The request hung in the air of the Phoenix living room, heavy and absurd. Help Riser. The same Riser whose arrogance I had gleefully crushed in the arena. The one who saw me as nothing more than an obstacle to his goals. Help him get over the depression caused by his fear of me? Utter nonsense.
...
I looked at the pleading faces of Lord and Lady Phoenix, at Ravel's tear-stained but hopeful eyes. My first instinct was to refuse. Sharply, coldly, as I usually did. This wasn't my problem. Riser's fall was his own damn fault. His fear was his own business. There was no reason for me to waste my time playing psychotherapist to a broken demon aristocrat. Besides, this stank of another trap, an attempt to tie me to the Phoenix clan through a sense of duty or guilt.
"You seriously think I'm the one who can help him?" I asked slowly, my voice devoid of emotion. "I'm the reason for his fear. My presence will most likely only make his condition worse."
"We understand this sounds… unusual, Izayoi-sama," Lord Phoenix struggled for words. "But we have tried everything. Healers, counselors… no one can get through to him. He has locked himself away. But perhaps… perhaps, meeting the one who defeated him, the one who showed him the limit of his 'immortality,' might somehow… shake him? Force him to face his fear? We don't know. But we are willing to grasp at any straw."
"It's not my job to 'shake' your son," I began, preparing to refuse definitively.
But then Ravel intervened. She stepped forward, her little fists clenched, her cheeks still flushed from her recent outburst of anger and tears. She looked up at me, her gaze full of conflicting emotions—pride, hurt, fear for her brother, and… a desperate plea.
"P-please… Izayoi Jin!" Her voice trembled, but she forced herself to speak more firmly. "I… I know my brother acted horribly! He was arrogant and he deserved to lose! But… but he's still my brother! And I can't… I can't watch him waste away like this! He… he won't even leave his room! He's afraid of his own shadow! Please…" She faltered, her pride clearly warring with the need to ask for help from the one she had despised just a minute ago. "P-please… just try… at least talk to him! Maybe… maybe it will help? I… I don't even know… but… I'm begging you!"
Her words, her stumbling, awkward request, her gaze that mixed tsundere stubbornness with genuine pain for her brother… it unexpectedly breached my armor of indifference. Not pity for Riser. No. Something else. Perhaps the sight of this small, proud girl, willing to swallow her pride to save her worthless brother. It was… human? Or maybe just unusual enough to pique my interest.
I looked at her, then at her parents. They were waiting for my answer, holding their breath. My logic screamed, 'No!' My desire for peace and freedom yelled, 'Leave!' But some irrational part of me, the part that had decided to "open up" to this world, the part that was looking for something new to dispel the boredom… it whispered, 'Well, why not? This could be… curious.'
A heavy sigh escaped my chest.
"Fine," I said, surprising even myself. "I'll try. I'll talk to him. But I'm not promising anything. If he starts throwing a fit or tries to attack me, I'm just leaving. And you won't ask me about this again."
Such relief washed over the Phoenixes' faces, it was as if a mountain had been lifted from their shoulders. Lady Phoenix clasped her hands; Lord Phoenix let out a shaky breath. And Ravel… she blushed even deeper, quickly turned away, and muttered something like:
"W-well… thank you… I-I guess…"
"I will escort you to his chambers, Izayoi-sama," Lord Phoenix immediately offered.
"No," Ravel interjected, regaining some of her usual nerve. "I'll take him myself. You, Father, Mother, stay here. There's no need to cause an extra fuss."
Her parents exchanged a glance but agreed. Ravel shot me a brief look. "Let's go. Just… behave yourself. Don't scare him any more than he already is."
I just huffed in response. 'As if I can control his reaction.'
We left the drawing room. Ravel walked in front, her "drill" pigtails bouncing comically with each step. She led me down the endless corridors of the Phoenix palace. Everything here was just as luxurious as the main hall: walls adorned with gold and red velvet, paintings of firebirds, heavy carpets that muffled our footsteps. But the atmosphere was oppressive. The silence was heavy, and even the soft light from the magical sconces seemed cold.
We walked in silence for several minutes. I examined the decor; Ravel stared straight ahead, clearly feeling awkward in my company. Finally, she couldn't stand the quiet.
"Are… are you really that strong?" she asked quietly, not turning her head. "Like everyone says?"
"Strong enough to beat your brother," I replied bluntly.
She winced, as if from a toothache. "He… he's always been like that. So confident. He thought his immortality made him invincible. He's never… never lost like that."
"All immortality has its limits," I noted. "Especially when it's just based on regeneration. There are ways to destroy things that can't be killed by normal means."
Ravel flinched. "You… you could have killed him? Back in the arena?"
"I could have," I nodded. "But Rias's brother asked me not to. Said your bloodline is valuable to demons."
She fell silent, mulling over my words. Her hostility toward me seemed to have faded a bit, replaced by a complex mix of fear, respect, and… curiosity?
"Why did you agree to help?" she asked again, her voice not as sharp this time. "My brother? After everything he did?"
"I was bored," I shrugged. "And your request was… endearing."
She blushed again and quickened her pace. "D-don't say stupid things! I'm just… worried about my family!"
We reached a large wing of the palace. The corridors here were wider, the decor even richer. At a set of massive doors, adorned with the Phoenix crest, stood several girls from Riser's peerage. The same ones from the arena. They tensed when they saw us. Their gazes, fixed on me, were full of fear and hatred. Yubelluna, his Queen, stood out. She was just in front, her face an icy mask, but her silver eyes held undisguised animosity.
"Lady Ravel," Yubelluna bowed slightly, pointedly ignoring me. "What is… he… doing here?"
"I brought him," Ravel answered, trying to sound firm, though her voice wavered slightly under the Queen's gaze. "He's… he's going to talk to my brother."
"Talk?" Yubelluna narrowed her eyes, her gaze flicking to me. "Lord Riser is in no condition to receive… visitors. Especially… him."
"It's an order from my parents!" Ravel snapped, gathering her courage. "Now step aside. We're going in."
The peerage girls hesitated, looking to Yubelluna. She stared at me in silence for several seconds, as if trying to burn a hole through me with her gaze. I met her look calmly, without challenge, but also without fear. She understood it was pointless to argue. With a heavy sigh, she nodded to her subordinates.
"Let them pass. But if anything happens to Lord Riser…" her voice was an icy warning, "…you will answer for it."
Ravel ignored her threat and pushed the heavy doors open. "Let's go," she tossed over her shoulder.
I stepped after her into Riser Phoenix's chambers.
The room was enormous. Obscenely luxurious. Gold, velvet, silk. A massive canopy bed that took up half the room. Expensive carpets, mirrors in gilded frames, a collection of some kind of weapons on the walls. But all this luxury was… dead. The windows were blocked by heavy, drawn curtains, a half-light filled the room, and it smelled of must and… fear. Shards of a broken vase lay on the floor; untouched food sat on a small table. In the midst of this chaos, in the farthest corner, on the floor, sat Riser.
He was hugging his knees, rocking back and forth, muttering to himself. His golden hair was disheveled, his expensive clothes rumpled. He didn't look at us. He didn't seem to notice anyone had entered.
"B-Brother?" Ravel called out softly, her voice trembling at the sight of him.
Riser flinched at her voice, lifting his head. His eyes were empty, clouded, full of terror. Seeing his sister, he showed no reaction. But then his gaze slid further… and landed on me.
Recognition. Shock. And a wave of pure, animalistic fear washed over him.
"N-no… Go away… Get out!" he screamed, his voice cracking. He pressed himself into the corner, covering his head with his hands. "Don't come closer! Don't touch me! I don't want to die! I don't want to! Get out! GET OUT!"
He began to convulse, hammering his fists on the floor, sobbing, screaming incoherent words about pain, about stones, about my power. The golden glow of regeneration flickered weakly around him, but it couldn't heal his broken mind.
Ravel stumbled back in horror, her hands flying to her mouth. Tears streamed down her cheeks. She had never seen her proud, invincible brother so… pathetic. So broken.
I stood and watched this display. No satisfaction, no pity. Just a cold acknowledgment of fact. I had broken him. Not just his body, but his spirit. And now he was just a shell, filled with fear.
I mentally facepalmed. Help him? This? He's a complete wreck. Talking to him was useless. He wouldn't hear it. He only saw his nightmare in me.
'Yare yare,' I thought, annoyed. 'This is going to take a while. If it's even fixable.'
I turned to the sobbing Ravel. "Looks like your plan failed. A conversation isn't going to happen."
My voice snapped her out of her stupor. She looked at me, then at her brother, then back at me. Her eyes were pleading.
"But… but you have to do something! You… it's your fault!"
I sighed. It seemed I was in this deeper than I'd thought.