Chapter 10: The Reunion

Whenever she lay sleepless at night, unpleasant images from the past would flash relentlessly through her mind.

"It's their fault you can't sleep," the voice whispered again, cold and tempting. "Destroy them. Take back the energy that belongs to you. Only then will you find peace."

Over the past few months, Serapha had hunted down almost every person from her memories. In this lifetime, no one was spared—relatives, friends, past companions—anyone who had once hurt her. Each time she struck, there was a fleeting sense of pleasure, power, and calm. But the darkness always returned, deeper and more ravenous, forcing her to seek the next target.

Now, she couldn't even remember who else she could kill.

"That Mo... secretly researching your past. In his former life, wasn't he that timid little boy beside the Pharaoh?"

"If he hadn't abandoned you in your time of need, would you have fallen into this endless cycle of suffering?" The voice, cold as venom, coaxed her deeper.

—But... he was the only one who was kind to me back then.

"That tiny bit of kindness? What is that worth? In the end, didn't he still abandon you when it mattered most?"

Serapha recalled the despair and agony of betrayal, and a surge of black fire flashed through her eyes. Yes. That little kindness was nothing compared to the harm he caused!

When she came back to herself, she was already standing in Mo's apartment.

He was fast asleep in the bedroom, completely unaware of the danger creeping closer.

In the moonlit glass window, her reflection stared back at her—a once delicate face now shrouded in black mist, with a crimson mark between her brows flickering like a living flame.

"Why are you still hesitating?" The demon of hatred materialized behind her as a swirl of black fog. "All those you've killed deserved it."

Serapha stared at her trembling hands. "But... he bears no ill will."

"The sins of the soul are not cleansed by reincarnation," the black mist hissed, wrapping cold tendrils around her throat. "You are the executioner of divine justice."

Suddenly, the glass before her lit up.

Serapha jerked her head up and saw—not her own reflection, but the stern face of a god staring back at her.

"Serapha."

The voice of the divine thundered in her mind, shaking her to the core.

"You have gone too far."

Without warning, unbearable pain exploded through her body.

With a scream, Serapha collapsed to her knees, feeling as though every organ inside her was ablaze with a fire that could not be extinguished.

She tore open her collar in panic, only to see faint crimson light flowing beneath her skin, as if her entire being was burning from within.

"Flames of the Heart."

The god pronounced her sentence.

"For your merciless slaughter of the innocent, this shall be your punishment. Each day at noon, it will ignite, burning for three hours. Unless you truly repent, this pain will follow you for all eternity."

Through the agony, Serapha roared toward the heavens, her voice hoarse with defiance:

"They hurt me first—why shouldn't I hurt them back?!"

But there was no answer.

The divine presence had already departed, leaving her alone in the dark, writhing in agony.

The demon of hatred had long since retreated deep into her consciousness, watching silently as the divine punishment ravaged her.

Serapha writhed on the cold ground, every inch of her flesh seemingly scorched by hellfire. The pain, searing from her bones outward, dragged her to the edge of unconsciousness.

Sweat soaked her clothes, and her disheveled hair clung to her face. Her fingernails dug deep into the floorboards, drawing blood between her fingers.

She felt as if her soul itself was being devoured by flames. Every breath was like inhaling molten coals, burning her throat and lungs.

Her vision blurred, and in the haze, the faces of those she had slain floated before her—each gaze filled with hatred and curses.

She didn't know how much time had passed before the inner fire torture slowly subsided.

But by then, Serapha was too weak to move.

She lay motionless on the floor, staring blankly at the ceiling, her heart lost in confusion and despair.

She didn't know where to go from here.

"...Are you... okay?"

Mo was standing there, horror written all over his face, staring at her in shock.