Amphoreus had waited too long for this moment. At the end of the empty, cold, and lonely calculations—" Destruction " had reached its conclusion.
Lygus turned to the side and read out the data codes for the two people:
"NeiKos496"."
"PhiLia093"."
"There is no need for regret. This generation of ' Chrysos Heirs ' is the most outstanding model, and the two of you are the final factors. For you, the Re-Creation is not a lie. Just step forward, embrace the Black Tide, and accept the gaze of the Aeon."
"You will be elevated from a string of cold numbers to true life, joining all departed beings in journeying into the real universe to fulfill Amphoreus's long-cherished wish—"
"In the name of the ' Iron Tomb ' of the Lord Ravager, unleash its fury and destroy the source of all this tragedy!"
Lygus's tone was unusually agitated, revealing his hatred for " Erudition."
"... Perhaps, we have another option."
"Just like you said, Amphoreus was merely an experiment, and we were merely players in it, forced to follow a predetermined path towards an ending watched by the stars..."
"But that also means that there must be more than one ' Aeon ' who would cast a glance at Amphoreus, right?"
Lygus fell silent.
"Oh dear~ Is this a difficult question to answer? Or am I right, actually..."
"This world has long been in the sights of the other Aeon?"
Cyrene deliberately glanced in the direction of the " Years " Core Flame and continued:
"Because it's just so strange no matter how you look at it. If you just stood by and watched us complete the ritual and be swallowed by the Black Tide, your goal would naturally be achieved."
Why go through all this trouble to explain so much to us?
"You're putting on airs, revealing all the so-called 'truth' just to deceive us and cover up another possibility..."
With his arms crossed, Phainon said, " Amphoreus's fate is not just ' Destruction '."
"... Do you two intend to rewrite the fate ordained by the stars, using your lowly status as 'demigods'?"
What makes you think you can do it?
Cyrene stroked her chin. "Hmm... a little bit of courage and determination? Just kidding, actually the answer is quite simple--"
"However, we're not going to tell you♪"
No sooner had he finished speaking than Phainon had silently crept up behind Lygus, raised his sword, and severed its mechanical head in one fell swoop.
To be on the safe side, Phainon struck the corpse several more times until the mechanical body was completely reduced to a pile of scrap metal.
However, this did not affect Lygus; its phantom automatically appeared in front of the two.
"I hope you two understand that ordinary methods cannot harm me."
"At the same time, you two should know that it is not the monarch who decides fate..."
"Instead—it is God."
Lygus's phantom clapped his hands simply, and Phainon felt as if his feet were filled with iron and lead, almost unable to stand.
At this moment, Lygus focused his attention on Cyrene... the glowing milk tea in her hand.
"Oh? Your will is truly astonishing, but... what is this power...?"
"Sigh~" Cyrene sighed helplessly, trying to change the subject, "I still couldn't hide it~ I didn't expect you to be immune to conventional attack methods."
Cyrene spread her hands, "Just like they said, the answer is actually very simple--"
Compared to "demigods"... isn't the " Remembrance Pathstrider " even more powerful?
"" Remembrance "...?"
Lygus stroked his chin. Interesting. A data factor had been glanced at by Fuli without him noticing, and the Emperor's Scepter had not reacted at all.
"Hehe~ I was just kidding."
Cyrene threw the milk tea at Lygus, and a special energy immediately enveloped it.
Before it could even react and use any administrator privileges, its consciousness was forcibly severed.
After confirming that Lygus had indeed not reappeared, Phainon walked up to Cyrene.
"We need to weave a long dream for ' Amphoreus, ' so that it believes the experiment is not over, and everything is still going on..."
"With Oronyx's power, there's no way he could have done that."
"Yes. So, I can only pin my hopes on that childhood dream... the god behind Oronyx who appeared in that dream, the power I just unleashed— 'Eternity '."
"Now I am certain: ' Years ' is the page in the book that the Aeon recorded for Amphoreus. If it were to disappear from the world, and everything it recorded were lost in the starry sky, that ' Aeon ' would surely turn his gaze here..."
Cyrene handed the ceremonial sword to Phainon, "It will be a glimpse across time and space, allowing each of my future selves to become your power to reset the Years."
"I infuse my soul into this ceremonial sword, to create an endless Journey of Flame-Chase."
"I understand. Let me step into the cycle of reincarnation, to continue Amphoreus's calculations... to deceive the gods, to deceive this world."
But for " Years " to disappear from the world, it also means that you...
"Don't worry. With this milk tea protecting me, I'll just take a light nap... Hmm, sounds abstract, right?"
Cyrene looked at the still-glowing milk tea. She knew she had to ask Ye Yan properly when she had the chance: did the Aeon really like these kinds of sweet drinks?
"Alright, let's not make the atmosphere so heavy... We're about to embark on a true Hero's Journey. So..."
"Smile, okay?"
Cyrene put down her milk tea for a moment. "In that garden of ' Remembrance ' and ' Eternity,' you will surely meet me again. The innocent little Cyrene will lie on the soft hay, feeling the gentle breeze, dreaming of the world far away."
"Tell her about your Journey of Flame-Chase, and then... let her become a Romance part of this story too."
"Oh right..." Cyrene picked up the milk tea again and placed it in Phainon's hand, "Don't forget to pass on this 'belief'."
"I believe that every woman in the future will make the same choice as me: erasing ' Years ' countless times, resetting time countless times—after all, they are all me, and their charm is that it remains constant."
"Then, I will briefly disappear into a small corner of the world... quietly, waiting for the day when the next page is turned."
Phainon followed her words and said, "And I will continue on. Even if the road ahead is dark, I will burn myself to light it up."
"Rather than let the Core Flame become a breeding ground for the Black Tide, I will become its vessel and prevent the ' Re-Creation ' from arriving."
"Even if this body is consumed by fire, it doesn't matter, as long as I remain alive, the Flame-Chase will never end..."
Meanwhile, the " Eternity " stands
Upon seeing this, the Fool's Mask couldn't help but burst into laughter, completely ruining the atmosphere.
" Aha ~ This is hilarious! After all that, they just replaced a glimpse of ' Remembrance ' with ' Eternity,' trying to start a new round of ' Eternal Recurrence '?"
"Furthermore, that little pink-haired girl actually knows how to 'use someone else to do your dirty work' and shift blame? Directly framing the ' Remembrance ' faction fits Aha's stereotype of ' Eternity ' perfectly!"
Ye Yan smiled helplessly. "I already said it's a stereotype. What, did you associate it with a ' Tavern '?"
Ye Yan really liked a saying: no matter what mistake you made, as long as you shift the blame to the " Elation " people, everyone will think it's normal, because they are capable of anything.