"Try controlling this puppet," utz ordered.


    "Control?" Verona docked her head to the side as she had question marks on her face.


    ''Ugh, this dim wit!'' utz gritted his teeth but controlled himself fromshing at her, ''Why does she don''t know till now? Even after she was controlling that army of corpses?''


    The puppeteer, Armand, utz had fought in his previous life rarely used human corpses as puppets. The better the material the better the puppet was in strength and endurance. And human corpses were a weak material that could easily be destroyed. That is why utz was able to defeat Verona''s zombie puppets so easily.


    After all, how could a normal human''s bonesst against utz''s A rank weapon? But that doesn''t mean that a human who has piled up quite a bit of defence stats won''t be able to defend. That is the difference between the living and the dead. The living had the Satan''s system while the dead had none.


    utz took a deep breath as he continued.


    "Okay, now do this. Close your eyes, take a deep breath and then imagine the humanoid structure in front of you moving. Try to move its arms and its legs, imagine it trying to walk and jump as if it were alive." utz instructed.


    Verona, who was torn about this, looked at utz and then back at the puppet.


    ''I am not so sure about this, but it doesn''t sound very difficult,'' she thought as she closed her eyes following utz instructions.


    utz stared at the puppet for some time. But there was no motion.


    *Sigh*


    ''I guess this is the most I could expect of a dimwit like her,'' he thought but then what happened made him change his opinion.


    Its skeletal fingers shook followed by its arms and then its legs. Little by little, it was walking around as if it were alive.


    utz nodded in appreciation. He ducked lower to Verona as he whispered in her ears.


    "Now open your eyes but wait! Don''t stop the imagination that is running through your head… don''t make it disappear. Just open your eyes as it keeps running at the back of your mind."


    She nodded.


    Her eyshes twitched as her eyelids were not covering her blue pupils anymore.


    "Wow," she gasped her hands covering her mouth as she saw the puppet moving ording to her imaginations. "This is so amazing!"


    ''Was I like her when I first arrived in hell?'' utz smiled as he wondered about his past.


    She too was all smiles as she had found a new toy to y with. She was not as alone anymore as she finally had somepany.


    Which left her wondering, "What happened to that girl?'' She turned around as she found her sleeping like a baby, wrapped around in a nket probably made by utz. There was a torch-lit close to her which was meant to keep her warm.


    Verona smiled.


    ''Must be nice, having someone you love around.'' She thought as she realized that the fierce utz had a caring side to him too.


    utz had never cared about the death of her friends which led her to mistook his personality. But now it looked like utz could care for his loved ones when he needed to.


    "Here, take this," utz passed his torch to Verona. Verona who was lost in thought was finally stuck back to reality as she held onto the torch.


    "Keep in mind that we are moving out as soon as the sun shows its face"


    Verona nodded but utz wasn''t there anymore to watch her nod as he walked away yawning. He helped himself within the nket where Selena slept still naked. But utz didn''t bother to take a look. They had stayed awake a bit too long and now he needs to get some well deserved sleep.


    ***


    *Thud*


    The golem fell. utz used the same trick he had used to kill the first golem. utz wanted to fight it head-on but it was a bad match against someone like utz most of whose skills were based on ninjahood. utz didn''t have enough strength to oppress it with strength alone.


    Verona, whose arrows couldn''t pierce the golem''s tough defence could only use her puppet to act as a distraction. The puppet had done its job as it was now destroyed to pieces.


    There was one thing Verona had realized during the journey. It is only her who can control puppets. When she was taught by utz how to control them she had thought that utz could do this too but she was wrong all along.


    *Ping*


    [You have defeated Guardian Golem of the Ind of Tow]


    [Greatest Contributor: utz]


    [Prize: Golem''s core]


    [Bracelet of Fortification]


    utz had got his hands on the second golem core and also a Bracelet of Fortification. utz''s goal had always been the Golem''s goals. The Bracelet came as a bonus deal. It gave a +10 Defence boost and it was better than having nothing. But s it was not stackable and utz already had one on his wrist.


    He turned to Selena. Lifting her arm he slid the bracelet across her wrist. Selena could only blink in surprise but chose not to respond with words. She just looked at utz intently with all of her heart.


    utz felt her stare.


    *sigh*


    He pulled her closernding a peck on her lips and walked away without a second word.


    *Crack* *crack*


    The portal to the next ind arose from the earth as it shone its yellow light. Selena could only watch utz walk towards that portal as she touched her lips in a daze.


    Since when did utz give her pecks? It had always been deep kisses whose true motive seemed to be his own pleasure and ego. It was like he ravished her whenever he kissed.


    ***


    Author:


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