Chapter 979: Alternate Timeline: Arceus’ Request

The Doom’s Scythe rested quietly before Kiara.

Even while lying motionless inside the inventory interface, the weapon still carried an uncomfortable presence around it, as though death itself had left fingerprints on the black metal long ago and never bothered to wipe them away.

***

The Doom’s Scythe

Grade: Crystal+ (Semi-Divine)

Description: The Scythe is forged by a myriad of metals, of which Adamantium constitutes about 12%. Once belonging to the Necromancer King, it passed down to several elders of the Church of Doom, eventually landing in the hands of Tored.

Recommended Users: Noah, Kiara

***

Then another notification appeared.

[Ding! You received a trading request. Exchange the Doom’s Scythe for 1,900,000 credits?]

Kiara stared at the number silently.

1.9 million credits? That’s like 9.5 million gold coins... Truly exorbitant amount, instantly solving her financial problems in one go.

Normally, she would have rejected the offer instantly without even thinking twice.

But things were different now.

Debt changed the way people thought.

That bitter realization made her uncomfortable.

She leaned back slightly against the chair and rubbed her forehead while staring at the scythe.

’If I dismantle it... I won’t even get a million.’

The offer was objectively good.

Very good.

And yet...

She still hesitated.

The problem was not the money.

It was what the weapon represented.

Semi-divine grade.

A ten percent buff to the user.

A weapon capable of changing the balance of a battle entirely.

If Noah wielded this scythe properly, then he could stand evenly against someone like Xander Cross.

That alone made the weapon priceless in Kiara’s eyes.

Money could be earned again.

Weapons like this could not.

And even if she cleared all her debt today, what then?

Sooner or later, she would spend again.

Sooner or later, debt would return.

The system was like a bottomless ocean. No matter how much gold was poured into it, the water level never truly rose.

In the end, Kiara quietly exhaled.

"No, I’ll keep it for now."

Her decision settled firmly inside her chest.

Still...

There was another problem.

The scythe was not obedient.

It had already tried escaping once.

A semi-divine weapon possessing remnants of willpower was dangerous.

Especially one connected to the Church of Doom.

Kiara narrowed her eyes slightly.

Which meant...

She needed the system’s help.

And the system never worked for free.

"System," she spoke calmly, "I want the weapon bound to Noah. What price do you want?"

The response came immediately, almost as though the system had been waiting.

[Ding! M134 minigun (Ether version) is the required price.]

Kiara’s face darkened instantly.

"No way."

Her reply came without hesitation.

That weapon was too valuable.

Even if she barely used it now, she still planned to research it later for advanced ether weapon development.

And by now, she had learned something important about the system.

Whenever it became overly interested in taking something back, that thing was usually extremely important.

She would not make that mistake.

"Give me another option."

Thankfully, the system no longer behaved as rigidly as it did in the beginning.

Another notification appeared.

[Ding! 50000 credits for purifying the weapon using purification stone and binding it to Noah’s consciousness.]

Kiara fell silent again.

Fifty thousand credits.

Equivalent to another massive debt.

Another chain around her neck.

Yet compared to giving away the Ether Minigun, this was manageable.

Still, she did not agree immediately.

There were still two remaining storage rings waiting to be inspected.

What if something better existed inside them?

Another semi-divine weapon.

A treasure.

A hidden resource.

She needed to check first.

Kiara placed the scythe aside and connected her consciousness to the second storage ring.

The moment she inspected it, disappointment hit quietly.

Pouches.

Ether crystals.

Nothing more.

"That’s unfortunate."

She moved on to the final ring.

This one was platinum-grade.

The moment her consciousness entered the storage space, she immediately sensed another weapon.

A sword.

Another Semi-divine grade.

But lower quality than the scythe.

Diamond rank, despite being in the same grade, for which the system quickly offered only 270,000 credits for it.

This time, Kiara accepted instantly.

No hesitation.

No attachment.

The transaction completed immediately.

Then she focused on something more important.

Debt repayment.

[Ding! 125,877 credits were deducted as a debt payment.]

[Ding! Your credit limit increased by 12587. New limit = 172587 credits.]

Kiara stared quietly at the notification.

The system really behaved like a loan shark pretending to be a merchant.

The more faithfully she repaid...

The more it encouraged her to borrow again.

Indeed, a vicious cycle that reminded her of the credit card debts she had once.

Then she finally spoke again.

"System, purify the Doom’s Scythe. Use credits."

[Ding! Do you wish to use your credit limit or directly pay from the account?]

Kiara thought for a moment before choosing the first option.

The credit limit could always be increased later through repayment anyway.

[Ding! 50000 credits were reduced from the credit limit. Available: 122587 credits.]

[Ding! Please wait for one hour to complete the process of binding.]

Immediately afterward, Kiara reopened the debt menu and repaid the newly created debt again.

[Ding! 50000 credits have been deducted as a debt payment.]

[Ding! Your credit limit increased by 5000. New limit: 177587 credits.]

After all the transactions ended, she finally relaxed slightly.

Not fully.

Just enough.

The room remained quiet around her. Only the faint sound of breathing was heard.

The cold night air slipped through the window.

The distant creaking of wood somewhere inside the store.

Kiara then dismantled the platinum-grade daggers she originally intended to gift Noah before discovering the scythe.

The result appeared quickly.

7,224 credits gained.

Then came the remaining cleanup.

She transferred the potions, ether crystals, and ores into her inventory before dismantling the storage rings themselves.

Another 2,886 credits.

Piece by piece.

Resource by resource.

Like stripping meat from bones.

When everything finally ended, Kiara checked her balance again.

Over 180,000 credits remained.

No debt is left. And a semi-divine weapon is still in her possession.

Other than that, several valuable crystals and ores were acquired.

Honestly...

She had gained far more than expected from this incident.

So much so that even the lingering irritation she once held toward Wester Silver had mostly faded.

Money really did soften resentment.

That realization left a bitter taste in her mouth.

’Humans are simple creatures after all.’

Kiara leaned back and stared at the ceiling quietly.

Now what?

Should she increase her ether energy?

Should she spend credits?

Buy stats?

Skills?

Convert them into gold?

She considered every option carefully.

Then rejected all of them.

’Right now, spending credits like that would just be wasteful.’

If unique bloodlines or stronger exclusive weapons were available, then maybe it would be worth it.

But currently...

No.

Saving credits was smarter.

Thus, she simply took out several ether ores and began absorbing them.

There was not much else to do anyway.

Cold ether energy entered her body steadily.

The sensation spread through her meridians like icy water flowing through dry riverbeds.

Her breathing slowed naturally, and the room became silent again.

Half an hour passed.

[Ding! You absorbed high-quality ether ore (112 carats). Ether energy has been increased by 3444 points.]

Kiara opened her eyes slightly.

"Good. Let’s continue."

She picked up the second ore.

The energy refinement process had barely begun when a sudden knocking echoed through the room.

*Knock* *Knock*

Kiara immediately opened her eyes fully.

The interruption surprised her slightly.

"Coming."

She stood up from the bed and walked toward the door.

The wooden floor creaked softly beneath her feet.

When she opened the door, she found Arceus standing quietly outside.

His expression looked calm.

Too calm.

Kiara studied him silently for a moment.

Then asked softly, "Ready to talk?"

Arceus nodded.

Neither of them spoke further. Instead, they simply walked toward the living room together.

The lamps cast warm yellow light across the room while the quiet night atmosphere wrapped around them gently.

Kiara sat beside him on the couch.

Close enough to feel his warmth.

But far enough to still feel distance between them.

For a few seconds, neither spoke.

Then Kiara broke the silence. "Should I start? Or will you?"

Arceus lowered his gaze briefly before answering. "I have a request."

Kiara nodded. "Go on."

Arceus took a slow breath.

She noticed the slight tension in his fingers.

The way he held them together, like someone trying carefully not to tremble.

Then he finally spoke. "I won’t ask you to forgive my father."

His voice remained steady.

But quiet.

"I just want to meet him once and tell him something. Can you arrange it?"

Kiara looked at him silently.

His expression and his words did not match.

Not completely.

There was sadness there.

Confusion too.

And something heavier beneath it all.

Something he was trying hard not to show.

But she did not pry.

After all... She had already decided long ago that she would not chain him.

If he wanted freedom one day, she would let him walk away.

So she simply answered with a nod.

"Alright."

Arceus looked at her. A look of surprise on his face, but it became calmer in the next moment. "Thank you."

Then he added softly, "You can speak now."

Kiara shook her head slightly. "It doesn’t matter anymore."

She paused briefly before continuing.

"But if I have to say something... then use that bracelet. "Don’t hesitate."

"Callista Frost is part of the Imperial family. Someone like her won’t miss details like that."

Arceus frowned slightly. "But it’s too precious."

Kiara immediately shook her head. "No, it isn’t truly. It’s just an artifact of semidivine grade."

She waved her hand casually.

"In the future, I’ll just sell some advanced weapons to the Imperial Palace and repay the favor. You don’t need to worry."

Arceus looked thoughtful for a moment.

Then curiosity slowly surfaced in his eyes.

"Are those the weapons you’ll display at the exhibition?"

Kiara nodded.

"Yeah."

Then suddenly, an idea appeared in her mind.

Her expression softened slightly.

"Do you want to see them?"

The change in Arceus was immediate.

His eyes brightened slightly for the first time in days.

A genuine reaction.

Not forced.

Not polite.

Real.

Kiara suddenly remembered something.

Before all this political chaos...

Before betrayal...

Before clan pressure...

Arceus genuinely loved guns.

The realization made her chest feel strangely tight.

"I’ll show you."

She stood up.

"Wait here. I’ll change clothes. Then we’ll go for a ride."

"You can learn to operate the Panzer and the LMV properly. After that... maybe we’ll fly around a little. You can see the city from above."

Arceus’ smile widened slowly.

And for a brief moment...

He actually looked his age again.

"Really?"

Kiara nodded.

"Really."

For some reason, seeing him smile eased something inside her, too.

Even if only slightly.

***

The Doom’s Tower, Western Moon Kingdom;

Far away from civilization, deep within the wilderness bordering the Leon Empire, a gigantic black tower pierced the sky itself.

More than two thousand feet tall.

Ancient.

Silent.

Oppressive.

There were no nearby villages.

No roads.

No travelers.

Only the cold wind was sweeping endlessly across the barren land.

Mystical symbols covered the tower from bottom to top, glowing faintly beneath moonlight like countless eyes staring down at the world.

Inside one of the higher floors, twelve hooded figures sat around a massive round table.

Sixteen seats existed.

Four remained empty.

One throne stood above the others.

Longer.

Larger.

Like the seat of a king.

An ancient old man sat there quietly.

His skin looked thin and wrinkled like dried bark.

His breathing sounded fragile as though death stood right behind him, already waiting patiently.

Yet everyone inside the room understood one truth clearly.

He was the strongest person present.

Beside him sat another elder.

Thaddeus, the last remaining Grand Elder of the Church.

His expression looked dark and heavy at the moment.

"First Grand Elder Sebastian. And now Tored... Valen... Cassian..."

His voice echoed quietly through the chamber.

"Not only did Caleb Crescent reclaim his throne... we also lost four important figures."

"All because of one person. One woman..."

The other elders silently agreed.

Except for one.

Guinvere remained quiet.

The atmosphere inside the chamber became colder and more oppressive.

Then finally, the leader of the Church of Doom spoke.

His old voice sounded weak.

But absolute.

"The Seed of Fire will be born soon."

"Until then... No one leaves."