“I smell it on you, give it to me before I rip off your clothes!” Mercedes yells.

  “Hey, hold on now, what are you talking about?” Mateo says scurrying away.

  “Cheese, you have cheese,” she says grabbing at his shirt.

  “I do not have cheese, wait, Natalia!”

  Natalia appears holding a large block of goatveil cheese. Mercedes’ pupils widen as she stares at it longingly.

  “Just a piece, I won’t be greedy, just a corner,” Mercedes says her eyes almost begging.

  “Natalia, give the girl some cheese,” Mateo says with a sigh.

  Natalia breaks off a piece throwing it to her. Mercedes lunges forward devouring it like a ravenous beast.

  “I think I might like her,” Natalia says shoving a large piece of cheese in her tiny mouth.

  “Natalia, how are you not morbidly obese?” Mateo asks.

  “I masturbate a lot,” she replies.

  “I’m sorry, you what?”

  “Oops, that didn’t translate right, I metabolize a lot,” she says with a sweet smile.

  “Yeah, I’ll ignore that, if you two could entertain each other I need to read this tome, I just remembered my level was high enough to read it,” Mateo says pulling the book of Sanguine from his inventory.

  “Wait, you’re not going to read that here are you?” Mercedes says bolting toward him.

  “Well, yeah, where else would I read it?” He asks.

  “In your void palace where it can’t unleash the powers of Sanguine upon the Twilight Everglades,” she replies.

  “You’re right,” Mateo says holding out his hand.

  Mercedes takes it and they appear inside Mateo’s void palace. Sapphire greets them almost immediately, placing plates of food infront of them and kissing Mateo on the cheek.

  “Chocolate,” she says gleefully.

  “Can I, go rest on my own?” Mercedes asks.

  “You are welcome here, make a place to rest and I will not disturb you, or your brother, Sapphire needs my attention right now, I’ll see you after dinner if you decide to join me.”

  After revealing her past to Mateo, Mercedes seems more comfortable with him, still timid for some reason, but not hostile, unless cheese is involved.

  “How have you been Sapphire?” Mateo asks.

  “Chocolate,” she replies devouring a large bar of it. “Chocolate?” She asks peering around the empty kitchen.

  “I didn’t bring anyone else except the nezumi girl and her brother, what do you think of them by the way?”

  “Chocolate,” she replies.

  A strangely shaped humanoid formed creature resembling a young elven boy sits beside Mateo at the kitchen table. He grips a large mug filled with squeezed berry juice chugging it down in a few gulps.

  “Timid, afraid, the girl, no, the woman is frightened, her appearance of youth is a fa?ade, she has passed through many years, far more than her mortal form would allow,” the young male elf turns to Mateo with a smile, “I shall call her nana due to her advanced age.”

  “Uh… she might not like that, thanks for the heads up though Rayo, I’ll talk to her in a bit after she has rested,” Mateo says.

  “Ok, I stay with sexy slime lady,” he says holding out his large mug.

  Sapphire blushes, as much as her viscous blue cheeks will allow, and pours more juice into his mug.

  Seven hours pass in Mateo’s void domain. Less time passes in the realm of Gottes. Mateo rests meditating in a large den between the kitchen and the stairs to the dormitories. Mercedes steps downstairs in an oversized nightgown that likely belongs to Serenity, it smells like her anyway.

  “Good morning, or whatever passes for daybreak in the void,” Mateo says greeting her.

  “Morning is fine, and I think I know why all the women around you seem so seduced by your presence,” she says sitting beside him.

  “Really, and why is that?” Mateo questions.

  “Serenity wears a perfume, cherry blossoms and gold petal infused with nightbloom nectar, it’s a rare aphrodisiac used by young women wishing to find a mate,” she replies.

  “Oh, I just thought I might be attractive, but it makes more sense that the ladies want me because I smell like the sexiest elfess in the kingdom,” he pauses for a moment with a crooked smile, “the men too I suppose,” Mateo says stirring a cube of sugar into black water.

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  “Ask her how old she is,” Natalia says appearing on Mateo’s shoulder.

  “That’s rude Natalia,” Mateo scoffs flicking her.

  “Owe, that hurt asshole,” Natalia says pelting him on the cheek with some small snack resembling a raisin.

  “It’s fine, I actually wanted to talk to you about why I want to leave the Twilight Everglades and King Calladen’s service but I,” she pauses, “needed to see how you would react first.”

  Mercedes’ tail darts about the air behind her and Mateo’s eyes follow, his mind having not registered anything she just said.

  “Lord Ryusane?”

  Mateo snaps out of his trance like state staring down at the mug of black water he has stirred over zealously. Dark liquid covers the table soaking into it before dissipating into the void.

  “Don’t mind me, please continue,” Mateo says taking a sip of what he calls ‘coffee’.

  Mercedes’ ears flutter a little as her tail darts about behind her, again drawing Mateo’s attention.

  “Calladen liberated my people all those years ago, and I am grateful, but godsir Garren found me, interesting, he wanted me to be around, we are good friends, at the request of Calladen he granted me and my brother immortality,” she sighs woefully. “That was over three hundred years ago, beastmen, especially nezumi, live short lives, I have lived through the conception and natural loss of two generations of my children, watching them grow and raise their own children only to perish before my eyes.” She stops tilting her head as Mateo’s eyes track her tail darting back and forth.

  “Are you listening?” She asks her voice seeming irritated.

  Mateo reaches out grabbing her tail and she shrieks.

  “WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!”

  “Sorry, what were you saying?” Mateo replies.

  “Unhand my tail you vile pervert,” Mercedes says her tone now defensive.

  “Oh sorry, it was just waving around, you can’t just be waving your thing around and not expect someone to notice.”

  “You cannot go touching nezumi’s tales without permission you barbarian,” she scoffs. “Did you hear anything I just told you about my struggles in life or why I’m here?”

  “She’s spying on you for Calladen and Garren,” Natalia says with a mouthful of pruneberry oats.

  Mateo releases Mercedes’ tail and takes a sip of his coffee. He gently places the mug on the table taking a deep breath.

  “Immortality isn’t the great gift it’s supposed to be, lady death would be glad to hear that, I’m sorry that you had to watch your children grow old and die, but why does Garren, god of foreskin have you spying on me?”

  Natalia chuckles, now amused by the reference to her former ‘not boyfriend’ as the god of foreskin.

  “He’s the god of foresight, and something is happening in the realm of the gods, he wouldn’t tell me, but he seemed distraught.”

  “He accused me of killing the goddess of destiny,” Mateo replies.

  “He, wait, the goddess of destiny is dead?” Mercedes asks her pupils growing wide.

  “It is unusual for people to accuse someone of killing the living, even the gods I presume, I don’t know much about the gods, but he didn’t seem convinced it was me and now that I know he had you spying on me I’m curious as to why.”

  Mercedes stares down at the void made table. It seems like a normal oak wood table, but in a shade of darkness.

  “He wanted me to test your integrity, not all realm walkers are,” she pauses turning her pale blue eyes toward him, “decent creatures.”

  Mateo sets down his cup of coffee pulling the book of Sanguine from his inventory. He sets it on the table laying it out on display for Mercedes to see.

  “You said this tome would summon Sanguine, is he a god that can be bargained with?” Mateo asks.

  Sapphire brings two plates of food filled with scrambled chikus eggs and fried boardrel placing them on the table infront of them. There are also a few pieces of sliced toast covered in jamberry spread. Mercedes picks one up taking a bite out of it.

  “Who would have thought you could cut bread vertically as opposed to horizontally?”

  Mateo smiles brushing his plate aside as he picks up the tome. The unnatural scripture itself is a jet black leather bound with blood red stitching. The cover of it is adorned with the image of a strange crimson ritual circle.

  “The gods are not ones to bargain, unless you have something to offer,” Mercedes says tilting her head as Natalia appears sneaking food from Mateo’s plate.

  Quest activated: Scour the realm of Gottes in a near endless search for a cure for the ‘Sanguine Curse’. Study the Book of Sanguine to unlock the secrets of curing the Sanguine curse.

  The tome on the table glows as if directing Mateo to read it. He reaches down placing his hand on the cover. Natalia sneaks another piece of fried boardrel off his plate munching on it greedily.

  “Close your eyes and infuse it with your mana,” Mercedes says.

  Mateo closes his eyes and his blood fizzles into a rolling boil as he infuses the tome with mana. The room around him dissipates and instead of Sanguine coming to him, he is delivered into the Blood Garden of Sanguine.

  Thorned rose bushes surround him giving off a pleasant scent. An unseen aperture allows a gentle glow to fill the area. Mateo looks up at a sky that is not blue, but violet. Golden clouds fill it giving off an air of royalty. Mateo turns his attention to the sound of boots pattering against hard stone. A man steps from a circular stone pathway that wraps around the garden taking a short bow.

  “I am lord Sanguine, the blood god,” he says rising.

  Sanguine stands before him slightly taller dressed in a black suit with his long crimson hair slicked back. The pattering was not from boots, but polished black dress shoes.

  “Mr. Ryusane, or should I call you Lord Ryusane?” he asks.

  “My name doesn’t matter, nor does how you address me, I’m sure you know why I summoned you, or rather, why I am here,” Mateo replies.

  “Serenity?”

  “Yes.”

  Sanguine steps into the garden running his hand over the petals of a blood rose with a grin. His eyes return to Mateo his grin replaced with a hungry smile.

  “I cannot undo the curse, I can only transfer it to a blood relative,” Sanguine steps into arms reach of Mateo placing his hands behind his back. “The price for her soul is a heavy one.”

  “I’ll pay any price for her,” Mateo replies.

  “Not you boy, the elf king.”

  Mateo pauses taking in his words carefully. If Sanguine is willing to cure Serenity of the curse in exchange for her father’s soul, then it must be worth far more to him than hers. Additionally, Serenity won’t be too happy about burdening her father, the only family Mateo knows she has left.

  “And there is no other way?” Mateo asks.

  “That is my price for her soul,” Sanguine replies.

  “And if he says no?”

  “Then her soul remains mine for eternity.”

  Mateo steps over to one of the rose bushes gripping it by the stem. He squeezes and thorns dig into his palm. Blood runs down his forearm as he lifts a bushel of roses up to smell them. His eyes turn to meet sanguine’s as the blood-soaked bushel of roses slips from his hand. Mateo’s pupils darken to two swirling voids, and he smiles sinisterly.

  “I’ll ask, but if he agrees and you go back on your word, or you do anything that hurts Serenity or prevents her from fulfilling her dreams, then your corpse will be what fertilizes this garden.”

  “Strong words for a-.”

  Mateo shuts the tome returning to his void domain. He sets the book on the table pulling his plate to him as Mercedes stares at him curiously.

  “Well, what did he say?” Mercedes asks.

  “The price of a soul is a soul,” Mateo replies thorking some scrambled chikus eggs into his mouth.

  “But who’s soul is worth that of a princess?”

  “Not mine I’m afraid,” Mateo says with a smile patting her head.

  “Hey, don’t pat me I’m a grown ass woman!” Mercedes yells swatting his hand away.