On the barren highway.
A human head had been speared on a stick and planted in the middle of the road.
Scritch... scritch... scritch...
Footsteps sounded.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. God of Forging and Metal, look at you, biting off more than you could chew."
A woman's voice rang out.
The woman examined the head closely, gently pressed a hand against it, and murmured a spell.
A fierce wind howled overhead.
A winged man descended from the sky.
The woman immediately dropped to one knee and reported, "I sensed that God of Forging and Metal had vanished from the realm of the living, so I came here and found his head."
The man looked at the head and asked coolly, "Can he be resurrected?"
"The King of the Underworld sacrificed his flesh and internal organs, so resurrection is no longer possible," the woman said.
The man walked forward step by step. "You did well, God of Life. You've always been worthy of my trust."
"Thank you for your praise, my lord."
God of Life gave a slight bow, stepped back a few paces, and stood with her head lowered.
The man gazed at the head, lost in thought.
He gently pressed a finger against it and asked, "Who killed you?"
The head suddenly opened its eyes. "The King of the Underworld killed me."
God of Life abruptly raised her head, disbelief written across her face.
He was clearly dead, and his soul was no longer here—
Who knew why he could still Return to Souls?
Such power was already so mighty that it defied understanding.
The man sighed. "You should have been forging weapons obediently, preparing for the coming war. Why did you run into him here?"
"I owed the God of Death a favor," the head said.
The man's eyes