Chapter 1428: Criteria for Balance
”…” Serakkas studied her without speaking for a long time. “If that man, Roland Wimbledon, were to die…”
“I think I would cease to exist.” Valkries’s answer carried no weight of grief. “But measured against the entire race, my life amounts to nothing. If killing him would ensure our race’s survival, do not hesitate. Not for a moment.”
Silent Disaster did not press further.
She turned and looked out over the streets below—loud, busy, full of movement. Not only humans but figures that resembled Junior Demons, moving through the crowd and disappearing into it, indistinguishable from the rest. However one tried to frame the sight, it remained extraordinary.
After a while, she asked another question. “Do you trust him?”
“Honestly—the word trust is too slight a thing when it concerns the survival of a race.” Valkries leaned forward slightly over the railing. “Even though I am the one who negotiated with him, I cannot act on trust alone. But he was right about one thing: trust is the foundation of change. Without it, what should take years could take a century, and the cost of waiting that long would be more than the race can bear. So whatever we choose, no answer will be entirely right.”
”…”
“By every observable measure, he is working toward ending the Battle of Divine Will. Everything he has told me about the battlefield has proven accurate. Taking all of that into account, a small measure of trust is not an unreasonable request.” Nightmare Lord’s voice stayed even, unhurried. “Doubt and reason are two sides of the same coin. The difficulty is finding the balance between them.”
Balance. Silent Disaster turned the word over. “Then what should I do next?”
“That depends on you. As I said—you are already a capable senior lord. I do not wish to influence your judgment.”
“Will I… be able to see you here again?” The hesitation in her voice was not something she was used to.
“I cannot say for certain.” Valkries shrugged. “Roland once told me he tried to save a Witch called Ashes. If the information the Oracle revealed is accurate, then even after the body is gone, any of us can continue to exist so long as we leave a mark in the Realm of Mind. At least what remains of me is far more complete than a Witch adrift in the dark.” She paused. “And by the way—”
She reached up with both hands and lifted the helmet from Serakkas’s head. “Given the risks involved, we may not have many opportunities like this. Don’t wrap yourself up so tightly. I would much rather see your face than that black armor.”
When the two returned to the room, Roland raised an eyebrow before he could stop himself.
Fishball’s report had noted the sharp contrast between Silent Disaster’s ordinary appearance and her armored form. Knowing that, he had still had to prepare himself for it. Even so. The woman he was looking at was difficult to connect to the hulking, black-armored figure he had come to know from every intelligence report.
“You’re done? What’s the conclusion?”
“I have a question, human.” Serakkas’s voice was cool. “If the Battle of Divine Will is truly a lie, how certain are you of defeating God?”
“I don’t know.” It was a question he asked himself often. “What God is, what God wants, how to fight God—whether I will ever have the opportunity to fight God at all—all of it is unknown. And based purely on the power God has demonstrated so far, none of us should theoretically stand a chance. But I believe that any outcome is better than sitting and waiting for an end we cannot stop.”
“I do not care whether you live or die. Do not forget that Lord Valkries is sustained by your Realm of Mind. For her sake—”
“I will have to live well.” Roland completed the thought for her.
“Good that you understand.” Serakkas’s gaze was flat. “As for your request—I will need time before I decide.”
“I did not expect results from a single meeting.” Roland nodded. “At the least, this is a beginning. We will continue to communicate through letters; meeting this way carries far too much risk. As long as the Western Front army continues to push into the Four Kingdoms, the war will not stop.” He picked up a cup. “Since it will be a long time before we meet again—are you certain you won’t take this drink?”
“Hmph.” Serakkas took the cup from the table with pointed disdain and poured it into her mouth. She had seen many such gestures—no matter how strange the liquid, she would not flinch from it in front of an enemy.
The mellow, rich sweetness moved through her throat—and the room vanished.
She was back in the forest.
Silent Disaster turned instinctively toward where Valkries had been, and found only an empty patch of grass.
The whole of it felt like a dream. Only a thread of sweetness lingered in her mouth.
“What took you so long?”
At Silent Disaster’s return, Hackzord opened multiple Distortion Doors in rapid succession and pulled her back ten kilometers before speaking.
He had assumed she would take the letter and go.
“They didn’t give me a letter.” Silent Disaster seemed elsewhere.
“What?” Sky Lord’s expression sharpened. “Was it a trap?”
“No. I saw Valkries.”
Hackzord nearly lost his footing and dropped from the sky.
“What did you say?”
“Valkries is in the Realm of Mind. You were right.” Silent Disaster answered flatly. “She is relying on the King of Graycastle—the wielder of the legacy shard.”
After hearing Serakkas’s full account and returning to the Deity of Gods, Hackzord sank into a confusion that had no bottom.
The volume of information had essentially blocked his thinking.
He had anticipated that Valkries might be in the Realm of Mind. He had not anticipated the depth of her integration with the humans—nor that Nightmare Lord had, in some sense, already formed a working collaboration with them. If this became known, it would be enough to overturn nearly a thousand years of the race’s history and place him in direct opposition to the King.
Try to convince the King? The thought dissolved immediately. He had no wish to enter the Presiding Holy Sea again. If the King sensed even a fraction of what he had been doing, there would be no opportunity to refuse.
Stand beside Valkries?
The Nightmare Lord had once been a candidate for King—the gap between the King and the senior lords was never simply a matter of strength. The price of becoming King depended on the individual’s choice. So the intent itself was not blocked by honor or dignity. What gave Hackzord pause was humanity.
The legacy shards had proven capable of upgrading an entire race. The humans had advanced rapidly with whatever legacy they held, and if they advanced further—what would become of the demon race?
That doubt made the decision impossible to reach.
What Hackzord had not noticed, while sitting in the pool and working through it all, was that Silent Disaster had quietly risen, taken her helmet and her sword, and walked out the door without a word.
Chapter 1428 - Criteria For Balance
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
“…” Serakkas stared at her quietly for a long time before speaking. “If that man named Roland Wimbledon dies…”
“I think I will no longer exist.” Valrkies answer came without any baggage. “But compared to the entire race, my life isn’t worth mentioning. If killing him would ensure the survivability of our race, you must not hesitate to do so.”
Silent Disaster did not continue on this topic.
She turned her head and looked down the noisy streets below. There were not only humans but a few figures that were akin to Junior Demons. They shuttled through the crowd back and forth and merged into one body. Regardless of how one looked at it, the scene was fascinating.
After a while, she asked another question. “Do you trust that male human?”
“To be honest, the term belief is too weak a thing when it concerns the existence of the race.” Valkries leaned over the railing slightly. “Even though you’re the one negotiating, I am unable to act just purely on belief. But he was right on one thing, trust is the foundation of change. Without this foundation, we might take decades or even more than a century to change the inherent nature of this Battle of Divine Will, and the cost of it will be too big a price for the race to bear. So regardless of whether we do it or not, the answer will never be appropriate.”
“…”
“By the current looks of it, he is definitely working towards stopping the entire Battle of Divine Will, and everything he tells me regarding the
battlefield has been true. By comprehensively considering all these aspects, this bit of trust is not an excessive request.” Nightmare Lord spoke gently. “Doubt and reason are two sides of a coin, the key is to find a balance.”
‘Balance’ huh… Silent Disaster repeated the word to herself. “Then what should I do next?”
“That depends on you… As I said, you’re already a qualified senior lord, I do not wish to influence your judgment.”
“Will I… be able to see you here in the future?” Serakkas asked hesitantly.
“I can’t say for sure.” Valkries shrugged. “Roland once told me that he tried to save a Witch called Ashes. If the information the Oracle revealed was true, even if the body disappears, any one of us will have an opportunity to live so long as we leave a mark on the Realm of Mind. At least I am a lot more complete compared to the Witch floating in the Realm of Mind. By the way…”
At this point, she extended both her hands and took down Serakkas’ helmet. “Considering the risks involved, we won’t have many opportunities to meet like this, so don’t wrap yourself up too tightly. I’d prefer seeing your original self than the black armor.”
…
When the two returned, Roland could not help but raise an eyebrow.
Despite knowing from Fishball’s report of the stark difference between Silent Disaster’s original appearance and her battle mode, seeing it for himself still took him by surprise.
If not for him having mentally prepared himself, he would had found it difficult to link the ‘female’ demon to the hideous and bulky armor.
“You’re done? What’s the conclusion?”
“I have a question for you, human.” Serakkas spoke coldly. “If the Battle of Divine Will is truly a lie, how certain are you in defeating God?”
“I don’t know.” This was a question Roland asked himself frequently. “What is God, what is his goal, how should I fight God, whether or not I even have the opportunity to fight God, they are all unknown. Aside from that all, considering the abilities God has displayed to this point, none of us stand a chance, theoretically. But I believe that whatever the outcome, it is better than to sit and await death.”
“I do not care whether you live or die. Do not forget that Lord Valkries is still in your Realm of Mind domain. For her—”
“I’ll have to live well, right?”
“It’s good that you understand.” Serakkas glared at him. “As for your request, I will need to consider it first before deciding.”
“I didn’t count on having results just from our first negotiation.” Roland nodded his head. “At the very least, this is a breakthrough. We will continue using letters to communicate, since meeting like this exposes us to very huge risks. So long as the Western Front army continues to enter the realm of the Four Kingdoms, the war will not stop. Also…”
He picked up a cup. “Since it’ll be a long time before we meet again, are you sure you won’t take this drink?”
“Humph.” Serakkas picked up the drink from the table disdainfully and poured it into her mouth. She had seen many of such tricks—no matter how disgusting the drink was, she would never cower back in fear in front of the enemy.
When the mellow, rich, sweet, and pleasant experience flowed through her throat, the entire room disappeared and she returned to the forest.
Silent Disaster subconsciously looked towards where Valkries was, only to see an empty patch of grass.
The experience felt like a dream, with only a wisp of sweetness lingering in her mouth.
…
“What took you so long?”
Seeing Silent Disaster, Hackzord immediately opened multiple Distortion Doors without hesitation and pulled her over ten kilometers away before questioning her.
Hackzord assumed that she would have left upon obtaining the letter.
“They didn’t give me a letter.” Silent Disaster looked distracted.
“What?” Sky Lord frowned. “Was it a trap?”
“No, I saw Valkries.”
Hackzord almost missed his footing and nearly fell from the sky.
“What did you say?”
“Valkries is indeed residing in the Realm of Mind; you were right,” Silent Disaster answered. “But she is relying on the King of Graycastle, the wielder of the legacy shard.”
After listening to Serakkas’ account and returning to the Deity of Gods, Hackzord sank into extreme confusion.
The huge volume of information had practically caused a block in his brain.
Although he had anticipated the location of Valkries, he had never thought that the humans would be in so deep, and in some sense, the Nightmare Lord had already formed a collaboration with them. If this information was leaked out, it was enough to change nearly a thousand years of history for the race, and cause them to stand against the King.
Attempt to convince the King? Hackzord immediately dispelled that thought. He was no longer willing to enter the Presiding Holy Sea. If the King had an inkling of what he was doing, he would never have the opportunity to even refuse.
Stand by Valkries side?
In fact, the Nightmare Lord was once a candidate to be King—essentially, the disparity between the King and the Senior Lords laid not in their abilities. One had to pay a price to be King, and the price depended on the individual’s choice. Thus, the intent was not obstructed by any honor or dignity, the only thing that made him hesitate was humanity.
Ignoring the suspicion that the Battle of Divine Will was a lie, the legacy shards were proven to be able to upgrade an entire race. The humans were able to improve rapidly with some unknown legacy, and if they were to improve further, what would happen to the race?
This doubt made it difficult for him to make a decision.
But what Hackzord failed to notice was that while he was immersed in the pool and racking his brains, Silent Disaster had silently left the Red Mist pool with her helmet and sword.