NOVPUB"Well... that was something," Evangeline said, scratching her cheek.
They had watched the entire thing unfold, and safe to say, it was a bit unexpected.
Not only were there two sides to the entire ordeal, but that alternate Neraxis also managed to get himself drugged by none other than Aella.
"He's fucked..." Neraxis muttered with a sigh. "But if that's a weight off their chests, then that's that, I guess."
Neraxis didn't want to mingle with the other alternate Neraxis. There was no point, and frankly, he didn't care much about their world.
After he left and returned to his own world, these alternate versions would just live on, separate from his life.
He didn't care. He really didn't.
But... fuck... this is annoying, Neraxis grumbled. Why do they have to look, talk, and act like the girls I know?
"Neraxis," Evangeline called out. "You should stop sulking about things you can't control. These girls are alive, and they have their own Neraxis. He's not as special as you, nor is he a good person. However, it's not your position to worry about them."
The moment her words fell, he glanced down at his hands, then off into their fleeting figures.
He cared about them, but Evangeline was right. The more attached he got, the more headaches he'd incur.
Nonetheless, their 5 minutes were up, and it was about time they headed back.
"Let's go to The Chasm now. We can worry about them later," Neraxis said, and began walking back to Jane.
"You mean, 'not worry about them later,' right?" Evangeline asked as she trailed behind him. "We're not coming back here, Neraxis. I'm not going to let you spiral in some existential crisis pit, you got that?"
He stopped and glanced at Evangeline, who deliberately bumped into his back before hugging him firmly.
"You really have a way of telling me what I want to hear, don't you?" Neraxis said as he patted her head. "Thank you for the pep talk."
A cheeky smile tugged at her lips. "Of course. If I don't keep you in line, who will? Those girls you've been ignoring because you're too antisocial?"
"Antisocial...?" Neraxis began walking again as they were nearly back to where Jane was. "I'm not antisocial in the slightest."
"Sure you aren't," Evangeline teased, sticking close to him, when all of a sudden, their legs tied together by accident, causing both of them to fall headfirst to the ground.
Neraxis tried to catch himself; however, Evangeline had her arms wrapped around his entire body, including his arms.
Therefore, the two powerhouses fell to the ground, bonking their heads on the rocky pavement as blood began dripping down.
[HP -14! 596/610]
But instead of a pained groan, what came out of his mouth was a laugh.
"Pfftt... hahaha." Neraxis laughed as his wound healed in an instant, then turned to the pouting Evangeline.
"You didn't catch me..." she muttered.
"You tied my hands."
She rolled her eyes playfully. "Fine... next time I won't hug you so tightly."
"If you say so," Neraxis chuckled as he stood up, and to Evangeline's surprise, he picked her up in a princess carry.
"What's the occasion?" she asked, fixing her dress. "Are you going to take my virginity here in this alley?"
"Hmm..." Neraxis hummed with an amused expression. "I just might—"
"For the love of Saint Lucia..." Jane's voice cut their teasing short as she approached the two of them and held out her hands. "Take my hand. Now. No more of this flirting-in-an-alleyway fiasco, okay?"
"Killjoy..." Evangeline muttered, and, while still in Neraxis's grasp, reached for Jane's hand and took it.
Neraxis didn't waste even a moment as he did the same.
Then, that familiar wrenching sensation of their bodies being rearranged assaulted them. However, it didn't last long as their noses suddenly picked up the stench of rotten flesh.
When their vision finally settled, a frown appeared on Neraxis's face.
The entire area around them was barren, with only a few sludge-like puddles scattered around the place.
Above him, through the rocks of the chasm, he could see the sky, which was painted in a purplish-black hue. And instead of clouds, there were ghastly green faces roaming around.
Yet that didn't seem to be all, as the moment one of the ghastly faces opened its mouth, a vile shriek resounded, causing Neraxis's body to shudder.
—SCREEEEEEEEEE
<Status Ailment: [Fear] has been afflicted!>
<Fear: Stats reduced by 20%. Morale reduced by 50%>
However, just as he thought this was going to be a problem, he felt a tap on his shoulder, followed by that strange feeling of his stats decreasing vanishing.
<Status Ailment: [Fear] has been cleansed!>
"I'll deal with the unsightly stuff," Jane announced calmly. "I just want you to clear out the monsters ahead."
"You know... I'm growing a bit wary of your actual intentions," Evangeline muttered skeptically. "You seem to have enough power to deal with this entire situation on your own. Why not teleport to the temple? It would save you time and trouble."
"I can't," Jane replied, shaking her head. "There's a disturbance a few meters in front of us. It covers the entire inner part of The Chasm. Trust me, I've tried many times, and I've always faced the same outcome, which is just a simple teleportation blockage. Oh, and further ahead, I can't even deal with the monsters since they counter my powers."
"Aha..." Neraxis sighed, turning to Evangeline, who was pouting from his arms. "Odds of us dying?"
"Pretty high," Evangeline replied plainly. "Though, since we're together, I don't really care about death. I just hope you don't die before I do."
His brows furrowed as he set her on the ground and placed his hands on her cheeks. Then, he began pinching them.
"Don't ever say that again," Neraxis said. "No one is dying."
"Yeah, I know," she giggled. "I just wanted to get you that dose of adrenaline before we started."
Neraxis's brows twitched. "You really are a piece of work, you know that?"
Evangeline puffed her chest but didn't say anything further.
Nonetheless, Neraxis turned toward The Chasm, which seemed to descend further into the darkness right ahead.
He took a deep breath, and without wasting any more time, they entered The Chasm.
