Chapter 385: Ally?

"Hmm, this is a problem," Kyle muttered.

He stood within the void with Amanda and Veronica at his side, both wearing expressions of undisguised shock.

Their eyes remained fixed on the man kneeling before them. Arthur’s features had gone completely blank, his head tilted upward, his mouth hanging open as three small golden orbs floated just above it.

"What... in the hell is that?" Amanda asked first, tilting her head as she stared at the bizarre sight. She had never seen anything like it. More importantly, she could not understand how, in the span of mere minutes, Arthur, a man who had once been proud and feared, had been reduced to this state.

He was certainly weakened within this domain, but he should not have surrendered this easily.

"That... is the Circle of Mercy," Kyle muttered. "Every patron possesses the authority to liberate their devotees from the burden of life."

A shiver ran down Veronica’s spine.

"Wait... our patrons can kill us too?"

Kyle shook his head. "Only if the devotee has submitted and lost the will to live."

His gaze shifted toward Ethan.

"What exactly did you do to him?"

Ethan answered calmly, "I gave him a chance to attack me and intercepted every attack until he lost the will to continue."

Kyle frowned.

This had taken far less time than he had anticipated.

’Could it be that Arthur had never actually faced a situation like this before?’

Kyle knew Arthur had been hailed as a prodigy for a long time, but the man had never interested him enough to warrant deeper research. Perhaps having no true competition at the top had left Arthur unprepared for the moment when someone finally pushed him beyond his limits.

Or perhaps it was simpler than that.

A man who had never been forced to stand at the brink, again and again, might find his will breaking far more easily than anyone expected when he finally reached it.

"So... who is his patron?" Veronica asked curiously.

Considering what Ethan has done so far and what Kyle intended to do later, the fact that Arthur’s god had chosen to intervene hardly surprised them.

Kyle crossed his arms.

"The God of Light, Apollo."

He did not need to double-check. The radiance Arthur constantly carried around himself, coupled with his overwhelming pride and narcissistic personality, made the answer almost obvious. Apollo’s influence was written all over him.

"Won’t this deity become wary of you?" Amanda asked with concern.

She did not know much about the atmosphere within the divine realm, but from everything Kyle had told them, Apollo fell somewhere within the grey zone. There were only a few gods who had openly displayed hostility toward Kyle.

Kyle hummed before saying, "Amanda... most deities, for one reason or another, are already wary of me. So there isn’t much I’m changing here."

There were only a few beings in existence who truly understood who he was.

Three, to be exact.

The Three Fundamentals.

Apart from them, almost everyone, Odin included, remained guarded around him for reasons of their own. Some of that caution was instinctive, while some of it had been born from fear.

Regardless, Kyle’s attention returned to the three golden orbs hovering before Arthur.

"I’m going to need to do something about this Circle. If I let it complete, Arthur will no longer be useful to me."

Arthur was not only a potentially valuable asset. His disappearance would also raise questions and suspicion.

Everyone knew what Kyle looked like, and the last person he had been seen with was Kyle.

That meant unnecessary trouble.

"But... how would you do that?" Veronica asked. "I thought the connection between a Blessed One and their deity was incredibly strong. Isn’t it impossible for someone else to interfere with it? And this god might intervene if you tried anything."

There was a trace of concern in her voice. She feared that whatever Kyle intended to do might place even more strain on him.

Kyle sighed before giving her exactly the answer she had dreaded.

"I would need to liberate some of my power..."

"No. Absolutely not."

Amanda immediately cut him off.

"You’ve already used your powers before. If you use any more, you’ll start losing yourself."

She knew exactly what Kyle’s vessel meant to him. His physical form was the thread connecting his celestial existence to the human being named Kyle.

If he lost this vessel, he would lose his memories. He would forget everything and everyone he had come to care about, and eventually, he would have no choice but to leave them behind.

Kyle could only exhale helplessly. Aleda had been warning him about the same thing for some time now.

[Host, any further strain may cause your magic system to collapse. While the host is capable of repairing the damage, the resulting vulnerability and permanent damage to the vessel would be severe.]

Kyle was still contemplating what to do next, wondering if he truly had no choice but to dispose of Arthur, when the wavelength of the surrounding magic suddenly shifted.

The Veil of reality strained, just enough for the disturbance to be noticed.

What appeared next left everyone stunned.

"Hello there~"

Someone who looked exactly like Amanda, wearing the same black top and blue denim jeans, appeared before them and blew Kyle a kiss.

"What the fuck is this?" Amanda demanded, her guard already raised as her eyes narrowed.

Veronica and Ethan were no less alert. Someone had just intruded into a place that only Kyle should have been able to access, and to make matters worse, they had chosen to take the exact appearance of a woman who was already standing there.

Kyle, however, remained completely indifferent.

"What business do you have with me, Loki?"

The impostor glanced toward him.

"You know him?" Amanda asked.

Kyle nodded. "A deity as well, though one of a rather trivial subject."

"Being mischievous is never easy," the man said.

He vanished.

A moment later, he appeared directly behind Kyle, leaning around his shoulder with a playful grin, his face now mirroring Veronica.

"It takes courage, imagination, and a whole lot of risk."

Kyle sighed.

"Asking you again, why are you here, Loki?"

A faint radiance suddenly coursed through the impostor’s body. His appearance warped, the familiar features dissolving as his true form emerged.

A charismatic black-haired man stood before them, his sharp, snake-like eyes carrying an amused glint. He was tall and well-built, dressed entirely in a sleek black suit.

He gave Kyle a curt bow.

"Heard a lot about you." His lips curved. "And those rumors don’t do justice for how least intimidating you are."

Kyle hummed. "Do you have something for me? If not, I would rather have your presence erased from this realm."

Loki raised both hands in surrender. "I came here with pure intentions. Good ones, I assure you. You may not know much about me, certainly not from the Allfather, but for the sake of the trouble I went through to get here, please hear me out until the end."

Kyle crossed his arms. "You certainly like to talk, don’t you? Well, go ahead."

Loki slowly reached into his coat and pulled out an envelope before extending it toward Kyle.

Kyle narrowed his eyes. God’s Eye failed to pierce the radiance surrounding its contents. He did not dwell on it for long.

"Is it from Apollo?"

"Yes, but I assure you, the contents carry nothing but words of peace."

Kyle shook his head. "I hardly believe that. But let’s assume you’re telling the truth. Why did you bother bringing it to me?"

Veronica was somewhat stunned by how casually Kyle was dealing with an actual god.

’Then again... he’s not human either.’

His existence far exceeded anything she, or even Loki, could truly comprehend.

"I wish to make a promissory bond. A soul contract," Loki said before softening his tone. "Of course, only if you are willing. I simply want the assurance that once you regain your authority, I will stand on your side."

Kyle paused before asking, "Why do you think there will be a war?"

"Isn’t it obvious?" Loki replied. "Factions are already forming, and they are growing restless now that the true Originator has made his appearance."

Kyle sighed. "Well, as long as I remain mortal, they won’t be able to do much."

"But what happens during your ascension?" Loki asked.

Kyle fell silent.

For the first time, he had no immediate answer.

Loki continued, "I know, much like many others, that you still hold affection for your mortal self. For..." His gaze shifted toward the other three before he continued, "for your people. And for their sake, you intend to restore your immortality while retaining these emotions and memories."

"That’s impossible," Kyle muttered.

"For others, perhaps. But not for you. And I’m not the only one who knows that. Several others do as well."

Kyle pursed his lips, giving Loki the opportunity to continue.

"When the moment of your ascension arrives, you will open yourself to attacks from beings across countless realms. Every faction with a grudge, every god seeking your authority, every being who sees an opportunity will have a reason to come for you. And when that time comes, you will need allies."

Loki extended his hand toward Kyle.

"I want to become your ally, my lord."