Reign of Sins

The Ratio Of The Dark Arms

Even though Greed and Gluttony are already compromised by Claudia’s ability, Pride and Wrath are still calm while standing beside Grim. When Grim looks at Wrath, she is eating a lollipop that he doesn’t know where she got. 

When she felt him staring at her, Wrath glared at him. “I’ll shoot you with my Mad Hatter if you ask for my lollipop.” Wrath threatened, making Pride shake his head.

“Leave him alone, Wrath,” Pride said. “You’re the only childish one in the group.”

“Of course not! It’s Gluttony.”

Grim could feel Wrath’s pouting lips even behind her mask.

The twins, who are just kneeling a while ago, are now lying on the ground on their stomachs. Claudia doubled the gravity field of her Tatara. But since she’s a Dark Arms user, she can freely walk anywhere. Her eyes are already dead, and no emotion can be reflected. She looks like someone who just gave up life and let the Dark Arms control her.

“She will enter the Abyss,” Wrath mentioned.

“Abyss?” Grim asked.

“There is a balance between the user and the Dark Arms,” Pride explains. “If the user fights, there’s a seventy by thirty ratio of control. When the ratio becomes ninety by ten, and ninety goes to the Dark Arms, it controls the user. The user’s mind goes to the Abyss then. Abyss is a state of mind that the Dark Arms user created. This will show the Dark Arms what the user desires and hates the most. 

“It has only one goal; it is to trap the user. If they fail to come back, there are only two possibilities. One is that the user is going to become a rogue. The Dark Arms will control them, and they will only serve as a vessel for the weapon. The second is where the user will die because her body can’t take the changes.”

Pride is looking calmly at the things unfolding before them like it’s not the first time this has happened.

“Are there any users who managed to go back from the Abyss?”

Pride and Wrath exchanged glances before answering in unison. “Of course.”

Grim is about to ask who, but Claudia’s scream cut him off. She’s holding a knife while running toward the twins. Grim is about to jump off the tree, but the two stop him immediately.

“Your comrades are getting killed. You can’t just watch them die!”

“Are they?” Wrath asked with an amused voice.

Grim looks back at the twins and expects dead bodies, but he is taken aback instead.

The gravity field is gone, and the twins are already sitting on the ground. Claudia is now facing the other direction, and from there, a cloaked figure appears. Her long dark hair tied in a ponytail is visible in the darkness of the night. There’s also a katana tied around her waist.

Alice Verona, also known as Lust, is the Dark Arms user of Setsuna.

With one swing of her arm, Claudia brings back the gravity field and targets Alice. The twins turn and walk away from the scene. They sit near the greenhouse’s door like they are just watching a movie.

“You’re here, Setsuna.” Claudia’s voice is thick.

“What a sight to behold, Tatara.” In return, Alice’s voice is filled with sarcasm. Her heterochromia eyes, amber, and red albino are glistening with the intent to kill.

Claudia makes another swing of her arm that causes the violent shaking of the ground. The epicenter is where Alice is standing, but she still looks calm and collected. She is now holding her katana on her left waist using her left hand. Her fingers are ready to draw to the sword, itching for a fight.

Grim is confused about why Alice is just standing there and doing nothing. “Maybe she’s affected by the gravity field of Tatara,” he tells them. Worry is evident in his voice.

The two just smirked.

He couldn’t do anything but watch and wait. He saw the twins doing the same thing like it is nothing. When Claudia couldn’t take it as well, she attacks her enemy first. Since Alice couldn’t move, Claudia takes the opportunity.

The last thing Grim saw was Claudia attacking, but the moment he blinked, Alice is already behind Claudia.

Alice put her sword back into the sheath, and the gravity field disappears into thin air. The next thing he knows, Claudia’s body collapses on the ground.

“What in the….”

Pride and Wrath jump off the tree and walk near Alice, leaving Grim, who is still so stunned to move. He only knows one person who can do that. Someone who moves so fast for the eyes can see.

Fallen Angel.

Is this why Fallen Angel asked him to watch over the Seven Sins? Is it because there’s a strong force in this group?

Grim follows the two. As he approaches them, a pair of eyes are watching him.

“Have you gathered your data?” Grim thought of how frank Alice is.

“Of course. I’m expecting all of you to listen to my plans from now on since I have observed your teamwork.”

“So, you’ve figured us out already?” Gluttony asks with no sense of mockery but curiosity, sitting beside Greed and holding something. He hands Grim a necklace with a purple pendant, the Dark Arms Tatara.

Since Grim is the leader of Sector 7, he gets to keep the Dark Arms. After inspecting the necklace, he realized that it is a little gooey and coated with blood.

He is about to ask when Greed said, “When she entered the Abyss, the necklace went inside her body. I have to get her to retrieve it.” He shows Grim his hand that he used to look for the necklace.

“Thanks,” he simply said before hiding the necklace inside his pocket. He turns towards Gluttony. “Yeah, more or less.”

“Hey Alice, he said he figured us out already. What should we do?” asked Wrath, clinging to Alice’s arm.

“He claimed to figure out Alice already. What an interesting guy,” Gluttony said. His arms are wrapped around Greed’s shoulder, which is shorter than him.

Alice is just staring at their teacher the whole time. Her head is tilted a little in his direction like he is a strange and unique specimen for her.

“What’s your orders then, Sector 7 leader, Grim?”

Everyone is taken aback by Alice’s question. She’s giving him a chance to prove that he can lead them to victory. And that’s what he’ll do. He will retrieve the remaining Dark Arms while ensuring no one gets hurt in his team. Yeah, his team, the Seven Sins.

With a look of determination, his gaze wanders at each one of them. “Let’s meet Sloth and Envy first.”

Because of what Alice said a while ago, the sarcasm in the eyes of the Seven Sins disappears. They all nod and follow what he instructed them. Grim dashes to the other side of the mansion while the others follow suit.

Being the best tracker in the Phoenix team, it’s easy for Grim to know where the rest of the Seven Sins are located. They first went to where Sloth is since he is the first one he tracked. Grim is now moving to the greenhouse where he is sensing Sloth's aura.

As time pass by, the smell of blood gets stronger and stronger as they walk forward. Grim can see the stain of blood everywhere on the ground with every step they take. There is also blood on the branches of trees and leaves. When he inspected some of the stains, he didn’t just see blood. Different parts of a human’s body are scattered around. Grim estimates that at least twenty people died with this many body parts.

Who is responsible for this cruel dismemberment?  

“Your sixth sense is awesome!” Wrath pats Grim, clinging to him this time. 

Grim could only shake his head.

Not far from where they are, they can see the mountain of corpses under the moonlight sheen. And on top of that mountain is Sloth, sitting like a king on his throne. 

Grim is about to approach Sloth when Alice points her katana at his neck, stopping him immediately. “Don’t move. This is Sloth’s territory. One wrong move, and you’ll end up like them.” She motions to him and then to the human organs lying around like a fucking decorative.

Grim steps back and let Alice handle the situation. 

“Verona Style Technique: Lotus.” Alice places her right leg behind the other. She points the tip of her blade in front and put Setsuna before her face as if she is kissing the blade of her Dark Arms. She holds the sword using both of her hands.