Chapter 238 - 238 22

238 22

William tapped his fingers on the magical medium after hearing Blake’s recount and said, “…But isn’t this strange?”

“Strange in what way?” Blake asked, his expression unchanging.

“The Moon Realm’s sovereigns and the functions of the Moonanchors. To casually reveal such important information, I don’t see what benefits the other party could gain from doing so.”

“That’s what I thought at first.” Remides chimed in.

“But the person behind it enjoys a spectacle. It’s not that difficult to understand, right?”

Remides’ words made William lower his head in thought.

Valk could definitely be the one behind this. After all, He was the one who provided information about Black Crow Gaze and Coles’s betrayal, ultimately saving Blake and stopping the Void Sovereigns’ plan to fuse the planes through the apotheosis ritual.

While Valk may not have gained anything from it other than some amusement, He was responsible for it.

But this situation seemed different to William.

Or rather, it didn’t fit with Valk’s style.

Maybe Valk would give him some crucial intel just for kicks, but there’s no way the He would send His messenger to his subordinates in such a covert and low-key way.

And even though this information was valuable, it wouldn’t do William much good. What kind of chaos could it cause for Valk, who craved endless unpredictable possibilities? This would just make the future more stable and predictable. That’s not exactly the kind of scene that the Void Sovereign, who lives for causing all sorts of “accidents,” would be thrilled to see.

William asked another question, “Before Reason left, did it tell you why it told you this information?”

Blake and Remides looked at each other. After a brief silence, they answered in unison, “No.”

William studied them and nodded calmly.

“I see. Got it.”

…

After the Moon Realm alliance army retreated, the black crows transformed into a whirlwind of crow feathers and began to clean up the battlefield.

Lunar Monsters killed by non-Judgment equipment wouldn’t leave any corpses. They would simply disappear and return to their corresponding Moon Realm domains. It would then be up to their master’s mood to decide if they would be used as raw materials for rebuilding.

Since they were dissipating, they wouldn’t leave behind weapons as spoils of war. In fact, claws, teeth, and other weapons were essentially a part of their existence as Lunar Monsters.

However, the Moon Realm dust left behind after their dissipating was a necessary alchemy ingredient for many potions. The crows were collecting this by turning into a whirlwind and sweeping across the battlefield.

In this era where knowledge related to the Moon Realm was monopolized by the Church, royal family, and Astral Council, alchemy materials that could be bought in bulk by mage apprentices in the Judgment era were now priceless. In order to delay the plague spread by the Lady of Starvation in many cities, the materials needed to brew and dispel potions were paid for by William from the Treasure Hall.

After the war ended, the Moon Realm dust left behind was probably enough to replenish William’s stockpile.

The outcome of the battle was clear: Dementia was the only Demon General who didn’t fight, and the rest were all killed. Among them, Judgment 2 killed Demon General Carnage, ending its immortality. The Moonanchors, which were rumored to be divine artifacts that unlocked the Astral Lighthouse, were scattered during the chaos. The King of Deathblood’s Moonanchor was left behind, while the other three were taken by high-level Lunar Monsters who saw the situation deteriorating.

William wasn’t in a rush to study the Moonanchor. Instead, he quickly sealed it and gave it to Blake’s crows for safekeeping.

He had enough on his plate already.

In addition, Dementia, who had been watching from the sidelines, didn’t leave the battlefield until the battle ended. It leisurely left the battlefield with its subordinates pushing the extravagant wheelchair, as if it belonged there.

Blake and Remides were both puzzled by the fact that Presiding Judge William didn’t try to stop Dementia from leaving.

“Let them go. There’s no way to really kill it anyway. It’s just a kind gesture towards Valk. After all, it doesn’t make sense for the Presiding Judge to send his subordinates to be rebuilt after he received such valuable information,” William explained.

As Blake and Remides walked back to Black Crow Gaze, they kept looking at each other, suspecting that the Presiding Judge suspected they were hiding something.

Upon careful consideration, releasing Dementia didn’t align with the Presiding Judge’s principle of killing Lunar Monsters on sight.

Could this be a test for Absurdity Jester, or even worse… a test for them?

But they couldn’t bring themselves to say it out loud… the method that could completely destroy a Void Sovereign.

What if the Presiding Judge, with his deep hatred for the Moon Realm, actually planned to use that knowledge?

This was what was running through their minds.

“Only one way to kill a Void Sovereign in the Moon Realm. Birth a new Void Sovereign and kill the old one,” Reason had said back then.

“What?”

“We recreate Their apotheosis ritual and replace the Sovereigns of the past. That’s the only way to truly kill an immortal Void Sovereign.”

“But…”

“I know. The problem is how. Even if we do it, it will only create a new Void Sovereign. No fundamental changes.”

Blake was about to finish his sentence when Reason anticipated his question.

Blake nodded gravely.

“Before answering those questions, I need to clarify something. In the Moon Realm, there’s a strict number of Void Sovereign thrones. Not 13 like mortals think, but 22. This number may decrease, but it won’t increase.”

“Twenty-two?”

“You almost became the 14th Void Sovereign. Even if it was an incomplete experience, I’m sure you sensed it. The throne of the Void Sovereign may be eternal, but the person sitting on it can be replaced. It could’ve been you, poor Coles, or possibly… your master, William Kane. You were all people who had the chance to make your mark on the throne,” Reason explained slowly.

“But those who sit on the throne can never truly be sovereign. They’re just puppets of power,” Blake interjected.

Having fought in Black Crow Gaze for hundreds of years, he knew firsthand how damaging that power could be to mortal minds.

Reason nodded and said, “When they first become a Void Sovereign, though, anyone can choose to shatter the throne before their will is completely assimilated. Of course, the price is the eternal disappearance of their existence…

“And this is how a Void Sovereign can be killed for good.”