System's POV

Chapter 1386: You Did Something You Shouldn’t Have

"A dead end..."

Stella looked up at the mural in front of them.

They had walked for nearly a day to get here, yet only a dead end welcomed them. Both front and back were barred, making Stella feel like everything they had done was pointless.

But it seemed like she was the only one who felt bad.

Beside her, Thirteen looked at the mural with hands clasped behind his back, his expression serene.

His gaze was fixed on the story abstractly narrated by the hand painting.

Just like the earlier paintings, it depicted a man holding up the Key of Pride, using it as some kind of weapon against monsters that stood in his way.

The keys of the Seven Deadly Sins held the faint power of Divinity.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call them Divine Artifacts, and such artifacts held power that not many could fathom.

Just as Stella thought about what to do next, Thirteen finally made his move.

He walked towards the mural and pressed his palm on the head of one of the kneeling worshipers who were looking at the man holding the Key of Pride in his hand.

Suddenly, something unexpected happened.

The mural painting began to move.

The Worshipers raised their hands and started to dance. If one were to look closely, it resembled the victory dance warriors did after ending a great battle.

As for the man holding the divine key in his hand, he slowly rose up, and tendril-like wings spread from behind his back.

Three halos appeared above his head, and the key in his hand increased its size, turning into some sort of Keyblade.

Stella’s eyes widened in shock as she focused her gaze on the man holding the key.

The mural before her no longer looked like a hand-painted art but a replay of what she had previously seen in the great battle of Artem, where Zion faced the Demigods of the Infernal Army.

And for some reason, "that" Zion held out his hand to her with a faint smile on his face.

The young lady found herself subconsciously reaching out toward that person until their hands finally met.

An electric current passed through her body the moment their hands touched.

A moment later, she found herself pressed against the young man’s chest, his arms protectively wrapped around her body.

Still in a daze, her hand moved towards his chest, not noticing that she was holding a key in her hand.

A moment later, Stella heard a faint clicking sound, similar to the sound of a key opening a lock.

To her surprise, she saw that the key in her hand was inserted in Zion’s chest, making her gasp in shock.

But before she could do anything, Zion reached out to raise her chin, forcing her to look straight into his eyes.

Eyes filled with an emotion the teenage boy hadn’t shown before, and something Stella was seeing for the first time.

It was the look of lust.

"You did something you shouldn’t have, Stella," Zion said softly. "And now, you should face the consequences of your action."

Before she could even reply, the teenage boy lowered his head to kiss her lips, preventing her from voicing her thoughts.

The kiss was no ordinary kiss. It was deep and passionate, making Stella feel like her thoughts were melting into a puddle, unable to form a coherent thought.

"I..." Stella tried her best to regain her composure as she pulled back from the kiss.

"Yes," Thirteen kissed her forehead before caressing the side of her face. "You’re mine... all mine."

The young lady didn’t know why, but for some reason, she felt that she had been waiting for those words for a very long time.

Soon, all her resistance faded as she surrendered her everything to the angelic young man, who held her as if she were a priceless treasure.

She surrendered her heart.

Her body.

She would have also surrendered her soul if it were possible, but he didn’t need it.

A sigh escaped her lips as they became one.

She moved with him, and not against him, enjoying the feeling of their union.

Stella had never felt this complete in her life, as if finding that missing piece of her heart that had been lost through time and space.

After reaching the peak, over and over again, she gave Zion one long, and loving kiss of surrender before she finally fell into the darkness that held her firmly as if welcoming her back home.

Several hours later, Stella abruptly opened her eyes and looked at her surroundings.

"It’s good to see that you’re finally awake."

A familiar voice reached her ear, making her glance at Zion, who was tending to a campfire.

There were no tendril-like wings on his back... nor three halos on his head.

He was simply the teenage boy who allowed her to see the colors of the world whenever they were together.

"I-I..." Stella stuttered as she recalled everything that had happened.

She immediately inspected her body, but the signs that should have been there after she lost her maidenhood weren’t present.

Her mothers had educated her properly in this regard, so after a quick inspection, she realized that what had happened might have been her imagination.

"Z-Zion, did you and I... I mean, did we..." Stella’s face was turning beet-red as she tried to ask the question that she wanted to ask.

However, her heart pounded so hard inside her chest that she struggled to form the words she wanted to say.

Perhaps noticing her confusion and anxiety, Thirteen decided to clarify things first.

"You lost consciousness while staring at the Mural earlier," Thirteen said. "I don’t know what happened, but you kept on saying the words ’Harder... Deeper, and break me!’ I thought you might be having a bad dream, so I decided to lay you down properly."

"W-What?!" Stella gasped in disbelief as her entire face turned crimson from shame and embarrassment.

She could vaguely recall saying those things in her "dream," which made her wish that she could dig a hole somewhere and bury herself inside it.

Stella thought that she couldn’t feel any more embarrassed than she already was, but Zion’s next words proved her wrong.

"Just rest for now," Thirteen said. "My lovers also say those words from time to time, so I’m already used to it. But, if it becomes too much for you, should I lend you my body so that you can feel better?"

"Of course not!" Stella replied, half-shouting due to his proposal. But after realizing what she had done, she immediately tried to apologize. "S-Sorry, I was just..."

The teenage boy smiled faintly before pressing his finger over his lips.

"Don’t worry," Thirteen said. "Just rest a little more, Stella. I’ll keep watch for now."

The young lady nodded meekly before lying back down.

She then turned to the side with her back facing Zion.

Stella was too embarrassed to face him right now and badly needed some time to regain her composure.

’Just why did I get that kind of vision?’ Stella thought. ’And why did I use the key against him? I already know that it’s not something I should do!’

She asked these questions to herself repeatedly, and yet, no answers came.

What she only remembered was that feeling of oneness, love, and security, as the wingless angel made love to her as if she had been born for that very moment.