In Millennium Castle, the atmosphere between Shiayar and Augutina, which had seemed somewhat relaxed, turned cold once more.
Augutina slightly raised those Red Gold eyes of hers.
The brilliance they exuded was no longer that of a clear-eyed girl, but rather that of a Queen who looked down upon the entire world.
It was not until this moment that Augutina, for the first time in Shiayar's presence, revealed a hint of the majesty befitting the title "Queen of the Night."
She was not merely a legend, but a Sovereign gazing down on all creatures from the clouds above.
Facing the Queen of the Night, whose aura was in no way inferior to Silvia's, Shiayar's actions remained unwavering.
He simply extended his hand calmly. The pitch-black invincible metal transformed into tiny blades. SHHNK! A small slit opened within Shiayar's palm. But immediately following, before blood could even begin to seep from the wound, the small cut rapidly clotted and healed, with even the scar quickly fading and then vanishing.
"I have always believed that in this world, if anything out of the ordinary occurs, then there must be an underlying reason and law behind it," Shiayar mused as he looked at his healing wound.
"This ability of an undying body is too similar to that of the Blood Tribe."
"Of course, the regenerative abilities of an ordinary member of the Blood Tribe cannot reach this extent. I'm unfazed by sunlight, garlic, and Silver. Even crosses and Holy Water can't cause me any discomfort."
"And even if pulverized by the unleashed full force of the Sacred Spear, I can still regenerate completely unharmed."
"This ability, compared to the so-called 'resurrection,' 'self-healing'... is more like an undying nature at the conceptual level."
Shiayar's eyes slightly lifted, gazing calmly at Augutina before him.
"Ordinary Blood Tribe members can't do this, and neither can a Legendary Blood Prince."
"However, if it is the True Ancestor Black Princess chosen as the vessel for the 'Crimson Red Moon,' this might not be impossible."
"It's like a True God who, even if vanished into smoke and clouds, as long as the faith of the believers remains for one day, might one day return from the distant Astral Realm."
...
"Just from speculating about immortality, you have determined that I am the Contractor of your 4th Soul Pact?"
"As you said, conceptual immortality is not exclusive to the 'Crimson Red Moon.'"
After listening to Shiayar's statements, Augutina's hoarse voice once again rose with interest.
"Actually, there are some other reasons."
Shiayar thought for a moment and then spoke again, "For instance, during my visit to the Dark Shadow Council's base of operations in the Empire Capital—the Dark Night Garden—Her Highness Augutina, your attitude toward me was unusually solicitous."
"A simple exchange of information stirred your shadow avatar to appear in person... Later you even suggested that I pay off the debt with my body."
Shiayar's expression remained calm, "Back then, I wasn't even a 4-Ring Master Rank Beastmaster, merely possessed superior talent... Logically, I was not worthy of such special attention from a legend, no, a Throne."
"And there was the Borgia family banquet... The Dark Shadow Council had always adhered to a principle of neutrality over the centuries, but that time in the Astral Realm, you chased Guderian to his death. Objectively speaking, you were undoubtedly assisting me in erasing an enemy."
"I don't believe there's such a thing as unfounded favor in this world." His words paused softly, "Perhaps some might ignore anomalies and not take them to heart, but my nature prevents me from turning a blind eye to these abnormalities."
Shiayar's gaze was calm, "So, Her Highness Augutina, could you please tell me?"
"The origin of our mutual pact."
"And the history of Escarnia a thousand years ago, before Isadella altered it into the Imaginary Zone, its original form."
...
Augutina did not answer directly.
She merely sat upon the throne woven from shadows, a few tendrils of darkness transforming into thorns that twisted around Augutina's pale fingers, idly played with by her.
After a long while, that clear voice finally resonated again.
"The end of the First Era, the beginning of the Second Era."
"The True God of Abyss, 'Crimson Red Moon,' was defeated in the war that spanned the First and Second Eras, the Main Material Plane and the Abyss."
"One of the Black Tower's original 8th Pages destroyed His divine body and most of the Divine Kingdom. This forced Him to carry His Divinity and Authority, along with the remaining Divine Kingdom Fragments, into seclusion above the Astral Realm."
"Even for an undying True God, that was unimaginable trauma. If He were to wait for recovery in an orderly fashion, then the time it would take might reach thousands of years, or even tens of thousands."
"Therefore, to reconstruct a new divine body, the Crimson Moon..."
"Chose me, also proficient in the Authority of darkness, shadows, and secrets, as the chosen vessel for His arrival."
"Or in other words, what outsiders call the first True Ancestor."
In Augutina's Red Gold eyes, the clearness of a young girl slightly dissipated, replaced by a deep ancientness, as if spanning through the ages.
Shiayar listened quietly.
Most of the fields studied by later generations of archaeologists were focused within the history of this current Era, with very little known about the hidden history of the Ancient Era, almost to the point of non-existence.
However, after obtaining the Knowledge Holy Chalice, Shiayar had made up for a lot of knowledge. The historical secrets he knew were not much less, even when compared to those ancient Demigods and Thrones.