Chapitre 21: A Machiavellian Pact (R-18)
"Ptolemy, you're pathetic." Arsinoe mocked him mercilessly as she approached in front of him after all of the guests had already left.
Even his guards, servants, and slaves were leaving too, leaving only the two of them alone.
She was just like Cleopatra; she is one of his sisters. The difference between them is that if Cleopatra is supportive of his rule, then Arsinoe was a snake. She would, without a doubt, take his throne without hesitation when he showed flaws.
Despite his weakness, she couldn't take his throne because Rome was supporting him and inclined to have him rule rather than this ambitious woman. His apparent weakness and failure to act when his fiancée was stolen by a Roman noble who suddenly appeared made them more inclined to support his rule.
Sure, they would ridicule him openly or privately, but they would not dethrone him either, because a ruler who didn't resist, obeyed them, and pleased them at every turn is a very good puppet for them.
Her boredom turned into irritation, and she venomously spat,
"Fine, if that's what you wanted, let me show you how our beloved sister turned into a whore by Rome."
He had a bad feeling about this as Arsinoe gripped him. He was dragged by her forcefully; he didn't even have anything to say or any means to fight back as she dragged him like a ragdoll and threw him into the front door.
Even the thud sound of his head slamming against the door didn't stop the moan from the room behind the door.
"Sir Titus... Ah... Yes... Yes... Sir Titus, ah, keep going, ah, deeper!"
"If you wanted a better view, you can use the keyhole of the door." Arsinoe then forced him to look through the hole. Not only did he see through hole of the door, but he also saw the hole of his sister being rammed from behind by a blonde-haired Roman with crimson eyes.
He clenched his fist in anger when he saw how his sister was treated as a toy by the Roman named Titus Brunestud.
Ptolemy had never seen his sister like that.
It was how he usually treated a whore. Now, seeing his sister act like one made him impulsively want to stop them.
He knew it was what Arsinoe wanted. She wanted him to defy Rome, she wanted him to lose their protection, and she wanted him to lose his head by showing his impulse and possessiveness toward Cleo.
Yet, the hesitation lingered in him.
Would he open the door and show his courage and fall into Arsinoe's scheme?
Or silently leave?
His decision would undoubtedly shape the future of his kingdom as a whole.
When he was about to make his choice, the scene suddenly faded to black and was replaced by the scene where Titus and Caesar were in the middle of their chess match in the Colosseum.
"What are you thinking, my friend?" Caesar asked in doubt while he surrounded Titus' king piece on all sides.
"I think the play is enough, Alaya." When Titus's words fell, the flames from his eyes were set ablaze and reduced the Colosseum to nothing more than ink oblivion.
Her camouflage was torn apart as the white-haired loli was presented before him, instead of the previous fat man.
Caesar's surrounding of Titus' king piece on the chessboard is metaphorical for Alaya's attempt to corner Titus, which fails spectacularly.
"How did you know?" Alaya stepped back as she saw the flames. His mystic eyes could basically burn all existence; even she would be greatly hurt if hit by them. Whether she could be obliterated by them was debatable.
The flame was a gift from someone from the future. She always called him prince, and he called her princess. Only someone like her could give the King of Vampires such power.
"I know more than you think, Alaya. As much as I want to burn you, you're still more useful alive." Titus chuckled darkly.
"You don't have that capability yet, not yet, King of Vampires." Alaya replied meaningfully.
"I do. If all humans die, then you die. Simple. You have not yet reached the Age of Humanity. You can't escape when humans become extinct, Alaya. Your way to survive is to reach the Age of Humanity's end, then divide all timelines into many parts."
"Not only would this empower you into someone who is unkillable, but it would also prevent the dark future from happening. But you forget that no matter how you prevent the Land of Steel from ever happening, you create greater problems. Then the greater problems breed more and more problems for you. By then, you will find out your way of survival is nothing more than ridiculous, Alaya, hahaha, that's why I don't want you to die. I want you to suffer from your own problems."
Titus laughed manically as Alaya looked at him with a weird look. His maniacal laughter underscored the twisted joy he took in her struggles.
"I don't understand." Alaya interrupted his laughter with a simple statement, turning to him with an odd look.
"You can't see the future invasion of Alien Gods? The timeline where humans abandon the planet? The timeline where humans degenerate and lose their will to live?"
"Haven't you already told me yourself that I'm not yet at my peak, King of Vampires?" Alaya replied calmly.
"It seems you're forgetful sometimes, even though you seem to know everything." She chuckled playfully and sarcastically said, "Perhaps you need some assistance to remind you of your forgetful memory, King of Vampires?"
"I don't need your reminder, Alaya. Not you, among all others." Titus glared.
"What makes you hate me so much, King of Vampires? The ones who betrayed you and your kin are Gaia. Sure, I helped her to wipe out all human memory about your kin's contribution to Earth, but does it really matter that much to you? You, me, and Gaia wanted them dead. So, you can rule, and Gaia and I could guarantee our survival on the planet. All of us get what we wanted." Alaya explained gently.
"What both of you wanted, to be precise. I never wanted to rule in the first place because I was born to rule. I don't need dirty tricks from you to rule them." Titus, with disdain, asserted he never needed tricks to rule—he was born to rule.
"There would be no end if we delve into this argument, King of Vampires. Tell me what you want. You want something from me. You don't care whether it is me or Gaia who provides it to you. You only care who can give you this opportunity and what you want. Tell me, I'm all ears." Alaya interrupted, wanting to get to the point rather than waste their time in a pointless argument.
"Let's cooperate, Alaya." Titus said.
"Oh...? What kind of cooperation do you want to discuss, King of Vampires?" Alaya asked playfully.
"Kill all gods and end them once and for all." Titus stated.
"Interesting proposition. Tell me in detail, King of Vampires."
By then, Titus began to explain the details of their cooperation. She wanted to end all gods to fully embrace the era of humanity? Sure, he could give her that proposition, provided she would give him the ritual to accept the power of the gods he slew, like how Pandora in Campione provided her children with the curse of the gods and their power. He didn't think Alaya was incapable of providing one.
"There is something that I don't understand, King of Vampires. Your goal should be to prevent the Age of Humanity from ever arriving, isn't it? And preserve the Age of Mystery?" Alaya asked doubtfully.
"The plan always changes with circumstances. Moreover, our plan to end all gods doesn't mean I will not set my previous plan into motion. Without gods, the Age of Mystery will still preserved." Titus shrugged.
"So, happy cooperation?" He offered to shake hands.
Alaya hesitated for a moment. She didn't know why she felt led by the rhythm of the King of Vampires. On the surface, the plan seemed to benefit both of them. Her plan to embrace the Era of Humanity would be easy with all those gods dead at the hands of the King of Vampires. Their hostility would shift to him, and even if he gained power from the gods he slew, it wouldn't improve his strength but rather just add some fancy power that gave him more versatile abilities. Everything seemed in her favor, but is it really that simple?
"It seems your cowardice is getting the better of you, Alaya. So what if I have another purpose? This is how the world works, isn't it? The question is whether you can prevent my conspiracy or not. Take it or leave it, Alaya. If you refuse, I can still cooperate with Gaia." Titus, displeased with Alaya's hesitation, called her out for it without hesitation to express his displeasure.
Alaya gritted her teeth and decided to gamble, reaching for his hand.
"Happy cooperation then, King of Vampires."
"Happy cooperation too, Alaya."
The pact is a high-stakes gamble, with both parties aware that betrayal is a matter of 'when' not 'if.'
Both Alaya and Titus are aware of the other's potential for betrayal.
Their agreement is a gamble, and it's unclear how long it will last.
With the pact formed, the plan to end all gods begins to set into motion.
[End of Volume 1]
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone