Chapter 239: The Celestial Accord (3)
After Nara spoke, Akasha wasted no time in laying out what he wanted to change about their agreement—and the biggest point of all was the matter of time.
Originally, he had only made the deal to get Nara and Amaterasu off the world of Kalpa so he could focus on completing his task.
In truth, he had never intended to grant them—or any faction besides his own—a full century of his time.
That kind of commitment just didn’t fit with how he wanted to live.
Still, as he had said before, he was a man of his word.
But when he explained that he didn’t want the time frame shortened but removed entirely, the room fell into a heavy, unbroken silence.
"Akasha..." Nara spoke slowly as her grip on her armrest tightened. "Are you joking?"
"Of course...: Akasha said as he laughed, the sound low and unhurried, "Not"
Nara’s patience thinned in the space between one breath and the next.
Her green eyes held him without the warmth she had shown Sunya, and when she spoke again, the words carried the weight of a woman who had ruled too long to be tested for sport.
"You enjoy mystery... I will allow that." She said, taking a slow breath.
"However, I will not allow you to stand in my hall and pull the floor out from under an agreement as if I am too cautious or scared to face you.
I am not afraid of a fight with you, Akasha. Do not test me too much."
Amaterasu watched from beside them, as she was still locked in place.
’Dammit, Nara... stop talking with him already,’ She thought internally, ’If she just released me... we could take this bastard.’
"Alright, alright," Akasha said, raising both hands in a playful show of surrender.
"If I wanted a fight... you’d already be dead."
The remark eased the tension in Nara’s stance just enough to soften her edge, though it came without the apology she had never sought.
He placed his hands back in his lap and continued, his voice earnest.
"Even though I don’t want the previous agreement, I won’t do something like this without doing something for you."
Then he shifted, and the friendly tone sharpened into an ultimatum.
"However... it all depends on what you choose.
Either I can help you claim this Star Cluster, and when that’s done, our connection ends there—cleanly, with nothing left owed. Or," he said as he paused, the infinity symbols in his eyes slowly turning.
"We can become true allies, and you leave behind everything this Star Cluster could offer, because I will show you a world you never dreamed possible."
The words weren’t blasphemous, nor were they outright illogical.
All Akasha did was ask two goddesses to abandon a goal they had been pursuing for countless Eras, simply because he had stepped into a chamber and spoken as though the Cluster had already outgrown itself.
Neither of them voiced the thought, but Nara’s expression made it clear, and Amaterasu’s expression made it even clearer.
Nara’s eyes narrowed, not in outright refusal, but with a guarded calculation.
Instead of shutting him down, she posed the one question that kept their exchange from teetering into open conflict.
"What could be more important to us than claiming the Star Cluster?"
Akasha’s smile returned, quieter this time.
"Well... Have you ever wondered why you cannot exceed the rank of Cosmic Union?"
The words drifted out into the chamber, leaving behind a heavy, unbroken silence.
Nara stayed seated on her throne, her fingers clenched tightly around the armrest, as if anchoring herself in the silence.
Amaterasu gazed at him with her red eyes, as if she needed him to repeat himself.
Akasha didn’t mind their stares.
He waited patiently, and during that time, he drew a teacup from his inventory.
Dark liquid filled it to the brim—Dragon Blood, thick enough that the surface barely moved when he lifted it.
"Oh?" He raised a brow as he sipped the blood. "This... tastes even better now..."
He figured it had to be because of his own bloodline, but he didn’t really mind—it was a small perk.
His nonchalance was what finally pushed the women to speak.
"What are you getting at?" Amaterasu demanded, her words clipped, heat still in her voice.
Nara’s tone was softer but just as pointed.
"Say what you mean, Akasha.... No more riddles."
However, to their words... He shook his head.
"No... You must first make a decision. I can only guarantee that I am not pulling your legs."
Then the smile returned, and a thin line of blood slipped from the corner of his mouth as he finished the sip.
"Because... if I tell you, and you disagree—"
In that moment, he blinked.
In an instant, his innate power, Dreamy Protection, flowed through his eyes.
One moment Akasha was floating cross-legged in the air before them, and the next he was behind Nara’s throne, the Dreamer’s Scythe already in his grasp.
Its curved blade hovered at her throat, close enough for her to feel the chill of the metal, though it had yet to draw a single drop of blood.
He finished the sentence in the same even tone.
"I will truly have to kill you."
A shiver ran down both women’s spines.
Nara didn’t swallow, nor did she lean back. In her mind, she gauged the space between her and the blade, noting with unease how he’d closed the distance without the slightest warning.
After a few moments, Nara spoke, her voice steady by force.
"Does this deal stand for only us two... or the entire Celestial Accord?"
Hearing her words, Akasha shrugged.
"I couldn’t care less... You are free to decide."
For what he had planned, the more allies he could gather to his side, the better.
The scythe withdrew from her throat, and in an instant, he was back beside the projection, as though he’d never moved at all. One eyebrow lifted, the unspoken question clear in his expression.
So—what’s it going to be?
Nara drew a breath that tasted of incense and old paper.
"Can we have at least some time to think about this?"
"The time frame remains," Akasha said. "You are free to visit my domain in a decade."
He disappeared with the final word still hanging in the air.
Sage, who hadn’t stirred since she’d settled to rest, gave a lazy yawn atop his head... and then, in that fleeting instant, her gray fur and eyes of a mythical purple shimmered into view for the briefest heartbeat of motion.
Catching a glimpse of her, both women’s eyes went wide.
"Was that..." Amaterasu began.
Nara finished for her, the words slipping out before she’d even decided she wanted them spoken.
"A Divine Beast?"