Every time he repeated those words, it felt like a new layer was being peeled off, a new meaning was being revealed hidden behind another... and yet there still seemed more waiting for him to discover and understand. This time, Galeon felt even more confused at what he was discovering. That line, it was not meant to reflect the thoughts of the one who sent the message, whoever they were. They were meant for Galeon himself to speak.

'Crowning glory, greatest shame, the heaven-reaching mountain that rises in my name.'

And in this context, it was his name – Galeon. But why? What did the heaven-reaching mountain have to do with him? Besides the initial burst of emotion, the hatred he felt for it, he did not know of anything relating him to the mountain. And as if that was not enough to confound him, he learns of another variable added to the equation. His mother, according to Vivi, seems to be at the heart of this chaos. Was this delirium or was he truly embroiled in this convoluted mess?

The answers continue to elude him. Even the idea of the message being spoken from his perspective seemed completely illogical at first, but the clues he was getting said otherwise. The message was perhaps even more of a prophecy than the prophecy that the Lux Holy Land had spread. Even with the Eyes of Clarity, he still could not glean any truths on this situation. So he turned his gaze away from the mountain and examined the crowd of people that have frozen in either fear or shock.

"So what do we do with them?"

Vivi looked around as well, her gaze cold as she saw less than half of the people on her side of the ravine were left alive. On the other side, the soldiers in black uniform were already stealthily trying to get away without attracting the attention of the two Divines, but the moment they heard Galeon's words, they knew they would not be able to leave without a price.

"I honestly don't care. I'm not even supposed to be here, but I came regardless. The Concord sent these people to investigate the mountain. And those soldiers were sent by Navalli for the same reason or so I thought."

"You thought?"

Hearing Vivi's words, what remained of the Concord's troops nearly fell to despair. One of their leaders had practically just abandoned them and they could not even protest. For one, they had miserably failed their mission before they even reached the destination. And two, the Concord was not always a unified front. And they all knew the recent disagreements between the Divine Blade of Beauty and the other leaders. No one really supported her either even as she continued on her mission alone. The only reason she was even trying to help earlier was because of Navalli.

The soldiers in black immediately raised their guns and began shooting at Galeon and Vivi. They knew they would die anyway so they might as well try their luck. More importantly, the Divine Blade of Beauty seemed to know what these Navalli soldiers were doing. And if that was the case, then she really could not be left alive. So they sprayed their bullets, praying that at least one of them would get the job done. Unfortunately for them, neither of the two Divines seemed at all concerned about their futile attempt.

Galeon's wings flapped once, releasing potent vibration that spread out like a net. It act like a barrier that blocked the bullets, easily negating any damages they might have caused. And all the while, the brother and sister only continued talking without even sparing them another glance.

"Yes. I thought they were here to investigate the mountain as well, but I discarded that when I noticed they weren't actually moving toward the mountain. They were patrolling the Trustad Plains like some guard dogs keeping watch by the door. That's also why there are so many of them. Clearly they know something, or at least their bosses do."

This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work.

Galeon considered her words carefully. He did not initially find it strange for Navalli to be here considering their business with Prisma. However, it was odd that they had somehow managed to send so many soldiers to the Trustad Plains in so short a time. It was as though they had been prepared for this. Furthermore, the amount of soldiers they sent clearly did not indicate them to be a scouting team meant to check the level of danger of the area before a proper investigation team was sent. This could only mean that they were aware of what was and would be happening and had no need for investigations.

Galeon did not know what to make of this. He himself was still in the dark about the whole picture so how could Navalli know more than him? His Eyes of Clarity were also not much of a help at this moment as the information he was looking for was too specific to be grasped from the threads of these soldiers. He needed one of their leaders, their directors. And as he turned his gaze toward the soldiers who had now stopped shooting after realising it was futile, he found them begin dropping to the ground one by one.

A few tens of people just collapsed to the ground, not in surrender or prayer, but in death. No life coursed through their veins anymore as their hearts had already ceased all movements. They did not die by the hands of Galeon or Vivi. They were not suddenly killed by the resentful soldiers of the Concord. They had committed suicide by ingesting the poison they had hidden in their mouths. And of course, this was not by some profound loyalty for the Company, no. They simply had no choice. It was either them or their families held by their throats in Navalli's territories.

This was the truth of the lives led by Navalli's employees. They were not people. They were slaves meant to serve their masters to their dying breaths, and even in death, they must still serve a purpose. Or else all the money spent on their families will be collected... with interest. This was what Galeon saw in the threads that were slowly disappearing, crumbling to stellar dust in his hands.

"Decades vanish in a blink.... How fleeting life is."

Galeon muttered in melancholy. He would not mock them. They had chosen their fates even though they had been given the illusion of none. He could not say they were cowards for not fighting back against their oppressors because he might have done the same if he did not have power. He was a Divine. Very few could dictate the trajectory of his life. And those that could were beings more powerful than him, those beyond this world. All he could do was take their deaths as a lesson. He must keep moving forward to enlighten his path.

Only then would he reach Eternity.

Only then would he find Freedom.

Galeon waved his hand, cutting off Vivi's realistic illusion that controlled the scenery around them. The Trustad Plains began trembling once more as it sought to return to its original amorphous state. The stone field suddenly began to be rapidly layered with snow as blizzard winds whipped about. The ravine that Galeon had created morphed into a basin that was soon covered in ice, a frozen lake that seemed awfully delicate. Fortunately, Galeon's Hydrokinesis and Cryokinesis could easily save them in case of any mishaps.

With another wave of his hand, he sent drops of liquid light toward everyone that remained. Although Vivi acted as though she did not care whether the Concord's soldiers lived or died, he could get a faint inkling of a lie in her words from their entwined threads. Her disagreements with the rest of the leaders should not affect those uninvolved, but at the same time, it was true that none of them were ever on her side. So perhaps there was some truth to her words. Either way, Galeon was not the type of person to leave someone for dead when helping them would cost him next to nothing.

"Let's go. I'll find the quickest way out of the Plains. Just stick close to me."

Without another word, Galeon reached for Vivi's hand and held it tightly. He would not lose her, this he swore to himself. Whatever attachments he felt for others, somehow, none of them could even come close to what he felt now. Perhaps it was a delusion due to seeing their intertwined threads or perhaps he truly felt a connection with her now, a bond unlike anything he ever had before. But none of it mattered. He would protect her no matter the cost. He would not fail again.

As Galeon swore a silent oath to this new bond, his liquid light escaped from his hand and sank into Vivi's.