SON OF THE HERO KING

Sol was a little stunned by those words, but in the end, he nodded. He knew that above Ymir and the sins and virtues goddesses stood the Mother Goddesses of Order and Chaos.

True absolute freedom could not exist as long as someone above you existed and restrained you. Not even the goddesses were genuinely free.

If even the goddesses were not free, then what about mortals?

Thinking about this, a ridiculous thought flashed through his mind, “In the end, you are just playing around with the Wings of Freedom?”

Ymir smiled as if she couldn’t see Sol's attempt to buy time.

She only had to destroy this avatar of hers, then the boy would be erased body and soul with no possibility for reincarnation.

She could guess what Luxuria was planning and while she was sure that the poor little girl would face failure, there was nothing that was one hundred percent certain in the world.

It was better to nip it in the bud.

However…Just as she was about to end him, a small thought suddenly occurred to her.

'Wouldn't that be boring?'

She had stayed so long with no way to amuse herself, perhaps…?

Rather than doing as she initially planned, she decided to answer him.

—This was her first mistake.

“No. Lying to mere mortals is beneath me. Be it the current Nihil or her predecessors, even though they all had thoughts of freedom, each of them had a different philosophy. The current Nihil is…Let’s say…more to my liking.”

Sol observed Ymir as she spoke. He could not hide how bewildered he was.

Ymir was the goddess of destruction and the creator of Titans and Giants. She was the one whose power was so high that even the 14 goddesses had to work together to seal her.

After meeting and fighting Chaos Spawns, Sol had imagined the different personalities Ymir could have. But what he was witnessing was beyond everything he could imagine.

As if reading his thoughts, Ymir walked toward him with a bright smile, “Surprised? Did you think you would meet some kind of crazy woman? Or someone with a bloodthirsty personality?”

She laughed lightly, causing her heavy breasts to jiggle in an enticing way. She was truly a stunning woman.

Once she reached him, she began to walk all around him as she eyed him from head to toe.

“Hum…What a fine specimen.”

She muttered to herself, before looking up and licking her lips. “When people imagine destruction, they have the tendency of thinking about the brutal aspects of destruction brought by absolute power. They aren’t wrong per se. But you see. While I am able to do so. I like the subtle aspects more.”

Ymir laughed once again, “Like right now.” She blew a hot breath near his ear.

Sol shivered and looked up immediately, his eyes wide. He could see that the dark sea of his consciousness seemed to be slowly eroded by a crimson hue and was changing into a crimson sea.

“You aren’t the only one who wants to buy time you know.”

,m “You…!”

Sol immediately realized what was happening.

Ymir hugged him and giggled, “Luxuria, Luxuria, how stupid she is. Hahaha~! How could she leave a treasure like you without more protection?”

She gently bit his earlobe, “I changed my opinion. Killing you would be such a shame. Why don’t you join me? If you do so…I can promise you a pleasure no mortal ever obtained.”

She continued in a hot and hushed voice, “Do you wonder what it would feel like to have a goddess moan under you?”

Sol was ashamed to admit that for an instant, he was tempted by her words and the moment this thought flashed in his mind, he could see the sea reddening further.

That was when Sol understood what Ymir meant when she said she liked the subtle approach.

Rather than destroying something herself, she liked seeing that thing self-destruct.

At the same time, he gained a deeper understanding of the mentality of those goddesses.

As he was now, Sol was nothing but a talented mortal. The goddesses did not know how powerful his dimensions could become and most of them were sure that Luxuria would fail.

Then why was Ymir trying to entice him?

He guessed that for her, this was nothing but a game.

Rather than simply destroying the toy of her opponent, she wished to steal it in broad daylight.

In fact, it would be even better if he betrayed the Order himself and joined her by his own will.

“Heh. Is this how you enticed Nihil?”

Ymir was a little surprised to see that Sol could still keep his sanity.

What she just did wasn’t just speak sweet words. Even though she was sealed and couldn’t corrupt his mind with just him looking at her face, her words should have been enough to bring him into the abyss of indecision.

The more he struggled in this state, the faster his mind would be corrupted. But right now, aside from some lust, she did not feel his mind fluctuate much.

This was absolutely impossible for a mortal.

Something was afoot.

Ymir ignored Sol's question and turned to look at the partially opened gate of the Zone.

She was immediately beyond astonished.

‘How is it possible! Why did that thing appear here!?”

On the gate, she could see different symbols drawn on it. As if representing an inverted tree.

She recognized it. There was no way she could not recognize it.

After all, this was the same symbol that was always on the clothes of the Mother Goddess of Chaos.

‘The Spehirotic tree of life!’

It was the ultimate truth!

The truth beyond all truth!

This was not something that should be in the mind sea of a mortal.

If that thing was already on the gate, then…What could be beyond it?

As if she was possessed, Ymir took a step forward, intent on observing the sight beyond the gate.

Later on…She would realize that this curiosity was her second and greatest mistake.

—

The moment Ymir took a step toward the gate, back in the real world, something flashed in Skuld’s mind and she screamed in pain.

One had to remember that even though she wasn’t a warrior, Skuld was still a King-ranked titan. The level of pain necessary to make her scream helplessly like this could be imagined.

Her eyes began to bleed profusely as if she had seen something that should not be seen. Her mind was cracking and she felt like she was about to burst.

‘It hurts! It hurts so much!’

She convulsed as the pain filled her body entirely.

“Skuld!”

Verdandi was about to come to her help.

“Don’t stop!!”

She was stopped by a hysterical Skuld.

Verdandi shivered. She had never seen such a crazy side of Skuld. She knew that right here, right now, if she really stopped weaving the thread of fate, Skuld might attack her with the intention to kill.

As if she was possessed, Skuld fought through the pain and accelerated the weaving.

This was it. This was the way.

They had already managed to change the future slightly.

Using her knowledge and understanding of Ymir, they managed to go from a future where Sol was instantly killed to a future where Sol was corrupted.

Most people may not understand it, but Luxuria was a sort of aberration for a goddess. She could plan for years and years in order to reach her goal. This was not normal.

Goddesses were beings who moved with their whims.

Like little spoiled children, they only saw the world as their chessboard and mortals as their pawns.

Plans? Scheme?

Goddesses did not do that. They only played and if the game didn’t go their way, then they would simply give up. After all, losing means nothing to them.

This was why despite their difference in power and with the help of Sheherazade's power, they managed to induce a new future. After all, destroying or stealing a toy for a goddess was just a matter of whim.

They would never think deeply about it.

But this was theoretically the limit of what they could have done.

They could shift from a future of “assured death” to a future of “corruption” because this still went in the normal way of thinking Ymir had.

But there was no future where Ymir simply gave up on Sol.

Sol could either be stolen or destroyed. There was no third option in Ymir’s mind. Like a petulant child throwing a tantrum and screaming, “if I can’t have it, then no one will.”

Skuld had already made plans about betraying Tiamat and the others if Sol was really corrupted. After all, she cared not one bit for the dragons nor even Chaos or Order. Her only loyalty was to her darling.

The fact that she followed him to the end even when he was the enemy of Order and Chaos was proof enough.

But…Just as she was about to give up…Something happened.

A pivot.

A point that could change everything and tilt the balance.

Feeling this, Skuld did not hesitate. Using all her power, she peered into that new branch of the future, and what she saw then, nearly broke her mind.

“Hahahah~! As expected, Darling is indeed the best!”

Skuld laughed out loud, despite the fact that her mouth, eyes, and ears were bleeding. She knew that she looked like an absolutely crazy woman but she couldn’t care in the slightest.

What she saw was a new future that did not exist until now or rather it was one with such a small chance of happening that she had never managed to see it until now.

But now? Even though she only saw a glimpse of that future?

Skuld felt like the pain that was coursing through her body was nothing compared to her current sense of euphoria.

“Sheherazade, I need you to throw this into the blood pool.”

She took out the pearl Tiamat had given her.

This was indeed the key that would change everything.

Sheherazade was also not feeling very well. She was obviously very tired. After all, she was only a Duke.

She had absolutely no place in such a situation and was more the icing on a cake. Even then she gave her all and wished for the survival of Sol again and again. Not caring how much it affected her.

Skuld was very satisfied with such devotion. After all, this was how it should be. Her darling was a supreme being in her mind.

The jewel was a little bigger than Sheherazade, but she did not hesitate and took it before flying slowly toward the pool.

Once she reached it, she gasped. Nearly all the skin of Sol had vanished. As if corroded by a powerful acid. She could even see some of his bones sticking out.

It was truly a disturbing sight, but rather than disgust, it only brought tears to her eyes.

Focusing, she threw what she was holding in the pool, wishing that it would be as effective as Skuld seemed to think it would be.

The moment the pearl fell in…At first, nothing happened.

Then…all the blood began to swirl around the pearl and was absorbed by it.

In but an instant, more than half of the pool was sucked dry by the pearl and it seemed like it wasn’t about to stop.

In the end, the pearl seemed to be satisfied after it devoured nine-tenth of the blood. Then, slowly…It flew down to Sol’s body and settled between his brow.

It was as if Sol suddenly had a third eye. The eye of a dragon.

—-

At the same time, in Sol’s mind, the moment the pearl, which was, in fact, the divine weapon created by Theresa from the remains of Blaze, settled between his eyebrow, the sea began to churn.

When you stare at the abyss, the abyss stares back at you.

Ymir understood the full truth of this quote the moment a giant eye opened from the other side of the gate and stared back at her.

But it was already too late for her.