My mind was reeling. Throughout my body, the sense of impending doom felt so real, that I realised I had forgotten to breathe only after I felt myself become light headed. My eyes were completely fixated on this strange figure that appeared to defy the laws of gravity.

The very fact that neither Rounen nor Lucius could see her made me think I was hallucinating.

Still, the physical response to this unknown factor was complete and utter fear. I could feel the adrenaline course through my veins and hear my own thumping heartbeat through my ears. Surely that wasn't a good sign.

Lucius seemed to notice my rigid body and fixated gaze, because he waved a hand in front of my eyes. "Bones, are you listening?"

I couldn't tear my eyes away from the figure. It felt as if the moment I broke my gaze, something terrible would happen.

"She's probably daydreaming." Rounen yawned and fell backwards to lie down on the grass.

Slowly, Lucius lowered me down to the ground. "Wait here Bones, we've got a surprise for you."

Wait—they were leaving me? Here? To deal with this?!

The figure was coming closer and I could only stare in fear as Lucius and Rounen ran away at their superhuman speed.

Then I was alone. The hairs on the nape of my neck rose as I slowly turned to acknowledge the dark presence that was exhibiting a pressure that made me weak at the knees.

I swallowed down my fear. "Who are you?"

Behind the mask, I could feel the smile.

I had no idea what she was saying. Her voice rang so loud in my ears I began to feel a splitting headache form behind my eyes. Was she expecting me to understand any of this? "I don't understand."

A laugh.

I froze. "Excuse me?" Did I just hear her correctly? No one was meant to know. How could they? It was impossible to believe myself.

I was caught off guard by her sudden words. Her figure moved closer until she hovered by the edge of the lake.

"I don't need any help."

Another laugh.

I took a step back. Memories of me trying to access Edythe's magic flowed into my mind. All I needed was time. I would get there, why would I need help?

I kept my words clipped. "Realised. What."

She tilted her head to the side and the water beneath her trembled.

It felt as if cold water had been tipped over my head. It made sense. I hadn't been able to understand why I had struggled so much for something so simple. Edythe had been a prodigy. Magic came naturally to her. Why had I been struggling?

My legs gave way and I dropped to the ground. It made sense. In a sick, twisted way, this body knew I was an intruder.

A ringing began to sound in my ears and the blood began to drain from my head. I was in a daze.

What was I meant to do now? All my plans on escape had revolved around magic being my cornerstone. There was no other way I could survive. Magic was the only way.

Now I had just found out I would never be able to use it. I could tell just by the sheer force of will to sense mana that it was true.

I slowly looked up to where she hovered above the water. Her hair continued to blow despite there being no wind. Her eyes glowed behind the mask.

"What price?"

Of course, there was always a price. And judging from the way I could feel her looking at me, I felt like an insect beneath her feet.

That was it.

My way out.

I stared down at my hands and realised how weak I was without the power I thought I originally had. I would die without magic. Still, I could feel myself hesitating. Obviously, this person was dangerous.

She practically screamed dangerous. But I had to think logically.

Which was the lesser evil?

Don't form a contract and die? Or form a contract and live?

I bit my lip. I knew nothing about the history of this world. But my only two options were clear.

I glared at her, but felt a chill run down my spine as her eyes stared into my soul.

This was going too quickly. I didn't have time to logically think of how to approach this. And for some reason, I had the feeling that once we returned to the mansion, we might never be able to come back.

Forbidden.

Was this the reason?

The headache was beginning to radiate to the base of my skull. I closed my eyes and tried my best to weigh up my options, but I couldn't think of anything.

I bit my thumbnail as I tried desperately to logically sort out why this was a feasible option. Realistically, there were two choices before me.

Death. Life.

I looked back up into her eyes and was resolved. "You can save me?"

She placed a hand onto her ashen chest. The cracks in her skin revealed a complete abyss of darkness beneath.

With what little strength I had, I rose to my feet.

She held out a hand.

Although every fibre of my being rejected the thought of getting closer to this oppressive presence, I knew I would die anyway if I didn't.

Anyway, if she does kill me now, at least I know I did everything I could.

As I inched forward, I noticed the ring of death around her. At the edge of the lake, there was a circle of dead flowers and withered grass I was sure had been alive when we first arrived here. Had they wilted on their own?

I stared at the dark figure hovering above the ring of death.

Probably not.

The death surrounding her didn't do much to boost my confidence. But with every step I took I had to reassure myself that I was doing the right thing. That this was my only option.

And it was.

As much as I felt that I could possibly regret this later, it was the only option I had left. And for some reason, I knew she had been telling the truth when she said I would never be able to access Edythe's power. That her body rejected me.

I could feel that this body rejected me.

I wasn't meant to be here.

I was a fake.

The more steps I took, the closer I got, the larger this being looked. She was huge. And still she hovered above the lake as if she weighed nothing.

I also noticed the darkness which oozed from her being. If I hadn't been living in a mansion that was full of demons and a father that wanted me dead on a daily occasion, I would have found this to be a lot more disconcerting.

The third eye on the forehead of her mask moved, following me as I walked. The crack that ran down to the cheek also showed a pitted darkness beneath. The long feline bones began to look less feline the more steps I took. In fact, it looked as if it belonged to an animal that I could not name, yet judging from the size, I knew had to be very, very big. The dark tattoos that looked older than time itself, all over her body, appeared to move.

I blinked.

Was I seeing things?

No—they were definitely moving. Slowly but surely they flowed around her body as if they weren't attached to the skin. I had no idea how that was possible.

I rubbed my arms absently.

In fact, I had no idea how I hadn't already ran for the hills. This was bad. Very bad.

Get over it. Do you want to live or not.

I took another step. That's right. That was my only goal. It didn't matter how I got there.

Even if I had to make a contract with some unknown being to get there, if I lived, that was all that mattered.

I stopped outside the ring of death.

My final hesitation.

She presented me with a vial. It was opaque, hiding the contents of what was inside. The markings on the outside were similar to the tattoos on her body. The stopper had a symbol I didn't recognise.

After another pause, I scolded myself and took it before I could think twice. My heart skipped a beat when I felt the weight of it in my hands. Gingerly, I took the stopper out.

I couldn't see anything inside. "What's inside?"

My mind was blank. "Paper?"

She let out a dark chuckle and pointed at the vial.

I resisted the urge to hurl. "What do you want me to do with it? Write up a contract? Use it as ink?"

The mood around her darkened and I had to steel myself to resist the urge to run.

My hand was trembling, I grabbed it with my other hand so I didn't accidentally spill her 'precious' blood all over the grass.

My jaw slackened. "Drink? Your blood?"

She examined her long fingernails which looked like instruments of death.

I stared at the vial in my hands, which began to feel heavier with each passing second.

There was no going back.

Slowly, I raised the vial to my lips. I couldn't smell anything.

Perhaps that was a good sign.

Without a second thought, I tipped the vial back and began drinking the moment I felt something touch my lips. The quicker I drank, the less time I would have to acknowledge the taste.

It was cold. Like ice.

Just as I was about to pull away from shock, I had already finished. Instead of feeling enlightened, it felt as if all my organs began dying. My body shuddered and stumbled.

A dark hand caught me. I noticed the sharp fingernails and I had no strength to pull away.

All I could do was watch as her figure slowly descended down and she took a step onto the grass. She raised her head upwards and spoke with a voice that felt older than time itself.

I would have felt more emotion if not for the fact it felt as if my whole body was shutting down. Out of instinct after finishing the 'drink', I wiped my mouth.

When I brought my hand back, my eyes widened.

Where I had wiped my mouth, it was stained black. And as my vision began to darken and my consciousness began to slip, I noticed the grass around my feet begin to wither and die.

Now I too, was surrounded by a circle of death.