, dearest brother. And if you lose, which you will... let’s see."
What could he make Morgan do? Something that would make him eat his words and be highly entertaining to watch.
He glanced at his mother, hoping to learn something from her, but she was just smiling at him. Sighing, Helix turned around, this time glancing at his friends.
His hollow gaze traveled over Alexander’s family. His silver-eyed friend was talking animatedly to a woman. She seemed to be in her mid twenties, with long cascading black hair, and almost glowing silver eyes.
Those eyes...they were entrancing, and the longer he stared into them, the more he got lost in their endless depths.
Noticing a stare, Bellona Azrael turned her head. She found herself gazing at a boy the same age as her brother, a dazed expression on his face.
He seemed lost in thought, staring blankly at her face. Bellona wasn’t impressed; after all, that boy was supposed to be her fiancé and future husband.
Am I a joke to mother? As if I’d marry a kid.
Her preferences were vastly different than whatever Helix represented. She liked her men to be short and shy, perfect servants she could abuse all day.
Sadly, such types seemed far too rare, and ever since her engagement had been discussed, she had been forced to be isolated from her pets. Whatever would those poor men be doing without her?
And it’s all because of you. Go rot in hell Young Abaddon.
She would certainly get rid of the engagement.
"Who’re you looking at, sister?"
"No one, Alexander, but tell me a little more about your friend."
Bellona smiled sweetly at her brother, who began describing Helix in detail.
She would make sure that Helix submitted to her and if not the engagement was annulled...in any way possible.
Helix snapped out of his reverie as he noticed Bellona staring at him. Her face was impassive, but something about it portrayed that she felt disgust towards him.
He didn’t know what it was, but ever since he was a kid, Helix could detect emotions behind expressionless faces much better than anyone else.
Looking past the Azrael family, Helix inevitably found his eyes on the third and last family. They stood a bit away from him. A father and her three daughters.
That was the Israfel family. Willow’s father had a hand on her shoulder, as if imparting great knowledge. Helix couldn’t hear what they were saying, but he was sure it was important.
Standing behind Willow were her two sisters, both nearly identical to her. Helix could distinguish between the two sisters only by their clothes and hair length.
The eldest sister, Casassa, wore a cropped top and skirt, hidden by a wide coat that sat at her shoulders. Her hair was cropped short, ending near the shoulders.
Despite her...peculiar choice of clothing, it was the other woman who garnered Helix’s attention.
She was also standing behind Willow, staring at his family as if she wished to be there. The woman had long hair braided together into a single ponytail.
Esmeray Israfel, Willow’s older sister and Morgan’s fiancée, was standing by her family in metal armor. She looked like a medieval knight, possessing both a noble’s grace and a warrior’s strength.
It was always a wonder how she and Morgan had fallen so deeply in love, because from what Helix knew, the two were polar opposites.
One was the very embodiment of strength, while the other rejected it altogether. Would he, too, one day fall in love like that?
Smiling, Helix made his way back to Morgan and his mother. He turned to his mother first.
"Mother, do you mind being a witness to Morgan’s defeat?"
His mother grabbed him with both arms, pulling him into a strangling hug.
"Of course not, my sweetie! Anything for you."
She turned sharply towards Morgan, her eyes narrowing.
"Don’t you dare try to weasel your way out of this bet."
Her eyes found his again, "My baby, do you mind telling mother what exactly you have in mind?"
"So you see..."