NOVPUBThird Person's POV
Only after several satisfying slaps, when the demon didn't so much as twitch, did Ethan finally pause.
Exhaling deeply, he dropped the heir's head and, letting it hang, he regained his calm composure.
The storm in his chest receded into still waters, and without wasting more time, he sank into his prisoner's mind space again.
His consciousness swirled into the silver mist and once more, the luminous cloud-form of himself drifted through the inner landscape.
Within moments, he reached that vast throbbing red network suspended like a burning web across the higher sky of Aram's soul space.
His form hovered before it and pulsed with a dim silver light while his expression was etched with a contemplative frown.
The scorching backlash from earlier was still lingering in his memory like a phantom burn across his spirit.
Observing this webbed seal, there was no longer any doubt in Ethan's mind that this soul-seal had been etched by none other than Duke Vord himself.
He was known to be a famous hedonist, but seeing this, he could tell that the man wasn't stupid at all.
This red barrier was his safeguard and a protective net placed to keep certain memories and secrets buried deep within his future heir.
As of now, Ethan was even more certain that what lay beyond this crimson weave held truths the Duke didn't want seen.
Even so, Ethan was no longer satisfied with skimming the surface as he needed more.
Knowing your enemy was the first step to defeating them.
And Duke Vord wasn't just any enemy, but he had most likely played a direct role in the destruction of the Lucent Void Clan which was his father's lineage and his too if he considered his nominal paternal ancestory in this life.
At this moment, vengeance for his paternal clan was not a top priority for Ethan, as he had no contact or any substantial emotional relations with them.
But at the same time, he wasn't naive enough to think these powerful houses would let him live freely once his identity was exposed.
That exposure was inevitable. And he would not run or hide behind another name.
He recalled his mother's tear-filled eyes, the pain and loss in her voice.
Remembering that eight year old memory, his resolve was already sealed/
He knew that he would have to eventually destroy every player behind that night of blood and ruin.
And now, with this heir in his hands and Duke Vord unknowingly exposed, he had a rare advantage, one he had no intention of wasting.
The silver jellyfish that represented his soul pulsed brighter in a glow of grim resolve.
With a flick of thought, Ethan once again plunged into that otherworldly silver realm, the place he had dreamed of before.
A boundless plane of silver skies and an infinitely wide, radiant sea greeted him, washing over his being with an ethereal calm.
He plopped into the icy water and started swimming through the starlit currents and weaving through glowing strands like a fish gliding beneath moonlight.
The silver world welcomed him and, in its embrace, he prepared to reach higher in his quest to find a way that his instinct dictated to be in this ethereal realm.
As he drifted like a fish through the silvery tides, Ethan gradually lost the sense of separation between himself and the world around him.
His movements grew slower and more fluid until it felt as if he was the sea itself.
In the next moments, a strange, serene yet unsettling tranquility settled over him.
But then, without warning, a massive tail stirred the waters ahead.
It moved in silence and displaced the ocean in a slow, deliberate sweep.
Its sheer size was beyond comprehension, and it was so vast that even trying to gauge it made Ethan's mind reel.
Despite its imposing presence and the horde of bizarre aquatic creatures following in its wake, none of them paid Ethan any attention, and he felt as if he didn't exist in their perception.
He hovered in place in his small and radiant jellyfish body while being utterly invisible in the grand procession.
Seeing the school of the underwater creatures, confusion flickered through him as he thought
Why couldn't they sense me?
But then it suddenly hit him.
Of course, this was not real, though he was still not sure about it completely.
A tremor of fear crawled along his bouncy body as he realized that once again, he had become entangled in the dreamy current of this bloodline realm without even noticing.
He had just escaped a similar mirage, and yet here he was again in the process of being adrift in this illusion. 𝓃𝓸𝓿𝓹𝓾𝓫.𝓬ℴ𝓶
A cold clarity dawned upon him as he realized that the power of his Dreamshroud Devil bloodline was not a gentle inheritance, but it was a strange alien force he didn't know much about at this moment.
In the past few hours, he had already realized its subtle danger.
The word "devil" now rang louder in his thoughts, sending an instinctive chill through the core of his being.
He glanced down at himself and then froze.
The crystal clear silver glow of his body was gone.
His translucent body now shimmered with waves of iridescent hues.
He had unknowingly transformed into a rainbow-colored jellyfish, so naturally and seamlessly that he hadn't even noticed.
Every feeler shimmered like refracted starlight and trailed multicolored wisps in the water.
And the only thought he could make out at this moment was that it was... beautiful but also disconcerting at the same time.
His virtual frown deepened, but after a moment of reflection, the missing piece clicked and the realization dawned.
This form, this strange transformation, had been the factor that had seemingly granted him the perfect concealment he had required.
A quiet smirk tugged at his unseen face, and delight curled within him like a warm tide.
Even though he didn't know the significance behind this, he still realized that this wasn't just a trick, but it was a gift and an unexpected boon that was born from the chaos of his bloodline.
