28 Repose

In the face of Lady Despair, Bernadette remained calm, lifting her palm to counter-attack, but suddenly, her vision clouded, and she saw a figure emerge out of nowhere, producing an aura that froze and rooted both her and Lady Despair in their place.

The figure stood in between them. It was blurry and hazy, and the only thing clear in it was the eyes, which seemed to compress the starry night sky. It made one feel at peace, but it also made one feel an uncontrollable fear.

The dark figure approached Lady Despair closely, her divine eyes serenely fixed on the Demoness.

"You are, you are.." Lady Despair's horrified voice came to rest. Her entire body was like a sketch that had been quietly erased with an eraser, leaving no trace behind. Her final look was filled with dread and sorrow. The spot where she had previously stood was vacant, as if she had never been there in the first place.

The dark figure then turned to Bernadette, who was desperately attempting to prevail over the waves of fear and horror that were attacking her mind and escape immediately, for when she tried to glance at the dark figure with her clairvoyant eyes, a sequence of thoughts screamed through her mind:

"Don't look! Don't look!"

"You'll die!"

"You'll die if you look!"

Do not look directly at God!

Bernadette felt fear unlike anything she had ever felt before as the dark figure focused on her. Even if she had any questions about who she was dealing with before, they had evaporated now:

She was in the presence of the Evernight Goddess!

The Evernight Goddess appeared before Bernadette, disregarding her struggles indifferently, then raising her hand towards Bernadette in an attempt to alter her soul.

But, before she could, a silver coin in the pocket of Bernadette's frock shimmered and rocketed out towards Evernight Goddess, only stopping when it was right in front of her. It then emited a pale light that converged and coalesced to form an angelic figure with six pairs of metallic wings.

All the while, the Evernight Goddess didn't interpret but merely watched serenely. It was as though her true intention for coming after Bernadette was to draw this archangel out.

The faint light faded, revealing Lucien Eggers, Leader of the Numinous Episcopate, who had descended on Backlund with the anchor provided by the coin. His main body had just surfaced in Caesar Bay to fight Suah, so he wasn't physically present; rather, he was here as a soul projection, which was one of the abilities that came with his soul authority. Technically, his soul projection was not a clone but rather an extension of himself. Simply put, he could use this power to be in multiple places at once.

Lucien unleashed his aura, blanketing Bernadette and completely liberating her from the clutches of the Evernight Goddess. "Leave." He remarked to Bernadette, though his gaze never left the hazy figure of the Evernight Goddess.

Bernadette wheezed, her hands on her neck, as she kneeled on the ground with a scarlet face, but she forced herself to pull together before making a fall into the spirit world without hesitation.

With her departure, Lucien completely focused on the Evernight Goddess, hiding his trepidation and apprehension as he assessed the situation. Unlike in the original story, she didn't actually descend through a vessel, so is she personally here? Unlikely. Is this a projection similar to his own? And judging from her inaction during his descent, her intention from the beginning should have been to confront him...

So many questions and assumptions raced through his mind in a fraction of a second, only to be halted by the appearance of someone, someone who calmed his tumultuous emotions.

It was none other than the Angel of Imagination, Adam, who had also descended into Backlund.

The Angel of Imagination gave the Evernight Goddess a gentle smile. "It's been quite a while, Amanises." He said warmly, as though he were greeting a friend.

The figure of the Evernight Goddess became less hazy and more defined, ultimately revealing her appearance. She was an ethereal woman with a veil draped over her face. She wore a black, classical dress, and it was embedded with a starry sheen. A circle of beaming rays surrounded her head.

"Adam." Amanises greeted ethereally, but her attention was fixated on Lucien, which was getting on his nerves. "Don't worry, Lucien, I am not here to kill you."

"Isn't that great?" Lucien smiled as he asked Adam.

"Sarcasm." Amanises took note, advancing towards Lucien. "When confronted with a situation like this..."

"Amanises." Adam stepped forward in front of Lucien, confronting the Evernight Goddess. "Lucien is under my protection."

"Oh, Adam." Amanises murmured, finally focusing on the Angel of Imagination. "As sharp as ever. I hate to admit it, but you are always one step ahead of us, even now with Lucien. You were the first to notice his uniqueness."

'Did she?!' Lucien's heart sank.

"You don't know what you are talking about." Adam merely said.

"Perhaps." Amanises spoke ethereally. "Perhaps not. But there is one thing I am certain of." She squinted at Lucien. "Your fate, Lucien, is peculiar. Guard it thoroughly. You don't want it falling into the claws of misfortune now, do you?" she ended with an ethereal smile.

Anyone could sense the hidden threat, and Lucien grinned, meeting the divine eyes of the Evernight Goddess squarely. "If there's one thing I've learned in my life, it's that nothing is fixed. Change claims everything in one way or another, and more often than not, it follows no order or pattern, offering up endless possibilities. In front of it, impossibility and futility mean nothing." He came to a halt in a moment of severe silence. "So let's see whose fate falls into whose hands."

"Big words, but let's see…" Amanises chuckled at Lucien, then turned to the Angel of Imagination with a smile. "See you next time on the battlefield, Adam."

Adam nodded gently.

The Evernight Goddess then turned, her figure fading away just as abruptly as she appeared, returning to her main body in the astral world.

Lucien breathed a sigh of relief, his heart pounding against his chest. He was afraid; how could he not be? Considering how terrifying Evernight Goddess was, this encounter with her just amounted to cementing that. She actually seemed to have found something about his true existence.

"Did she…?" The Reaper turned to the Angel of Imagination for confirmation.

"Perhaps." Adam looked at Lucien with limpid eyes. "You never know with Amanises. She is, after all, the Mother of Concelament. Nevertheless, even if she uncovers something about your essence, it won't change anything for you."

"I still have to confront and defeat her in the end…" Lucien sighed heavily.

"Yes." Adam hummed gently. "Now go and meet your father. This is the best opportunity." He looked up at the astral world, which had plunged into chaos and disorder with the declaration of the Reaper. "The Gods are indisposed for the moment because of you."

"Oh?" Lucien raised his brows in surprise. "My provocation achieved that much? Can't say I am not surprised."

With his declaration, he appeared to have struck a sore spot of the Mother Tree of Desire. Thinking about it further, this did explain her enmity for Mother Goddess of Depravity. Her ultimate goal should be to become the Desire rather than simply wield its authority.

The Reaper finally nodded to Adam, his figure fading into the hues of the spirit world. Then he was gone, leaving the Angel of Imagination alone in the narrow and deserted street of the East Borough.

Adam grasped the silver cross and began to slowly walk outward and along the roads of the East Borough, which were littered with dead bodies here and there. He strode among them while bearing witness to it all silence and repose, giving them his final respects.

——————

Kolain, East Bayam.

The "curtain" revealed an image of a dark-green giant black snake with a bronzed skinned face; its closed eyes opened, burning with flickering pale flames.

The Artificial Death!

Silvia jerked back in apprehension as the fiery eyes of the Artificial Death focused on her. Her honed senses were screaming in danger—danger that may end her life—so she went all out, utterly unleashing her balance authority.

She aimed to bring balance to the battlefield by harmonising chaos and order. By doing so, she might grab complete control of the battlefield, dictating all that happened there. At the time, she could simply sever the battlefield from the outside world, breaking the connection that Haiter had established with the Artfical Death.

As she exerted her authority over reality, the battlefield shimmered with bronze light. And the saints and demigods fighting below were immediately perplexed, as their attacks were stronger one minute, weaker the next, then oscillating in between, as if seeking to establish equilibrium. They weren't the only ones impacted; the entire battlefield was affected, even the army of spirits wreaking havoc here and there, who became docile one moment and raging the next.

Nevertheless, Haiter remained completely unaffected due to his power and the protection of Artificial Death. Then they unleashed their attack in sync to disrupt Silvia's balancing process and kill her all together:

"Die," Haiter declared, his voice severe and loud, like a judge passing a judgement. "Silvia Augustus."

The eyes of Artificial Death shimmered with dreadful fire, unleashing the death sight on Silvia.

Both of their attacks bore the intent of killing, combining and merging together to form the fatality of Death, which all but wanted to drag Silvia Augustus into its pale embrace.

But Silvia Augustus resisted with all her might. She even gave up on trying to restore balance to the battlefield and directed her authority at their fatal assault in an attempt to counter it, but it was ultimately futile since she faced a combined attack from an angel and a living uniqueness.

And so Death claimed her, her body reverting to human form and evaporating bit by bit as she fell down towards the battlefield. And her eyes, which were filled with bitterness, resentment, and a hint of fear, finally dimmed.

Ultimately, Silvia Augustus fell into the embrace of Death.

——————

Spirit World.

Hermes was in his mystical creature form, carrying Sia and her company on his back and fleeing from the battlefield of Bayam.

Behind them, enraged roars like thunderclaps kept resounding against a backdrop of surging waves.

Sia groaned, her body bloodless and pale, trembling and shivering, all thanks to the side effects of the blood necklace. She was lying on the scaly back of Hermes, tended to by her demigods while her saints kept a watch on the surroundings, but just like her, they were battered and bruised.

"Harrow." Sia managed, her voice hoarse and croaking. "He…"

"Don't, Sia." Hermes chastised. "He won't find us. Focus on yourself first. You manage to succeed and hold on, despite the odds." He said soothingly as he entered the dreams of the world, and the roars of thunder and sea faded away into the background.

A beam of happiness passed through her heart at the thought of success, but it was quickly crushed when she saw her company, which had been reduced by more than half.

"Perhaps….." Sia whispered wearily.

——————

Caesar Bay, West Balam.

Reinette Tinker walked lightly on the sea, sending ripples along its serene surface. She stopped in front of a doll floating in the water. It was broken and shattered, with its pieces slathered around it—all nearly losing their resplendent lustre.

"Why do you stand still...?" the broken doll whispered through his cracked mouth. "Don't tell me your glassy heart is afraid to do the deed?"

Reinette Tinker stared at the broken doll impassively. "It's Death, isn't it?" She asked silently. "The thing you truly Desire."

The broken doll merely smiled a smile that conveyed innumerable stories and emotions, his face crumbling more and more with each passing moment.

"Goodbye, Barcanna." Reinette placed the white rose on the caved-in chest of the broken doll. "May you finally find repose in Death."

With her words, the lustre of the broken doll extinguished, and his shattered visage evaporated bit by bit under the rays of the sun, becoming ashes that were swept by the winds of the world.

All that was left behind was a puppet with broken strings.

And a silent tear was shed.