Her mind was no longer normal.
Or rather, she was normal—but only in a way that applied to Kiara Sessyoin alone.
"Especially you, Mr. Shiomi." Sessyoin's gaze shimmered with intent, her tone like a confession. "To use a god-given ring for an attack so close to self-destruction… If possible, I'd like to taste that pleasure too, just like Goetia."
"Too bad the Ten Commandments are gone. If you want it so badly, go ask Yahweh yourself!" Shiomi replied, his face twisted in disgust.
He couldn't fathom how anyone could see that as pleasurable—much less want to experience it firsthand.
Even if he could recreate it, Shiomi would never waste it on someone like Sessyoin.
The Chaos Tide beneath him suddenly surged upward, crashing toward Sessyoin—but she easily dodged, as if it were routine.
But it was only a feint. The instant the Chaos Tide fell back, it transformed into thick vines that shot out from behind, wrapping around Sessyoin.
"Ah… You really do like to bound people, don't you?" Sessyoin tightened her pulled-back arms and brought her hands together in a seal. "Then as a gesture of reciprocity, I won't fall behind. Diamond Realm: Vajra Mudrā."
The technique that came for him resembled the Black Thread of Skhanda, though it lacked the same level of threat.
In a blink, Shiomi's spear split into four glints of icy light, tearing apart Sessyoin's binding spell. He then darted around her, seeking the next opening to strike.
There were simply too many Demon Pillars. No matter how hard the others fought, some always slipped through the defenses and fired mana blasts toward Shiomi, disrupting the battlefield.
"It's pointless. No matter how fast or fierce you are, every move you make is within my grasp."
Sessyoin lifted her hands. Where Shiomi was about to land, a pair of giant palms—mirroring her own—broke through lotus blossoms and trees, closing in to trap him.
"That so?!"
With lightning speed, Shiomi evaded the attack.
She didn't seem eager to kill him. Instead, she spoke aloud, as if confiding her inner thoughts to the only prey worthy of hearing them.
"I remember... the Demon King Goetia." Sessyoin's fingertips brushed her moist, rose-colored lips. "He was strong—but that's all. Goetia… was just a broken Beast."
"True enough," Shiomi responded, raising a hand. A sudden frost storm howled forth, swallowing Sessyoin in ice. "The Evils of Humanity are also expressions of human love. But Goetia never understood that. A Beast that can't comprehend love is destined to lose."
"In that sense, Goddess Tiamat had a slight edge. But even she gave up everything she had within reach… because one person helped her remember a forgotten love."
Sessyoin scattered the frost storm with a sweep, the ice coating half her body melting rapidly from the intense heat.
"You? You think you're qualified to speak of a mother?" Shiomi sneered. "Someone like you, who sees only yourself as human and treats all others as insects, could never understand the sorrow and deep love of Goddess Tiamat."
"I have no intention of understanding," Sessyoin replied with a serene smile. "My power is still weak. As a Beast, I'm an incomplete larva, broken from its cocoon too early. But I'm different from the others—I became a Beast from a human. Every sentient being holds 'desire,' and with just my fingertips, I can pluck their souls—"
She raised her hand, plucked a white lotus, and smiled gently.
"Anyone with desire is no match for me. Especially a man like you, overflowing with it."
She let the lotus drift from her hand, the flower floating before Shiomi.
"Come, take my hand. I'll give you a pleasure deeper than any woman ever could. You'll merge with me—no pain, only bliss."
Before Shiomi could answer, her words enraged the three women beside him.
The Holy Lance, Magecraft, and Crimson Spear struck in rapid succession, forcing Sessyoin to defend herself.
The assault only lasted a moment—interrupted by the pressing need to deal with the remaining Demon Pillars—but Sessyoin seemed even more delighted, having tasted their fury.
"I didn't love them for pleasure," Shiomi said as he raised his hand and scattered the lotus flower, "I became happy because I loved them. But you—you who only love 'yourself'—you'll never understand."
Yet Sessyoin remained utterly fixated on seducing Shiomi.
No matter how he rejected her, she continued her bold and suggestive provocations.
To heroes, trials. To saints, temptation.
Just imagining the moment Shiomi would finally succumb made Sessyoin's body shiver with anticipation—on the verge of ecstasy.
"All phenomena are empty? Mere chatter. This burning house is meant to be ravaged. So go on, drown yourself in the six desires."
Sessyoin spread her arms wide, then slowly brought her palms together. Strange magical energy gathered from every direction, converging at the center. Another spell was taking form.
The condensed mana floated like an orb of light above her head. Shiomi considered releasing Gungnir's True Name again—
But it would only repeat what had happened before. Useless.
He needed a way to land a fatal blow. A moment. A method.
"Daizushi Chiyakanpō."
The 'Yakan' refers to a creature between fox and jackal—a manifestation of Dakini in Esoteric Buddhism.
"Daizushi's spell? Not happening!"
Realizing what technique Sessyoin was preparing, Shiomi immediately reached out his hand. The surging Chaos Tide responded, erupting from the ground and engulfing her before the Dakini ritual could spread.
The sphere formed by the Chaos Tide shuddered, then shattered.
Sessyoin emerged unharmed, having shielded herself with the tentacles of the Demon Pillars.
"You may as well give up. No matter how much you use the Beast's power, you're still only human. You can't even touch me."
She looked at Shiomi with a trace of pity.
"Yet despite all that talk, you've been careful not to let the Chaos Tide touch you," Shiomi said, lowering his spear. "Just as I thought—this false spiritron city of yours, built on devouring countless lives and Heroic Spirits, can't stand against something that can give life, yet isn't alive."
He raised a finger, pointing straight at Kiara Sessyoin.
"There are no Grand Servants here. No Ten Commandments to nullify your existence. But your natural enemy is here. The one you should fear most—your mother! Beast III Rapture!"
"...Then show me."
Sessyoin answered lightly, though her brows unconsciously furrowed. "Show me the power that gives birth to all life."