Evan's eyes shot open and he almost imdiately sat up on his bed.
His grey pupils glowed in the darkness and he looked up at the sky, raising a brow in question.
'It seems I've beco extra sensitive to this, huh?'
The boy turned his gaze to the blonde who was hugging his waist and his expression softened imdiately.
He wrestled himself from her tight grip, and she instantly frowned in her sleep. Just before she stirred awake, he began patting her head lightly.
The familiar touch instantly cleared up the crease in her brows and her breaths evened out once more.
'Oh well, this is only temporary.'
He knew she'd eventually wake up if he was gone for too long, but by then he should have been done.
Evan got to his feet and tossed on a nearby bathrobe, putting his hands in his pocket as he went down the stairs and headed straight to the kitchen.
He opened up the cupboard and fridge to get out so fresh strawberries, vanilla ice cream, milk, sugar and whipped cream, setting them all on the counter in front of him.
Glancing out at the moon still up in the sky, he put on his blender, cut the strawberries into three equal portions, and then scooped the ice cream into the blender along with so milk.
He tossed in multiple spoonfuls of sugar while muttering sothing about not having to worry about diabetes—every sugar lover's dream.
Evan placed the lid on and blended them all into a smooth pink mixture, carefully pouring it all into three tall glasses right after.
He topped them with a swirl of whipped cream and garnished each one with a fresh strawberry cutting a small slit at the bottom to slide them onto the rim.
With three milkshakes ready, he placed one in the fridge for Eliza when she woke up and then used his ice magic to instantly cool the other two.
Turning around, he placed one on the kitchen table and slid it over.
"Here."
At so point during the ti he was making the milkshakes, soone had warped into the kitchen. Or rather, he had long since sensed their presence on the planet and had already portioned out so strawberries to make one for them in the first place.
"Thank you."
The golden-eyed suit-wearing goddess spoke as she picked up the glass and took a sip.
Sitting on the counter with one hand placed on the counter beside him and the other holding up his milkshake, he asked.
"How's it? Best strawberry milkshake you've ever tasted, isn't it?"
"…"
Artemisia looked up to see a confident smile on Evan's face. Seeing that smile and his exact posture, her mind drew parallels with a similar scene in her mories.
A very old mory of hers.
She rembered the scene of a boy with a half-face mask, sitting on a kitchen counter, with his left hand to his side and his right hand holding up a milkshake in the exact sa way.
In this mory of hers, she was seated opposite him, holding a milkshake he had just made as he asked the exact sa question she just heard.
[How's it? Best strawberry milkshake you've ever tasted, isn't it?]
That mory overlapped with the reality before her, and a small smile blood on Artemisia's ever stoic face.
It only lasted a second but Evan who was looking right at her didn't fail to notice it. He couldn't comnt on it though, as Artemisia replied to his question right after.
"No, I've had one better than this."
"…huh? Now, that's got curious. Who made it?"
Faced with Evan's inquiry, Artemisia silently sipped the milkshake while replying in her mind.
'You did.'
But for obvious reasons, she did not voice that answer out.
[Oh, and if you get asked this in the future. Just give a straight answer. It'd make things easier for to understand.]
Those words unearthed themselves from her mory and she shook only shook her head in silence.
'Like hell I can.'
Despite the inquisitive gaze Evan was giving her, Artemisia blatantly changed the topic of conversation to sothing else.
"I've handled everything I need to do outside the galaxy. I should be free until you're done with Tarse."
"Oh…that's good.
Then you're okay to serving as my 'backup' for the False gods Arc?"
Evan referred to the matter as it had been referred to in the ga, rembering the 'Faith Celestial' Seraphael and thinking he'd send the High Demon siblings to take that guy out.
"I can't be your 'Backup', Evan."
The boy raised a brow in question when she spoke.
"But you'd deal with the Heavenly Celestial, wouldn't you?"
"Only if you do not make it in ti."
"Then doesn't that make you my 'Backup'?"
"…"
The goddess went silent for a mont and Evan gave a small smile and raised his glass. While he was nodding in satisfaction at his own work, Artemisia spoke.
"With Conroe dead, the Celestials would pour all their resources into Faulin. If they can just get one of them to surpass Transcendence…"
"They'd be invincible on Aidos and it'd be a walk in the park to gather all the other souls they need?
Don't worry, I get it."
Evan completed her words, showing he understood just how grave the situation was. For a mont, he wondered if Artemisia knew about the deal 'Aidos' made with the Celestials to use them as anchors for sealing 'Jabberwocky' in return for granting them refuge here.
'She probably does. There's no way Artemisia would be unaware of that being on this World.'
The boy stepped forward and raised his glass to Artemisia as he spoke.
"To so dead Celestials."
"…"
Artemisia clearly didn't want to make such a strange-sounding toast, but Evan's smile emitted so sort of strange pressure that made her comply.
"…to so dead Celestials."
◇ ◇ ◇
In the vast, silent expanse of space, a myriad of stars sparkled like diamonds scattered across an endless black canvas.
Nebulae in the distance painted the void with ethereal hues of violet, blue, and crimson, their nebulous clouds swirling in slow, cosmic dances. Amid this breathtaking backdrop, an illusory figure floated, seemingly untouched by the vacuum around him.
The figure was that of a man, his form shimring like a mirage. He wore regal robes that billowed gracefully as if moved by an unseen breeze. The robes were adorned with intricate golden embroidery, depicting patterns and ancient symbols that glowed faintly with light.
His face was distinguished, with high cheekbones and a strong, chiselled jawline. His eyes, a piercing shade of erald green, radiated a mix of sorrow and resolve. A cascade of silver-green hair flowed down his back, contrasting sharply with the dark void of space.
A neatly trimd beard frad his mouth, adding to his air of regality and his lips were set in a contemplative line.
When it's ti, I'd take action.
He looked at this floating line of text in front of him, a ssage left by the person he had co here to et but had not been able to.
'Tsk…'
Clicking his tongue internally, the man turned around and his illusory body transford into a streak of light that shot across the void.
It pierced through the atmosphere of a distant large planet, shooting straight down into a massive desert area in the middle of one of its continents.
This illusory body of his entered right into a physical body that was seated on a throne deep underground, after which his eyes opened.
It took him a few seconds to adjust his vision, with the effects of prolonged astral projection not being sothing he could shake off so easily in his current state.
After a minute, his sight cleared up and he could now see the two n standing not too far from him.
The first man wore deep indigo mage robes adorned with silver runes. He had sharp, angular features, almond-shaped hazel eyes, and long auburn hair.
The second man was clad in navy blue armour, with patterns resembling frozen waves etched into the tal. His short, tousled hair matched the dark hue of his armour. He had a square jaw, high cheekbones, and piercing icy blue eyes. An aura of cold surrounded him, lowering the ambient temperature and making his breath mist in the air.
Looking at the two of them, he called out their nas respectively.
"Belphont, Glazard."
'Illusion Celestial' Belphont raised a brow in response to the man's call and asked.
"So? What's the verdict?"
The erald-eyed man—Heavenly Celestial Faulin—heaved a deep sigh as he replied to Belphont.
"It's true…she's the one."
"That's another obstacle that we need to deal with."
Belphont spoke with a frown, and just as he was about to begin brainstorming, Faulin added.
"I hear that Causality is still after her."
"Huh? It's been hundreds of thousands of years, you know?"
The man seed surprised to find that the subject of their conversation was still being chased by the Law of causality even after this ti,
"Besides, didn't Prisma help her after the war?"
"!"
When the na 'Prisma' left the lips of the Illusion Celestial, the navy-blue-haired man flinched instinctively.
Faulin and Belphont noticed this, but they chose not to comnt.
"Prisma did, but don't forget what I told you as the truth behind Cruotis Pri's Apocalypse. It's not so easy for entities like her to escape their fate."
"Is that so? If that's the case then all we have to do is make Causality take her out of the equation, eliminating the most dangerous threat to us.
I'd proceed with my plan then."
Belphont spoke with a grin, turning to the man beside him—Verglas Celestial Glazard—as he asked for confirmation.
"That's okay with you, right?"
"…"
The taciturn man nodded silently and seeing this, Faulin took a deep breath before ordering.
"Tell Fluviel to ready the CelSols, and Mortis to prepare his undead. They'd be the core of our armies.
As for the others, have Lorethi and Elysandre start the Ritual with the ones we've gathered. They're coming."
Hearing this, Belphont snorted and spoke with an evil grin.
"Let them co."
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