Chapter 16
'Erietta and Aldraya—two sides of hell destined to devour one another, even if the world itself were to perish.'
Theo knew it well.
From the very start of the game to the hundredth completion he had achieved, not a single script had ever shown Erietta Bathee and Aldraya Kansh Que meeting in peace.
They were like two stars burning at opposite poles—each rejecting the other's gravity, repelling endlessly, yet never truly able to part.
In every storyline, every scenario, every alternate route Theo had ever explored, the two always ended in conflict.
Be it cold debates, mutual sabotage in the training fields, or small wars that left one of them gravely wounded.
The world of Flo Viva Mythology even used their enmity as the strangest foundation of its balance.
If either of them vanished—or changed too much toward goodness—the entire system began to lose its stability.
And now, seeing those two figures facing each other in the real world—not on a screen, not in a script—Theo felt as though digital history itself was reenacting before his eyes, with an accuracy far too frightening.
"Interesting, Aldraya.
You're not the type to casually stroll beside a man, let alone chat lightly.
So, is this just coincidence, or is there some particular reason you're both walking together this far?"
As Theo had expected, the scene was inevitable.
Erietta Bathee's steps sounded lighter, yet quicker than usual—carrying something beyond coincidence.
Every strike of her heel against the ground seemed to carve suspicion into the earth itself.
And her eyes—sharp, wild, and wounded—swept across Theo and Aldraya without mercy.
In Flo Viva Mythology, such an expression appeared only when Erietta discovered betrayal in her emotional route with Ilux Rediona.
But now, it wasn't Ilux standing beside Aldraya.
It was Theo—a man who, narratively, was nothing more than a supporting character on the edge of the stage.
And that was exactly what made this situation so tense, so eerily similar to a glitch refusing to be corrected by the world's logic.
"...."
"I think this is just a coincidence, Erietta.
Nothing intentional.
I just happened to meet Aldraya nearby.
And since she was heading toward the library, I invited her to walk with me.
That's all."
Fuuuuh—fuuuuh!
"You know, Theo? Lies cannot be concealed like the beauty of flower petals.
They always bloom open, even when the roots of their truth rot beneath the ground."
It didn't stop there—and indeed, nothing ever truly stopped when two opposing currents were forced to meet at a single point.
Aldraya, like a statue sculpted from ice and willpower, remained utterly silent.
Her gaze pierced through the horizon—no glance, no blink—as though her body was a mere vessel for something greater than human will.
Theo, on the other hand, stood with his usual casual stance—a deliberate way of masking the tension crawling between his veins.
He lifted both palms level with his chest, fingers pointing skyward, then flicked them left and right—like someone both denying an accusation and laughing at the absurdity of it all.
'Just coincidence,' he muttered, quiet but firm.
'I swear, just some weird coincidence I can't even explain.
I was only heading to the library to find Ilux Rediona—maybe, you know, to straighten some things out.'
The tone was light, yet every word was laced with deliberate intent.
Theo wanted to divert Aldraya's focus away from him.
He knew that the longer she stayed silent, the more danger would gather invisibly around them.
But Erietta Bathee was not someone easily deceived.
Her piercing eyes now took on a near-mystical shade of suspicion—a gaze sharp enough to pierce through layers of emotion and reach the hidden core of a person's truth.
She clasped her hands behind her back and began circling Theo and Aldraya—step by step, four complete rounds.
Each circle felt like her way of measuring the distance between reality and performance—between what was seen and what pulsed secretly within the hearts of the two before her.
Her steps were soft, yet to Theo, every shuffle against the ground rang like a bell of warning.
When the fourth circle ended, Erietta stopped right behind Theo, leaning in until her breath almost brushed the back of his neck.
The world around them seemed to freeze, leaving only the faint tremor of air quivering from the tension suspended between them.
'How amusing,' she whispered, her voice gentle—but laced with blades behind the tone.
"You know, Theo? Lies cannot be concealed like the beauty of flower petals.
They always bloom open, even when the roots of their truth rot beneath the ground."
Theo swallowed hard, unable to meet her gaze.
Those words weren't just a taunt.
They were a declaration of silent war between two souls who refused to yield.
From the corner of his eye, he saw Aldraya remain motionless—but something subtle shifted.
A faint exhale.
Or perhaps a tremor at her fingertips.
She wasn't angry.
Nor afraid.
Yet the air around them changed—tensed.
The sunlight that had once felt gentle now grew cold and heavy, waiting—anticipating—which of the three would speak next and change everything.
'Will she be angry after hearing that? Or am I just overthinking it?'
Wusssh!
'Aldraya isn't the type to be easily provoked.
As far as I know, even when Flo Viva Mythology's world burned in chaos, she stayed calm—like snow concealing the embers beneath.
She wouldn't react to such a trivial jab from Erietta.'
Shuuush!
'Aldraya only reacts when someone dares to touch upon obedience, faith, or pride—yes, that sacred devotion of a servant toward the Almighty.
To her, that's not just belief—it's a wound.
And as long as Erietta doesn't stir that wound, everything should remain fine.'
At least, that's what Theo believed, with all his veteran experience in Flo Viva Mythology.
Aldraya Kansh Que wasn't a character easily swayed by light provocations.
She wasn't one to move for pride or fleeting emotion.
Her entire soul's algorithm—as Theo liked to call it—was built upon a perfect balance between firmness and indifference.
In the game, even when the world collapsed around her, Aldraya would merely watch the ruins as if examining the remains of a failed experiment.
But here—in the real world that had somehow become Theo's strange stage—something was different.
Behind Aldraya's usually emotionless gray eyes, there was a faint tremor—like water touched by the first breath of wind before a storm.
Theo held his breath, searching his memory for answers.
If there was ever a moment when Aldraya could be provoked into showing emotion, it would only be for one reason—when Erietta Bathee spoke of the three forbidden subjects.
Obedience. Faith. Pride.
Three words that acted as a mantra—summoning the wounds buried deep within Aldraya's very existence.
"Truth is truth, and falsehood is falsehood.
Do not try to blur the line between the two—"
Tsuuuuf!
"—But this… this is an exception for those who have yet to understand the rules."
But instead, the opposite happened.
The sky above seemed to hold its breath—frozen beneath a veil of pale light that could no longer decide whether it belonged to day or night.
To be continued…