Chapter 334: Gesture Of Goodwill (Bonus)
Ethan’s eyes widened once again.
Alistair was completely dumbfounded.
Meanwhile, Merlin hurriedly tore open the buttons of his shirt, revealing what looked like a black tattoo rapidly forming across his chest.
It resembled a demonic skull with long, curved horns, and flame-like accents curling upward from either side. Its hollow eye sockets gave it an unsettling appearance.
The sigil glowed briefly, then the light faded.
Merlin let out a slow sigh before rising to his feet.
Turning toward Ethan, he asked, "Why have I received the Spirit King’s mark?"
Ethan looked at him. "Merlin, I can barely explain why what just happened unfolded the way it did. Matter of fact, I didn’t even apply that mark myself."
He let out a sigh. "But something tells me your spell will fail if that mark isn’t there."
Merlin stared at him for a moment before lowering his head with an exhausted sigh. When he looked up again, the familiar smile had returned to his face.
"Well... of all the things I thought could have possibly gone wrong with that spell, this seems to have been the best outcome."
Ethan tilted his head. "So... you actually expected something like this to happen?"
"Of course," Merlin replied as he fastened the buttons of his shirt. "The worst-case scenario was dying at the hands of an angry god who noticed my attempt to undermine His authority."
He shrugged lightly. "But becoming His blessed instead... feels like a rather fair trade."
Alistair pointed at Ethan in shock, yet his question was directed at Merlin.
"He’s a god?!"
Truthfully...
Even Ethan wanted to know the answer to that.
Merlin looked between the two of them and was just about to respond when he suddenly recalled his encounter with the Mistress of the Endless Dark—the day she had appeared before him while he was speaking with Isabella.
He thought better of it.
"Or perhaps the emissary of one," Merlin replied instead. "But that doesn’t matter."
He glanced down at the newly formed sigil on his chest.
"This mark is merely an inconvenience I’ll have to deal with later. Until then... I won’t be answering any more questions about any of it."
That only left Alistair even more confused.
In the end, however, he simply shook his head.
There was little point trying to understand something that would disappear from his memories the moment all of this was over.
Ethan, on the other hand, dismissed the idea almost immediately.
He knew he wasn’t a god.
It was true that he had long suspected the Authority of the Spirit King to be a power connected to some higher existence.
But in his case, it was simply one of the many abilities the System had granted him.
Nothing more.
Besides, he was already a demon-dragon hybrid. Anything beyond that would have made him a tribrid, which he wasn’t.
His conviction was only reinforced by the notification still floating before him after he had asked the System once again, just to be certain.
[No. You have not ascended to the status of a god and cannot be called one.]
Merlin finished buttoning his shirt before beginning to pace around the clearing, scanning the ground as he muttered to himself. "It should be here somewhere..."
"I believe we’re done here..." Ethan said, turning to leave.
"Wait a moment!" Merlin called out, raising a hand without even looking at him as he continued searching the ground.
Ethan stopped, watching him with a puzzled expression.
Then Merlin’s face suddenly lit up. "Yes... this is it!"
He stretched a hand toward the ground.
A bluish magic circle spread across the earth, and the entire clearing immediately began to tremble.
The ground beneath the circle caved inward by several feet before a massive rectangular golden box slowly rose from beneath the earth.
It looked like a casket.
Merlin waved a hand, and magic shifted the heavy lid of the box aside.
A thick cloud of dust billowed out at once, making Merlin cough dramatically before waving his hand again to sweep it all away.
He then reached inside.
When he withdrew his hand, he was holding a crown.
Merlin stared at it for a long moment before smiling. "I suppose... this is all that remains of you now."
He walked over and held the crown out to Ethan.
"This belonged to one of the greatest kings ever to walk this earth. The only king I ever believed worthy of my service."
A hint of nostalgia crossed his face. "And it was my honor to serve him."
He placed the crown into Ethan’s hands. "I believe it will be of greater use to you than in there."
Ethan accepted it, his expression filled with puzzled thoughts.
From his conversation with the King a few days earlier, he already knew that Merlin had once served a king, the original rider of Beilong.
He immediately understood what Merlin had just given him. It was the catalyst needed to summon that very king.
Turns out Merlin had been the last person to see him alive and the one who had laid his body to rest.
"Thanks..." Ethan said, looking back at Merlin. "But I have to ask... why are you giving this to me?"
"Yes, Merlin, why?" Alistair spread both hands. "I’m the one without a summon now, remember?"
Merlin looked at him. "That man was known as the King of Heroes... and you’re anything but one."
He then turned back to Ethan and gave a casual shrug. "Think of it as an extra payoff... or perhaps a gesture of goodwill."
Ethan merely shook his head before storing the crown inside his inventory. The next instant, he shot into the sky with the force of a sonic boom.
Merlin watched him disappear with a faint smile before turning toward Alistair. "Come, Alistair. We have a long way to go."
He turned and began walking.
A visibly dissatisfied Alistair followed behind, mumbling under his breath. "You gave it to him as an extra payoff..."
Merlin chuckled. "Want to know why I really gave him that?"
"Why?" Alistair asked.
"Because it’s in my best interest to keep that kid, whatever he truly is, as an ally."
Merlin lifted his eyes toward the sky. "Who knows what deity I’ll offend tomorrow and end up needing his help against?"
He smiled to himself. "So don’t be butthurt."
"Huh?" Alistair frowned before stopping in place. "Don’t be butthurt about what?"
He looked around in confusion. "...How did we get here exactly?"
Merlin’s smile widened. The spell erasing Alistair’s memories of everything that had just transpired had finally taken effect.
"Keep walking," Merlin said simply, continuing on his way.
Still looking confused, Alistair hurried after him.
Apparently, the prince had been too ashamed to return to his father after everything that had happened.
Instead, he had chosen to run away from it all.
And for now, that meant following Merlin wherever the trickster decided to go.