"And afterward?" King asked.
Pantheon continued. "I won’t stay in the Null Alignnt Territory. I don’t need it. My position in Zone 1 is secure, and I have my own plans for the Second Woe. But I wanted to et you first. Establish contact. Because whether we like it or not, our paths are going to intersect."
"Not necessarily allies," King said carefully.
"Not necessarily," Pantheon agreed. "But useful to each other. For now."
The snake hissed softly, and Pantheon stroked its head absently. "Cain is coming for you right now, King. You know that, right? The bounty was just a facade. He sees you as a threat to his position."
"Let him co," King said flatly.
Pantheon gave a short laugh, before covering his mouth with his hand. "Apoligies, I believe you an that." He turned slightly, looking out at the river. "One more thing. I’ll be watching, and..."
Pantheon turned back to King and extended his hand. "Good luck, King. I think you’re going to need it."
King hesitated, then shook Pantheon’s hand. The grip was firm.
"Farewell," Pantheon said, releasing King’s hand. He turned and walked away, heading along the riverbank. The pale snake remained coiled on his shoulders, watching King with its slit eyes until Pantheon disappeared around a bend.
King stood alone by the river for a mont, processing the conversation. Then he turned and started walking back toward the shack.
When King returned, Vi and Eli were waiting outside. Maya sat on a flat rock nearby, swinging her legs idly.
"What did Pantheon want?" Vi asked imdiately.
King stopped in front of them, organizing his thoughts. "We’ve had discussions before, he’s in the null alignnt as well. He wanted to et, and establish contact. Also, he won’t be staying in the territory, but he made it clear he’ll be watching."
"Do you trust him?" Vi asked.
"No," King said honestly. "But I don’t think he’s an imdiate threat either. He has his own agenda, and for now, our interests align."
Vi nodded slowly. "What about Cain?"
"Pantheon confird he led the assault on the Seven Great Kings. And he warned that Cain is coming."
"We expected that," Eli said.
"We did," King agreed. "But now it’s confird. He’s coming N..."
King stopped mid-sentence.
His map interface flared red in the corner of his vision. Two distinct red cursors had appeared, blinking rapidly as they moved across the terrain.
King opened the full map imdiately, studying the cursors’ trajectory.
They were heading straight for the shack.
"We’ve got company," King said, turning to the direction of the invaders.
Vi and Eli tensed imdiately, both activating their interfaces to check their own maps.
"Two hostiles," Eli confird. "Approaching from the north."
"All-Gods alignnt?" Vi asked.
"Most likely," King said. He dismissed the map and looked ahead. "We’ll deal with this here."
Maya hopped off her rock and walked calmly toward the shack’s entrance. Eli followed, positioning himself near the door with his Calamity Long-Shoulder rifle materializing in his hands.
Vi drew her a new sword, standing beside King.
The red cursors drew closer on the map.
King watched the northern horizon, waiting.
And then he saw them.
Two figures, moving fast across the grassland.
The battle was about to begin.
Sowhere Outside Earth
The VIP room filled with tension, the massive split screens displaying thousands of player perspectives across Earth-96.
Each of the All-Gods sat upon their unique thrones, attention fixed on their personalized displays as the Second Woe progressed.
The All-Powerful leaned forward in his throne, a broad grin splitting his bearded face. "There!" he bood, pointing at his screen where Cain’s perspective dominated the view. "Watch him move. Pure strength, pure dominance. This is what true power looks like."
On his display, Cain marched across the northern sector, flanked by a high -tier NPC as they advanced toward the Null Alignnt Territory.
The All-Powerful’s voice carried across the chamber like thunder.
"The Seven Great Kings fell in less than a day. A DAY! And now Cain moves on King’s position." He turned his gaze toward the empty throne where the Almighty usually sat, his grin widening. "Such a sha she can’t watch her precious pet get crushed. Banned for interference, now she’s hidden in sha. Pathetic."
The All-Knowing smiled faintly from her throne, not looking up from her own screen. "Don’t get too confident. King has survived much."
"avoided," the All-Powerful corrected. "There’s a difference between survival and confrontation. Cain doesn’t avoid. He destroys."
The All-Sufficient adjusted his position, his screen showing Pantheon’s perspective as the player walked along the riverbank. "Pantheon made an interesting move, eting with King. Your champion is playing the long ga, All-Knowing."
"As he should," she replied smoothly. "Intelligence always outlasts brute force."
The All-Wise cackled from his throne, his aged voice cutting through the conversation. "We’ll see what happens when the bodies start piling up. I’ve got half a coin on Pantheon as well, but King? He’s made too many enemies too quickly."
The All-Good spoke quietly, almost to herself. "The child with King is... Adorable. I’ve been watching her since the beginning. Haven’t any of you noticed her?."
"Irrelevant," the All-Powerful dismissed. "Children, tactics, lthe useless trinkets you all give to them, none of it matters when Cain gets close enough. Strength. Always. Prevails."
The chamber fell silent for a mont, each god focused on their respective screens. The tension built as Cain’s moved closer to King’s location.
Then, the doors to the chamber opened.
Every head turned.
The Almighty walked in.
She moved with grace and pride, her form draped in flowing white robes that displayed elegance, beauty, and royalty. Her expression was calm, almost serene, but her eyes burned with a restrained intensity.
The All-Powerful sat up in his throne, surprise flickering across his face before morphing into mockery. "Well, well. Look who managed to get find her way back here. Finally done sulking about that ban?"
The Almighty didn’t acknowledge him. She walked past the other thrones, maintaining her graceful steps, until she reached her own seat. She settled into it, her personalized screen flickering on, imdiately locking onto King’s position.
"So, not feeling so mighty now are you?" the All-Powerful continued, unable to resist. "Banned for excessive interference. Stripped of your ability to influence your champion. How does it feel, watching from the sidelines while your pet gets hunted?"
The Almighty finally turned her gaze toward him. Her expression remained serene, but sothing dangerous glinted in her eyes.
"You talk too much," she said softly.
The All-Powerful laughed, loud and mocking. "Says the goddess who bet everything on a mage playing soldier. Cain is coming for him. And when he falls, I want you to rember this mont. Rember that strength always..."
"I’ll have the last laugh."
The words cut through the chamber like a blade.
The Almighty’s voice was quiet, but every god heard it clearly. She leaned back in her throne, her eyes never leaving the All-Powerful’s face.
"When this is over," she continued, her tone laced with absolute certainty, "and the dust settles, I will have the last laugh. And you will rember that you doubted him."
The All-Powerful’s grin faltered slightly.
The Almighty turned her attention back to her screen, dismissing him entirely.
On the display, King stood outside the shack, watching two figures approach from the northern horizon.
The Almighty’s lips curved into a slow, knowing smile.
"Show them," she whispered.
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