"It's very tempting, and sounds possible."

"If what you say is true, I will consider it."

"If... the Lord of Darkness really falls."

Although the Lord of the Nine Hells spoke with certainty, Koos, who did not know the truth about the opening of the interface, still had doubts.

Because from his perspective, the God of the Lightless Celestial Bodies really couldn't think of a reason why Erebus would have to commit suicide.

Especially recently, as a god in the dark realm, Koos is the one who can most deeply understand how terrifying the surging source of darkness is.

The feeling was beyond his imagination, even larger than any existence he had ever seen, even Tartarus.

The most powerful force in the world is right before his eyes, but the Lord of Darkness wants to die... As if he had thought of something, Koos suddenly asked:

"So for the great divine power, is there anything that needs to be paid attention to in this realm itself?"

"Or...when I really take that step, what will be the biggest challenge I will have to face?"

“…A very precise question.”

With a slight flash in his eyes, Asmodeus did not expect that Koos could notice this in advance.

However, although the erosion of source power is terrible, even if you are not the original god, the great divine power that has just stepped over the threshold still has many solutions.

After all, their power is not that strong yet, and they don't need to completely resist or accommodate it. It is enough to just avoid its influence.

The simplest way is to allow the influence of the source force to be temporarily blocked by something, or to separate one's own personality, like the personal incarnation of the original god, or to use a power similar to the authority of the God-King to create a gap between oneself and the power.

For others, this may be difficult.

But for the Lord of the Nine Hells, he does have a clever way to do it - of course, this is also one of his goals.

"Don't worry. The higher your position, the closer you are to the power itself. But for a being who has just been promoted, this effect is not obvious."

"I will help you then, if only to make it harder for Erebus to take back the power you took away."

"Besides that, do you have any questions?"

"……there is none left."

There were still problems, of course, but when Asmodeus didn't directly offer his 'solution', Koos knew it was time to end it.

There was no way this mysterious guy could really be honest with himself, just as the God of the Lightless Celestial Body had never completely believed in him.

After today, Koos will try to verify some things and try to make some exchanges.

As for the candidate, the first person he thought of was his old neighbor and the younger generation who had visited him.

Looking through the stone walls of the palace, Koos casually glanced at the relics of the golden age.

The ancient history was recorded on each of the stone tablets. Although he still didn't know the significance of these things, he was at least clear about one thing, that is, they were very "valuable".

If it has value, it can be sold at a good price.

But before that, he planned to confirm the identity of the person in front of him one last time.

"I am extremely grateful for your explanation, Excellency."

"If you need anything later, you can always contact me here."

Koos opened his mouth slowly and reminded casually.

"By the way, do you still remember where you came from?"

"I built that temple with my own hands. Even its stone structure was mostly made from meteorites that fell to Earth."

“So I’ve always had an eye on that.”

"Not long after you left, it seems that an old friend who lived in seclusion nearby went there to check... I wonder if you would like to go back and take a look?"

A kind reminder, beneath that tall and rugged appearance it seems there is an equally dull heart.

Koos' voice was very sincere, as if he was afraid that the person on the other side might not understand what he meant, and he even deliberately concretized the scene there.

However, the next moment, the light and shadow that had not yet taken shape dissipated into the air.

"No need."

With a cold voice, as if to keep people at a distance, Asmodeus interrupted Koos's actions.

"I don't care if anyone is following me, and I don't need to go back to see anyone."

"Since he's your acquaintance, don't tell me about it!"

"If you don't have anything else to do, I won't stay long."

"When that day comes, someone will come to see you again."

"...Okay, as you wish."

After a moment's silence, Koos nodded after being rejected by a series of words.

I don’t know if it was an illusion, but he seemed to be in a much better mood.

"Since you have something important to do, please do as you please."

"As for my consciousness, it will remain here forever..."

There was no response, and in the blink of an eye, the visitor disappeared.

There was a strange look in his eyes for a long time, and then he looked at the place where the other party disappeared and shook his head slightly.

"childish……"

……

Time passes and the sun and moon move.

Standing in the sky and looking down at the world, you can see the changes of spring and autumn.

Like a pool of colorful water pouring down, interweaving all kinds of sorrows and joys on the earth.

It flashed before my eyes, as if it was just yesterday.

Odysseus remembered his father's earnest advice and the dream he wanted to pursue when he was young.

He still remembered that when he first heard the adventure story of Theseus, the Athenian prince, he swore in his heart.

One day, I will travel around the continent and leave an immortal legend in the world.

However, in a trance, the childhood dream has been crushed into dust.

Now his memories are filled with more death and blood.

"Oss..."

"..."

"Odysseus..."

"..."

"Odysseus!"

锔——!

The hero, awakened from his sleep and taking a short rest under a tree, drew his sword.

Years of fighting have made his nerves extremely tense, and even the slightest movement will bring about the most fierce counterattack.

From still to extremely fast, it only takes a moment.

The next moment, the sharp alchemical sword stopped in front of a figure with only one arm.

call--!

The wind created by the sword made a whistling sound, blowing the warrior's long hair.

Finally regaining some consciousness, Odysseus could see the face of the person in front of him.

"Maude... is that you?"

"It's me. I didn't mean to disturb your rest."

"But the situation is urgent and I have to come."

The voice was a little hoarse. The young noble who once traveled around the continent with the young prince was no longer naive and immature.

Maud looked at his best friend, the monarch to whom he later swore allegiance.

His right arm seemed to be swung in a position, as if he was touching his chest in salute.

But Odysseus could see clearly that there was nothing there, no trace of any limbs at all.

"Not long ago, His Majesty Boreas, the God of the North Wind, claimed that he saw an opportunity and ordered us to lead the army into battle again."

"Although I argued with him and told him that the so-called opportunity was just a trap set by the Athenians, he simply wouldn't listen to me..."

"——What was the result? How many people died?"

His breath hitched, Odysseus interrupted directly.

But Maude hesitated for a moment, but still told the outcome of this charge.

"Of the 7,000 men in the vanguard, no one else survived except a dozen knights and the captives."

"Several hundred enemy soldiers were wiped out. Some of them were killed or wounded at the beginning of the battle, and the rest were the result of the battle fought by His Majesty the God of the North Wind alone."

"But this was only temporary. Not long after, the Queen of Athens secretly appeared here from the battlefield in the eastern plains, and the war was declared over."

"His Highness Boreas did not last long in the face of that famous sword... Everyone said that the sword held the power that Theseus used to defeat the gods, and it even became more powerful in the hands of his successor."

"After being pierced through the chest by a sword, the God of the North Wind turned into an invisible air current and fled the battlefield."

"What followed was an undoubted rout."

dong dong dong——!

His heart was beating violently, and Odysseus' blood was boiling as Maud told his story.

He didn't blame the other party for not waking him up earlier, because they both knew that even if he was awake, he couldn't solve the problem at all.

Ever since the order of the King of Gods was passed on to the gods of Olympus, the intensity of the battlefield on earth has risen by more than one level.

The gods met their end one after another, slaughtering the mortal world at will - for a time, the coalition did have some advantages, but it was only temporary.

Gradually, as time passed, on the other side of the battlefield, those gods and powerful demigods who were not part of the coalition also joined the battle, leveling the situation between the two sides.

However, most gods on both sides of the war knew that the nature of this human conflict had long since changed after the conflict on the top of Mount Olympus.

They cannot decide the final outcome; that is a conflict and contest between the God King and the Primordial God, and it will only come to an end when the seal floating on the sacred mountain is opened.

Therefore, except for a few gods who wanted to show off, the fighting spirit of the Olympian gods was not very strong.

They provoke conflict, flex their muscles on the battlefield, cause some seemingly acceptable damage... and then choose to retreat calmly and gracefully, leaving behind only large numbers of mortal casualties.

Among them, Boreas, the god of the north wind, and Notus, the god of the south wind, are the most typical examples.

Perhaps it was Zephyrus, the chief of the wind gods, who set a good example for them. These two wind gods were very keen on charging into battle on earth - but that was just charging into battle.

They don't care about winning or losing, let alone the consequences.

All they had to do was to diligently carry out Zeus' orders, even if it meant losing face at the hands of humans.

crunch...

With a blank expression on his face, Odysseus tightened his grip on his sword.

After a long while, with a clang sound, he sheathed the sword.

The two of them were on a hill, from where they could see the entire nearby camp.

However, when he looked around, Odysseus could only see numb faces.

Their clothing and armor were mottled, just like the two men's, and stained with countless bloodstains.

"……I see."

"No matter what, the God of the North Wind's divine body is damaged this time, and he will be gone for at least a few months..."

After a slight pause, as if he had thought of something, Odysseus continued:

"Even if he intends to 'go into battle with injuries' in order to show his loyalty to the God King, it will take at least a month for him to return."

"Before that, the countries in the rear will send reinforcements. They have nothing but a lot of people."

"Relax, there are not many Qataris here. Our home is on the vast ocean. Although... although there are storms and heavy rains there now, it is at least much better than coming here."