Battle Sister vs. Revenant! Round One: FIGHT!

Third-Person P.O.V.

As the battle between the Blood Covenant of the Ancients, the Paladins of Marstole, and the succubi under Neralith, continued, across the three-way fight within the ruined castle continued, a growing group of shadowy humanoid constructs began to manifest to begin intervention on the witches and succubi's behalf. The Battle Sisters and several paladins tried and failed to smite them using Light magic, which only made them stronger to their shocked disbelief of a Dark creature eating Light magic to empower itself in their eyes.

As the Shadow Soldier Simulacrums were fending off the Paladins of Marstole, the Sapper and Support Shadow Simulacrums were subtly doing their work completely unnoticed by all three factions. The succubi and witches who were dying from their wounds were stabilized enough to survive while being rendered unconscious to prevent them from worsening their injuries. Meanwhile the Paladins and Battle Nuns were being slowly weakened and drained of their stamina and mana reserves, evening the odds for both Selene and Neralith's groups while leveling the battlefield into a somewhat more balanced fairness. It wasn't a complete overturn, but it made things more fair than merely flipping the board by giving the surviving succubi and witches a chance for improvement within a safer margin for danger.

And the one at the center of this turnaround?

CLANG-CLASH-CLANK-swish-CRAK-swoosh-SMAK-fwoosh-BANG-CRAK-swish-BOOM

He and Ophelia were in what could only be described by any viewer from the outside as an epic battle between two experienced veterans of countless battles, each with decades of experience, having survived against all odds whilst dancing on the very knife's edge between Life and Death. A Battle that would amaze any bard who saw what the two of them were doing in their little honor duel between two equally skilled warriors seeking to prove their worth...

Ophelia had lost her crossbow prior, after a failed attempt to snipe him after an earlier exchange blew them both apart from the force of their clash, only to have said crossbow ripped from her grip and tossed aside by a tentacle whipping out and lashing at her arm. The bombs and potions at her thighs had been almost completely exhausted trying to deal with him, but since she was carrying a kit designed for succubi, they were about as useful against her adversary as tits on a crab. The only thing she had left were a few low-level stamina and mana potions as well as some anointed oil...which didn't do much more than give her quite the blush when it merely made Raziel's body glisten in a manner that in his previous world would be described as a 'himbo'. Lighting said anointed oil on fire in her embarrassment was the only significant way she's managed to hurt him with her current kit, as despite technically being an Undead monster, he was immune to Light and healing magic and only minorly vulnerable to Fire magic, much to her growing frustration and arousal.

Her sword was slowly getting dulled from the constant stream of clashes and parrying by Raziel's bone claws and impromptu dagger, only kept from completely dulling through her use of magic to imbue her weapon with Fire magic, but even that was slowly beginning to warp the blade. It would need some serious repairs once this fight ended. Her mace had been destroyed when she blocked a strike, resulting in it being cleaved into four pieces by Raziel's bone claws enhanced with Shadow and Death magic, who then smirked while retracting two of them and leaving only one extended as a taunt.

The middle one.

Ophelia actually openly laughed a bit at that unusually human gesture from what was clearly a monster of the Dark in her eyes, but then again some Undead were former humans or humanoids of the Light, so she assumed he might have been one until recently. As for the reason why?

Raziel was adapting to his new inhuman body. While fighting an experienced warrior-nun. On even ground. As an Undead.

Raziel went into this fight unsure of what he could and could not do, but there was a reason he lasted over fifty years as a vigilante and survived countless failed attempts to kill him. His sheer battle IQ was off the charts. At first he stuck to the safe method of using his purely physical combat style from his former human life, only mixing it up with some of his inhuman biological traits to throw Ophelia off. Then he started getting the idea to use Immaculate Conception to forge Shadow-infused weapons to compensate for his lack of longer reach or ranged options. And now he was using his Life magic to adapt his body, similar to how the T-virus would mutate in response to certain environmental factors, while firing off ranged slashes of Shadow magic, and even had imbued them with Death magic to weaken and drain her mana and stamina.

He'd even tossed his improvised dagger into the air after a deliberately relaxed grip caused it to be knocked skyward by Ophelia's mace, thinking she finally had him as she brought it down, only to extend his bone claws from his left hand to parry her strike, destroying it in the process, and extended a tentacle from his lower back like a tail, grabbing the spinning spearhead by the broken shaft, encasing it in a bone sheath, and wielding it like a scorpion's tail to strike out in piercing and slashing strikes, adding to his continuously adapting and ever-evolving fighting style.

And the whole while their little skirmish continued, the two kept a growing smile on their respective faces, mirroring the other in the sheer joy of an exhilarating fight between two equally skilled combatants, both veterans with decades of real-world combat experience, and both survivors of countless Life or Death struggles.

After all, among martial artists from Raziel's former world, there was a belief...

'...When two high-level warriors of equal skill clash, they can tell exactly each other's thoughts were without needing a single word shared between them. Only through the exchange of fists and the clash of their blows were needed to get the message across...'

...and right now, that exact belief was playing out in this fight between these two.

An Undead/Erosarkic hybrid and a Dark Elf.

An Undying Revenant and a Battle Sister.

Raziel and Ophelia Silverheart.

The two's battle had only been for just a scant few minutes. No more than five minutes total, maybe six at most. Yet those scant few minutes were all either of them needed to know each other's character and the type of person they were.

Ophelia was the last surviving heiress to a now-fallen line of Dark Elf nobility who was forced to desperate measures to survive after being exiled from her own home by corrupt political rivals coveting what her family had and attempted to make her a broodmare for the sake of their greed. She fled and became a high-ranking Battle Sister of the Church of Marstole.

Raziel was an orphaned child who had his family murdered one by one by criminals, gangsters, and mobsters while the cops didn't do anything to punish them, even taking bribes to let them walk away scot-free as he was eventually left on the streets, homeless, penniless, and without anyone seeming to care for a street rat. He decided to take matters into his own hands when he reached adulthood and became the infamous vigilante known as 'The Revenant'.

She was born into nobility only to be wrongfully cast down and rebuild her life elsewhere, and became a high-ranking and respected Battle Sister and vice captain of her platoon...

He was wronged by a broken system so many times to the point of losing all patience, and rose from a nobody with nothing and no one to care, to becoming a Legend of the criminal underworld...

Two different lives.

Two different souls.

Two different worlds.

Two different individuals.

Two completely different starting points.

Yet their paths could not be any more similar in the way they parallel one another's life choices.

Years from now, when asked about their first encounter with one another, the story would become quite the tale for what it was, and a favorite told among children from all factions, races, and walks of life.

A real life 'The Lady and the Tramp' scenario born of a former human vigilante-turned monster and a fallen noble heiress-turned-battle nun.

The start of a love story where a romance bloomed on the battlefield between the Light, the Dark, and the Neutral Faction dragged in-between them and caught up in the middle.

Raziel P.O.V.

As I clashed with Ophelia again, I could feel the exhilaration, the tension, the sheer bliss of a good, clean battle. It's been so goddamned long since I could just enjoy a fight like this against an equally strong and honorable opponent(at least as much as can be in the criminal underworld) that I begin to feel a bit of a battle boner forming and I was struggling to keep it from becoming an actual boner for the sexy dark elf warrior-nun in front of me. That would certainly not be a very helpful thing for my image right now, given I was butt-ass naked on a battlefield. And not for the first time. I've had to do that a few times, and every time I did, I gave a whole new meaning to the phrase 'Free Willy'. But I digress.

I freely admit to being a bit of a battle addict, but at the very least I am not a total battle junkie who starts pointless fights just to satisfy my craving for a good brawl. I can at least control myself enough to not get distracted from my objectives. However, Ophelia was really striking my checklist for what I found hot in a woman. Confident? Check. Seductive? Check. Hot as hell? Big ole check. Can kick my ass five times to Sunday if I'm careless? Big ole triple check.

Which makes what happens next all the more disappointing for me, and judging by the smile on Ophelia's face, will become just as disappointing for her, too. We've been dragging this out for a few minutes now, and I realized that Serenity's soul is starting to become unstable. Then I recall a little tidbit from my old world, how so long as someone's body is still mostly intact in their vital points and too much time hasn't passed, it was possible to resuscitate them back to life. That made me realize that Serenity's soul must be losing its anchor to the land of the living. Shit. Blue-balled yet again by duty. Dying a 69-year-old virgin was bad enough. I really have no desire to die a virgin a second time in this life.

Moving in my new break-dance-style of combat using my bone claws and spiked tentacles, I begin to mentally go over the list of toxins my upgraded assassin class can use and see what status abnormality magic I can inflict to safely knock her out without killing her, and immediately felt like a dumbass and wanting to facepalm at what I find. I resisted the urge...barely.

Getting up close and personal with Ophelia, she noticed the change in my demeanor as I spoke in response to the question in her eyes as I blocked her flaming sword with a cross-block of my bone-claws.

"Sorry, Ophelia. Duty before pleasure." I spoke in an apologetic tone. I really enjoyed fighting her more than I want to admit. Which makes what I'm about to do make me feel like an absolute sleazebag. And more than likely reduce any chance I had of ever getting in her pants to finally lose my v-card to complete atomized shreds.

"Wha-Ghack!" Ophelia was confused with an embarrassed blush at the teasing tone of my words, but couldn't hide the disappointment either of us felt as I struck using an injector tentacle with a needle-thin bone-spike tip that pierced through the leather and chain-mail of the joint of her armor, right at her elbow, and injected my payload directly into her bloodstream with the solution I found for speeding this fight up to its conclusion. Then she collapsed as she fell unconscious to the ground after spartan kicking her away a few feet, a blush slowly forming upon her sleeping face, as well as a pleasure-filled smile of the absolute purest bliss.

The concoction in question?

A toxin that combines the effects of a paralytic, a sedative, and a sensitivity increasing hallucinogenic aphrodisiac.

Normally, these individual toxins would not be used together because they can result in reducing the effects of the aphrodisiac to a low simmer while inducing potent paralysis and sleep status abnormalities while permanently boosting their sensitivity and inducing a pleasant dream.

Normally, monsters aren't trying to capture their female enemies alive without killing them in the process or without the intent of raping them once at their mercy.

The fact she was also seeming to have a rather nice dream was part of the reason I felt so scummy doing this to her. Because I can probably guess the type of dream she's having by the blissful smile on her face I saw while glancing at her over my shoulder as I decided to wrap this skirmish up. I am so not going to get laid with her now. Sisters Dammit.

Checking this situation, I did a quick headcount and grimaced at what numbers I found. When this skirmish started, There were a dozen succubi under their leader Neralith, a baker's dozen of witches with a handful of armored warriors and fighters under Selene's command, and almost fifty Paladins under Xalder's command, including those three Battle Sisters(including Ophelia) and twelve female Paladins.

Now?

There are only five of the original twelve succubi still alive, including Neralith. Of the seven who died, three were already dead when I intervened, but four were killed off by having their heads decapitated by the Paladins who swarmed them when they fell. Suffice to say, Neralith was fucking furious, to the point I'll be surprised if her derivative Barbarian class didn't level up with her Rage spell level.

The witches had lost two of their original twelve, and their handful of warriors had one fall in battle, meaning they only had four left, and they were not in very good shape. Selene was still pretty steaming as she was still trying to kill Xalder, but was running on fumes by this point. A quick God's Eye confirmed her mana fatigue had gone from a 'moderate' to a severe, her stamina fatigue had dropped from a 'minor' to a 'severe', and she was also suffering from some bruised bones, cracked ribs, and a few greenstick fractures in her off-hand arm as a result of Xalder getting too close and just blasting her with a shock wave, suicide bomber style.

As for Xalder's platoon of Paladins? Aside from the very obviously knocked out Ophelia, her two fellow battle nuns, and a couple of the female Paladins, the remaining ten were all either dead or so close to it that there was no saving them from the reaper's grasp. Of the original thirty-three male majority, only about half of them were still alive, including Xalder himself. A little over half of them were dead from the very vengeful succubi or witches who simply killed them while they were down from my shadow sappers.

I also noticed that of the original fighting force of paladins, the only male paladins still alive all had affiliations with the cartel. Narrowing my eyes as I examined the dead Paladins more closely, I realized the truth of their deaths and scowled at the blatant backstabbing. The 'survivors' were all running on fumes, but the succubi and the witches weren't doing much better, even with my shadow supporters healing and reinvigorating them. Time to wrap this up as quickly as possible.

I activated the temporal aspect of my derivative Assassin class, Temporal Reaver, and use the effects of the Timefruit Juice to haul ass towards the surviving Paladins, decking each of them once hard enough to knock them the fuck out without killing them. I had plans for them, and I still needed them alive for now. When Xalder saw me coming, he tried to strike me with his sword and activated the shockwave enchantment on his armor, but I simply ducked his strike, spun around to his rear, and then grabbed and threw him across the hall, yelling out a "YEET!" while I was at it before dropping my accelerated time.

I had plenty of time to analyze his armor and how the enchantments on it worked during the brief glances I got while fighting Ophelia, and I figured out its one fatal weakness. As Xalder flailed towards the wall, his eyes practically bugged out of his helmet as an 'oh shit' look crossed what I could see of his face, right as he hit the wall I chucked him at-

Clan-BOOM

-and the impact set off the enchantment he had activated, exploding in a kinetic blast that then sent his sorry half-blood ass flying ass over tea kettle, before crashing with a loud metallic clanging into yet another wall and-

Clan-BOOM

Clan-BOOM

Clan-BOOM

Clan-BOOM

Clan-BOOM

*Wham-**THUD-CRAK*

-was launched yet again as the process repeated over and over like a demented game of pinball as he bounced from one wall to the next, struck one stone pillar after another, before he finally came to a stop as he embedded into a shattered remnant of an old long-collapsed stone pillar, cracking it in the process. A quick check with God's Eye confirmed that he was still (barely)alive and he just got knocked the fuck out from the whiplash kicking his shit in.

Yeah, that fatal flaw I mentioned? That was it. Apparently, the shock wave enchantment worked by utilizing redirected kinetic impacts from physical strikes, be it his own attacks or others he defends against, by absorbing and redirecting the force towards the opposing direction as the origin point from which the kinetic force hit from. The problem was he had to know an attack was coming to activate it, and once he did, he couldn't undo it for a few seconds. Just long enough for him to redirect the force of an attack back at his opponent...

Xalder groaned in a boneless heap, his body broken, both literal and metaphorical, as he fell out from the stone pillar and into the sweet embrace of oblivion's mercy to escape the immense mind-shattering pain he must be in right now.

....or to be subjected to the fate of becoming a human pinball.

Yeah...

Basically, he made a goddamned discount 'Full Counter' physical enchantment similar to what Dragon Sin Meliodus' magic did in 'The Seven Deadly Sins', then combined it with a bastardized bootleg version of Accelerator's 'Vector Transformation' esper ability from the 'A Certain Magical Index' and 'A Certain Scientific Railgun' franchises. Without even knowing they existed!

I say again, despite his moral character flaws, the man was a fucking genius.

I am however now of mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, I'd like to take that armor of his to study and see if I can't recreate and improve that particular enchantment and potentially unlock the Sorcerer or another Mage derivative class. But on the other hand, I am not so sure I want to risk suffering from getting the pinball hell treatment I just inflicted upon him.

Decisions, decisions...

Shaking my head as I noticed the succubi and witches staring at what I just did while looking between me and Xalder, I simply gave them a wry smile as I spoke to them aloud for all to hear.

"Sorry for taking so long with Ophelia over there. I tried to support you all as best I could using my shadow simulacrums, but I couldn't even stop all of them from killing some of you, despite my best efforts to keep them alive." Turning towards Serenity's corpse as I noticed the fluctuations in her soul, I realized I didn't have much time, so I had my shadow simulacrums gather up the surviving Paladins and Xalder, then bind and restrain them with shadow constructed tendrils and threads. "Selene! Over here. Serenity can still be saved, if we hurry!"

Selene widened her eyes at what I said, while the other succubi and witches glared at the Paladins and my constructs for keeping them from killing the sick bastards.

"Why are you protecting them?!" Neralith snarled at me, but I simply gave her a half-lidded deadpan as I responded.

"I'm not. But I still need them alive for what I plan to offer them." Neralith snarled, about to yell at me, but I cut her off as I continued. "They won't be leaving here alive. Make no mistake. But what happens to them afterward depends on their choice."

They all gave me a confused look as Selene finally arrived at my side before Serenity's corpse. I narrowed my gaze as my brows furrowed in worry. She didn't have much time left. We needed to hurry this up.

"What do you mean that Serenity can be saved? And how do you even know who we are?!"

"No time to explain right now. All I can say is I may have a way to bring Serenity back, but there's a catch." Selene immediately had a realization in her eyes, a growing suspicion clearly shining behind her gaze. A suspicion I confirmed as I continued. "She won't be human anymore."

Selene narrowed her lips as a distrustful look entered her eyes at that. "Necromancy?"

"Yes and no." I spoke as she suddenly grew confused, but continued. "No time to go into details. Yes, it's technically necromancy. But no, I am not a Priest or traditional necromancer. It's merely an ad-hoc one born of a combination of innate magic and my own race as an Undead allowing me to pull this off from an innate spell unique to me and me alone. If anything, it would be closer to a form of dark resurrection or forced reincarnation. So yes, technically she'd become an Undead."

Selene widened her eyes at my rather frank and blunt admission. There was no point hiding this from her as it was against my policy to do this kind of thing without properly informing her of the risks and rewards. All of them. Her mind was clearly racing at a mile a minute as she chewed on that tidbit of information for a moment before she asked her next question...

"...what kind of Undead?"

...and there lied the crux of the matter, and why I was consulting her on this issue...

"...that's the catch. I don't know."

"What do you mean, you don't know?!"

Her whisper-shout cracked at my blunt admission, but I simply kept going forward with my brutal honesty.

"I don't know, because up until about ten minutes ago, I had just died from a terminal illness, only to come back to life as an Undead. I've never used this before, because I literally was only reborn as a monster literally not even half an hour ago."

"I don't know what she'll become. If she's unlucky, she might become a low-tier bottom-of-the-barrel skeleton or zombie type of Undead. If she's really unlucky, she might become a ghoul. On the other hand, if she's lucky she might become a Vampire type of Undead. If she really manages to hits the jackpot, she might even become a Revenant just like me."

"But that is precisely why I say I don't know what she'll become, because it is literally a roulette wheel; what she gets will depend on her own luck and fate."

Selene widened her eyes before turning and giving Serenity's corpse a longing look. What I suggested is most certainly a very heavy thing for anyone to take lightly. A chance to come back from the dead and restore someone to life, but at the cost of no longer being human, turned into an Undead, and with no control over what you become? I could see out of my peripheral as everyone looked at me in shock at what I was saying, as Selene then asked a question that seemed to be on everyone;s mind, Paladin, witch, and Succubi alike.

"...why offer this to me? Why not any of the others?"

My response gets all eyes to widen is disbelief and shock.

"...because her soul is still here. Everyone else is already long past the point of this working. Serenity is defying death itself just to cling to a corpse that can no longer hold her soul, but she can't hold on for much longer."

After saying this, I looked at Serenity's soul, looking straight into her incorporeal eyes as she too was listening as I explained this option to her. Just as I was asking this of Selene, I was also asking Serenity as well. I would not do this without her consent.

"...bring her back."

Serenity gives a look filled with burning resolve with crystal clear clarity.

"Are you sure?"

I asked without looking at her, but I wasn't asking Selene...

"Once I do, there's no going back."

"Why bring up the option, then question yourself now? If you can do it, then do so! Why are you even asking?"

Selene snapped in irritation, but I still wasn't looking at her. My gaze seemed hollow, as if staring into nothing, but I was simply looking at something they couldn't see...

"Because Serenity is the one I'm asking consent from."

Selene froze. The succubi froze. Even the Paladins stopped and stared at the realization I wasn't looking at nothing. I felt something shift from Serenity's soul. Something familiar. Shadow element. But what froze them in place wasn't my actions, but the incorporeal, disembodied voice of a woman. A woman who was all too familiar to Selene. Just two words, yet the sheer weight behind them made her stance clear on my offer.

"...do...it..."

Serenity had spoke in a distorted voice, managing to utilize enough Shadow element within her dissolving soul to utter those two words, making it clear that she was still here, but fading fast. It was precisely because of what Shadow element is at its core that allowed this Miracle to occur.

The energy of the soul.

The Shadow element was the raw energy from which souls are produced. It was the symbolic element of connections. It was also known as Ether, the raw element of creation from which all other elements are derived. But it is also known by another name...

"...as you wish."

...the Void element.

Using Immaculate conception, I create the shape for a magic circle, utilizing the innate magical knowledge of Shadow, Life, and Death elements that I gained as a result of Elemental Infusion. I also used a bit of my own blood to serve as the medium for the circle to be channeled through once the etched design was finished. It was an array containing five interconnected circles. in a plus-sign shape cross pattern, situated within a larger sixth circle connecting the outer four circles of the cross pattern. Each circle had something placed within it.

The left circle had a Life-infused simulacrum, glowing a golden light.

The right circle had a Death-infused simulacrum, seemingly showing a deep dark brown aura.

The bottom circle had a Light-infused simulacrum, shining a pure white.

The top had a Dark-infused simulacrum, a pitch black abyss of anti-light.

The center had Serenity's corpse and her dissipating soul.

Surrounding the array, I conjured six Shadow-infused simulacrums. They would be crucial for this process.

As I finished my preparations, I spoke up for all to hear the nature of the miracle I was about to perform before this world.

"Take a good look while you all can..."

Everyone, both Light, Dark, and Neutral perked up and began to listen as I continued...

"...what you are about to witness, is a miracle the likes of which this world has never seen..."

...the circle began to light up a blood red, my own blood serving to channel the magic ritual in its most effective manner to be as efficient as possible with what little time I have to work with...

"...both before, or since..."

Taking up my position, outside the circle, I begin to chant while activating my unique innate skill, Shadow Monarch's Crown.

"We stand now before the Nexus, the crossroads from which all things intersect

Here in this place, at this moment, all things become of one shared Origin"

The array begins to glow as the various circles suddenly become connected, from the outside in, one by one...

"Mine true name is Raziel

The Risen Soul and Keeper of Secrets"

...by invoking my name's meaning, I set the stage for what is to come, both the future and in the here and now, for names have power...

"I am he who sneers in the face of Death"

...the Death simulacrum dissolves and flows in towards the center of the circle, swirling around Serenity's corpse and disembodied soul that only I can currently see...

"Yet completely disregards the worth of mine own Life"

...the Life simulacrum follows its Death-infused counterpart's example...

"I am he who was expelled from the Light"

...the Light simulacrum then follows...

"Yet am not truly one of the Dark"

...and now the Dark-infused simulacrum...

"Trapped in the boundary between the two's Shadow"

...the Shadow simulacrums then dissolve and flow towards the center, infusing into Serenity's soul, nourishing it, refining it, strengthening it for what is to come and bolstering her potential. Something only one who has grasped the Shadow element at all can do...people like her and myself...

"I am the Equalizer of the Scales"

...as I chant, the sound of a shriek can be heard by all. Disembodied , distorted, and warped, but clearly feminine as Serenity's soul begins to strengthen and repair itself with the Shadow magic provided by my simulacrums.

"And the Guardian of the sacred Balance"

Gasps are heard and ignored around me as I continue focusing on the task at hand. Serenity is now visible, her soul simply absorbing the Shadow magic now, growing stronger, restoring herself more and more while also...changing...

"I who sought and was cruelly denied Justice"

...her soul, transforming from the influx of power and strength, began to more strongly radiate energy that only I could perceive, yet was enough to pressure those around me as the weight of this ritual became far more apparent...

"Thus I took matters upon myself to deliver Vengeance"

...as I chanted this line, I could feel gazes upon me and Serenity. Gazes not of mortal origin. The Gods of Light in Ruyanei themselves were watching me...judging my actions...

"Yet even as I sought to defend and protect the lives of the Innocent"

...and I found their judgement wanting. They tried to put pressure upon my ritual, to interrupt or stop me...

"They vilified and condemned my willingness for spilling the blood of the Guilty"

...and immediately recoiled back when my ritual itself snapped at them, daring them to interfere again. Making it known that their direct meddling was no longer tolerated in the delicate balance of Light and Dark, as I felt a great surge of amused glee from two familiar presences...

"By my imperial privilege as Sovereign of the Dead"

...as the interference was prevented, Serenity's remodeling soul began to swirl and slowly funnel itself back into her corpse...

"I hereby command this ephemeral Soul to return to its corporeal Vessel"

...the shadows of Serenity's soul funneled faster and faster, a swirl of Shadow element reminiscent to a whirlpool in the way it was moving, as if something was trying and failing to yank her soul from my grasp...

"Return to us from the grasp of Death and back to the embrace of the Living"

...only to be yeeted back into her corpse, my will flat out slapping the grasp on Serenity's soul in order to fulfill the ritual in question. Her once dead corpse reshaped itself to better fit the changes to her soul...for the body reflects the soul, and the soul is in turn shaped by the body...

"By my royal birthright I hereby decree this, as the bearer of the Shadow Monarch's Crown"

...and a surge of Shadows immediately flooded into Serenity. Her body warped. Grew. Changed.

"Arise"

The broken spear she wielded in a death grip reforged itself using blackened bone and shadows into a cross between a bladed mace and the lance it once was. Her armor reshaped itself as a bone mask formed over her face. She grew about half a foot in height as her body also restructured itself to better accommodate her new race and potential.

Her muscles compacted and its fibers rewove themselves.

Her bones shifted and increased in density and mass.

Her once deathly pallor regained a blush of color. A pale peach tone.

When the ritual finally finished, kneeling in the center of the circle, was none other than a revived Serenity. Her armor, which had bits and pieces broken off, slightly changed in aesthetics as her body was reforming itself. It had changed slightly from a practical form of European fantasy style bikini armor to a Chinese mantis-style fantasy armor. From her tailbone, extended a prehensile tail covered in the same chitinous plates composing the rest of her new armor, as I realized those were actually bone and not armor(at least, not all of it).

The remnants of her original armor had actually fused with the bones of her reforming body and this mixed metal-blackened bone alloy even formed a new weapon from the remnants of her broken lance. From the top of her head, two shiny black horn sprouted in two tiny curves, like a mandible from an insect while a pair of two blood-red feathery ribbons flowed from the two metal horns atop her helmet, much like the antennae of an insect.

Her legs had an insect-like set of armor covering her long legs ending in a practical form of high-heels with pale thighs showing within the gaps of her armor and clothing. I immediately used God's Eye to see what she became and...

[Image for basis of Character Inspiration: https://cdna.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/013/808/484/large/jaime-khons-c-02.jpg?1541173986]

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Name: Serenity Steelsoul

Race: Frankenstein(Lesser Revenant/Sin Eater/Flesh Golem Chimeric Hybrid)

Monster Core: Beautiful

Size: Human

Monster Power: Elemental Infusion(Shadow)

Classes: Shadow Warrior[Tier II, Unique] Level 13, Biomancer[Tier I, Hidden] Lvl 2, Shadow Mage[Tier I] Lvl 2

HP:---100%---

MP:---100%---

SP:---N/A---

Strength: A Magic: B-

Dexterity: B Mana Capacity: C-

Endurance: A- Intelligence: B-

Vitality: A- Wisdom: C++

Libido: A-

Perks: Infinite Stamina(Innate, Racial), Levelheaded, Malleable Physiology(Innate, Racial), Prime Directive, Spooky Calcium, Old Shoes, Tabula Rasa, Templar, Philanthrope

Flaws: Wrathful(Directed, Moderate), Lustful(Moderate), Elemental Vulnerability(Fire, Minor), Reduced Mana Capacity(Innate, Racial), Infertility(Barren)

Skills: Pole-arm Mastery(Expert), Acrobatic Combat(Adept), Battlefield Tactician(Expert), Seduction, Bedroom Arts

Spells: Shadow Magic(Initiate), Biomancy(Initiate), Eromancy(Adept), Spirit Attunement(Serpent), Rage, Immaculate Conception(Initiate), Flesh Sculpting(Initiate)

Current Emotions: Loving Devotion, Heartfelt Gratitude, Vindictive Spite(Focused), Instinctive Arousal(Severe)

Current Conditions: [Healthy]-[Fatigue(Minor, Mental)]

Kinks: Bisexual, Orgies, Oral Sex, Huge Loads, Large Cocks

Background: Serenity is the orphaned daughter of a barbarian warrior chief who once served as an old ally to the Blood Covenant of the Ancients. When her tribe came under attack by the former Demon King's forces, she was taken kicking and screaming from her home to safety, forced to watch as her family and tribe were slaughtered to a man buying the time for her and the other noncombatants to escape to the safety of the Covenant's territory. Serenity herself never forgave herself for her weakness and inability to protect those she loved most, and thus took up training like a madwoman just to ensure that such a tragedy never happens again if she could prevent it. She never blamed Dark races for what happened, as her family always taught her not all of them were as evil as the Churches and their priests sometimes made them out to be. Over time, she grew close as a playmate and childhood friend to Selene, and when they came of age, eventually became lovers after confirming their mutual feelings for one another when they discovered they were both barren and comforting one another.

She accompanied Selene as her personal guard when her coven was selected to fulfill a prophecy given to the Covenant by an oracle in passing But when Xalder, the Knight-captain of the Paladins of Marstole chased a group of fleeing succubi into the camp of the Coven while seeking out the champion foretold to appear in the suspected location, she was struck down in a dishonorable manner while she had approached before them to parley as a representative of a neutral faction. In an act of sheer will, befitting her tribe's name, clung her soul to her body, defying Death itself just to try and continue the battle. She has now been revived as a creature of the Dark, a Chimeric hybrid, due to the Champion of the Dark's method, yet her mind is still her own. She feels a deep debt of gratitude towards him, and wishes to repay him for not only saving her, but granting her the additional strength to protect that which she holds most dear.

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...unholy. Shit.

This girl was already pretty powerful before I brought her back to life. Now? I honestly feel pity for anyone fool enough to get on her bad side, especially since she has magic now. Shadow magic was expected. Biomancy was not. If I had to guess, the usage of Immaculate Conception, coupled with using my blood for the ritual, must of combined with the Shadow element in a manner that had some unintentional side effects upon the woman.

In more ways than one, looking at her new race.

I already thought she looked rather attractive before, despite the fact she was a fresh corpse. Hence, why I thought it was such a waste.

Now?

I was having a hell of a time keeping myself from popping a boner right then and there at her physical appearance. I even constructed a goddamned pair of pants out of Shadow magic, even using Immaculate Conception to make a hidden codpiece just to keep from embarrassing myself in such a solemn situation. And I could feel the damn thing strained with a muffled thudding noise as my Sisters be damned cocks kept battering the damn thing to the point I was worried it would break just to fuck this woman right her, right now.

...I really need to get laid.

SOON.

Selene walked forward, raising a nervous hand as she shakily began to speak, stuttering a choked sob back as brittle hope shone in her tear-filled eyes.

"S-Serenity? Are..are you..."

Serenity looked up as Selene, and the bone mask simply snapped of with a click as she grasped and removed to look at her lesbian lover. Her face was almost completely unchanged, save for her eyes now being a red color backed by a black sclera. But there was no denying the warmth and affection in her gaze, nor the loving smile once her revealed face gazed upon her.

"It's still me, Selene."

"Serenity!" Selene cried out as she rushed forth to embrace Serenity, breaking down into tears as Serenity hugged her close, rubbing comforting circles into her back in an attempt to soothe her lesbian love.

Smiling to myself, I nod in satisfaction as I immediately turn towards the surviving Paladins, the succubi and witches all glowering down at them. They look like they want to kill them, but my shadow simulacrums are keeping them back, much to their frustrations. I also noticed that Ophelia woke up and was staring at me, wide-eyed and in absolute shock at what I just did. Not surprising, considering I made sure to only give her a very light dose, though it is a little surprising it only knocked her out for about a minute. It should have lasted for half an hour. A quick check with God's Eye revealed she had actually developed a minor resistance to the confusion status ailment somehow...

...well that certainly explains a lot and nothing at all, all at the same time.

Ignoring that line of thought and shelving it for now(for the sake of my sanity, I am not getting into that right now. I'll leave it for future Raziel to deal with), I speak to Serenity and Selene while keeping my gaze firmly on Xalder.

"Now that you're back among the living Serenity, would you like to do the honors of dealing with Captain Xalder, here?"

Serenity and Selene, hearing the name while looking at me, before realizing I was referring to the Paladins I'd captured, Serenity gives a rather fiery look as she glares balefully at the broken and beaten Knight-captain.

"Gladly." Serenity grabs her mace-spear and prepares to move, Selene right at her side, before I stop them with a hand.

"Hold a moment. I have a few conditions, first."

""...what."" Serenity and Selene both say at the same exact moment, making me smirk slightly in amusement. Before they can start yelling, I continue.

"It's rather simple. Nothing too unreasonable. After all, like I said, I had plans for this lot. All I want are three simple things." I raise three fingers then lower them one by one as I list off my conditions.

"First, you do not hurt the battle nuns. They are not to be harmed. They are not to be raped. And they are to be cared for and taken prisoner as hostages for negotiations with the Church of Marstole. Specifically, with their Saintess Elmeria Levantine should hostilities begin to break out between them and us."

That got a brow raised by them as they considered my reasoning before nodding, thinking they knew what my game was.

I was a rape monster.

They were fertile women.

It wasn't hard to jump to what is the usual conclusion for what they believed I wanted them for, though I shook my head at the clear looks of disdain they gave me and glared at the insult they clearly thought of me to disabuse them of the mistaken assumption. My unimpressed and aggrieved deadpan made it clear that it wasn't what they thought I planned for them.

"My second condition," I spoke as I lowered my second finger to join the first as I pointed my remaining finger to Xalder, "is that when you kill him, I get his shit."

""...huh?"" The two beauties looked generally flummoxed, so I elaborated with a cheeky smile as a mad glint of greed shone in my eyes.

"His enchanted shit. I want it. The entire kit and all his gear. His enchanted armor, shield, hell, even his sword. I. Want. It. All."

They realized what I was asking for, and just shrugged. A single set of enchanted equipment didn't seem all that special to them, considered they were part of a coven of literal witches, so enchanted tools and equipment were probably par for the course for them. That was an easy enough condition for them. If anything, they probably thought I was getting the short end of the deal. They didn't realize what I did about his enchanted shit. So in reality, I was the one getting the steal, here.

"My final condition," I lowered my third finger as I lowered my hand down, "is that you allow me to make each of the male paladins a single one-time offer before we kill any of them. Xalder included."

They frowned at what I was asking them. After all, most would question just what the deal I was wanting to make was, or even if said deal would end in me saving them and going back on my word. After looking at each other in silent communication, the way only those who've known and been by each others side for years can, Serenity looked to me with a serious look and asked my reason.

"What are you going to offer them?" Her eyes narrowed in suspicion, but I simply grinned in a manner that showed clear mischief that had any hardened gangsters or stoic mobsters from Earth's criminal underworld seen it, would have immediately started running while screaming like little girls and swearing to every god they could they'd go straight and legit right then and there.

"I'm simply going to offer them a choice. What happens to them afterwards depends entirely upon their answer to said choice."

They simply narrowed their eyes as an uneasy feeling became clear on their faces. Mustering her courage, Serenity asks a question that gets a wide, shark-like grin to split my face, reflective of my new inhuman status.