I show up in a simple place, an endless glass plain where I see Aurora lying on the ground, not caring about anything. In all these years, she hasn't left her spot, hasn't reacted, hasn't begged for anything, just waited patiently.
"I see you've come to see me," she says in that voice I've learned to dislike.
"Do you really not care about anything?" I question, knowing the answer. She's already gotten what she wanted, and since she has what she wants, she doesn't mind being trapped. Plus, unlike the 7, she's not afraid of anything except being alone for eternity, which won't happen completely because I exist.
"Believe me, I'm impressed by how far you've come," she says falsely as I approach.
"You've become strong and creative," she says, referring to the way I use the prism with infinite sides to fight. Normally, I release attacks I've captured on my enemies from within it.
For example, most wouldn't know how to react if they were suddenly hit by a tsunami, and that's easy to do just take water out of the prism. And that works for anything of any size.
I can throw mountains, lava, acid, or anything else I know exists and isn't a living being. The prism with infinite sides is very versatile, despite being a sealing weapon.
"Compliments now just seem empty," I say, approaching her and looking at her face.
"I'm sorry you feel that way," she says in that lying tone. She doesn't care how much I suffer.
"You're so fake," I say, being ignored by her.
"...What do you want, coming in here?" she questions with false interest.
"I just came to cool my head after an unpleasant conversation. I wanted to see those who made me suffer, suffering as well," I tell her.
"I see, and did that satisfy you?"
"Yes," I lie. It's not quite as satisfying as that. Revenge is kind of empty. It gave me a small goal for a few years, but then it just ended.
"...So, is this the life you've chosen to have? Living through sweets, sex, and destruction? Haha, what irony, don't you think? You hate the monsters so much, but now you live practically the same as one."
"It's true, I live like a monster. I've chosen a place to live, defeat invaders, and have sex with my pet dragon. I've even modified the system to be treated like a raid boss."
"But you know, this was a destiny I chose for myself, and one I can abandon at any time. Something even you couldn't have predicted would happen, huh?"
I make it clear that I challenge any domain she tries to have over me.
"..."
"Now we have you, a needy lunatic who will never have the right to choose again. Do you think patiently waiting here will make me change my mind? I hate you with all my might."
"The only reason I came in here is because those monsters I hate are still alive and suffering, and I need to make sure that doesn't change."
"But when they finally die, you can be sure I'll never come back to this glass cell to see you. You and I will be alone forever. The difference is, I'll be alone because I want to be."
"And you'll rot for eternity in this glass cell." I say everything I'm thinking. The Librarian is also here somewhere in the seal, but my interest in him is quite low.
There wasn't much I could do to torture him, since he's not afraid of anything. So, all I did was put him in an uncomfortable and dangerous place where the climate is hellish and difficult to survive, even for him.
"Unlike you, Aurora, I'll be able to walk the path I want, and in a few years, we'll never see each other again. I hope you enjoy your stay here," I say as I start to leave the seal.
"W-Wait a moment... I just didn't want to be alone. You can't judge me for..." She tries to speak, hesitating a bit, but I ignore her. This is the first conversation we've had in years, and it was just to make things clear.
No matter how long she waits, I'll never forgive her for making me become this terrible abomination.
In the end, Aurora has no fear and is too strong to be tortured, so the worst I can do to her is leave her isolated for eternity, without any contact with anything or anyone. That's what she's always feared, and it's the only thing I can do against someone as strong as her.
I soon return to my candy home, while Aetheris lands outside, slightly shrinking in size to come inside the house. He comes to me, excited, and grows to about the size of a tiger.
"Wanna eat something?" I say, petting his head as we walk through the candy corridors. He declines, and I enter my room, a huge one with various furniture, toys, and things I like all made of different types of candy that I can eat anytime I'm stressed.
I sit in a chair, putting my feet on the table and looking at the candy wall, while Aetheris excitedly walks around my room.
Aetheris hasn't changed much from what I know, except that now, for him, I'm not his mother, but his wife.
It turns out that for Aetheris' species, which is aggressive with almost everything, there are only two ways to recognize someone as precious. The first is to put mana in their egg and stay with them until they hatch, so they see you as a mother. The second is to put magic in their egg and not be there, and that second way has a special secret.
In Aetheris' race, the females seek their husbands while they're still young. They usually find an egg, feed it with magic, and then leave. When the baby is born, it already knows it has a wife, and usually tries to survive until the wife comes to get it or it gets big enough to go after her.
When Fenrir found Aetheris, he had already hatched, so I couldn't be considered a mother anymore, since I wasn't there for his birth. It's a bit unfortunate, but I don't think it matters much.
He's still affectionate and loyal, and he's something I know will never treat me like the others. In fact, I was the one who initiated sex with him, due to addictions I still couldn't deal with. He didn't force me into it, although he never refused. He just accepted my limits.
There's also the fact that Aetheris has evolved. This is the secret Valac talked about Aetheris' race can evolve, and they become huge and powerful, strong enough to destroy continents on their own.
With that, Aetheris eventually became the King of Dragons, and I gained the second title of Queen of Dragons, as Aetheris' biological wife.
Of course, this didn't change our relationship much. I take care of Aetheris with affection, he takes care of me with affection, we sometimes sleep together, and he covers me with his wings. We usually play together.
He's like a pet, like a cat, but the difference is that he's giant, breathes fire, and likes to break things, although he hates to eat sweets.
So, he usually goes out to hunt his own food and comes back later. He's one of the few joys I still have in moments like these, and he understands me well, being energetic and never leaving me alone when I need it.
Isn't it ironic that he's one of the best things in my life? And it could get even better when I finally manage to get the items I'm looking for, so Aetheris can take on a temporary human form.
He's smart, but doesn't know how to do that yet, so we need a few things, but the progress is good.
"Aetheris, I want to drink some wine. Could you go get those bottles for me?" Aetheris also fetches things for me.
"Grrh," he growls in acknowledgment and quickly flies out the door to the snowy mountains in the distance to get the wine. I could store wine in the prism, but I prefer it this way.
Now I'm strong, I'm free, and I know everything I need to know. Unfortunately, these things don't bring me the happiness I'd like, but I guess I can't complain.
"Maybe when Aetheris finally takes on a human form, we could go on a vacation to the beach." I think about these plans for the future. I need to make the most of the time I have.
One day, Aetheris will die, and it will just be me and his children, and this will repeat until everything ends, and the universe becomes a complete void.
But at least it comforts me to know that when the universe ends and I'm the only one left alive, I'll still have the memories of what I've witnessed over all this time, and I can live alone in a cabin inside the prism somewhere.
Of course, always completely ignoring that Aurora exists. For me, I'm the only being still alive, period.
"I think the beach sounds wonderful," I murmur, getting up from the chair to write the plans on a piece of paper. It will be fun to spend this time with Aetheris.