Mordred opened his spirit portal, and the two hellhounds jumped out, rushing toward Celine with a straight leap. At the same time, he also summoned Gulgulith, who stuck out its tongue at Celine.
Pixie king's staff in Celine's hand shined and emitted a brilliant glow, and a shining light flew toward Mordred.
"Attacking without defending? What is he thinking?"
Seeing the glow coming in his direction, Mordred took a step back. Although he was confident in his protection, he still needed to be sure.
"Raghh!"
With a roar, the two wolves jumped at Celine without any disturbance and began to tear him apart. No scream came from him as Gulgulith's tongue already landed on him.
"What the..."
Mordred, seeing the situation, became extremely confused and panicked.
A teardrop fell from the benevolent pixie as she suddenly flew to the sky.
The golden halo that came toward Mordred fell on him and enveloped him without causing any damage.
"No... This is... Omni Transaction."
"Nooo!"
Amidst Mordred's scream, the pixie chanted:
"By allowing his death, the chosen one of the benevolent me would fulfill the desire of the other - The death of the benevolent choosen one's death, As payment for the deed, the other individual would be bound with the benevolent energy and my karmic ties to help nurture the growth of a hero—one who will one day unify the world in peace."
The benevolent energy fell on Mordred's body, transforming into chains that wrapped around him.
Shackled by the chains for a brief moment, Mordred regained his calmness despite his hair becoming messy and falling over his face, making him look like a madman.
"Well-played move, but you forget—the choosing of a hero is up to me, and I'm sure there isn't a hero like the one I just took away."
Lifting his head, he gazed at Celine with an eerie smile.
The pixie looked at Celine. Despite his life and body slowly fading away, there was still a glimmer of hope in his eyes.
In the mystical forest where the Pixie King stood in peace, a violent wind blew, causing the old king to frown.
"Haaa..."
"In the end, nothing changed."
Opening his deep-set eyes, the king gazed at the sky. The crown on his head began to shine, causing space to ripple like ocean waves.
"Is breaking the law becoming a hobby old man?"
Suddenly, a mischievous voice came from behind, echoing through the upper layers of the forest.
"Misbehaving one, how did you get into the Benevolent Paradise?"
The old man remained calm, though his voice began to shake.
"Benevolent Paradise... Are you really sure this place still represents benevolence?"
The pixie's echoing moved and then halted in a place. The old man gazed in the direction where the voice had stopped. There, he saw a tree that had been full of life slowly beginning to rot.
The old man's facial expression, which had not changed for countless years, finally twisted into anger.
"Even if the chosen one dies, as long as I'm alive, I won't let anyone else succeed you!" he screamed in fury.
With his wrath, the environment of the forest shifted, and the pixie was pushed back by violent winds.
Facing his rage, she slowly disappeared, and her whisper echoed once more.
"As long as, old man… As long as… you live…"
. . . . . . .
Thud!
Celine's head fell to the ground—the only thing left after the assault of the hellhounds.
Tears kept falling from the benevolent pixie as she rushed to it and held it.
"We... lost."
The golden shine on her body had completely disappeared, and she slowly began to fade, like dust in the wind.
'After the loss of the battle, the loosing side of the pixies would slumber until the time for the next chosen one to appear.'
Looking at the fading benevolent pixie, Mordred recalled the information from the lore.
"The bet has been won by the defending individual. Thus, the betting item will belong to him."
With the judge's words, the Pixie King's staff floated toward Mordred.
"As long as I live, you will never succeed!"
At that moment, those words echoed through the surroundings, and the Pixie King's staff slowly began to fade.
Looking around, in a split second, Mordred felt the urgency of the situation and acted.
"Store in inventory."
The Pixie King's staff disappeared from space, and as Mordred checked his inventory, he saw its icon.
"Don't you know it's bad to steal from others? Especially when they rightfully earned it."
He looked up at the sky and mocked the voice.
The Pixie King could affect the entire world if he wanted to retrieve his weapon, but thankfully, my inventory space is a completely isolated space where no other influence can reach.
But at the same time, there's a problem… If I ever take the staff out, he will retrieve it instantly.
After handing Mordred the staff, the judge of the Judgment Realm grew enraged at the Pixie King's attempt to snatch it back and increased the restrictions placed upon his authority. Then, he opened a portal to the mortal world, which Mordred stepped through.
. . . . . .
"Raghh!"
Roaring monsters collided with the Connoisseur Lion. Among them, one giant monster stood tall, giving off the greatest challenge to it.
Its fists were like thunder, and with every strike, the mystical beast took a step back.
Suddenly, the lion's eyes twitched.
"Raghh!"
It let out a loud roar, and upon hearing it, all the animals scattered and ran away—including the Connoisseur Lion. Nearby trees swayed, their branches covering the lion, vanishing it from sight.
The monsters started chasing after the fleeing animals, but their movements halted as a portal appeared, and Mordred stepped out.
"Master!"
Vennesa and Negun ran to him, checking for any injuries.
"Let's go. My objective here is done," Mordred said as he took the lead back to the carriages.
As Mordred walked proudly, a purple glow appeared beside him.
"So, you really did it. Actually unbelievable."
"How are you still alive? Weren't you supposed to disappear after losing the tide?" Mordred asked in a casual tone.
"This time, it's different. Although I didn't win, neither did the benevolent one. So, as her opposite, I had the power to do the opposite of her. Since the rule for her was to disappear after losing, I used my power to keep living after the loss," the mischievous pixie said, flying around Mordred.
"Good for you. Aren't you going to catch your chosen one, then?"
"Uh..."
The pixie looked at the giant monster in the distance. Shaking her head, she turned back to Mordred.
"Don't think so. I believe I found a better one."
. . . . . . . .
In the middle of a deserted landscape, where a lone golden tree stood with fruit-bearing branches, the Saintess of the Holy Sanctuary stood under its shadow, gazing at the tree.
"Saintess, we are ready."
Synthia appeared in the dust through space and informed her.
"Give me a moment."
The Saintess removed a necklace she had been wearing. The necklace had a large pendant, which she placed inside a hole in the golden tree. As soon as she withdrew her hand, the pendant disappeared, and the hole was covered by the regrowing tree trunk.
"I leave this thing in your care."
After that, she took a step back and walked away. When she got close to Synthia, the space blurred, and the two disappeared.
"I'm not doubting your decision, Saintess, but is it a wise choice to leave that thing in the care of a primal plant?"
Synthia asked as the two of them appeared in a corridor.
"I believe it is," replied the Saintess.
"Is that a prophecy?" Synthia asked again.
"Could be. That scroll, sealed within my necklace, is what gave me my powers. And I believe that in this whole world, I am the only person who can read it. But I cannot ignore the fact that it was once part of something even greater—something that was separated into thirteen pieces. And there are hungry wolves hunting for those pieces. I have a hunch that a few of those wolves will appear at this gathering."
"Then… shouldn't we be more prepared, Saintess?"
"Not necessary. When I see prophecy, I could guess the places that need to change—and the places that don't."
"As you command, Saintess. Shall we go then?"
Through their conversation, the two women reached the end of the corridor, where a group of carriages awaited them.
"Yes. Trinity's gathering won't wait for us if we're late," the Saintess said as she stepped into the carriage.
The Holy Sanctuary was located at the center of a giant lake, with numerous paths leading to it.
On one of these paths, the carriages moved rapidly, carrying the holy Saintess toward the Land of the Rising Light.
As they moved forward, the horses passed by an individual wearing a long robe.
The Saintess, who was inside the carriage, happened to be on the other side and did not see the figure. However, at that moment, her eyes twitched as she felt a slight sense of gloom.
"Saintess?" Synthia looked at her with concern.
"Uh… another dark event must have happened, but I can't pinpoint it."
The carriage moved farther away, while the lone figure slowly made their way toward the sanctuary.
"Stop! This is the Head Sanctuary of the Holy God. Other than authorized individuals, no one is allowed inside. If you are here to pray, the prayer room is that way."
Two guards blocked the individual's way.
"Oh, actually, I'm here for someone."
The robed figure revealed her face to them. The guards saw that it was a young girl.
"Do you happen to know someone named Desire Ashborn?"