Key dropped to his knees, breath ragged. The divine longsword still jutted from his gut, glinting with mocking radiance. Blood poured freely, staining the floor beneath him.
His Void Tendrils slithered to his side in a blur—loyal, reactive, pulsing with quiet anticipation. They hovered like guardians awaiting orders.
"Haha," King de San wheezed with smug cruelty, "your pets won't save you now. Once I heal back fully—"
Key cut him off with a snarl of pain. His eyes blazed.
"Shut the hell up. You won't heal back. And you won't survive."
He flicked his fingers.
One of the Tendrils lunged, gripped the longsword, and yanked it from his body with a sickening schhhrrk. Another Tendril caught it midair, and tossed it to the others, who descended on it like vultures.
[Abyssal Regeneration LV.1 has activated.]
Key winced as the wound began to mend. Not fast enough, but it was something.
'Damn, that hurt..'
Then—
The air shifted.
A thunderous wave of Abyssal Energy exploded from below.
Thick with emotion. Rage. Pain. Power.
Key's eyes sharpened in an instant.
He didn't need to guess.
A slow, crooked smirk curled on his lips.
'She did it.'
He turned to the king, and there it was.
Fear. Real, bone-deep fear. The kind that came when fate finally caught up.
"Look who's not laughing anymore," Key taunted. "Nah, don't look scared now. I told you yours was coming."
"H-How…?" the king muttered, voice cracking.
The answer arrived in silence.
The Vampire Goddess appeared.
She didn't speak. Didn't blink. She simply stood there, her presence alone enough to crush kingdoms.
Speedy arrived beside Key a second later, silent as well. The two stood still, watching.
Ego remained motionless.
But her eyes, her eyes were alive. A storm of memories flashed behind them. Fifty years of pain. Violation. Humiliation. Despair. All caused by the monster before her and his wife.
King de San tried to hide it, his fear, but it bled through the cracks of his grin.
"Oh baby… you wouldn't do this to me, right?" he said nervously. "After all we went thro—"
SQUELCH.
An Abyssal energy blade erupted through his open mouth, silencing him in one savage motion.
Ego's eyes glowed brighter.
King de San's body locked up
Frozen. Stiff.
Petrified.
His wide, horror-filled eyes said it all. He tried to scream,
But nothing came out.
"Killing you is a mercy I'm not willing to give.." Ego said coldly. "This suits you way better."
She turned her back on him—dismissive, done.
And finally… she turned to them.
The ones who had saved her. Freed her from Hell itself.
Then the dam broke.
Tears streamed from her eyes.
She staggered—
Only to feel herself caught in a tight, trembling hug.
Speedy.
Crying just as hard, burying her face into Ego's shoulder.
Ego blinked, then hugged her back just as fiercely.
Key leaned back on one of his Void Tendrils, watching it unfold with quiet empathy.
'Cue Sadness and Sorrow.' he thought with a soft exhale.
Nobody deserved what she had gone through. Nobody.
A few minutes passed before the sobs faded.
Ego gently pulled away, her voice cracked and fragile.
"E-Ego Zandros… My name… is Ego Zandros."
Speedy sniffed, nodding, wiping her cheeks.
"Speedy. And that's Key." she said, motioning to him behind her.
They all shared a small smile.
"Nothing in the entire universe can say how thankful I am for you two saving me.." Ego said, voice filled with raw, genuine gratitude.
Key stepped forward, face solemn.
"We'd do it again. Infinity times over."
Ego bowed her head. "Thank you." she whispered again.
"Of course. I found a piece of myself while saving you," Speedy added, smiling warmly. "So thank you, Ego."
And then
Ego smiled.
A real one. Bright and warm.
It was the kind of smile that could shatter curses. The kind she hadn't worn in fifty years.
"You're welcome." She hesitated, then asked, "Is there anything I can do to repay you bo—"
Key and Speedy both raised their hands, shaking their heads immediately.
"No need." Key said. "We didn't save you to get anything in return. And we wouldn't ask you to do that."
"Please…" Ego cut in gently. "For me. At least allow me to do this."
"Do what?" Speedy asked, tilting her head curiously.
"Give you two a part of my powers. So I can protect you..like you protected me."
Key and Speedy exchanged a glance.
'Me with vampire powers… what does that make me? A Void Vampire God?' Key wondered, stunned.
Ego chuckled softly, almost reading his thoughts.
"Yes." she said. "In a way, you'll both become Demi-Gods. But don't worry, you won't inherit vampire weaknesses. I control what I pass on. No bites necessary."
She smirked, placing a hand on her hip.
"So..what do you say?"
Speedy snapped out of it first, her usual spark reigniting.
"Sounds pretty fucking awesome actually! I accept!"
Key grinned, cracking his knuckles.
What was it Stone Cold used to say?
"..Hell yeah it does. I accept too."
That made her grin widen.
"Hold out your hands."
They did. Key with his right, Speedy with her left.
Ego closed her eyes, exhaling deeply.
A powerful pulse of reddish-silver Abyssal Energy surged around her, cloaking her like a living storm.
She lifted her hands above theirs,
and released it.
The moment Ego's energy touched their skin, everything changed.
It wasn't just power transferring.
It was history.
Rage.
Sorrow.
A thousand screams buried beneath a goddess's will.
And it burned.
Key gritted his teeth as the energy flooded his system, raw and primal, like molten fire threading through his soul. Every Void particle within him responded like it was being reborn.
His fingers twitched.
His Void Tendrils shivered, then transformed.
Longer. Darker. Hungrier.
One tendril split open in midair, its tip reshaping into a glowing crimson scythe that hummed with sovereign authority.
Beside him, Speedy gasped.
The power struck her like lightning. She staggered, then vanished.
Only to reappear instantly in the same spot, the air around her warped with time distortion.
She blinked.
"..Whoa."
[You have absorbed a Fragment of the Vampire Goddess Ego Zandros.]
[New Title Acquired] Void Vampire God