Kneeling on the ground, Clarsen couldn't find himself holding the motivation to even lift his head and witness the place he was summoned to.
Although his physical pain has vanished, the psychological damage he received was not something he could recover easily.
Or maybe he never could recover from the memories of those days.
It has been already over forty hours since he was summoned here, but Clarsen had yet to move a single muscle of his body, and if not for his heaving chest, one might have thought that he died.
Finally, the one who brought him here called out,
[Raise your head, Believer.]
His lifeless eyes lifted off the ground...staring at the pristine white face standing there, Clarsen spoke, after almost two days,
"It's...you...again." the being who changed his life and perception. The entity who forced(?) Clarsen walked on the path of evil and betrayed every single one of them who once trusted Clarsen with their life.
The being who was responsible for making Clarsen the brave, to Clarsen the traitor.
Those many innocents who died at his hands...it all began with this entity.
[You never did anything wrong, child, you were forced to do it...burdened under the responsibilities of us and your own kind.]
Clarsen scoffed, "And what did I lose? Everything."
Silence descended in this vast sea of nothingness, as Clarsen spoke those words of mockery, which was directed at no one but himself.
In the end, he had to choose the path of evil because he was not strong enough to deal with the danger. He had to become a traitor since he couldn't have defeated the Lord who ruled over the Darkness.
He became the Darkness to eradicate it. However, while he walked on that path, every single being he held dear to his heart, left him.
He couldn't blame them; he was forbidden from revealing his true motive to anyone, as such, it was obvious that they would despise him for his change of path and allying with Darkness.
He...won...but at what cost?
[I will say it again, you did the right thing, believer. Other than what path you chose, there was no other route to suppress the Remnant of Chaos.]
Clarsen frowned, "Suppress? Not eradicate?"
He clearly remembered that the Holy Light of the Light Hero penetrated the third and the remaining heart of the Death God; assuring everyone that the era of darkness finally came to an end.
However,
[Remnant of Chaos is a necessary evil, created by the deities to devour those who were exploiting their powers in the past. The God Slayer we named it. However, the Chaos fragment became too strong for someone who held the ability to slaughter immortals; leaving us with no option but to suppress its memories and powers.]
[However, that was eons ago.]
Clarsen's brows drew closer, "Then what was which erased half of the population and turned Kartor into a freakin warzone?" His voice cracked, showing his annoyance to know that the being who destroyed so many lives, was defeated once in the past.
The deity continued,
[At the time when Chaos knew that it would be exterminated, it divided its own body into three fragments, and sent through dimensional portals, which doesn't follow the streak of time.]
Clarsen clenched his fist as he realized what the deity was saying here.
The being he allied with and betrayed so the Light Hero could slaughter it was the second remnant—a part of the original body.
"So is there still one left?"
[Indeed, child. The last remaining portion of Chaos must be eradicated to bring-]
"Nah, nah, nah! I am not doing it. Please, no." He clasped his hand before his face and closed his eyes. Fear and rejection oozed from his voice as he shakily added, "I cannot and will not go through the same pain once again. By no means can I go through that all once again. Just end my existence right now, and I couldn't be any more thankful to you."
Clarsen couldn't imagine himself going through all that once again.
The silence was too long this time. Neither of them said anything as the deity allowed Clarsen to calm down first before it stated,
[She will be there. Grace.]
"...!!" Clarsen's eyes widened as he looked at the being with a sense of disbelief.
Grace...will be there? Can he finally amend his mistakes and make it up to her?
Just a fleeting thought, it was to see that smile on her face once again...just for instance, he wanted to be looked at by her with love and warmth, once again.
However, Clarsen wasn't a man to be fooled or lured.
With his eyes sharpening, he asked, "How could Grace be there when you mentioned that the fragment would appear ages later?"
The deity clearly mentioned that the fragments were sent not through the usual stream of time, or the deities would have been able to detect the fragments easily.
The deity responded,
[The Goddess of Death has given a few individuals the chance to be reborn. Although they might not have the memories of their past life, their personality and powers would be identical. There is a foreign warrior also included in the blend, to ensure the ultimate victory this time.]
Clarsen's eyes narrowed, "A person who looks like Grace couldn't be her. And anyways, if the other Gods are getting involved in this mess, then why do you need me?"
The immortal one looked distressed, well, Clarsen perceived it to be anxious, as the deity stated,
[Because, as the Goddess of Fate and Fortune, I can see that it won't go well. The involvement of past warriors, new ones, and recruiting outsiders would be dangerous for the united goal we all have.]
Clarsen pinched the bridge of his nose, "Why...they didn't contact me like the last time?"
Last time, he was summoned by all the Supreme Gods and was given the duty to eliminate the Demon King. However, this time only a single one was there.
Clarsen thought that the other deities might not be satisfied with the result; as such, they did not trust him with this job anymore.
However, he was wrong.
[They...actually are ashamed to ask you to do this once again. After letting you go through something so hideous and pitiful, they didn't find it right to make a request again.]
"And you didn't share the sentiment?" Carlsen asked, and the deity just smiled dryly.
The man was feeling tired now.
[Look, child, I won't force you into this, however, I know that without you, the world you died saving would perish. So please, for the last time...be our champion.]
Carlsen hung his head low. This was so annoying.
He was being asked to live in that hell, once again. He was told that the sacrifices he made were all for naught since the same danger was about to rise once again.
And he was being expected to fight evil and save everyone's a** once again. Wow.
"Okay...I will do it." The deity smiled, her halo turning brighter, but then suddenly, "But I have a few wishes which I want to be fulfilled. Then only I can decide if I want to reincarnate in that shitty world again or not."
[If it's within my power, then I surely will grant whatever wish you may have.]
Carlsen heaved a sigh, before telling her, "I need a strong blessing for my new life."
In the previous life, he only survived with his physical might, but it won't be enough anymore. He needed some assistance.
[Yes, of course, my child. In the name of I,-]
"Oh, hello. I don't need your blessings. Bring me to the Titan Goddess Tiamuth."
The diety turned completely silent upon hearing that name.
Carlsen knew the reason behind that reaction but he wasn't going to back off, "I know you all have a feud with her, but unless I don't get to meet her, I won't accept your quest."
The Goddess of Fortune hung her head, before voicing,
[Involving yourself with her would only cause you grave troubles.]
"I don't like easy games either." Carlsen held his stance with his arms crossed.
If he wanted someone's blessings then it had to be the single Goddess who went against a thousand heaven residents all alone.
The only remaining Titan Goddess. The creator of Spiritual Magic. Tiamuth.
It's either her or no one.
[Very well, child. I will bring you to her.]
********
A/N:- Thanks for reading. Add the book to your library and it would be a great support.