Red Death God

"Gloria, give me a portion of those fragment mayflies too!" Suddenly, a crisp yet eerily beguiling voice reached everyone's ears.

They looked toward the source.

Flora, clad in a deep crimson gauze dress, floated through the air and drifted lazily in from outside the hall. As she floated, she muttered, "Mentor, I never thought I had misunderstood you. You absolutely aren't a stone in a cesspit—you're so good to me. Knowing I wanted fragment mayflies, you went so far as to use this method to let me in. So rough, yet so gentle. I love it so much~"

Sanders, whom his disciple had just bestowed with the title of stinking and hard, paid Flora no heed at all. Instead, he half-crouched and carefully examined the boy before him.

Taking advantage of the moment Sanders crouched down, Angel caught sight of Flora's true appearance. The instant he heard Flora's highly distinctive voice, he immediately recalled what had happened on the deck of the Bauhinia more than a month ago.

This girl flying in midair... was the Blood Witch Flora, whom all the extraordinary beings had feared and kept away from that day?!

Flora's exquisite appearance did not catch Angel's attention. Rather, it was the black shadow behind her that made his eyes widen in shock.

Angel remembered that when Flora and Sabo had flown toward the Cloud Whale on the deck of the Bauhinia, he had glanced over from afar and vaguely noticed what seemed to be a black shadow behind Flora.

This time, Flora was only around ten meters away from Angel, and he finally saw it clearly. A humanoid black shadow draped in a tattered black cloak clung silently to Flora's back.

The humanoid shadow seemed to notice Angel's gaze and slowly raised the face hidden beneath its ragged black hood.

In an instant, two ghostly green flames and a deathly white skull appeared before Angel.

The figure beneath that black cloak was actually a skeleton!!

Angel recoiled a large step at the sudden horrifying sight and fell onto the floor.

.

Because of Sanders, Angel had already been the center of everyone's attention. Every person present saw his reaction.

Why had Angel suddenly been frightened?

With that question in mind, everyone followed Angel's line of sight. At its end stood Flora, who was clamoring for fragment mayflies.

Though Flora had a vicious temperament and loved blood, her looks undoubtedly placed her among beauties. What had Angel seen? Why had Flora frightened him so badly?

Sanders glanced at Flora, then at Angel. A faint smile suddenly touched the corners of his cold lips.

"You can see the Red Death God." Sanders was not asking. He was utterly certain.

Everyone: Red Death God? What the hell was that?

Flora had been idly chatting nonsense with Gloria. Upon hearing Sanders' question, she abruptly turned her head and looked at Angel with astonishment in her eyes.

Sanders' gaze had remained fixed on Angel. Only then did Angel realize he was speaking to him. With a trace of hesitation and expectation, Angel said, "The Red Death God? Is it the... um, black-robed person behind that lady...?"

Angel stammered, unsure what words to use to describe that skeleton.

Sanders smiled. "That soul-gathering skeleton? Yes, it is the Red Death God. Heh, as expected, you can see the Red Death God. Very good."

Did I hear that right? Sanders said 'very good'?! Sanders actually complimented someone! And the Red Death God? Where was it? The Red Death God was behind Flora? Why couldn't I see it? The wizards secretly cast various true-sight spells, but found nothing. Flora even shot them a vicious glare, and the atmosphere became awkward for a time.

"Oh my, oh my, you can see Little Red?!" Flora suddenly flashed over to Angel.

Flora's abrupt appearance left Angel somewhat dazed. He asked blankly, "Who is Little Red?"

Flora pointed at the black shadow on her back. "Isn't it Little Red?"

"Uh..." Angel looked at the ghastly white skull beneath the hood and swallowed uncomfortably.

"Looks like you really can see Little Red..." Seeing Angel's fearful expression, Flora's eyes rolled. "Hehe, Little Red, say hello to him!"

As soon as she finished speaking, an elongated "Yiiih—hoo" entered Angel's ears.

Angel shuddered. He cautiously raised his head and saw that the voice had indeed come from the Red Death God. Within the Red Death God's dark eye sockets, the ghostly green flames had turned into moon-white soul flames, curved into crescent shapes with a rather comical look. Then, under Angel's terrified gaze, it tremblingly extended a bone-white arm from its tattered black robe... Holding a blood-red rose more vivid than blood, the Red Death God gently offered it to Angel.

"A rose?" Angel froze. "Is it for me?"

The soul flames in the Red Death God's eye sockets flickered as it nodded.

With a tentative look, Angel extended his hand.

Though Flora said nothing, the instant she saw Angel reach out, her expression darkened slightly.

During Flora and Angel's exchange, Sanders had not spoken a word. Yet at this moment, a grave look suddenly appeared in his eyes, visible to everyone.

.

Angel's movements could not escape the notice of those present. Yet none of them could see the Red Death God. Faced with Angel inexplicably reaching out and the sudden change in expression from Sanders and his disciple, they could only speculate—

"There seems to be a creature present that only Flora, Sanders, and Angel can see, called the Red Death God. Angel is reaching out to take something from the Red Death God."

"What could it be that would make both Flora and Sanders change expression?"

Heloline vaguely sensed that if Angel accepted that nonexistent thing, she might lose something important. She wanted to stop Angel, but the moment she made a move, she felt an overwhelming pressure descend upon her. She did not even have the strength to open her mouth and speak.

She could clearly hear the people beside her whispering, yet she alone could not move! Heloline looked at that man in terror. He had not even looked at her, yet he had rendered her incapable of doing anything.

He definitely knew what she wanted to do! Without a sound, without even drawing anyone's attention, he had made her lose control.

What a terrifying man!

At last, Angel's hand touched the Red Death God's hand.

An icy sensation traveled from his fingertips.

So this was what bone felt like? The sensation was very real, yet for some reason a strange feeling rose within Angel's heart. However, that odd sensation vanished in a flash.

Still hesitant, he took the incomparably vivid rose from the Red Death God's hand.

The rose was redder than blood.

The moment Angel took hold of the rose, an uproar suddenly broke out around him.

Angel did not know that, in everyone else's eyes, he had slowly reached his hand into empty space. After a blurry distortion, an exquisite rose suddenly appeared in his previously empty hand.

For extraordinary beings, taking objects from thin air was not difficult.

But who was Angel? He was an ordinary mortal who had not even come into contact with a Guidance Method. How could a rose suddenly appear in a mortal's hand?

So there really was a "Red Death God" present that none of them could see even with witchcraft?!

Angel looked at the rose in his hand. Aside from its more vivid color and stronger fragrance, it was no different from an ordinary rose.

While Angel was examining the rose, Flora covered her mouth in shock. With a blank look, she glanced at Angel, then at Sanders. She swore that she had secretly told Little Red to give Angel a rose purely to tease him, because Little Red did not exist in the realm of reality at all. Without special witchcraft, it could not intersect with reality in any way.

Yet Flora had never expected Angel to truly take the rose!! He had even "made it real," causing the rose to appear in the present world!

This was far too unbelievable!

Flora looked at Angel's utterly bewildered face, and suddenly thought of something. She sharply turned her head and said to Sanders with a wronged expression, "Mentor, it was for him, wasn't it? Wasn't it? It had to be for him! I knew it—how could you suddenly be so good to me? So that was it!"