An obsidian gate bloomed open at Cornea’s command, its surface swallowing light itself.

  Everyone stepped through—everyone except Arlen and Nyx.

  “Go on ahead,” Arlen said. “Nyx and I will follow.”

  The others didn’t question it. One by one, they vanished into the gate until only the two of them remained in the dim afterglow of warped space.

  Silence settled.

  Arlen broke it first.

  “It’s fine if you don’t want to answer,” he said, voice calm, measured. “But… are you connected to the gods somehow?”

  Nyx stiffened—just a little.

  “Why do you ask?” she replied, guarded.

  Arlen didn’t look at her directly.

  “It’s nothing much. Your regeneration curse. And Dryas’ healing. They feel… similar. Too similar.”

  Nyx exhaled slowly.

  Then, without another word, she removed her coat and unbuttoned her shirt.

  “What are you—” Arlen started.

  Then he saw it.

  A single wing unfurled from her back—white, radiant, and unmistakably angelic.

  Only one.

  Arlen froze.

  Nyx lowered her gaze.

  “My mother was an angel,” she said quietly. “I’m half-angel. Half-demon.”

  She paused—then continued, her voice steady despite the weight of the words.

  “She was assaulted by a demon. A man who was supposed to be my father. After he was done with his fun… he left. When she conceived me, heaven cast her aside. An angel tainted by a demon child.”

  Her fingers curled slightly.

  “They executed her.”

  Arlen clenched his jaw.

  “I was captured,” Nyx went on. “Used. Experimented on. Heaven wanted to see what a hybrid could become.”

  Her voice finally wavered.

  “That’s when Queen Cornea appeared.”

  Nyx lifted her eyes now—burning, unwavering.

  “She came to destroy heaven. That was her plan. But when she saw me… she abandoned everything. She burned bridges. She broke laws. She took curses meant for monsters—just to save my life.”

  Arlen’s breath caught.

  “The curse that prevents her from entering god-ruled lands.” Nyx said. “She received it while escaping with me.”

  She straightened.

  “From that day onward, my loyalty belonged to her. Not as a soldier. Not as a tool. But as someone whose life was given meaning.”

  Silence fell again.

  Nyx closed her eyes.

  “Arlen… I know you despise angels. I know what they did to your people. To your friend. To you.”

  She spread her wing slightly.

  “So if you want to tear it off—I won’t resist.”

  Arlen stepped forward.

  Nyx braced herself, closed her eyes.

  Instead, he gently pulled her shirt back into place and wrapped it around her shoulders.

  “Your wing is beautiful,” he said simply. “Your mother must’ve been a good angel.”

  You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

  Nyx’s breath hitched.

  Arlen turned away.

  “Come on,” he added. “You don’t want to keep your queen waiting.”

  For the first time in a long while, a genuine

  She opened the teleportation gate.

  A massive obsidian gateway tore reality open—and on the other side, Cornea, Dryas, Aura, Grom, and Tethys stood waiting before the sanctuary gates.

  Arlen stepped forward first.

  “Let’s go.”

  Cornea followed, her heart pounding despite herself.

  The sanctuary doors opened.

  An unfamiliar figure stood inside.

  A tall, broad-shouldered woman with a warrior’s build—muscles honed like forged steel, posture straight, presence heavy. Her eyes were sharp, ancient, and unapologetically alive.

  “Welcome, kids,” she said, her voice deep and commanding.

  Then her gaze met Cornea’s.

  For a heartbeat, the world froze.

  Cornea’s breath caught.

  The woman tilted her head, lips curling into a grin that carried both warmth and challenge.

  “Well, well… now that you’ve become a queen, you won’t even greet your aunt?”

  Cornea’s composure shattered for a split second.

  She turned away sharply, fists clenched.

  “Tch. Don’t be ridiculous,” she snapped. “I’m the Demon Queen of the Hollow Court. I don’t have time for some runaway goddess who’s all muscle and no brains.”

  Her voice was sharp.

  Her eyes weren’t.

  Before anyone could react, the woman stepped forward. Nyx instantly shifted into guard position—

  —but the next moment, Cornea was pulled into a crushing embrace.

  Strong arms wrapped around her, tight and unyielding.

  “You grew up fine,” the woman said softly. “Just as stubborn as your father.”

  Cornea didn’t resist.

  She didn’t speak.

  But her hands slowly clenched into the fabric at the woman’s back.

  Dryas stared, stunned.

  “…What’s going on?” she whispered. “How is the Goddess of Space the Demon Queen’s… aunt?”

  The room went dead silent.

  “…Goddess of Space?” Grom repeated.

  Everyone’s eyes snapped back to the woman.

  Nyx stiffened.

  Aura blinked.

  Tethys’ jaw dropped.

  Arlen smiled.

  “That reaction tells me enough.”

  The Gatekeeper’s cane tapped against the floor as Solon stepped forward from the shadows, watching the reunion with quiet interest.

  Arlen spoke calmly, as if explaining a solved puzzle.

  “When I went to Solon last time, I asked him two things. First—whether Aura could be brought back. Second—whether angels could be freed without killing the girls inside them.”

  He glanced at Nyx and Aura briefly before continuing.

  “Then I asked him for help. Nothing extreme. Just to open Mortis’ Throne of Death for me.”

  Solon snorted.

  “I refused.”

  “Of course you did,” Arlen said. “So I offered a bargain.”

  The others listened in silence.

  “Solon knows everything that happens across the cosmos. Which means he knew exactly where Astrea disappeared to.”

  The tall woman—Astrea—folded her arms, amused.

  “I offered Solon three things,” Arlen continued.

  “First: the sanctuary wouldn’t be left unguarded during his absence. Astrea would act as a temporary Gatekeeper.”

  Astrea chuckled.

  “Babysitting relics isn’t exactly glamorous, but it beats hiding.”

  “Second,” Arlen went on, “Mortis’ threat to Aethel’s throne. That alone was enough to make Solon listen.”

  Solon’s eyes narrowed—but he didn’t deny it.

  “And third”, he smiled, “I will take away his millennia of boredom and let him witness something interesting.”

  Solon laughed, “And Dryas’ little stunt in the duel was more than worth it.”

  Dryas swallowed. “And… how did you convince ?”

  Arlen’s smile turned sharp.

  “When you mentioned Astrea vanished right before Chronos and Ianthe’s marriage, I gambled that she already suspected Mortis.”

  He looked at Astrea.

  “So I told her the truth. Ianthe is dead. Mortis is exposed. And I helped Cornea fulfil her revenge.”

  Astrea’s gaze softened as she looked at Cornea again.

  “The fact that she was Lysander’s friend?” Arlen added.

  “That was a bonus.”

  Astrea smirked.

  “You always did have a habit of punching gods where it hurts.”

  Cornea finally pulled away from the embrace.

  Her eyes were red.

  “…You should’ve come back sooner,” she muttered.

  Astrea placed a heavy hand on her shoulder.

  “I know,” she said. “And that’s on me.”

  The air shifted.

  Freedom had found another witness.

  Arlen turned to Solon.

  “Did you retrieve Silent Weaver

  The Gatekeeper laughed—deep, ancient, and amused in a way only something timeless could be.

  “Oh, it returned to its rightful place long before you noticed. Relics always know where they belong.”

  Arlen nodded once. No surprise there.

  “Good. Then I need another relic,” he said. “Not that memory-eating abomination. That thing isn’t my style.”

  He looked straight at Solon.

  “Do you have any recommendations?”

  Before Solon could answer, Astrea stepped forward.

  “I do.”

  Her tone cut clean through the room.

  Then—before anyone could speak—her gaze locked onto Arlen. The warmth from earlier was gone. What replaced it was the stare of a veteran who had survived eras of war.

  “But before that,” she said slowly, “fight me.”

  The room stiffened.

  Astrea continued, voice firm, mercilessly honest.

  “Think of it as a trial, God Slayer. Your next target is Chronos, isn’t it?”

  She took another step forward.

  “Despite how broken he looks, he is still the strongest god in Heaven. No one——can defeat him in a fair one-on-one.”

  Dryas inhaled sharply.

  Nyx stepped forward. “This is unnecessary—”

  “Enough.”

  Cornea raised her hand.

  The room obeyed instantly.

  She looked at Astrea with narrowed eyes.

  “Despite being a muscle-brained menace,” Cornea said flatly, “your instincts are rarely wrong. If you believe this fight matters, then it has meaning.”

  She glanced at Arlen.

  “This is your call.”

  Arlen’s gaze sharpened.

  He stepped forward, hand resting casually near his blade.

  “Very well,” he said.

  Then his smile turned dangerous.

  “But remember this—

  challenged .”

  His demonic eye glinted, hungry and calm at the same time.

  “Don’t complain if I shatter your core, goddess.”

  The air grew heavy.

  Even Solon said nothing.

  The trial had been declared.