Chapter 138: Facade Unveiled
As the hall returned to silence once again, the goddess Virelia sat there while resting her bare feet in the shimmering water.
Her flawless reflection could be seen inside the surface. As she slid her hand into the water and brought it back out, her hand was still exactly the same; there wasn’t any hint of wetness lingering on her skin.
"Hehe... Silly girls. They didn’t even think that this simple pond could be the dimensional door to reach the next floor. How clueless of them."
She rested comfortably, feeling the cool temperature of the water and closing her eyes in a relaxed motion.
Suddenly, she felt a powerful presence manifest directly behind her. She turned her glance back.
Just behind her, beautiful violet flowers started to fly through the air. The petals swirled together as they took the shape of a beautiful girl with raven-black hair and a perfectly sculpted face. The figure that emerged was none other than Lyris. Her violet eyes stared down at the deity with a completely expressionless face.
The Goddess Virelia looked visibly surprised after seeing the girl still alive and perfectly fine. She looked quickly at Lyris’s stomach, right where the fatal wound should be present, but there was nothing there. Not even a tear in her fabric.
Virelia narrowed her gray eyes as she asked.
"How did you even survive that attack?..."
Lyris stepped forward calmly. Her movements were fluid and graceful as she stepped closer to where the goddess sat. Her every step was filled with an air of elegance as she leaned down and sat there near the pond, not caring that the supposed deity was sitting just a short distance away from her.
"Well... What does it matter how I survived? What exactly matters is that you should stop pretending to act like you have already won this game..."
"Hmph... Haven’t I already won? Your companion already betrayed you, and then she already took her own life in guilt. Well, it can’t be helped. Such a greedy person should have died anyway. It is good that such an opportunity came here to weed her out..."
Lyris didn’t reply for a moment. She just gave the goddess a cold, sidelong glance before continuing.
"Aren’t you the one who suggested it to her and indirectly provoked her to take that step? You are the one who told us in such careful detail that I should be very careful. You specifically mentioned that if someone kills the Saintess, their essence will fly over to another chosen vessel. But if the killer happens to have a high affinity, they might just absorb that essence themselves without the power searching for another host."
"It was a cheap trick to manipulate her, but it genuinely worked..."
Lyris looked at the empty spot on the crystal floor where Elyon and she had stood earlier. A distinct hint of sadness appeared in her eyes at the thought about losing the companion she had spent eight months with, sharing laughter and smiles. Her hands involuntarily clenched into fists, but she masked her expression quickly. She didn’t want to show anyone that she was hurt by what had happened.
"Hehe... I guess you are right. I went a little too overboard with the rules, but still, you two were fools to blindly believe me. Don’t blame me for what happens. I am just an innocent goddess who wants nothing but a little peace and entertainment..."
She spoke while bringing her hand toward her chest to make her look like she genuinely felt hurt by Lyris’s accusations, which made Lyris scowl internally.
The goddess’s expression changed instantly after a moment. She dropped the innocent act and narrowed her eyes.
"Why are you acting so calm right now? You still haven’t answered how you even survived..."
Lyris looked at her as a small, knowing smile tugged on her lips.
"It’s a secret..."
...
Flashback:
Lyris’s POV:
Just a few minutes ago, right before the enchanted elemental dagger was thrust inside Lyris’s back.
Lyris stood up while taking her combat stance. As her attention was seemingly focused solely on the goddess, to anyone else, she might have looked like a distracted, easy target.
But she was not. She was famous for having an incredible movement speed and incredibly powerful senses. She could dodge any easy attack shot toward her from the shadows. She had actually already sensed the hostile movement occurring behind her back.
She didn’t react immediately just because she wanted to see what Elyon was actually planning to do.
As she sensed that a dagger was thrust toward her, she didn’t look back at the incoming blade, nor did she feel even an ounce of fear.
’Sigh... It seems she also got corrupted by greed... Just because of the promise of power, one can become completely blind. So blind that they are even ready to sacrifice their own companion...’
She waited, deliberately letting the dagger thrust into her back, or at least letting the other person think it was thrusting. As the dagger went inside, her newly awakened ’Ethereal Body’ let the enchanted metal pass right through her physical form without any effort or friction.
She then quickly circulated her own mana to coat the edges of the dagger in order to make Elyon feel weight and resistance, mistaking the sensation to feel that she had actually thrust the blade inside flesh. Lyris then covered her internal organs with a protective layer of silver light to prevent any actual internal harm to her body by the volatile elemental magic.
’It seems it is too late to make her realize her mistake. You have already betrayed my trust...’
She looked at the goddess while wearing a hidden smirk. She also decided to play along with the twisted game. She brought her hand to her stomach and deliberately cut her own flesh with the protruding edge of the dagger from her stomach.
As the real blood flowed from her hand, which clutched her stomach, it made her look like she really had gotten fatally pierced. She stumbled forward, playing the part perfectly, and fell down.
She didn’t wait long and prepared the next step of her grand plan.
[Absolute Concealment!]
[Luminous Ascension Art: Mimic Type: Light Particles!]
Her body actively started to disintegrate into glowing light particles, completely mimicking how people in the Ascension Realm naturally die and fade away. Also, along with her ’Absolute Concealment’ activated, her presence vanished completely, making her look like she had truly disappeared from existence.
But in reality, she was actually still present there; only the outer layer of light particles around her body had been released. She used her ’Ethereal Form’ to become completely invisible to the naked eye.
From any other person’s perspective, she had actually died, but in reality, she was still standing there, quietly watching the tragic event unfold before her eyes.
She watched as Elyon felt immediate, crushing guilt. Lyris felt her own heart tighten. She wanted to step forward, to tell the crying girl that she was actually okay, but she didn’t move. She wanted to know what the goddess’s true secrets were.
When she saw Elyon kill herself out of despair, she felt immense sympathy for her. She felt like it was because of her that someone was dying.
’No, I shouldn’t blame myself for that. I had done my best to maintain our companionship to the best of my ability, but it was her own decision to do what she wanted... I hope your dreams will be fulfilled in your next life, Elyon...’
She looked closely at the goddess, who seemed entirely oblivious to her concealed presence.
’Wait a second. If she is truly a goddess with incredible divine power, then how was she not able to sense me standing right here?... Something is definitely wrong with her...’
As she looked at the false deity walking toward the shimmering pond, Lyris’s expression changed. She finally understood what had actually happened.
’Wait a second. Is that pond the real door to enter the next floor?... I hadn’t even thought about that...’
She focused her senses solely on the goddess, trying to pry inside her aura. Her expression widened at the sudden realization.
’Wait a second—it seems she is just a—’
...
Present Time:
Lyris looked at the Goddess sitting near her with a confident smile, watching her beautiful form. She couldn’t sense a mana core inside her body at all—it was as if she didn’t even have one.
Goddess Virelia looked at her and narrowed her eyes. Her expression rapidly changed from calm amusement to serious caution.
"Are you not worried about offending me? Do you think that I would not do anything to punish you?..."
Lyris’s smile widened at the empty threat.
"Try it..."
Goddess Virelia’s expression changed, looking at the girl with surprise.
"Hey, do you even know what you are saying to me? Do you not want to live?"
Lyris looked at her calmly and pressed again.
"I said, try it..."
Goddess Virelia looked at her, feeling utterly mortified at the bold repetition.
’It seems she has already found out the truth...’
Lyris stood up smoothly and smoothed out her dark dress. She glanced down at the fake deity as a brilliant silver sword, Aeonis, materialized directly into her hand.
"Your time ends here now, Goddess Virelia. Or, more appropriately, the trickster spirit who tried to mimic her. I am genuinely surprised that you played your little game so well..."