A symbol I’ve never seen drawn on my chest.
I know better than anyone in this world what it means.
I tightly shut my mouth and clench my fists.
Is it because of the symbol? I can feel the power of time rising through my whole body like a raging tide.
The power starting from my heart sits solidly like armor filled with absolute strength, but on the contrary, it feels like a prison that binds me so I can’t escape.
“Just one thing…”
My voice squeezes out with force.
Not because of simple anger or feeling deceived, but because I felt that even a slight opening could cause the power of the imprint to rampage, I couldn’t let my guard down.
“I’ll ask just one thing.”
“Are you speaking casually? Well, fine.”
Ignoring the sulky Goddess of Time, I force myself to continue speaking.
“Why do you want to destroy the world?”
“Hehe, I knew you would ask that.”
The Goddess of Time flails her hands as if waiting for this question. Then, the models of the world and the figures of me, Rin, and Ares start moving.
The figures begin to spin around the world.
“I’ve never lied.”
The Goddess of Time answered with a smile.
“You say you’ve never lied?”
“Yes, what you know is correct. Death and life are trying to destroy this world. I see it with skepticism as well.”
The God of Life, a man, nods his head in agreement. He looked like he was disgusted as he gazed at the model of the world.
“But I have no intention of destroying the world!”
With a ta-da, the Goddess spreads her arms wide, making an exaggerated gesture. I felt a surge of irritation and wanted to give her a light punch, but we were a bit too far apart.
“Think about it. If I wanted to destroy it, why would I have regressed Daniel?”
“……”
I’m dumbfounded.
She was right.
I realized I was getting all heated and couldn’t think straight.
“Do you remember what I told you? If the world is destroyed because of the calamity of the gods, that god becomes the center of the next world.”
Rin’s figure steps forward and destroys the model of the world. The world, covered in black, slowly begins to grow back.
Based on the source of death.
As the Goddess of Time spins her hands, Rin’s figure retreats, and the world returns to its original green appearance.
Now, Ares’s figure steps forward, and a giant meteor crashes down, destroying the world. From the meteor, life sprouts, and the world begins to grow again.
Be it the start of death or the beginning of life.
The world starts anew, contrasting sharply with its current chaotic appearance, yet containing its own kind of beauty.
“What do you think? Doesn’t it look not too bad?”
Mirroring the gesture, the original form of the world returns. The floating model of the world slowly flies towards the Goddess of Time.
“I understand why death and life want to start the world anew. Maybe Daniel knows too, since he experienced everything up close.”
“……”
“I see that the world has become too dirty. It’s like the clear water got mixed with paint, and it can’t be undone now.”
As I recall the many incidents I’ve experienced, I couldn’t deny that it wasn’t wrong, even if it was a lie.
“I understand that death and life want to start fresh again. But Daniel! As I mentioned before…”
The Goddess of Time hugs a massive sphere with both hands. Her face is adorned with a bright smile.
“I love this world so much! It’s not an exaggeration to say that! Even if it’s chaotic, dirty, corrupt, funny, or disgusting! I love it all so much that I could bury those feelings!”
I could tell from her voice the sincerity behind her emotions.
She loves this world more than anyone in this room.
“But you see! I’m not the only god here, right? So death and life and I talked for a long time and reached a conclusion.”
“Conclusion?”
I felt my body involuntarily shrink.
The color of the love in her eyes slowly changes. To a very murky gray.
“If I overcome the calamity we agreed upon, even if I preserve the world without destroying it, let’s not corrupt it any further.”
“……”
“After ‘The Earliest Apocalypse’ and ‘The Following Apocalypse’ pass, the continent will be safe. I believe you can win, so I sent you the ‘two daggers’ of the seal, remember?”
“Finish your sentence.”
I unconsciously clenched my fists.
If I didn’t, it felt like I would be crushed under the divine pressure of a small, yet massive god at any moment.
“What do you mean by not corrupting it?”
I already knew there was no proper conclusion coming from that gaze, and what the Goddess of Time spat out was insane.
“It means to stop everything in the world. Humans wouldn’t die or corrupt, so it’s a win-win! And I can watch over all of you forever!”
“……”
The Goddess of Time steps forward softly.
With a look of utter love, she traces the imprint drawn on my chest with her finger, gazing up at me.
“And you’ll be the one to enact that, Daniel McLean!”
Lick.
Her tongue touches me.
As if she couldn’t resist the temptation of sweet fruit, she licked my chest once with her crazed eyes and shouted.
“You will save this world! Preserve humanity, protect life, and ultimately save everything from the calamity of the arrogant, haughty gods!”
“……”
“You are my believer, my apocalypse, my last mercy bestowed upon this ignorant world.”
The Goddess of Time, who snuggled into my embrace, places her ear near my heart. Listening to its pounding, she calmly closes her eyes and whispers.
“The Apocalypse of Salvation. That’s your name.”
*
“Hah.”
Eris, having parted ways with Daniel McLean, lowered her head to hide her flushing face, letting her hair cover her cheeks.
Even though she wanted to cover herself with her hands, she was holding a pot filled with sprouting drasil, so that was not an option.
“It’s hard to look at your face.”
She complained to the sprouting drasil, but naturally, it offered no response. Maybe it hadn’t grown enough to talk yet.
Eris had a reason for feeling this shy.
Before meeting Daniel, she had encountered Eve and Sen first.
And through those two, she learned about Daniel. In reality, Daniel McLean didn’t hear about the future from a god.
He experienced it through the miracle of regression.
At first, she brushed it off.
Feeling like not much had changed, but upon deeper thought, that wasn’t true.
Seeing the future meant she experienced it indirectly. It wasn’t much different from reading a novel or fairy tale.
That’s why Eris suggested keeping her distance from Daniel. Getting lost in the fantasy of the future and loving herself felt miserable.
But it was different; Daniel came from a future that loved her?
She couldn’t carelessly look at him.
If their eyes met, she felt an odd sense of embarrassment.
Daniel actually holds the experiences and memories of loving her!
Though she didn’t quite hear, she wondered how far things had progressed.
‘He must’ve held my hand at least… Kiss? Or maybe even more?!’
Despite living for hundreds of years, the interactions with men remained an uncharted territory for Eris. Did her future self experience that end?
‘I… I shouldn’t feel like it’s me, but it feels like me for some reason.’
Her head felt like it could explode from the embarrassment. She wanted to talk to someone about it, but it also felt precious not to share it.
“This isn’t good.”
Standing in the corridor, Eris closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She calmed her heart, recalling the times spent under the massive shadow of Yggdrasil.
“These feelings are all for after everything’s finished.”
She knew that causing a fuss now wouldn’t yield any response from Daniel.
Eris also understood that the way he looked at her was no longer what it used to be.
Trying to soothe her bitter heart, she headed to her room with the sprouting drasil.
“Mm?”
“Keheh.”
On her way, she heard that sluggish voice.
Curious, she moved to trace the source of the sound, only to find the only remaining witch in active duty, besides the retired Grand Witch.
Adriana was staggering as she walked with a massive staff that towered over her height.
Adriana had discovered the staff of Sharcarl hidden by the Priestess of Time and had come looking for it after heading to the Forest of the Demon Realm.
“Y-You seem to have had a tough time.”
Chasing the traces of Tudogs, Eris felt friendlier towards Adriana compared to other humans, having spent considerable time together, and just as she was about to comment on how much Adriana had suffered.
“Ah! Ah!”
The staff of Sharcarl slipped from Adriana’s hand. Pulled by something unseen, the staff swiftly…
Landed perfectly atop the pot that Eris was holding.
The sprouting drasil began to grow rapidly, wrapping around Sharcarl’s staff.
