"Will he return then?" Nyx asked his father, wondering if a thing like that was going to be repeated again. Many people had lost their lives this time and the world was turned upside down.
"I hope he won't," Ryder commented. "Because next time, I won't be able to hold back."
He had already given Caen an opportunity. If the young man still didn't listen, then he could only take drastic steps.
....
In another Lower World, Caen and the Young Gods came out from the portal which closed behind them.
The Young Gods helped Caen sit with the support of the tree.
"Can you still not heal yourself?" One of the Young Gods asked.
Caen glared in response. If he could heal himself, why would he be walking with the support of other people?
He couldn't understand either. How was it that he wasn't able to heal himself?! He could go back to the Realm of Gods and ask his mother for help, but he didn't want to reveal his weak side to his mother, so he dropped the plan.
He was the next King. He couldn't let anyone know that he was beaten to the point that he couldn't even walk.
Even though his bones were broken and he felt constant pain, he didn't reveal it on his face.
Caen took a deep breath, trying to gather his thoughts and hide the pain he felt from the Young Gods around him. As the next King, he knew he had to maintain an aura of strength and confidence, even in the face of adversity.
"I'll be fine. It's only a matter of time before I heal myself," Caen finally replied, his voice strained but determined. "We have more pressing matters to attend to."
He looked around at the Lower World they had arrived in. The landscape was desolate, with dark clouds looming overhead, and an eerie silence that hung in the air. Only a few trees were left and even those trees appeared to be rotten.
No matter what, this place was temporarily their home, and he didn't want to leave until healing.
The Young Gods exchanged concerned glances but respected Caen's decision not to dwell on his injuries. They understood the weight of his responsibilities and the need for urgency.
The reason they had come to this Lower World was to get away from Ryder...the Monster that they never expected to be hiding in a mortal world.
Almost all of them had the same question. Just who was that guy? And where did he come from? They wanted to ask Caen, but they felt that even Caen didn't know that.
They also realized that talking about that person before Caen was no less than seeking death. He was just beaten by that person. His thoughts were all over the place, and talking to him about Ryder could only anger him.
They all pretended as if nothing had happened.
On Caen's commands, the Young Gods left him behind to go search for a good place to stay in this lower world.
Caen was left behind, looking at his hands. He still couldn't move them. Even moving a single finger was hard, since whenever he tried, Ryder's Chaotic Energy coursed through his body, making it even harder for him.
He looked at the sky above. "I don't know who you are, but I promise I will return this favor to you very soon... I will kill you with my own hands! I will destroy the pathetic world, to protect which you even went against me! I will take everything from you!"
As Caen clenched his fists, a surge of rage filled him.
****
The Young Gods ventured deeper into the desolate landscape when one of them felt a strange energy pulsating through the air. It was as if the very fabric of the world had been disrupted by something.
Even they didn't know where this Lower World was, since there was no information about it. In their hurry to get out of that place, they only looked for the closest Lower Realm World.
The Young Gods were vigilant, their eyes darting around, prepared for any potential threats. But what they found was something they hadn't expected.
Amidst the ruins of what appeared to be a once-magnificent city, they stumbled upon an ancient temple. Its grandeur was still evident, even in its ruined state. The temple seemed to emit a faint glow, drawing them in like moths to a flame.
Fortunay's curiosity got the better of him, overshadowing the caution.
"Let's investigate," he said, mustering his resolve. "There's something about this place."
The other Young Gods also agreed with him. They thought about going back and telling Caen about this place, but they eventually dropped the plan.
If this place really had something worth their interest, they wanted to see and take it first.
As they stepped cautiously into the temple, they discovered inscriptions and symbols adorning the walls, depicting a strange scenery of this world.
Fortunay, with his deep knowledge of the Realm of Gods, recognized some of the symbols as ancient runes used by the Elder Gods themselves.
The thought made him stunned. Why would this language be in a lower world that appeared to be abandoned? Moreover, what were the symbols that he couldn't understand? It was as if the language was even more ancient than he had thought.
"This place seems very interesting," one of the Young Gods remarked, awe-struck by the ancient knowledge preserved within the temple.
"This place seems to be related to the Realm of Gods," Elysia stated.
Fortunay nodded, intrigued but also wary. "What a pity that I can't understand anything more than a few letters."
The Young Gods continued to explore the ancient temple, each step filling them with a mix of excitement and trepidation.
The inscriptions and symbols on the walls seemed to narrate a forgotten history, a story lost in the annals of time. They had stumbled upon something that held great significance, but they couldn't fully grasp its meaning without deciphering the ancient language.
