Bell looked at the trembling Freya in front of him. His abyssal eyes bore into her terrified violet pupils. Reaching beneath her fake tears and feigned terror to her true emotions.
Ecstasy. Overwhelming Lust. Obsessive Madness.
His expression remained neutral. His indifferent hand coming up slowly to rest on her sternum.
Freya's tears and fear evaporated instantly at his touch. Her expression became coquettish. Her eyes misting over with invitation. Her [Charm] bombarding his mind in full force.
She tried to make him fall for her "beauty" without holding anything back.
Oh... She tried alright.
She had a bewitchingly beautiful face with long, flowing silver hair that shimmered like moonlight cascading down her back, framing her face perfectly. This...made her appear ethereal, and almost otherworldly along with her tall, mature, and voluptuous figure.
...She embodied an "adult" elegance and sensuality that commanded attention from her surroundings.
If going by physical beauty alone... Freya was indeed the most beautiful women he had ever seen.
So... What did he feel?
Love?
Lust?
Desire?
Heh...
He did not feel anything. As an Asura, he had long since transcended these material illusions.
What is an Asura?
Just like a Buddha transcends reality and attains Pāramitā through 8 virtues.
An Asura also transcends reality and attains transcendence through the opposite.
A Buddha and Asura are merely two opposite faces of the same coin.
Without an Asura... A Buddha can't exist.
And without a Buddha... An Asura has no meaning.
.
What right and wrong?
Without right... No wrong can exist.
What ahead and behind?
Without ahead... Behind has no meaning.
What pleasure and pain?
Without pleasure... No pain can exist.
So... His emotions remained composed.
Whether he was right or wrong. Whether he was ahead or behind. Whether he went through pleasure or pain.
.
His indifferent eyes peered beyond the physical perfection of Freya's body to gaze upon her divine soul.
...It was repulsive.
Even an Asura has standards. Even demons have a level.
But what he saw was nauseating even to him.
Her soul was bound by endless sins.
Lust. Wrath. Envy. Vainglory. Obsession. Madness.
It was even more trash than the lowliest of adventurers in Orario.
Was her soul even worthy of the word 'Divine'?
.
Now he understood... Why she was so hell bent on having shining souls serve under her.
The reason was simple... She felt a twisted sense of accomplishment and superiority by having people with shining souls serve her, when her own soul was so "lowly".
Bell watched with apathy as Freya eagerly bought her lips close to his mouth. His hand resting on her sternum tightened painfully.
[Soul Reap] was unleashed in full force without a second thought.
As he was right now... He definitely couldn't "reap" the soul of a Divinity.
But. He could still separate a part of it away from her.
... His hand resting on her sternum dissolved into abyssal darkness, slowly sinking deeper...reaching into her very soul.
What was the reason Ryuu almost died?
That piggy Ottar.
But the true reason? Why that piggy was even there in the first place?
Because of Freya's lust for him.
.
What was the reason his Goddess was ready to go back to Tenkai to save him?
That Goliath.
But the true reason? Why that monster was even there in the first place?
Because of that piggy Ottar. And once again... Why was that piggy there in the first place?
Because of Freya's lust for him.
.
What was the reason he almost lost his freedom today?
Once again...
Because of Freya's lust for him.
.
He concluded.
The abyssal darkness inside her moved to grab a part of her soul which was saturated with a disgusting amount of 'lust' and...tore it out of her without mercy.
"AHHHHHHH~" A pained scream tore out from her mouth. Turning into a drawn out moan by the end.
Even Asura Bell was left speechless.
'Damn! How thirsty do you have to be to moan when your soul is being torn apart?'
Forget it... He couldn't be bothered.
Abyssal darkness slowly seeped out of Freya. Coalescing back into his hand. A mini Freya with an unhinged expression caged inside.
He tossed the fragment of her divine soul into his shadow, which was isolating the room since earlier.
...Bell had apparently separated a part of Freya's soul filled with 'lust' from her, meaning that she won't feel any lust for someone in upcoming years.
What was the biggest punishment for Freya?
To not feel lust and any sexual interest towards anyone.
What was the biggest punishment for Ottar?
To not be graced by his Goddess due to her not being sexually interested.
What was the biggest punishment for the Freya Familia simps?
To not be graced by their Goddess.
Hence... Bell's goal for coming here was now complete.
He ignored Freya afterwards. His shadow morphing back to normal proportions. The red eyes inside closing one by one.
.
Bell walked out of the Freya Familia. Leaving behind a simp army which would mourn for their loss from tomorrow onwards. Along with a broken Goddess.
The abyssal black in his eyes was gone by now. Their red hue once again visible.
He took out the rhomphaia stuck in his chest and threw it aside while walking back towards his home.
[Ittou Rasestu] had gone offline some time ago.
The wheel and [Super Regeneration] were working on healing his injured body.
Bell felt his consciousness blur as he continued on his way towards home.
His steps slipped accidently while crossing an alley.
His face planted against the alleyway. His body splaying against the floor.
Strength left him.
[Asura]...was finally deactivated.
...His hand reached towards the direction of his home.
Yet... The distance between them felt infinite.
His consciousness went dark.
Like an abyss of no return.
...
..
.
"Eh... Who is this!? Goddess! Look! Someone is unconscious here." A womanly voice spoke with genuine worry.
"My child, let me have a look...Huh? He seems to be seriously injured." Another more mature and dignified voice spoke.
"Check his Falna first. We'll take him to his Familia God first of all." The mature and dignified voice continued.
"Yes Goddess... Ehhe? I don't think I've seen this Falna mark before. Have you, Goddess?" The goofy and worried voice spoke once again.
"Hmm... Twin scales with flames burning inside them? I don't think I've ever seen this kind of Falna, though it does give me a familiar feeling." The mature and dignified voice responded with a hint of surprise.
...
..
.
"So...the healer said that his injuries are very severe and him being alive is already a miracle. He'll further need extensive care to wake up." The mature and dignified voice spoke. Genuine worry mixed with slight struggle could be felt from her tone.
"Yes...b-but Goddess... How can we take care of him when we have to go outside of Orario for a mission tomorrow morning?" The other goofy voice asked with confusion.
"We'll just take him with us and take care of him until he gets better. Since we helped him...He's our responsibility now,"
"And a Goddess...does not avoid responsibility." The mature voice resounded with finality. But a hint of integral struggle could be discerned beneath that finality.
"As you wish, Goddess... Artemis." The other voice replied.
...
..
.
"Wish I could've met Hestia before leaving..."
"Forget it." The mature voice...or rather, Goddess Artemis spoke to herself.
"I'll meet Hestia the next time I come back to Orario."
Goddess Artemis' words drifted through the air.
And the gears of fate began to turn.
In a direction no one expected.
*Clunk*
End Of Volume 1 - Exist
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Volume 2 - Rise
Coming soon...
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Hello my dear readers. Hope you all are doing good.
...With this, the first volume of Danmachi: The Wheel comes to an end.
I'm about to open a P@tr3on account soon for those interested by the way.
Anyway... I'll be going on a week long break from now on to stack and write new chapters for the upcoming volume.
Hope you all enjoyed the story till now.
Meet you all at the next volume of Danmachi: The Wheel.
Stay safe. Stay healthy. Stay happy.
Take care.
Peace out...