Raising Yanderes to save the world

Kael’s absence made Seraphina more cautious than usual (not that she could recall), and she could not help but stare at the portal as if she might be able to recognise something hidden behind its surface.

The magic felt warm and gentle, but there was also something deeply unsettling about it, almost as if the portal itself was waiting for them to remember something they had forgotten.

”Perhaps we should not rush into it. We could investigate it first and make sure there is nothing dangerous on the other side,” Seraphina suggested.

Lyra sighed before placing a hand against her forehead.

”If we spend too much time investigating, the temple might notice that we have disappeared. I would rather deal with whatever is waiting for us in the demon world than explain this entire situation to those idiots.”

Iris seemed ready to argue, but the portal suddenly widened, and a familiar voice echoed from within it.

”Are you three planning to stand there all day, or are you finally coming through?”

The voice was feminine, calm, and slightly amused. It was a little familiar and put Seraphina at ease.

Lyra, who had also heard the voice, finally seemed to recall who it belonged to.

”Elena, you sure took your sweet time coming here. What the hell were you doing until now?”

Lyra sounded relieved as well, but her words were harsh. Anyone else might have taken offense to her tone, but Elena seemed different.

”Please forgive me. I was a little busy looking into other stuff, but now that it’s over, I can bring you all back. By the way, where is Leon? Did he decide not to come for this important meeting?”

The voice asked, and Lyra let out a frustrated sigh.

”That hero is troublesome. It’s better if he does not come since he will only try to stop us anyway.”

The demon queen sounded reassured, and the voice on the other side chuckled before speaking once more.

”I see. And what about Mother? Did he not come with you? How weird. I cannot sense his presence either. I was beyond the boundary once my body started to lose control. The next thing I knew, I was out of battle. So, what happened? Looking at this, it seems like we won. But I don’t see you all being happy.”

Elena questioned this, which made Seraphina frown.

Why did she not recall any of this, but this kid could? What the hell was going on?

Lyra must have had the same questions, but unlike Seraphina, she was impatient and ended up asking the question that was causing them all to frown.

”Elena, who is this ’Mother’ you speak of? We don’t know anyone like that.”

Elena remained silent for a moment, as though she were trying to understand why the question had confused them, and the silence only made Seraphina more uncomfortable.

There was no hesitation in Elena’s voice when she mentioned Mother, which meant that, from her perspective, the person was someone they should all have known.

”Don’t be ridiculous. You know exactly who I mean. Mother is the one who brought us together, the one who gave us a place to stay when we had nowhere else to go. He is also the one who told us that we had to be careful about corruption...”

Elena replied, her tone becoming slightly colder.

Seraphina felt her heart tighten at those words, but she could not understand why.

The description should have sounded familiar, yet the more she tried to recall the person Elena was talking about, the more painful the pressure inside her head became.

”Brought us together? I do not remember anyone doing that. We naturally gathered around the hero...”

Iris repeated, her expression turning serious.

”That is strange. Is this some kind of trick you are playing with us? Where is Leon? He should know all about it. Seraphina, what about you? You knew him before any of us.””

Elena muttered. Elena paused, and Seraphina immediately felt her gaze settling on her.

”What about me?”

Elena’s question made Seraphina’s face go pale, and she instinctively took a step back from the portal.

”That is not possible. I would remember something like that.”

”Would you? Do you remember awakening as the Saintess? He was there. You were the first one he helped, and you were the one who was there when we were all brought together.”

Elena asked, and although her voice remained calm, the question struck Seraphina harder than it should have.

Lyra’s expression darkened as she listened, while Iris slowly tightened her grip around her sword.

”Elena, stop talking as if this is normal. Something is wrong with our memories, and I do not like the way you are acting as though nothing happened. This might be a side-effect of world magic...”

Lyra said.

Elena did not answer immediately. Instead, the portal flickered, and her voice became faintly distorted.

”Perhaps something is wrong with your memories, but that does not mean mine are wrong. And if you are not going to recall Kael, then I will. I will also be the one to bring him back.”

That name jolted everyone, almost as if they had been electriocuated by something. They blinked at Elena’s angry look and found themselves shrinking under her gaze.

A part of Seraphina told her that she should be ashamed to even be standing here while Kael was missing. But who was Kyle? And why was he so important to her?

”Oh, forget it. You all should just sit back and rest for now. I will find Kael on my own. Oh, and also, don’t do anything stupid. Though, I have a feeling you would end up doing something anyway.”

Elena muttered under her breath but the ones she left behind stood frozen in place, just blinking as they watched her leave.

It took a whole minute before anyone moved. And surprisingly enough, it was Lyra, who let out a loud curse.

”What the fuck? What just happened here?