The scene fell into a temporary silence.
Even the Hunt had only drawn its bow, a gleaming arrow of accumulated Energy aimed at Abundance, yet it hadn't been shot.
It was unclear whether they were pondering how to proceed or simply waiting for someone else to make the first move.
As for that mass of radiance that had been ascending to godhood—and by all reasoning should have become an Aeon by now—it had simply stopped.
It neither continued its ascent nor began to fall.
It was as if it had been brutally stuck mid-transition, trapped in the process of apotheosis.
This made the entire situation feel profoundly strange.
To be honest, 'Ruan Mei', watching the gathered deities, had been terrified that if she blinked, the Amber Lord might just come swinging down with his hammer.
But now, she was even more bewildered.
And it wasn't just her. Neither Herta nor Ruan Mei could fathom what these Aeons were thinking.
If they weren't willing to cede their Paths' concepts, then why hadn't they simply obliterated this nascent Aeon outright?
Or, if ignoring it meant it could never ascend, then…why were they all just standing around staring?
'Ruan Mei' didn't get it.
But then again, that was probably normal.
Only Aha, the ever-amused trickster, saw and heard the full picture.
He knew what these Aeons were thinking, and had even subtly caught the ripples of calculation from Nous's mind, along with the intentions of Preservation.
This communication, comprehensible only between Aeons, was completed in an instant.
And even… Aha sensed that the enigmatic Terminus seemed to have dipped a finger in too.
But regardless, aside from the Hunt itching to put an arrow through Abundance, they had all reached a consensus.
Then, the ripples of Nous's thoughts descended upon Herta City with stark clarity.
Immediately after, accompanied by intense waves of Imaginary Energy, an indecipherable signal was sent by it into the luminous being that had halted its ascent.
It was a question.
But what exactly that question was, no one could possibly know except for Nous and the being of light itself.
Next, Abundance let fall a single golden leaf, and the Hunt dropped a shimmering arrow.
Both merged into the luminous being.
Then, these two Aeons departed one after the other.
Ruan Mei barely caught a glimpse of the Hunt drawing its bow and releasing an arrow that shot toward Abundance, before both vanished without a trace.
Fuli bestowed a piece of iridescent, translucent crystal, Harmony descended with a movement of a symphony…each Aeon seemed to offer something.
All of it dissolved into that warm, glowing radiance.
Finally, the Amber Lord's colossal hammer manifested in the sky above, then swung down toward Herta City with devastating force!
BOOOOM—!!!
A violent tide of Imaginary Energy, carrying the momentum to grind the entire star system to dust, converged upon the being of light.
But in the instant before total annihilation, an amber glow flared to life.
'Ruan Mei' felt the terrifying, suffocating tide of Imaginary Energy wash over her, like being plunged, utterly defenseless, into the abyssal depths of a twenty-thousand-meter ocean trench.
The crushing pressure alone should have killed her instantly.
Yet, the Amber Lord's power also shielded their three bodies, allowing 'Ruan Mei' to witness boundless Imaginary Energy coalesce into a crystalline amber substance, encasing and protecting the being of light.
Whether it was protection or a seal, no one could tell.
Once this was done, the Amber Lord turned and left without a backward glance.
Last of all, only the echo of Aha's laughter remained hanging in the air.
His mask drifted down before the group, circling 'Ruan Mei's' body twice, before he gleefully told a joke right in front of the luminous being.
As for why 'Ruan Mei,' who couldn't understand it, knew it was a joke—well, you'd have to ask Aha why she found herself bursting into laughter despite comprehending none of it.
As Aha, too, finally vanished, Herta City at last found peace.
The City's damages were incalculable, yet Herta herself had a look in her eyes so intense it could devour a person.
Just then…
Hum—Another Aeon cast its gaze from the distant starry void.
"Aha~"
With the sound of Aha's laughter, Nanook the Destruction manifested before the three of them. This new Path didn't involve Destruction, so Nanook shouldn't have been strongly aware of it.
Moreover, since the new Aeon had failed to ascend, it should have been even harder for him to detect the situation here.
But!
Aha had intervened.
He just had to see what Nanook would think—this little one he'd just recently 'blessed'—now turning around and creating this.
So he'd gone out of his way to pester Nanook, deliberately drawing his attention over.
The result was plain to see.
Nanook's focus had indeed been captured by that little one.
Aha felt deeply satisfied.
He was absolutely thrilled.
He now felt like giving that little one a mask of his own, if only to prevent Nanook from squashing her flat and robbing him of such delightful future entertainment.
Not that a spectacle of this magnitude was likely to happen twice.
Nanook saw the Giant of Light, he saw the nascent Aeon encased by the Amber Lord's protection, and he saw the little one who had been impersonating Celenova.
From an Aeon's perspective, he quickly grasped certain truths.
If things were allowed to proceed like this, it was inevitable that his Emanators would regularly clash with these Giants of Light.
That said, Nanook cast a sidelong glance at Aha, who was just there for the show.
If Aha thought he would strike them down personally, he was sorely mistaken.
His gaze fell instead upon 'Ruan Mei' below.
This little one, who had accepted his blessing, eliminated Zulo, and then simply adopted a new face.
Truthfully, Nanook had no particular thoughts on the matter. A new Path was certainly a nuisance, but its birth was predicated on the demise of other Aeons.
If he could destroy those other Aeons, destroying one more would be trivial.
As for the lives on this new Path…they seemed almost too idealistic, too out of place in this universe.
He was confident that among them, some would inevitably be drawn to embrace Destruction.
And if his Legion gained another obstacle to overcome?
He cared even less about that.
His Legion never lacked for enemies.
So Nanook simply stared down at 'Ruan Mei' for a long moment.
As the echo of Aha's laughter faded, he, too, departed without a word.
As for Aha, who had hoped for some drama?
He just started laughing again. But this time, he was laughing at himself.
He'd gone through all the trouble of inviting Destruction over, only for the guy to completely ignore him.
How embarrassing.
Hilarious, really.
And so, Aha truly did let a white mask fall.
If Nanook had left his mark, then Aha couldn't be left out.
He'd mark her too, and see if anything interesting might sprout from it later.
Then, as the sky finally quieted down, 'Ruan Mei' stared with a complicated expression at the mask that had landed in her hand, and the power flooding into her body.
Her feelings were a tangled mess:
--+--
[Role-Playing System]
[Name: Bai Ming (Ruan Mei)]
[Lifespan: 300 Years (Paused) + 8 Days (Role-Playing)]
[Transformable Roles: Big Herta (Charge: 100%), Acheron (Charge: 82.2%), Celenova (Charge: 41.3%), Ruan Mei (Active)]
[Available Extractions: 1 (38.2%)]
--+--
The progress bars for the others had unknowingly seen significant increases.
And her lifespan had been extended by another two hundred years.
This longevity was clearly Aha's 'reward.'
She knew perfectly well Aha was marking her for his own amusement.
But still… two hundred years.
So worth it!
--+--