The Divine Twilight's Return

“What do you mean you’re going to take [Ymir’s Heart]! Only a thug would do something like that...! I didn’t expect you to act as low as that. Have I misjudged you?” Chaque li Omeister shouted in anger.

Chang-Sun chuckled. “Audumla and Ymir are pretty much the same to me.”

“What are you talking abo...”

“Both you, the one doing Audumla’s work, and Ymir attacked me.”

“...It was a misunderstanding!” Chaque argued.

“It doesn’t matter whether you misunderstood me. Since you attacked me, I have no reason to take your and Audumla’s side unconditionally.”

Chaque inhaled and exhaled deeply in an attempt to regain as much composure as possible. Seeing how it did not take long for Chaque’s gaze to become calm, Chang-Sun was quite impressed; he could tell Chaque was more mentally disciplined than he had thought.

“...Audumla and I are on the side of justice,” Chaque said quietly.

“Justice? How can you be so sure about that?”

“If Ymir resurrects, this Worldline will be doom...!”

“That’s your one-sided claim. I haven’t heard anything from Ymir, you know. I guarantee you that if I went to Ymir’s side, her claim would be that Audumla is trying to take over the world by eating her heart.” Chang-Sun scoffed.

“...”

“Am I wrong?”

Chaque pursed his lips, as he was also very perplexed and his belief was wavering. He had believed that he was doing the right thing, but he began to wonder whether Audumla had been playing him all along.

Chang-Sun could tell that Chaque was not going to argue any longer, so he turned to look at Audumla’s idol avatar.

『And it isn’t wrong, is it?』 Chang-Sun sent a telepathic message, so Chaque would not be able to hear him.

The energy that Audumla exuded destabilized for a moment, but she shamelessly responded.

『I have no idea what you’re talking about right now...』

『Are you having trouble undoing the petrification of [Ymir's Heart]? That’s why you hired him, isn’t it? You need to buy time.』

Audumla looked noticeably more shaken.

『That is...!』

『I advise you not to feign ignorance. If you really have nothing to hide, I’ll just tell him what I think and pull out [Ymir's Heart]. We can just see what condition the heart is in with our own eyes,』 Chang-Sun suggested.

At first, Chang-Sun had believed that Audumla sent her idol avatar for fear of violating the law of casualty. However, a fragment of Ymir herself had shown up here, so that speculation seemed highly unlikely.

It did not take long to come up with a possible reason. Audumla’s bodily fluids specialized in undoing the Mother Terra Celestial’s curse, and [Ymir's Heart] was petrified for an unknown reason. In addition, Audumla was reluctant to stray too far from [Ymir's Heart], which meant she was trying to take it for herself.

‘The level of enmity Ymir showed Audumla was very high... but they used to be like a real family. It would take at least [Ymir’s Heart] for them to turn on each other.’

It was more than possible that Audumla had used Odin to kill Ymir and worked with Chaque out of a desire to take Ymir’s power and [Ymir’s Heart]...

From Audumla’s reaction, Chang-Sun felt conviction in his speculation. ‘In the end, the world is all about backstabbing.’

Since Chaque was naively upright, he was unlikely to have expected it.

While Chang-Sun continued to stare at Audumla with his [Foretelling Eye]...

『...What will I get in return for my blood?』

...Audumla threw out a question in apparent surrender, so Chang-Sun chuckled. Noticing the subtle change in the air, Chaque looked back and forth between Chang-Sun and Audumla.

“Why don’t you tell me?” Chang-Sun smiled crookedly.

『...What?』

“While making a deal, the one who needs something should make a proposal, am I wrong? I’m going to hear it out and decide if I can accept your proposal, so go ahead.” Chang-Sun gestured at Audumla, who shook faintly as she had not expected Chang-Sun’s response.

『Phew...! Fine. I’ll give you my blood—no, I’ll give you some from my heart.』

After hearing Audumla’s proposal, Chang-Sun’s expression changed subtly. Blood from Audumla’s heart? The heart was the source of life where all blood was created, which meant that would be the highest-level blood. He realized that Audumla was trying to take the initiative in the negotiation by offering a very high price from the beginning.

『So you should not only protect [Ymir's Heart] from her slave soldiers but also participate in eliminating her.』

“So you’re going to make me do your bidding,” Chang-Sun muttered.

『Are you in or not?』

Chang-Sun thought to himself that Audumla was an Ancient Celestial for a good reason. Her persistence in avoiding losses was remarkable, but of course, he had no intention of playing along like a mindless puppet.

“Alright. I’ll do it.” Chang-Sun nodded.

『Then let’s form a pledge right n...!』

“But pay me first.”

『Don’t be ridiculous. No one pays up front if the job isn’t done.』

“Forget about it if you don’t want to,” Chang-Sun said nonchalantly as he pointed the [Dawn Spear] closer to the statue, making Audumla panic.

『Fine! I-I’ll give it to you! Stop! Stop it!』

Chang-Sun finally withdrew the [Dawn Spear] and said, “Tsk. We could have finished this sooner. Why are you wasting my time?”

Audumla shook in anger, her fists turning red from how hard she was clenching them.

‘Am I... with a thug?’ Chaque blankly looked at Chang-Sun, admiring his willingness to threaten Audumla.

『Take it.』

Audumla forcefully threw something at Chang-Sun. Although she did not have teeth because she was in the form of a doll, the sound of her teeth gnashing was still audible.

Tap!

Chang-Sun caught the bottle with ease. It was a glass bottle with ruby-red contents that sparkled beautifully.

『I paid you, so it’s time to make a ple... W-Wh-What... are you doing?!』

Audumla was too appalled to finish talking, because Chang-Sun suddenly opened the bottle and poured the contents on the ground!

Hisss!

The ground melted where the blood struck it, releasing smoke. The statue... then began to melt little by little. Considering that [Ymir's Heart] was under the statue, what Chang-Sun had done was madness and should never have been done. Before Audumla could say anything further, Chang-Sun scowled at her with a sharp gaze, saying, “It’s fake.”

Audumla flinched and retreated backward, but Chang-Sun extended his arm and grabbed her by the throat.

『Keough!』

Chang-Sun was not just grabbing the idol avatar by the throat; he was holding her true form, which existed beyond the Channeling.

Pzzz, pzzz―!

Audumla’s idol avatar fragmented and turned into a huge bull that repeatedly flickered in and out of existence. Shaking violently with foam coming out of her mouth, Audumla tried to break free from Chang-Sun’s grip, but it was not easy.

Chang-Sun had the Divine Class of a Celestial King and an Outer Celestial, so he was technically comparable to Audumla. On top of that, they were in the world of a <Myth>, which meant he had no reason to be lesser than Audumla, who was just part of reenactment of history.

“This isn’t the blood from your heart. If so, the statue wouldn’t just have melted a bit, am I wrong?” Chang-Sun asked coldly.

『...T-That is...!』

“Were you planning to make a [Mana Pledge] in your idol avatar’s name, not yours? People from the time period I’m from find that trick so tacky that they don’t even do it anymore.”

『...!』

Chang-Sun could feel Audumula’s idol avatar—no, her true form turning stiff with tension. It seemed that his guess was spot-on, but Audumla’s reaction made him even more dumbfounded. Although he had thought that Audumla would not agree to make a deal like the one they talked about, Chang-Sun had not expected her to use such a cheap trick. In fact, he could even have fallen for it if he had not detected a suspicious circumstance with his [Foretelling Eye].

“Chaque.” Chang-Sun turned to look at Chaque, whose lip was trembling. It was an indication that Chaque’s trust in Audumla was turning into disappointment.

“...Yes.” Chaque looked back at Chang-Sun.

“Check the [Mana Pledge] you made with her. She might have tampered with it,” Chang-Sun said to enlighten Chaque a little.

After inhaling and exhaling several times, Chaque slowly read through the [Mana Pledge]. When he finished reading it, he smiled bitterly. “...Ha.”

It was enough to serve as an answer.

“Shall we terminate your pledge and go join Ymir’s side?”

“...What are you talking about?” Chaque asked.

“If we bring [Ymir's Heart], I think Ymir will forget about all past grudges.”

『W-Wait! What are you talking about?! A [Mana Pledge] isn’t something that you can end with ea...!』

“A [Mana Pledge] is related to the law of causality, so extenuation is possible if someone’s tampering is discovered.” Half-smirking, Chang-Sun coldly said, “If it isn’t enough to terminate the pledge, I can pay the necessary amount of Causality you need to pay on your behalf. Maybe I can bill Ymir later.”

Chaque’s lip trembled hard, indicating how disappointed he was in Audumla and how tempting Chang-Sun’s offer was. Chaque was a knight who valued honor above all else. His anger toward a person who forsook honor first was deeper than Chang-Sun had thought.

『H-Hold on! I’ll give you anything you want! If the pledge needs amending, I’ll do it! I’ll pay you more if you need something else. It seems you’re very angry because of a part I overlooked by mistake, so why don’t we calm down and talk it out...!』

Audumla fired off her words in an attempt to change Chaque’s mind. However, neither he nor Chang-Sun paid her any attention, making Audumla more anxious.

“...I will trust you to make the right call for me.”

“Me?” Chang-Sun asked, not expecting Chaque’s answer

Chaque nodded. “I am quite confident that I am a good judge of character. That is why I began to trust you.”

“That’s what got you backstabbed.”

“...I still trust myself regardless. I also believe that Audumla didn't do it out of malice.”

Chang-Sun looked back at Audumla, who was struggling to break free from his grip, and said, “That’s what he says.”

『That is...!』

Audumla was unsure what to say next, not expecting Chaque to still trust her.

“In any case, shall we continue our negotiation?” Chang-Sun asked.

Even though she had a lot of things she wanted to say, looking into Chang-Sun’s eyes rendered Audumla speechless, because it was too obvious that he was happily pondering a way to rob her blind.

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