The son of Cragar was not intimidated and quickly prepared to disappear into the Interworld via a spectral travel, to escape the divine grasp.

Aena thundered, "Don't let him escape."

Two boys charged 'Shirei' from behind and immediately threw him to the ground. The demigod hit his face against the ground, losing the clarity necessary to activate his powers. When he tried to shake off his attackers, he recognized Aena's influence on their will. The goddess of love was, in fact, able to exercise irresistible control over those for whom she had love. As a result, she could manipulate the emotions and thoughts of anyone subject to her charms, as long as that person's will was not strong enough to resist her power or they were not already in love.

The hallmark of that power was the bright pink eyes, which shone like two bright beacons, clearly indicating the goddess's influence. At that point, whatever order she decided to give, they would carry it out without second thoughts. Aena reached 'Shirei' while keeping her body in Salix's direction, to let him know that she hadn't overlooked his presence in the slightest.

"I knew I had to stay alert," the goddess said, looking down at him, "Though I have unconditional love for everyone in the park, I trust neither you nor your sister."

The boy's heart rate gradually slowed, making him weaker, until the worst happened. For a moment, 'Shirei''s heart stopped, a brief moment of paralysis that seemed enough to bring his inner control out of his torpor. Aena's relentless power, which gripped his heart like a vice, weakened slightly, allowing Shirei to fight to regain control of himself. That moment of uncertainty made even the goddess doubt whether she had crossed the line. However, before Shirei could free himself, Aena decided to intervene again. With a swift gesture, particles of magical essence condensed into a shaft of pink light that materialized before her. She shot the arrow of love but, before it could reach its target, Salix intervened and protected the boy from the imminent attack.

Aena, determined to end the battle, concentrated all her power against Salix. However, to her surprise, the goddess's power seemed to have no effect on Tefine's son. A smug smile appeared on Salix's face as he prepared to face the goddess of love.

"You wish, it doesn't work on me."

Aena wondered with growing frustration why her powers, usually so powerful and unstoppable, were proving ineffective against Salix. Her mind was racked with uncertainty as she tried to comprehend what was happening, but it made her lose attention for a brief moment. Enough for the son of Tefine to block it.

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Everything around her turned red and her surroundings began to crumble into nothingness. The Lilies Park, her creation, her pride, was falling apart. Aena realized with horror that she had fallen victim to a nightmare. She had been locked in a personal hell created by Salix's skilled dreamlike hands. The goddess thus found herself suffering, trapped in her own mind for several minutes, while the desperation of what could happen in the real world slowly gripped her.

Meanwhile, Shirei slowly regained his senses, and as he regained self-awareness, he found himself diving into the depths of the Interworld to escape the grasp of Aena's minions.

Shirei reappeared at the boy's side, his face had a tired expression and he seemed to be quite destabilized. "Salix, what's going on?"

"I should ask you, have you decided what to do?" Replied the son of Tefine.

"What do you mean?"

Salix narrowed his silver eyes, "You're back again, you're not him."

The demigods were now all poured into the square, some still held their weapons, but no one dared to lift a finger to attack. A tense silence enveloped the air as the eyes of those present scanned the scene with a mixture of terror and uncertainty. The two had just opposed the goddess of love and were still alive, they even seemed to have the upper hand.

Salix joined Shirei, but as he did so, he sensed the change in his old friend. The strange patch of darkness at Shirei's feet was gone, as were his ghostly weapons. A wave of disinterest washed over him as he realized his plan had just lost all purpose. All he had to do was create as much havoc as possible.

"What are you doing?" Shirei asked, seeing him advance.

"What you wanted, I'm killing Aena."

Salix darted forward and aimed his weapon at the mask on the goddess of love's face. Aena opened her eyes at that precise moment and saw Cragar's son step between them, only to be impaled near the shoulder.

Now prey to her own uncontrolled anger, Aena turned to Salix, "I am a goddess, you cannot kill me!"

"Really? Can't the Gods be killed?" replied the son of Tefine.

Aena hesitated. She couldn't understand whether the boy was bluffing or not. Salix touched his face and simulated the gesture of removing a mask, disproving every doubt in the deity's head.

"Are we really sure that you are immortal?"

Silence.

A tear of icy sweat ran down the entirety of the goddess Aena's cheekbone. Salix had to die, it was too dangerous to leave him alive. If his information was made public then, everything Emion had worked for would become useless.

Salix retreated, putting few meters of distance between the enemies and himself. Shirei tried to stop him by pulling the chain that had wounded him, but he lost the grip on the silvery weapon.

The goddess gritted her teeth, "Demigods, back away! Immediately!"

When Shirei took a few steps to walk away, Aena stopped him.

"Not you, son of Cragar. Stay by my side."

The purple-eyed boy did as he was just told and stood next to the goddess. He didn't go crazy about teaming up with Aena, but he wasn't really understanding anything at all. Assuming the situation was a problem, he was certain that Salix would be the enemy to defeat. He prepared for the imminent clash by summoning the Blade of Discord from the Interworld.