Witch, Fireball and Steam Evil God

Chapter 314 Death is also a beginning
Ethan could tell that the Crimson Queen had meticulously prepared a boss battle for him—as a follower of Argos, there was no more visually striking sight than directly summoning Argos himself during a battle.

He saw a dark rift appear in the sky above the divine tree. A moment later, a giant hand opened the rift, and pale blue energy surged out from the space on the other side of the rift, instantly turning into a blue rain. All the creatures that came into contact with the rain mutated in an instant, changing from the inside out under the influence of Argos energy.

Metal and machinery became their bodies, even the sacred tree that had stood in this world for thousands of years was no exception. Corrosion spread from the branches all the way up until it assimilated the trunk. Its surface was no longer rough bark, but instead smooth and cold black iron. Then, those wriggling hoses proliferated.

Even Ethan, who was well-informed, saw his sanity plummet during the mutation of the Divine Tree.

However, the anticipated epic boss battle never materialized.

The reason is that the summoner and her partner had a falling out.

At that moment, the red-haired girl stood in front of the treehouse, looking down at him as he rode Miss Chloe straight to the top of the sacred tree. Above her head were the rifts that had been torn open, and the strange creatures that kept invading this world through the rifts.

Ethan couldn't tell whether the wriggling tubes were Argos's creations or parts of His own body. He was simply prepared to fight as a summoner, with the cat and the little purple bat on his shoulder poised to go, and the big black wolfhound carrying the little octopus and the black dragon uphill.

The sky was tinged with pale blue, and cracks filled the entire sky.

This apocalyptic scene perfectly matched Ethan's imagination of boss battles. In the later stages of every generation of Pokémon stories he knew, players would bring six reliable companions to fight against the legends existing in this area. These companions were like gods in the eyes of humans, controlling the laws of the world.

Then, something unexpected happened.

The waving hoses closed in on the red-haired girl and stabbed her in the back.

The treehouse, which had existed for who knows how many years, was also completely destroyed. The red-haired girl seemed to have not anticipated Argos's betrayal, so she had no time to dodge. The sharp hose, filled with rage, pierced straight through her chest. As the hose was pulled out of her body, she fell to the ground, losing her support.

The arrival of the old gods, the torn sky.

The sacred tree, which carried the faith of the entire world, was corrupted, and the Crimson Queen, who was the guardian of the sacred tree, died when the end of the world arrived.

Ethan never expected that he would witness the apocalypse prophesied by the gods in a plane completely unrelated to the Empire.

Ethan, regaining his senses, immediately instructed Miss Chloe to turn around and chase after the falling red-haired girl.

However, an invisible force kept Miss Chloe at bay, causing them to move at almost the same speed. The distance between them was one that could never be closed. This might be some kind of artifact possessed by the Crimson Queen, or a power bestowed upon her by the goddess.

This is why Ethan witnessed the entire process of the Scarlet Queen's passing.

No blood flowed from the hole in her chest; her body gradually turned into dissipating white specks of light, just like the scene after a "player" is killed in countless virtual game comics.

This process lasted for more than ten seconds, but it felt incredibly long to Ethan.

The concepts of time and space were distorted, and human senses became sluggish. After a dozen seconds, their distance was finally reduced. Without the supply of energy, the "artifact" was losing its function. Before Ethan could grab the falling red-haired girl, another, more distant obstacle stood between them.

The concept of "death" has returned to the world.

What he grasped were scattered white specks of light, without any tactile sensation, flowing away from his fingertips and disappearing into the air in the blink of an eye.

This was a death unlike any other for the King of Gold.

The former, filled with doubt and anger before his death, had his golden pool surging, the rolling bubbles seemingly expressing his questioning of the goddess. However, he saw relief on the face of the Crimson Queen, who smiled throughout until she completely turned into scattered specks of light.

Even the speed at which the apocalypse was about to begin paused for a moment due to the passing of the Crimson Queen.

Returning to the top of the sacred tree, Argos was also deeply perplexed.
Is the Scarlet Queen dead?

That treacherous and cunning woman who once deceived Him and imprisoned Him in the mirror world for thousands of years is dead?
No, how is that possible?

This must be some kind of trick, a smokescreen used to deceive fate!
Yes, that must be it. She must be hiding in the shadows now.

As Argos' emotions fluctuated, lightning flashed and thunder roared in the sky, which was being eroded by the blue rifts. The blue energy transformed into torrential rain, irrigating this world that was on the verge of collapse.

"She's dead."

Ethan said.

"How could that be? You don't understand that woman at all!"

The thunder grew louder and louder. "She's willing to sacrifice anyone to survive. Do you remember that little human girl who came to the capital with you? Charlotte is the embodiment of that woman's energy... That woman foresaw your arrival, knew your destiny, and wanted to use this method to deceive death!"

Argos excitedly revealed the Crimson Queen's plan, but these emotions and words should have been directed at that hateful woman, who was absent at this most crucial moment.

He did want to kill the Scarlet Queen, but not in such an easy way.

Argos felt that no one understood lies and betrayal better than that woman who was full of lies. She must have foreseen his sudden betrayal and had already prepared a backup plan. He would regain his freedom, and they would confront each other at the top of the sacred tree, where he would righteously tell her the reasons for breaking his promise.

The black dragon named Ignatius was the last straw that broke the camel's back. The Crimson Queen's attitude of treating him like trash that had lost its usefulness forced her to make the final decision. Without a doubt, the Crimson Queen was essentially no different from the man wearing the golden mask. They had no emotions at all. Everything in this world was just a tool for her to amuse herself, even the "partners" she had raised with her own hands.

She proved with her actions that Ignatius's existence was merely a test of her theory. For the sake of her whims, she could put Ignatius in agony. Even when they reunited years later, she still mocked him relentlessly. How could such a cruel and indifferent woman possibly keep her promise?

The moment the seal was broken, Argos couldn't wait to tell her that she was the one who had been fooled, and that He had never believed a single word she had said from the beginning.

"Haven't you realized yet? Once Charlotte dies, the prophecy of fate will be fulfilled, and she will no longer be bound by fate."

Argos raised his voice.

With the Scarlet Queen absent, He could only tell Ethan everything He had discovered.

He felt that he had grown a lot in the past thousand years, and he saw through the Scarlet Queen's conspiracy at a glance.

"She must be hiding now, brewing a new conspiracy."

He was emotionally agitated, and this was probably the most emotionally volatile Old God Ethan had ever seen.

This is by no means a good thing for other beings that have ventured out of this plane. The blue rainstorm is changing the world's landscape and ecological structure. If this rainstorm is allowed to continue, when he leaves the Divine Tree, he will be greeted by a world of metal and machinery.

“She’s dead,” Ethan reiterated.

"How is that possible? What evidence do you have?"

"I have my own methods."

Ethan lingered on the dialog box that appeared in mid-air, having silently read the line of text on it countless times in his mind.

Because the Crimson Queen died so easily, he immediately pulled up the guild member handbook, and the search results displayed this line of text in front of him.

—『Administrator Crimson Queen is dead』.

There's also a black and white profile picture that's faded and dull. She seems to be a detail-oriented person. The profile picture is meticulously crafted by her, facing the camera and displaying an almost perfect, girlish smile. Her right hand is making a victory sign. Anyone who sees this profile picture would feel a natural affinity for her.

No matter how many times I checked, the text remained unchanged.

Previously, the guild's investigator Su mentioned that when the Golden King died, all investigators in the same plane received the message.

Sue also said that the guild's "manual" was made by the goddess, which is incredible. Even the guild's research department does not know how it works, and the information provided in the guild manual is absolutely accurate.

Perhaps the Crimson Queen can deceive Argos, she can deceive him, but she can never deceive the goddess who bestowed upon her power and authority. Even as the leader of the guild, she can never violate the most fundamental rules of this world.

However, Ethan could understand Argos's feelings.

"No, this is not right, there must be something wrong with it."

The voice from the crack was gripped by intense self-doubt, muttering incessantly to itself, repeatedly recalling the words the Scarlet Queen had spoken to herself in the mirror a few days earlier.

She spoke of fate, that as the guild's leader, she was destined to die during her meeting with the "Chosen Ones."

She also mentioned goddesses, beings who are above all guild leaders, but Argos could clearly see that the goddesses Crimson mentioned were not among them.

After her trick of "deceiving death" was exposed, Scarlet frankly made a condition to Him—if He helped her deceive fate, she would tell Him about the goddess and the "Chosen Ones." In addition, He would regain His freedom and be able to unleash His rage in this plane, and she would not stop Him from making this world whatever He wanted to become.

The end times will come, and the human girl Charlotte will inevitably die.

When that time comes, this plane will lose its value to her, and she will leave.

This perfectly matched His perception of this cunning and treacherous woman, and when she uttered these conditions, Argos was certain she was sincere.

Because that's what those guild parasites do—they can easily sacrifice anyone else for their own lives and desires.

"It seems she did one more thing before she died."

The little purple bat whispered something in Ethan's ear, which made Ethan's expression instantly become somewhat unnatural.

This is the latest intelligence obtained by the intelligence master Rowena. The cuckoo birds have spread it to every corner of the kingdom. Even though it has been polluted and corroded by the blue rain, these magical creatures are still carrying out their work.

But in fact, there was no need for them to spread the news; all the summoners in the kingdom and even in this plane knew everything that was happening to the divine tree at that moment.

This was some kind of power he was unaware of, allowing everyone to witness everything that happened on the Divine Tree at the moment when the Crimson Queen exhausted her life.

There was no dialogue, no explanation.

But everyone saw it. They saw the sublime Crimson Queen being murdered, they saw the apocalypse coming, and they saw the young man riding a golden bird, surrounded by mechanical locusts, bringing about the end of the world.

At this moment, everyone understood.

Team Rocket is an organization whose mission is to assassinate the Scarlet Queen and bring about the destruction of the world.

To make matters worse for Ethan, there was no need for a warrant; everyone in this dimension saw his face in those fleeting images.

This was indeed the Scarlet Queen's plan, a plan that began with her death.

Before long, a glittering object in the dilapidated wooden hut caught Ethan's attention. It was a crystal emitting a red glow, placed on a thick parchment book. The parchment book was very conspicuous, and its owner hoped that someone would find it.

"Adventure Book (Crimson)"

The moment Ethan picked up the book, this dialog box immediately appeared in his mind's eye.

Every official guild investigator possesses an adventure book, which records the places they have visited and the planes they have investigated. They can also record some trivial matters of their lives in it. In the words of the guild trainer, the greatest value of the adventure book is that if you unfortunately perish, the person who finds it can know your identity and what you have experienced.

You will not be forgotten.

After the investigator's death, the found adventure book will be sent back to the guild headquarters and treasured by the guild.

Your name will be included in the memorial hall, and your deeds in the adventure book will serve as your epitaph.

We pay our highest respects to every investigator who has passed away.

The above is what Ethan gained from participating in the guild training. Of course, the guild also gave him his own adventure book—this is his first stop after becoming a formal investigator for the guild.

His glorious deeds were displayed on the blank pages of the book:
The Rockets were formed.

I witnessed the death of the guild administrator, Crimson.

The adventure book he was holding automatically turned to the first page, which seemed to contain a message left for him by Crimson.

—To His Excellency Ethan

(End of this chapter)