NOVEL NEXT Chapter 33: Deal
Aucuces abruptly put away the tarot cards and snapped his fingers.
Snap!
Their surroundings changed abruptly as twilight dawned on them, illuminating everything around them.
They were sitting at the same table and chair, but they were no longer in the store or in the endless darkness. But on the snowy mountain's edge, where a chilly wind blew.
The vast flieds of wheat grew beneath the mountain range, and the golden light of the sun shone on these flieds, giving them a more golden hue. From the top of the mountain, it appeared as if a golden ocean lay beneath them.
The crystal snow landed on the table, which now had two cups filled with coffee.
"Here." Aucuces handed the cup to Amanines, who looked at it strangely before taking it.
"Don't you already know why I'm here, Amanines?" Aucuces chuckled as he took a sip of coffee and immersed himself in the scenery in front of him.
"You intend to start a war on Solomon and True Creator." Amanines spoke as she drank the coffee, which she hadn't had in a long time. This brought back lot of memories of past.
She was also looked deeply at Aucuces, who was immersing himself.
She and Aucuces, on the other hand, have known each other since the second epoch. Their relationship was, to be honest.....she didn't know how to describe it; for a god, it's difficult to express anything in human terms, even if they were once human.
However, Amanines could only describe their relationship as "on pretty good terms" in a roundabout and vague way, if she truly wanted to express it. She and Aucuces had spent a lot of time together during the third epoch, as he had been assigned to her by the ancient sun god to deal with a variety of issues in that era. Those were actually good times, at least for her.
However, everything changed after the fall of ancient sun god.
"Yes." Aucuces spoke softly, his face illuminated by soft sunlight. "Solomon must die in order to bring down Sasrir. 'He' cannot continue to rule over the continent. 'His' time has passed, and it's truly amusing to consider that even after 'His' death, the world is still dominated by 'Him.'" With a complicated smile, he said.
He was referring to True Creator as Sasrir, as True Creator was an amalgamation of Sasrir and the humanity of the ancient sun god, which also what caused him to go insane.
"Sasrir.." Amanines whispered the name with a slight ripple in her heart and went on without any change on the surface. "Indeed, everything that happened after that was still dominated by 'Him'. Don't you remember that banquet that caused quite a stir because of you, Solomon and others?"
"That banquet! I recall that, despite being an angel, Solomon was allowed to attend because the creator took notice of him and predicted that he would change the world." Aucuces said with smile. "To be honest, I didn't take it seriously at the time. Because the creator always gave such vague prophecies to many, who didn't amount much in the end."
"Oh, and most importantly, Solomon was truly one of a kind; he literally used various methods to gain our favour and get on the good side of me and other kings of angels. Given what had happened, he expected to succeed, but he was utterly humiliated by us in the end...."
"However, look how he turned the tables on everyone." Amanines intrerrputed. "I honestly didn't expect Solomon to join forces with the true creator, despite the fact that he would face all of us."
"Well, nothing could deny that Solomon was a daring man. He took advantage of the opportunity, despite the grave danger, and eventually succeeded in suppressing us all." Aucuces stated as he gazed at the setting sun. "In a way, he retaliated against me, Herabergan, and Leodero by labelling us as evil gods in his kingdom. I heard that some people there are even afraid to recite our divine names because of this."
"What do you say, Amanines?" Aucuces finally inquired, turning to face her.
"You expect me to persuade Leodero and Herabergan." Amanines remarked lightly.
"Yes, If we all get together. There will be war right away. At the very least, Herabergan will be civilised. But I can't say the same for the other though....." Aucuces smiled . "You are the only one who can bring them together"
"I'll check on Badhiel and Ombella on your behalf," Aucuces said with a chuckle after noticing her silence. "Don't you think it's a perfect deal between us, Amanines?"
"Fine." Finally, Amanines nodded. "However, it'll be difficult to actually succeed for those two without any..."
"The uniqueness of the Justiciar will soon fall into the hands of the Solomon." Aucuces said simply, making Amanines silent. "And considering the threat of Cosmos, it shouldn't be too difficult. I will also bring necessary evidence to the meeting."
"You really thought of everything before coming to meet with me." Amanines spoke up unexpectedly. "You should have planned this for a long time, didn't you? It's different from who you used to be, for you've changed a lot from the last time we meet."
The Aucuces she knew before was prideful and filled with vanity. He was a firm believer in power and disdains asking for help from others, even in dire circumstances. He frequently prefers to deal with situations with crushing force rather than taking a roundabout path.
Yet, here he was....
Amanines had never been more aware of the passage of time and its impact on others than she was now. It was amazing to see how much change was happening around her, yet she had remained the same since she ascended.
She suddenly realised how much humanity she had lost along her path....
"After experiencing everything about humanity and divinity, one is always bound to change." Aucuces softly stated, "Amanines, you should know more about this than I do. Isn't that right?" He implied.
"Indeed." Amanines responded, much to Aucuces' surprise. However, she did not delve deeply. "You notify me of the date, and then we can finalise the Alliance of six gods at that time." She spoke to him without looking at him.
Aucuces noticed Amanines acting strangely, but he didn't pry further because he knew her character well. "All right, then." He gave a nod. "Do you want to accompany me? The first knowledge emperor is about to be born. It would be a sight to behold, and your presence might help." He extended an invitation.
"I apologise, Aucuces." Amanines spoke in the same ethereal tone that had not changed. "In any case, congrats on having an archangel under your seat." Her tone softened as her figure became illusory.
"I'm looking forward to seeing you again, Auceses. So until then...." She faded away, leaving Aucuces alone on the mountaintop, who didn't show much change after seeing her sudden departure.
Finally, Aucuces sighed as he turned to face the setting sun with his heterochromatic eyes, which were now golden and purple, symbolising the authorities he now controls.