章節 110: Between Saints - Final Part - Friends and Death

In the meadow around Basilian, just after Anemus flew away following Gion. Lucifer, Ella and Theikós surrounded Athena who was still sleeping in an indefinable form, a form made of pure mana.

Due to the large amount of mana the three women had made Athena absorb, she had become just a large mass of energy that varied and rippled in violet, gold and azure colors.

They went to the limit of their capabilities, expelling mana to the point of exhaustion. All this following Lucifer's plan to make Athena even stronger.

"Now…" Lucifer started to say. Her breathing was heavy, as were Ella and Theikós's. "...all we can do is wait."

Of the three, Lucifer had provided the most mana for Athena. That's because she had a lot more mana than Ella and Theikós. It didn't take long for the changes to be noticed in Athena's body, if you could call it "body."

At that moment, Athena was just an intangible aura that shimmered. There was no physical form that could be called a "body" and it made Lucifer wonder if what they did was a good thing. But that worry soon disappeared when the mass of energy began to mold itself into a humanoid shape.

Lucifer and Ella smiled at what they witnessed, and Theikós grew more excited every second.

Ella thought everything would be even more fun than she could imagine. Athena had plans to confront the gods and Ella could barely contain herself so eagerly for what was to happen soon.

She also felt something else.

That strange feeling that she had felt earlier had returned. That sweat on her warm hands, the throbbing heart and a slight burning in her cheeks as she watched Athena's naked body take shape.

Lucifer was satisfied with what Athena had become.

She could clearly tell that Athena had grown much stronger. Strong enough to fight and beat Michael alone. It was a colossal feat for a mortal, since Michael was a god of war strong enough to be the god's spear. He was the angel who carried the divine wrath of Jehovah and Athena was a mortal woman who would kill him.

(This will change the weight of Athena's existence... at least symbolically.) Lucifer thought with a brief smile.

"You've been busy, haven't you?" Athena said in a soft, excited voice noticing how much power she had now. "How did you guys do it?"

"Those runes you used..."

"??... This was to help me absorb Lhia's powers faster."

"Did you rely on Celtic runes to create them?" Lucifer asked.

"Yes, any problem?"

"Celtic druids used runes as a way to link to natural energy. I must say that now that your soul is mixed in, you are practically a mortal goddess." Lucifer explained and then lay down, facing the blue sky. She was exhausted and even talking drained her.

Athena started to think and looked strangely at Ella who had a look of fascination on her face, but what caught her attention the most was Theikós who was panting and drooling as she looked at her.

Athena felt a direful shiver on her back and could almost see the heartshapes in the stranger's eyes. There Theikós lost any chance she might have had with Athena.

Athena looked around, feeling slightly uncomfortable with her new abilities. She could feel everything around her amply. It was as if everything was within her reach and she could pick up a rock hundreds of miles away by just reaching out.

It just showed her that her existence was on another level and Athena was surprised that it had taken so little to make her something so big.

She didn't take into account everything she already had and how much her existence had already been affected by various changes.

"A mortal goddess, right? What's the difference?" Athena asked.

While waiting for an answer, Athena felt the distortion of mana that was taking place in the palace. Athena could clearly feel who was causing this. In fact, it was as if she could see the situation on the spot and her heart ached as she realized Lunnia's death.

Just as Lucifer was about to answer Athena's question, the Empress floated and flew away with a sonic boom, causing a shock wave.

"At least put some clothes on..." Ella complained as she was flung by the air pressure created by Athena.

***

"Huh?! Athena?" Anemus was surprised cause Athena looked like a completely different person with all that mana she emanated. "Is that why you absorbed Lhia?"

Athena hugged and soothed Fotiá, who gradually returned to normal as Athena told her that everything would going to be all right.

"Yes and no." Athena said as she saw Anemus get up from the charred ground. "I'll explain later, for now..." Athena tried to pull away from Fotiá, but the girl hugged her tighter. "Fotiá..."

With her face hidden in her mother's chest, Fotiá cried. "M-Mom... Aunt Lunnia is..."

Fotiá's shrill, tearful voice entered Athena's ears and clutched her chest as if it had a crushing weight. Fotiá knew what death was, but this was her first time experiencing the grief of losing someone precious.

That was something Athena never wanted her to experience.

"Yes, my little one. She…Lunnia is gone."

The words dragged out of Athena's mouth as if she had a clump of sawdust on her tongue that refused to form the words.

At that, Gion who was still deep in questions about the purpose of Lunnia's death, came back to reality upon noticing Athena's overwhelming presence. He got up from the only part that still had grass in the garden and walked dazedly towards Athena.

He could see that his purpose for being there was gone. Athena had absorbed the seal completely and now, even if he could kill her, nothing would change. The seal was linked to Athena's soul and a soul was something immortal, indestructible.

Gion looked at Fotiá and Athena with blank eyes. His heart was broken, allowing himself to be overwhelmed by the desperation and grudge he had come to have against Athena with every passing second.

"If I'm not going to get what I want…" Gion turned his eyes to Fotiá again. "... You too..."

Seeing Gion's action, Athena put Fotiá to sleep and didn't hesitate. She had already lost too much that day with Lunnia's death and Gion was currently an enemy. Then she manifested the sword, Excalibur, which she still had in her and hurled it at Gion, hitting him in the chest.

"Athena, no- Huh!?"

Anemus was about to warn Athena about Gion's immortality, but was taken aback by the state Gion was in.

With the sword across his chest, Gion stared into Athena's cold eyes as root-like marks began to spread across his body. The marks glowed with a light that seemed to burn Gion wherever it went in under his skin.

Gion opened his tunic, revealing his chest where the Excalibur was spiked and it became even more apparent that he would soon die.

"H-how? I should..."

"Does it really matter now?" Athena asked and then sighed. "It's just a sword with my mana."

Gion, who had a lost look on his face, smiled briefly as he remembered the words Uran had spoken to him millennia ago. He could only be killed by the one who carried the sword. Gion didn't imagine that this prophecy would be something so stupid that a sword imbued with mana would be enough to kill him.

(Who knew this would be Athena? Well... at least I'll join you Y...)

Seeing Gion kneeling, staring at the ground, Athena clucked her tongue in irritation. With Gion's death, Athena lost two important friends in a single day.

"You did well to put Fotiá to sleep." Anemus said with an expression if pure sadness. She wanted things with the druid to work out without anyone having to die. "Gion was important to her too."

Gion also was important to Anemus. He had counseled her several times on what to do to make up with Athena, he had taught her many spells, even though she couldn't use the vast majority of them and he had been a good friend. She preferred his ending to be happier than that.

"Lunnia.... Who killed her?"

"I didn't see it, but when I arrived, Fotiá was attacking Hercules..."

Athena looked around and I didn't see the young man anywhere, but she could still feel him, just as she could feel the presence of the children watching from afar.

Athena pulled a black cloak from her subspace and covered Fotiá's nude body, then dressed in a swirly red dress. After hand over Fotiá to Anemus, retrieve the Excalibur from Gion's chest, Athena heard Malana's voice.

"Are you going to kill Hercules too?"

Athena looked at the pink-eyed girl and shook her head without saying anything. It didn't bring peace to the girl's face who just lowered her head.

"He doesn't deserve death." Athena said and disappeared.

Hercules was sneaking through alleys in Basilian. He was looking for a way to get away from there as he had a duty to do.

Hercules thought his revenge was just beginning. His plan was simple, he would kill demons until there were none left in the world and then he would die immediately to pay for the sin of killing the woman he loved, do that would be his redemption.

However, there was something important that he could not have known. All the demons had either been annihilated by Lucifer or returned to hell because of their fear of Michael, who had been prowling the world for the past few weeks looking for Lucifer.

In other words, Hercules' revenge was just a dream that would never come true. But he wouldn't find out either since death haunted him in real time.

As the young hero turned the corner between two alleys, he came face to face with Athena, who seemed to be waiting for him with her back propped against the stone wall.

"Did you really think I would let you escape?" Athena asked without waiting for an answer. "I'm quite disappointed in you... No, that's not the right feeling. I'm furious."

Athena looked at Hercules and he felt cold from the inside out. Athena's green eyes twinkled subtly and he felt like he was being crushed to the ground, falling to his knees.

"You...deceived me...she deceived me!" Hercules growled through his teeth. "She was a demon!"

"Yeah? So what?" Athena asked in a dry tone. "She was a good person, a good friend…" Athena ground her teeth, a vein pulsed in her forehead and the ground shook. "She was my family!"

Hercules believed that Athena would not kill him. They were from the same world, so he thought Athena would spare him for some sense of compatriotism, but he could not have been more wrong.

He was about to say something, but then he felt something warm trickle down his cheek.

"Eh?!"

Hercules ran his hand over his right cheek and the pain finally came as soon as he saw his fingers smeared with blood. He was partly right, Athena would not kill him. She thought killing him would be a very simple thing since he could reincarnate. Athena wanted to make him suffer to the point of madness and so she did.

Controlling her anger and preventing her mana from leaking out too much to not affect people around there, Athena controlled the air, creating several razors that repeatedly tore into Hercules' flesh, who screamed agonizedly.

"That's enough for today." Athena said after an hour of torture. "You will not die to something as trivial as blood loss."

Hercules was in tatters and his flesh looked like a cloth torn by a saw knife. He couldn't even scream or moan in pain anymore and couldn't resist when Athena took him back to the palace by dragging him along the floor as she pulled him by one of his legs.

Athena was going to make him wish he'd never been born and this was just the first day.

***

After returning to the palace and throwing Hercules into a dirty black iron cell, Athena teleported with Anemus to Sigma.

The castle was as deserted as the desert itself. Anemus led Athena down the dark damp stone corridor where Gion had led her before.

After a long descent of stairs, Athena and Anemus finally arrived where they wanted to go. The cavernous room with a huge mana crystal full of cracks on its surface.

There they found Neu, Eun and Nimo who appeared to be bewildered. Athena and Anemus explained everything that happened with Gion to them and surprisingly it was only Nimo who cried.

"Master already knew this could happen." Neu said.

"We are sad, but it was something already foreseen by master." Said Eun.

Despite her words, the girls had sadness written across their faces. Which child would not mourn the death of their parent? Athena was prepared to take the girls' anger and was going to tell them to resent her if they wished, but just then, the crystal cracked a little more.

Athena felt like she was being drained and then she heard a voice.

"Finally you came..."