Fate To Fake: Loved by the Fallen; Fated to Kill the Divine-Chapter 59: I swear I’ll kill you a thousand times over!

"We should kill her, Leo."

"...Kill her? Well... she’s just a kid."

"Leo, it doesn’t matter whether she’s a child or not. She tried to kill you before. Did you forget that? Maybe I should just cut her head off right now. Step aside, Leo!"

At that exact moment, Ophis’s eyes fluttered faintly. The world around her was blurry, her senses dulled by exhaustion. Her head throbbed, her vision unstable. But those voices—those dangerous voices—pierced through the haze and reached her ears.

Her groggy eyelids slowly parted, revealing the sight of Leo and Pride standing a few feet away, locked in a tense conversation. Pride gripped her sword like she meant business. Leo’s face was unreadable.

Ophis’s heart skipped.

’Shit. I need to escape!’ her mind screamed as adrenaline surged through her veins. She tried to move—twitched her arms—but froze when she felt something cold and metallic wrapped around her entire body. Thick, enchanted chains coiled tightly across her chest, legs, even her neck. Not even a twitch was possible.

Clang... Clang...

The sound of metal scraping against itself echoed.

Leo and Pride both turned sharply at the noise.

"Looks like you finally woke up,"

Leo muttered as he crouched down to face her, his tone cold and low.

Ophis’s teeth clenched as she glared at him with fury in her eyes.

"Let me go... or I swear I’ll kill you a thousand times over!"

Leo blinked at her sudden outburst, then exhaled slowly before lowering himself further, now face-to-face with her. His expression remained utterly flat.

"You really think you’re in a position to threaten me right now, Brat?"

He raised his hand and patted her cheek slowly, softly, like mocking a wild beast in a cage.

Ophis’s eyes widened, and her entire body tensed. Her jaw twitched as she snarled, "Don’t you dare call me brat!" She whipped her head sideways, trying to bite the fingers still caressing her cheek, her fangs flashing—

But before her teeth could reach him, a wooden sword hovered inches from her mouth.

"Try anything funny, and I’ll make sure you don’t mouth off to speak,"

Pride warned as her sword was beside Ophis’s lips.

Ophis pulled back slightly, gritting her teeth in frustration, then shot Leo a deadly glare.

Leo tilted his head and studied her like she was some stubborn little puzzle.

"...Do you have any of those green stones that heal wounds?"

Ophis blinked, then scoffed loudly. "Do you think I’m that stupid? You think I’d give you one? Dream on, little boy."

Leo’s expression twitched. ’Little boy...?’

His eye twitched harder.

Was she serious?

’She’s the little one here!! What the hell!’

Leo stood up slowly, brushing off invisible dust from his hands. "Looks like we have no choice but to use force."

He turned and walked to his backpack. With deliberate slowness, he unzipped it, rummaging through a pile of odd tools and items. The sound of rustling fabric and clinking metal.

Ophis watched with narrowed eyes, her body tense despite the chains. ’No matter what he does... I won’t break. No matter how painful it is... I’m not giving in!’

Then Leo turned around with a sudden,

"Haha... here!"

Ophis instinctively shut her eyes and flinched back, expecting pain—something sharp, burning, or magical. But after a moment... nothing happened.

Cautiously, she opened one eye.

Leo was grinning.

And he was holding a whole bulb of garlic in front of her face.

"What... the...?"

Ophis muttered.

"Haha! How’s that? Is it burning your nose already? Huh? Tell me where the healing stone is, brat! Or I’ll shove this in your mouth!"

He shook the garlic dramatically like it was a bomb.

"...."

Ophis turned her head away slowly, looked at Pride, and gave the most deadpan expression she could muster.

Pride, unfortunately, was smirking.

Ophis blinked hard. "Oi. Are you actually fucking serious right now?"

Leo stood proud like he’d just drawn Excalibur.

Ophis sighed. Deeply. "Have you even tried eating that thing yourself?"

Leo stared at the garlic. "...Hell no. This taste shit!"

Ophis raised an eyebrow. "Even humans can’t stand the smell of that shit. And you expect us vampires to melt from it?"

Leo blinked. He parted his mouth to say something but decided to shut it back.

’...Mission failed!’ he thought with a defeated groan. ’Damn it. That movie lied to me. That vampire exploded on screen!’

He turned around, embarrassed, digging through the bag again.

But then he grinned.

"You think that’s all I got?"

Leo dramatically pulled out a small glass tube filled with crystal-clear liquid.

He held it up like it was the Holy Grail.

"Here it is... the holy water!"

Ophis’s face turned pale in a flash. Her lips parted slightly. That one might be real. Her instincts screamed, danger. Her eyes locked on the clear liquid that shimmered in the light.

’Shit! That one could be a problem!’

Leo walked back slowly, holding the glass with two hands like it was a sacred relic. His grin widened.

"Now tell me, brat... where’s the stone?"

Ophis’s chains rattled as she tensed.

"I would never..."

Leo’s smirk widened.

"Well then... you shall pay for your sins!"

Splash!

"ARRRRGHHHHHHHHH!!"

Ophis screamed as she thrashed, convulsing like she was being burned alive—

Splash!

"HAHAHA! TELL ME THE TRUTH, BRAT!"

"ARRHHH!! NOOO, I WOULD NEVER BETRAY MY FAT—!!"

Then—

She froze.

Nothing.

No burning. No smoke. No sizzling skin.

Ophis blinked, confused. Her body stopped twitching. She blinked again, then slowly licked the liquid that had run down her cheek.

Her eyes narrowed.

She turned to Leo slowly.

"That’s normal water... little boy."

"...."

Leo blinked.

Then stared at the glass.

Then at her deadpan expression.

He slowly brought the glass to his lips.

One sip.

Then, a long silence.

"ENVYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!"

Meanwhile, in a different part of the Maze—

"Achoo!"

Envy sneezed violently, nearly dropping the bow he was carrying. He sniffled, rubbing his nose with the back of his hand.

’Huh...? Someone must be thinking about me... but who?’ he thought as he tilted his head. His eyes lazily drifted to the woman walking ahead of him.

Valra.

Yeah, no way it was her.

She looked way too pissed and busy right now to be thinking about him.

Valra was biting her thumbnail anxiously, her steps hurried and unstable as she scanned the maze-like stone corridors around her. Her face was pale, her breathing uneven.

She was worried. Deeply worried.

She had lost track of her boyfriend somewhere in this cursed maze, and every second that passed made her heartbeat faster.

She spun around suddenly, her voice trembling, "Hey... come to think of it... where did you get that holy water from earlier? Isn’t it rare? And expensive?"

Her tone was half-hopeful, half-confused.

Envy paused, then shrugged as if it were no big deal.

"Who told you I brought actual holy water? Haha! That’s just some good ol’ tap water I filled up on the way here," he said proudly, scratching his butt absentmindedly.

"...."

Valra froze.

Her jaw dropped. Her pupils dilated.

Her face slowly twisted in disbelief... and then horror.

"YOU FU—!!!"

****

Back to Leo,

"W-Whatever!!"

Leo growled, his pride stung as he threw the now-useless water glass aside with a scowl. It shattered on the stone floor nearby, scattering harmless drops everywhere.

Ophis let out a slow exhale through her nose... Her fanged mouth curled into a sly little smirk.

Despite everything, she was a little... amused.

"If you let me go," she said, voice low and dangerously sweet, "I might let you live."

Leo twitched.

His brow jerked upward. His jaw clenched.

This vampire brat was still trying to threaten him?

He turned around in a huff, walking back to his bag and digging through it furiously.

"You really think you can intimidate me right now?"

His hand gripped his final weapon.

Ophis tilted her head slightly, confused at first. Her smirk deepened as she saw the little black object in Leo’s hand.

"A light?"

She echoed, her voice rising in mockery.

Then she burst into laughter.

"Haha! You pathetic loser... What is that, your last resort? I’m not even angry at you anymore, just—pfft—disappointed! Haha..."

But the laughter didn’t last long.

The moment Leo flicked the flashlight on, a pale purplish-white beam of UV light blasted directly at her face.

And suddenly—

Her skin sizzled.

"Ah—!"

She jolted, the corner of her cheek reacting first. A thin trail of smoke began rising from her skin. Her laughter halted mid-giggle. A drop of sweat formed at her temple.

Her eyes snapped to Leo in shock.

He was already grinning. And this time, it wasn’t playful.

It was downright wicked.

"HHHHHEEEEEEE...!"

Leo’s wicked grin stretched ear to ear.

"What’s wrong, brat? Not so confident now?"

Ophis’s face contorted in pure panic. Her mouth opened as she screamed in horror, thrashing inside the chains.

"NO! NOOOOOOOO!!! STOP IT!!!"

Leo took a step closer, raising the flashlight higher, casting the UV beam down her face and neck. Her skin hissed where the light touched.

Pride, who had been standing silently at the side, blinked and slightly tilted her head. Watching the whole thing unfold, she began questioning the meaning of her own existence.

Was this necessary?

Wouldn’t it have been better if they’d just killed the vampire girl at the start?

She genuinely wasn’t sure anymore.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the same cursed maze—

Slugg... Slugg...

A wet, dragging sound echoed off the cold stone walls.

"Arrrghh..."

Camazotz was now barely recognisable. His entire body was coated in thick, black, sticky sludge. It dripped from his limbs, slithering down his torso, leaving a dark, oozing trail across the floor as he limped forward.

His breathing was heavy, raspy. His muscles twitched under the weight of whatever cursed fluid now clung to him.

Then—

"What the heck is that?"

A woman’s voice snapped through the corridor.

A tall, red-haired woman stood at the far end, her stance wide, a hand already on her hip. Her face twisted in sheer disgust as she stared at the sludge-covered creature stumbling toward her.

Her nose wrinkled. "Ugh. That’s gross. What the hell happened to him?"

She squinted, clearly unimpressed.

"Whatever. I don’t care. Lust—kill him."

A moment later, the air shimmered beside her. A second figure materialised—a pale, masked entity in skin-tight leather and with eyes like daggers.

Without a word, Lust shot forward in a blur of speed.

But Camazotz didn’t flinch.

Inside the black sludge, two eerie green eyes lit up, glowing from the shadows of the filth.

His lips peeled back into a sick smile.

"...Haha... Food."

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