Volume 6, Chapter 54 – Seeking the Light Screen

“Haah—”

As if to spit out all the insoluble worries in her chest, Nola, walking alone in the courtyard, let out a long breath.

The cold wind brushing her bare arms caused goosebumps to rise on her skin, and the hem of her white formal dress fluttered slightly. Normally, people would certainly choose to put on a coat, but the sorrow in her heart left her no time to care about the coldness of her body. She just frowned tightly, stopping from time to time, staring blankly at the bright moonlight in the dark sky.

My Goddess didn’t trust me.

Thinking of this, Nola felt as if a boulder was pressing on her chest, bringing a suffocating feeling of breathlessness.

The feeling of being abandoned wasn’t pleasant. She once thought that since the Goddess saved her life, whether the Goddess trusted her or not wouldn’t affect her gratitude toward the Goddess. However, when the truth was truly displayed before her eyes, she couldn’t help but feel a strong sense of loss, like a stray dog. Subconsciously, she felt that her presence or absence actually didn’t matter to the Goddess at all. She was just a cute pet, petted when remembered, and discarded directly when unwanted.

If it were yesterday, even knowing she was just a pet kept by the Goddess, she wouldn’t be angry about it. At most, she would be dissatisfied with why she was merely a pet, with too low a rank. The Goddess not only saved her life but also gave her a new life—the status of Holy Son and Acting Clan Chief. Even if seen as a pet, it could completely be called a blessing. But this thought was based on honesty, on the Goddess telling her from the beginning that she didn’t have high hopes for Nola and only treated Nola as a kitten.

The facts clearly weren’t so. In reality, the Goddess made her a Holy Son, placing hope on her. Even if the Goddess never forcefully demanded Nola do anything, Nola had always been working hard to be helpful to the Goddess. Improving martial arts was just one aspect; doing things befitting the identity of a Holy Son and not shaming the Goddess was equally her responsibility.

Therefore, she never let anyone see her weak appearance and absolutely never did anything against her conscience. In the eyes of any ordinary cat person, Nola, as the clan chief, was impeccable. She didn’t seek personal gain with power and would confront Chazo for the interests of ordinary people. In the hundred years after the Lion-folk usurped power, no beastman had ever achieved what Nola did.

Precisely because of this, after learning that the Goddess was just playing and didn’t take her seriously, Nola behaved like this now. Past efforts become meaningless in a few sentences, like a ship losing its destination, having no clue where to go or what to do next. The fact was that she was now abandoned by the Goddess, becoming a discarded pawn. It felt as if a large piece of her heart had been forcibly dug out, empty and unsettled.

Looking at it now, what Lord Goddess told me about going beneath the World Tree Continent to fight a decisive battle with Chaos was just an excuse to stay away from me. Fia said that whether it’s the Absolute Evil faction or the Sovereign faction, Darkborn have shown the ability to manipulate Chaos. Since Darkborn can guarantee they won’t be eroded by Chaos, then the premise of hostility doesn’t exist between the two parties.

Played for a fool from beginning to end…

Although the Goddess was her lifesaver, and even if her fate was played with, she still received considerable benefits, Nola still felt unsettled. Being distrusted by someone she trusted was exceptionally hurtful under any circumstances.

Nola withdrew her gaze from the moon. Sorrow and self-mockery appeared in her exotically charming eyes. She shook her head and chuckled to herself.

“Even if she told me these things from the beginning, I wouldn’t have felt anything…”

She remembered what the Fog Demon said during the day. The Goddess personally summoned the Fog Demon and granted him the power to leave the Illusion Barrier. At that time, there was Chaos on the Fog Demon that wouldn’t harm him, which meant the Fog Demon didn’t lie; it was indeed her Goddess who granted Chaos to the Fog Demon.

Feeling no longer amused, so changed to a different pet, or rather, toy.

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This behavior is no different from the Fire Cat nobles in the past. The only difference is that my Goddess is very gentle; she didn’t kill me or let me fall into the hands of others.

“No.”

After mocking herself, Nola denied herself again.

My Goddess isn’t that kind of person. She is powerful and gentle, not seeking malicious tastes.

This analogy might be inappropriate, but if Nola were asked to imagine Claire playing with others’ fates and treating others’ will as child’s play, she couldn’t imagine such a scene no matter what. Similarly, she couldn’t imagine her Goddess playing with her.

Must find Lord Goddess personally.

Suddenly, this thought surfaced in Nola’s mind. This thought had appeared in her mind before, but at that time, she didn’t allow herself to spy on traces of the Goddess’s life, considering it an inviolable sanctuary, so she just let it pass after thinking about it. But now, the hope of knowing the Goddess didn’t deceive her overwhelmed all other emotions in her heart. She had to find out the truth. The intense desire made her body move, taking steps outside the courtyard.

If Lord Goddess wasn’t under the golden light screen, it meant the Fog Demon was lying; he could manipulate Chaos for other reasons, and the Goddess granting power was just his fantasy. Nola comforted herself in her heart. And if the Goddess was under that golden light screen, that would be even better; then she could ask Lord Goddess clearly face to face.

Hope magnified infinitely in her heart. Expectation and joy appeared on Nola’s face. She walked quickly, leaving the courtyard in a few steps. The guards of Tsukuyomi’s mansion summoned the courage to ask where Nola was going. Nola just answered she would be back soon. To avoid being disturbed by soldiers, she simply flew high into the sky. Under the cover of the night and clouds, she headed straight for the forest of the Weeping Mountains.

The cold wind whistling past her ears made her eardrums vibrate like paper under the strong wind. She plunged into the rolling forests of the Weeping Mountains, flying over the valley Fia and she had seen before.

In the past, the valley would definitely be full of white mist everywhere. But now, below was nothing but dense forest. So much so that the Flame Greatsword behind her didn’t react at all—having been with the Flame Greatsword for too long, Nola no longer needed to look with her eyes to know if the Flame Greatsword was glowing; subtle changes in magic power were more direct than visual observation.

It was the first time the Flame Greatsword had absolutely no reaction entering the white mist area. Previously, it would emit a little light more or less. This meant the Fog Demon-like ghosts were all dead, and she was quite far from the Goddess.

This conclusion made Nola both worried and happy.

The Flame Greatsword not glowing meant she had indeed been bewitched by the Illusion Barrier all along. Even though the Flame Greatsword had already told her the answer, she suspected there was a problem with the Flame Greatsword. Truly stupid to the extreme.

Fia calling me a stupid cat wasn’t without reason.

Once realizing it was her own problem, she couldn’t even get angry at Fia.

No, I can’t think about Fia at this important moment.

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Clicking her tongue at her distraction, Nola lowered her flight altitude to avoid being targeted by powerful monsters. She put most of her attention on the Flame Greatsword behind her. As long as the Flame Greatsword had a little reaction, she would check the surrounding environment immediately. All the powerful monsters she had seen along the way caused a reaction from the Flame Greatsword, meaning they were all undead creatures, just beautified by the Illusion Barrier so she didn’t notice at all.

No wonder the monsters in the Weeping Mountains were more aggressive than ordinary monsters. Undead hated the living; it would be strange if they didn’t actively attack people approaching them.

I just don’t know what their true forms are. Not learning high-level detection magic is truly regrettable. No, magic that can see through the Illusion Barrier would probably be sixth or even seventh rank. Such things don’t exist in this world.

“I would be confused by the Illusion Barrier, and these monsters stay honestly inside the barrier, meaning there’s no problem with the barrier… Hmm?”

Abruptly, a gray brilliance appeared in a corner of her vision. Nola widened her eyes instantly, looking straight over. She had never seen this gray light screen connecting heaven and earth like a canopy in the Weeping Mountains. Although the gray light screen was quite distant from her, it appeared exceptionally glaring in the dark night.

Did the golden light screen covering Lord Goddess turn gray as Lord Goddess left?

To confirm it wasn’t her illusion, Nola rubbed her eyes and turned her head to look at the Flame Greatsword. The result was the same as she felt; the Flame Greatsword wasn’t emitting light.

Her Lord Goddess was exceptionally powerful. Previously, shortly after she entered the Weeping Mountains, the Flame Greatsword would emit an inconspicuous glow. Now entering the hinterland without reaction meant Lord Goddess was indeed not in the Weeping Mountains.

The Fog Demon was lying about being granted power by the Goddess.

Like grasping a straw to save her life, Nola’s expression brightened further. Her speed increased even more, like a person dying of thirst seeing an oasis. Not even caring about hiding her figure, she flew straight toward the gray light screen.

As long as I pass through this gray light screen, I can spy on Lord Goddess’s life. Maybe I can find evidence that Lord Goddess values me very much. Maybe Lord Goddess just couldn’t tell me the truth due to some unspeakable difficulties.

The more she thought this way, the more excited she felt inside. Nola even created a whistling boom in the air. The gray light screen in her vision grew larger and larger, soon occupying most of the gray. At the same time, the Flame Greatsword still had no reaction, meaning there were no undead creatures in the forest below.

Purified land.

My Lord Goddess has always lived in a clean place!

Then.

“Ugh!”

Before her face could be filled with ecstasy, Nola felt like plunging into extremely viscous mud; her flight speed dropped sharply.

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She became alert instantly. She had experienced a similar feeling when fighting the Demon General of Absolute Death. When the Demon General of Absolute Death summoned Demon General companions, the air around his body was incomparably viscous like this. No matter how she increased her magic power, she couldn’t advance an inch.

Darkborn?!

But why didn’t the Flame Greatsword react—

As if answering Nola, the Flame Greatsword suddenly burst forth with blinding brilliance like a fireball. The light was so bright Nola could feel it without turning back.

Thump.

Nola’s heart skipped a beat. Her right hand reflexively gripped the hilt of the Flame Greatsword tightly. She tried her best to widen her eyes searching the surroundings, but there was only air in the dark mountain forest; she didn’t see any physical entity. The eerie scene made cold sweat of fear and tension pour from her back madly.

I was so focused on finding Lord Goddess for answers that I ignored the dangers hidden in the Weeping Mountains.

—Anyway, break it open with violence first.

“Nola.”

The moment Nola’s expression turned fierce, a female voice with slight echoes suddenly sounded around her. The steady tone seemed to possess magic; Nola’s nervous heart calmed down naturally.

Along with it, golden brilliance appeared around Nola, wrapping her. Nola watched helplessly as the forest beneath her feet disappeared, and the whole world turned into a golden expanse.

This was the scene that appeared every time she saw Lord Goddess. Her heart heated up instantly, sweat seeping from her palms. Her lips moved, hesitating for a second or two before shouting joyfully.

“Lord Goddess, y-you are still in the Weeping Mountains!”

“I am making preparations…” As if weighing her words, the Goddess paused for a moment. “I believe I told you I might be away for a long time. What is Nola looking for me for? Coming later, you might not meet me.”

“Eh? Er… this…”

Nola stammered, her gaze glancing guiltily to the side. She couldn’t say to the Goddess’s face that she suspected the Goddess didn’t trust her and treated her as a dispensable plaything. Just the fact that the Goddess noticed her entering the Weeping Mountains and made time to see her was enough to show Lord Goddess valued her very much. Her suspicion was completely groundless, a distrust of the Goddess.

Just because of a mere Fog Demon’s words, my faith in Lord Goddess wavered. What exactly am I doing?

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“If there are no problems, leave the Weeping Mountains. I will go to the world below soon. At that time, the Weeping Mountains will become unstable; you must be prepared.”

Mentioning the Weeping Mountains, Nola, as if making conversation to cover up her embarrassment, asked hurriedly. If kneeling in the air weren’t exceptionally weird, she would have already knelt on one knee.

“I… I want to ask you, is the Illusion Barrier full of undead?”

“…” The Goddess paused for a moment, her voice less affectionate. “Why do you say that?”

“During the day, the Fog Demon from the Illusion Barrier ran to the edge of the forest, and then he exposed his identity as an undead. This shows that the characteristic of the Flame Greatsword glowing upon meeting Darkborn won’t change due to being in the Illusion Barrier. On the way here, I found that as long as the Flame Greatsword approached powerful monsters in the barrier, the sword body would glow. Unless this place is full of undead, there is no other possibility…”

“So you want to say I am also a Darkborn?”

Although the Goddess didn’t appear from the light screen, and the voice came from all directions, Nola could clearly feel the Goddess’s gaze falling on the Flame Greatsword.

That was a chilling gaze like a venomous snake, so much so that Nola felt intense uneasiness and discordance. She had never felt such a threat from her Goddess.

She swallowed a mouthful of saliva, lowering her head timidly.

“I… I dare not.”

“I know what you are thinking; no need to hide it.” There was a bit more helplessness in the voice. The Goddess sighed long and deep. “Since you realized, I don’t need to be euphemistic anymore. Let you see my true form. Consider it a parting gift.”

As the voice fell, the golden brilliance wrapping Nola slowly dissipated. Then, a woman with a seductive face, wearing an evening dress with lots of ruffles and patterns, appeared before Nola’s eyes. Her pinned-up deep purple long hair combined with her mature figure was noble enough to make one feel fearful.

But if Fia or Claire were here, the woman’s mysterious veil would be torn to shreds.

It was none other than Fia’s old friend, Helian.