Freya looked at the boy through Syr's eyes.
Syr's body stiffened slightly, and the focus vanished from her eyes in an instant.
When she opened them again, there was now a glimmer in their depths that did not belong to her.
Freya.
The Goddess of Beauty, one of the strongest beings in Orario, was now observing the boy who had caught her interest through Syr's eyes.
And yet...
In the very next moment, Freya's brows drew tightly together.
Filth.
Utter filth.
In her eyes, the boy's soul was in a state of indescribable chaos.
Countless black stains, like foul mud, were wrapped around his soul, almost drowning it entirely.
That filth was slaughter, plunder, and betrayal. It was all tangled together into one knot of corruption so revolting that merely looking at it stirred disgust.
Freya felt as though she had fallen into a cesspit.
The discomfort was so strong that she wanted to pull her gaze away at once.
But just as she was about to give up, she saw it.
Beneath that endless filth, there was one point of soul-light shining with dazzling brilliance.
That light was so intense it hurt the eyes.
So pure it was intoxicating.
Amid that murky darkness, it was like a star in the night, like hope at the bottom of the abyss.
Freya had never seen a soul like this before.
Why would the same person's soul be split into two completely opposite states?
One part so filthy it made her sick, the other so radiant it made her want to lose herself in it.
Those two extremes existing in one person at the same time made Freya feel as if her own mind were about to split apart.
Damn bastard.
That unbearable contradiction made Freya want to vent her frustration violently.
She wanted to rush downstairs, seize that boy, and thoroughly study why his soul had become like this.
She wanted to peel away those layers of filth and see what exactly was hidden beneath them.
She wanted to...
But in the end, she did nothing.
She only stared fixedly at the boy, staring at the radiant light hidden beneath all that corruption.
A moment later...
A smile appeared on Freya's face.
It was alluring and dangerous, tinged with an obsession that sent chills down the spine.
"What if..." she murmured softly.
"If all that filth were stripped away, would the whole soul become like that one point, blooming with dazzling light?"
Once that thought appeared, it could no longer be suppressed.
Freya's body began to tremble slightly.
That was excitement.
That was desire.
That was...
Possessiveness.
She wanted that soul.
She wanted to claim it for herself.
She wanted to watch it cast off its filth little by little and bloom into something even more dazzling.
If all of Genichi's filthy soul were transformed into that same radiant brilliance...
What kind of sight would that be?
Freya closed her eyes and imagined it.
A moment later, she opened them again.
In those jewel-like eyes now burned a flame fiercer than ever before.
Inside the tavern.
Syr's body trembled faintly.
She could feel it.
Freya's emotions were surging violently.
The intensity of that turmoil was enough to alarm even her.
And then...
In the very next moment, she lost control of her body.
Freya had taken it from her.
Syr's consciousness was forced deep down, able to do nothing but passively feel the outside world.
She "watched" as Freya controlled her body and slowly turned toward the boy by the window.
She "felt" the scorching, almost insane desire in Freya's eyes.
And she "knew"-
That boy had been marked.
Marked dead in Freya's sights.
Genichi had been talking with Demeter.
Then suddenly...
He felt a powerful gaze settle on him.
That gaze was so burning it felt almost tangible, as though it wanted to see through him completely.
Genichi's brow shifted slightly.
He followed that gaze and looked over.
What entered his sight was Syr's familiar face.
Silver-gray hair. Matching gray eyes. The faint, gentle smile on her lips.
But those eyes...
At this moment, they were fixed on him.
That was not Syr's usual warm gaze.
It was something far hotter, far more dangerous, far more...
Greedy.
Genichi's pupils narrowed slightly.
Syr?
No. Not Syr.
It was...
Freya.
The Goddess of Beauty was looking at him through Syr's eyes.
Genichi fell silent.
Of course he knew what kind of existence Freya was.
One of the strongest goddesses in Orario, a being who held the fate of countless adventurers in her hands.
Her gaze alone was enough to drive anyone mad.
Her favor alone was enough to change a person's entire life.
But under that gaze now...
What Genichi felt was not honor.
It was danger.
An overwhelmingly strong sense of danger.
He frowned and met those eyes that no longer belonged to Syr.
In them flickered a light cold enough to send shivers down the spine.
It was desire.
It was possessiveness.
It was...
The madness of wanting to make him hers.
Genichi's frown deepened.
He could not understand it.
What had he done to attract Freya's attention?
He was only a Level 5 adventurer. In the eyes of ordinary people, that already put him at the summit, but before a being like Freya, he was hardly worth mentioning.
Why would she take an interest in someone like him?
He did not know.
But he did know that it could not possibly be a good thing.
Genichi drew a slow breath and suppressed the emotions rising inside him.
He did not look away.
He simply held that gaze.
In those black eyes of his, there was no fear at all. Only a calmness so profound it was almost cruel.
A moment later...
Syr's body trembled faintly.
That intense gaze disappeared.
Her eyes returned to their usual clarity.
She blinked, looking around in slight confusion, then looked at Genichi.
In those amber eyes was a trace of apology.
Genichi gave her a slight nod, then withdrew his gaze.
Demeter noticed something was off and asked with concern,
"What is it?"
"Nothing."
Genichi shook his head.
"I was just targeted by a cat."
Demeter blinked.
"A cat?"
Genichi did not explain.
He merely picked up his glass and took a sip.
The cold liquid slid down his throat, calming his restless heart just a little.
Freya.
That name circled endlessly in his mind.
He did not know what that goddess wanted.
But he did know one thing.
From this moment on, he would have to be even more careful.
At the very top of Babel Tower.
Freya withdrew her gaze and leaned back onto the sofa, breathing heavily.
A sickly flush had spread across her beautiful face.
"Wonderful..." she murmured.
"That soul is wonderful..."
She had never seen such a soul before.
Filthy to the extreme, yet radiant to the extreme.
Two absolute opposites existing within one person at once.
It was contradiction, conflict, and-
Beauty.
The ultimate beauty, the kind no one could resist.
Freya closed her eyes and savored what she had just seen.
That one radiant point of light shone so brilliantly amidst all that corrupt darkness, so captivating, so irresistible.
She wanted more.
She wanted to see that light spread.
She wanted to see every trace of filth stripped away.
She wanted to see what that soul would look like when it bloomed in full.
If that could happen...
What kind of beauty would it be?
Freya opened her eyes. In those jewel-like pupils burned scorching fire.
"Genichi..."
She softly repeated his name.
"I will have you."
"I will make you..."
"Mine."
(End of Chapter)
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