LARISSA was relieved when Neoma de Moonasterio failed to get out of the cage made from the roots of the Sentinel Tree.
There was no way the young princess could get out when her body was in a bad condition.
It was true that Lord Levi had already purified the Darkness that Neoma de Moonasterio absorbed. But extracting the Sapling from her womb weakened the young princess because she put more than half of her power into protecting her child.
"If she didn't put more than half of her power into creating a barrier for her Sapling, her movements and senses wouldn't have dulled," Larissa said while looking at the Sapling covered in the towel. It was a Divine Item meant to protect newborn children of the divinity. "We need Arien to break the barrier around this little thing."
It seemed like Neoma de Moonasterio didn't completely trust Larissa.
If she did, then the young princess wouldn't put a protective barrier around the Sapling.
Even so, it didn't matter.
[We just have to break the barrier to plant the Sapling somewhere else.]
"Larissa, are we really doing this?" Tara asked nervously. "We're burying Neoma de Moonasterio ALIVE. What if she suddenly wakes up?"
"She won't," Larissa said confidently. "The Sentinel Tree will keep her from waking up."
"I'm not talking about physically," the fairy queen said sternly. "The young princess is a Roseheart, and the Rosehearts can function normally in their Spirit form. In fact, when their physical bodies are down, the Rosehearts are actually stronger as Spirits."
She chuckled at her friend's worries. "Tara, calm down. Neoma de Moonasterio is NOT Mona Roseheart. She didn't even awaken as a Roseheart, did she?"
Only then did the fairy queen finally calm down.
"Tara, don't tell me you're still afraid of Mona Roseheart?" Larissa asked, laughing softly while shaking her head. "She's already dead, and you've successfully taken her place. Are you afraid that Mona would suddenly return and take everything away from you again?"
"They never called me their daughter."
"Hmm?"
"Mona was called the Daughter of Nature and the Cosmic Tree," Tara said bitterly. "But even after Mona died, the Nature and the Cosmic Tree had never called me their daughter."
Ah, so that was the root of Tara's inferiority complex towards Mona Roseheart.
"Then you finally took your revenge against Mona Roseheart," Larissa said, consoling her friend. "Her daughter didn't awaken, and now you're burying that child alive. Which also means that the bloodline of the Roseheart finally ends here."
Tara looked relieved, but the look of worry on her face hadn't disappeared yet. "Larissa, I agreed with your plan because the fairies need clean air to live. But I was wondering if we really need to bury Neoma de Moonasterio and plant her as an Aether. Didn't she already agree to purify the polluted air in the Upper World? Once the Darkness in your world disappeared, the pollution below will also disappear since it's the cause of the mess in the first place."
"That's true. I didn't expect that Lord Levi would give his blessing to Yoan and Neoma de Moonasterio just to get the young princess to agree to clean up the air pollution in the Upper World," Larissa said. "But cleaning up the air pollution isn't enough for gods like me."
"What do you mean by that?"
Larissa licked her lips. "After Neoma de Moonasterio got rid of the air pollution in her residence, the air there didn't just get cleaned– it actually became… delicious."
"Delicious? Do gods eat air now?"
"The air that Neoma de Moonasterio produced has rejuvenating effects," Larissa explained. "She's so much better than the current Aether that we have."
And that was when Larissa decided to make Neoma de Moonasterio the new Aether.
But she knew that the young princess wouldn't die for the gods in the Upper World– especially not when Neoma de Moonasterio wanted a child.
"I have grown weak ever since we fought the Absolute Darkness during the Ancient Period. Unfortunately, my recovery has been so slow that the current air pollution in the Upper World actually affected my health negatively," Larissa explained. "And it wasn't only me. The other gods are also growing weaker. We're all dissatisfied with that."
"Ah. That's why you need Neoma de Moonasterio to become the new Aether," Tara said, nodding. "You need to regain your former strength."
Well, that was the main reason.
But there was another one that pushed the gods to make that choice.
"It's ridiculous for a new god to grow stronger than the old ones," Larissa said, her voice sounding a little bitter. "We must cut the sprout before it fully grows."
***
"LARISSA, we're here!"
Finally.
Larissa smiled when she looked up and saw the gods who joined her faction.
It was led by Arien, the God of War.
"What should we do?" Arien asked impatiently. It seemed like the God of War couldn't wait to bury Neoma de Moonasterio alive so he could return to his peaceful training session. "How do we bury the arrogant new god?"
Larissa pointed at the Sentinel Tree. "We need to push the Sentinel Tree down to Hell," she explained. "It's possible if we combine all our powers together."
"Alright!"
Haaah.
[Why does the God of War always shout?]
Larissa just shook her head, then she turned to Astrid.
Yes, the Goddess of Beauty also joined her faction.
[It's not surprising since I know that Astrid has always felt jealous of Neoma de Moonasterio's beauty.]
Astrid, despite her vanity, was a strong goddess.
However…
"Are you just here to play?" Larissa asked since Astrid was busy looking at her face in the compact mirror in her hand. It was a communication device, and she was probably talking to one of her many lovers. "Astrid, you have to contribute in this project if you want to harvest the benefits with us later."
"I already did my part, though," Astrid said stubbornly, then she pointed at an entourage of young and attractive minor gods behind her. "I brought my slaves. They may be minor gods, but they have the strength and divine power that you need."
Well, that was right.
Even so…
Larissa sighed and shook her head. "I don't know why you're even here."
"I'm the Goddess of Beauty. Why do I need to dirty my dainty hands?" Astrid snapped at Larissa. "Isn't it obvious that I'm only here because I want to see Neoma de Moonasterio buried alive?"
Haaah.
Despite being alive since the Ancient Period, Astrid remained childish all this time.
[It's probably because she's being pampered by the other gods because of her beauty.]
"Forget it," Larissa said while shaking her head. "Let's just get this done and over with."
***
"WELCOME to Hell."
Larissa burst out laughing at Drystan's dry greeting. "You don't look happy to see me after a long time, Drystan."
"Well, would you be happy to see one of the gods who kicked you out of paradise?" Drystan said in a cold, indifferent voice. "Thanks to you, I've been suffering from overworking."
"You still look great, though. After all, the air pollution doesn't reach Hell."
"Then why don't you go and live here?"
Once again, she just laughed it off. "Drystan, you're the King of Hell and you gave me permission to enter your place. I'm sure you already know why I'm here."
Drystan turned to the trunk of the Sentinel Tree.
The roots were already buried deep within the dry soil of Hell.
"I see that you brought another de Moonasterio to become the new Aether," Drystan said indifferently, then he turned to her with dead eyes. "That one is still alive and breathing, though."
Larissa smiled and shrugged. "Not for long."
"That one is Lord Yule's favored descendant."
"The Moon God has already entered his Eternal Sleep."
"That one is Yoan's lover."
"Yoan is busy in the human world, and he doesn't know what's happening," Larissa said confidently. "And don't worry about Lord Levi either. Our god has taken a nap, and he won't be waking up for a year or two."
That was enough time for Neoma de Moonasterio to grow into a beautiful Aether.
"I'm not really worried about Lord Levi since I know he would side with the majority to maintain the harmony in the Upper World," Drystan said bluntly. "After all, that was exactly what he did when he agreed to kick me out just to pacify the majority."
Larissa only smiled because what Drystan said was correct.
[Even so, Lord Levi might take Yoan's side. That's why I convinced him to purify Neoma de Moonasterio and make him take a nap. Everything would be over once he woke up anyway.]
"Larissa, if I were you, I would be scared of Yoan– the GOD SLAYER."
"Why would I be scared when I haven't broken any rules?" Larissa said, shrugging. "Callisto de Luca made a pact with the gods. He said all the female de Moonasterios are for the gods to use as their Aether. Hence, Yoan doesn't have the right to punish us for turning Neoma de Moonasterio into our new Aether even if he wants to."
"How much do you know about that pact?"
Drystan's question made her nervous, but she didn't show it.
[He's just messing with me because I was one of the gods who agreed to kick him out of the Upper World.]
"I know everything I need to know about the pact, Drystan."
"Alright then," Drystan said, walking away as if he was already done talking to her. "What consequence you get for messing with Yoan has nothing to do with me, Larissa."
"I have done nothing wrong," Larissa said firmly. "I only did what I had to in order to save myself and the other gods."
***
IT TOOK two full days to completely bury Neoma de Moonasterio.
Thanks to the gods who helped Larissa plant the young princess on the dead soil of Hell, the job was done quickly.
[I just need to nurture the new Aether now.]
The Aether had to be planted in Hell because it would only grow taller and bigger from now on. Hence, it had to be planted in the deepest part of the world. Eventually, the Aether would pierce through the 'sky' of Hell, then the human world, next the Spirit World, and finally, the Upper World.
Yes, the Aether was that big and tall.
[The last Aether took five years before it reached the Upper World, but it's because the de Moonasterio we planted that time was already dead. Neoma de Moonasterio is a special one. Her divine power is overflowing since she's still alive.]
Moreover, she already asked the other gods for their excess divine power.
[All I have to do is sprinkle the new Aether with divine power for it to grow quickly.]
Larissa's thoughts were interrupted when, suddenly, the ground shook hard.
She raised her head to see Arien stomping on Neoma de Moonasterio's Sapling.
The God of War was the physically strongest god in the Upper World.
And yet…
"The Sapling didn't even get a scratch," Larissa complained lightly. "Are you sure you're using your full strength?"
Arien yelled in frustration, then he kicked the Sapling away from him.
The Sapling was sent flying, hitting the pavilion in the garden. The pavilion was destroyed because of the impact, but the Sapling remained intact. When the Sapling fell to the ground, it created a small crater.
Argh.
[The barrier the Neoma de Moonasterio created for the Sapling is frustratingly sturdy.]
"How can a new god create a barrier stronger than the barrier we have here?" Arien complained angrily. "Do we really need that Sapling when we already have Neoma de Moonasterio as an Aether? Let's just throw that annoying little thing away!"
"Don't be stupid, Arien," Larissa scolded the God of War. "If Neoma de Moonasterio is special, then her Sapling would be one, too. I need to dissect the Sapling and figure out how to make multiple clones of it so that we won't run out of Aether."
Not all the de Moonasterios that they had turned into an Aether were of good quality. Some were slow to grow, some were weak, and others died quickly.
[Neoma de Moonasterio is the perfect one with the highest quality.]
"I'll be back!" Arien yelled before leaving, his footsteps heavy. "I'll bring my ax when I return!"
Oh.
Arien's ax was the strongest Divine Item (that was a blunt weapon) in the Upper World.
[Well, if it's that ax, then the barrier will probably break.]
Larissa was relieved by that thought. "Everything is sailing smoothly."
Or so she thought.
***
"LARISSA~"
Hmm?
Larissa was delighted to see Astrid's beautiful face because who wouldn't enjoy looking at a beauty like the Goddess of Beauty herself?
However, it was rare for Astrid to visit her residence.
[She almost never leaves her residence since her lovers live with her.]
"Do you need something from me, Astrid?" Larissa asked carefully. "I need to leave for Hell to water the new Aether, so make it quick."
"I'm here to say goodbye… temporarily."
"What do you mean by that? It's rare for you to leave your residence. And where are you headed anyway? We're not allowed to descend."
"But we're allowed to ascend higher," the Goddess of Beauty said cheerfully. "I'm going to stay there for a while."
Ascend higher?
Only Yoan's island was up there. It was a gift that Lord Levi gave to his divine son when he finally ascended to the Upper World.
[But as far as I know, Neoma de Moonasterio is the only person Yoan allows to go there. Why would Astrid…?]
Larissa noticed the familiar jacket that Astrid was wearing.
[That belongs to Yoan...]
And that was when the realization hit her.
"You called Yoan and told him the truth, didn't you?" Larissa confronted Astrid, her voice trembling from panic. "Astrid, you traitor!"
"I'm sorry, but I'm not for the ladies," Astrid said cheekily. "I will always side with a handsome man like Yoan over an old hag like you, Larissa."
[I knew I shouldn't have trusted this woman!]
Larissa didn't have time to confront Astrid because her instincts told her to run– run NOW.
But it was already too late.
The air suddenly turned cold, and the sky darkened. Thunder soon rumbled, and several lightning struck at different places at once.
Larissa, for the first time in her long life, was frozen in fear.
[He's here…]
"LARISSA!"
She didn't have to look up to know it was Yoan.
No, she COULDN'T look up. She couldn't even lift her head. The strong force that suddenly fell down on her was so heavy she felt like she was being crushed.
Yoan's thick bloodlust pushed Larissa down to her knees.
She couldn't believe it.
[A young god made me kneel…?]
"What did you do?!" Yoan yelled, his angry voice causing both the sky and the ground to shake. "What did you do to Neoma and our child?!"
[I refuse to bow down to a child.]
Larissa gathered all the strength in her body, then she looked up to see Yoan suspended in the air– his glowing red eyes giving her the chills.
[Both of his eyes are red…]
It was a known fact that only one of Yoan's eyes was red.
But both of his eyes were red now.
Larissa once again felt a shiver down her spine when she finally realized that the person in front of her right now wasn't the little goody two-shoes Yoan that she knew. "The God Slayer," she whispered to herself, both her voice and body trembling. "The God Slayer has fully awakened now."
***
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