Ruby was a beautiful young girl. She had a cheerful face and a bubbly, youthful aura around her. She was just another teenage schoolgirl. At least this was the opinion Necrogod had about her until now. But right now, she was a completely different person.

A brilliant sword aura flashed as she moved like a A brilliant sword aura flashed as she moved like a streak of silver lightning.

Necrogod’s eyes widened.

The girl who had been giggling and dragging him along just moments ago now carried an entirely different presence. Her posture lowered, her steps became precise, and the cheerful air around her vanished without a trace. In its place was a sharp, lethal calm.

The massive beast lunged forward, its jaws snapping shut with a thunderous roar. But Ruby had already moved. Her blade traced a clean arc through the air.

SHING! A thin silver line appeared across the beast’s neck.

For a split second, nothing happened. Then, blood sprayed. The beast’s massive body staggered before collapsing to the ground with a heavy thud.

Silence fell over the forest. Necrogod blinked. "Okay..." That was not what he expected.

Ruby exhaled softly, flicking her blade once to shake off the blood. The sword then disappeared. The sharp aura around her also faded instantly, and just like that, the bubbly girl was back.

She turned toward him with a bright smile. "Don’t worry. Soon we will cure you, and you will also be able to fight like me."

Necrogod stared at her for a moment before nodding simply. There was no malice in her words. She genuinely wanted to help. Also, he did not want to waste any time. The two of them continued walking further into the forest.

More beasts appeared and were swiftly taken care of by Ruby. Necrogod personally was not a sword user so he couldn’t tell the depth of her skills but they were definitely not mediocre.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Ruby suddenly turned, a faint smile tugging at her lips as she glanced down shyly. "It’s like you’ve never seen me fight before."

Necrogod scratched his head awkwardly. "Uh... yeah... you’re... really good today," he said, throwing out the first thing that came to mind.

Ruby giggled softly. "Stop teasing me, you jerk. I might be decent, but I’ll never be as good as you."

Before he could respond, she suddenly stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him.

Necrogod froze. His mind blanked out for a second. Then, before he could even process what was happening, she leaned in. Her lips pressed against his.

Necrogod stood there, completely stunned.

This was... new. He had stood in battlefields filled with corpses. He had commanded armies of the dead. He had faced monsters, emperors, and beings far beyond ordinary comprehension. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

But this? He had no experience with this at all.

A few seconds later, Ruby slowly pulled back. Her face was flushed. Her silver eyes avoided his as she looked down at the ground, fidgeting slightly. "Idiot," she muttered softly. "Usually, you are the one attacking me. What happened today? Are you not interested in me anymore?" She pouted.

Necrogod was still frozen. He opened his mouth slightly, then closed it again. No words came out.

Ruby glanced at him briefly, then looked away again, clearly embarrassed now that the moment had passed. "Well?" she muttered, still not meeting his eyes. "At least say something."

Necrogod knew he had to say something. Otherwise, things were going to get awkward. He was about to blurt out something when abruptly images and memories flooded his mind.

The image of a small baby cooing and playing. Then the image of a little girl cutely laughing as she ran through a sunlit courtyard.

The memory didn’t feel like something he was observing. It felt like something he had lived. A tiny hand gripping his finger. A childish voice calling out for him.

The world around him seemed to blur for a split second. Another image surfaced. A slightly older girl, stubbornly holding a wooden sword that was too big for her. Swinging it clumsily. Falling. Getting back up again. "I’ll be strong too! Just like you!"

More memories followed. Training fields. Laughter. Arguments. A girl pouting after losing. A girl beaming after finally landing a hit. A girl looking at him with unwavering trust.

Necrogod staggered slightly. Love. There was so much love and warmth in these memories. This girl was the life and soul of whoever he was right now. This person literally lived and breathed for her and she too lived and breathed for him.

Ruby noticed the change immediately. Her expression shifted from embarrassment to concern. "Hey," she said softly, stepping closer. "What’s wrong with you? Are you hurt somewhere?"

Necrogod again opened his mouth but suddenly froze. Nether? He was sensing nether coming from her? He was confused.

"What the heck?" He abruptly turned her around and looked at her back when his eyes widened with shock. On her back was a small scratch from which thin strands of dark energy were slowly seeping out.

Necrogod’s pupils shrank. It was nether. There was no mistaking it. It was faint, impure but it was unmistakably... nether. "What the hell...?" he muttered under his breath.

Ruby flinched slightly at how abruptly he turned her, but she didn’t resist. "Hey! What are you doing?" she complained, trying to glance back. "It’s just a scratch..."

Necrogod’s grip tightened. "Stay still."

Seeing how serious he was, Ruby didn’t argue and silently complied.

Necrogod leaned in closer, his gaze locked onto the small wound on her back. At first glance, it looked harmless. It was just a shallow cut. Something she might have gotten while fighting earlier, but the problem was that there was nether leaking out of it.

His face turned grave. As a nether user, how could he have not seen this earlier. He had seen this many times and he knew exactly what was going to follow.

***

Chapter 7 Mass Release Sponsored by Syphatrol