She sighed, seeming genuinely troubled. "That girl... her whole mind is completely tied to the Empress. Speaking of which, is it really just a relationship between ruler and subject?"
"Even when chatting with me normally, one out of every three sentences she says is filled with worry and concern for Cerydra? It's enough to make my ears grow calluses!"
Although Aglaea's tone was full of criticism and some dissatisfaction towards Hysilens, anyone could easily hear the genuine care hidden beneath the complaint.
"You said you were someone who returned from the 'previous recurrence ,' right?" Aglaya looked at Phaethon, her expression becoming a bit more serious.
"I just wanted to ask you, in the 'last time' you know about, Cerydra... how did she end up? Tell me, so I can let that fish who came from the sea, the one who's always so unsettled, rest a little easier."
...
Meanwhile, deep within the Hall of the Three Fate in Janusopolis.
The air was as thick as solid matter.
At the center of the grand hall, no ceremony was taking place. Instead, a silent yet perilous contest was unfolding.
Cerydra stood alone on the cold floor. Before her hovered a massive chessboard constructed of light, shadow, and energy.
The board was crisscrossed with lines, each square seemingly containing endless rules and laws.
On the opposite side of the board, there was no one.
Yet, bizarrely, the pieces belonging to the other side were moving on their own, following some cold, absolute, inhuman rule. Each time a piece landed, the sound seemed to strike directly upon the soul.
It was the Titan of 'Law'!
He was using this rule-based chessboard as a medium, engaging in a game beyond the mundane with Cerydra!
Cerydra pressed her lips tightly together, her gaze sharp as a torch, locked onto the board.
Her slender yet powerful finger lifted, tightly grasping a piece representing one of her legions. After several minutes of calculation and deduction, she slammed it down onto a crucial square on the board!
Thump!
As the piece landed, an opposing piece representing a powerful Black Tide spawn shattered in response, turning to dust and dissipating.
However, almost the very next second, the ruthless counter of the 'Law' Titan arrived instantaneously.
Another piece belonging to the Titan swiftly moved, carrying the law-crushing force, and violently smashed a vitally important piece on Cerydra's side to pieces as well! Powder flew.
Such exchanges, sacrifices, and trades had been ongoing in this silent hall for a full three hours!
Fine beads of sweat continuously seeped from Cerydra's temples, sliding down her tense cheeks and dripping onto her clenched fists.
The board was already covered in a thick layer of powder from both sides' pieces, like a miniature, grim battlefield.
She knew with absolute clarity that this was no ordinary game of chess.
Every attack, every defense, every sacrifice playing out on this board at this moment would be precisely reflected in the real war against the 'Ocean' Titan in the future!
Her opponent was the Titan who wielded 'Law,' representing the cold, unfeeling absolute rules and price.
And the pieces in her hand were her loyal subordinates, living lives!
So... she had to win. She had to calculate every single move precisely! To ensure every sacrifice held its maximum value, to ensure not a single drop of blood was shed in vain!
Thinking of this, the sweat on her temples flowed more rapidly, and her breathing grew heavier.
The pressure on the board pressed down on her shoulders like a tangible mountain, but the fire in her eyes hadn't dimmed in the slightest.
Abruptly, a clear, steady sound of footsteps echoed from behind Cerydra, breaking the deathly silence of the hall that had contained only the sound of shattering pieces.
"Did I not already give a strict order that absolutely no one was to enter and disturb me?" Cerydra's voice held a trace of anger at being interrupted and the hoarseness of exhaustion.
She was about to rebuke sharply, but when she turned her head and saw who it was, her tone changed abruptly, taking on a note of astonishment: "...'Fortune Duke'? What are you doing here?"
Cerydra frowned slightly, looking at Phaethon as he approached slowly. A flicker of confusion passed through her eyes, but was quickly covered by a look of resolve. "Have you come to hasten me about retrieving the Coreflame of 'Law'?"
Though her voice couldn't hide the weakness from prolonged exertion, her back remained ramrod straight. "Are you in such a hurry? I have already promised to hand the Coreflame over to you. I, the Imperator's word is never broken."
Phaethon didn't answer immediately. He just took a few steps forward, his gaze falling on the vast, complex light-shadow chessboard before her.
The crisscrossing lines were covered with pieces representing different units. Most had already turned to dust, and the surviving ones mostly bore cracks. The situation was clearly deadlocked and grim.
Er—Alright. To be honest. He couldn't understand it.
That intricate game, laden with countless traps and plans—he only glanced at it a few times before his head started to ache, completely unwilling to think about the logic and cost behind it.
"What?" Cerydra noticed his scrutinizing gaze, her tone regaining that nearly stubborn pride and arrogance belonging to a monarch. "Does the 'Fortune Duke' happen to be proficient in this? I must remind you, this is no ordinary game of chess."
"Every move is connected to reality and requires payment of an equivalent price," her voice grew heavy. "Moreover, this is my trial alone, a rule acknowledged by 'Law.' This game... can only be played by me!"
Hearing this, Phaethon spread his hands quite helplessly and told the truth: "Cerydra 1, I'm nowhere near as good at chess as you are. Not even close."
"In that case," Cerydra's attention had already refocused on the board, her tone carrying urgency, "shouldn't the 'Fortune Duke' leave promptly? Don't disturb me while I retrieve the Coreflame of 'Law'... Flame..."
Her words suddenly halted. The last syllable got stuck in her throat, becoming muddled, even carrying a tremble of disbelief.
Because—
Phaethon's hand had very naturally, even somewhat casually, come to rest on top of her head.
Right next to that cluster of quietly burning blue candles.
But actually, Phaethon himself felt a wave of sudden awkwardness.
His original plan was to place his hand on her shoulder.
However... due to some objective factors of irresistible force (the height difference), that shoulder-pat action would have been awkward and strenuous.
And the top of Cerydra's head... that height and curve, somehow, was just right.
The spot was so fitting it was as if there was supposed to be a handrail there...
And so, through a series of unexpected twists, the situation ended up like this.