Nia remained silent.
Her eyes stayed fixed on the two vials in Draven's hand.
*I can leave...*
*I can go wherever I want.*
For a moment, she imagined it.
Walking away.
Going somewhere far from here.
No one would stop her.
No one would tell her where to go.
She would finally be free.
But then—
Her thoughts drifted back to her life.
She had never known her parents.
Ever since she was born, she had been sold.
Moved from one place to another.
Then sold again.
And again.
The places changed.
The people changed.
But the chains remained.
Always there.
She remembered the people who had looked at her.
Some with fear.
Some with disgust.
Some with pity.
But most simply looked away.
As if they hadn't seen her.
As if she wasn't there.
At first, she had tried to reach out.
Tried to believe that someone would help her.
But no one ever offered a hand.
Eventually—
She stopped reaching out.
She stopped expecting anyone to care.
She simply accepted it.
That this was her life.
That this was the fate she had been given.
A half-demon with nowhere to belong.
Someone who would always be bought.
Always be sold.
Always be moved from one place to another.
Until—
When she had finally resigned herself to that pitiful fate...
Someone offered her a hand.
Nia's eyes slowly shifted toward Draven.
For the first time in her life—
Someone had actually reached for her.
And now...
He was giving her a choice.
Nia lowered her gaze.
She had never been able to choose anything for herself.
Not where she went.
Not who she belonged to.
Not what happened to her.
Her entire life had been decided by someone else.
But ever since she met Draven—
Her life had changed.
She had experienced things she had never known before.
Things she had never even imagined she could have.
And now—
For the first time...
The choice was hers.
Nia slowly reached toward the two vials.
"I'll drink them."
Ryke's eyes widened.
"Huh?"
*She chose that?*
*Is she stupid or something?*
Draven simply nodded.
"Alright."
He handed the two vials to her.
As Nia took them, Draven looked at her silently.
*As expected.*
*There was really only one option.*
That was the reason for the buildup.
He hadn't immediately asked her to drink the vials after bringing her along.
Instead, he had given her a chance to experience something she had never truly had before.
Freedom.
She only knew who had saved her.
Everyone else—
In her eyes, they were no different from the people who had always looked away.
People who had seen her suffering and chosen to ignore it.
So when he told her she was free to leave...
She looked toward the only form of freedom she'd ever known.
She had assumed that freedom was something she had with him.
And once she realized that—
There had only ever been one choice.
Even if there was a chance she could die.
The possibility of death hadn't even been the focus of her decision.
She wanted what had been placed before her.
Freedom.
Draven's eyes remained on her.
*She might have chosen the other option.*
*Even if she had... it wouldn't have mattered.*
This was only an experiment.
And there was a very high chance it would fail.
Failure meant death.
But that was the only reason I took her.
He watched Nia hold the two vials in her hands.
*This is what I was building toward from the very beginning.*
*After I absorbed Zrynn's memories and learned about the experiment...*
*My choice of words back then.*
*Everything.*
*It all led to this moment.*
Draven reached up and slowly removed one of his black gloves.
"Alright."
"Nia."
"Begin with the yellow one first."
Nia nodded.
She reached for the vial and popped off the cover.
Draven immediately spoke.
"No."
"The yellow one."
"The other one."
Nia froze.
She looked down at the vial in her hand.
Then—
She opened the other one.
Without hesitation, she drank it in one go.
Everyone stared.
Ryke swallowed.
*What the hell...*
Aldric narrowed his eyes.
"What's that exactly?"
Silence.
Draven didn't answer.
Nia reached for the second vial.
She nodded once.
Then—
She drank it.
Silence filled the forest.
For a moment—
Nothing happened.
Then—
The vials slipped from Nia's hands.
Her eyes widened.
Her mouth opened.
The veins across her body began to rise beneath her skin.
A low growl escaped her throat.
"Grrrr..."
Then—
"AAAAAAAHHHHH!"
Her scream tore through the forest.
Aldric raised an eyebrow.
"It seems the first one was just an appetizer."
Nia stumbled.
Her knees struck the ground.
"Ugh...!"
"Ahh...!"
Her body began to change.
Her skin tightened.
Her fingernails lengthened, sharpening into claws.
The nails on her feet followed.
Her teeth extended into sharp fangs.
Then—
Two horns began to emerge from the sides of her head.
A tail burst from behind her.
And then—
**BOOM!**
Four wings erupted from her back.
Two on each side.
Lyriana's eyes narrowed.
Draven watched carefully.
"It seems the stabilizer wasn't effective since it was incomplete."
Lyriana looked at him.
"So that's what the first vial contained."
Pythia stared at Nia's changing body.
"And the second one is what's causing this?"
Nia growled.
Her breathing became heavier.
Her eyes fixed on Draven.
Draven took a step forward.
In an instant—
He appeared directly in front of her.
Nia swung at him.
Draven moved.
Her attack passed through empty air.
He placed one arm on top of her head.
Using it as a platform, he leapt over her.
His body twisted in midair.
Then—
He landed on her back.
**THUD!**
He forced her head toward the ground.
Nia struggled violently.
"Grrrr!"
She tried to rise.
Draven pressed her down.
Then—
He shoved his ungloved arm into her mouth.
Nia's eyes widened.
Her fangs clamped down.
**CRUNCH!**
She bit into his arm.
Her teeth tore into his flesh.
Draven didn't even flinch.
"Drink."