223 Volume 4 Epilogue

Chapter 195

Imagine a world—no, a reality—that becomes everything you've ever wanted. It exists solely for you and your significant other—with luck and love intertwined.

Imagine if you wish for a certain moment—like laying in your true love's arms—to never end. And it doesn't. You wish that your true love adores you just as much as you adore them. Both hearts share the same feelings, which gives them a spiritual bond. You don't even have to tell your true love how much you love them because they already know. They know what you would do to stay with them and would go to the same lengths to show you how much you mean to them.

Imagine such a perfect world.

In reality, however, life is not always so black and white. Complications arise that stem from the complexity of human emotions, expectations of others, experiences you go through, and relationships—whether platonic or not—outside your love circle.

Whether a man or a woman, you'll always have difficulty with your conflicting emotions. Communication barriers always exist where you can't express yourself clearly to your significant other or you feel hesitation over how to handle a certain situation and can't confide in your significant other.

Past relationships or personal experiences can affect how individuals approach and experience love, whether old or young. This may often lead to emotional baggage or unresolved issues complicating current relationships.

Navigating through issues you face in life can often feel scary and overwhelming, forcing you to choose which path you wish to take to resolve those issues.

Love isn't that simple.

But if it's inside the perfect dream made just for you then it doesn't matter. All it takes is looking forward, ignoring all the issues surrounding you and your lover.

Madilith has always known that love isn't as simple as it's described in young adult romance novels. Authors never show the struggles because they know that readers will get bored along the way. This leads to an angry audience. To circumvent that, they come up with ridiculous plots like: the handsome hero saves the princess from a dragon then she declares that her mother told her to marry the strongest man in her kingdom—the end. The romance is shown throughout the story but the complications and obstacles are left out. People care more for the fluffy moments that the couples share, not the hardships they go through.

It was because of that that Madilith grew up with a naïve perception of love—something she grew out of not so long ago.

Because of that she knew that what she was currently experiencing was just a dream.

But this dream was hers, something she wanted to become reality. As such, she feels the desire to experience it to its fullest.

"My love." someone called out to Madilith as she was sitting on a balcony, stargazing with a glass of red wine in her hand.

She looked back.

Arnold, wearing a tuxedo with his dark blue hair slicked to one side, stood there with a warm glint in his eyes.

Madilith remembers this night very clearly. How could she forget? It was the night that Arnold took her first time.

They were at one of the Berkley villas located in a small town near Horvine city's walls.

This town was known for its abundance of wine farms and markets. The streets are usually filled with people from all around the empire visiting to taste the variety of cheese to choose from or just to experience the cultures as a whole.

The streets were now empty. The street lights were on but there were no patrolling guards, no dogs barking and no prostitutes standing on the streets.

How much time had passed since Madilith came here?

It doesn't matter, she thought.

The dream is indistinguishable from reality so why would she leave, especially if it's all so perfect?

Arnold got on his knees.

Madilith lifted one of her legs.

Her took hold of her foot and took off her heel.

He caressed her bare foot and brought it up to his mouth, after which he planted a kiss on the top of her foot.

"Good boy." Madilith smiled as she stroked his cheek, "I will allow you to lick my foot if you beg me."

"Please allow me to experience the taste and texture of your perfect foot, my love."

"Hnn~ That doesn't sound sincere~"

"I will be most honored and grateful if you allow me to worship your gorgeous foot!"

"Hehehehe."

Arnold took all five of her toes in his mouth. His tongue wiggled over her red toenails and between her toes. He caressed her leg lovingly.

This is the Arnold she wants to see—the complete opposite of what and who he truly is. Arnold would never get down on his knees to worship a woman he considers below him. He doesn't even bow in the presence of royalty—why would he bow for a girl he already ran through a few years back?

The reverse always happens—with his lovers being subservient to him and listening to his every order.

If Madilith can see him worshipping her every day then she'll stay in this dream forever, enjoying the bliss of being wanted by the one you love.

"—Please wake up—"

"Hm?" Madilith opened her eyes when she heard Arnold speak.

That's odd. She didn't wish to hear him speak, just continue to lick her foot.

"—I need to know how you feel about me…"

"Hey, why are you stopping? Don't just look at me like that! Answer your mistress!" Madilith noticed the blank expression on Arnold's face and his dead eyes.

Feeling creeped out, she stood up, with her foot still wet from saliva.

"I can't lose you! I don't want to!" He tried to touch Madilith.

"W-What are you saying? Y-You're not supposed to act like this! You're supposed to only speak when I want you to!" Madilith, unsure of why he was saying those things, pushed him away.

Despite doing so, he continued.

"I only ever listened to what other people told me to do. I've never once listened to my heart… I didn't know what it feels like to make friends, talk to people or experience love…"

"…." Madilith stepped back.

This isn't what she wanted Arnold to say. Why was he saying all that?

"Leave me alone!"

"I want to experience love and make friends…" Arnold took her into his arms in a tight hug.

"Stop it! Let me go! Disappear! Disappear!" Despite wishing for him to disappear, the dream didn't answer her wish.

"I want to protect my family one day and show my children that violence is not always the answer. I want you to bear those children. You'd make a wonderful mother…"

Madilith clutched her head.

"STOOOOP—"

"I don't know why I fell for you even though we don't know each other that well… But that doesn't matter."

It felt like her head was going to tear apart.

"I love you, Miss Madilith… Please come back…" A different voice sounded in her ear.

Was that… Hofir just now?

!!!

Everything turned dark. Arnold, and the perfect world created by that dream, vanished.

The cool, gentle sunlight was replaced by a slight breeze and cold floor.

Madilith felt a powerful force pull her from the dream. She could make out a small light above through her heavy eyes.

The light grew larger and larger until she could make out someone's face in that light.

In that moment his face overlapped with Arnold's but the more she blinked, the clearer Hofir's face became.

"Hofir…?"

***

Hofir sat there against the throne with Madilith in his arms while looking up at the hole that had appeared in the ceiling after some mysterious woman entered the nave and killed both the dead king and that blob monster.

That woman hit him so hard that even his head was pounding.

A faint light shined down on him.

Madilith's body felt cold but there was a heartbeat.

He looked down at Madilith's face.

She looked so angelically cute.

Hofir's eyes were drawn to her lips.

I want to kiss her.

I want to taste her lips.

I want to savor her taste.

He couldn't do such a thing to a defenseless woman—especially to the one he loves.

He then looked at her chest. His hand hovered over one of her breasts.

"….." He shook his head.

I can't…

I shouldn't…

This is wrong…

"Please wake up… I need to know how you feel about me… I only ever listened to what other people told me to do. I've never once listened to my heart… I didn't know what it feels like to make friends, talk to people or experience love… I thought… I thought that I could experience all of that with you."

Silence.

"I want to protect my family one day and show my children that violence is not always the answer. I want you to bear those children. You'd make a wonderful mother…"

Silence.

"She's not going to answer…" Hofir leaned against the throne and looked up as if trying to search for an answer.

"I might as well be honest about how I feel since I wouldn't be able to do so if you were awake…" he glanced down at her again, "I don't know why I fell for you even though we haven't known each other that long."

Those were his honest words. He didn't understand love, much less what it means to love someone and make them feel special.

Still, from another person's perspective his admittance of love would be considered rushed. Some might even call it shallow—something based on her outer appearance and not who she is as a person.

What does he like about her? Her kindness? Does he just like how cute she is? Maybe it's because she drives his masculine urge to protect? Or does he simply view her as a sexual object like he does every other woman?

But…

"...It doesn't matter…"

Even if he doesn't know the answer right now, it wouldn't hurt to try and find it later. Maybe she'll be able to show him why he fell for her?

"I love you, Miss Madilith… Please be come back…"

"….N…"

"!" Hofir was startled when Madilith leaked a moan and began moving.

She rubbed her eyes then flinched when the two of them made eye-contact.

"A-Ah, t-this is… I-I…" Hofir, whose one hands were holding onto Madilith's waist while the other was on her thigh, hurriedly lifted his hands where she could see them.

Madilith sat up on her own and silently blinked while staring at Hofir.

Hofir cleared his throat.

"W-Well, it seems Miss Madilith is alright… L-Let's get back to the others…"

Madilith suddenly grabbed his hand when he stood up. He looked at her.

"Was that you…?"

"….."

"Were you the one who called out to me inside that dream?"

"…I…"

A smile appeared on Madilith's face. It mesmerized him.

How could she smile so innocently…

Madilith suddenly put her hands on her blazer.

She slowly took off her blazer then undid the buttons on her shirt.

Hofir's mouth went wide when Madilith's bare chest became visible when she opened her shirt.

Her eyes carried a lustful blaze, much different from the big innocent angelic eyes she usually has. Her angelic smile turned into a smirk when she looked at Hofir's crotch which was right on front of her face.

She lifted her breasts while still maintaining eye contact.

Hofir's thing hardened so much that it could be seen through his pants.

Madilith slowly pushed him backwards. He ended up sitting on the throne.

"M-Miss Madilith!"

"Kyah!"

Hofir didn't even hesitate and grabbed one of her breasts.

She placed her hand over his.

She then stuck out her tongue and made a jerking motion with her hand next to her cheek.

It felt like Hofir's pants were going to burst from his erection.

His instincts were screaming for him to copulate.

Madilith rubbed her cheek on Hofir's thing.

"So hard… I can feel it pulsing…"

"Kuh!" Hofir gripped the armrest. It felt like he was about to burst even though there was little to no stimulation.

She then put her hands on his pants and was about to pull them down.

But…

The door to the nave burst open.

"Hofir!? Bradwyn!!" He could hear Arthur's voice, "Did you find Madilith!?"

Everyone—including the party that Daraia led—stepped through the door.

However, it seems like Fleridine and Pedick wasn't with them. Which meant that they should still be outside.

Madilith hurriedly separated herself from Hofir and buttoned up her shirt. Her expression then changed completely.

"Madi!" Anais ran towards Madilith when she spotted her next to Hofir.

Sabrina also came running.

The two friends embraced Madilith while Hofir was still trying to process what just happened.

Who was that? Was that really Madilith, the cute and innocent angel? She seemed more like a succubus.

"Where did that woman go, Hofir?" Anais came up to Hofir.

"Ah… She went through there…" he pointed up at the hole in the ceiling.

"Who the heck was she? She came and took the thunder all for herself. We missed out on some experience points!"

"Gaining levels doesn't work like that, idiot." Flora said from the side, "The one who kills it first gets all the experience points. I would've obviously been able to do so fine on my own."

"Don't call me an idiot! And stop acting smug! You had trouble just as much as anyone else!" Anais shot back.

"I'm the strongest so I should get to kill a boss-level enemy." Flora harrumphed.

"No, you aren't! My big brother is the strongest!"

"His attacks will tickle a true swordsman like me."

"Now you're just being arrogant! Why can't you take a loss, woman!?"

Arthur walked up to Hofir with a wry smile.

"I wonder when the two of them started attacking each other verbally like that."

Arthur then looked around.

"Anyway, it looks like we made the right choice coming down here. There's enough weapons for us all."

"Mm…"

"Where's Bradwyn? I can't see him anywhere."

"….."

"…I see… The monster got him, huh?"

Arthur came to his own conclusion.

…No one saw it but there was an eerie smirk on Madilith's face when she overheard what Arthur said…

"…It looks like I'll have to visit his parents and tell them the bad news." Arthur sat down next to the throne, "I need to get the holy sword so that I can protect everyone… If I had it at this moment then all of us would've survived this ordeal. Hell, we would've raided this relic tomb for fun because the teleportation device is on the next world."

"…."

"I saw what true power is really like…" Arthur looked at his hand; it was shaking, "A mere gaze… That was all it took to paralyze me at full strength… I had the confidence that I could beat anything so long as I go full power but… probably not even that would be enough to break that woman's fingernail, much less face her as an equal with my sword. Would that encounter have been any different if I had the sword?"

"…."

Arthur looked up at the quiet Hofir.

"What's wrong? We finally made it. I thought that you'd smile at least."

"No, it's… Nothing…"

"Is it because I'm whining? Hahaha, sorry man. It just feels like a mountain is on my shoulders. I don't know who else I can talk to about this. The other guys just go along with whatever I say, not truly listening to anything."

Hofir looked down at Arthur.

"It's okay…" he said while patting Arthur's shoulder.

"It's okay?"

"…I will listen even if I can't offer advice but… can I confide in you about something too?"

"Of course. Anything for a friend." Arthur said with a smile and thumbs up.

Friend.

Hofir smiled.

"So, what is this something?"

"Is it alright if I tell you when we're alone…? Or preferably with Miss Sabrina there with us."

"Sabrina too? Well, I suppose that isn't a problem."

"—Take what you need and not what will slow us down and fill up precious storage!" Daraia shouted at the adventurers.

"""Yes, ma'am!!"""

Arthur stood up, "I'll go have a look too. My sword is already beyond repair so I hope I find something good. Should we leave the tomb immediately after we're done, Miss Daraia?"

"Yeah. I don't want to know what else is down here. That necromancer was a pain in the ass to deal with. Not just that but we almost died by the hands of those Cell Guardians if that woman didn't step in. Who knows what else is out here."

"Okay. We'll head for the 50th floor after taking a few hours' rest once we're back at the base."

"Sounds good. I'll also need to send a messenger to the empire so that they know what's going on."

The two of them continued conversing while walking away.

Hofir turned his attention to Madilith who was being pampered by the other girls.

What was she going to do if they weren't interrupted? How far would she have gone with Hofir?

Hofir couldn't get that beautiful sight of her chest out of his mind.

Recalling her seductive expression was enough to bring him close to erection again.

Will she let him go all the way?

Hofir stood up from the throne and headed over to Arthur and the others in an attempt to forget about what happened.

***

Flora was currently alone in one of the rooms connected to the nave. She didn't like the weapons that she found outside so she decided to search in the other rooms.

Most of the artifacts in the nave were imbued with divine power and runic magic, which makes them effective for swordsmen and priests. There were also a variety of armor sets for the warriors.

Arthur only replaced the parts of his armor which were damaged. This led to his set looking weird since the armor he received from that king was a white variant and the parts he replaced were different colors.

Flora opted for arm guards that covered both her arms in full plate silver armor. She also picked kneeguards. Donning full plate armor wouldn't suit her since she's an agile fighter. At least she can protect her limbs when trying to tank attacks. She'll modify the armor so that it can take her gauntlets once they're out of the tomb.

"Hmm… An archive…" Flora looked at all the scrolls and books strewn around the room. The shelves had also fallen on the floor making a mess of the place.

The room was fairly small so she didn't have to go looking far. All she did was glance around the room.

"Ugh, this fucking sucks! Why can't I find a damn sword!?" Flora kicked one of the tables. It crashed into the wall.

She suddenly noticed that there was a bag of scrolls where the table was before she kicked it.

"Hm? Golden scrolls? Who the hell would waste such good material just to document stuff?" she picked up the bag. There was some weight to it.

She placed it on another table and took out the high quality scrolls. The scrolls were surrounded in a gentle yellow glow and smelled like perfume.

"Did someone bring these here recently?"

The perfume wouldn't have been so strong otherwise.

She rummaged in the bag and took out a few scrolls.

Her eyes widened when she opened one of them.

It appears that the owner of these scrolls used some sort of blue ink to scribble on the golden paper.

"…A blueprint for a suit?" there was a rough drawing of a weird suit of armor that had mechanical modifications on it—a saw-like weapon attached to its right arm, a laser cannon (something you would only find on an airship) attached to its back and one cylindrical object built into each of its legs.

"Is this dwarven technology? Wow, I've never actually seen their work before."

She heard a lot about the Kaather Kingdom from her history tutors—how they're the most technologically-advanced nation on Diacree and how they jumpstarted the "Machine Industrial Revolution".

"I wonder if the dwarvers from our world know about this kind of stuff?" Flora opened another scroll, "What the… A laser cannon you can hold in your hand? What sort of bizarre weaponry did these people design?"

There was even an illustration of a hand holding the weapon.

She couldn't exactly imagine someone shooting a laser energy beam from such a small object.

She recalled an article she read a few months back: "Research to create a miniature cannon has been halted and funds have been pulled back. Investors have expressed their displeasure at the empty promises that the Dwarves engineers made—to create an army of long-range fighters within the next decade. The Dwarven Kingdom concluded that the energy used for laser cannons on battleships is too unstable to be used in a weapon that can be held with two hands."

"If this will really work then I should be able to sell this to that nation." Flora chuckled, "I'm going to be rich. But how much should I charge them? A million gold is way too little for something like this. Maybe ten times that? Who should I consult with this…? I could always ask that guy's sister since she's a merchant. She can determine the value for me."

Out of curiosity, she picked up another scroll and began reading its contents.

"Let's see… 'Blueprints for the ultimate war machine'. Oh, it's a battleship—nothing new, I suppose. Still, what an edgy title."

She looked at the name of the ship.

"What kind of name is Dunfer?"

***

The group came back to the base just 17 hours after entering which came as a surprise to Evelyn.

She had expected them to stay inside at least a week.

There were some casualties but no one actually died besides a fellow student from Class D, Bradwyn de Vajusteth. They couldn't locate his body so a proper burial can't be held.

Thankfully, someone found his head which will be delivered to his parents by the messenger that Guild Master Daraia promised to send back to their world.

There was also the issue with a senior member of the Magician's Guild—Pedick Tinpleton.

From what Evelyn heard, he was inflicted with some kind of curse.

His condition worsened over time despite being treated by the priests. Under the majority vote from the group, Daraia agreed to a small team to extract Pedick so that he can be treated at the Temple in the capital city of Toril.

Now on to the good news, they managed to find a lot of useful things for the entire group. It wasn't just limited to artifacts but potions and armor too.

Evelyn was given a pair of earrings by Anais. The earrings can amplify her elemental powers and attract more spirits to her during combat.

Sabrina also found something useful for Evelyn. It was a tiara that could allow her to make her body several times lighter, which can allow her to levitate to a certain degree.

The artifacts will make fighting easier for her so she wholeheartedly accepted them.

Nothing interesting happened while the others were in the relic tomb, although there were the occasional tremors coming from the tomb.

Evelyn and Fecius was currently standing near the portal, making sure there weren't any monsters in the area.

Fecius was originally standing guard to make sure no monster goes through the portal. Evelyn joined up with him because she was bored.

She didn't have anything to do at the base since everyone was busy packing up. The food supplies were full so there was nothing else keeping them in this world. All that was left to do now was arrive safely on the 50th floor.

"Here they come." Evelyn said to Fecius.

The whole group—including Daraia and the adventurers—approached the portal. Arthur and Daraia were in the lead.

"Shall we go?" Fecius asked Evelyn, "As a scout, it's imperative that I check the world beyond this portal. You accepted the duties as a scout so you should naturally follow, right?"

"Yes, yes I know. Let's go then."

Fecius signaled the group to wait for his go-ahead.

Everyone stopped.

"Alright, let's go."

Fecius and Evelyn went through the portal.

A familiar feeling came over Evelyn—the same feeling she experienced when walking through the other portals.

The terrain and the air itself changed once she reached the world on the other side of the portal.

"Wow…" Evelyn looked at the world beyond the portal in a daze, "So this is the 50th floor."

There were flying castles and towers drifting through the dark blue sky. The biggest structure was a gigantic stronghold which looked similar to the Ardark Academy.

"Look." Fecius pointed up to the floating mountain that was right above the stronghold.

Surrounding that floating mountain were several structures, like castles and towers, all connected by flights of stairs and bridges.

"Is that…" Evelyn noticed a circular platform surrounded by three rock-like structures in a triangle. Floating above the platform was a gigantic cube that rotated in three directions simultaneously, creating an illusion that there were actually three cubes.

"That's the device that will get us home." Fecius looked around the world, "I can't smell any lifeforms at all. I can't even see any living thing."

The world was completely flat, with only grass stretching over an endless horizon. There were no signs of trees or any settlements—only that stronghold, the levitating mountain and the teleportation device.

"I'll go tell the others it's safe to go through the portal." Fecius quickly went back to the portal.

Evelyn, now alone, looked up at the rock formation surrounding the circular platform.

"Hopefully we'll get back home before the graduation ball starts."

She also wished that she could accompany Arthur as his date but he already has Shirley. Evelyn's pride and dignity as a highborn noble lady won't allow her to go as a third wheel.

Evelyn sighed deeply before she began walking towards the stronghold in the distance.

She'll just have to go alone. Her dream to have prince charming take her to the ball on a white horse won't come true.

◇

◇

What does one call a world without time, a realm devoid of mortal life and lacking in hope?

Would you call such a place "Hell"?

If so, is it in the literal or figurative sense? To some the former would be the vilest but to others the latter would be far worse.

Hell is a place where all the sinners burn for eternity, unable to escape the weight of their past choices.

At least in this Hell you can feel and hear.

You can feel the flames melt your skin as maggots dig into your insides while you're still alive.

You can hear the screams of the other unfortunate victims of sin.

Things are much worse in a hell devoid of life and time, especially for a person at their lonesome. Now imagine said person possessing immortality and the ability to travel to and from the past yet is still at the mercy of the present.

This person walks through emptiness, hearing nothing but their beating heart. Not a cricket in sight, not a single chirp from the birds in the morning or chatter from people—just the sounds of nature.

That is the fate of the Destiny Goddess, a being with the power to exist within the past. The present binds her to this realm so she can never truly leave.

She can only interact with the past through speaking with individuals from that timeline. Of course, just speaking to them could never change the present that she's cursed to wander, right?

No.

There exists an anomaly in the past—someone who can change everything that has ever happened.

The Destiny Goddess tried to pull this individual over to her side in an attempt to prevent a future where there is only emptiness and… destruction.

"The leaves are starting to fade. Has it drained the nine realms entirely of their vitality?" The young woman, adorned in a pristine white priest's attire with eyes resembling crystal, lifted her gaze to the crimson sky. "No, beyond those red clouds, I can see the sun. There's still illumination. Hope remains; all is not lost."

Alas, to think "It" would be such a glutton that it could completely drain all the realms of life.

The young woman looked over the horizon, across the remains of a once great empire.

She could make out the shape of a dead tree with its branches reaching into the sky.

Once, beholding that tree was a sight of majestic wonder. Its radiance could rival the sun's glow amidst the night. An array of energies danced around it, casting a vibrant tapestry of hues that enveloped the area, while fairies sprinkled their enchanting pixie dust, adorning the leaves.

That tree was none other than the World Tree—a sentient being that has its roots spread all throughout the nine realms, acting like doorways for those looking to explore the unknown.

"If only we had taken its downfall seriously. Things would've been different."

The only thing that could've prevented its downfall… What was its name again?

"That's right… The Divine Fertilizer, the bringer of life."

If the gods had created such a thing, then they could've prevented "Ragnarok" from destroying all life from the nine realms.

Alas, the method to crafting such a thing is known only to the old gods who previously ruled the divine realm—before humans even existed.

Besides them, there was another…

"If only I had the power to see who knew the methods to making the fertilizer sooner… I have failed… I do not deserve to be the only god alive…"

She collapsed on her knees.

Thinking about how she failed to bring that individual to her side made her clench her fists tight.

She suddenly felt a presence and looked up.

Someone in a wheelchair was right in front of her.

She knew who that was.

He was but a mere spirit now, evident by his bluish body but she could still recognize him. His foul gaze looked at the now destroyed world with indifference.

"Arnold von Berkley…"

"Angelica… We meet again. But what an unfortunate circumstance, wouldn't you agree?" the old man smiled and looked at her coldly, "How does it feel living the rest of your days staring at your failures? I can feel mine everyday."

He looked down at the hole in his chest where a small flickering white flame was alight.

"You… You do not have the right to mock me…"

"You failed. Admit it. The gods, the High Elves, the Demon King—all of you caused this. You chose to disregard the methods your predecessors used to rule the nine realms and with that willingly forgot how to prevent the death of the World Tree." Arnold pointed towards the dead World Tree. At that moment a large chunk of it broke apart.

"Your divine code—to not interfere with the mortals backfired on you."

"…." She bit her lower lip, "…Why did you not tell him what can be done to prevent this future…?"

"Him? Ah, my younger self? Why didn't you do it? Oh, that's right. You're physically unable to speak of the future in great detail. Which is why you tried to control him, right? It would've been much easier to convince a naïve earthling to become your puppet. He now knows that the gods can't be trusted. They will do whatever it takes to save their own asses, even at the expense of mortal life. You demonstrated that perfectly, sparring not a glance when he pleaded for you not to trap his soul."

"…I did not wish to show him that side of myself. I was desperate."

"What's your next scheme, Angelica? Besides using your younger self as a puppet to control my past self, that is."

"…."

"I guess that failed miserably, huh? Well, things aren't looking good for the Theocracy so the pope won't allow that Angelica to leave the nation on her own free will. War is brewing. That might be the only chance she can use to escape."

"….."

"So, are you going to answer my question? What's your next scheme?"

She stayed silent. Not only was she at a loss for words, she was completely dumbstruck by what he knew. How did he find out about her secretly communicating with her past self through divinations?

"You're not going to tell me? Is it because you hate me? Let me clear one thing up for you: I will not aid you in making my younger self a puppet to the gods. All you do is lie, steal and manipulate."

"…Aren't you the same?" she looked at him with a sharp glare.

"I only mixed some lies in the truth that I told him. I suppose the difference between the two of us is that I have no semblance of godhood, thus that makes me more trustworthy than you."

He continued, "He is going to create that Divine Fertilizer but what do you think will happen once he realizes the leverage that he'll have over trillions of lives and his creator?"

"…." Angelica could feel cold sweat down her back.

If that version of Arnold turns out like the Arnold in front of her then humanity as a whole is doomed.

"Naturally he'll go to the Fairy Queen first. She—alongside the five High Elves—will determine a reward for him saving the World Tree. We both know that the reward they'll give him won't be equal to the worth that fertilizer holds."

"…What am I going to do… Am I going to reincarnate and experience this hell all over again…? No, I don't want to… I don't want… to…"

"Then reincarnate into his world. You should be able to do that, no?"

"…B-But Goddess Melis will know—"

"The Destiny Goddess will probably already know why you're there and will make sure that Melis doesn't find out about you."

That's right. The Destiny Goddess—her predecessor—should already know why a goddess from the future would regress to the past.

Angelica slowly stood up. She dusted off the dirt from her white dress.

"Do you know whose body you'll take over? I suggest that you don't take over the queen's body. You will never be able to comprehend what rewards a man with the knowledge of the future would want." He then scoffed, "Look at me giving advice to someone I hate. Have I gone senile? Anyway, the decision is up to you. I don't need to tell you this but it's important that you don't tell your younger self who you are."

Arnold's body began fading away.

"Looks like my time here is up. I would've liked to tell you how much I despise you but I suppose you already know."

"If you despise me so much then why help me…?"

She couldn't understand it. He was helping her fulfil her duty as a goddess. Getting her hands on that divine item will determine the fate of all the realms.

Completing this mission will make her a hero to the people of the divine realm, including the gods themselves.

Where is the benefit for him?

"I suppose it's because I want to do one last good thing before I disappear? It makes me feel like a hero, I guess."

"A hero whose efforts won't be recognized by me or the gods."

"Well, that's not any different from how my life has been, is it?"

He then vanished.

"Your guidance has revealed a clear path," she said, gazing at the dead World Tree, "Yet, gratitude isn't owed for this revelation, not to someone like you."

Volume 4 End