Chapter 283 : Calm Before the Storm (8)
Chapter 283: Calm Before the Storm (8)
However, there was one fact: neither Berenistella nor Talia were in perfect condition.
No—saying they were not in perfect condition was almost embarrassing.
If the two of them had been able to display even a tenth of the power they possessed in their prime, they would have already defeated the other in an instant.
Berenistella had offered up most of her power—and most of herself—as a sacrifice for reversing time.
Talia, on the other hand, existed in such a faint state that it was barely accurate to say she was still clinging to the mortal world.
Even so, their battle was so fierce that no one of this era could possibly endure it.
How many fatal blows had they exchanged—attacks that would have caused one to crumble the moment even a graze landed?
In the end, unable to endure it any longer, Talia shouted in frustration.
“Can I at least know the reason!”
“Will you not shut that mouth of yours…!”
“I don’t have the time—or the strength—for this!”
At Talia’s shout, Berenistella ground her teeth and roared back.
“So that’s why you tried to offer that child as a sacrifice? Because you had no time and no strength!”
“What…?”
Realizing what Berenistella meant, Talia urgently cried out.
“You’re mistaken, Berenistella! I never once thought of doing anything to that child—your disciple!”
“How could I possibly believe the words of a filthy half-breed like you!”
“If that’s the case, I’ll stake my name—my name itself! I’ll stake my soul, my life, everything!”
Talia shouted repeatedly in a desperate tone.
It almost looked like she was begging.
But she had no room to care about that.
If possible, she would have subdued Berenistella first and calmly explained everything afterward—but instead of subduing her opponent, she herself was on the verge of being swept away by a bizarre wind and erased without leaving even a trace.
‘More importantly… neither I nor that woman can afford to fall here…!’
Despite Talia’s cries, Berenistella merely scoffed.
“Who would believe the words of a mongrel?”
“If you put it that way, your disciple is also a half-breed—ah.”
Talia instinctively shot back, then hurriedly clamped her mouth shut.
But words once spoken could not be taken back.
She stopped attacking and met Berenistella’s gaze as the other woman stared at her.
“……”
Berenistella said nothing.
Her eyes were so chilling that even Talia—who had survived countless battlefields of carnage—flinched for a moment.
“S-sorry.”
Talia spoke quickly.
This was genuinely dangerous.
She was already a dead person, yet it felt as if cold sweat was pouring from her entire body.
“Uh… I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean it. I actually like that child—really. That’s a rare seed of a hero. There’s no way I’d hate or insult a child like that, right? And like you said, I’m a half-breed too. Do you think I’d call someone like that a mongrel?”
“……”
At that moment—
Lord Valen Zeisho, who had been standing back and watching their battle, let out a sigh.
“…This should be enough, shouldn’t it?”
He stepped forward a few paces and spoke with proper courtesy toward Berenistella.
“The one called Talia shattered anyone who dared call her a mongrel—whether noble or imperial. Yet she is lowering herself and begging like this. Please, if only for a moment, set aside your anger.”
“……”
Berenistella seemed to calm slightly at Lord Valen Zeisho’s exceedingly polite request.
Yet her eyes were still filled with thick, seething killing intent.
She glared at Talia and spoke.
“…Then who will take the role of the sacrifice?”
Berenistella immediately continued.
“Tell me, Mage. Who exactly will serve as the sacrifice? Even including the three of you, you still lack two, do you not?”
She pointed toward Arpentia, who was being held in Lord Valen Zeisho’s arms.
“Even if we include that brat, one is still missing. Valen Zeisho is not qualified. So who were you planning to offer as the sacrifice?”
She bared her teeth and growled.
“Was it this concubine? Or perhaps that child? Which one is it? You had better answer quickly—unless you want this concubine to crack open your skull and rummage through it.”
“…Ah. Now I finally understand.”
Lord Valen Zeisho nodded.
He carefully set Arpentia down from his arms.
“Berenistella, you granted several of my requests in the past.”
“What nonsense are you suddenly spouting?”
“And I granted several of yours as well. Therefore, I believe you can spare a moment to talk.”
Suddenly, he threw away the weapon he had been holding.
The bow fell limply with a dull thud, landing within Berenistella’s reach.
“I have discarded my weapon—the greatest sincerity a warrior can show. So I will speak relying on that sincerity. You are misunderstanding many things.”
“A misunderstanding?”
“Yes.”
“What exactly is misunderstood? Explain it with your own mouth. Have I not said it many times already?”
“I will explain. Please listen.”
Berenistella gestured with her chin as if telling him to go on.
“……”
But Lord Valen Zeisho did not speak immediately.
He closed his eyes and took several deep breaths before finally letting out a long exhale.
Berenistella looked at him with annoyance, but since she had decided to listen, she remained silent.
“First—although we called it a Human Sacrifice Ritual… it is a sacrifice, not an offering.”
“A mere play on words. And how would someone like you know such a thing?”
“I have no choice but to know.”
His voice carried emotions difficult to describe.
“My wife offered herself as a sacrificial lamb for her Lineage before her life ended.”
He continued.
“She told me that a sacrifice and an offering are similar, yet different. The former is far stronger, but also far more difficult….”
“……”
“…At least, that story is not important right now. Let me continue.”
He resumed.
“A sacrifice must come forward through one’s own firm will. If it is forced by another, it is nothing more than an offering.”
Then he turned to look at his companions, including Talia.
“These three endured hundreds of years knowing everything. They rejected the rest that should have come to their bodies and souls, and willingly endured humiliation. In the end, they volunteered to be sacrifices.”
“What nonsense.”
Berenistella scoffed.
“Were you not someone who knew nothing as well? Why do you now speak as if you understood everything?”
“…My story is not finished.”
“Nor is mine.”
She spat the words out.
“I know that child’s heart well. If you kneel before that child and start spouting those honeyed words about saving the world and everyone else, that child would accept in the end.”
As she spoke, Berenistella glared at Talia.
“You know that as well, do you not?”
“…It certainly seemed that way.”
Lord Valen Zeisho nodded in agreement.
If the person in question had been here, he might have protested in disbelief—but Lord Valen Zeisho simply looked at Berenistella.
“May I continue?”
“Go ahead. Speak as much as you like.”
“In that sense… that child—Arpentia—also cannot become a sacrifice.”
“…What?”
Berenistella looked incredulous, but Lord Valen Zeisho continued calmly.
“Of course, if we explained everything and asked, that child would willingly volunteer. However….”
He hesitated briefly.
“To make someone endure such centuries, only to end their life as a sacrifice at the very end… there is no such justice in the world.”
Then he added:
“Moreover, as you can see, that child is currently… somewhat ill. In such a state, it cannot truly be said that the decision would come entirely from their own will.”
“…This conversation is going in circles. No—rather, it has worsened.”
She scoffed.
“In that case, the missing sacrifice has increased from one to two. Unless you intended to offer this concubine as well.”
“I have said repeatedly—that is a misunderstanding.”
“If you wish to clear this concubine’s misunderstanding, then begin by explaining the Iron Needle embedded in that brat’s chest.”
At that moment, Talia—who had been silent until now—spoke immediately.
“I’ll explain that.”
She lowered the hand she had slightly raised.
“That’s meant to sever the connection between us and that child.”
“Sever the connection?”
“Yes. Like I said earlier—we’re here because everything is mixed together: the Remnants of the Eight Demon Lords, the Brand, and many other things. Because of that, we’re strongly connected to that child. In truth, we cannot do anything of our own will.”
She gave a bitter smile.
“If that child doesn’t force us, that’s fortunate. Because honestly… we’re practically slaves.”
“…Then when exactly did you prepare such a thing?”
Berenistella asked coldly.
No matter how she thought about it, the timing made no sense.
If—just perhaps—
“Before I died.”
Talia answered immediately.
“…You prepared it hundreds of years in advance?”
“Yes. …I know what you’re thinking. You’re wondering if it has something to do with the Evil Dragon, right? Go ahead and check. It’s similar—but different.”
She smiled wryly.
“I never expected I’d end up thinking in a way similar to that bastard.”
“……”
Berenistella quietly looked at the Iron Needle embedded in Arpentia’s chest.
Indeed, it possessed a power similar to those she had seen before—but clearly different.
“…Very well. I understand the matter of the Iron Needle. But the question I asked earlier still remains unanswered. I keep asking how you intend to make up for the missing sacrifice.”
“That is….”
At Berenistella’s question, Talia faltered.
The one who stepped forward was Lord Valen Zeisho.
“…I said earlier, did I not?”
He whispered quietly.
“That I finally understood.”
He stepped forward several more paces.
Then he glanced at Talia.
“Talia. Thinking about it now, you’ve always been like this. You always put people in difficult positions.”
“…Sorry.”
Her voice sounded as though it had been squeezed out.
“I’m sorry. I’m truly sorry, Jay… but—”
“That’s enough. Didn’t I say earlier? That I finally understood. That means I understand and accept all of your thoughts.”
He smiled.
“…How could one say such things to a dear friend? I would have done the same in your position. Do not burden yourself with guilt.”
“……”
“Even someone like me—an outsider—can see it clearly. No matter how much I searched, there was nothing suitable.”
After finishing his conversation with Talia, Lord Valen Zeisho turned toward Berenistella.
“Do you have anything more to ask me?”
“Why do you ask?”
“If so, then I apologize, but please lend me a blade. A dagger would be best.”
“A dagger?”
“Yes.”
Lord Valen Zeisho spoke calmly.
“I will take one of the positions.”
His voice remained utterly indifferent.
“But as you said, I currently lack the qualification to be a sacrifice.”
“……”
Perhaps realizing his intention, Berenistella silently took a dagger from her robes and threw it to him.
Catching it skillfully, Lord Valen Zeisho bowed in thanks.
“Talia. Let me ask one thing.”
“…Yes.”
“Can that child endure it?”
The question carried many meanings.
She nodded.
“In the end… yes. As you know, this child was stronger than any of us.”
“I can only hope so.”
With that, Lord Valen Zeisho gripped the dagger in reverse.
“…Berenistella. I pray that the words you once told me were sincere.”
And with that—
Without hesitation, Lord Valen Zeisho plunged the dagger into his own heart.