Chapter 1167: Trade Between The Sun And Moon

"My my, how long has it been? It seems like your taste in buildings is still the same old same old. No improvements at all." Lumiria narrowed her eyes with a slight chuckle.

She covered her mouth with her fan while looking at Solaris who had arrived at the same time as she did.

"Ha! My taste in building? Why don’t we talk about your taste in men first. I don’t think it’s much of a secret that the great Goddess of the Moon has been showing a lot of favour towards a certain cardinal.

"So before you talk about my choice in location, sort out your little boy toy first." Solaris snapped back as hostility was very much evident in his eyes.

Though they may have gathered in order to help one another, that didn’t mean they had to necessarily enjoy each other’s presence.

Lumiria creased her brows as her smile faded.

"Such boldness for someone without a single Apostle by your side. Are you sure you should be so confident in your power when faith is failing so quickly? Even if I lose a limb or two, it’ll be much better you who’ll lose your life."

*RUMBLE!!!

Two authorities silently clashed as Griselda felt cold sweat roll down her back.

She knew the two would fight but they haven’t even begun the meeting yet!

"If you don’t want to discuss a partnership then don’t waste my time." Solaris closed his eyes.

If Lumiria was just here to piss him off then he will entertain her no longer.

"Now now, I never said anything about not wanting to talk about the partnership. This is merely a chat between old friends, don’t you agree?" Lumiria waved her fan as she took the initiative to sit down first.

Exhaling heavily, Solaris sat down as well.

"Let’s just get on with this meeting. I assume you are smart enough to know that Enris shouldn’t be contacted." Solaris opened one eye as Lumiria nodded her head.

"Of course. I’m not ignorant to the changes within that fickle God. They’ve already been corroded by the passage of time. Expecting them to act in a manner befitting their station is near impossible. In fact, I’ll be more surprised if she acted with the elegance expected of a god." Lumiria scoffed.

With the things that Enris had been getting up to as of late, it’s only natural for them to notice.

The shifts in her actions reflect her psychology.

Enris was getting desperate.

This was probably the best chance she had in a long time to find the paradise that she had been craving.

The paradise that she had given up when the three of them joined hands to kill a God.

"I don’t suppose she’s going to be one of the targets of our... partnership."

"Hmm... Do you want her to be?" Lumiria leaned to the side, resting her chin on her hand.

Tapping his fingers on the table, Solaris contemplated the options laid out before him.

With the movements of Nyer, major moves like killing a God wasn’t going to come without cost.

After Enris dies, they’ll no doubt be dragged into Nyer’s plans.

So the best thing to do would be to first consolidate their positions before making moves.

In his case, it would be to get rid of his Apostles so that he could regain the full foundation of his powers.

Apostles were simply meant to help them manage their properties with greater ease.

If they outlive their usefulness, it’s only natural that they get removed from their position.

The complication however...

Was the manner of which he carries out this action.

If not careful, it could very well easily backfire and erase all of the progress he has made.

Without the sufficient power to stand at the top of the food chain, Solaris doubted he could have the power to establish order when Nyer tries to carry out his plan in full.

Therefore, he had to retrieve the power from two disloyal retainers as they are currently his weak points.

While both have done him good service, their actions could no longer be ignored.

Not to mention... it seems like they were both on board with supporting Gwen in usurping his authority.

A cold light flashed through Solaris’s eyes as killing intent seeped out.

"No, Enris can continue doing whatever she wants to do. Wasting effort in trying to kill someone like Enris will only put the target on our own backs. And let’s be honest... if the opportunity appears, I don’t think either of us would hesitate to dissolve the partnership." Solaris stopped tapping his finger.

Once a God dies, there were... several things that can be harvested from their corpse.

Power and authority was simply one aspect that they could usurp.

Take Nyer for example. When Velouria died, he took both her body and fragments of her power.

So if say Lumiria was to show a significant weakness during battle, Solaris would take that moment to kill her and take her power for himself.

By boosting his own strength, he practically guarantee’s Enris’s death.

Of course, that was only in theory. Neither of them could fight at full power with that kind of risk looming over their heads.

Lumiria simply stayed silent but her eyes betrayed her thoughts.

It’s clear that she thought the same thing.

"So let’s keep things simple between us. One trade, no more no less. I help you with your little trouble, you help me with mine."

Lumiria nodded.

"Indeed, let’s keep things simple between us. So I’ll state mine first. After all... I believe my request is probably the easiest to fulfil. In fact, I would even go as far as to say this exchange is unfair but so be it. As long as the job is done well, I don’t mind taking a slight loss." Lumiria shrugged.

Her smile soon faded as a ruthless expression appeared on her face.

"I want you to kill Tristan’s sister in front of him. In the most brutal way possible, in a way that breaks his spirit. Make him beg me for help. Make him give everything up for my blessing in order to save what little he can.

"Everything he loves, everything he cherishes, I want you to rip it away from him until there is only room left for me. Simple right?"

Solaris raised an eyebrow.

"And this is a request towards the boy toy you ’love’ so much? How I pity the poor lad." Solaris shook his head helplessly.

Lumiria’s love is an all consuming inferno with no happy ending in sight.

The day her love falls onto your lap, you should stay away as much as possible.

In this aspect, Tristan had actually done exceedingly well. To string along a goddess to this extend, delaying the inevitable and buying time for himself.

Not that he knew of course. Otherwise he would’ve made the preparations to run.

"Is that your roundabout way of saying you can’t do it?"

"I never said I can’t. Simply that I pity the lad for attracting the love of a vixen such as yourself. But alright, I can arrange something like that to be done. It’s simply a case of finding the right actors for the job." Solaris shrugged.

Now it was time for his request.

"Kill both of my Apostles. But not before I reclaim their authority that the last possible moment. We need to make sure a battle is believable. And honestly, so long as Gwen doesn’t know the truth, it matters not if she is left alive.

"Without her father and ’aunt’ backing her up, how can she continue at the same momentum? They are practically her emotional pillars after all."

There were a couple of things he didn’t say but one could simply assume what he desired. Ordering their deaths like this meant he didn’t want people to discover that he was the one behind it.

Not when the two Apostles had so much good will with the people they’ve saved in the past.

"Some God of Sun you are. Protection? Preservation? Hah. But it’s not difficult. I’m sure we can arrange for something to overlap for our requests. Nyer’s Nightmare is expanding much faster than anyone had initially expected. With such a perfect scapegoat, there is no better time than now."

Watching the two Gods discuss ways on how they could torment some of their most devoted without an ounce of hesitation, Griselda couldn’t help but tighten her own grip on her hand.

Though she kept her expression neutral, a storm as brewing in her eyes.

-Look at these two. Gods whispering sick plans to one another. They’re ready to turn on the people close to them if it meant satisfying their own desires. How long do you think it’ll take for Lumiria to turn against you?-

’Silence. I’m aware of what must be done. But if you insist on speaking, then all it does is confirm that you are not my inner voice. You are not some soul that had splintered itself from the cluster.

"You are an anomaly. A third party. State your name fiend, and state what you desire from me.’ Griselda cut the voice off.

It’s clear that the other person had a goal they wanted to accomplish. She had already resolved herself to turn against her Goddess. So the fact that this voice continued to speak meant that there was one more goal they wanted to achieve.

For a moment, Griselda could almost see a flickering shadow at the edges of her peripheral.

A relaxed woman walking with calm steps, covered by shadow with a wide smile on her face.

Her finger pressed against her lips as to not spill any secrets.

-My desire is for you to play a certain role in this play known as life. Thus are, you are the best candidate. Do you think you can do that?-

Thinking about it for a moment, Griselda exhaled inwardly.

’Depends on what the role is.’

The woman’s smile widened into a grin.

*Cacha...