THE VILLAIN'S POV Chapter 926: The Truth Foreseen (2)

Just as he walked by, however, the former First Writer spoke once more.

"When you’re about to leave..."

"Fight me."

"That shall be the price for allowing you to see her."

The old man sounded genuinely excited.

After all...

He was about to challenge the greatest talent of the new generation.

Frey smiled.

"As you wish."

He immediately realized why Masdor had chosen that timing.

A battle against the former First Writer would demand everything Frey had.

By scheduling it afterward, Masdor was ensuring Frey wouldn’t appear exhausted in front of Lea.

Leaving that thought behind, Frey focused on what lay beyond the enormous gate.

The scene that unfolded before him was breathtaking.

A vast garden stretched endlessly into the distance.

Above it lay not an ordinary sky, but an entire universe glittering with countless stars.

Near the center stood a magnificent golden swing suspended in midair.

A single seat hung from it.

Sitting there was a young girl dressed in a black dress and a matching black veil.

Her clothing closely resembled Clea’s.

Her hair, however, was a beautiful shade of blue.

Beneath her right eye glowed three tiny stars.

She wore a listless expression, as though boredom itself had consumed her.

Her eyes were unlike anything else.

Soft blue.

Faintly luminous.

With tiny stars drifting within them.

"Lea..."

Frey called softly.

She turned toward his voice.

The instant she saw him, her entire expression transformed.

A radiant smile blossomed across her face.

She leapt down from the swing and sprinted toward him without the slightest hesitation.

The moment she reached him, she threw herself into his arms.

She buried her face against his chest while embracing him tightly.

Frey smiled gently.

He wrapped both arms around her in return.

"It’s been a long time... Lea."

He whispered beside her ear.

"I’m happy to see your face again after all these years."

The next instant, Lea pulled away.

The happiness on her face vanished, replaced by obvious dissatisfaction.

"Hmph!"

She lightly punched Frey’s chest.

"How could you leave me all alone for so long without visiting even once?!"

Frey made no attempt to dodge.

He simply let the punch land before gently taking hold of her hand.

"You know I can’t come whenever I want."

"You’re far too important now."

"They don’t allow me to see you."

Lea sighed and turned her head away.

"I hate being the Oracle."

"All I ever do is keep seeing one terrifying prophecy after another..."

"Meanwhile, the years of my life keep slipping away."

For a brief moment...

Sadness clouded her face.

Then, just as quickly, her bright smile returned.

"But you’re here now!"

"And we can finally spend some time together!!"

Lea looked genuinely excited, reminding Frey of the childish nature that had always defined her.

"I can’t stay for long, but at least we can sit together for a while... just like we used to in the old days."

Lea nodded eagerly.

The two of them spent the entire following hour wandering through the star-filled garden.

Their bond had always been exceptionally strong.

To Lea, Frey had been the older brother she constantly looked up to. To Frey, she was the little sister he had always watched over.

It was one of the few relationships Frey truly cherished, precisely because it was so simple.

There were no complications between them.

Lea spoke at a terrifying speed, spitting out what felt like ten words every second while asking him about everything she could think of.

Frey answered every question with endless patience.

She asked about him, their other siblings, the world outside...

Everything.

Her endless curiosity reminded Frey that, despite possessing the extraordinary ability to see the future, Lea remained almost entirely ignorant of what was happening beyond this garden.

The excessive protection surrounding her had isolated her from the outside world.

After listening to her for a long time and answering all of her questions, Frey decided it was finally his turn to ask some of his own.

"Lea."

"You recently saw a prophecy concerning Agaroth, didn’t you?"

The moment Agaroth’s name was mentioned, Lea’s expression changed once again.

She looked apologetic.

And just as frightened.

"That’s right..."

Her hesitant nod made Frey’s expression turn serious.

"I want you to tell me everything you saw."

"Every detail."

"Don’t leave anything out."

Lea hesitated briefly before nodding.

The stars within her eyes gradually began to glow as she recounted the vision in its entirety.

"I saw... a monster."

"A massive, pitch-black monster."

"It kept growing larger without ever stopping, devouring everything in its path."

"I saw countless people dying because of it while it continued forward, consuming everything before it."

"I saw you there as well."

"You were bleeding heavily... and you were on the verge of death."

"And in the distance, I saw an immense fog drawing closer."

Frey listened to every word with complete attention.

Lea hesitated before revealing the rest.

That part of the prophecy was an exceedingly dangerous secret.

Even so, she chose to trust Frey.

She refused to hide anything from him.

"From within the fog... a pale monster emerged."

"It was equal to the black one in both size and power."

"The two of them appeared to be fighting one another..."

"While the world itself bled around them."

The final part struck Frey with overwhelming force.

For a moment, he could barely piece together what he had heard.

The black monster had to be Agaroth.

There was almost no doubt about that, considering his power of Devouring, even if that ability had yet to grow powerful enough to cause the destruction Lea described.

But the second part...

"The other monster..."

"The pale one."

"Was it...?"

Silence settled between them.

Then Lea gave a cautious nod.

"The Pale Devastation will return soon."

That was the most important part of the prophecy.

The revelation that had thrown the entire Council into chaos.

The Pale Devastation.

Odin.

It was already a name known throughout existence.

A name that inspired terror in the heart of every living being.

The most powerful of all the Lords of Mist to have ever existed.

Yet he had not been present during Frey’s era.

"The legend of the First War..."

"The battle against the Pale Devastation."

An ancient legend spoke of Odin.

In the distant past, he had waged a devastating war against the Writers and had only barely been repelled after seven ancient heroes confronted him.

Each of those seven possessed enough power to bear the title of First Writer.

In the end, they won.

But only three survived the battle.

Four were killed outright, while two of the remaining three later succumbed to the wounds they had suffered.

Only one lived on.

"But they managed to stop Odin..."

That was how the legend had always been told.

"Odin cannot be killed."

Lea’s voice turned grim.

"He always returns."

Odin.

The Pale Devastation was more akin to a curse than a living being.

The tale of the seven heroes who confronted him had not been the first.

Nor had it been the second.

He was a calamity that appeared in every era, bringing destruction beyond measure before finally being stopped through an unbearable number of sacrifices.

Yet no matter how he was defeated...

He always returned after enough time had passed.

That was why a single ominous phrase had become forever tied to his name.

He could not be killed.

According to Lea’s prophecy, the Pale Devastation was on the verge of appearing once again.

A sharp headache began to pulse through Frey’s head.

"This is far more complicated than I thought..."