Qinrir continued reading a book, while Sera sat in a fancy chair anxiously. Her fingers played along the wooden handrest's carvings, which depicted strange writings and designs foreign to Earth. Bea and Hestia stood nearby, both of them acting stoic to keep Sera calm.

Her eyes kept jumping around the room. She crossed her legs and kept bouncing them, showcasing the stress consuming her body.

She didn't wear the heavy Angelic Metal armor anymore. Instead, along the way, Bea made a similar dress to her own, but she didn't use the same blood-red flowers. Sera's dress had a gentle glow, as the white petals reacted to the Angel's pale skin.

Sera wasn't certain what caused her anxiety. It certainly wasn't the Arachnid standing nearby. In reality, the stress felt foreign, like it didn't originate from her mind... Like something alien was influencing her...

The Angel's legs stopped bouncing, and her hands stopped playing along the carved handrest. Her golden-green eyes narrowed as she stared at the ground, while her lips stretched into a small frown.

An exhausted sigh whistled through her clenched teeth. The anxiety all but disappeared as Sera noticed the exact source of her stress...

With a loud bang, Qinrir placed the book on his cluttered desk, claiming everyone's attention. He crossed his arms and leaned back against the wooden table. His black eyes stared at Sera, while a confident smile appeared across his face.

"Good, you've a chance to survive then. I wasn't certain you'd notice the source of your anxiety, but it seems I underestimated you, Miss Seraphine... Now we can begin the actual treatment!"

Hestia and Bea didn't understand Qinrir's words, but they weren't the target audience. Sera leaned back in the wooden chair. She felt carvings everywhere, touching, stimulating her body.

Her frown turned into a small smile as placed her finger on the carved handrest. A small golden spark ignited on her fingertip. The momentary increase in temperature blackened the entire handrest, yet it left the carvings untouched.

Even Qinrir's confident, gloomy eyes widened in shock upon witnessing the Angel's impossible control of her flames and heat. A sweat bead moved from his forehead, along his chiseled face and got lost in the black needle-like hairs below.

Sera crossed her legs once more, her face showing nothing but satisfaction. She gazed up at the tall Arachnid and spoke in an honest, polite tone.

"I'm glad your little test proved my worthiness for your test, but I think we should hurry. If I were to lose control in this cavern, well... I don't think any Arachnid leaves this place alive!

"Even worse, I'll feel guilty, because I murdered a bunch of innocent people in my blind bloodlusted rage! Do you want me to feel guilty, Qinrir?"

The smile stretching across Sera's lips didn't seem polite to the Arachnid, but it sure as hell looked truthful. A shiver ran down Qinrir's spine as he pulled a chair in front of Sera's.

He sat down, took a deep breath, and stared into Sera's golden-green eyes. His expression became deadly serious as his black eyes examined her face.

"Your pupils are too constricted, while the veins surrounding your iris began reddening. You're still hours away from losing control, but that could change depending on your emotional and mental state, so stay calm while I examine your mind!"

Qinrir leaned forward and raised his hairy hands towards Sera's face. He halted a few centimeters away upon glancing up at Hestia. The petite lady's reprimanding expression caused Qinrir to chuckle.

A small smile appeared on his gloomy face as he asked, "May I proceed?"

Sera raised an eyebrow and snorted at the request. However, a moment alter she nodded, and soon Qinrir placed his hands on Sera's temple. His eyes closed as the Arachnid began examining the Angel's brain.

Nothing happened for a few seconds, but soon Sera felt a presence in her subconscious, similar to when Bea 'invaded' her mind. However, Qinrir didn't walk around aimlessly; he knew the exact position of the Seed of Madness.

"Hmm... I see... Interesting... Curious... Oh, well... That's not good..."

Qinrir's mumbling didn't bring hope to Sera. It seemed while Sera felt his presence in her subconscious; he wasn't just examining that part of her mind. His fingertips began glowing dark green as he dug in further.

A gasp of pain escaped Sera's lips as a scorching feeling washed over her mind. Her face scrunched up as agony consumed her world. Tears welled in her forcefully shut eyes, while beads of sweat moved along her perfect face.

Shivers assaulted her body as her torment increased. Waves of freezing cold mixed with the scorching burning of her mind, creating a new type of blinding pain. The glow of Qinrir's fingertips intensified, and the gasps of pain turned into groans of anguish.

Her suffering continued growing until she came close to screaming from the unbearable agony. However, just when she reached her limit, Qinrir's suddenly stopped.

The Arachnid leaned back and sighed with exhaustion. His black eyes took a few seconds to focus on Sera's gasping form.

With a light chuckle, he smiled and said, "I'm impressed. Nobody managed to stay conscious during a removal. You're truly something else..."

Sera was still recovering from the burning pain when Bea spoke, her eyes full of hope...

"Does this mean you removed the Seed? She won't suffer from bloodlust any longer?"

The smile disappeared from Qinrir's face, turning into such a deep frown, one would question if his chuckle was a mere illusion. With a tired sigh he wiped his forehead, but before he could've answered, Sera's clear voice echoed.

"He wasn't able to... That's why you can't increase the intensity of your power, because the regular amount didn't cut it..."

She sounded even more exhausted and weak than Qinrir...

The Arachnid stared at Sera apologetically, and upon a prompting look from Hestia, he rolled all his six eyes and said, "Yeah, sorry for the pain. I underestimated how deep the roots went and overestimated my own strength."

Sera just laughed at the apology. This pain wasn't even close to reaching her tolerance. Harold 'trained' her to withstand the worst agony without fainting. However, she wasn't in the mood to brag about the tortures she suffered.

"So you can't remove the Seed... Awesome! Let's go, Sera! We might find someone in a different Realm who can help." Said Bea.

Qinrir's eyes snapped towards Bea and snorted at the magnificent woman's delusion.

"Even if you could travel between Realms, finding someone like me who's willing to help and wouldn't snitch on you is near impossible. You humans have such a tiny worldview. It would take a few seconds for authorities to capture an Angel, since — might I remind you... All Angels are extinct!"

His words shut off any other proposals Bea could've made. However, he wasn't done yet as a small, knowing smile spread across his face.

"Also, when did I ever say I can't help? The problem isn't as simple as I would've preferred, but it isn't hopeless... I just need Miss Seraphine's help with the removal!"

The Angel didn't look the slightest bit surprised by Qinrir's words...

"I expected as much." Sera said. "Although I don't fully comprehend how I could provide any help."

Qinrir leaned back with a heavy sigh. His six eyes closed for a moment as he gathered his thoughts.

"First, let me enlighten you about the nature of the Seeds of Madness and the process of infection."

His black eyes opened and stared at Sera, full of solemnity and gloom... his usual expression.

"The word Seed isn't just metaphorical. Madness appears in the infected's mind as a seed, and like every seed, it plunges its roots deep into a person's memories and experiences. Those are the ones I usually burn away...

"After the roots are strong enough, it begins growing its trunk through the subconscious. Most creatures can't affect this process, and experience unbearable bloodlust; however, they're still somewhat conscious..."

The Arachnid fidgeted with his hands, as if thinking back on these facts brought up terrible memories. A second later he caught the slight tell and stopped twiddling. He quickly continued the explanation to mask his emotions.

"At last, the trunk grows in the infected's frontal lobe, their conscious mind. Its branches grow across one's brain and the Seed finally blooms. It reaches full control, the damage becomes irreversible, and the infected loses its mind...

"They might retain some cognitive function, but even then they're nothing but a reflection of their former selves... Upon succumbing to Madness, you turn into an animal living to kill, eat and cause chaos! It's better to die than live such a broken, horrid life!"

It sounded like he spoke those words to convince himself of the righteousness of his past decisions. Sera imagined he must've failed curing people before, and putting them down took a heavy toll on his psyche.

She reached out and placed a comforting hand on his weird, hairy one. Qinrir's eyes snapped at Sera in surprise, but he didn't dismiss her attempt at soothing his troubled mind.

The Angel took this as a good sign and said, "I'm sure we'll get through this, and maybe saving someone will ease the weight of your soul."

Qinrir chuckled without any humor. A sad smile played on his lips, but he bopped his head once, a near imperceptible nod of thanks.

Sera smiled genuinely and gingerly placed the Arachnid's hand down. She used all her self-control not to wipe her palm on the white petal dress since it would've probably been rude towards Qinrir. It wasn't easy to hold herself, because the tingling feeling from the needle-like hair persisted.

"So, the reason I survived for the past two years is because, I kept cutting down the Seed's trunk. I didn't let Madness bloom, which let me continue to retain my sanity... Is that correct?"

The Arachnid regained his composure and nodded.

"Yes, exactly. However, this isn't a perfect solution. It's nothing but a makeshift dam holding back a powerful flood. The bloodlust returns stronger each time, and eventually... you'll lose yourself!"