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Chapter 85: Twilight of Gods

"Twilight of Gods?" Freya whispered. "This is the name given in the ancient era to what will lead to the end of the world. One thousand years ago, after a certain event forgotten in time, the world has almost been wiped out by an unprecedented calamity: an S-rank Rift."

Everyone looked at each other intrigued and their eyes were unconsciously focused on Elizabeth.

"A S-rank Rift? Isn't that a common thing?" Mercy asked.

"Depends, a Rift can be a little walk in the park or like the undead Rift, but this case is different. It's not just a normal Rift, but a Rift draining energy from other Rifts, this one is a variant."

With a graceful raise of her hands, a breathtaking image of a Rift materialized before her. The onlookers gasped in awe, and Moonra rose from his seat, moved by the sheer terror of the moment.

"What the... Is that a Rift?"

"... It's huge..." Mercy murmured,

The Rift takes on the appearance of a massive hole in the sky, created by a swirling purple cloud that resembles a cyclone more than a portal.

"This is the Rift that appeared one thousand years ago, this Rift had been evaluated as beyond any S-rank Rift seen until then. It is said that when it appeared, every Rift in the world disappeared. For five days, until one day the Rift opened, it was called, the countdown to the apocalypse."

The image of the Rift glitched and a light burst out of the center before disappearing.

Midgard watched the vanish hologram melancholically.

"This was not just a special Rift... What was more surprising was what came out of this."

A sinister smile formed on her lips, frightening the others.

Eryl crossed her arms, unable to recover her smile.

"Players."

A shiver ran down everyone's spine.

"I see that Gluttony can be a parrot from time to time."

"What? Seriously?" Solaria shuddered. "A Rift of Players?"

"Correct, this Rift was the door that led my kind to your world. In an instant, the world had been submerged by ominous beings of power, bringing the apocalypse with them. Fenrir, the Beast of Frost, Ymir, the Mother of the Giants, Hecate, the monster with one thousand faces..."

"Midgard Serpent." Candace said, her eyes fixed on an amused Midgard.

"Exactly, this is also my origin, the wonderful story of how I ended up trapped in your world."

Dora looked at her in confusion, noticing her gaze, the girl's smile disappeared.

"I planned to explain to you earlier, remember when you thought Leon?"

"... Why didn't you say anything since?"

She never put her eyes on him, all this time, she was fixing Eryl, but her mind was elsewhere.

"I didn't want to tell anything to you because... The thing inside you is already sentient, and able to take control anytime."

"WHAT?!" Everyone on Candace's sofa stood up.

Eryl put her hands on her knees and her eyes started glowing orange.

"Calm down folks, it won't take control unless you're using... THAT form."

"... Which one?"

"The one who looks like a mixture."

"... Me?"

"... No, the dark one."

"G?"

"The one who is a mess!"

"But that's me!"

"Holy... Do you want me to tell your secrets right in front of everyone?"

"That's so you... I'm not worried anyway, you're very good at keeping secrets."

They looked at them in confusion, Midgard sighed heavily and put a finger on Dora's forehead.

"I'll deal with you later, for now, let's get back to the topic. The Rifts that appeared a millennium ago brought devastation to the world, nothing was able to subjugate that kind of monster at that time, but Players had a weakness. Without an Avatar, we are energy without a body, so we ran out of power and ended in sorry states. I don't know what happened to the others, but I took consciousness of my existence in this kingdom, due to the lack of energy, I had to use all my remaining strength to create a husk of flesh and blood in the image of the inhabitants around me. This way, I could survive, but I was vulnerable."

She started looking at her hands. Dora looked at her, tilting his head.

"Form? You transformed before?"

"The form that all of you know as the nurse Midgard, my true form is that of a gigantic snake."

Dora's jaw opened and he stared in front of him, in shock.

"When I took that form, the people were about to execute me. Humans find satisfaction in humiliating those who hurt them, so they chose to bring me to their city to show my death to everyone... but this is thanks to that that I'm alive today. The announcement reached the Royal castle and Gluttony ordered them to bring me to her."

She frowned and stared at Eryl.

"I was like a child who just awakened her consciousness, I had no idea what was going on. But the moment I met her, I realized what was my goal in this world, Gluttony was possessed by a Player, like Dora with me."

With a mocking smirk, she gazed at Moonra and Solaria.

"One of the Players made a pact with her and decided to keep me under control, Gluttony was already on the verge of fully awakening. I stayed in their castle for a while, little by little, recovering my memory, and I knew I needed an Avatar... But one day I witnessed the peak of the Queen's madness and I gave up on that dream."

She remained silent for a moment, noticing that everyone was listening attentively.

"The Queen had succeeded in taking over Gluttony, she was not only the first Avatar but also the first to conquer the Sin within her, she became a being of power above the laws of this world... And after that... She assimilated her Player too."

She looked at her claw and glanced at Dora.

"A fight between an Avatar and two enemies: the Sin, and the Player, and whoever wins will have this formidable body... And this is why she warned me that if I win, she will kill me, as she had killed her player."

She observed Dora's strange reaction. The boy crossed his arms, rolled his eyes, and looked tense. She couldn't understand his thoughts, so she continued her speech.

"Don't worry, I won't try to steal your body, you defeated me before I could even try something, congratulations... But now you have to be prepared for what will happen to you, in a few months when the variant will appear and Players will enter this world. I don't remember my life before coming to this world, but I know that the real countdown will begin once the seven sins are awakened."

She lowered her head.

"You must be strong, beyond anything you have imagined, to face it, and let me tell you something, in case you misinterpret me, we still share the same powers, which means that the player that gluttony killed was as strong as her, they told you that the only thing that could stop an Avatar was another Avatar? Well... Try to guess why the Queen was happy because you could be stronger than her."

She ended her speech there, sending a shiver through the room.

Everyone lowered their heads, trying to understand what they were hearing.

Mercy laughed cynically and placed a hand on her face.

"Well... Shoot... really shoot... I didn't expect this crap... stronger than the Queen? Stronger than Disasters?... we're screwed."

"... Seems like it wasn't our fight to begin with... A Rift of Monsters of this level? Even Lady Elizabeth shouldn't be able to do anything there."

"You are losing hope too quickly, my little ladies." Elizabeth smiled at the two girls. "That's when the whole purpose of this meeting comes into action."

Candace coughed to speak.

"I have made up my mind and decided to train Dora as order... Promised, and since you are his acquaintances, according to the rules of the Code, the Queen cannot forbid me from training you as well. I'm going to take everyone here and make you absolute monsters for that fateful day."

She puffed up her chest proudly but noticed the lack of reaction from the girls. "What's the point? We will never be as strong as an Avatar or a Player," Zuri murmured.

"Is that your concern? Ha! Then brace yourself because your heart might start racing pretty badly," Candace said, crossing her arms. The three girls and the heirs widened their eyes at the allusion of the Dean.

"What... do you mean?" Mercy asked.

"Listen to this: maybe not as strong as an Avatar, but close enough. What if I tell you that there is a way for an Avatar to transmit its blessings to a normal person and make them a sort of pseudo-Avatar?"

"What?!" Mercy jumped and landed at Candace's feet. "What do you mean? What is this??"

"Ha! Are you interested? Yet you have already witnessed it... Look at this servant, for example."

They turned to Eryl, the maid, seemingly bored, closed her eyes, and her hair turned purple.

"She's right, it's another layer of a Sin's blessing, to put it simply, everyone can be compatible with at least one sin, and when a person is, the Avatar can synchronize with that person and pass on the power of their Sin to this person, for example. I received the blessing of Gluttony, so I have access to some of her skills."

She glanced at them and couldn't hold her giggle after seeing their faces.

"I just want to clarify that you can't acquire this kind of knowledge simply by hanging out with an Avatar. It requires a certain level of compatibility, which often comes at a great cost... However, for now, let's focus on our goals."

She got up and walked towards the door.

"I'm pleased that we could reach an agreement, Miss Candace. Anesidora will be in your hands, and I do not doubt that you will succeed in awakening him."

"Hmph, do I even have a choice?"

"Yes, You can also refuse and say hi to the Glutonny."

Candace made a noise with her mouth and pouted.

"As for you, Midgard, I'm impatient to see you wander freely, people will really be pleased to see such a beautiful lady... However, they certainly wouldn't want to know your fate if Gluttony were to see Greed take control of Dora."

"You're too shallow to threaten me, little chimera."

Eryl chuckled and grabbed the door handle.

"As for you, Dora, I have great expectations in you to become the strongest and the wisest Avatar. If you can achieve this and stop the Twilight of Gods, then you will get the freedom, you've always wished for."

Dora sighed in response, more worried about Mercy's grip on his arm tightening.

"On this note, thank you all for coming today, the meeting is officially over."

Amidst the opening of the door, the secrets that were once heard through the walls of this room disappeared, making way for a new beginning.