DIVINE BANE-Chapter 61: your name is Alex

A blinding light filled the divine chamber. At its center sat a woman on a radiant throne, her presence overwhelming, her figure cloaked in garments of pure white that shimmered like woven light itself. The glow around her was so intense that her face could not be seen clearly, only the graceful silhouette of her crossed legs and the relaxed pose of her chin resting on her hand.

Her voice broke the silence—soft, yet carrying the weight of divinity.

"My son , he never asked me about the Divine Bane," she said slowly, each word echoing with an otherworldly resonance. "But recently, when I reached out to him... he did."

She paused, then turned her attention to the figure kneeling before her.

"Do you know what that means, Uriel?"

The man knelt in reverence, head bowed low. His white wings were folded tightly behind him, and his golden hair caught the light like strands of flame. His physique was chiseled and powerful an angelic warrior built for divine conquest.

"I do not, my lady," Uriel said respectfully. "Please... enlighten me."

The woman-Lady Hera ,let out a light, amused laugh. It rang through the chamber like chimes in a storm.

"It means," she said with a smirk tugging at her lips, "that the Divine Bane is somewhere near my son."

Uriel's eyes flickered, just barely, but he remained silent.

"Even though the Aryans have their Archs," she continued, "I chose you for this task. Because I know the hatred you carry for the last Divine Bane... runs deeper than any other. I want you to hunt the new one. And I want you to kill him."

(Archs :highest level Aryans in term of power and intellectual)

Then her tone grew colder.

"But do not get involved with my son. That is my only condition."

Uriel placed a fist to his chest, his wings quivering slightly.

"Thank you, Lady Hera. Your kindness knows no bounds. I will carry out your will."

He looked up, and for a moment, the divine calm in his expression shattered—replaced by a fire burning in his eyes. A deep, unforgiving rage.

"I will find him... and I will kill that Divine Bane."

***

Meanwhile, far from the divine light and celestial realms, a thick darkness veiled a vast, hollow space. At its epicenter stood a circular table, etched with unknown runes that glowed faintly in the gloom. Around it, three figures sat, and behind them stood a girl with flowing blue hair that faded to a pale, icy hue at the ends.

Zander leaned forward, elbows resting against the cold stone table. His face was drawn, eyes shadowed with exhaustion and frustration. A long sigh escaped his lips as he stared at the two figures seated across from him.

Zed and Alex.

They had been arguing for over an hour.

"I'm telling you," Zed growled, his tone sharp and insistent, "keeping Roadie's soul bound will help us level up faster. He's strong. Even as a soul, we can make use of him. Why throw that away?"

Alex leaned back in his chair, arms crossed, his expression unreadable.

"Because it's wrong. We already beat him. What's the point of enslaving someone who's lost everything? We're not monsters."

Zed rolled his eyes.

"It's not about being a monster, it's about surviving. Power is power. If we don't take it, someone else will. That soul is a resource now."

"Spoken like a tyrant," Alex snapped.

"Spoken like a realist," Zed shot back.

Zander watched them in silence, letting the noise pass over him like a wave. He'd grown used to this, the chaos, the clashing egos. His own mind had become a war room, thanks to what zed discovered just a while ago.

How did we even end up like this...?

He sighed again.

The source of this c𝐨ntent is freёnovelkiss.com.

Let rewind a bit.

Just a few hours ago, the three of them had entered this domain for the first time. A strange, hollow realm that existed somewhere inside Zed's subconscious, a mental plane accidentally discovered while he was asleep.

Here, within this shadowy expanse, Zed had somehow created a space where all of them ,Zander, Alex, and himself could communicate freely without needing to summon them physically.

But it wasn't just limited to the three of them.

Those with strong ties to Zed could enter too.

And that's when she appeared.

While the three of them had been casually discussing about Alex's successful ascension to low master tier and his new boon, an ability to enslave up to three souls he had slain (it even counted if the kill wasn't direct) a silent presence slithered into the space.

Vasuki.

She had coiled herself like a serpent around Zed's neck—silent, sleek, and cool to the touch. Her scales shimmered faintly in the dim light of the subconscious domain, blending into the shadows like a living necklace.

No one noticed her at first.

Not until she moved.

With a soft rustle, the serpent uncoiled and dropped gracefully to the floor. Mid-air, her body twisted, reshaped, and transformed. Scales gave way to skin, and in the blink of an eye, a girl stood in her place.

She was stunning.

A fully mature women with long, flowing hair—deep ocean blue at the roots, fading to icy light-blue at the tips. Her eyes gleamed like polished gold, radiant and unnerving, filled with a wisdom far beyond her apparent age. Her presence alone turned every head at the table.

"Good morning, masters," she said with a soft hiss curling at the end of her voice, like silk over steel.

The three boys blinked.

All stunned.

Zander was the first to recover, clearing his throat awkwardly. "So... this is your real form?"

She smiled, radiating grace. "Yes" she replied smoothly.

Without hesitation, she walked over to Zed, leaned over the back of his chair, and gently wrapped her arms around him. Pressing her chest lightly to his back, she looked into his eyes from the side, golden orbs locking onto his.

"Why, don't you like my human form, Master Zed?" she asked in a teasing, seductive tone.

Zed, mesmerized, nodded dumbly.

Zander rolled his eyes. "Alright, alright can we please get back to the topic?"

Everyone settled down.

The conversation returned to Alex's newly awakened boon, his ability to bind and command up to three souls he's slain.

Then, casually, too casually, Vasuki dropped a bomb.

"Oh, by the way..." she said, brushing imaginary dust off her shoulder, "I already used that master Alex boon on a person."

The room froze.

Zed blinked. Alex's mouth hung slightly open.

"...What?"

"What...?" Zed managed.

Vasuki grinned, clearly enjoying the drama.

Without another word, she raised her hand, and the air around her shimmered. A dark blue mist began to gather and twist beside her.

Then, from that swirling haze, a figure slowly emerged—hazy, glowing faintly like a spirit pulled from another plane.

A blue translucent being took form.

Head to toe... it was unmistakably Roadie.

Alex was the first to speak. "You enslaved him?"

Zed leaned forward in awe, eyes wide. "You can do that?"

And then... chaos.

The yelling. The moral debate. The shouts of "we should free him" vs. "we can use him."

Now, here they were, back in the present.

Zander quietly watched it all unfold, his fingers tapping the table, wondering how much longer they'd be stuck in ghostly court over the fate of a dead guy. he slammed his palm on the stone table, the sharp sound echoing through the hollow domain.

"Enough! Both of you, shut up!"

His voice cut through the argument like a blade.

Zed and Alex flinched at the same time, turning toward him in stunned silence.

Zander rubbed the bridge of his nose. "We're going in circles. Look, let's just keep Roadie's soul for now, alright? We'll figure out what to do with him later. But we're wasting time fighting about it."

Neither of them spoke, but the tension slowly fizzled out. Even Vasuki let out a sigh and casually leaned back on the edge of the table, smirking to herself.

Zander glanced over to Zed. "Now... wasn't there something else? You were saying something earlier?"

Zed blinked like something important had just clicked. "Oh! Right, Alex, I want you to join a guild. Aim for the top."

Alex squinted. "Wait, seriously? You're actually going along with what Martis said?"

Zander jumped in before Zed could answer. "Look, I don't fully trust that guy either, but he wasn't wrong. We all know how important power is in this world and we need more of it. By 'we', I mean you, Alex. You're the strongest one here."

He started laying it on thick, compliment after compliment, and Alex simple as ever soaked it up like sunshine.

Zed, fully aware of the flattery game, stayed quiet, letting it play out.

Zander finished with a grin. "So, how about it? Join a guild and climb to the top?"

Alex puffed up his chest, totally sold. "Leave it to me!"

Then Zed turned to him, arms crossed. "What about you? You're still walking around in that body we used in that small border town. You're not gonna switch back to your original form?"

Zander looked down at his hands for a moment, the hands of a boy who looked around sixteen, white hair and red eyes, taller than Alex but always looking a little sleep-deprived.

He gave a faint smile. "No... I think I'll keep this one. It's... quiet. Less attention, less pressure. And honestly..."He looked back at Zed, a rare softness in his tone." I like being this person. If I can... I want to stay like this."

Zed nodded, a rare look of understanding in his eyes. "Fair enough. This version suits you."

Zander leaned back in his chair, staring at the flickering runes on the table. "Funny, isn't it? We started as one person. Now we're three and somehow, this feels more like 'me' than I ever did alone."