Chapter 289: Karma (VIII)

“Here we go…”

I took a deep breath before tapping the [Yes] button.

[Bloodline Activation: Initiating…]

The System’s voice echoed not only in my mind, but in my very soul, shaking it to its foundation.

And then it began.

CRACK!

CRACK!

My bones split and reforged as if being broken and remade a thousand times in a single instant.

Veins lit up beneath my skin, not with light, but with a suffocating darkness, as though the void itself had replaced my blood.

“—GhhhHhHHh!”

The sound that tore from my throat wasn’t even human anymore.

A pitch-black flame seared across my chest, branding ancient sigils onto my flesh, writhing symbols that twisted reality around them.

The ground beneath me collapsed like glass under a hammer, unable to withstand the sheer rejection of my existence.

BOOOM!

The air started screaming, as the ground around me started trembling… possibly, the whole world could be shaking because of my awakening.

FWUUUUM!

Suddenly, two wings exploded outward from my back.

Vast, overwhelming, and unnatural.

They were not angelic, nor demonic; each feather was a piece of night itself, stretching farther and farther until they blotted out the stars above.

Their edges shimmered faintly with silver, but the deeper one stared, the more the feathers devoured light like a black hole.

At the same time, something formed above me.

A circle.

A ring of endless night.

A halo…but not radiant or close to holy.

This one was inverted.

A perfect, bottomless black halo, hovering just above my forehead, dripping with shadows that hissed against the air.

[Bloodline Awakened…]

[Race Confirmed: ✯ Fallen God ✯]

The words slammed into me, causing my eyes to widen entirely.

“…A Fallen God bloodline… what does that even mean?”

I was still confused.

How come a Fallen God was something… that scared actual gods?

[It’s simple.]

Hmn?

[A god can only turn Fallen under one condition.]

The voice paused, almost as if even it hesitated to speak further.

[When a god willingly rejects their own divinity.]

“…Rejects…?”

My lips repeated.

[Yes. All gods are bound by their divine authority. It sustains them… but it also chains them. Their nature is fixed, their existence predetermined. The God of Fire can only be fire. The God of Dreams can only be dreams. Their will is bent, their instincts chained to their Authority.]

[But a Fallen God… is one who breaks that chain. Who throws away divinity itself.]

The words rang in my ears like the toll of a funeral bell.

[Once the chain is shattered, that being is no longer restricted by the rules of the Divine Realm. They are no longer “a god of something.” They are everything and nothing.]

My wings stretched unconsciously, the halo above me thrumming with resonance.

[This is why the Fallen God became a race feared even by the Divine Thrones themselves. Unlike ordinary gods, Fallen Gods do not weaken when facing rival authorities. They are not bound by domain. They can bend or consume any law… because they have rejected the Law itself.]

“Hah…”

[In ancient eras… a single Fallen God rose. His name was erased from history. He fought not with authority, but against it. And one by one, the Thrones fell. Flame, Storm, Death, Life, Space, Time… All crumbled. Entire pantheons were annihilated.]

The system’s voice trailed off slighly… before he added.

[That Fallen God alone… dominated the entire Divine Realm.]

The weight of that statement made even my bones ache.

[It took the combined effort of every surviving god, plus the creation of an entirely new Law, to finally bring him down. Even then, his corpse never decayed, and his halo never faded. His existence… remains.]

My lips curled upward.

“…So that’s why.”

The reason the gods are truly scared and desperate for my life.

[And now… You walk the same path.]

The system’s voice pressed the final nail.

[The race of Fallen Gods was never meant to exist again. Yet here you stand. Halo crowned. Wings unfurled. The same law-defying essence awakened within you. Understand this, Aestrea: the Divine Realm will not forgive you. Not this time.]

“I see…”

My lips curled upward as I lifted my head.

My eyes burned, glowing with a black and silver eclipse, the gaze of a predator no god could endure for long.

“This feels… right.”

I clenched my fist.

CRACK!

Space shattered like fragile glass around my hand.

“…I’m getting too many powerups in such a short time,” I muttered slighly.

As soon as I said those words, Isabella’s figure appeared in my mind slighly.

“Maybe I should keep going…”

Fwip…

One step, and I arrived at the Royal Palace…

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Far away.

Beyond stars, beyond realms, beyond the comprehension of mortals.

The Hall of Eternity trembled.

Its hourglass pillars bled golden sand, streams of time spilling across the marble floors and flowing upwards like waterfalls in reverse.

At the center of it all sat an ancient figure cloaked in flowing threads of starlight, eyes like endless clocks, turning, ticking, grinding.

The God of Time.

The one they called the “Pillar of Eternity,” the one even the arrogant Thrones whispered about with fear.

His head rose suddenly.

“…Impossible.”

For a being who had seen every age, every rise and fall, every betrayal, every war… surprise was something he thought he had discarded long ago.

Yet now, his hands trembled around his staff, golden gears spinning wildly around him, grinding so hard the hall itself cracked.

The sight he felt through the rivers of causality was clear. a halo of absolute black, two wings of abyss stretching wide.

A presence that was not bound to the axis of time itself.

A Fallen God.

“…He has awakened.”

The words were like poison in the silence of eternity.

Instantly, the bells of eternity tolled.

The Council of the Six was summoned.

One by one, pillars of divine light erupted within the hall.

The first to appear was her.

A radiance so pure it seared the floor with every step, a blinding brilliance wrapped in holy white.

Her long golden hair shimmered, her silver eyes sharp as blades.

The Goddess of Light.

“…Why summon me so abruptly, Chronos?” Her voice was calm, almost dismissive, but the faint crease in her brow revealed her own unease.

A second aura slithered in next.

Black, viscous, cruel. A body of obsidian muscles and shifting horns, eyes burning like coals. The room dimmed when he arrived, light swallowed whole.

The God of Darkness.

The Demon God.

“Even you… trembling, Chronos? Should I be afraid too?” He sneered, his deep voice dripping with mockery.

Then came the third.

A man with scars carved into every inch of his body, his armor reeking of bloodshed, his weapon taller than most towers. The air shook with the sound of endless battles when he set foot in the hall.

The God of War.

His eyes narrowed, but he didn’t speak; instead, he only gripped his halberd tighter.

The fourth descended with the scent of roses and poison both.

Her beauty was so sharp it hurt to look at her, each motion a melody that could enslave a heart forever.

Jewels clung to her skin as if desperate not to let go.

The Goddess of Beauty.

Her lips curved in a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.

“So serious… I’m curious what sort of boy could make the great Chronos lose his calm.”

And then the last appeared.

Her aura wasn’t radiant like the Goddess, nor suffocating like the Demon God’s, nor overwhelming like the War God’s.

It was… wrong.

Twisting… almost devouring.

The closer one looked, the harder it became to breathe, as if her very presence burrowed into the mind and claimed it.

The Goddess of Obsession.

Yennefer.

Her black hair flowed like ink, her crimson eyes glowed faintly, and her lips curved into something between amusement and hunger.

She stood with her hands clasped behind her back, as if she couldn’t care less about the tension suffocating the hall.

“…What happened?” she asked, voice flat, almost bored, like this gathering was nothing but an inconvenience.

Her gaze drifted lazily over Chronos, the Goddess of Light, the Demon God, before she gave a small sigh.

“I only just recovered all of my power… and now this?”

The others stiffened at her tone; it wasn’t dismissal out of ignorance, but out of arrogance.

Yennefer was the sort who could treat the end of the world like a dull play she’d seen too many times.

But before any could respond, her head tilted slightly.

“…Where is the Goddess of Magic?”

The question hung like a blade in the air.

Chronos’s jaw tightened, his ancient eyes narrowing as he extended his awareness through the currents of time.

His staff glowed, the gears of eternity turning backward, forward, across thousands of realms.

At last, his frown deepened.

“…She’s… in seclusion,” he muttered, pulling back as if something pressed against him from afar.

“I can sense her aura faintly, locked away, hidden even from the threads of causality.”

“Mhm…” Yennefer nodded slightly.

Noticing her satisfied reaction, Chronos raised his staff.

“…It cannot be hidden any longer.”

His voice was gravelly, steady yet grim.

“A Fallen God has awakened.”

The air froze.

The God of War’s hand clenched around his halberd until it cracked, his bronze eyes blazing wide in shock.

The Demon God leaned forward, his shadowed form rippling violently, red sparks flashing in his abyssal gaze.

Even the Goddess of Beauty gasped, a delicate hand covering her lips, her serene mask faltering.

Every god present knew what that meant.

A Fallen God was not simply dangerous.

It was a calamity.

A being who walked above laws, above order, a race that once dominated the entire Divine Realm alone.

The reaction was exactly what Chronos expected.

Exactly what he wanted.

Except… two.

The Goddess of Light didn’t flinch.

Her golden lashes lowered slightly, her eyes calm, her face carved into the same delicate poise she always carried.

Not even the faintest twitch betrayed her.

And Yennefer…

Yennefer’s lips curved almost imperceptibly.

Not into surprise, not into horror, but into nothing at all.

She sat back in her seat, one slender finger tapping against the polished armrest, her crimson eyes half-lidded, as if the announcement were nothing more than a dull report.

Still, she tilted her head, crimson irises flashing as she echoed the others with flawless mimicry.

“…A Fallen God?”

Her tone dripped with mock surprise, just enough to match the atmosphere, not too much to draw suspicion.

The Goddess of Light followed her lead perfectly, her hand brushing against her chest as she drew in a measured breath.

“…Impossible. Such a race has long vanished.”

To the others, they looked as stunned as anyone. But beneath the surface, both of them already knew.

They knew exactly who it was.

And yet, neither spoke.

Neither dared to expose it now.

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