A Familiar Formula, a Familiar Taste

Twin Stars Side Hall.

Samael leaned back at the table, his fingertips tracing the rim of his teacup. His pitch-black eyes flickered faintly beneath the Fluorite Lamp.

"Your Majesty, what are you thinking about?"

As the last wisp of heat from the tea drifted away on the breeze, Helen, who was tidying up the mess in the room, bent down to wash Samael's cup and pour him fresh hot tea. Unable to hold back, she asked.

"It seems our opponent has changed..."

The ancient serpent's vertical pupils narrowed. He frowned slightly and murmured thoughtfully.

"Forgive my ignorance, but you mean..."

"There are still nine days until the Sea of Stars fully opens, according to the time Athena and the others estimated. By then, the restrained gods will return to the earth. But now that the restrictions have loosened, gods from Persia have personally entered the fray. Probably more than one..."

As he spoke, Samael recalled the phantom of six graceful wings shrouded in blazing light. His brow knotted tightly.

"The worst-case scenario is that the culprit who started the War of the Giants descends in person!"

"The Star-Seeded Soldier!"

Helen instantly went on alert. Her hand trembled, and the teapot nearly slipped from her grasp. She could not help recalling the countless Colossal Titans, aberrations, and the white giant that burned everything across the Sea of Oceanus.

For every Greek who had endured that apocalyptic calamity, it was an inerasable nightmare.

"No. The Lord of Hosts!"

Yet Samael uttered an entirely different name. The wariness and disgust in his eyes were even deeper than before.

As far as he knew, Cyrus was better known for his magnanimity and tolerance, as well as the prestige that had laid the foundations of the Persian Empire. His schemes had never been particularly outstanding.