Upon hearing White Flame's words, Aerialia's expression transformed into pure hatred, her gaze piercing through White Flame like icy daggers.
"Good... Good... 'Tis well that thou dost finally remember who I am and what thou hast done to mine children, for I am here to exact my revenge," Aerialia responded fiercely.
The atmosphere became silent.
"Hahahah!!"
White Flame suddenly burst into laughter, his fiery gaze fixed on them.
"ORION!!" a familiar voice rang out behind Orion.
Orion immediately snapped his head to look behind him and was instantly shocked to see Fifi screaming at the top of her lungs as she ran towards him. What startled Orion wasn't the distressed look on Fifi's face but the fact that he could see the already ruined grassy plains gradually disappearing, replaced by the broad, stony cavern walls.
Despite the close distance and Fifi's speed, she could arrive beside him in less than a minute. However, the grassy plain space had already collapsed within two short breaths. When he noticed her, the area had vanished, leaving only a black, empty void around them.
Withdrawing his gaze back forward, Orion could see that the ruined grassy land he and White Flame stood on was the only thing that remained within the black, empty void.
"Fear not, he is not able to sustain the space that he constructed any longer, and that's why it collapsed," Aerialia assured Orion, observing his concerned expression.
She could tell by White Flame's diminishing strange divine energy that he couldn't maintain the independent space he had created. It was necessary for it to collapse to conserve the rest of his remaining energy.
Upon hearing Aerialia's words, Orion nodded, visibly relieved.
He was worried that White Flame was about to do something dangerous, but it seemed that wasn't the case. Refocusing his gaze on White Flame, he noticed his laughter gradually dying.
"Although I have no idea how you may be here after so many years, I can only guess that it's possible because of that lousy god and him," White Flame said, refocusing his attention on Orion before shifting it back towards Aerialia.
"Regardless, Though I find it quite ironic that I will be killed by the first god I had first killed, you are here to take your revenge, right? You can go ahead with it," he added.
Seeing that the god was willing to die without remorse or hesitation, Aerialia couldn't help but clench her intangible teeth together.
"As a god, dost thou feel no remorse? After all that I and mine children have endured, thou hast ruthlessly slaughtered us all, and thou thinkest that I will simply exact my revenge and slay thee in kind?" Aerialia said, her voice growing icy by the minute.
Seeing Aerialia's sudden shift in mood, her body shivering in anger, Orion, still holding the lightning-crimson-coated greatsword above White Flame's forehead, furrowed his brows, wondering about Aerialia's intentions and how she planned to carry them out, considering her current restricted form.
However, the four-meter crimson great sword within his grasp felt almost weightless. Thus, he decided to wait until she finished, as he, too, had things he wanted to discuss with White Flame.
"Remorse," White Flame muttered before shaking his head. "On the day that I killed you and those mortals, I don't regret any of it. And when I did the same to several others, I didn't regret any of it. And even if there are some humans who have been brainwashed to side with you all."
White Flame immediately shifted his attention to Orion before refocusing on Aerialia.
"As long as I cleanse every filthy invader off this earth, I don't and will never regret doing whatever I have to do to achieve it. So, if you are waiting for an apology, then you are wasting your time," White Flame said, his tone filled with a tinge of resolution.
"Very well," Aeriallia said, her voice unnaturally cold as she nodded at White Flame. She then shifted her attention towards Orion. "Let him perish in the most agonizing manner conceivable. I am done," she said emotionlessly.
Orion nodded at her before focusing his attention back on White Flame.
"Since you have gained some parts of your memories, do you remember how you ended up this way and locked up in this mountain?" Orion asked as he observed White Flame.
White Flame stared at him momentarily before shaking his head in response to Orion's question. "The crimson blade might have been enough to trigger my memory, but I still don't know how I ended up this way, as my memories are still hazy," White Flame responded. "But… I think that I can vaguely remember some things."
"What are they?" Orion asked.
Whatever White Flame remembered, no matter how small, considering that as a god, he might not keep things in memory unless necessary, he was sure that it would be beneficial information.
"Naka… I remember him. He and I worked together for a while, but unfortunately, our alliance was broken off when he betrayed me," White Flame said, his voice tinged with anger.
Orion nodded, absorbing this new essential piece of information.
"Do you remember anything else?" he asked again.
White Flame nodded before he continued, "He's strong. Probably one of the strongest gods that I've ever come across. However, unlike the rest, who were more focused on establishing their lands and being the centre of mortal worship, he was one of the most benevolent gods, who held a helping hand to whoever required it without asking for anything in return."
"Fortunately, I was lucky enough to see through his facade, and although I still don't understand his ulterior motives for doing such a thing, probably because some of my memories are still hidden, it isn't difficult for me to say for sure that it wasn't anything good."
Orion's expression immediately became solemn after hearing White Flame's words. He understood that things would not be the way they seemed after hearing things from different perspectives, so he suppressed the thoughts within his mind and asked once more, "Anything else?"
"No, that's all that I could remember," White Flame replied as he shook his head with a sigh escaping his lips.
Orion solemnly nodded in response and, without hesitation, increased the intensity of the lightning and stabbed the four-meter-long crimson greatsword down.
