As Delmas’s eyes stayed locked on the figure, her face briefly contorted and morphed, only to snap back to its original state.
“Red Eclipse… how?…”
Delmas forgot how to breathe.
In front of him stood one of the most feared beings in the dome, and he was struggling to comprehend how this could be possible. Why was she here!?
Every Bloom inside the dome, because of their overwhelming power and the devastation their abilities could unleash, was documented and given a name.
Not their real name, but a title chosen by the people. A name that captured the fear they inspired.
And among them, one of the most dreaded, and yet, the most unknown…
The Red Eclipse.
Most individuals who could reached the Bloom stage had already drawn attention from an early age. From the moment their evolution began, their talent had been noted.
Because of this, the people watched them. Tracked their growth. Expected their rise.
But the Red Eclipse didn’t follow that pattern.
She had emerged from nowhere and brought carnage in her wake.
The dome was riddled with dangers, so many that it was a miracle humanity was still surviving. Beyond the darkness creatures, the mutated animals, and the horrors lurking unseen in the wild, there were hidden groups operating in the shadows.
Among them were the Darkness Worshippers. They were fanatics who believed the darkness had enlightened their world. That it would ascend them to a higher existence.
Their goal was simple: tear down the dome and invite as many darkness creatures in as possible through mass killings.
One day, somehow, they succeeded in one of their missions. An entire settlement wiped out. Thousands slaughtered.
The aftermath birthed an unending swarm of darkness creatures driven by nothing but to chaos and multiply.
And the one closest to that settlement… was her.
That day, the sun turned crimson. The ground blackened with blood and lifeless remains.
And she, she had torn through the unending swarm like a reaper through tall, dry wheat. There was no finesse. No mercy. Just annihilation.
When the people arrived at the scene and saw the lone figure standing calm amidst the ruin, beneath a crimson sky, the name formed as naturally as breathing.
The Red Eclipse.
Since that day, especially in the West, her face and her title were etched into the minds of everyone.
The Maurgrim prided themselves on being the best informants in the dome. No one could out gather them. But after that day, the Red Eclipse vanished.
Silent and untraceable.
No matter how deep they dug, no matter what networks they tapped into, they couldn’t find her.
And Delmas knew all of this as though it had been carved into his very brain. Which was why he couldn’t understand.
He couldn’t get it.
Why the hell… was the Red Eclipse in a maid uniform?
However, despite how badly Delmas wanted answers, he never got a single response.
Nyx walked right past him like he didn’t even exist and came to a stop just in front of Malakai.
Then, without hesitation, she dropped to one knee and bowed her head.
“What are your orders, Ninth Vein?”
Malakai stared at Nyx, if that was even her real name, with a placid gaze. He didn’t allow a hint of shock to slip onto his face, but inside, he was brimming with questions.
‘Even her voice changed,’ Malakai noted.
Nyx didn’t look anything like the maid who had served him for four years. Her stature was the same, short, petite, but her face… her face was something else entirely.
The Nyx he knew could be considered barely attractive at best. As one advanced in their evolutionary stages, their bodies naturally began to close the gap toward perfection, clearer skin, enhanced symmetry, a kind of unsettling beauty.
The maids of the Sanguine were evolvers too, but their talent typically capped at the second stage, the Node Formation stage.
But the Nyx kneeling before him now could only be described with one word.
Beautiful.
Her face was smooth, devoid of blemish, with small, delicate features that still retained the youthful roundness of someone half her age. A narrow nose, soft cheeks. She didn’t look like someone in her thirties.
‘She manipulated the blood in her face to change her facial structure.’ Malakai noted.
It was a technique far beyond normal ability. But for a Bloom, it was more than possible.
Still, Malakai’s thoughts didn’t linger on her face.
Only one thought had refused to leave his mind ever since she’d revealed her power, ever since she blocked the Vita Lance meant to kill him.
Why was this weapon of mass destruction posing as his maid?
But Malakai shook his head in the next instant, clearing his thoughts.
Right now, there were more important matters at hand.
Malakai fixed his gaze on Nyx. He had no idea why a Bloom was bowing before him, asking for his orders, but he wasn’t about to waste the opportunity.
“Restrain him. Make sure he can’t move or escape. We’re taking him back to the clan.”
“By your order.”
Nyx rose from her kneeling position and turned to face Delmas.
As the latter met her gaze once more, his eyes trembled. An intense chill surged down his spine.
He felt fear, the kind of fear that didn’t just shake the body, but buried itself deep in the soul.
Nyx took a step toward him.
“Hnnnghhh!!!”
Delmas strained his body, forcing everything he had to move. He mustered every fiber of strength within him, but only his lips quivered. His eyes trembled as if begging her to have mercy. Nothing else moved.
Nyx reached him. Her expression, ever since her face had reverted to normal, hadn’t shifted, not once. It remained fixed. Emotionless. Like a machine.
She placed her small palm against Delmas’s face,
And in the next instant, his eyes widened.
An overwhelming pressure surged from within. His blood roared, moving faster than it ever had before.
But it wasn’t strength that followed.
No.
It was pain.
His body trembled—
Then, BAM!
An explosive force burst from within. Blood erupted from his limbs like geysers. His arms and legs shot off in different directions, lifeless.
“ARGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!!”
Tears, mixed with blood, streamed down his cheeks as a pain unlike anything he’d ever experienced ravaged his entire being.