Devouring Monarch: Rebirth of the Profane Phoenix

Xavida looked around the classroom and felt it had changed drastically since Asura wasn't there. Her eyes watched Mu Xue, and anger, bitterness, and strange feelings flooded her heart after they again clashed upon returning to the mansion. Mu Xue was a constant reminder that Asura loved them equally.

The time for her being selfish and keeping him to herself was over.

'Asura...' she thought in a solemn mood.

Her fingers stroked a piece of his hair she cut off and made into a little trinket for her quill pen. She missed him so much and hoped he would be okay.

After all, the Tower of Death was famous even in her homeland, and many challengers died when they got too confident.

"Xavida Bahamot!" Lorem's low voice enveloped the room as her brows furrowed while the book in her hand almost became charcoal in her hands; from her narrow red eyes, it seemed she was furious. "Do you have anything better to do than daydreaming!?"

"No, Professor." Xavida lowered her head, but the corners of her mouth raised slightly because this was an unusual sight. Lorem was usually strict with her, Mu Xue, and Asura, but now she seemed angry with everyone, so her anger became less intense.

"Then pay attention!" Lorem frowned. "Or maybe you want to be punished with extra training instead?"

Xavida dared not say anything and returned to listening to Lorem teach the class.

'Why do I miss him so much?' Xavida asked herself while looking at the piece of hair in her hands.

Then, the strange churning of the anima in her abdomen reminded her of a warmth that could never leave her. A feeling as if Asura stood beside her and held her from behind allowed her as if to tell her to behave.

With this, her obsessive and compulsive thoughts faded as her eyes moved to the board and began listening to Lorem intently.

Mu Xue looked at Xavida from the side with narrowed eyes, then snorted softly and turned back.

'Hmph. Mu Xue looks jealous because she failed to get pregnant the last time they had sex. Fufu.'

Xavida giggled inwardly but quickly stopped because Lorem noticed and pointed at her while reading from the book... with that, Xavida followed on with a high-pitched voice.

"The existence of magicians and knights above the Tenth Stage is untrue. These are stories past leaders told to bolster their prestige." Xavida's soft tone charmed many who watched with envious gazes, but she didn't care as she finished the passage under Lorem's watchful eyes.

Lorem nodded, satisfied with Xavida's performance, before continuing. "Yes! Many claim there is no way to break past the Tenth Stage barrier. It is said that any human body cannot contain the magic of those surpassing it and will slowly erode and kill the owner."

****

"Okay, remember to read through this book before next week's magic lesson. There is also a training session in the afternoon!" Lorem said, her eyes growing dim the moment the lesson ended.

Shortly after the lesson ended, Xavida collected her things and rushed out of the room. She was exempt from today's practice and planned to go home and sleep in Asura's bed.

However...

"Xavida."

Mu Xue's graceful voice sounded before she could leave the room. Her ice blue hair and eyes, no longer reverting to their former colour after her change, stepped towards her with a strange smile, and her eyes opened wide, with loose eyebrows.

'She doesn't look angry..' Xavida thought inwardly and hesitated but still stopped walking and waited for Mu Xue to speak.

"I know we've been competing since Asura left, but I think it's time we both bury our issues. However, I cannot promise to be your sister or good friend. There is no reason for us to fight and cause problems. That way Asura will grow distant from both of us. He has many other women to choose from, you know?"

Mu Xue smiled sweetly, but Xavida knew what she meant.

'So, you don't want me to monopolise him like the past.' Xavida's brows furrowed inwardly, but she smiled and replied. "I agree, Mu Xue. We should stop fighting."

Yet she thought Mu Xue might have a point. Princess Vela, the new fiancée Verana, and Asura's strength snowballing.

'I don't want to hand him over to other women, but if I could choose the women at least,' Xavida thought inwardly, then sighed as Mu Xue walked away while humming.

Xavida watched Mu Xue's back disappear and remembered Asura saying she and Mu Xue needed to change.

At first, Xavida couldn't understand why, but now she understood. Mu Xue had changed for Asura, and though she did not hate Mu Xue as much as before, it was no longer impossible to trust her.

"Let's try to be civil with Mu Xue. The other women I don't care about can wait, but at least she gave Asura so much," Xavida muttered softly.

After leaving the classroom, Xavida ran through the corridor and reached Asura's quarters. The maids greeted her respectfully while carrying baskets filled with laundry because it was time to change the sheets, but Xavida shook her head and smiled. "No, I will clean them. You can go for now!"

"Okay, Miss Xavida." The maids bowed respectfully before leaving the room with a slight smile because Xavida was nicer lately. They also seemed to know her habits of rolling in his old sheets. Thus, they waited until she came home and cleaned the rest of the mansion.

After closing the door, Xavida stripped naked and threw herself onto Asura's bed, where she rolled around happily, but slowly, her smile and sparkling eyes dimmed.

"His scent is fading... Asura, when will you come home?" She kicked the bed with her feet while falling asleep slowly, the handsome visage of Asura on her mind.

****

A silver flash of steel cut across the wasteland. The beautiful blade sliced two giant wolves with mottled fur and sharp teeth in half.

Their bellies shrunk because of lack of food and water, and their ribs were visible as both suffered from malnutrition, yet their bloodshot eyes focused on the figure wielding a sword surrounding them with his speed and elegant steps.

"Damn! Why is it so hot!?" Asura groaned as he wiped sweat from his face and neck with his hand that glowed a slight blue using ice magic to cool his body under the scorching heat.

Grrrr!

The two wolves were originally a pack of twelve Stage Five wolves, but now their entire pack lay dead. Asura didn't feel bad. This place of illusions irritated him, only he discovered some changes in his body since fusing with the three past lives that might be clearer due to them entering the monoliths.

"My swordsmanship is improving so much faster, Auros. You were such a genius with the sword... but it feels strange that I could summon a new soul weapon."

The silver blade the prince used until his death became longer and more slender. A thin blade could easily slice the flesh and bones of these monsters, with bones stronger than stone.

Asura enjoyed the feeling of his improved swordsmanship. Although he had learned fast in the past, he lacked a detailed understanding of the sword.

The previous techniques taught by Lorem, Lucia, and Sigurd felt slow and unsuitable for him, as he relied on brute force rather than technique.

However, this style differed from the one used by Prince Auros.

'It's like the demon swordsmanship in my mind is being recreated each moment, stealing the best parts of Auros and Sigurd's styles while letting me learn and improve my skill... rather than using force.'

"I thought I was a genius because of the past few months. However, learning of my past life as Auros, there is so much to learn." Asura grinned, his eyes flashing with a hint of arrogance, thinking of how talented Auros once was with a sword.

And how to surpass him now that they were one person.

He did not know how fast he progressed compared to others because Lorem, Lucia, and Sigurd kept his skills hidden from others and other people's growth in him. 'Maybe I might have been decent before, but now... I can become a genuine genius.'

Asura flicked the eastern nodachi, almost identical in shape to Vela, but he seemed a little longer because of his height difference. He then felt the power of these illusions being devoured, a suction more vibrant than before. As the thoughts of Auros controlled the monolith, Asura felt everything.

The amount, the speed and even the sensation became more intense after Helliana left the phoenix totem. Now she slept on his shoulder, unbothered by combat and she would absorb small little bits of magic from him.

Only a small amount, so Asura didn't mind.

Asura closed his eyes and sensed the world around him. His senses spread through the area as he tried to locate the exit of this illusion realm.

'The changes in my body, and that woman thinks I am dead, make me feel more at ease. Even though I need to kill my enemies,' Asura thought as he sensed something and sprinted forward without hesitation.

Dust rose beneath his boots as he dashed through the wasteland filled with corpses.

At first, it seemed like a dozen wolves were his only victims, but then there were more and more...

Until the corpses numbered over a hundred, he dashed through the wasteland.

His body, light as a feather, tapped the ground and flung into the air, his beautiful black-and-white wings fluttering as he glided through the searing blue skies.

'Thank god, Sura was a natural-born dragon... flight is so much easier now,' Asura thought, smiling wryly.

Flying was not bad before, but it took effort to master because he needed to consider weight, wind speed and other things. Accepting Sura's existence allowed him to understand these things, like walking or running for a human.