Garuda's Agony
[Wh-what the hell...!! What is this place that you're carrying that around? No, how the fuck do you have that!!]
The effect was immediate. The moment Garuda laid eyes on the North Sea Ice Crystal, he couldn't hide his bewilderment—unlike before. And every time his voice trembled, the heavenly bow stone embedded in the pendant chimed merrily, as if delighted.
[...Goddamn it, why the hell is Kiransha's treasure here! Get the fuck out!!]
[What? Goddamn? You dare speak her name, you chicken-brained fuck?]
Kalderet snarled at Garuda.
[Well, well, look at the abandoned mutt playing the loyal lover. Kalderet, ancient god or not, you think you're still hot shit from the old days?]
[What'd you say? Wanna see if I'm the same as back then or not?]
Krurrrr—!!
As he tensed his front paw, razor-sharp claws protruded.
[Fine. Come at me, then. Abandoned ancient god.]
[You little shit...]
Tsss—!!!
It was then. Amid the taut tension, a burst of pure white steam erupted from beneath Garuda's wings.
[Kraaaagh—!!!]
Garuda writhed with a agonized scream.
[St-stop!! Stop it now!!]
"You said come at you. Figured you forgot your situation, so I thought I'd remind you personally."
Adel pressed the North Sea Ice Crystal into Garuda's body. The flaming wings vanished, replaced by charred, blackened flesh where the pendant touched.
"Hmm."
He pulled it away, then rubbed it against another spot. A sizzling sound like flesh on a hot iron rang out, and Garuda, unable to endure, collapsed backward.
[K-krgh...]
"What the hell happened to you? Damn, you're way weaker than you should be."
[Kraaagh...!!]
"Hold still a bit longer. Makes your earlier bullshit sound ridiculous. As if some ice crystal could take down a supreme god of conflagration."
Adel peeled the pendant off again and jammed it into Garuda's side this time.
Crack...
In that instant, Adel sensed a faint crack no one else would notice.
'The ice crystal's fracturing. Without the other two treasures, it can't exert its full power, huh.'
[St-stop...!! Stop!!]
'Gotta end this quick.'
Adel thought as he watched the screaming Garuda, pulling the crystal away.
[Hah, hah... You bastard... I won't let you get away with this.]
"Yeah?"
Tsss—!!!
Without waiting, Adel slammed the crystal into Garuda's belly.
[Aaaagh!! Sp-spare...!! Spare me!!]
Garuda shuddered violently, shrieking in agony. He thrashed so hard that flaming feathers scattered everywhere.
[No matter how you look at it, he was a torturer in his past life, right?]
Garon shook his head as he said it.
[I have to agree for once... I don't know what he did to get wrecked like this, but his divine power's depleted enough to make this possible. Still, that won't kill Garuda.]
[Mm. True.]
No matter that the North Sea Ice Crystal was a divine artifact capable of contracting with a supreme god, no artifact could overcome a god's power.
[Does he have another plan?]
[Who knows. Watching this is probably Adel's entertainment for us.]
[Or he just likes seeing Garuda suffer?]
Kalderet smirked at Garon's words.
[...I've never seen a human like you. Goddamn it... Of all times, right when my heart gets stolen, this monster shows up.]
Garuda muttered wearily, sounding wronged. But ignoring him, Adel turned to Kasan.
"The phoenix egg's fallen. Take it, Kasan."
"...Huh? Oh, right. Yeah."
A human torturing a supreme god—Kasan had never witnessed anything so bizarre in his life. For a moment, he'd forgotten why he was even here.
He quickly scooped up the phoenix egg, crushed beneath Garuda after it tumbled from the nest in his convulsions.
Clank—!!
Grabbing the heated egg turned Runel's gauntlet glowing red-hot, as if melting. The purgatory stone embedded within flared up, countering the egg's heat with its own flames.
[Now I get it. That was your goal? Tsk tsk, greedy human. You can't even hatch it anyway.]
Garuda sneered at Adel. But ignoring the mockery, Adel picked up one of Garuda's feathers from the nest.
"Wrap the egg in these. Garuda's been absorbing its heat, so the shell's weakened."
"Mm, got it."
"There are plenty more feathers—gather them all to keep the egg's temperature stable."
Kasan nodded at Adel's instructions.
[You... You shoved that goddamn ice crystal into me just to steal my feathers?]
Garuda couldn't believe it.
"Yeah. We need the phoenix egg too, you see. No way you'd hand it over nicely to someone feeding off its heat."
[Crazy bastard...]
"Crude words for a god."
[Crude? Save it for that mutt you contracted with.]
Whoosh—!!!
Garuda's body shrank, transforming into a red-haired man. His sleek, handsome face was the charming sort that could make noble ladies weep in high society. Unlike mid-god Garon, he had a fully corporeal form.
[Damn it, my divine power's not even half recovered. Things are this fucked... And he's coming soon.]
He ruffled his hair roughly, voice laced with irritation.
[The phoenix egg was born from my power. You barge into my domain and steal it? A bunch of highway robbers.]
[First you eat humans, now you've lost your mind. Planning to eat an ancient beast with your own power?]
Garon said to Garuda.
[Lost his mind? He's been a chicken-brain from the start.]
[...What?]
"...Enough. Why do you gods always wanna eat each other the second you meet?"
[You gods? A mere human dares...]
Adel smirked at Garuda's glare.
[Oh?]
Garuda was dumbfounded. Contracting two gods was shocking enough, but treating them like underlings? This was a first.
[Kalderet. Where the hell did you pick up this freak?]
[I didn't pick him up. He found me. And you—why're you in this state?]
[...Got fucked by the Magic Society. That old bastard from the Ivory Tower. Lured me with a dragon heart... Then the fuckers had a magic barrier set up there.]
Garuda pulled down his robe slightly. A charred black burn scar stretched from his chest across his shoulder to his back.
[Dragon heart? Serves you right. Greed got your own heart stolen.]
Garon scoffed.
"Ivory Tower... Julian Pader?"
[That's right.]
Unlike the nonchalant gods, Adel sensed something off in Garuda's words.
'As far as I know, in my past life, no dragons died at this time except Shan... And the Ivory Tower sure as hell didn't hunt one.'
Adel asked Garuda.
"Whose heart did they promise you?"
[Hah, funny guy. Why do you care?]
"Tell me."
[It was the Red Dragon Carsea's.]
Kasan flinched, the phoenix egg in his grasp. His shoulders trembled faintly.
"The Ivory Tower has a Red Dragon's heart? Those fuckers... I'd rip 'em apart and it still wouldn't be enough."
"Lies."
Unlike the fuming Kasan, Adel shook his head at Garuda's claim.
"The Ivory Tower doesn't have a dragon heart. Julian Pader, that sly old fox, tricked you, Garuda."
[A human tricked me? Damn, that pisses me off just hearing it... But how do you know for sure?]
"Because Qunzel has Carsea's heart. Though it'll go to the Azal Kingdom soon enough."
"Heavenly Dragon?"
Kasan was the one shocked by Adel's words.
[True, he helped the White Dragon win the Dragon War. If he carved out Carsea's heart like you say, that'd be the only time. But that's not enough proof.]
Garuda slumped to the ground. His smooth muscles gleamed through the open robe.
[Solid evidence.]
"Qunzel will soon become the Azal Kingdom's guardian dragon. Their king has been bedridden for ages. But this year, the succession war in Azal ends, and a new king rises."
Adel continued.
"He'll wield a sword forged from melting Carsea's heart and yours, ending the Central Nine Kingdoms' war."
[Nice hero tale, but hard to swallow. Who melts whose heart?]
Garuda eyed Adel.
"If things stay this way, phoenix egg or not, you won't reclaim your heart."
Undaunted by Garuda's pressure, Adel spoke calmly.
"And you'll die."
[...What?]
"Even if you resurrect from ashes, no heart means no revival."
[Hahaha. What nonsense.]
Whoosh—!!!
In that instant, the nest became an inferno. True conflagration, incomparable to before.
[You wanna die? Who the hell kills me!!]
Adel slowly raised his head.
"My hand."
Garuda's eyes wavered. Adel knew he'd read his history. As a supreme god, unlike mid-gods, he could.
[You don't mean...?]
Seeing Garuda's reaction, Adel silently pressed a finger to his lips, signaling quiet.
[You've regressed in time.]
Garuda spoke directly into Adel's mind.
'Regression isn't proof of your fated death, but you're right. I turned back time and know the future history ahead.'
Garuda's eyes shook again. No god could stay calm before their own death.
[...Is there a way?]
At the shift, Adel smirked faintly and nodded.
'Of course. If it's stolen, steal it back. First, we clean up the Ivory Tower that took your heart.'
[How? Even as an ancient god's contractor, breaching the Ivory Tower's barriers is no joke.]
"Eye for an eye. Magic for magic. The Black Magic Palace will handle the Ivory Tower cleanup, Garuda."
Then Adel looked at Kasan.
"And I'll personally retrieve Carsea's stolen heart. That heart's needed for the Red Dragon hatchling."
[Magic Society's not enough—you're dragging in Azal Kingdom and the Heavenly Dragon too...? One word from you, and I've got three factions as enemies. You know that, right?]
"Not just three."
Adel told him.
"I returned here prepared to make enemies of the entire continent."
Silence fell.
"But as you say, I can't even handle the Ivory Tower alone right now. That's why I need power. Not gods—people. An army."
[...So that's what you want from me.]
Garuda stared at Adel.
"I'll get your heart back. In exchange, bestow supreme god status on Garon."
Adel said.
"With Garon's conflagration, we'll conquer the desert."