Wohard stared at the corpse of Helana VII beneath the black velvet cloth, and slowly spoke:
“Human? Well, that’s not surprising. Many of the Demon Race used to be Human or Elves or something—far too many have walked the path of corruption.”
Corruption? Ascension! The weak Humans’ fear of the Divine Power of Heaven Above is why they use that derogatory word.
“According to legend.” Sovinia lowered her legs from the chair, her toes barely brushing the floor, “He originally came from another world. No one knows which. He fell into the Demon World, and was tossed by the local Demon warlords straight into a Mine, forced to work alongside those captured Humans.”
As she spoke, the feeling of her toes touching the ground was too uncomfortable, so she stood up to continue:
“In the Mine, he met a Human female, named Helana. Then, legend says, for some reason, he obtained a Birdclaw, and made a Wish to it. Let me see, maybe it’s in this Dining Hall?”
Wohard frowned. “Birdclaw? What kind of Birdclaw?”
Sovinia didn’t answer. She was already moving to one wall of the Dining Hall, where she knocked several times, and a small cabinet door appeared.
Her slender finger traced lightly across the cabinet, dark gold demonic runes lighting up at her touch and emitting a low hum.
The cabinet recognized its owner. The runes flashed three times, and with a soft “click”, the door sprang open.
Sovinia reached deep into the cabinet, fumbled a bit, then turned around, holding something high in the air.
It was a shriveled claw, its three toe bones all curled into a fist, the talons sharp and glinting with a sinister, dark red sheen.
Wohard stood rooted to the spot, his green eyes fixed intently on the claw as he slowly said,
“That… that thing… looks like a leftover chicken claw?”
***
Sovinia looked down at the Birdclaw in her hand, thinking to herself: Indeed, it really does look like a chicken claw.
She glanced at Wohard, her face expressionless, and said, “They say it can grant a person’s Wish, but there’s a price to pay.”
She walked back to the table and set the Birdclaw on its surface. In the candlelight, the withered claw cast a twisted shadow, crawling on the wall as if it were alive.
“Back then, Kimi made a Wish, caught the gaze of the Evil God, was blessed, and then carved a bloody path, advancing to a stronger Demon, climbing higher and higher, until he became the First Heavenly King. And by his side, there was always a Human servant named Helana.”
As Sovinia spoke, she couldn’t help but recall the scene in her mind.
It was in the deepest, abandoned shaft of the Mine. She—or no, back then “he”, that Human Mine slave covered in wounds—clutched the Birdclaw tightly.
Helana stood before him: “Don’t… don’t touch that thing! That has to be some Evil God artifact of the Demon Race!”
But he couldn’t care anymore. That day, the Mine’s Supervisor had beaten three people to death and starved five more. He would be next. He didn’t want to die. He wanted to live. He wanted revenge. He wanted power.
So he made his first Wish.
“I want to become two-point-one meters tall, with two hearts, three lungs, and black chitin under my skin… the kind of powerhouse called Astartes.”
The Birdclaw was silent for a moment. It slipped from his hand and scrawled a line on the ground: “Fifteen word limit.”
At the same time, the Birdclaw curled one talon down—he had used one Wish.
In a panic, he said, “I want Ascension, I want to become an immortal.”
Something in the darkness awoke. From Heaven Above, a “being” turned its gaze to him.
Sovinia remembered, that was the beginning of Ascension.
Divine Power from Heaven Above became a red light, bursting out of the darkness and flooding into his seven orifices, tearing his flesh apart. He accepted this power, letting it cleanse and remake him.
In the agony of Ascension, he howled loudly as his body began to “ascend”, his bones making an excruciating cracking sound.
When the light faded—
Helana screamed and staggered backward, falling to the ground, watching his transformation in terror.
When it was over, he was no longer Human… no, he had ascended into a completely new species. He turned and left, returning only at dusk, dragging the corpse of the Supervisor.
That day, he got his starting capital, and could finally use his Card System to grow stronger step by step.
But from that day on, Helana never looked at him the way she used to.
***
Sovinia lowered her eyelids, her long lashes pressing the memory back down into her heart. She looked up at Wohard and added calmly,
“See, all three claws have curled into fists. That means Kimi the Coldhearted has already made his three Wishes.”
Wohard stared at the Birdclaw, the vigilance in his eyes not diminishing at all. He didn’t move closer, but instead stepped back half a pace:
“This thing… is absolutely an evil artifact. I can feel the malice it emits.”
“It’s fine.” Sovinia said, “You see, all three claws are curled into fists. That means Kimi the Coldhearted has already made his three Wishes. It’s just a keepsake now.”
But that’s only for Kimi the Coldhearted…
Wohard moved over to the corner where Helana VII’s corpse lay. “So that’s it… she actually stayed with Kimi the Coldhearted for so long?”
“No,” Sovinia shook her head. “This is the seventh.”
“The seventh?” Wohard was stunned. “You mean…”
“Helana VII,” Sovinia emphasized the number, “Every time a Helana dies, he finds a new Human female and gives her the same name.”
Wohard’s face grew even darker. “So what happened to the first one?”
Sovinia was silent for a moment, then slowly began, “She loathed the Kimi the Coldhearted of that time. After he became a Demon, she saw him and called him a monster, even though he took her out of the Mine and let her live a safe life with food and clothing.”
“That sounds like,” Wohard frowned, “Kimi the Coldhearted was at least a bit sympathetic? I mean, if he was hated just because his race changed…”
Sovinia cut him off: “Maybe it was because she saw him performing Energy Recovery.”
“What do you mean, Energy Recovery?”
“That is, eating the corpses of his fellow Demon Supervisors to recover energy and heal wounds.” Sovinia’s tone remained calm, as if describing something utterly normal. “Helana saw it, and believed he was no longer who he once was, and called him a monster.”
She remembered—after the battle with the Supervisor, covered in wounds, after bringing Helana food, he would find a corner to perform “Energy Recovery”.
Wohard took a deep breath. “Then Helana’s reaction was normal. Any normal person who saw that would… Anyway, Kimi the Coldhearted deserved what he got. Was that woman really important to him?”
“When they were still Mine slaves, they relied on each other,” Sovinia said, a strange emotion rising in her chest. She wanted to say something for herself, to explain the beheading of her old enemy: “Even though he performed Energy Recovery, when Helana called him a monster, she was still holding food Kimi the Coldhearted gave her.”
“But Helana wasn’t wrong,” Wohard’s voice grew cold, “Kimi the Coldhearted had already become a cannibal… he’d become a monster, just like now. Good thing he’s dead.”
Sovinia suddenly cut in, “It’s called Energy Recovery!”
Wohard was surprised: “Is there a difference?”
“There is.”
Wohard stared at her for a few seconds, then shook his head. “Fine, call it what you want. Still, he shouldn’t have killed Helana, right?”
“He didn’t kill her.”
“I thought he killed Helana.”
“He found her a job in the Demon World.”
“Handmaiden?”
“Yes,” Sovinia nodded, “To test for poison—and then she died.”
***
Wohard opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end only sighed. His gaze lingered on Sovinia’s face for a moment, his tone puzzled:
“I don’t get it. Why are you telling me about the dead Kimi the Coldhearted? He’s dead. I cut off his head myself.”
Sovinia’s heart tightened. She lowered her lashes to hide her gaze, speaking as lightly as she could, “Just chatting. What do you think?”
“Everyone who walks the path of corruption ends up the same—nothing special.” Wohard turned to the window, his back to her. “Maybe the Coldhearted was once Human, but he’s long been a monster. I’d love to chop his head off again.”
Sovinia watched his back, a cold gleam flashing in her golden eyes.
Good, good, stupid mutt talks like that, huh. Next time I backstab you, I’ll stab an extra time.
She picked up the Birdclaw from the table, walked behind Wohard, and held it out. “Take it as a trophy.”
Wohard turned around and, seeing the Birdclaw in her hand, instinctively tried to retreat. But Sovinia had already brought the Birdclaw to him.
The moment the Birdclaw neared Wohard, something strange happened.
The three claws, which had been curled into a fist, suddenly began to uncurl, making a faint grinding sound.
Wohard’s expression changed drastically. He leaped back, his hand already gripping his axe handle. “What is this?!”
Sovinia looked at the Birdclaw opening in her hand and said calmly, “Looks like the Birdclaw has taken a liking to you. Make a Wish, and it’ll grant you three Wishes.”
Either way, a mutt from the Demon Race is easier to control than a mutt from the Human Race, at least their worldview is the same.
“Don’t joke around!” Wohard grabbed his battle axe, the blade glinting coldly in the candlelight. “I’ll chop it now! It must be an evil artifact!”
He stepped forward, raising his axe.
Sovinia immediately pulled the Birdclaw to her chest, turning her body slightly to block Wohard’s view.
“Hand it over, Miss Sovinia.” Wohard’s voice lowered, growing serious. “This thing can’t be kept.”
Sovinia shook her head. “No. At the very least, it’ll be my trump card. If things get desperate in the future, I can use it…”
“Miss Sovinia!” Wohard’s voice rose, “You don’t understand how dangerous this thing is! It’s already harmed people. We can’t let it hurt anyone else!”
Sovinia still said nothing, only fixing him with those cold, golden eyes.