System's POV

Chapter 1304: Sometimes, Life Is Full Of Surprises

“You’re not telling me something. Am I right?” Erasmus asked Thirteen, who was looking down on the city of Velgrande from the balcony of the royal palace. “You’re intermittently spacing out.

“That usually means you’re thinking deeply about something. Care to share what you have in mind?”

A faint smile appeared on Thirteen’s face as he glanced at the fake King of Artem.

“Are you sure you want to hear it?” Thirteen asked. “You might not be able to sleep peacefully at night after I tell you about it.”

“How can our situation possibly get any worse than it already is?” Erasmus arched an eyebrow. “Come on. Give me your best shot.”

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you later, okay?” Thirteen smirked before telling his former host about the possibility of Infernals descending on the world of Artem.

He made sure to explain these beings who lived in the void that was created during the primordial era.

A few minutes later, Erasmus heaved a long and deep sigh.

“You’re right,” Erasmus stated. “I’m better off not knowing that. Who else knows about this?”

“I told my mom about it,” Thirteen answered. “I’m still thinking if I should let Cranky as well.”

“Although I don’t want to say this, I think you should inform him as well,” Erasmus leaned back on his chair. “Cranky is one of your people, is he not?”

“You’re right. I’ll talk to him later.”

“Good.”

Erasmus sighed before glancing at the stormy sky above their heads.

“How strong are these Infernals?” Erasmus asked. “Do they have Celestials?”

“They use a different ranking system,” Thirteen replied. “They call the Monarchs of this world Centennials, and they refer to the Archons as Millenials.

“The High Archons are called Myriad, and Celestials are labeled as Calamity Class. Then after that, they have Demigods, and last but not least, Pseudo-Gods.”

Erasmus blinked. “Doesn’t that mean we’re screwed if a Demigod descends here?”

“That’s right.” Thirteen nodded. “If a Demigod appeared, we’re screwed.”

“We’re screwed, so why are you smiling? Do you find our situation funny?” Erasmus noticed that Thirteen didn’t seem too worried about a Demigod suddenly appearing in Artem.

“Do you want me to cry then?” Thirteen asked. “Can my tears make a difference?”

Erasmus sighed once more. “Let’s just live it up to Fat… I mean, let’s just leave it to chance. Come what may. You live only once!”

Knowing Fate was a taboo word for Thirteen, Erasmus quickly corrected his sentence.

“You’re right,” Thirteen nodded before glancing back at the city of Velgrande. “We’ll cross that bridge when we get there. I might just be over thinking things. There’s a chance that we won’t have to face those infernals at all.”

“That’s the spirit!” Erasmus grinned. “But even if it happens, remember that you’re not alone, Thirteen. Even if I have to raise all the dead people in the battlefield, we will fight to the bitter end.”

Suddenly, a faint breeze passed over the two of them, prompting them both to glance at the veiled lady walking in their direction.

“The two of you are talking about important matters, but you didn’t invite me. Shame on both of you,” Queen Miriamele said before moving a chair beside Zion.

She then sat on it and gave the teenage boy a hug, which made Erasmus wish he could swap places with his friend.

He had been an Undead for hundreds of years, so gaining a living and breathing body had allowed him to feel certain emotions like desire, which was originally numbed after he became the Lord of Death.

The three then talked for a bit, and Thirteen updated them on the movements of Castor’s and Regulus’ armies.

According to his estimate, the armies of the two Celestials would arrive within two days. Since the capital city was their last line of defense, everyone understood that they had to make their stand because there was no longer any place to run.

If the Castor and Regulus won this war, the throne of Artem would belong to them.

With Cranky still recovering, their fighting force had been drastically reduced by a third. Even if Queen Miriamele were to help them, it would be an uphill battle without Cranky’s help.

“It’s funny.” Queen Miriamele gazed lazily at the city of Velgrande. “There was a time when I wished to personally raze this kingdom to the ground. But now I am on the side trying to protect it.

“If I told my past self that I would one day save this city, she would probably laugh and call me crazy.”

Thirteen understood what Queen Miriamele was thinking. She was someone who lost her daughter because of King Astrion’s ambitions.

Thirteen had suffered many losses in the past, and to a certain extent, he had also lost a daughter.

Back then, he resorted to razing the entire continent to the ground, and sided with the Demon Race.

If not for the fact that the Gods themselves had come to bargain with him, he might have succeeded in his path of self-destruction.

He might have achieved his goal in avenging Kate and his unborn child. But he would lose too many things in the process, including what was left of what little humanity Kate had taught him during their time together.

For him those memories were very precious.

Even though he had been forced to erase his memory of them for the sake of self-preservation, he wished that he had kept those memories with him during his preparation to rebel against Fate and the System God.

But it was already in the past, and he had to move on for the sake of the future he wished to achieve.

“Sometimes, life is full of surprises,” Thirteen said softly. “Perhaps one day, all of us will look back at this war, and cherish these moments together.”

“Indeed.” Erasmus agreed. “Even time spent like this is very precious.”

“Don’t worry, Zion,” Queen Miriamele lightly patted the teenage boy’s head. “I’ll protect you no matter what. I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

She had already lost her daughter once, she would not allow her “son” suffer the same fate.

“Thank you,” Thirteen replied. “Let’s win this war and make Artem my backyard.”

Erasmus and Queen Miriamele smirked at the same time.

As long as they won this war, Erasmus would keep his position as King. When that happened, Thirteen would gain the backing of a powerful empire, which would come to his aid if he asked for their help.

Although the Infernals posed a threat to the outcome of the battle, Thirteen had already prepared two trump cards that would allow him to defend the world of Artem from the corruption of the Abyss.