Chapter 158: Chapter 158: Back to Desde City
Chapter 158 – Back to Desde City
Meanwhile, as Cassius was finally permitted to sleep after a long and exhausting day, the Lord of Death smiled strangely upon him from deep within his Gate of Death.
Vorn sat on a high throne, black and red and smooth, carved from the spine of a slaughtered god long ago during his transcendence, shaped like a screaming jaw that closed over him like a hood.
His entire body was draped in a black flowery robe, a hood covering his head and plunging his face into an unmoving darkness where nothing could be discerned.
His throne stood above a black and white river, where every second new wisps of souls arrived, only to sink into the current one by one.
Beneath that river was a bustling Kingdom of Death, indistinguishable at first glance from the Badur Kingdom itself. It looked like an exact copy, yet entirely emptied of the liveliness that made the kingdom so renowned throughout the Heartland.
The Lord of Death watched all of this, yet his mind was not truly on the sight of his kingdom. It was replaying everything that had unfolded since Katherine entered Cassius’s room seeking an answer.
"Interesting." He whispered, his voice carrying a strange, soulless cadence.
[Have you obtained the answer you were seeking, old friend?]
A voice echoed suddenly inside his Gate — simultaneously male and female, as though the speaker had never settled on one or the other.
Vorn showed no surprise, as if the voice were entirely ordinary within these walls.
"I have seen what I wanted to see." Vorn answered. "I know now why we used the Cup of Vaelgrim’s Blood for another chance."
[Will he be able to do it then? This is our last chance, from what she told us. Only we know. But if the other gods and entities beyond were to discover we destroyed an entire timeline for this...]
"The consequences would be severe. That, I know well, Faceless. But they could not possibly guess. The Cup of Vaelgrim’s Blood is something — my friend — something beyond this entire plane of existence, I would dare say. How and why we found it remains a mystery I attempt to pierce every single day. And that mystery motivated my actions today more than anything else."
[You believe he is the key?]
"If not him, then who? We obtained the Cup at the very edge of ending. When we were finally beginning to glimpse the masterminds behind the War of Gods. But at precisely that moment, an old debt returned to my face."
The Lord of Death’s voice grew almost bitter as a memory from a distant and forgotten age — sealed and destroyed — flashed through his divine mind.
"A debt, Faceless, that I could not refuse. A debt that coincidentally required the use of the Cup for me to be freed of it. Now, you must know there is no such thing as coincidence."
[Not with that woman, at least. Where is she now? I cannot see her on the Ladder. Her previous position has already been taken.]
"I do not know. And I have no desire to know. Knowing her is being aware of her. Being aware of her means being aware of the threads that hang above us all."
[The threads have weakened.]
"That changes nothing, Faceless." Vorn replied coldly. "I have confirmed the boy was the one taken from that place. Now comes the time to choose a side. The Game has rules, and remaining neutral is simply an invitation to be destroyed first. Like that pitiful fellow. Where even is that man’s remains?"
[Anti-divination, friend. We cannot trace his remains, though some are searching. But tell me instead, is that why you named her Katherine?]
"Precisely."
[Was it worth it? You altered the memories of everyone who had known her and replaced her original name with Katherine. How much GeumGeum did you spend?]
"Badur is an extension of my Gate. I spent considerably less than usual. There is no need to concern yourself with my affairs, Faceless."
[Getting irritable, now, are we? Is it because you are realising there was no real option for us to choose a side to begin with?] Faceless laughed harshly. [The moment you agreed to clear that debt and dragged me along out of sheer pettiness, that was the moment you should have understood we cannot escape Desdemona.]
"That woman... I regret the day I accepted her assistance, Faceless. Are all of them like this?"
[Who?]
"The Holders."
Faceless went quiet for a moment, then exhaled softly.
[There is a reason they are cast away from all worlds, old friend. The Third Holder — Desdemona — was already a being capable of killing all the gods. And she was beginning to do exactly that. And she was the youngest. I leave it to you to imagine the First and Second.]
Vorn said nothing, only observing his kingdom below, thinking about what the future held for all of them.
One thing was certain. They had been used to restart the Game on a clean slate.
Now the only thing left was to become players themselves. If not, they would find themselves as pawns of the gods at the Upper Tier of the Ladder, and those behind them, before they even realised it.
That was something Vorn would not and could not accept with every part of his existence.
"We will do what we must."
[That has always been the case. What will you do with this Katherine now?]
"A gift to the Last Born. Let her live. I have already caused her more than enough suffering by manipulating probability to bring about the death of her only son."
[You should have chosen a different Path than Death when ascending.]
"She did not give me the chance to choose."
[Not surprising. And the Chosen One who has now become a Villainess? That sleeping madwoman is said to be ready to unleash destruction.]
"That is no concern of mine, Faceless. I cannot have a Blessed any longer. Not anymore. Not with me helping in all this. And Sleeper would not dare enter my Gate."
[And I, old friend?]
"She will enter. And you will be terribly wounded. It seems it is time for you to be something other than a god."
[Well, what do you propose?]
Vorn smiled beneath his hood, something flickering inside his mind.
"What about a Legend?"
...
Hours passed, and at last Saturday came to its end with Sunday blessing the world with a brilliant early yellow sun over the entire Kingdom.
This was the day of departure.
And every member of the Hood Family came to see Cassius and Isolde off.
Cassius was visibly regretful that he had not had the chance to share a drink with Dantes, and made no effort to hide it. That earned him a firm tap on the shoulder from the King, and a promise for next time.
The King then asked how Cassius would address him going forward. The Last Born answered plainly, choosing grandfather, given that he was already calling Raven uncle.
The King was satisfied. Not that he had particularly minded either way.
After the King came Morenna Hood, who gathered both Cassius and Isolde into a single embrace and held them there for a full three minutes, saying at length how much she would miss them and insisting they should simply come and live in the palace permanently.
Cassius warned her not to say that in front of his mother. Morenna was entirely unbothered.
"I am her mother and I made her who she is. What exactly can she do to me?"
She said it with a cold, bloodthirsty grin that for one unsettling moment looked exactly like the grin Sefira would wear.
Cassius was genuinely impressed.
But it did not end there.
After the three minutes of embracing both of them, Morenna added another three minutes solely for Cassius, and asked for his number while she was at it, so that she could speak with him from time to time.
Cassius was beginning to realise his number had become remarkably popular. He quietly promised himself that the next person who asked for it would have to compensate him.
After Morenna came his uncle and aunt.
Esmeray remained stubborn, naturally. But even she could not fully suppress the faint twinge of sadness at the sight of Cassius leaving. She hated admitting it, but she had come to enjoy arguing and cursing at him. She did not say goodbye. She only fixed him with a hard glare from a distance.
Raven, at least, was honest. He embraced Cassius, thanking him for the training and for the advice about Anesthesia.
He was suffering every single moment, he admitted, but acknowledged that this particular pain was better than the one he had endured before.
At least now the Prince of Hood could say he had chosen this suffering himself. And the difference between a pain one chooses and a pain forced upon them was more than sufficient reason for the new, quieter life that had begun to settle across Raven’s face.
Hel Hood was not present. She had found the entire scene beneath her attention.
But Katherine was. She watched Cassius from a distance with a quiet, fond smile.
Anesthesia was there too.
And at a single glance, both Cassius and Isolde could see that something had shifted in her.
There was now a sharp, dark shadow draped over her like a cloak — sinister and unmistakable.
Isolde was inwardly so delighted that she walked toward her sister herself...not to speak, but to provoke.
Anesthesia ignored her entirely, her eyes fixed on Sarah standing close to Raven.
Dark thoughts were already beginning to form behind those purple eyes. Sarah could feel it, could taste the danger in the air.
Urgency stirred quietly inside the maid’s heart.
Once all farewells had been said, Cassius and Isolde had to part ways.
Isolde would return to Storm City, and wait there for Sun’s information about the Fractured Land in the Damned Village before going to claim the fruit. In the meantime, she would forge a new pair of daggers from the Cristo Steel.
Cassius would use the hidden teleportation circle inside the Hood to travel directly to his home in Desde City.
After a short exchange and promises to call each other, the couple separated.
Now Cassius stood before the teleportation circle inside the same strange room he had first entered when he arrived at the palace...Océane at his side.
Behind him, Persephone stood in silence, watching with her flat and directionless eyes.
Cassius drew a slow breath, watching the runic circle glow crimson, the light indicating his imminent departure.
He turned his head and looked at Persephone over his shoulder, smiling with quiet gratitude.
"Will you still not tell me why you care about me so much, Persephone?"
"No, Last Born."
"Why?"
"Because I do not know myself why I love you." She answered truthfully. "But I do. And I, too, wish to understand why. Only the Lord of Death can give me that answer."
"Will you seek it?"
"Yes."
"Then I would be grateful if you shared it with me once you know." Cassius said.
The teleportation light grew brighter, flooding his body.
Before he vanished entirely, however, he witnessed something that made his heart skip a beat and his eyes go wide.
Persephone held the edge of her maid’s dress, bowed her head with quiet elegance...and smiled. A smile so beautiful it was almost frightening.
"...Until next time, Angel."
"Wh—!"
And with no time to answer, Cassius returned to Desde City, his maid at his side.
—End of Chapter 158—
