314 Three Goddesses
Distinct timelines were inherently distinct possibilities in history.
A minuscule time fragmentation had an insignificant impact on history as a whole. It didn’t matter even if it existed in parallel.
This was analogous to a low-budget sci-fi flick that William had viewed in the pastowing to the impact of a colossal comet, numerous subtly different parallel worlds momentarily converged before diverging again. People only realized the many disparities in their memories when scrutinizing their recollections subsequently.
A small-scale time fragmentation wouldn’t have a grave impact, but a large-scale time fragmentation wasn’t such a benign thing. Not only would it instigate severe chaos in the annals of history, but it would also trigger a lethal time paradox everywhere in the world owing to the shattering of logic.
For instance, Ravenwood’s time fragmentation.
To a certain degree, the two timelines that had persisted for such a lengthy period and had such divergent disparities could be deemed two wholly distinct worlds.
Then, what was the Riel Empire that the denizens knew in this timeline?
Before strolling over and unlatching the door of the Empire Embassy, William possessed a response in his heart.
Behind the door lay not a corridor, rug, portraits, or anything else that should have been visible in the embassy edifice.
Instead, it was an ever-shifting splendid sky and an endless tranquil lake.
This door materialized out of nowhere in the midst of a Moon Realm domain.
William shrugged. Just as he had anticipatedthis was the so-called “imperial jurisdiction.”
Only the Ravenwood inhabitants partook in the time fragmentation. Ergo, when Camilla replicated Ravenwood’s history, the performers of the foreign empire factions were naturally the Lunar Monsters from the Lake of Entropy.
The empire in the undead’s perception was the Moon Realm domain’s Lake of Entropy.
William gazed at the hushed panorama of the Lake of Entropy and took a deep breath before bellowing, “Camilla, shouldn’t you emerge and apprise me of your flawless nefarious scheme?”
A viscous voice reverberated in William’s psyche.
“I’m even more intrigued why you’re still in the mood to jest at a juncture like this. Do you think that you can enlist that clown to lend you a hand like last time?”
As Camilla finished speaking, the lake in front of the door incessantly frothed as if it was boiling. A verdant tree was uprooted from beneath the lake.
Although it wasn’t Camilla’s principal body, it was also an immensely potent clone in the Moon Realm.
However, William wasn’t apprehensive that the other party would suddenly assail him. The door-shaped Moon Realm fissure in front of him was exceedingly narrow. Its magnitude couldn’t hold a candle to the Viper Scar in Blacklight City.
The Void Sovereign couldn’t project formidable might through this rift.
“If I aspire to vanquish you by fomenting internal discord, I’ll surely suffer a crushing defeat. I’ve already undergone this myself,” William retorted.
This was both a response and a test.
In the Waning Moon ending, Judgment elected to stall for time by inciting internal conflicts among the Void Sovereigns to condense their Holy Spirit incarnations. Nevertheless, the three Void Sovereignsthe King of Deathblood, the Mad Sovereign, and the Ruin Demon Godultimately forged a convenient alliance. They traversed through the largest Moon Realm crevice and arrived in Currere jointly, nearly obliterating the entire Vic Continent.
In a manner of speaking, that could also be perceived as another timeline.
“I’ve undergone it myself” Camilla mumbled to Herself.
As the tree gradually decayed, a statue of a buxom woman materialized.
“That’s truly not merely an illusion of failure. It’s the possibility you opted for,” the statue of the shapely woman gazed at William and spoke.
This sentence encompassed a plethora of information, but before William could inquire further, Camilla interjected, “Calamity, I comprehend why you’re here. Indeed, ever since you arrived in Ravenwood, your every move has been under my surveillance”
William interjected Her, “So, you intend on employing counterfeit Judgment gear and phony soul boxes to entice me into slaying Floral? To be frank, how did you conjure up such a staggering scheme?”
As the inheritor of Nehe’s legacy, Floral was not only the crux to his comprehension of the Forest Elves but also his greatest prospective ally in Holy Tree City. It could be asserted that as long as he procured Floral’s submission, his voyage to Emerald Province would be more than half accomplished.
In William’s viewpoint, Camilla’s optimal preference was to exploit the information asymmetry between the two factions to foment a misunderstanding and conflict with Floral. It would be perfect if they battled to the death.
In reality, although the Lady of Starvation had done so, Her conduct was too indescribable.
Through Ebony, who possessed a coterie of peculiar devotees, She wielded compensation that was dubious everywhere as a bargaining chip. She couldn’t even fabricate a decent falsehood.
After all, the sole puppets that the Lady of Starvation could indirectly manipulate were the undead from another timeline. This sort of thing could only dupe him through the initial information gap, but as long as Ravenwood’s information was corroborated through numerous channels, those clumsy guises were essentially akin to paper that could be ripped apart with a mere flick.
If it weren’t for the fact that William wasn’t willing to immolate the entire Ravenwood Forest, the other side wouldn’t have much to show for.
Not to mention, with Floral’s soul box, he even had a chance to inflict severe harm on the other party’s vulnerability.
However, before Camilla could speak, another dignified and aloof voice interjected.
“This is the sole way we can transmute this fictitious history into actuality before the destined time arrives”
With the rustling sound of something creeping in his ears, a colossal spider’s silhouette was abruptly reflected beneath the tranquil lake.
Six blood-red orbs illuminated like searchlights under the lake ere fixing intently on him.
“Beatrice?”
William’s countenance turned solemn upon beholding the entrant distinctly.
The Goddess of Conspiracy and Deception, the Whispering Empress Beatrice.
“Are you going to inquire why I opted to assist Camilla?”
The words of the gargantuan spider phantom engendered slight ripples on the entire lake.
“I hadn’t intended on inquiring,” William responded in a resounding voice.
The other party was bound to withhold the truth. This was because the other party was an embodiment of conspiracy and deception that couldn’t be evaded.
“Therefore, what of the other one? Have Her emerge together.”
William pivoted his gaze to the decaying tree and scrutinized the inhuman-shaped relief on the tree.
Camilla chortled. Mist abruptly flooded the lake, and a blurred form manifested in the mist.
A mellifluous voice that sent shivers down one’s spine reverberated from the mist, but her tone appeared to carry a hint of despondency.
“Calamity, you shouldn’t have come here,” the Lord of Nightmare, Zamara, uttered.
Thus, all three Moon Realm goddesses who had wrought havoc in the Blackwater Swamp were present.
“I had thought your collaboration wouldn’t be so amicable following that incident,” William appraised the blurred figure in the mist in a composed manner.
After all, Zamara had once rendered him assistance during the King of Hope and Despair ritual.
“Assisting in maintaining the dream of the 40 million Forest Elf trees in Ravenwood’s slumber was an archaic pact between Camilla and me it occurred thousands of years before your birth,” Zamara replied.
William assented, for this was within his expectations. Although the Lady of Starvation’s power could influence the innumerable cadavers here, someone else had to be directing the undead to move like the living.
It could only be one of the twoZamara, who possessed dominion over dreams and illusions, or Valk, who was fervid about recreating plays. William was mentally prepared for this since Valk wasn’t a qualified partner, and Zamara and Camilla had collaborated in the Blackwater Swamp.
William had even prepared a requiem spell for Floral to obstruct Zamara’s influence.
Upon glancing at the three goddesses congregated on the other side of the door, William inquired, “So? What do you desire?”
Even in the face of pressure from the three goddesses, William didn’t deem Them as a threat.
The three goddesses, who still resided in the Moon Realm, were powerless against William. The skirmish outside Black Crow Gaze evinced that as long as the Void Sovereign didn’t appear personally, regardless of how many Lunar Monsters They commanded, They were powerless against William.
The three goddesses lapsed into silence before Zamara finally spoke, “An attempt.”
“What attempt?” William inquired.
“An attempt to verify if the ultimate authority to determine the Currere timelinethe authority known as Preceptis currently vested in you.
“Although most Void Sovereigns deem it as nonsense, it’s evident that Steelheart Widow Aiur and Absurdity Jester Valk believe it,” Zamara replied.
“Precept”
William felt that he had heard this phrase somewhere.
“To put it simply, only the timeline you’re in will culminate as Currere’s authentic history.
“Hence, from the outset, our objective was to aspire that you would transpire in this timeline. Then, we’ll observe if this timeline will commence developing into the past and future simultaneously before ultimately transmuting from a counterfeit to a genuine timeline.”
