Chapter 661: Panthea [3]

It was her, wasn’t it?

The possibility became more and more concrete in his mind the more he thought about it. Although Lazarus was shocked at first, he soon calmed down.

His heart... which had previously skipped a beat, settled down rather calmly.

What replaced it was a certain indifference.

"Wouldn’t you say that since she’s become strong, it wasn’t a failure?"

If it was really her, then the experiment wasn’t necessarily a failure. That failure she was talking about was very close to reaching the Zenith.

If—

"No, it can still be considered a failure. Despite becoming strong, she’s not going to solve the problem for us. She may eventually reach the Zenith and be able to contend with them, but that isn’t enough. We need to destroy them. And in order to do that, we need her to get in touch with the Source."

"You did say that she’s young. If you wait—"

"We do not have much time left."

The Goddess replied, her tone lowering.

"Despite Toren’s best attempts at keeping everything hidden, the Outer Being still sensed his actions. Although they have yet to make a move, it won’t be long before they will. We simply cannot wait for her. Nor can we create another one. There’s only so much that you can take from the body of an Outer Being."

"I see."

Lazarus’s face grew grim.

The situation looked to be a lot more dire than expected.

In that sense, he also understood why none of the other gods fought with each other. It wasn’t because they got along well, but it was because they couldn’t afford to.

Or more like... some had given up all hope.

The only one that was still struggling was Toren.

With just a simple conversation with the Goddess, Lazarus was able to figure out a lot of the things he was unsure of. He had a few other questions he wanted to ask, such as why he had to collect all four relics, and what would happen once he did, but before he could even ask these questions, the Goddess tilted her head.

"I sense a strange marking within you."

She paused, then....

"You’ve been marked by the beast of the sea?"

I managed to catch the surprise in her voice as she spoke. It was also then that I recalled my situation, and quickly nodded, "I have. Do you have a way to help me resolve this situation?"

Since she was a Goddess, Lazarus was sure that she’d have a way.

Surely with her strength, she could help him resolve this massive headache.

But...

"I can’t help you."

The Goddess simply shook her head.

"I’ve told you before. I am no longer the same as I was before. I’ve lost connection with the source, and I’m still dealing with the injuries from the fight. Even I am unsure of whether I’ll be able to come out on top against that beast."

"....Ah."

Although Lazarus was aware of her injury, he didn’t think it’d be this bad.

"But what about your people? If—"

"Whether they can handle that beast or not is irrelevant. My help only extends to what I’ve promised Noel. If you wish to collect the eye, you must go to the Eclipsed Maw in order to collect it. We’ll have some people escort you there so that there will be no troubles."

Lazarus got the message.

He understood that the Goddess wasn’t willing to help him. He never intended to beg her for it anyway.

Still, he planned on at least getting more information on the great primordial one.

He was just about to ask when the Goddess cut him off.

"Do not worry too much about the beast. Once you collect the eye, you will be able to handle it."

"I will?"

Lazarus was surprised.

Was the eye that powerful?

"You’re overthinking things. While the eye might be able to help you against that beast, in no way will you be able to beat it. You’re far too weak for that."

The Goddess giggled.

"I can see that you’re quite young and quite powerful for someone your age, but you’ve still got ways before becoming truly strong. Perhaps with Noel’s help, you’ll eventually become strong enough to contend against the Outer Beings, who knows? I’m sure Noel won’t help just anyone."

Suddenly, waving her hand, the room started to twist and bend in unnatural ways.

Startled, Lazarus looked around as a blinding light pierced his vision. At the same time, the Goddess’s voice continued to echo in his ear.

"I’ve already said my piece. For now, it’ll be up to you to handle everything else. I wish you the best of luck in your journey, and perhaps... we might meet again."

".....!"

By the time Lazarus snapped out of it, he found himself back in the same room as before.

The only difference...

The Goddess was no longer present in the room.

Looking around, Lazarus tried to look for her, but she was completely gone. As though she had never been there to begin with.

And then—

"Looks like your meeting with her was over."

A warm voice greeted Lazarus from behind as he slowly turned his head to see the Living Sait standing by the entrance of the room, his smile warm.

"Allow me to escort you back down."

Lazarus opened his mouth, but eventually closed it.

He still had so many questions to ask, but he knew that he wouldn’t get answers to them. The Goddess had already explained to him the most important things.

For now, he planned on digesting all of the information while finding the eye.

He was sure he’d get most of his answers once he collected the eye.

As such...

"Alright."

Lowering his head, he followed the Living Saint from behind.

***

"May the Goddess bless me with an undying light."

"O Goddess, hear my plea."

"I wish for your eternal health."

"Thank you. Truly, thank you."

The entrance of the cathedral was crowded with people, all standing outside with their hands clasped in prayer, their voices rising together in unison.

Arriving at the cathedral, An’as and Anne were met with such a spectacle, preventing them from moving any further.

"What in the world is going on?"

"...This is the first time I’m seeing something like this happen."

Both An’as and Anne were stunned. However, Anne was the most stunned as this was the first time she had ever seen something like this occur in the many years that she had frequented the Remnant South.

This sight felt odd, and in some way, it also felt disturbing to her.

’Just how many people did this Goddess brainwash?’

Anne didn’t believe in the Gods for a single second. How could she when she had to claw herself out of the gutter she used to live in?

The only one to have ever helped her was herself.

To her...

The Gods were nothing more than powerful beings on a self-indulgent power trip, intent on manipulating people into worshiping them. They cared for no one but themselves.

’Pathetic fools.’

Anne shook her head while looking at all the people on their knees, looking at the Cathedral with reverence.

’...If you want help, you should help yourself, not ask someone else for it.’

Anne’s gaze eventually fell on An’as.

Right...

He was also one of those foolish worshippers.

But...

Contrary to her expectations, An’as didn’t show any signs of reverence like she had previously expected. He had a certain calmness in his eyes as he looked at the distant building, which almost felt like she was looking at an entirely different person.

The change was so glaring that she found herself asking, "Do you not feel something when seeing the cathedral?"

"Oh? It’s nice..."

An’as answered while pulling his eyes away from the cathedral.

"It’s not nearly as Impressive as I imagined it to be, but it’s quite impressive."

"...Is that all that you’re feeling?"

"Pretty much," An’as answered with a nod, his eyes wandering around. "More than that, we need to figure out where that merchant could’ve gone. I don’t really have a good feeling about the situation. If—"

An’as’s words were cut off by a sudden commotion.

As the two raised their heads, their eyes immediately fell towards the entrance of the cathedral, where two figures appeared.

Immediately, their eyes widened as the people on the ground prostrated themselves further.

"Love live the Goddess!"

"Love live the Saint!"

"Love live light!"

A thunderous chant echoed through the air as the two figures emerged, one blazing like the sun itself, and the other... the all too familiar merchant.

"This..."

An’as’s eyes shook at the sight of the figure next to the merchant.

He couldn’t help his reaction at all.

That figure... it was a figure he could never forget, even if he tried, and his body started to tremble.

"You okay?"

Anne seemed to notice his actions, her gaze falling on An’as. However, she couldn’t quite tell the reason for his actions.

Eventually, however, she settled her gaze on the blazing figure and started to connect the two.

’So it wasn’t that he didn’t care. He still does care...’

Similarly, spotting them, Lazarus turned his attention towards them as the two eventually moved to where they were.

"You guys are here."

"...You were late," Anne replied, her gaze falling on the Living Saint. Though he was smiling, and he looked friendly, she could feel a certain pressure coming from him. It made her extremely wary.

Thankfully, he didn’t seem to care much about her as his gaze fell on An’as.

"Hmm."

His head cocked for a moment.

"I feel like I’ve seen you before."

An’as’s body shook.

He... remembers me? Though he was trying his best to remain calm, he was struggling to do so.

This person, before him, was the same one who had changed his life.

He was the same person who had given him hope and turned him into a follower of the Goddess.

He...

"So strange..."

The Saint covered his mouth, his brows furrowing slightly.

"I’m usually good at remembering stuff, but for some reason... even though I know that I know you, I don’t quite recall. How odd."

The faces of An’as, Anne, and Lazarus changed almost at the same time as they all looked down.

It was in that moment that they realized.

Their shadows...

It was gone.

This could only mean one thing.

The forgetting.

...It was starting.