Angel Monarch

They walked around aimlessly in the Realm of Boundless Frost, at least that's what Sera called it. Qinrir never heard of this abandoned Realm, which wasn't too surprising.

There were millions or billions of Realms. The exact count was unknown, and most were either destroyed or never managed to support intelligent life. The Realm of Boundless Frost seemed to be the latter, since nothing existed here other than ruins transported through Gates.

These Realms were often referred to as Barren Realms. While they didn't develop their own form of life, they still held valuable resources. Many races also loved conquering Realms, since it gave them space to expand upon.

Strangely, even though most Realms were near infinite, many still struggled with overpopulation. Since food and wars weren't actual problems for most civilians, they could reproduce freely... The largest races had populations counting in quintillions or more...

These races would love to conquer the Realm of Boundless Frost. It's a giant, free space with a working atmosphere and not too deadly temperatures. The perfect place for expanding!

However, while this Realm might've been amazing for expanding a nation, it was the opposite when it came to finding the Seed. The memory played in the depths of a large snowstorm, which brought the visibility to near zero.

Sera's flames couldn't affect the memory, so they needed to struggle through the storm. It took them a few hours, but eventually they found and destroyed the Seed.

To Qinrir's utter relief, there wasn't any more Seed within that despicable Realm. Instead, they ventured to a less environmentally hazardous and more disturbing place... A Goblin camp...

They walked between the tents, watching everything with pure disdain. Qinrir especially looked at the Goblins with unbearable disgust...

"I hate Goblins. Everyone does really... Only races worse are maybe Priphia, but that's debatable. At least those parasites don't enjoy depriving their hosts of their dignity, and they won't rape, murder and pillage other weaker Realms!"

Sera glanced down at Qinrir with curiosity, then continued searching for the Seed, while she asked, "I thought the Goblins on Earth were special kinds of assholes, but it seems they're all horrible!"

The Arachnid made a snorting noise and chuckled humorlessly.

"Yeah, they're all horrible, but the stronger they get, the worse they become... For example, I heard about a Celestial Goblin who had a horrifying ability. He found a weaker Realm where nobody could interfere with him. After eliminating the strongest fighters, he went to work on the population...

"He raped everyone... Women, men... children... Nobody was safe from his rotten personality. However, with each rape he used his ability, and impregnated them all... Even the babies..."

A wild shiver passed through Sera's body. Her face full of disgust stared down at Qinrir with horror. The Arachnid looked extremely uncomfortable as he finished the story.

"When word got out, the Angels sent a High Justiciar Squadron. They returned a minute later carrying the Goblin's head. They also eliminated all his offspring and cured everyone's pregnancy. The Realm was then placed under the Angels' protection."

Sera breathed a sigh of relief. It was still horrific what the people of that Realm experienced; she was glad the culprit got punished, albeit she felt they could've tortured him before the death sentence.

"Good riddance," Said Sera. "Wonder why the powerful races haven't wiped out Goblins yet. They seem to bring only destruction, chaos and misery to the Realms."

The Arachnid chuckled, his six eyes focusing on a few Goblins fighting each other, then raping the loser... Strangely, the loser Goblin seemed to enjoy the rough treatment...

He scoffed at the disgusting sight, then looked up at The Angel.

"It's not so simple. I'm sure other races want to exterminate the Goblins, but their Empyrean, named Kruhags, the Tainted God, keeps every other Empyrean away. Also, every race is selfish and only cares about their own people. They don't care if Goblins harass weaker Realms."

"Is there truly nobody who cares? Is everybody selfish? Even your own Goddess? Even Szikke, the Broodmother?"

The questions didn't have their required effect of angering Qinrir. The Arachnid just chuckled at Sera's naivety.

"My Goddess? 'She' is as shallow as people get. 'She' loves shiny objects and gifts. With a valuable present, you can buy 'Her' cooperation!"

Qinrir stared at the ground, his eyes filling with melancholy.

"There was a time, long ago, when 'She' cared... Before Aerin fell, Szikke had an Angel lover, a noble Celestial. It was strange, since Arachnids don't feel love, but somehow, Szikke became more and evolved past 'Her' own race's barrier...

"When the other Realms attacked Aerin, 'Her' lover went back to help, and Szikke prepared to follow. However, that's when the Myrmica launched an all-out assault, led by their Empyrean, Aqsha, the Empress of Bloodshed!"

The Arachnid became silent afterward, and Sera already guessed how their love story ended. No Angel survived that war, which meant Szikke's lover also perished. It must've broken the Broodmother's heart so much 'She' stopped caring about anyone outside of 'Her' race.

Sera also felt the Myrmica attack didn't happen on a whim. The other Realms must've known Szikke's affiliation, so they thwarted 'Her' attempt at helping and possibly saving Aerin!

"The only race who ever cared and helped everybody were the Angels..." Said Qinrir in a barely audible whisper.

They both fell silent afterward and continued looking for the Seed within this depraved campsite. It took them a while, but eventually they found and destroyed it.

The Seeds grew stronger as they went further back, but for Sera they still weren't problematic.

The next few memories didn't contain anything horrible. They followed Sera and her friends' journey from Castleburg, but all happiness passes once.

They ventured further back and eventually reached a point in time Sera would prefer to forget... They reached her memories about Havel...

Firstly, they found themselves in the middle of a battlefield. Sera and Bea, both only Evolved, fought against a powerfully built man named the Bull.

The real Sera cringed while watching her past self struggle against someone so weak. She saw so many mistakes in her own and Bea's fighting styles. They really should've lost, but their near-perfect coordination made up for the lack of experience.

"You know, watching all your memories, I've only seen you fight against stronger opponents. You always used your brain to gain the edge and win those battles. I actually began believing you were born with such an amazing sense for war! However, watching you now..."

Qinrir turned his eyes up at Sera, a wicked smile splitting his maw, creating a terrifying expression.

"Watching you now, I realize you suck like the rest of us mortals!"

The Arachnid chuckled, while Sera just stared at him with an annoyed expression.

"I was barely an Evolved here. I hadn't learned to use my powers properly, and my fighting experience wasn't great... Hey! Stop laughing! It's not funny! I could've died here!"

Everything Sera said only made Qinrir laugh harder, and after a while, the Angel began chuckling at herself too.

She knew exactly what horrible memory would appear next, but she decided to keep a smile on her face throughout its entirety. The past was unchangeable, so she might as well push through the trauma, ignore the flaring pain in her chest, and laugh with Qinrir carefree.

They searched the battlefield. Sera saw many familiar faces perish in the fighting, including a rambunctious boy named Killshot and a simple girl named Witchdoctor.

It hurt as she watched them die again, even though she barely knew them before their passing.

The aching grew heavier in her heart, but she continued smiling. She strained herself to ignore the pain, since if she acknowledged its existence even for a moment, then her tears wouldn't stop flowing until they created a long river.

After ten more minutes, they found and eliminated this Seed as well.

Qinrir looked at Sera's exaggerated smile with worry as they left the battlefield and found themselves in a dark room, with a single bed.

A young woman's uncomfortable whimpers echoed and combined with the aggressive groans of a man. Chains clanked together as powerful slaps mixed with pained sobs.

Sera turned her back towards the noise, while her smile became even more strained. Next to her, Qinrir watched the creaking bed and the people atop it with curiosity.

"Hmm... You don't seem to enjoy yourself, unlike with your other partners... Was he that bad in copulation? I guess hitting your partner doesn't coop well with human reproduction!"

Qinrir's voice was full of astonishment and the joy of discovery, like a child finally grasping a puzzle's entire picture. He learned so much about human biology and psychology along this journey, it nearly made him jump for joy, which would've been a disturbing sight for a giant spider.

However, his ecstatic voice brought Sera's attention. She slowly turned around and watched the horrible memory in a new light.

Laughter... Bright laughter... Ridiculous laughter... Painful, yet also joyous... Full of her suffering, yet shining with hope... A laughter that shook Sera's entire personality to its very core...

The silver metal in her heart began shining with light, as her laughter became more foolish and cheery. The pain seemed to leave Sera's body, letting her heart shine with the brightness of an untainted star.

The Arachnid looked at her with concern, as if she had gone insane.

"You're quite right, Qinrir... He really sucked at sex... Never made me cum once... How pathetic!"

Sera could barely contain her chuckle as she spoke.

The light in her heart grew brighter, and the laughter had no more pretense. It came from her soul, as if all past trauma and suffering just left her body. She felt a million tons lighter without that overwhelming weight pressing on her shoulders and mind.

Her laughter stopped, leaving behind a genuine, wide grin full of happiness.

Who would've guessed that Qinrir's ridiculous, clueless statement was enough to push Sera towards self-betterment.

Sera glanced at her suffering self once more with a small smile. She then turned and walked away, leaving that dark room behind forever...