Chapter 74: Western Fantasy Romance (XVI)

Previous Chapter ∇ Table of Content ∇ Next Chapter

Chapter 74: Western Fantasy Romance (XVI)

Their conversation ultimately ended on an unhappy note. Afterward, it was as though it had never taken place. None of them brought it up again, nor did anyone seek to know its outcome. In truth, there had never been any conclusion to begin with.

Minea, on the other hand, very much wanted to raise the subject, whether it was Aesop’s identity or anything else. Yet under the restraint imposed by the gods, she was unable to carry out any of her plans. At first, she simply could not speak. Later, she no longer had any desire to. It was as though her body had been cursed. Every time she thought of Aesop, pain would seize her body, each attack more severe than the last. Yet every priest who examined her insisted that there was not the slightest trace of dark magic within her body, much less any sign of a curse…

What had originally been a journey for two gradually became a group expedition, with all the students from Lemnos Academy who had come out for practical training following behind them. Though they did not know the identities of the other two, the Pope alone was enough to inspire these favored sons and daughters of heaven to follow. Prince Caelric Gerald was himself synonymous with genius, not to mention the other two, whose depths seemed even more unfathomable.

For Servius and Sathalia, this was a rare period of peace. Yet it was also destined to be the last. At first, Servius could still tolerate watching Aesop converse with the students who admired him as a legendary figure. But as time passed, his possessiveness became more and more apparent. It began with the cold aura he unconsciously radiated, and ended with monopolizing Aesop’s time entirely. The overbearing nature of a demon and the indulgence of his instincts were displayed to the fullest.

After working together for countless years and opposing each other for just as long, Sathalia had thought he understood Servius well enough. Yet he discovered that reality was nothing like he had imagined. In his impression, no matter how powerful one’s instincts were, reason should still be able to restrain them. Servius, however, had indulged his instincts to the greatest extent possible. He had actually brought Aesop to the Demon Realm. Simply because of his possessiveness, he had taken Aesop into the domain that belonged solely to himself.

The Demon Realm was the space where the power of darkness was strongest, and accordingly, where the power of light was weakest. There was no daylight in the Demon Realm, only eternal night. Just as the Divine Realm would never allow darkness to shroud it, the two stood at opposite extremes. Within the Demon Realm, once a god of light exhausted their power, replenishing it became exceedingly difficult. In other words, every use of light magic or light-battle aura permanently reduced what remained. No matter how powerful one’s body was, it would eventually become unable to resist the erosion of darkness.

By doing this, was Servius not pushing Aesop into a desperate situation? Aesop’s faith in the light surpassed even his own life. The Demon King, who cared nothing for faith, could never understand just how impossible it was to reason with a true fanatic. Such people could dedicate themselves wholly to serving their god and willingly offer up even their souls.

What Aesop believed in was not Sathalia, the God of Light, but the power of light itself. In essence, however, there was no difference.

Sathalia likewise returned to the Divine Realm. The first command he issued upon his return was to attack the Demon Realm. Since the Creator God had opened the world, this was the first War of the Gods to begin with an invasion. For the sake of so-called fairness, the battles had always taken place outside both the Divine Realm and the Demon Realm, with the Kedor Continent serving as the battlefield more often than not. That was why there were so many legends of the gods across the continent. But this time, it was an invasion, and one launched without any preparation.

Perhaps Servius believed that once the light element had completely disappeared from Aesop’s body, he would no longer reject the encroachment of darkness, and might even become a true demon with his help. But he still did not understand Aesop’s choice. Aesop did not completely reject darkness and could even remain its observer, but he would never allow himself to fall into it. If that day truly came, his only choice would be death. After death, there might be another reincarnation, but would the person born in that next life still be Aesop?

Sathalia lowered his head and looked at his palm. It seemed as though he could still feel that faint, cool touch lingering there. But now… he could no longer touch him in the slightest. The Demon Realm was forbidden ground to every god, himself included. Yet only by personally entering the Demon Realm could he possibly bring Aesop back. From the very beginning, this battle had left him with no choice. A war between the Divine King and the Demon King, if not unprecedented, was at least without equal in history.

Aesop Leslie… perhaps he had been a curse upon the gods from the very beginning. Whether it was Servius or Sathalia, both had become incapable of letting go without ever realizing when it had happened. Whether it had begun as the bond between ruler and subordinate, companionship, or perhaps because they were too alike and thus naturally drawn to one another, none of that mattered anymore. By now, everything had slipped completely beyond their control.

∇ Capture Target Sathalia Campbell Favorability: 90.

Sathalia slowly opened his hand as the feather resting in his palm vanished like an illusion. At least he could be grateful that, during their final time together, he had broken the shackles restraining Aesop. With the accumulation of power Aesop had built over so many years, the moment he was brought to the Demon Realm, the change in environment should have been enough to push him into the Divine Realm. The Divine rank and the Saint rank were entirely different. Once he became a god, he would be able to endure the Demon Realm two or three times longer than someone at the Saint rank. He would also have much more time to prepare.

Using the Demon Realm as the battlefield meant fighting where Servius was at his strongest and he was at his weakest. Perhaps there was still another choice. For some reason, Sathalia thought of Caelir. But with Caelir’s temperament, would he truly involve himself in this war? From ancient times until now, Caelir had been the only god to remain detached from every conflict. He did not even care much for the race he had created and had always remained an observer. Could someone like him really join this war because of an Aesop with whom he had had so little contact?

A trace of resolve flashed through Sathalia’s blue eyes. Golden light shone from his scepter as mysterious runes circled around it. The scepter, which always carried a warm aura, now seemed to possess a hint of sharpness. Yet upon closer inspection, nothing had changed at all.

The fuse that ignited this true war between gods and demons had, only moments before, been nothing more than an ordinary human, one so insignificant that both demons and gods had looked down on him and could scarcely be bothered to spare him a glance. Once the flames of war had a purpose, they spread with astonishing speed. It was a collision of power against power, where the strong survived and the weak were fated to perish on the battlefield.

Although the demons possessed the advantage of fighting on their own ground, that did not guarantee victory. The celestials, empowered by the strength of faith, had always been stronger than the demons. This battle was destined to become a war of attrition. Beneath the scorched black earth of the Demon Realm lay the bodies of fallen deities, but far more gods became food for the demons. Likewise, countless demons who had ventured too deep were truly “purified,” leaving behind nothing but the clothes they had worn.

As the one who had ignited this war, Miao Lichen was surprisingly at ease. Contrary to what others imagined, he did not completely reject the darkness entering his body. Instead, he allowed it to invade freely, though only he himself could perceive it. The Qixiu internal energy within him seemed to have broken through some invisible barrier. If it had once been a river, it was now an ocean. No matter what attribute entered his body, it would silently dissolve without a trace.

Now, he no longer even needed to preserve the power of light that had maintained his identity. This was a death he had planned long ago. He would leave at the most appropriate moment, and this world would continue to move according to the path he had designed. The Pope’s scepter appeared in his hand. As though affected by the darkness of the Demon Realm, it continuously emitted a faint golden radiance. Like a beacon, it illuminated the entire room, its light falling across his exquisite features and making them appear even more dreamlike.

“If this continues, you won’t last much longer. Whether god or human, there is only one fate in the Demon Realm: assimilation. Why insist on clinging to that so-called power of light? Whether light or darkness, don’t they ultimately serve the same purpose? Power exists for the sake of killing. If you can remain true to yourself, why should it matter what kind of power you wield? Besides, even if you became a demon, I could still let you wield the power of light.”

Servius walked through the darkness of the Demon Realm as naturally as a fish returning to the sea. The aura surrounding him had reached its peak, and the mere sight of his crimson eyes made resistance impossible. Yet his voice was astonishingly gentle, completely at odds with his appearance. Though traces of stiffness still lingered in his tone, if any other demon had witnessed this, they would surely have doubted whether this was truly the strongest and most bloodthirsty Demon King.

“There are some things that must be upheld. If I abandon them, then this life will have no meaning. Simply driving me into a corner will not make me yield to your wishes.” Miao Lichen’s fingers gently stroked the smooth shaft of the scepter. Its dark golden glow appeared even more sacred within this world of darkness. “Servius, you’ll never understand these things. As a demon, you’ll never cherish life, and my convictions cannot be changed either. Perhaps… it’s not only life. For someone like you, who has obtained everything so easily, do you even understand what it means to cherish something?”

Servius took another step forward, drawing even closer to Aesop. Although Aesop had spent more than a month in the Demon Realm, the power of light had almost completely faded away, leaving only the cool aura that truly belonged to him, the very warmth Servius loved most. The smile on his lips never changed. Cherish… there had never been anything worth cherishing. Aesop might be the first person he wished to cherish, but before one could speak of cherishing something, one first had to possess it, didn’t they?

Servius’s pupils suddenly contracted. He stared as cracks appeared across the faintly glowing scepter. They spread little by little before the scepter shattered into countless golden fragments, scattering across the floor in an instant. Darkness once again enveloped the room. Only those crimson eyes remained faintly visible, but they no longer held their former composure. For the first time, they were filled with panic.

Servius reached out and pulled Aesop into his arms, placing every restraint upon him in an instant. Only after sensing that Aesop’s soul was still present within his body, and that his breathing, though faint, had not ceased, did he finally let out a breath. Carefully lifting him into his arms, he raised his head toward the direction from which he could sense the power of light.

‘Sathalia Campbell. Since you have chosen war, then let it continue until a victor is decided. What I want now is… the entire Divine Realm.’

A faint smile appeared on his lips as he looked at the body, whose vitality had fallen silent but had not yet vanished. It was only the light. Sathalia was not the only one capable of wielding it. If he could gain control over the light, then as one of its believers, Aesop would no longer have any reason to refuse him.

Previous Chapter ∇ Table of Content ∇ Next Chapter