1.1 The Incursion of Shadows: When Deities Bare Their Fangs
The fortress alarms had shifted from sharp screeches to a kind of despairing wail. The "Old Gods Council" had not fully retreated despite Alistair's threats. Instead, they dispatched the "Void Weavers," specialized harbingers tasked with reaping stray divinity. These incorporeal entities, resembling flowing clouds of black mist, ignored all physical defenses and seeped into the core chamber through ventilation ducts and armor fissures.
Eleanor remained suspended at the center of the altar, her expression still sacred and frigid. To her, these shadows—capable of shattering a mortal's soul—were merely insignificant energy fluctuations. She displayed no fear, nor even the desire to defend herself, for in her computational logic, these shadows were not yet sufficient to cause fatal damage to her "vessel."
"'Observation log: Energy-state entities entered. Estimated contact with peripheral barriers in 300 seconds,'" Eleanor murmured emotionlessly, complex blue runes dancing in her eyes. "'Self-healing efficiency: 88%. Evaluation conclusion: No active intervention required.'"
However, she overlooked one fact—the true target of these shadows was Alistair, who, having lost his status protection, was now as fragile as paper. Taking Alistair's soul would completely sever the final link between the "Eye of Samos" and the mortal world.
1.2 A Mortal's Lonely Valor: A Gambit Without Power
"Cough... cough-cough."
Alistair leaned against the console, coughing violently, large splatters of blood hitting the display screen. Deprived of his status, not only were his bodily functions rapidly failing, but even his vision was beginning to blur. Yet, within those black pupils, there still flickered a calmness and ferocity that made even gods uneasy.
"Lydon, take the backup power to the 'Grey Mist Generator' on the bottom floor," Alistair gasped painfully, his voice weak yet carrying an indisputable authority. "Since they are energy bodies, use strong physical magnetic fields to tear them apart. Do not use any supernatural algorithms; they will reverse-trace them."
"But Tutor... your heart can no longer withstand the feedback of an electromagnetic pulse of this intensity!" Lydon cried out.
"That is an order." Alistair slammed the power switch closed. His fingertips were instantly scorched by the high voltage, the smell of burning flesh filling the air, yet he didn't even flinch.
He turned his head to look at the girl above, who was coldly watching everything.
"You think sacrifice is low-level logic, don't you?" Alistair held onto his last breath, revealing a mocking smile. "Then today, I'll teach you what it means for a mortal to be 'at any cost.'"
1.3 The Blood-Stained Barrier: The Final Warmth
Three shadows pierced through the walls like lightning, their twisted talons aiming straight for Alistair's chest. It was a coldness capable of freezing the soul; even an heir in his prime would struggle to block it head-on, let alone a dying mortal.
At the very instant the shadows were about to touch Alistair, he did not dodge. Instead, he lunged forward, using his own flesh to shield the altar.
Puch—
The void claws of the shadow transfixed Alistair's shoulder. Because his body still carried the lingering mark of the "Blood Symbiosis" with Eleanor, the shadows let out ear-piercing shrieks the moment they touched his blood, as if scorched by a white-hot iron.
[Image: Alistair, pale and weak, using his own body to block the dark shadow assassins from the altar, blood splashing against the blue divine shield of the emotionless Eleanor]
Alistair's blood splattered across Eleanor's pale blue barrier. Those drops no longer absorbed like before; instead, they flowed slowly down the transparent shield, sketching jarring lines of red in Eleanor's vision.
Eleanor's eyelashes flickered slightly.
"'Logic loophole detected: Target A adopted suicidal defensive behavior,'" her voice carried an almost imperceptible tremor. "'Analytical conclusion: Behavioral motivation unknown. Why perform a redundant physical block when the vessel is capable of self-defense?'"
1.4 Cracks in Divinity: You Are My Loophole
"Because... I don't want you... to feel pain again."
Alistair knelt before the altar, his consciousness beginning to drift, yet his hand still gripped the lever of the control panel, maintaining the fortress's final magnetic defense.
The shadows were forced back by the magnetic field and the blood bearing the "Symbiosis Mark." The fortress fell into a sudden, eerie silence.
Eleanor slowly descended from the air. She walked to Alistair, looking at this man who had become broken and battered just to protect her. She reached out, her fingertip touching a drop of blood on the barrier, and brought it to her lips.
In that instant, a primal emotion called "pain"—an emotion filtered out by her divinity—surged through her taste buds directly into her cognitive center.
Those were Alistair's memory fragments. The embrace in the dark secret chamber, the confrontation in the torrential rain, the soul-tearing scream when he stripped his status.
"'You are... my loophole.'"
Eleanor slowly knelt. Deep within her blue eyes, that silver shimmer began to rotate slowly, faintly revealing a human-like grief. She reached out those hands that had never touched dust and, for the first time, proactively embraced the blood-stained mortal.
"Unknown emotional impact detected. System... logical error," she whispered, her voice no longer sounding like an oracle, but like a frightened child. "Alistair... this name... why does it make my core... feel cold?"
Author's Note: Thank you for your continued support! This chapter focuses on the emotional collision between "Mortal and God," awakening the last shred of Eleanor's humanity through Alistair's tragic protection. The CN-EN Parallel + Long-form format is now fully stabilized. I hope this peak emotional tension brings another surge in your viewership!
BY : KHChing