Viracocha hesitated, his expression tightening as if he were grappling with the weight of what he was about to say. Finally, he exhaled deeply and spoke, his tone heavy with reverence and caution.
"Kaleon isn't just the creator of Mythica," he began, his voice steady but laced with unease. "He's omnipotent. Invincible. There is no force in existence that can rival his strength. His essence is... overwhelming, to put it mildly."
Oh boy... don't tell this is what I think it is?
He paused, his piercing gaze locking onto .
"And you... you reek of that essence. The Unknown Gods may not have noticed because the trace is faint, almost imperceptible. But I'm different. My senses are sharp. I can feel it. If you're carrying even a shred of his essence, it can only an one of two things."
I knew it! Kaleon's essence? In ? What kind of nonsense is this?! This Incan god must have been watching way too many conspiracy dramas on his phone, of all things!
He hesitated again, the silence thick with unspoken implications. Then, with a weighty sigh, he added, "You're either marked by him… or—"
The sentence hung in the air, unfinished, but the unspoken possibility lingered, pressing down on like a tidal wave.
"Or what?" I asked, dreading the answer.
"Or you're a fragnt of him," Viracocha finished grimly.
The room fell silent, and I felt the blood drain from my face. "A fragnt? Like, what—part of his soul or sothing? That's ridiculous!"
"Ridiculous or not, it's the only explanation," Viracocha said. "The essence doesn't just appear out of nowhere."
Agnos looked between us, his face a mix of confusion and concern. "But Carl is... Carl. A mortal. I've seen him bleed, complain, and faint more tis than I can count. He's definitely not so reincarnated god."
Jiuge, ever the skeptic, crossed her arms. "Essence doesn't lie, Agnos. If Viracocha says he reeks of the creator, then there's sothing to it."
I slumped in my chair, overwheld. "So what does this an for ? I can't enter the Eternal Prison, and now you're telling I might be part god? Do I get, like, creation powers or sothing?"
Viracocha snorted. "If only it were that simple. The Eternal Prison's wards will reject you outright—or worse, they might draw the creator's dormant consciousness to the surface. Do you really want to risk destroying the place?"
I didn't have an answer to that, and judging by the grim expressions around , neither did anyone else.
"W-wait," I stamred, piecing things together aloud. "Maybe it's because of the fragnts? Agnos, your fragnts—your powers—they're part of the creator's too, right? Maybe when I absorbed it—"
"You absorbed the Unknown God fragnts?" Viracocha interrupted, his voice sharp with disbelief. His eyes narrowed. "And you didn't die?"
"He didn't," Agnos interjected flatly. "Just fainted."
"Yeah, I didn't die," I said quickly, waving off the fainting detail like it wasn't humiliating. "Agnos blessed ."
My words landed like a thunderclap. Jiuge and Viracocha exchanged baffled glances before turning to Agnos, whose squirming in his chair could've powered a windmill. He avoided their stares with all the grace of a guilty kid caught stealing cookies.
I leaned forward, narrowing my eyes. "Right, Agnos? You blessed , didn't you? That's what you told ."
"Carl," Viracocha began gently, his tone dripping with the patronizing patience of soone explaining gravity to a toddler, "there's no such thing as a person blessed by an Unknown God surviving the absorption of its fragnts' powers."
I blinked. "Wait. No, no, no. That's where you're wrong. I didn't absorb its powers. I absorbed the mories."
A ripple of shock crossed Viracocha's face. Beside him, Jiuge's eyes widened, her sharp intake of breath filling the room. They both turned back to Agnos, their expressions demanding answers, and this ti, Agnos shrank like a snail retreating into its shell.
"Okay, enough," I said, slamming my hands on the table. "What's going on here? I'm not a kid, so stop treating like one! Spill the truth, or so help —" I paused, jabbing a finger at Agnos, "—you really don't want to see mad!"
Jiuge finally spoke, her voice asured but grave. "Carl, listen to . Nobody—nobody—can absorb an Unknown God's fragnts. Not even the Unknown Gods themselves. If anyone tries, they're obliterated—gone. Ashes, nothingness. Not even a chance at reincarnation."
I froze, the weight of her words hitting like a freight train. Slowly, I turned to Agnos, hurt etched across my face. "Does that an… you lied to ?"
"I didn't lie!" Agnos burst out, his voice defensive. "When I told you that you were blessed, I ant it. You are. That scale—" he pointed at , "—it carries the will of Kaleon."
I frowned. "The scale? You an Queen Isadora's scale? She gave that to because you imbued it with power!"
"Yes… and no," Agnos admitted reluctantly. "It's true the scale was imbued with power, but it wasn't my power."
"Then whose power was it?" My voice rose, frustration bubbling over.
Agnos hesitated, then sighed. "Also, that's not Isadora's dragon scale, Carl."
My breath hitched. "W-what? Then whose scale is it?"
"It's not a scale at all," he said gravely. "It's a fragnt of the Core." ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ noveⅼfire
For a mont, the words didn't register. "Wait… the Core? You an the Core? Of the Mythica's Leylines—that core?"
Agnos nodded. "And sohow, that fragnt linked itself to you. Originally, it was designed to track Kaleon. But instead of leading to him, it led to you. At first, I didn't understand, but then… then you absorbed it. That's why I believed you might be capable of handling the fragnts."
Viracocha's voice cut through the air, his tone grim. "And speaking of the fragnts… only Kaleon, the Creator, can absorb them. Only Kaleon's will has that power. But for you to survive the process, to access the mories... Unless..."
He stopped, his words hanging ominously in the air.
"Unless what?" I demanded, my voice sharp with desperation. "Just say it! I've heard enough crazy things today that nothing—nothing—could shock anymore!"
"Well, there's only one possible explanation," Viracocha hesitated, searching my face as though looking for confirmation in my features. "That you're his descendant. Kaleon's offspring."
The words felt like a bomb detonating in my head. My jaw dropped as I stared at him, dumbfounded.
"Kaleon's… son?" Jiuge's voice cracked, and she turned to Viracocha with wide eyes. "That's impossible! Hestia isn't pregnant!"
The sheer absurdity of the mont crashed over like a tidal wave. "Whoa, hold on! Back up! Son? Kaleon? ? Are you guys hearing yourselves?" I sputtered, my voice rising in pitch. "I'm just Carl! A mortal who ca to Mythica for a job and got dragged into this madness! There is no way—"
But as my voice trailed off, I noticed Agnos avoiding my gaze again. My heart sank.
"What… what are you not telling ?" I whispered, suddenly afraid of the answer.
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