Monarch of Darkness, Arsene

"Ok! You\'re both fucking weird! This is the creepiest shit I\'ve seen in a while!" The soft voice of Ariel chimed in as she appeared like a fairy from the skies. Arms folded over her rather ample chest; she stared with a perplexed expression I couldn\'t quite grasp.

"I thought it was rather romantic," I replied, glancing at Lilith, who nodded.

"It was quite romantic. I loved it."

"It\'s weird as hell!"

"Tsk." rolling my eyes, I smirked, "Aren\'t you single?"

Ariel\'s ears grew flushed, and she coughed into her palm. " Ok. I\'ll admit. I might not have experience… Mephisto\'s fault. But even a blind man can recognize insanity. And this shit right here is utter madness."

"She\'s just jealous," Lilith said, folding her arms around my neck. "It was one of the most romantic and infuriating things Arsene has ever said to me."

Warmth roiled through my veins, and I couldn\'t resist placing my arms over her waist.

"AHHHH~ no fair! I\'m going to die at this rate! Why is it a cannibal can find love, but I can\'t!" The lovely Ariel roared, pulling at her hair as she scowled. " I hate you two!"

\'How\'d you even get in? I thought the Father stopped you beforehand."

Ariel shrugged. " I just felt his presence and will vanish. So I stepped in. Although, I\'m sure quite some time has passed for you two. Time is suspended here."

Is it? I didn\'t really notice. But I have been here for quite a few Dao Cycles.

That power Abyss-chan granted me is dangerous. She gave me two gifts. The power of fusion and the Power of the Abyss.

The fusion gift, oddly enough, took me a while to figure out how to use it correctly. At first, I thought of fusing various dao but gave up on that thought. Darkness was really all I needed, at least for now. Hmm, I guess I could start fusing mortal dao to Darkness. But my weakness. What\'s always been my weakness was equipment.

I had no armor. Shit, even Noctem was only useful now due to the Shard of Laeviatin. That one shard ensured I had one of the most powerful weapons, as it had acclimated to Arcadia laws.

The Power of the Abyss I didn\'t quite understand. It was weird, but I was sure it related to the core of the Abyss. I figured once Lilith awoke. I would figure out what it was. Nonetheless, Abyss-Chan didn\'t lie. At the same time, I did feel a shift in my affinity toward the Abyss. I was still the link between the Abyss and the Myriad.

But I wonder how much my existence will affect those of the Abyss.

"Arsene," Lilith called, poking at my nose. "I\'m hungry."

Reaching into the Darkness, I pulled out a bowl of rice balls: " My offerings, Oh grate Lilith of the Abyss."

Cheeks growing plump, my lovely wife glared but accepted the offering rather bashfully: "I\'m not a child, you know."

"Never said you were."

"It\'s just…" she paused. " The kids like it…"

"Un-ah~"

"I\'m serious."

"Sure~"

"Sene!"

Flicking her nose as she pouted, I said, "It\'s fine. I don\'t know how you got the idea that rice balls are for kids." Or how this became a matter of discussion… "But just eat your food before we leave."

"You got what you wanted?" Both Ariel and Lilith shouted. Their expression popping like stars.

This realm isn\'t that big. It\'s about ten kilometers in diameter. It only took a few hours to find a strange small crystal.

Opening my palm to Lilith and Ariel, a small translucent gem glistened with transcendent light. The gem was smaller than a marble, but when it touched my palm, a single drop of tears slithered down my left eye: This was the tear Ariel was talking about: The Tear of the One.

"It\'s beautiful," Lilith muttered, poking at it.

And a realization sprang into my mind: I don\'t believe I\'ve ever given Lilith jewelry, a dress, or anything else aside from food.

Hmmm, could I be a bad husband? Naw, that can\'t be it. I\'m awesome.

Perhaps after I use this tear, I should create a neckless out of it. It is quite magical. Although, it would be weird if she started crying in the middle of a restaurant due to the neckless effects.

Tossing it to Lilith, who caught it like it was the most fragile object; her pouty expression fixed itself onto me.

"How could you throw such an important treasure!"

"Quite easily," I said, amused by the cute dimples on her pouty cheeks. "But now we can head to Eden. And I can finally see Mother."

Feeling Ariel\'s stare, I turned to her as she spoke: "You feel different. Has anything happened?"

"He\'s gotten more handsome." Said Lilith with a dreamy expression. "My Sene is extra sexy today.

"No, that\'s not it, maybe to crazy people like you. He just feels different. Almost like… hmmm. I can\'t really describe it. But you are different."

"Keep staring like that, and I\'ll think you want to eat me up."

Ariel tilted her head. " why\'d I want to eat you."

"..." Inching to Ariel\'s ear, I watched as Lilith whispered something in her ear that turned her bright red like an apple.

"You!!!!! PERVERT," She squealed, pointing with trembling fingers

I knew she was innocent, but this was a little much. I wonder how Mephisto treats his sister for her to be embarrassed by such a weak lewd joke.

Then again, when I first met Ariel, she was super kid-like who sometimes acted like a baby.

Shaking my head at the many masks she held, I offered my hand to Lilith: "Let\'s get out of here. There are a few things I want to test out in the Abyss."

"Your heading to the abyss?"

"Is that a problem?" I curiously asked.

And her eyes sparkled with flames: "Nope! I\'ve got so much to show you of my kingdom. From the Abyssal Heavens to the Earth beneath our feet, I want to show you everything we did within the Citadel of the Abyss."

I looked at her and the Tear of God in her hands: "Is that so? Then let\'s head there. There is also something I want to show you."