The Dark Rebirth of Pandora: Revenge of the Abyss

Chapter 608: A Real Truth About Motivation

"...Impossible..." I stare at the pile of broken materials while Azraelith pants heavily. She’d managed to earn the right to wish for anything, and she’d broken over 50 million of the materials I’d made.

And all within the span of a single month. She was breaking them so fast, and I was producing them so quickly, that a massive quantity was being destroyed per second. Only a few held out, and the material that took Azraelith the longest to break lasted 38 seconds.

"..."

"I won, Pandora... hahahaha... I can ask for anything with all these wishes I’ve accumulated, right? That was the rule..." She speaks while wiping the sweat off her body with a towel.

"Yeah, you won..." I guess I seriously underestimated the fact that she was a being ranked at 100 billion. This could have ended even faster if I hadn’t been so focused on figuring out how to make the material better each time I made a new one.

’I’m exhausted...’ Creating so many things is truly draining. I also wipe the sweat from my body as I stand up, using the shadows to consume the remains of the broken materials.

"Hey, Baeh’Wa, has Mother already chosen what she wants to save?" I ask Baeh’Wa, who’s huddled in the corner waiting for a chance to speak.

"P-Pandora, she’s already chosen... a-and she said she’s only taking the castle and m-me... s-she said any other servant isn’t truly loyal... o-or submissive, so they’d cause problems... a-also, she hid this fact from Therytar..."

’Great, I just need to figure out how to move the entire castle out...’ I’ve been thinking about that quite a bit, and I think I’ve found a method.

"Baeh’Wa, get out of here for now... and big sis... what do you wish for? Please, be reasonable. It’s anything, but even I have limits. I’ll try to do what you ask, but there have to be rules."

"I know, but Pandora, I got over 50 million small requests, so I have more than just one ’anything’ wish."

"...Fuck... I’m never betting with you again. You’re way too dirty," I mutter under my breath at her, having accumulated a few more wishes than she needed.

"First, get dressed." She orders with an arrogant smile. I obey, forming a dress with my divine weapon. After all, I have to obey because I promised, and I always keep my promises.

"No, not a dress. I want a maid outfit."

"...? Alright." I change the form of the dress into a maid’s uniform, though the color scheme is just different shades of gray, mostly dark.

’Why is she asking for this?’ She has a strange look in her eyes. It doesn’t seem like she’s asking for this just because she likes it or wants it. It feels like there’s something behind it.

"Shorter and cuter." I obey her new order, making the dress tighter, with more ribbons and frills.

"Shorter."

"..." I shorten it further, the skirt portion reaching mid-thigh. It tightens around my hips and waist, clearly emphasizing my curves.

"Shorter and even cuter, Pandora."

"...Are you messing with me?" I ask, but I still obey. The maid skirt shrinks even more, while the decorations increase, making me look ridiculous from the forced cuteness.

"Balance it better, Pandora. Also, I want it shorter. You already know what I want, so do it right."

"You’re as miserable and wretched as I am." I make the adjustments. The skirt becomes so short that even a slight movement exposes my underwear. The ribbons are reduced but placed strategically in spots that enhance the natural cuteness.

The top part is less tight, but the intricate flower details create a cute design. The chest area is tight, emphasizing how my body is both cute and sexually appealing. There’s a heart-shaped opening on the stomach area.

It shows off the tattoo on my belly, perfectly blending cuteness and sexuality.

"..."

"Pervert." She’s having a nosebleed while breathing heavily.

"You look cute, but you seem not to understand the purpose of my request."

"Naturally. So, what is your grand wish?" Those were just her small wishes.

"My wish is that you, acting cute without the intention of breaking my resistance, teach me how to use the Doom element, and train with me so we can improve this element and reduce its costs as much as possible."

’Oh... that’s... a really good wish, and balanced... and... it’s precisely what I didn’t want to deal with... damn her...’ I didn’t want to try dealing with this right now, but at least she’ll be participating.

"Thank you, big sis." I hug her thigh, looking up at her with cuteness. She used her wish to help me. At least for this, I’m truly grateful.

’I was hoping she’d ask for something different...’

"Can we start now, Pandora? The cost for Doom is too high based on my analysis. However, I noticed there are loopholes you created in this power. For example, you can sacrifice things that seem unimportant."

"But I realized the cost-benefit isn’t entirely precise. Sacrificing something bad will only give you a minimal effect that seems good, but it’s not actually that good."

’She’s right...’ I remember when I used Doom to its fullest in the past. By sacrificing the environment’s time, I was also affected. This shows that Doom is not at all precise with its targets.

Most attacks I generate with Doom would damage me quickly if I weren’t careful. In other words, I have two chances of taking damage: the damage from the sacrifice and the damage Doom generates around it.

"Pandora, why did you neglect something so important?"

"Big sis, if something works, and trying to improve it could mess everything up, would you do it?" I ask, staring at her with an expression that has no connection to the moment, making her sigh.

"So when you created the Doom element, you didn’t think much about the negative effects?"

"...No."

"...Yes... but I know the negative effects lessen if you use magic with it. Since we’re only using the pure element without a spell alongside it, the cost is terrible. But you can use this element together with magic you have!!"

"For example, I have a spell that creates a ball of light. It’s a spell, and it possesses the light element. I could then have a spell that creates a ball, and the element would be Doom. In that case, the cost I need to sacrifice reduces."

"Hmmm..." She grabs my ass. Because of the super-short skirt, she grabs it directly.

"Let’s improve this! I know Doom is your trump card, and you’re definitely going to use this element a lot. But it doesn’t matter how strong this element is if you end up destroying yourself by using it!!" She massages my ass, but I don’t say anything because it’s her wish.

"How do you improve an element?"

"..."

"Created elements are raw elements. It’s possible to improve and make them more efficient. It’s the same with the holy element, which was quite raw and imprecise in the past but is very strong today."

"Okay, no one’s ever taught me how to improve an element. I mean, it’s something—" She puts a finger to my lips.

"Shh, I’ll teach you. I know this because I’ve already created over five elements... none as destructive as yours, but still, all of them were refined..." When she says this, I see a flicker of sadness in her eyes.

’Mother must not have cared about that fact... what a shame.’

"Look, let’s just start. What you need to understand is that elements are processes that generate an effect. That’s pretty obvious, just like the fact that putting fire on wood makes it spread and the wood turn to ash."

"Even the chaos element, which is chaotic, still has its function as a process that generates an effect. When an element is born, this process is raw, like an emerald that needs to be refined."

"Okay, okay." I memorize every word she says.

"To access this ’process,’ you use the magic formula—"

"Big sis, less complex."

"...Imagine a sheet of paper with a math problem. On it is written what makes the element generate an effect. You’re going to replace that equation with a better, more precise one." She simplifies it very well.

"Thank you, big sis. And you’re right, I’m going to use this element a lot. I created it specifically thinking of killing beings from both the Abyss and the Goddesses." I’m going to use this element a lot against the Goddesses.

I was even planning on using spells I have, but modified with this element to make them more powerful.

"Perfect, then Pandora. I’m going to make you very strong... cutie." She squeezes my ass harder and lifts me off the ground.

"I’ll show you some interesting methods. They’re the same ones I used for maximum efficiency. But it’s no use just me improving your element. You’re the one who has to do it so you know how to use it to its fullest!!"

"What proof do I have that this will be better?" I ask, a little skeptical. She moves one of her hands to my belly, gently stroking the tattoo.

"Hmmm, Pandora, if you had to kill me in a single blow, would Doom do it? What would you have to sacrifice?"

"Well... probably something extremely important. And I’d probably have to sacrifice it permanently because you’re so much stronger than me. If we were equally strong, the cost would be lower, but you’re four times stronger than me, so the cost increases a lot."

"Okay, you’re right. So, if you refined your element with my technique, you could kill me without needing to sacrifice something permanent. It would still be costly, but it would be temporary."

"..."

"Seriously?... that’s an efficiency improvement of 30 to 100 times..." My element wasn’t created with killing something much stronger than me in mind. It was for destroying things with the same power as me.

"Exactly. My elements had an efficiency of 100 to 200 times the norm. That’s why refinement is important." She smiles at me, and I sigh.

"You’re a genius, big sis! I’d love to learn from you." I act cute as per her request. I wonder how long I’ll have to stay a maid, but if it’s to learn from her, it’s fine.

"...Pandora, I know this might seem tedious, boring, and dull. I can see you’re bored with the Abyss, with training, with studying!! You seem like someone who’s lost your motivation to fight, just indulging in lust and dragging the future along."

"But a difficult victory is only achieved with effort and preparation. You can’t just give up now and push the future forward, hoping it’ll get better. You have to make the future better. Quit being lazy and put in the effort!! From what you told me in the past, you were better than you are now, so don’t stagnate." Suddenly, Azraelith gives me a lecture.

"So even if what I’m making you do seems boring, you need it to win. Even if your past motivation has cooled off, you have to build a new one and fight for your future. You’re so close to achieving the things you want, so why have you become complacent now and stopped striving as if your life depended on it?"

"Before, you always strived as if your life could end the next day. The strength you’ve gained now isn’t a shield; it’s shackles that are stagnating you."

"This is a weight that comes with strength. The stronger you are, the less you strive. And you need to break those shackles, or you really won’t have a tomorrow to drag along."

"...Sorry..." I apologize genuinely. She’s right. It’s just that I don’t have a huge motivation anymore. In the past, my motivation was revenge and hatred—two powerful fuels, but they consume a lot of one’s mentality. They cooled off when I achieved my revenge.

And when they cooled, they ended up eating a large part of my confidence. As much as it hurts to admit, since I arrived in the Abyss, the time, the things I’ve been through, and the moments I’ve had have been draining more and more of my fragmented motivation.

So now, I’ve been very negligent. But Azraelith is right. Victory isn’t built only on fun things, and life isn’t just lust, fun, and laziness.

When I first managed to transform into my true, real form, I was so happy and so full of hatred. I can’t use hatred as a crutch for my motivation and joy anymore.

I’ve grown so much. It’s time to abandon the crutches that have supported me and start walking on my own two feet.

"I’ll give it my all. So teach me, sis! I want to learn." I give her a determined look, understanding that the maid uniform, the request to be cute, and the grabbing of my ass were attempts to shake off my boredom and show that I’m too dependent on stimulation to get excited.

"That’s the look I like. So learn properly so we can kill the Goddesses successfully." She gives me a gentle, loving smile, and I fill myself with determination from my sister’s effort—proof that she truly loves me and truly understands me.

’I will become stronger. I will destroy the Goddesses and live the life I want, even if I have to tear apart the very fabric of existence to achieve my desires.’ Destiny has never been on my side, and I don’t need it. My sister made me see that again—something I had forgotten when I gained the strength I have now.