Shuurai
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Chapter 109
🕑 Added 2025-06-25 13:23:51 +0000 UTC"Okay, so let me guess," I say, eyeing the two of them. "I broke some law again?"
"Indeed." Chronos nods. "Your actions here have created... complications."
"Complications? What do you mean?"
"The curse we inflicted upon Valerius wasn't just meant to punish him—it also served as an anchor," Chronos says solemnly.
Huh?
Maybe seeing my confusion, Ankhseram continues.
"What Valerius did a thousand years ago wasn't a simple forbidden spell," he says, his tone deadly serious. "The magic he used affected the very fabric of reality between this world, Earthland, and all of its counterparts."
"What are you talking about?"
"The spell Valerius cast," Chronos begins, "was designed to break the seal that holds back the original rulers of this universe and all its counterparts."
"Original rulers?"
"Before the dragons dominated this world," Ankhseram continues, "there were us—the gods. But what the world doesn't know is that before we ascended to godhood, demons ruled these realms."
"Demons?"
"Not the demons from Galuna Island, but something way worse."
"We weren't always gods," Chronos admits, his voice heavy with pain. "We were once human. We fought against the demon lords who enslaved our people, who turned our worlds into their personal playgrounds of suffering."
That revelation hits me like a punch to the gut. I didn't expect these gods to be former humans. In the anime and manga, they were so detached, and Hiro Mashima didn't help by giving them no real backgrounds.
"After centuries of war," Ankhseram picks up the story, "we finally managed to defeat them. But we couldn't destroy beings of such immense power. So we sealed them away, using our own lives as the key to lock them in an eternal prison."
"The act of sealing such powerful entities transformed us," Chronos says. "We ascended, but at a cost. We became bound to maintain those seals for eternity."
"The fool believed he was casting a spell to gain immortality," Ankhseram's eyes flash with anger. "But the incantation was planted in his mind by the demons themselves. It was their way of breaking free—using a human's greed and desperation as their key to freedom."
"While we did manage to defeat and seal the demons, there are still remnants of them. Some descendants also exist, like the ones from Galuna Island, though they're extremely weak compared to their ancestors. So we paid them no attention."
"So how did the demons manage to influence the emperor if they were sealed?" I ask.
They fall silent for a moment. I can feel their hesitation.
"It was another brother of ours," Chronos admits. "The seal wasn't foolproof and absolute. They managed to corrupt him and use him to free themselves. And they almost succeeded... but not without cost."
"Many of our brothers and sisters fell that day. Using their lives, we managed to renew the seal and make it stronger," Ankhseram continues. "We sealed the demons again... Unfortunately, there was another who escaped—a weak one. It was because of its weakness that we overlooked it."
"It was that demon who caused the disaster that befell the Ishgar Empire in the first place. It was also the one who implanted the spell in Valerius' mind." His voice grows darker. "By the time we noticed, it was too late. All we could do was seal Valerius and the empire, including the demon, before the worst could happen."
I nod solemnly. Everything I'm learning is completely new to me. I never expected the history of Earthland to be this brutal—so far from the happy and light tone the series showed.
The weight of their words settles on my shoulders like a heavy cloak. If what they're saying is true, then my actions have potentially unleashed something catastrophic on this world.
"What do I need to do?" I ask, the gravity of the situation finally hitting me. "How do we fix this?"
Chronos and Ankhseram exchange a look that makes my stomach drop.
"With the seal broken," Ankhseram says slowly, "that demon is now free."
"Then track it down," I say. "We hunt it before it can cause more damage."
"If only it were that simple," Chronos shakes his head. "Unfortunately, we're unable to track the demon. It has... ways to hide from our presence."
"Ways?"
Ankhseram explains. "Methods developed during the original war to evade our detection. This particular demon was particularly cunning among its kind."
A slow smile spreads across my face.
"Well," I say, my confidence returning, "no one can hide from me."
"That is precisely why we're here," Chronos says, "and why we told you the situation first hand. If there's someone who can resolve this easily, it's you."
I'm caught off guard by that. Surprised and somewhat flattered, actually. Looking at them now, I realize how polite and respectful these gods have been toward me. I can't help but feel a bit guilty about my attitude toward them earlier.
My thoughts drift to my inventory, already scanning through what items would be appropriate for this situation. After a moment, I found it.
A mirror-like device from another multiverse—something capable of tracking anything the user thinks of. It's definitely overkill for most situations. Hell, I could've used this back when we were looking for Ultear, but I held back since the other items I had did the job just fine. This situation, though? This calls for the big guns.
The mirror responds immediately, its surface rippling before showing me a clear image. There—in what looks like an abandoned temple somewhere in the mountains of Fiore. But something's off about the image. It's... shifting slightly, like the demon is moving even while time itself is frozen around it.
"Interesting," I mutter.
Both gods lean in to look at the mirror's display, their expressions growing grim.
"The Kalar Mountains," Ankhseram identifies. "A site where many battles were fought during the demon wars."
"Makes sense it would go somewhere familiar," I say, already preparing to move. "Alright, let's—"
"This is enough," Chronos interrupts, placing a hand on my shoulder. "We'll handle the demon from here."
I blink, surprised. "You sure? I mean, I can—"
"You've done more than enough," Ankhseram says with genuine gratitude. "We cannot thank you enough for this assistance."
The sincerity in their voices catches me off guard. These aren't the cold, distant gods I expected them to be.
"No problem," I say, and I actually mean it. "Look, if you guys need help with anything else, just let me know."
A small smile crosses Chronos's face. "We appreciate that, Aiden. Truly."
With that, they begin to fade, their forms becoming translucent as they prepare to leave this frozen moment.
And then, like a dam breaking, time resumes, as the world crashes back into motion around me.
"Aiden?" Irene's voice cuts through my disorientation. Her eyes are sharp, focused. "What happened? I felt time stop."
Of course she did. Irene is one hell of a woman.
"Nothing," I say with a grin, "just two old acquaintances dropping by for a chat."
Her face shifts into that look—the one that clearly says 'you better explain this later, or I'm going to make your life very difficult.'
I turn back to Valerius, who's still standing there dripping wet and looking like the world's most pathetic excuse for an emperor. Water pools around his feet as he shivers in the cold chamber air.
"Anyway, where were we?" I tap my chin theatrically. "Oh right. You."
I point directly at him, and now that I know the full story—about the demons, about how he got manipulated into casting that spell—I realize I was being pretty harsh on the guy. He got the Jellal treatment. Mind-fucked by ancient evil into doing something terrible, then left to deal with the consequences.
Doesn't excuse what happened to his people, but it does explain it.
"We have a lot to talk about later," I say, my tone lighter than before.
Valerius gulps audibly, fear creeping across his face like I just threatened to feed him to a dragon.
“But first, Come on," I say, turning toward the chamber exit. "Your people are probably wondering what happened to their emperor."
We walk out of the tomb in silence. The celebration outside has quieted down some, but there are still groups of people talking, laughing.
Some of them look our way as we emerge. I see recognition flicker across a few faces when they spot Valerius.
"Your Majesty?" An older woman approaches hesitantly. "Is it really you?"
