Chapter 574

Chapter 574: WHEN THINGS GO SOUTH (2)

“YOAN, YOU’RE finally back~”

“I go by ‘Ruto’ now, Lady Astrid,” Ruto said to the “young lady” who approached him after breaking free from the room where his divine father had locked him up. “Please don’t call me by my old name again.”

If he knew he’d meet Astrid as soon as he blew up the annex building in Levi’s estate, he would have gone the other way.

But what could he do?

He needed to go to the Light Garden.

And the fastest route would be the Eternity Maze. It sounded dangerous, but the maze posed no threat to him since it was his playground before. Hence, he knew the place like the back of his hand.

[Unfortunately, I’m not the only one who knows their way here.]

.....

Pale blonde hair, red eyes that sparkled like rubies, milky white skin.

For some reason, Lady Astrid wore the traditional clothing in his kingdom on the East Continent.

[Neoma said our traditional clothes are similar to Korean ‘hanbok.’]

If only Ruto had more time to spend with Neoma back then, he would love to see her wearing their traditional clothes.

[I’m sure Neoma will look good in it.]

Scratch that.

Neoma would look good on everything.

“You’re looking at my clothes,” Astrid said “shyly.” “I wore the traditional clothes from your country because I wanted to catch your attention. And it looks like I succeeded.” Her hands moved to “slightly” open the robe until her cleavage was visible. “How do I look?”

Ruto let out a sigh while looking at the “young lady” straight in the eye. “I don’t want to be rude, but if Lady Astrid doesn’t stop behaving this way, then I will file a complaint against you.”

“What kind of complaint?”

“Sexual harassment.”

Astrid looked horrified by his statement. “Am I sexually harassing you right now?”

“No matter what my mental age is, I’m still a minor, while you’re already an old hag.”

He didn’t want to be rude, but he didn’t have any patience left.

“An “old hag?!”” Astrid asked, obviously offended. “How dare you call me an “old hag,” Ruston Stroganoff?!”

[At least, she got my name right this time.]

“Are you not?” he retorted calmly. “The Goddess of Beauty is just a few centuries younger than the major gods.”

Yes, Astrid was the Goddess of Beauty who changed her appearance to look like a young lady in her teens.

[I don’t want to sound conceited, but I have a feeling she did that to match my age.]

“Ruto, don’t you know you shouldn’t mention a lady’s age?” Astrid complained. “That’s rude.”

“I know, but it’s also not right for a person your age to be “seducing” a minor.”

“Ohh,” the lady said, smiling. “Is it working?”

He remained poker-faced. “Does it look like it’s working?”

Astrid frowned, then she sighed. “I wonder why my charm magic isn’t working on you.”

Charm magic, huh?

As its name suggested, it was the kind of magic that could bewitch other people. But since Astride, the Goddess of Beauty, was said to be the most beautiful woman in the world, her face worked more than her charm magic.

However...

“I’ve already since the most beautiful lady in the world, so Lady Astrid’s charm doesn’t work on me.”

Ah.

He didn’t mean to say that out loud.

“You’re talking about Neoma de Moonasterio, aren’t you?” Astrid asked, growling. “How can a child be more beautiful than the Goddess of Beauty herself?!”

“Beauty is subjective, so you shouldn’t be offended,” Ruto said, turning his back on the goddess. “It’s just that Neoma is the prettiest in my eyes, now and then.”

***

[IT REALLY is dying.]

Ruto already expected to see the Aether in a dying state.

However, he didn’t expect it to be like this.

The trunk and the branches had already turned charcoal-black. On the other hand, half of the leaves had already started to decay. The remaining emerald-like leaves that should be sparkling with all their might had begun to dull already.

No wonder the air in the Upper World had become polluted already.

This was his first time in this lifetime to see the Aether in person.

“I’m sorry,” Ruto whispered, then he placed a hand on the trunk. “I’m really sorry, but please hang in there. My Neoma still needs more time. She’s not yet strong enough to fight the gods. If you die right now, it’s going to be a huge problem.”

The Neoma right now was still far from the Neoma that set the world on fire in the first timeline.

[She can’t face the gods yet, hence I can’t let the Aether die.]

To give more strength to the Aether, he gathered his divine power in his hands and placed them on the tree’s trunk.

Yes, he was giving the Aether some of his divine power.

Since his divinity had come from Lord Levi himself, his divine power was one of the purest divine energies in the entire universe. Even if he only gave the Aether a fraction of his divine power, it would still be enough to provide the Aether with a few more years to live.

And his divine power created a miracle right away.

A huge portion of the Aether had been purified. Half of its charcoal-colored trunk had returned to its original state. And the leaves that were already decaying had come back to life. Now, even the emerald-like leaves were sparkling like premium gems.

The effect of his divine power was quick and evident.

However, it also took a toll on his body fast.

He felt his strength leave his body, and he began coughing up blood. Hence, he had no choice but to stop giving more of his divine power to the Aether.

It was a shame because he wanted to give more.

But he also had to conserve his divine power in order to descend back to the human world on his own. After all, he had a feeling that Lord Levi wouldn’t send him back willingly.

[He tricked me.]

After all, his divine father hadn’t removed the burn mark on his face yet.

[I really don’t mind, but Neoma will get upset.]

“Ruston Stroganoff, I hate to say this but your effort to save the Aether would be for naught.”

His eyes widened in shock when he heard the familiar voice.

Then, before he knew it, a sword had already stabbed him in the chest. Thankfully, it missed his heart.

However, the sword began to ABSORB his remaining divine power!

The blade of the sword that pierced through his body was covered with Darkness. He tried to purify it while removing the blade from his chest, but his hands got burned when he touched the blade.

He growled in pain.

[How...]

He didn’t feel the intruder’s presence!

“Thank you for bringing me to the Aether.”

He looked up when he heard the voice coming from above him.

And there, he found the intruder.

Helstor, the God of Eternal Darkness, stood on a branch with his hand placed on the Aether’s body. His red eyes which were filled with mischief, glowed. Then, after uttering an ancient spell that Ruto didn’t understand, the god set the Aether on fire.

To be precise, a black flame made of Darkness.

Ruto’s eyes went wide with shock. “No!”

***

“AS EXPECTED, this won’t do,” Calyx said, his eyes starting to look glazed over. “I feel like I’d give up my life if you asked me to, but I can’t die yet. So, I apologize, my prince.” He caressed Nero’s cheek with his other hand. “I’ll let His Excellency borrow my body for a moment.”

He knitted his eyebrows.

.....

[Is he talking about Callisto de Luca?]

He didn’t get the chance to ask before Calyx Dalton fell to the floor.

To avoid falling with the crazy bastard, he was forced to pull out the dagger in Calyx’s chest and move away from him. However, he didn’t miss the chance to attack the crazy bastard while he was still unconscious.

His ice dagger turned into an ice sword.

But when Nero was about to stab Calyx Dalton in the chest, his body disappeared.

Then he was suddenly crushed by an unseen yet powerful force.

The next thing he knew, he was already on the ground- his cheek pressed against the cold floor.

[Tsk.]

“Prince Nero, should we have a little talk?” “Calyx Dalton,” who was squatting down in front of him, said. Then he grabbed him by the hair to force him to look up at him. The crazy bastard’s eyes were glowing red now. “Should I turn you into a puppet now?”

Nero smirked because he didn’t have to answer the crazy bastard.

All of a sudden, the heavy aura that was crushing him disappeared.

Then the fragrance of roses filled in the room.

“How dare you touch my son with your filthy hand?”

Nero smiled at the person who appeared behind “Calyx Dalton.” “Mother.”

“Son, get up.”

Nero didn’t have to be told twice.

As soon as his mother kicked Callisto de Luca (in Calyx Dalton’s body) away from him, he immediately stood up and took a step backward. After that, he created a barrier around himself to make sure that he wouldn’t get into his mother’s fight.

It was a shame to admit this, but he knew he didn’t have the power to face a god yet.

[Even if Callisto de Luca is weak at the moment, he’s still a god.]

Nero couldn’t even lift himself from the god’s aura earlier.

[Mother, I leave this fight to you.]

Since he could only watch the fight at the moment, he watched it well. After all, he could learn a lot from watching his mother’s battle.

First, he noticed that his mother was using his main weapon- a rosegold staff.

[If I remember correctly, Mother calls it ‘Nydia.’]

And he could feel the divine power every time his mother swung the staff.

Several lights shaped like semi-transparent roses would come out and when those lights hit Calyx Dalton’s body, the crow would get burned.

Ah.

[A purifying spell?]

Unfortunately, Calyx Dalton had self-healing abilities.

And now, the crow was fighting back with his brute strength.

Calyx Dalton came at his mother with a punch. His fist was covered with a pure light divine energy that could only be Moonglow.

Hence, when his mother blocked his punch with the staff, the staff got broken in two.

[Mother!]

He was worried for a moment.

But his mother didn’t even flinch. As soon as the rose-gold staff was broken, his mother dropped the weapon and blocked Calyx Dalton’s punch with her own punch.

Of course, his mother and Calyx Dalton’s fists didn’t connect literally.

After all, his mother’s fist was also covered with a red light that could only be her Mana.

When Calyx Dalton’s Moonglow-covered hand collided with his mother’s Mana-covered hand, it created an explosion that sent the two away from each other.

He was worried about his mother, but he soon had to worry about himself when the White Lion suddenly crushed him.

Right.

He forgot that Sev (his ice wolf) was fighting with Kingston (the White Lion).

[Kingston broke my barrier easily.]

And Sev lost the fight.

The next thing he knew, he was already on the ground while using his arms to block the White Lion’s mouth while trying to stop it from biting him.

But soon, the White Lion suddenly stopped as if it was frozen while looking at his face.

[What happened to him?]

The White Lion had already fought with Neoma (who was pretending to be him during the trials in the academy). So why was Kingston looking at him as if he was seeing his face for the first time?

Nero flinched when the White Lion talked in his head. “I’m not your master.”

***

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