Alone, powerless, and afraid. That is how a woman feels as she looks at the corridor wall through a glass that keeps her trapped in a small room like an animal imprisoned by a cruel hunter.
She looks about thirty years old but is actually over five hundred years old, though her current power is in the Mortal Realm's early stages.
Despite not being one of the most beautiful women of the Blue Star, she has some charm with big brown eyes and long red hair, very similar to Kayla's. But that is the only similarity between them.
She keeps staring at that wall because there's nothing else to do. She tried to escape from that place, but all her attempts failed.
Yet, the worst part is knowing that even if she managed to get out of that room and building, she still wouldn't make it back to the surface before dying without air, being recaptured, or devoured by some sea monster.
She could wait for her family to come to the rescue her, but they can't get that far from the surface either. Also, everyone knows the main Naga city is protected by an impenetrable barrier.
[There is no hope...] She thinks at the same time she notices a mysterious figure appear in front of that glass, blocking her nothing-impressive view of the corridor wall.
The first thing that woman notices about the mysterious figure is that they both have long red hair.
But he's a man, he has horns, wings, and he's the most handsome person she's ever seen.
"Who are you???" She quickly asks.
"Someone who can help you," Lucien responds while smiling at her in the teasing way that only he can.
Hope? That woman could never have imagined that there was any chance for her, and yet there is that man so mysterious.
And despite feeling an absurdly strong attraction to that man as she had never felt in her life, that woman cannot help but be suspicious of his intentions. "What do you want from me?"
"Hahaha..." Lucien chuckles. "You're right to be suspicious of me; there's no free lunch after all."
"..." She has to use all her will to not surrender to Lucien's charm; however, due to her low power level and the proximity to him, her body starts to react in a way that she can't control.
Lucien has no control over that and can't stop women from being attracted to him, so he tries to convince her quickly. "You see, in your current situation, I couldn't take anything away from you as you've already lost everything... So why would I want to deceive you or something?"
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtThe woman looks at him with an annoyed expression. "Did you come here to offend me or make fun of me?"
"My bad, my bad." Lucien smiles. "As I said, I just want to help you, just like I helped your daughter, Kayla."
"Kayla?!?" That woman gets very excited when she hears that name, making it clear that she really is Layla, Maya's adopted daughter.
"What have you done to my daughter???" She quickly asks.
"Nothing bad, don't worry." He answers. "Fate just made our paths cross at a time when she was in trouble. But I saved her, and by now, she must have been taken back to her home by my sisters."
Although he seems honest, Layla can't easily trust anyone right now. "How am I supposed to know that's true?"
Lucien thinks of something and quickly explains. "I know you and your daughter weren't born with this fire affinity, but you got it from an exceptional person..."
Layla is shocked that he knows about that just by looking at her. "You… who the hell are you???"
"My name is Lucien." He answers. "I'm just a demon in trouble, and I believe only that extraordinary person can help me. That's why I want so badly to become friends with your Rising Phoenix Clan."
Layla is shocked that Lucien makes his intentions clear that way. But now she really thinks she can trust him. "My name is Layla, but I think you already knew that, right?"
He smiles and nods. "Kayla, Layla... I wonder what your mother's name is."
She smiles too, but then her expression becomes concerned again. "I don't doubt you want to be an ally of my Rising Phoenix Clan, but how could you help me?"
Lucien doesn't respond but teleports and reappears beside Layla inside her room, shocking her.
"Woah! How did you do that???" She takes a step back as she asks.
He starts checking the furniture in the bedroom and even sits on the big bed to see if it's comfortable. "This place doesn't look so bad..."
"But it's still a damn prison!" She comments in an upset tone.
He makes a sorry expression. "I really want to help you get out of here and go back to your home. But for that, you're going to have to trust me."
She does a sad look. "You can't get me out of here now, don't you?"
He nods. "I'm currently helping the Naga Queen to make a rebellion and regain control of her Kingdom..."
Layla can't help but be shocked again as everything about Lucien feels so surreal. "Really?? But what about Tyrion? He will-"
"Die." Lucien completes her words. "I will personally kill him, but I can't do that yet, and so I can't get you out of here right now."
"Is that really possible?" She asks.
"Yes, trust me." He nods. "I can't recover what he stole from you, but I'm going to make him regret that."
Layla can't help but be depressed as she remembers that Tyrion stole her power, but now she has a new hope to see her family again and even gets revenge for what he did to her.
'Actually, you can recover her power...' Lust comments in Lucien's mind. 'I'm not talking about you doing it, but if we know what kind of dark ritual Tyrion used to steal people's power, we can do a reverse enchantment and take that power from him, giving it back to his victims who are near there at that time.'
'Can we really do that?' He asks.
'Well, we would need someone with powerful dark magic.' She explains. 'I don't think that Siren could help us because she has a soul contract with Tyrion, but I could teach Olivia how to do that.'
'We can try that if we get a chance, but I think Olivia is too far away from here now…' He comments.
Meanwhile, Layla regains her resolve. "Alright, just tell me what to do, and I'll trust you."
He smiles at her. "Just keep acting like a poor victim for now. Tyrion is busy with many things now, so I don't think he's going to come here to bother you, but I can't come here anymore either because it might make him suspicious."
"So I have to wait until you deal with him?" She asks.
"Yes," He replies. "I'll do my best, so this doesn't take too long, and as soon as it's over, I'll take you home again."
Layla smiles at Lucien, which makes his next action very difficult. Yet, he teleports away from that room, back to the corridor.
He reappears in front of Kamala, and she notices that his expression is disappointed. "It's all right?"
"Yeah..." He strokes her hair and kisses her forehead. "Let's go back."
Kamala doesn't understand what's wrong with Lucien, but Lust does because she knows him so well. 'I thought you'd give her your tattoo and keep her in the purple world... after all, you're as attracted to troubled women as to hot moms.'
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm'I really wanted to help her now...' He explains. 'But have you forgotten our goal in this world? We didn't come here to be friends with them but to steal the Phoenix's immortality.'
Before Lust says anything, he continues. 'If I made a soul contract with her, I could even make her happy now, but what would happen when I kill the person who is probably very important to her?'
Lust can't help but be saddened by Lucien's plight. She knows he doesn't like manipulation and deceiving people to steal what they have. Yet, he will do anything to keep his family safe, even if it means destroying other people's families.
He and Kamala go down the ramp and find Mira in the main hall. Jai is no longer with her, but she doesn't move as she has a thoughtful expression on her face, lost in her own mind.
"Mom?" Kamala awakens Mira from her deep thoughts.
"Oh?" She looks at them, especially at Lucien. "Did you find what you were looking for?"
He nods, but then Lust materializes her body beside them to report. "Tyrion is coming."
Mira and Kamala make worried expressions; then, the Naga Queen looks at Lucien with determination. "It seems so surreal, but I really believe in you and that we can do it… that's why I want to do my best to help you."
He approaches her and caresses her face. "I already told you how you could help me."
"It..." She starts to blush as she also can't help but become more and more attracted to him, not just physically. "W-would that r-really makes any difference?"
"Of course." He smiles as he slowly approaches their lips. "We would be stronger together, which is really nice, right?"
Mira wants to move back or at least look away, but she seems mesmerized by Lucien, entranced by his gaze, addicted to his scent, and craving to taste his mouth again.
"Yes... I guess... it's... really... great!" She doesn't resist and moves her head forward, kissing him before he kisses her.
Again she delights in Lucien's kiss as she feels his energies run into her body, making her feel outstanding and stronger.
For nearly two thousand years, she had lived a shitty life alongside Tyrion, watching her people suffer just like she and her own daughter. But now that Lucien showed up, giving her an opportunity to fix everything and be really happy… so why wouldn't she accept that?
"Mom?!?!" Kamala can't help but be embarrassed by that situation, especially as she is jealous of her own mother, a situation she never thought to be possible.
Lucien hugs Kamala's waist and pulls her close to them, kissing her too. So while he has both mother and daughter in his arms, he mentally speaks to Lust. 'Is it okay to make a soul contract with Mira? I mean, wouldn't the Siren find out about it?'
Lust quickly responds. 'She only found out about our soul contract because she saw me beside you, but she has no way of knowing that you can make multiples soul contracts as that never happened before. Anyway, just asks Mira not to reveal her tattoo to anyone, and everything will be fine.'
'OK.' Lucien wastes no time before sending more energy into Mira's body as he caresses her belly, initiating the soul contract.
She can't resist his energy as she's already getting hooked on that, so before she knows it, his tattoo appears on her low belly, glowing with bright purple.
Meanwhile, Tyrion is only thinking about stealing Lucien's power. For him, power is the most important thing.
But somehow, he feels something strange in his heart. Perhaps a part of him knows that he had just lost both his daughter and his wife for good.