Divine Path System

While Alison went off to rack her brains with the rest of the high-standing members of the Empire, Varian returned to Hortus.

It was finally time for a talk.

In a room built of snow-white marble stood a woman. The lavender curtains fluttered with the wind, swaying gently, brushing her skin and enveloping her in a transient hug.

Sarah seated herself in a chair in the corner of the room. Even though she was meditating, a part of her focus was on the silent woman.

Even though her powers were heavily sealed, Sarah didn't feel secure enough to let her guard down.

On the other hand, Isadora was still shocked by the turn of events. Standing still like a statue, she stared blankly into the garden over the balcony. The pond in the garden was still like her mind.

Tick!

A ripple spread across the pond, destroying the peace.

Tick!

Tick!

Tick!

The ripples clashed against each other as it drizzled.

Like the rain destroying the peace of the calm lake, a man stepped through the garden, destroying the peace of her calm mind.

An invisible wall bounced the raindrops, as if he was a god of the world that even rain would not blaspheme.

"There are no side effects with the seal, I really gotta thank Baldur." Varian snapped his fingers.

The furniture of the room vanished, and the floor changed into a bed of white and blue flowers along with smooth, lush grass. A calm and refreshing fragrance filled the air, calming even Isadora's tense heart.

Sarah quietly sat beside Varian on the grass and gave Isadora a pensive, unfriendly gaze.

Isadora would've ignored her any other time. But she learned a bitter lesson from the last battle.

Sarah was instrumental in her defeat. Her light powers acted as the nemesis and stalled her dark flames in that decisive moment.

If not for her, Isadora was confident in defeating Varian. Even though he's a great fighter, Isadora had way more experience and was better at judging a battle's outcome.

Varian had no way of defeating her. Neither did Sarah. But when they worked together, things got complicated.

Now that she thought about it, Sarah took a really, really big risk in blocking her. There's a good chance she could've died. Sarah must've known it too. But she did it anyway.

Isadora looked at the silent blonde girl and made a point not to underestimate her in the future.

"Why are you hostile to me?" Varian looked up at her still standing and broke the ice.

Isadora looked down at him and spoke in a harsh tone. "The slivers should be for those who des—"

"You don't believe those words yourself," Varian shook his head. "And the slivers chose me, not the other way around. I have no fucking idea and it feels too…convenient. But as I grow stronger, I can feel there must be some reason. It's a premonition, though I don't like it."

"Resources will always be plundered by the strong. It doesn't matter if you're chosen. I can make it mine."

"Isadora, please." Varian motioned her to be seated.

She refused, of course. Her power was sealed to rank 3. Even though she was free to go wherever she wanted in the palace, she felt imprisoned.

If anything, she wanted to protest that even if he sealed her powers, he couldn't control her.

"Fine. The argument about resources plundered by Strong is the law of the jungle. But I am confident you aren't an animal."

Isadora's eyes widened at his sharp words and she balled her fists.

"You need the slivers to stabilize your origins. They're already very stable thanks to my connection with Sia." Varian pointed out the heart of the matter.

"But—"

"And you don't have to worry about me abandoning her, which also extends to you, and putting you in a position where your origins grow unstable and you end up dying—which is your real concern." Varian looked into her eyes and laid her fears out in the open.

Isadora's body trembled and she hugged herself instinctively. Looking at his deep black eyes that seemed to stare right into her soul, she felt bare. As if all her thoughts, fears, and shame were open to him.

She felt...vulnerable. For the first time in many, many years.

It was an unbearable feeling. But paradoxically, his gaze didn't enrage her but rather encouraged her to open up. To speak her heart out.

Reluctant, Isadora sat down on the grass and looked at with him a grudging expression. "I don't trust you. I can only trust myself. I can only be safe if I have the slivers. And if I am safe, so will be Sia and Enigma.

And I can't leave you alive…because I know you're too much of a variable. What if you conspire against me for slivers and leak the news? It'd be disastrous.

Your feats are too ridiculous for your own good. Even if I locked you in a dark prison where no one can ever contact you, I'll still have anxiety over your actions."

Sarah opened her mouth in surprise and took another look at the woman in front of her.

The crimson red eyes, those beautiful eyes that were always cold and indifferent, filled with overwhelming pride and disdain for the world…those eyes were now filled with humility and nervousness.

"I appreciate your honesty." Varian gave her a genuine smile. "I will not lie and say that I can grasp the gravity of your fears. You've lived way longer than I did. Ten times? Fifty? A hundred?

You should've witnessed way more tragedies than I did. So, I do not blame you for your distrust. And I'm guessing you were betrayed."

Isadora's fingers dug into her knees at his final words and a thick killing intent leaked out of her before she suppressed it.

She looked at him in confusion and vigilance. It was her scar she didn't want to touch. A memory that still tormented her.

How did he know?

"It's not hard to guess. Else why would you be in such a long coma without any of your power?" Varian shrugged.

"Like I said, I can see where you're coming from. But I'l also tell you what I stand for. I'm not going to give up on Sia, ever. Neither on Enigma. Your fears won't come true. And we'll figure out a way to deal with your problem permanently." Varian said in good faith.

He meant every word he said.

Isadora sensed it too. But she scoffed. She had seen too many people who were genuinely interested in maintaining a relationship with their loved one. But what about after a hundred years? A thousand years?

They couldn't even imagine the scale of such a time period.

"Words are cheap. Friendships can break, love can die out, even family bonds crack under the currents of time."

"Indeed. What you say is the norm." Varian agreed, surprising her. "It's not easy for a relationship to sustain for decades, much less centuries. It doesn't matter what kind of relationship it is.

Friends, family, lovers, relatives—time has the power to wreck anything—if we let it. Unfortunately, most let it wreck the relationships and it does. That is and has always been the norm."

Isadora raised a brow in confusion.

…What was he trying to say if he's agreeing with her?

"But you see," Varian gave her his signature cheeky, smug, and a bit narcissistic smile. "I'm not the norm. I'm the abnormal in the masses. The anomaly of the system."