A few hours later after the fight between Setsuna and Ayame, the sun had already vanished in the horizon to give place to the beautiful moon and its silver light.
The crackling sound of fire filled the air as Sol and Lilin watched over it. On the side, Setsuna was breathing quietly, asleep.
Sitting quietly with her back against a tree, Lilin looked at Sol with questions in her eyes. After killing the dwarf and avenging her past loss, she had made sure to cut the head of the corpse just in case they needed it. She then decided to go observe Setsuna fight as the feeling of power coming from there had been rather strong.
When she finally reached the place, it was just in time to see that blue Wolf scatter under the wind and Setsuna transform into a golden Wolf. 'Is it a Blessing?' Lilin was not really surprised. There were only two Blue Wolves left to take care of the royal family. It was rare for goddesses to switch royal families as long as one member was even alive.
"You don't really seem happy," Sol said, breaking the silence. He had been keeping quiet until now, and Lilin was bothered by it. She wondered if she had done something wrong or what was putting him in such a bad mood.
"Well, becoming Blessed isn't bad," Sol began. He knew this more than anyone. Becoming a Blessed was nothing short of a cheat key for life. All the power and influence of a kingdom aside, one would be loved by Fate for a long time. "Also, this will make our war effort and propaganda much easier."
Even if they spread the news that there was a new Blessed, the wolf King would not be able to stop this information. After all, it would be no different from insulting a goddess herself. With Setsuna as a Blessed, they had all the legitimate reasons possible in the book to take control over society. In fact, if Setsuna was a King, the war would have immediately ended as Setsuna would just have to challenge Lupus to a succession duel.
One could say that while everything wasn't perfect, everything had taken a turn for the better. Sol could even already imagine the best play ever. The story of a Princess who, after leaving her kingdom while being chased like a dog by her greedy uncle, came back with even more strength and finally took back the throne that was rightfully hers. A story filled with tears, joy, happiness, and some little naughtiness.
What Sol didn't like was the fact that someone had meddled in his screenplay, and that someone was a goddess. 'Ira... What does she want?' Sol pondered. He did not think he had any beef with the goddess of Wrath, but neither did he have any connection. 'Should I take it as a sign of friendship? Or an attempt to manipulate me?'
Now that Setsuna was a Blessed, Fate would favor her for a long time. But this also meant that once she had a child, her death might happen at any moment in the most convoluted way possible.
'Initially, I wanted to help Setsuna become a full divine beast, but now I am having second thoughts,' Sol thought. Things became tricky. He needed to have a way to have a discussion with Ira and make clear what she was thinking. Thankfully, he knew very well when he would be able to do so. 'When I sign a contract with Setsuna.'
"Sol?" Lilin interrupted his thoughts, concerned by his distant expression.
"Sorry, I was thinking out loud," Sol apologized.
"You think too much sometimes," Lilin stated.
Sol smiled and approached Lilin, stretching her cheeks to give her a funny expression. "You are right. I think too much sometimes."
But what else could he do? There was so much to think about every day. It didn't help that Ayame, before dying, had left some bullshit foreshadowing that would certainly come back to bite them in the ass later.
'So is Eins the super big mastermind behind everything?' Sol wondered. What race was he even? Sol felt a growing headache, but this time Lilin was the one to take his face in her hands before finally headbutting him.
"Ouch!" Sol exclaimed.
Unfortunately, when Lilin opened her eyes after the headbutt, she winced due to the pain. "What is your forehead made of?"
"Pure awesomeness mixed with math badassery. But more seriously, what was that?" Sol asked, rubbing his forehead.
Lilin coughed embarrassedly. "I read it in some hot-blooded story. Sometimes a headbutt is used to make another character snap back to their senses."
She had forgotten how strong Sol's body was. "Sol... You know, I think I need to make you understand something."
"...So we are going to ignore how red your forehead is now? In fact, aren't you about to bleed?" Sol pointed out, noticing Lilin's blushing forehead.
Lilin blushed but ignored the shameful reality. "Ahem Like I was saying, you have a serious problem, you know?"
Sol stopped teasing her and listened attentively. "And what might that be?"
"You want to shoulder everything alone," Lilin began. "Then again, I think this is a problem all of us have. But it became worse for you since you came back from the Astral realm."
Lilin sighed, realizing that she wasn't the best at giving speeches or voicing her thoughts. 'I guess I should talk to the others about this.'
"Ever since you came back, and even before, you have been acting like the weight of the world is resting on your shoulders. As if you have to take care of all our pain and act as the shield that will protect us from anything and everything."
"I love it. I love you, and I love how earnest you are. Having you in my life is without a doubt one of the best things that ever happened, but Sol... Stop trying to shoulder everything alone. You are not a god. You are not omnipotent, and you cannot be perfect. So why not rely on us more?"
Sol smiled warmly at her words. "I am sorry for worrying you all so much. I really believe in all of you, Ilaha."
Lilin looked at Sol, worried. She had never been the best at giving speeches or voicing her thoughts. 'I guess I should talk to the others about this.'
Meanwhile, the thoughts swimming in Sol's mind became much simpler. Since he was not a god, there were many things limiting him. But what if he became one? What if he became fully omnipotent and omnipresent? Wouldn't all the worries he had vanish like smoke or melt like ice under the sun? All his worries would become meaningless once he reached that far.
His eyes started to shine with determination. A desire to become even stronger and climb to an even greater height. To break the unbreakable limit and do the impossible. 'I think... I can really do it.'
He would become a god. He would reach the level of the 14 goddesses. Nay, he would surpass them. Surpass even Ymir. And perhaps... Just perhaps... Surpass even the Chaos and Order. Something in his heart told him that he could do so and much more.
(AN: Edit 31/05/23 Sorry, guys. This is the last chapter of the month. But I promise everything will be back to normal in June. Once again, sorry for everything. I hope to see all of you guys back soon and thanks for the support)
