Chapter 551: Ego vs Pride

"I would rather throw myself into the core of a collapsing star," Xalvoria snarled, taking a fast step backward. The haughty arrogance on her face twisted into sheer disgust. "Let a man touch me? Let his tainted, filthy hands soil my royal flesh? I will die first."

Xavier raised a hand and pointed at the glowing rock on the altar. "Yeah, I am going to have to side with the angry space lizard on this one. I am passing on this mission. I have zero interest in touching someone who reeks of arrogance."

Behind him, Reva crossed her arms, glaring at the Empress, and Lyra nodded in agreement.

"You are both fools blinded by mortal pride," Astrea stated. "This is not about your fleeting, fragile emotions. This is a matter of biological mathematics. Listen to me, and listen closely."

The pale light from the stone pulsed, focusing its heavy presence directly on Xavier.

"Child, your physical form is a clean and pure vessel, but it is currently an empty shell," the Goddess explained, her tone dripping with instructional cynicism. "You possess the blood of Zephyros, yet you lack the refined data required to process the raw power of the fragments you carry. By intertwining your DNA with hers, you will download the accumulated resonance of the eight shards she holds on the Sun's Moon. The biological transfer will reinforce your frame, multiplying your base strength threefold in a matter of hours."

Xavier slowly lowered his hand. He looked at the fragment, his mind immediately calculating the massive, undeniable power spike the Goddess was offering him.

Xalvoria scoffed, wrapping her crimson mantle tighter around her shoulders. "So the boy feeds off my lineage and grows stronger. How typical of his kind. There is nothing in this mandate for me. I refuse to be a mere stepping stone for his ascension."

"Do not interrupt me, mortal," Astrea snapped. The ambient light in the cabin flashed dangerously, forcing the Empress to lower her chin. "Your matriarchy has gathered my pieces for millions of years, yes. But your royal bloodline is fraying. Your cells are degrading under the sheer weight of holding a third of my soul. You hide it well, Xalvoria, but you are slowly burning from the inside out."

The Empress stiffened. The color drained from her face as the Goddess ruthlessly exposed her deepest, most guarded royal secret right in front of her enemies.

"His DNA contains immense, valuable energy," Astrea continued, her matriarchal voice echoing with heavy authority. "He carries the Primordial Endurance of the Emperor of Eternity. Fusing your biological data with his will repair your decaying genetics. You will gain the raw durability of Zephyros himself. It will stabilize your core, cure your failing bloodline, and allow you to wield the true, violent potential of your eight pieces without destroying your own body in the process."

The heavy gravity of the situation settled over the cramped quarters. The logic Astrea presented was cold, sharp, and impossible to argue against.

Xalvoria stared at the floor, her jaw tight. The intense revulsion was still painted across her features, but the desperate need to save her life and her lineage warred aggressively against her ancient pride. She slowly lifted her gaze to look at Xavier. Her crimson eyes flashed with a complicated mix of deep hatred, injured pride, and reluctant hunger.

"If I agree to this..." Xalvoria whispered, her voice trembling slightly as she addressed the Goddess while glaring at Xavier. "It is a transaction. Nothing more."

"A pure exchange of data and energy," Astrea confirmed.

Xavier looked back at the Empress, the tension between them shifting from murderous intent to something highly volatile and entirely different. Reva and Lyra stepped closer to his back, their protective instincts flaring as they realized what was about to happen in their captain's quarters.

"We will conduct this transaction on my dreadnought," Xalvoria stated, her voice tight with barely contained revulsion. She turned her back to him, expecting immediate compliance. "Prepare yourself for transport."

Xavier didn't move a single muscle. "No, we won't."

Xalvoria paused, glancing back over her shoulder. "Excuse me?"

"You might have agreed to this little arrangement because it pauses your genetic death timer," Xavier said, leaning back against the bulkhead. "But I never said yes. I have plenty of other ways to get strong. I'm passing."

The Empress stared at him, her brain momentarily short-circuiting. She had just forced herself to swallow her ultimate pride. She had agreed to do the very thing she hated most in the universe, that was letting a man touch her royal flesh, and the reincarnation of her most despised enemy had just openly rejected her.

Her fury breached its limit.

"You arrogant, filthy mortal!" Xalvoria shouted, her voice vibrating the metal walls of the cabin. "You cannot refuse a direct mandate from the Divine Mother! The penalty for defying her quest will crush you!"

"Then the penalty falls on my head," Xavier replied, unaffected by her screaming. "That is my problem, not yours. You shouldn't worry about it. My rejection, my consequences."

Xalvoria stood frozen. For the first time in centuries, the ruler of the Sun's Moon was rendered utterly speechless. She felt like a total moron standing in the cramped quarters of a rogue ship, offering herself to a boy who didn't even want her.

Before Xalvoria could draw her aura to strike him, the pale light from the altar flared.

"Why do you resist this, child?" Astrea's voice echoed. "You are a greedy little thing when it comes to power. Why do you deny the data your vessel desperately needs?"

"Because I already told you what I think of her," Xavier answered, keeping his gaze locked on the seething Empress. "I don't like her. She is arrogant, selfish, and a raging narcissist. If she wants to fulfill this quest and save her failing bloodline, it happens on my terms."

He stepped closer to Xalvoria, looking down into her glaring crimson eyes. "If you want the cure, you listen to me. You do exactly what I tell you to do."