What makes it hard for the audience to keep a straight face is that, in Caenis, they seemed to see the shadow of someone they once knew.
"I've got the advantage," and then immediately charging ahead. Too familiar.
Meanwhile, on screen, after hearing that, Cipher's eyes flickered.
"Ah. I see. You're afraid she'll do something wild now that she's pushed into a corner, aren't you?"
"She already has once." Phainon replied.
Wasn't the attempt to assassinate Aglaea an act of a cornered dog jumping the wall?
"Yes. Also Kephale's Coreflame, forever enshrined above the council theater, would be the opposition's final trump card against the Chrysos Heirs."
"We're setting out to campaign against Aquila in a few days. With the Chrysos Heirs gone, it'll be their best chance to strike..." Phainon voiced all the worries weighing on his mind.
"You think those desperate dogs will try to snatch the Coreflame while you're gone."
"So you want me to give them a nice long walk while you're away, right?"
The corner of Cipher's lips curled upward.
Phainon nodded and said solemnly,
"You sure saw right through me, Miss Cipher. I know exactly what you can do. God-like speed, perfect disguises, untraceable movements... And that most enigmatic authority of "Trickery.""
"I have only one request. Please, use whatever tricks you need to protect Kephale's Coreflame, even if you have to deceive the rest of the Chrysos Heirs as well."
Cipher was greatly surprised. Clicking her tongue in amazement, she once again looked Phainon up and down.
Phainon's expression remained unchanged as he quietly waited for her answer.
Different. Very different!
Aglaea would only use that golden thread of hers to establish rules and keep everything neatly organized.
Naturally, she had her reasons for doing so.
But Phainon was telling her to act freely. The meaning behind his words was obvious: as long as the goal was achieved, the means didn't matter.
How ruthless. And judging from Phainon's attitude, he had never even considered the possibility that she would refuse.
Tsk, tsk...
"Hey, Deliverer. Do you honestly think that there's no way I'll turn you down?"
"Do you even have any Plan Bs if I decide to nope out on this?"
Cipher asked teasingly.
"None." Looking completely confident that he had her figured out, Phainon replied frankly,
"As the demigod of Trickery, there are no other trump cards in the world that can out-rank you, I'm sure you know the answer to your own question, Miss Cipher."
Cipher shook her head helplessly.
"What confidence. You talk as if you have everything in the palm of your hand... Hmph, so you did learn a thing or two from her. I'll give you that."
At that, Cipher turned her head and smiled faintly.
"But I'll help you."
"And while we're at it, let me tell you something else."
"Then let me tell you something you don't know. The Flame Reaver, they've been watching Okhema closely."
Phainon was startled. This was important information.
They had been tracking that man's whereabouts all this time, yet had found nothing.
Very satisfied with Phainon's reaction, Cipher said proudly, "Bet you didn't expect that, huh? I've been tracking them all this time, and this is my conclusion."
As she spoke, her expression gradually turned serious.
"That lunatic may have lost their mind, but they're no fool. Why do you think they haven't made a move on Okhema yet?"
After a moment of thought, Phainon answered honestly,
"Professor Anaxa once analyzed this. He thought... It was probably because Kephale's Coreflame was protected by the Council of Elders' secret arts?"
Cipher rolled her eyes and said loudly,
"Ha! Secret arts my foot. I could break those mechanisms with a flick of my finger."
"Allow me to let you in on the actual secret. They probably held off from attacking Okhema because the seamstress's defense network was way tougher than you thought."
"Now that she's gone... and you're heading out to the Eye of Twilight... with the city's defenses in shambles... tsk tsk tsk."
Ignoring Cipher's teasing, Phainon asked directly,
"...What a dangerous situation we find ourselves in."
"But since you're the one who brought it up, I'm guessing that you already have a solution in mind."
"Tsk..." Cipher clicked her tongue in annoyance.
Phainon was good in every way except that he was a little too straightforward. Couldn't he at least pretend to panic and say something like, "Please help us, Lady Cipher"?
"Just look how ridiculously calm you are right now..."
"But you guessed it right. Consider this a two-for-one deal. I'll keep that lunatic entertained on top of protecting Kephale's Coreflame, You owe a big favor after this."
Cipher shook her head and said boredly.
"You have my deepest gratitude. That Flame Reaver's power is truly unfathomable. Please be careful."
Placing one hand over his chest, Phainon offered a solemn salute of gratitude.
"Hmph."
"Don't forget, Deliverer. There's a fundamental truth in this world. "Cifera will always get the last laugh." No need to worry about a demigod. I'll do my job, so you need to make sure that you don't die before you pay me."
After saying that, Cipher waved her hand, and her figure vanished.
Looking at the now-empty railing, Phainon let out a sigh of relief.
With that, he could finally depart on the expedition without worries.
And when the audience saw this, they suddenly realized something.
Without noticing it, Cipher's appearances had somehow become synonymous with a sense of security.
...
: Cipher really is such a tsundere little kitty!
: She's worried about Aglaea and secretly taking action on her own. Who says Cipher isn't a good cat?
: She's already one of the last remaining Chrysos Heirs.
: But that last line feels like she's raising a death flag, QAQ.
: Don't talk nonsense! Against the Flame Reaver, Cipher definitely has her own methods. She's a Demigod of Trickery!
: Exactly. With divine speed on her side, even if she can't win, she can still run.
: Judging by the speed the Flame Reaver has shown, I don't believe he can outrun Cipher!
: Just believe! Cifera will definitely laugh last!
: Unless MiHoYo decides to stop being human, but we've already lost so many people!
: Exactly. And with the prophecy nearing its conclusion, no matter how strong the Flame Reaver is, he shouldn't be powerful enough to instantly wipe out these Chrysos Heirs. Unless an emanator, I can't think of anyone left who could stop the re-genesis!
: The Lord Ravager is probably connected to the re-genesis.
: That actually makes a lot of sense. Maybe the cycle serves some purpose too?
...
The comments continued to scroll by.
At this point in the story, the atmosphere of a final decisive battle was becoming stronger and stronger.
Besides for things related to Amphoreus, most of what could be uncovered had already been explored.
The secrets of those Titans have already been made public.
Only a few mysteries remain unsolved, such as the seal on the Lord Ravager and Oronyx's mother.
As the audience watched, it felt as though these mysteries were meant to be unraveled during the final fight.
The scene shifted.
Several days later.
Preparations for the campaign against Aquila were underway in full swing.
At the center of it all was Hyacine.
A descendant of the Twilight Courtyard and the widely acknowledged leader of the Skyfolk.
Having Hyacine step forward was naturally the most suitable approach. And reaching the sky was obviously not as simple as dealing with the other Titans.
Because their city-state existed in the skies.
To reclaim the Coreflame, they had to rebuild the Rainbow Bridge that connected the sky and the land.
This ritual required descendants of the skyfolk to use a special ceremony.
In the past, this ritual would have been extremely difficult.
But now, with abundant resources available, this step had instead become the easiest.
First was Dan Heng.
During his journey, he had learned how to create an entrance to the Vortex of Genesis.
This method had originally been developed by the Ocean Titan, Phagousa.
But the sea in Scalegorge Waterscape was a sea. And the sea of Amphoreus was also a sea.
Thus, as long as he carried water as a medium, he could use his power to open a path to the Vortex of Genesis anytime and anywhere, which was incredibly convenient.
After all, Hyacine needed to find all the required relics for the ceremony.
....
To reach Aquila's realm in the sky, the descendants of the Sky people had to perform a bloodline ceremony, summon the spirits of their ancestors, and get their blessings.
Hyacine had been wandering all over Amphoreus searching for the relics.
Within the Grove of Epiphany, Hyacine and Dan Heng were strolling along a tree branch.
"This is the last place."
At an open plaza, Hyacine stopped, holding a glowing box as she looked around.
She could sense the relic.
Setting the box down, Hyacine briskly walked to an empty area and began whispering softly.
Dan Heng watched from behind.
Partly as a guard, and partly out of curiosity regarding this method of summoning ancestors.
Unfortunately, from his perspective, he couldn't see anything.
Before long, Hyacine returned with a bright smile on her face.
"How did it go?" Dan Heng asked.
"Very smoothly! I met a famous person from our clan. When he heard that we were returning to the sky, he readily agreed. He even encouraged me, telling me to keep working hard and continue my ancestors' great legacy."
Hyacine laughed happily, two adorable dimples appearing at the corners of her mouth.
This lively and sweet girl had been active everywhere throughout the story.
Yet the audience knew surprisingly little about her.
After Aglaea's death, Phainon rarely showed the simple smiles he once had. Stelle was also busy handling countless matters related to the upcoming recreation of the world.
It seemed that everyone had taken on immense pressure.
Only Hyacine, after grieving that day, she was back the next day, energetically traveling wherever healing was needed, her face always carrying that smile that seemed to soothe anyone who saw it.
In an increasingly tense and oppressive atmosphere.
Her sweetness, along with her adorable habit of calling others nicknames, greatly eased the audience's mood.
She was truly a sunshine girl.
....
: Isn't she adorable? Seriously!
: Seeing a smile like this at a time like this is so healing!
: Thinking about it carefully, every Chrysos Heir character seems to have their own burdens right now. Seeing Hyacine like this completely won me over!
: We want energetic girls! We want energetic girls! We want energetic girls!
: At least MiHoYo still has some conscience, giving us a cheerful beauty to heal our hearts too!
: Hyacine suki!
...
While the audience basked in the healing power of Hyacine's cheerful charm.
Dan Heng suddenly asked out of curiosity:
"Seliose? I've heard that name many times, but I don't really know the details."
"Lady Seliose~"
The moment Hyacine mentioned that name, her eyes filled with admiration and hope.
"She's a legend of our people. A hero of the skyfolk."
"Back when I was studying together with everyone at the Grove of Epiphany."
"Teacher Anaxa asked us during our graduation class about our dreams and what kind of path we wanted to walk in the future."
"And at that time... I..."
As Hyacine spoke. A faded memory surfaced.
The young Hyacine, tiny and adorable, stood in class with her hands on her hips.
"My aspiration is completing the final "blank page" at the end of the heroes' epic."
"I've read all of Amphoreus' heroic epics while studying at the Grove, and a common thread came to my attention."
"Almost every epic ends with a description of the hero's achievements, but few mention how the everyday people of that time lived. No one recorded the struggles and suffering the commoners endured."
Hyacine spoke passionately before the class.
Anaxa asked with interest:
"So you're saying that, instead of legendary heroes, you're more focused on commoners living on the peripheries of historical records?"
Hyacine nodded vigorously.
"Perhaps I'm influenced by my background. My ancestor, Seliose the Daythunder Knight, raised her spear against the Sky and ushered in the Flame-Chasing era that continues to this day."
"Her story is told to every child descended from the Skyfolk. We have no doubts about Seliose's greatness, yet... her towering figure overshadowed every record from that entire era."
"What about the Daythunder Knight's family, allies, and friends? What about the survivors and those who died in the great battles? Whenever I think about their stories by the campfire, I realize the details of those legends have been long lost... and only Seliose's name remains."
As they listened to young Hyacine's words in the classroom.
Anaxa had yet to comment. But the audience outside the screen had already picked up on a very familiar theme.
The people's view of history!
In a land like Amphoreus, where heroes were everywhere. Hyacine's way of thinking was actually fixed on the common people?!
Unbelievable!