Page 49 of Destined to the Reaper

He smiled while showing me the living area in this brief tour of the mansion. “Some of them live there now. Initially, the majority of the human-angel hybrid children were raised in the valley below. As most of them couldn’t fly, coming up to a mansion like mine was too impractical. I have many angels, fallen and otherwise, living nearby. This house is carved directly inside one of the highest peaks of the mountain range surrounding the valley.”

“So what happened?” I asked with curiosity as he continued the tour. “Did they die off?”

“Over the centuries, they naturally passed. But along the way, more order-aligned hybrids moved here. Those with flight abilities settled in aeries like I did.”

“So this entire valley has no evil,” I mused aloud, feeling a little relieved that I wouldn’t have to constantly look over my shoulder in this space.

To my surprise, Pharos pursed his lips pensively as we walked through the impressive kitchen with a small adjoining dinette. Past the arched walls delimiting the room, I could see a formal dining room on the other side.

“Evil is a debatable concept,” he said carefully. “What many perceive as evil is often just chaos. True evil would be someone like Cornelius. He has no compassion or empathy. He revels in the misery of others, not out of an instinctive response beyond his control, but because he’s a psychopath. He understands the difference between right and wrong but doesn’t care. His pleasure and satisfaction are all that matters.”

I nodded grimly and opened my mouth to comment, but the sudden growling of my stomach had me gasping instead.

Pharos chuckled. “Perfect timing. Myress just finished laying a meal for us on the terrace. The view is too breathtaking here as the sun sets not to enjoy it. This way, my bride.”

He didn’t have to say it twice. A part of me wondered how his servant was always so on top of everything. I doubted she was spying on us. Did he telepathically communicate our needs to her?

As we emerged onto the terrace, the view indeed took my breath away. I’d had a glimpse through the tall windows, but the sheer white curtains in front of them had kept me from fully appreciating the uniqueness of the landscape. Even though I’d been on my bedroom balcony earlier when Haroth dropped by, I had been too distressed by the situation to truly pay attention to my surroundings.

Now, I could fully marvel at it. We were at least two hundred meters above the valley below. A series of dwellings were scattered at a reasonable distance from each other, forming a charming village that seemed to belong to a different era. Countless statues and fountains adorned the common areas with extensive gardens. The valley extended over a large distance before gradually turning into a thick forest. The mountain range surrounded half of it like a bay. They had carved a few other dwellings at different heights of the mountain face, but each of them angled in a way to ensure privacy.

The sky shimmered with the similar orange, purples, and magentas as the sunset on the mortal plane, but they danced in the sky like the Northern Lights.

However, it was the exotic female putting the finishing touches to a table laden with mouthwatering food that retained my attention. I immediately understood why she couldn’t live among humans. Her face was overly long, with a chin too narrow, a skull too big, a mouth too wide and nearly non-existent lips, and her general body too skinny. And yet, she didn’t seem starved or miserable, just otherworldly looking. Huge, golden eyes with narrow, vertical pupils peered at me with curiosity.

She flicked her long, straight black hair, which fell to her knees, with an extremely graceful movement. I immediately thought of a ballet dancer. Her simple black, sleeveless dress entirely covered her feet and even had a short train. It contrasted sharply with the pale color of her skin, which had a subtle hint of light gray or purple.

“Kali, this is Myress. She helped me heal you earlier today,” Pharos said in a gentle voice while gesturing at the Cambion.”

“Hello, Myress,” I said in a friendly tone. “It is a pleasure to meet you. And thank you for your help. Whatever the two of you did, it was perfect. I feel wonderful.”

“I am glad, Mistress,” she said in a submissive voice. “Please enjoy your meal.”

She gestured at the table then gave us a polite nod before quietly walking back inside the house. I couldn’t tell if it was just an illusion caused by her long dress, but she appeared to glide rather than naturally walk.

I cast a slightly confused look at Pharos. Although I perceived no hostility from her, her behavior felt odd and distant.

Pharos smiled. “She’s not very social and struggles interacting with people, especially ones she doesn’t know yet. Do not be distraught by it. Myress is on the lower edge of chaotic, but she is extremely loyal. I trust her with my life. However, Grizelle is true chaos.”

“WHAT?!” I exclaimed, staring at him in disbelief. “That female was pure evil, at the same level as Cornelius!”

Pharos snorted and shook his head. “She’s nothing like him. But come, let’s eat.”

Chapter 13

Pharos

Icouldn’t help another smile when my woman didn’t hesitate to start piling a generous serving of the various dishes onto her plate. As guilty as I felt about exhausting her so thoroughly on an empty stomach earlier, I loved seeing my Kali have such a healthy appetite and especially enjoying Myress’s cuisine.

My bride probably hadn’t noticed, but I knew the Cambion well enough to have sensed her worry that Kali would ask her to leave. The poor Myress was so used to people rejecting her merely for what she was or her unusual appearance that she had come to expect it from anyone in some sort of position of power over her. Thankfully, I perceived no such sentiment from my female, only genuine curiosity.

“So please tell me in what world Grizelle is not evil,” Kali demanded between two bites.

I chuckled while filling our respective glasses with wine. “Like all other Keres, Grizelle is a slave to her genetic nature which demands for her to constantly hunt and feed. It’s nothingpersonal against you or anyone else. In many ways, she’s like a wild beast.”

“But she’s sentient and able to hold a rational conversation. She was clearly mad at me for taking you from her,” I argued.

“She was furious with you. You took away her greatest prize. Grizelle—like all Keres—is cursed by an insatiable hunger. In other words, no matter how much she eats, she will constantly feel hollow. I was an endless source of food for her. Losing me sets her to starving again. Instead of being able to rest in her temple while draining me, she will have to hunt every minute of every day. Today was a devastating blow for her after centuries of comfort,” I said softly.

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