The twins' journey into the unknown had begun approximately five days ago. Ever since then, Devashtich had got to enjoy the peaceful tranquillity of his private quarters. Meanwhile, his sister had been focusing on actually running the ship and being the point of contact for everyone else aboard. She loved interacting with others and blathering on, so this was pretty much perfect for her.
In their exceedingly long lives, this period of less than a week amounted to practically a blink of an eye. He had barely begun to get comfortable, expecting to be left to his own devices for months or even years more to come... when he was ripped out of his serenity.
"Darma, what's going on?! Are we under attack?"
The moment that he noticed their Voidfaring Vessel getting restricted by an outside force, he instantly appeared next to his sister, inquiring about the details of their situation.
"I think so! But it's weird. There shouldn't be any noteworthy factions around here! Wait a little, I'll go and take a–"
Just as confused as he was, Spandarmad double-checked the available map data, finding nothing of particular interest in this area. She and the crew had deliberately adjusted their route to avoid any potential dangerous zones along the way. They hadn't even left the Naxsir's already known area yet, therefore they should not have come across an unpleasant surprise. But they did.
Before either of the twins could properly understand what was happening, a kind but unfamiliar voice arrived at their ears.
"Stop right there! Excuse the rude reception, friends, but this is my territory. You can't just come and go without paying a toll."
Narrowing his eyes, Devashtich expanded his perception beyond their ship, spying a solitary figure floating nearby. It was a white-haired young man with particularly chilling, icy-blue eyes. The eerily hospitable, broad smile on his lips did make him instinctively uncomfortable–as if he was witnessing a beast staring at its prey.
'He doesn't look familiar. Taking into account that he pretty much appeared on our route out of nowhere, it's safe to say that he might be one of those Heaven's Chosen. Such horrendous luck!'
Before he could dramatically tear up and wax poetic along the lines of 'woe is me', he noticed that the stranger was only at the Holos Acclimation Stage. This rattled and confounded him deeply, as it was the general consensus amongst his people that one would need to–at the very least–be at the Advanced Ascension Stage to freely traverse the Lesser True Void.
And yet, this significantly weaker individual was evidently unharmed. Upon closer inspection, he was certain that the guy's body was genuinely withstanding it all directly. There was no secret method employed, and no Energy barrier or stop-gap measure in play.
'That doesn't bode well...'
Furrowing his brows, a sense of discomfort began to settle in. Either, he was unable to detect this person's actual cultivation stage, or he was a truly terrifying figure with unfathomable potential. Neither of these possibilities were great, but if he absolutely had to choose one of them, then he'd prefer the latter. After all, that way, he might still come out of top and wasn't doomed from the very beginning.
"Huh? What do you mean? We're just travelling through the Lesser True Void, and haven't even come close to any world at all. Why should we need to fork over anything to you?"
Not quite as deeply submerged in her own thoughts as her brother was, Spandarmad loudly protested. She had pretty much come to the same conclusion as him, yet that wouldn't stop her from freely speaking her mind.
"That's simple: It's because I told you to. This area might have not been under anyone's control before, but it is now."
Although the outsider appeared to be patient with them, a vague pressure began to bear down upon their vessel, eliciting a slight creaking noise from its walls. Knowing that they would be doomed if anything happened to this ship, the crew members paled, shooting pleading gazes in the direction of the twins.
"How unreasonable! That's just highway robbery!"
Objecting unhappily, Spandarmad utilized some of her Energy to reinforce their craft, indirectly battling the threat from beyond.
"And?"
His smile widening, the stranger shot them a mocking glance.
"Ugh, what a jerk!"
Cursing under her breath, she glared at him with annoyance written all over her face. If it was merely her and her brother, then she could pretty much disregard his words, but she had many others to protect. For their sake, she hoped that they could find a peaceful resolution to all of this.
"What exactly do you want? If it's not too much, we might consider it."
Chiming in from the side after letting his sister have the stage for a while, Devashtich chose to have them take a step back. If it meant that disaster and peril could be avoided, then it wasn't out of the question for them to pay a certain price. With their power, they could reclaim what they lost and more in due time, therefore it wouldn't be too painful.
"Hand over 80 percent of the Energy Veins in your possession, then I'll let you go. Alternatively, let us dance."
Given that the twins both required a certain Energy concentration to be maintained in their environment most of the time if they didn't want to suffer, this request was obviously out of the question.
Before Devashtich could decisively refuse, though, Spandarmad had other plans. Puzzled, she gawked at the bandit with a conflicted glint in her eyes.
"Wait, are you serious? You want to dance with us? I'm not really opposed to that, but I've got to warn you: I pretty much have two left feet, so don't expect me to be any good."
Whether it be the stranger, her own brother, or the rest of the crew members nearby, as if they had all practised it beforehand, their heads turned to face her. Their expressions were indescribable. For a long while, they were utterly speechless, with nary a sound escaping anyone's lips.
Devashtich and the unwelcome 'guest' exchanged a long glance, the former ashamed as well as apologetic, and the latter conveying his genuine pity.
"... did I say something wrong? Why is everyone staring at me like that??"
Growing a bit panicked, Spandarmad looked to and fro, yet most people evaded her pleading, inquisitive gaze. Her brother merely shook his head, therefore it eventually fell upon the bandit to clear up her misunderstanding.
"It was a figurative expression. Rather than literally inviting you to take to the dance floor with me, I was telling you that we'd be coming to blows if you refused. So, what do you say? Will you oblige? Or do you want to do this the hard way?"
Her eyes widening in realization, she felt a bit embarrassed, but even more so angry about that jerk not taking the twins seriously. Regardless of his ability to stay unscathed in the Lesser True Void, if he thought that he could take them on just like that, then he was in for a rude awakening!
"Hmph, of course we won't hand that many Energy Veins over! We need them ourselves, so how could we possibly give them to you!? Do you really want to throw hands with us? If so, then let's do it away from here and not get the innocents involved, alright?"
Watching the young lady appear outside of the vessel, and not too far away from him, the stranger nodded, then glanced at her brother who still hadn't moved from the spot.
"That's fine by me. Avoiding collateral damage would be ideal. Still, you alone won't be enough to face me. This other gentleman, would you please join us? That way, it'll be a bit more of a fair fight."
The confidence in these words bordered on smug conceit, yet Devashtich only further furrowed his brows and made his way next to his sister, who was about to erupt in frustration.
"Arrogant much?! I'll wipe that grin off your face, just you wait! Come, lead the way!"
Bottling up most of her fury inside so that she could use it to fuel her fighting spirit later on, she clenched her fists, motioning for the white-haired man to go ahead.
Not bothered by her at all, Theodore unhurriedly brought the twins to a section of the Lesser True Void that was far removed from their Voidfaring Vessel. He had long since sealed off this stretch completely, therefore no matter what they did or how violent they got, nobody situated beyond would be any the wiser.
"Here should be good. I'll let you go first–but be warned: As soon as you attack, I won't hold back any longer. You'd best be properly prepared, because I won't go easy on you."
Giving these two a stern warning, as he intended to enjoy himself this time around, Theodore awaited their eventual assault. He didn't expect the greatest fight of all time–especially because that lady seemed to have a few screws loose–but he should at least feel significant pressure.
'There is nobody else around, I've checked. However, this guy is definitely not a pushover. Whatever the case, I've got to give this my all.'
Having grown more uncomfortable and distraught the longer that his interactions with Theodore had continued, Devashtich exchanged a few glances with his sister, then both of them got into position.
Spandarmad had a lot of issues, but he could always trust her to have his back and excel in battle. They had often been on the front lines since their early days and could be considered experienced veterans. Whilst they were rather weak if compared to others at the Celestial Stage, they were still the real thing.
As Theodore and the twins' confrontation was about to begin, back on Pytho, the Winter Saint's inner circle had organized a small gathering. None of them were currently particularly busy, so they had enough time to spare for moments like these.
Being the secretary and right-hand woman that she was, Vigdis had been given access to the Lesser Void Guarding Array as well. This allowed her to make use of one of its countless functions and display the upcoming clash for all of them to see.
Whether it be close-up shots, slowing down the footage, rewinding it or switching perspectives, because it was all being automatically recorded, this and much more was possible. In conclusion: They could thoroughly entertain themselves.
"I didn't expect that we'd be having another watch party this soon, but I'm all for it!"
Plopping down next to Han Junqiao with a few snacks in hand, Xie Mei began to munch on them as she remarked.
"Same. I'm looking forward to witnessing what those at the Celestial Stage have in store! Vigi tried to explain it before, but seeing is always better than hearing."
Nodding along, Han Junqiao pulled out a couple of plates filled with a vast variety of different treats for everyone to enjoy. Knowing her sister, though, it was likely that Xie Mei would be the one primarily gorging herself on them to her heart's–or, more accurately, her stomach's–extent.
"Just don't freak out too easily later on, girls. Theo is very resilient. His recovery from significant injuries shouldn't be much worse than Satoru's, I'd wager."
Offering some advice with a calm smile, Cheong Suhyeon chimed in from the side.
Watching a loved one's body get torn apart was never a pleasant experience, yet the girls would have to grow resistant to overreacting sooner rather than later. That was another one of the reasons as to why Vigdis had chosen to let them behold the battle.
"Oh? Really? I didn't know Master was impressive in this regard, too!"
Raising an eyebrow in astonishment, the punching bag extraordinaire joined the conversation. Satoru had naturally known that Theodore was very powerful, but that didn't necessarily translate to the ability to heal rapidly.
"Then you'll be in for a surprise. Now shush! I'll play the recording once you've all quietened down."
Letting her gaze hover over everyone in attendance, Vigdis waited for the chattering to come to an end. They were free to discuss what they were about to see, but she wanted the entire group to at least pay proper attention.
Once she was satisfied, she nodded with a small smile and the heretofore frozen, projected scene came to life.