YM778.TV Chapter 92: A memory painted in White
"Nothing much. Just what was already inside," he murmured, looking at his hand, which felt heavier...
"I still don\'t fully understand the essence of negativity, but... something this simple is enough for now, don\'t you think?" Vergil asked as he sat on the ground, surrounded by a perfectly smooth field, just like the tree stump where Sapphire was sitting.
"You tell me. How strong do you think you\'ve become?" she questioned again, continuing to push him. After all, she didn\'t have to explain. A good master guides their disciple based on what they understand about themselves.
"I don\'t know. It\'s hard to measure when... I don\'t have to worry about the amount of internal energy I have. My heart keeps generating more and more energy... even though I don\'t need any of it." He explained while placing his hand on his heart, feeling the pulse of energy.
"It seems you still don\'t fully understand... You\'re not just a demon anymore, boy. You\'re not simply generating energy; you\'re fortifying your soul. Absolute Demonic Energy—your body is your soul, and your soul is your body. The more energy you have, the stronger you become. The stronger you get, the more your soul will develop. You\'re on a path that exists for no one but you," she said, smiling as she looked at the shirtless man, his body completely sweaty, fatigue clear on his face...
"All this, just to beat up a ridiculous guy..." he murmured. "At least I\'m getting a little less bored now," he muttered to himself, clenching his fist.
"You\'re funny, you know that?" she teased. "You\'re not even that strong yet, and you already find everything completely boring. You remind me a bit of that woman," Sapphire said into the wind as a memory flashed through her mind, one she cherished.
"Huh? You remember someone? I thought you were just a complete demon who lived only to satisfy your desires, not caring about people." Vergil joked as he buttoned up a black collared shirt.
"Hmm, few people actually live in my thoughts... she\'s one of the few," she murmured while gazing at the sky.
"And who was this woman? Don\'t tell me you\'re into women? That doesn\'t seem to suit you," Vergil said as he watched the distracted woman.
"I don\'t think it\'s like that... Many people have tried to teach me about love, but I never cared about things like that, and the same goes for her..." Sapphire murmured, but Vergil heard her perfectly.
"And who was she?" he asked, genuinely curious now. Someone tried to teach love to this demon?
"Branca," she said with a smile, remembering an old story.
"I was summoned by a human, one with an extremely weak will, in my eyes. Powerful demons or those with superior bloodlines like ours can\'t easily invade the human world to fulfill contracts; we need something in return, and she offered me her entire existence, not to destroy her enemy... but to save him." Sapphire laughed as she put a hand over her mouth, hiding her smile, as if embarrassed.
"Hmm, so someone could summon me?" he wondered aloud. "If you want to get stronger, you\'ll have to fulfill some contracts to absorb soul essences, so, at some point, yes. Though nowadays, soul-selling is more complicated," Sapphire responded. "It was my last contract. Despite her will and kindness, I found her interesting and accepted. I took her soul and turned her into a demon. Her name became Branca, white, for her purity and honor," she said, laughing. "Today, I see how foolish I was," she added.
"What happened to Branca?" Vergil asked. "She turned against me, and I killed her," Sapphire suddenly cut in, making Vergil frown.
"Just like that?" he asked incredulously. "Yes, just like that. Who could betray me, right? I\'m a cruel demon, I had plenty of reasons, hahaha," Sapphire laughed, hiding her face behind her red hair.
"Sapphire... You..." Vergil began to murmur, but Sapphire\'s hand stopped him. "No," she replied.
"She was mine... When you get stronger, I\'ll tell you. Unless you want to use your wish to know now," Sapphire smiled, teasing him, as her emerald eyes gleamed.
"If you didn\'t want to talk about it, you could\'ve just said so," Vergil said, turning away. "Thanks for the lesson, Master." He walked off without looking back, not hesitating for a moment.
"So, that\'s how it\'s going to be? What a cheeky boy," she said, smiling. "Where are you going?!" she shouted, and Vergil just waved behind him. "Unlike you, who has time to think about the past, I have to go prepare for my future, idiot master," Vergil smiled as he looked back slightly.
"Have fun reliving your best moments with your dear friend, and next time, learn to lie better, Sapphire Agares," Vergil said, disappearing in a blur.
"That boy..." she murmured after watching him vanish with a comfortable smile. "Being bold and sarcastic with his own master, I\'ll have to punish him!" she thought strongly as she began counting how many times he had uniquely challenged her existence, again and again.
The irreverent tone and the direct way he confronted her revealed something beyond mere disdain. He wasn\'t afraid of her, and that made him intriguing.
Everyone around her feared her, walking on eggshells, careful not to anger her and unleash her fury. But him? He was reckless. Nothing mattered, not even the existence of a formidable being like her.
Sapphire remained there for a few minutes, contemplating the emptiness around her. The perfect and controlled landscape, sculpted by a divine technique she hadn\'t seen in thousands of years. Such a technique... it made her heart warm, knowing it was only the beginning. She was so excited inside that even her brutal and manic side had completely vanished.
She just felt that she should live this moment with that boy because perhaps... it might be her last chance to create what she had always wanted.
At the same time...
"Branca... In the end, I really grew tired of this... Just as you predicted, My Sister," she murmured, gazing at the horizon. The cynical laugh that followed revealed a mix of pain and regret, something rare for someone like her.
"I should have said that I was waiting to meet him again... It would have been funny for you to meet this boy; he reminds me so much of you," she said, standing up.
She closed her eyes for a moment, twisted her body, stretching and yawning afterward. Her toned body was almost exposed for anyone to see, but she wouldn\'t mind killing whoever dared to look at her now. She was feeling a little sentimental.
"Hey Branca... I think you would love to see his potential in person, just like I do," she whispered, her voice lost in the wind. "Maybe you\'d even appreciate him. Who knows, in another time, he might have been your heir. After all, a clan without an heir is quite unfortunate." Sapphire smiled again, an enigmatic smile that blended pain and pride.
"What am I even saying, fufufu," Sapphire smiled to herself, feeling the gentle breeze caress her skin as she walked away from the training grounds.
There was something familiar about the way she thought of Vergil, as if she were reliving old feelings she believed she had buried with the past. His presence awakened something different, something conflicting, that she had long avoided.
"You were always stubborn, but you could never take him from me," she murmured to herself, almost as if speaking directly to her old friend. The image of Branca, with all her determination and purity, still lingered in her mind.
Sapphire felt a mix of pride and possessiveness when she thought about Vergil. He had a potential that few had ever shown—a raw, untamable power that she knew she could shape, like a rare piece of art.
But beyond the power, it was his audacity and sarcasm that captivated her.
He didn\'t bow to her.
He challenged her, pushed her limits, and provoked her deepest emotions. Sapphire was used to being feared, but Vergil treated her existence with a unique irreverence, something she rarely encountered.
"What am I saying?" she laughed softly, shaking her head. "As if anyone could take him from me."
With one last glance at the training grounds, she turned toward the direction of her mansion. The enigmatic smile still lingered on her lips, a mixture of desire, pride, and a shadow of something deeper.
A feeling she might never admit out loud, at least, not the Sapphire of now.
"That boy... still has much to learn. But he\'ll get there," she whispered, almost like a promise to herself.
And with that, Sapphire disappeared.