Even though Karen unknowingly got in the way at the last mont, it didn't end up affecting their departure the next day.
Before they set out, Shiomi spent so proper one-on-one ti with Olga Marie in his room. Only then did he head out with Morgan and the others toward the ruins of Ka'an.
"I don't have any issue with my husband looking after Marie," Morgan said in a quiet, pointed tone, "but you're acting like you're sneaking around. Is that really a good idea right before an expedition?"
"I can't exactly 'explore' you all before we explore the ruins of Ka'an, can I?" Shiomi said, still savoring the lingering warmth from earlier as he tossed Morgan a teasing remark.
Morgan lifted a finger and flicked Shiomi, who was sprawled in her arms. "We're practically there already, and now you say that? You're obviously just trying to dodge your obligations."
"It's fine. Once we're back, I'll have my beloved disciple pay it back double," Scáthach said with a laugh.
"Ugh…" Shiomi couldn't help sucking in a breath. "Every ti you say 'double,' Master, it's terrifying. It always feels like I'm going to get ground into dust."
Scáthach's expression imdiately soured. "Do you think your master is heavy?"
"No, no, of course not!" Shiomi hurriedly denied it. "It's just… given my current larval state, it's an instinctive fear, that's all."
"Compared to pinning Tenkei underneath , having Tenkei on top of feels better," Skadi muttered under her breath, a faint blush rising at her cheeks.
Artoria nodded vigorously in agreent.
"Maybe today isn't a good day to go out," Morgan said, putting on a dissatisfied face. "Perhaps we should rest for a day or two before coming to investigate. Camazotz is only threatening the Deinos, and it's just indirectly affecting Storm Border's stability anyway."
"Alright, alright, don't be mad," Shiomi said quickly.
Morgan wasn't actually upset. She was simply more serious than the others.
Now that the Authority had effectively beco "marital shared property," she couldn't help paying closer attention to it. The closer they got to Ka'an, the more clearly she could feel the presence of one of the Authorities that had been taken from Shiomi.
More importantly, the tree sea that had been bright and sunlit gradually turned bleak as they approached the ruins of Ka'an. Even daylight couldn't properly reach the depths of the forest anymore.
The others kept tossing around suggestive banter with Shiomi, and Morgan listened as if she were getting an exclusive broadcast.
Then, after pushing through the tree sea where there was barely anything you could call a road, they finally reached the ruins of Ka'an.
"This really is desolate… no, 'grim' is a better word," Scáthach said, sounding impressed despite herself. "Even my Land of Shadows has more life than this place."
"That's because you're there, Master," Shiomi said as if it were obvious.
Scáthach's expression softened at that, and she couldn't help smiling.
What she'd almost said was that it was because Shiomi had left a garden there, the only living thing in an otherwise dead Land of Shadows.
"Enough with the small talk, the flirting, and the dirty jokes," Morgan said, her face hardening. Taking the initiative, she rged with Shiomi and beca the Unity God, stepping to the front.
"Camazotz is nearby… he's coming!"
Amid the clamor of beating wings and a stream of manic laughter, Camazotz burst through the forest that ringed the ruins of Ka'an and charged straight at them.
"Hahahahahaha! How heartless. Truly heartless! The weak huddle together, raise high walls, and bask in a mont of prosperity. That is what you call a kingdom! And yet no matter how they sche and struggle, the weak remain weak! All of it is futile! Now only these heaps of white bones remain, bearing witness to those forgotten, illusory dreams! So laugh as loudly as you like! Look down on them with cold contempt! Go on, say it. The tears of the weak taste no different from blue blood!"
Spouting that incomprehensible rant, Camazotz descended into the ruins of Ka'an and stared down at them from above.
"You made it here quickly. And yet you still haven't reclaid the Authority stolen by that so-called Alien God?" Camazotz bared his teeth at the Unity God. "Don't disappoint too much, hollow god!"
"To talk like that when you're facing us… if anyone's going to be disappointed, it's ," Morgan replied. She raised her hand and gripped the magic spear she was most accustod to using.
Bathed in the Unity God's power, the spear shed its black coloring and beca sothing pure, woven from blue and white.
Calling it a brand-new Holy Lance wouldn't have been an exaggeration.
"Hmph… your prey got away, so you'll settle for the next best thing and take back the portion in my hand?" Camazotz said. "Clever, sure. But so things don't get easier just because they're convenient."
"We've dealt with Beast plenty of tis," Morgan said, staring him down. "You won't be much of an exception."
"Heh… heh… hehahahaha!" Camazotz's laughter swelled. "Delightful, delightful! It was worth agreeing to Smoking Mirror's bargain, using the Authority of yours that I hadn't yet taken as collateral, to change the Netherworld boundary of Mictlan! If I kill you here, seize the Authority, and drink your blood dry, then even sothing like the [Alien God] will be nothing to fear!"
As Camazotz laughed wildly, he let a certain truth slip.
The ambush on Shiomi had been Tezcatlipoca's plan. The original attackers should have been only Camazotz and Morgan of Proper Human History.
The [Alien God] had been an unforeseen variable. After witnessing the struggle, it had simply jumped in and taken one-third of Shiomi's Authority for itself.
"From the way you're talking, you don't sound very confident about the [Alien God]," Morgan said with a mocking smile.
"That's nonsense. It's just a monster that can't even be used as food. Its blood isn't worth drinking," Camazotz snapped, curling his lip. "It's the sa kind of Proper Human History thing as you lot."
"And what about you, then? Unknown Beast," Scáthach asked coolly. "From your tone, it sounds like you know Ka'an well."
"That's not sothing you're qualified to know, or need to know." Camazotz rejected her question without hesitation. "Die here and beco my sustenance, the foundation I'll use to seize Proper Human History and replace you as the planet's god."
"Now then, let give you a proper welco! Undying warriors of Ka'an, now is the ti to increase our kin!"
At that very instant, the ruins of Ka'an began to shake with an ominous restlessness.
In the blink of an eye, countless skeletal soldiers crawled out from beneath the soil and broken stone, gripping weapons that were rotten with age and yet still wickedly sharp. They ford a ring around the group.
These weren't ordinary skeletons. Each one gave off a massive surge of Mana, with a magical response close to that of an average Servant.
They were far stronger than the corpses of the Land of Shadows.
"Human… bones." Scáthach's brow furrowed as she swept her gaze over the undead soldiers. "So this really is a ruin left behind by Mictlan's humans. Then…"
She slamd her crimson spear into the ground.
"Let show you what the Land of Shadows truly is!"
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