Advent of the Three Calamities - Chapter 798: Kidnapping a Goddess [1]
Chapter 798: Kidnapping a Goddess [1]
It made no sense.
I had met the Saintess before I had officially met her. Not only that, but Noel had also made an effort to keep my identity a secret. How was it possible for her to know about me?
’No, now that I think about it, she might’ve done it on purpose.’
As the one overseeing all the Churches, she was aware of everything that happened. She also knew about what went on between me and Jackal back then.
Perhaps…
“…I even made sure that the relationship wouldn’t last. It’s not possible for them to be together again. Yes, it can’t be.”
The Goddess’s words pulled me out of my thoughts once more.
Staring at her and seeing her current expression, I felt my heart press tightly against my chest.
There were still many questions in my mind, and although I was still unsure of whether she was truly the Saint of the Round Table from back then, the idea grew more and more concrete in my mind.
’It just has to be her. If Sithrus can pretend to be someone else in the outer world, what is stopping her? I also did find the marriage proposal back then to be a little off… The timing of what she spoke was also off. As if she was aware of Delilah’s presence the entire time…’
I didn’t think she did anything beyond that.
’I don’t think she’s the reason why I exploded back then.’
The main reason I lost control back then was due to my fundamentally flawed emotional path. I’d focused so much on the other emotions that I’d completely neglected the one tied to ’Love.’
As a result, I completely lost my composure when something related to it occurred.
I had immersed myself in my emotive magic so much that the one flaw in my path resulted in such a catastrophic circumstance.
“Emmet…. Tell me that things are over between the two of you. I’m sure it’s just a whim of yours. She is indeed pretty, but so am I. I also don’t think you’re the type to like someone for their looks. What is it about me that you’re not satisfied with? If you tell me, I can change.”
Panthea’s attention was focused on me once more.
There was a certain sense of ’crisis’ in it that almost felt amusing.
However, more than amusing, it felt creepy.
’She really lost it.’
Her current expression clearly showed that her powers had consumed her mind. She wasn’t thinking straight, and that was what made the situation extremely dangerous for me. I’d much rather face a calm and collected individual than a lunatic I couldn’t predict.
“Are you not speaking? Why aren’t you saying anything…? I just asked a simple question. It can’t be that hard to answer that question.”
Panthea drew closer to me again, the flames within her eyes flickering again.
“…I’ve been loyal to you for thousands upon thousands of years. I hope you’ve also been loyal to me for some time. I don’t know what I’ll do if you betray me. Please… don’t betray me.”
Her voice shook at the end, sounding feeble.
I could see her lips quivering as she looked at me, and for a moment, I almost started to feel bad.
However, I was quick to snap out of it.
’No, don’t fall for it!’
She was batshit crazy. Of this, I was sure.
She was forcing her emotions onto me. I had never asked her to wait for me for thousands of years, nor had I ever told her I liked her. All of this, everything she believed, was nothing more than her own imagination.
“Emmet?”
Panthea’s voice echoed again, this time softer.
Despite the gentleness in her tone, something in the air seemed to shift as her gaze settled on me.
I started to shudder.
“You love me, right? The two of us can be together, right? You’re not cheating on me anymore, right? Right? Right?”
I nearly took a step back, feeling her gaze to be extremely burdensome.
“Why aren’t you saying anything? Don’t reject me…”
But at the same time, I knew that if I took even one step back, it would be over for me.
That was why the only option was for me to stand still as Panthea drew closer and closer, until—
Swooosh!
I found her hugging me again.
That familiar, pleasant scent filled my nose again as her soft body pressed against my chest. Feeling her head nestle against me, my lips trembled, and I fought the urge to push her away.
’Keep calm. Keep calm.’
I had to remind myself over and over to remain calm, and as I swallowed quietly, I started to think about my current situation more calmly.
’She’s definitely a lot weaker than she was in the past. Still, that doesn’t change the fact that she’s stronger than me. If I use my emotive magic, maybe there’s a chance for me to beat her. However, that’s only granted that it works on her. She’s also extremely old and has a lot more experience than I do. If I am to fight her directly, I might beat her with some luck. Nevertheless, the actual chances of me beating her are extremely slim.’
As her head continued to rest against my chest, I forced myself to think, analyzing the situation in detail and searching desperately for a way out.
’…Even if I do end up beating her, there are also her followers. The Living Saint, especially. I don’t think I’ll be able to beat him. The only way for me to get out of this situation is to somehow deal with the Goddess swiftly, and at the same time manage to avoid the ire of her followers. I also need information on Noel.’
This…
How the hell was I going to do this?
’There’s literally no way out for me. I’m screwed no matter how much I think about it. I can’t fight the Goddess, and even if I do, I’ll end up getting killed by her followers. If only there were a way for me to deal with her and also avoid her fo—’
Huh?
A thought suddenly occurred to me.
Lowering my head, I looked down at the Goddess resting against my chest, breathing in my scent as if it were something sacred. Slowly, I lifted my hands and wrapped them around her, pulling her into a hesitant embrace.
“…..!”
She trembled the moment I did so, her eyes widening as her hands grew even tighter.
“Emmet…”
Her voice trembled softly, her gaze lifting to stare at me.
I smiled back at her.
She grew excited.
“I knew it! I knew it…! You’ve finally come to yourself! You’ve finally started to appreciate my love for you!”
Err…
“Yes… I have.”
I tightened my grip around her, taking a few slow, steady breaths. I held her like that for several seconds before finally letting go and pulling back.
“Ah, sorry…”
“Huh? Sorry? Why would you…”
“Didn’t you tell me that you’ve gotten injured from the fight with the Outer Being? I wouldn’t want to touch your injury. I don’t… want to hurt you.”
“….!”
It was as if my words were filled with honey. The Goddess’s expression melted.
She quickly shook her hands.
“Don’t worry about that. My injuries are mostly in my eyes and shoulders. Your hug didn’t touch them at all. See…”
Panthea tugged at the side of her dress, revealing her pale, pearly neck and the deep black gash running across it, pulsing faintly like a living wound.
It was a sickening wound that nearly made me want to look away.
Still, I maintained my gaze over it as I showed looks of concern while moving closer to it.
“This…”
“You won’t blame me for having this, right? I know it looks ugly, but once I can acquire enough followers, I should be able to get rid of it. I promise.”
“That’s not what I’m worried about.”
I spoke gently, taking a step forward and taking her into a hug.
“…..! A-ah.”
“I’m just worried about you. This must’ve hurt a lot, right?”
“Y-yes. It does…”
“I’m sorry. I’m really sorry you had to feel this way.”
Holding her tightly, I slowly raised one of my hands before reaching for her shoulder. She didn’t seem to notice my actions at all, seemingly spouting all sorts of bullshit about me and her. I took that split second to imagine a red orb in my hand before grabbing onto her shoulder.
Tak!
“Haaaaaaaak!”
A scream ripped through her mouth the moment after, her expression contorting as I latched onto her shoulder with her arm, feeling the wound that she had sustained in the past.
“Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!”
A blinding white light burst from her body as she screamed at the top of her lungs, her form convulsing violently under the weight of the pain. In all honesty, I didn’t want to do things this way.
I could tell that her emotions were sincere, and I was exploiting them.
However, they were too extreme.
She was obviously not in her right mind due to her injuries and the influence of her powers.
This was also the only thing that I could do in order to escape my current predicament.
“Haaaaa!”
Her scream ripped once more, and the pressure coming out of her body started to feel unbearable. It was enough to make me want to let go, but I maintained my grip, squeezing harder with each passing second.
The pain prevented Panthea from saying anything, but she didn’t need to say anything.
Her face said it all.
’How could you!? What are you doing?!’
I could only smile bitterly at her.
“…You’re a little too old for me.”
Her expression contorted, her face filled with a look of betrayal. I ignored such looks and kept my grip on her shoulder.
It wasn’t long before something occurred behind me.
Clank!
The door opened, and several figures came rushing in right after.
“What’s going on!?”
“The Goddess is under attack! Stop him at once!”
“Ah! I fucking knew it! We shouldn’t have trusted him!”
“Kill him!”
Despite the words, nobody moved. The Goddess was clearly under my grip, and as I slowly turned my head in their direction, feeling several dozen eyes locked in my direction, I could only inwardly sigh.
“Your Goddess…”
My lip twitched.
“…I’ll be kidnapping her for a bit.”
