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Nikolai debated whether to kill the archeologist or not, but it was not like he trusted her to begin with. People are always going to be lying and selfish.

"I want to know," she tried to stand up, "how you managed to convince her. I fear that she has manipulated your memories."

"You don\'t need to worry. She tried to manipulate them," he said before Nikolai walked toward the door and opened it. Lucas flinched on the other side as he was about to open it himself.

"The spirit ran away after it woke up," he said with confusion. "It said something about a queen and then vanished."

"I met the one who created the spirit and convinced them to leave us alone. We just need to make sure the archeologist does not get herself killed before she deciphers the tablet."

"I have no more reason to cooperate with you if the queen has given up on pursuing me," Taly said as she held the tablet. "I guess this will be farewell."

"Are you an idiot?" Nikolai grinned. "The queen is letting you live because I promised her something. If I don\'t deliver it, she will hunt you down like a dog."

"How do I know you aren\'t with her?" Taly was suspicious. "I find it hard to believe that you convinced the queen to let us go, not to mention let us live. As far as I know, this is just a ploy designed by her to fool me."

"The Queen was here, and you can tell by the residues of her powers. There is no reason for her to appear if I was truly working for her. Her plan was going smoothly if that was the case, as you would have handed me the tablet in two days."

His argument was irrefutable, and the archeologist nodded after a while. Then, finally, she lowered the tablet and placed it on her desk before slumping into the chair.

"I cannot believe that crazy bitch was here. I never expected her to chase me herself."

"Neither did I," said Nikolai with a frown. "There is something off about her appearance here. There must be more factors involved."

"Are you telling me that I missed the final boss because I was fighting a weakling?" Lucas interjected with a shaky voice. Nikolai stared at him for a while.

"You certainly did. I hoped you would come into the room after me just in case a fight breaks out. However, you were too proud, putting both of us in danger."

"I can\'t be wrong for not running away," Lucas was suddenly grabbing his head and crouching on the floor. "I was doing the right thing, but I indirectly ran away from the final boss just to fight a minion."

"I told you that you need to pick your battles," said Nikolai before he walked back toward the archeologist. "We need to find you a different place to work. The kingdom must have sensed the fight that occurred here."

"Lyle," called out Lucas as he stood up. "I am sorry for being childish. I thought I was doing the right thing, but it almost cost your life. This is not what I wanted to happen."

"I admire you, Lucas. However, you are still too childish. The real world is frightening, and you cannot beat it using your ideals. I am saying this because you worry me. If I failed to fool the enemy, you would have perished."

Lucas was silent before he nodded. Then, with the archeologist walking between them, the three left the hideout to find a different place to stay for the next two days.

***

The night was peeled off from the sky, allowing the morning sun to slip into the forest. Lucas was snoring as he slept on one of the two beds in the living room.

"His snores are what keep me awake, not this coffee," said Taly as she walked into the living room, where Nikolai was sitting silently. "You sat like this for the whole night?"

"Should I hang from the ceiling like a bat?" his eyes turned toward her, and the archeologist shivered when she met them. "Are you done deciphering?"

"I still have one more day before our agreement," she drank from her coffee. "I want you to tell me, Lyle. What is the real reason that you want the secret on this tablet?"

"Are you still suspicious?"

"I am suspicious because you have no use for this item. You cannot use it, and you cannot get near Celestia. So, this is a lost cause for you."

"What makes you think I can\'t get near Celestia?"

"The darkness is banished from Celestia," she said as she sat in front of him. "I know all of the known gods. No god uses darkness because whoever uses it is banished."

"There are gods who use it," smiled Nikolai, his grin making the archeologist grow nervous. "You are a scholar, so you should know that the truth is never known."

"You are talking about the sealed gods," she breathed out. "There is only one place in Celestia where the darkness resides, and that is the Abyss. However, the gods made sure that whatever goes into that place never returns."

"My motives have nothing to do with you. This is a trade between us, and we would both benefit. I am not sure that you would survive long enough afterward, though."

"Are you threatening me?"

"I am warning you," smirked Nikolai. "I know of your plans for revenge. However," he paused, "the gods are fearsome," he said as he stopped his hand from shaking.

"I have already seen the might of demigods, so I understand. However, there has to be a way to go against the gods."

"A demigod is what you call an S-ranker who holds a fragment of divinity. However, gods are far more powerful than a demigod. Therefore, the difference between a god and a demigod is the same as the difference between a demigod and a normal person."

"That cannot be," her eyes grew wide. "If that was the case, then this world has no hopes of going against them. So there is no reason for us to fight."

"No one is planning on fighting them," smiled Nikolai as he stood up and walked toward the door. "They should appear in a few years: people who Celestia favors. The gods will resume their battle using toys this time."

***

Nikolai left the cabin after waking Lucas to stand guard. There was no reason for leaving other than his need to recover. The tablet was a holy item, and he spent the past two days near it. His body could only endure so much.

Furthermore, there was something in this forest. There was something vicious, and it was calling for Nikolai. It invited him into a feast, but Nikolai knew that he should not get closer.

"However, the holy item should alert whatever has arrived."

They chose to hide in this forest because it was far away from the city. However, it seems that another visitor came for the same reason. Nikolai wanted to make sure that they didn\'t need to flee again.

Nikolai entered his stealth, and the dark dimension was more prominent. His steps were slow as he got closer toward the source of this unsettling energy, which was different from his darkness somehow.

Nikolai found himself standing on a cliff that bordered a deep valley. Nothing could be seen within the valley\'s darkness, and the creature was there. Furthermore, it was not alone.

\'This reminds me of a different place,\' Nikolai thought to himself as his robes fluttered by the wind coming from within. \'It reminds me of The Nether.\'

There was a place where not even Lilith managed to conquer, and it was none other than a land known as The Nether. There was something within that place that made all life flee it. However, no one knew what it was, and no one dared to venture.

\'However, it does not compare to that place. There is only a slight similarity in the aura they give off, but nowhere close to being called the same.\'

Nikolai wanted to avoid this place lest he gets dragged into a more unwanted mess. First, however, they needed to change the location, but it was a small price to pay.

There were chills on his back as he turned and walked back toward the cabin. Nikolai was not a fool as much as there was an itch to find out what was inside this place.

There were times where he wanted to be adventurous in his past life to satisfy his curiosity, but they always ended horribly.

"I know that you are here," a voice said from behind him as he was walking away. "I know that you want to meet me. We are similar. Come here, outcast of this world. There is no place for you other than here."

As the voice tried to lure him into the valley, Nikolai could feel the valley\'s darkness spreading to cover the world.. He turned slowly toward the source of the voice, and he could feel something looking back at him.