Orison | Celeste Academy Series BK #3

Chapter Twenty-Nine ۞ Parasite

And to her shock, she saw it.

Five points as she was told. Five open holes on all the places she expected. There was one on top of his head, between his eyes, on his chest and two on each palms.

So this was what it looked like.

Bertram's brows twitched, as though in pain. His lips twisted and Valeriana reached out to calm him down as her vision of it was wavering as well.

"Calm down. I see them." She reassured him and approached. "If there is a place the infection is most likely in, it's the aura."

He somehow managed to calm himself down after that.

These open channels was said to be a connection of some sort. As Valeriana drew closer to him, something occurred to her.

His connection was being blocked.

The girl felt a sense of trepidation bubbling in her chest. These open channels was not even open. There was something lodged on them, and it was absolutely dreadful.

A parasite.

Valeriana realized something after seeing this. These open channels, as she could remember, fed the soul. If something was blocking them and leeching off on the nourishment that should've been meant for the user, how was he even able to live?!

Lord Lienhard mentioned it himself.

The closing of these open channels only meant death.

Unless, of course, if the soul was being fed something else.

The girl, with uncertainty, reached to the hole on his chest. This part, in particular, made her feel disgusted in a sense. It was a similar to the feeling she got from demons.

As she poked her hand into the open channel, Bertram's eyes shot open and looked straight into hers.

"It hurts." He gasped.

"Please calm down . . ." She struggled.

The fifth-ranker became cognizant of the awkwardness in their position. After all, she sort of had her hand inside his chest--that's what it seemed, at least.

Oh lord, what in the world was she doing? She didn't even know what was going to happen if she continued.

Her instincts, however, said otherwise.

Her fingers managed to reach something and so she firmly gripped it, disgusted by the slimy feeling that greeted her. Bertram's eyes further widened.

"Don't--"

"I hope this isn't your heart." She muttered, then pulled it out in one go.

She fell off the bed at the force she put into it and lost contact with the thing she basically just ripped off of Bertram's chest. Something escaped into the room, black smoke fogging the area as the object floated over their heads.

Valeriana covered her face with her arm at the smell--the putrid scent. She gazed at the object warily and briefly shot a look at Bertram.

He was frozen shock, not to mention in pain, that he had fallen back.

The door burst open and Seraphina ran in, hand prepared to draw her sword. Her face looked alert and her brows furrowed. "What's going on?"

"It's that!" Valeriana pointed to the black thing.

It uncurled itself later on, revealing the form of a centipede-like insect demon that reeked of that horrible scent. It had a long, sylph-like body and tiny arms.