Chapter 249: How old am I?

[: 3rd POV :]

"Even then..."

The pink haired girl suddenly grabbed both sides of her head dramatically.

"All of these names are giving me a huge headache!"

She groaned loudly before falling backward onto the enormous branch of Yggdrasil.

"Why are there so many of them?"

"Pantheons."

"Factions."

"Constellations."

"Monarchs."

"Sovereigns."

"Sects."

"Clans."

She counted them one by one using her fingers before letting out another exaggerated sigh.

"Couldn’t everything just be...simpler?"

She scratched her long pink hair in frustration until several strands became slightly messy.

"There are way too many things to remember!"

"I feel like my brain is about to explode."

The silver haired man quietly watched her complain.

For a brief moment, he remained silent.

Then he laughed.

"HAHAHAHA!"

His loud laughter echoed throughout Yggdrasil.

The floating books around him even trembled slightly from how heartily he laughed.

The pink haired girl puffed her cheeks.

"Why are you laughing?"

"I’m being serious!"

The man wiped the corner of one eye while trying to calm himself.

"I know."

"That is exactly why it is amusing."

The girl folded her arms.

"Hmph."

"You’re making fun of me."

The man smiled warmly before shaking his head.

"Not at all."

"I simply remembered that I once asked the exact same question."

The girl’s expression immediately changed.

"You did?"

The man nodded.

"I did."

"I once wondered why the Universe had become so complicated."

He leaned comfortably against the trunk of Yggdrasil while looking toward the endless stars.

"But..."

"I suppose it makes sense if you think about it carefully."

The girl blinked.

"How?"

The silver haired man slowly continued.

"Once upon a time..."

"There were only the Pantheons."

The pink haired girl’s eyes widened slightly.

"Only the Pantheons?"

The man nodded.

"At that time..."

"The Universe was much simpler."

"There were fewer civilizations."

"Fewer conflicts."

"Fewer ambitions."

He paused briefly.

"But then..."

"Troubled times arrived."

The girl’s curiosity immediately resurfaced.

"Troubled times?"

"What kind of troubled times are you talking about?"

The silver haired man’s smile slowly disappeared.

For the first time since their conversation began, his expression became distant.

It was almost nostalgic.

"Well..."

"There were many."

"Far too many."

He quietly exhaled.

"But if I had to summarize them..."

"I would simply call them..."

"...an era of endless chaos."

The winds around Yggdrasil gradually slowed.

The surrounding atmosphere subtly became heavier.

The girl leaned forward eagerly.

"Chaos?"

"What happened?"

"Did the Pantheons fight each other?"

"Was there a huge war?"

She asked one question after another without stopping.

The silver haired man simply smiled helplessly.

"So impatient."

The girl grinned sheepishly.

"You made me curious."

The man laughed softly.

"I know."

"But those are stories for another day."

The girl immediately protested.

"That’s unfair!"

"You can’t say something like that and then stop!"

She crossed her arms dramatically.

"You’re making me even more curious."

Then suddenly...she froze.

Her eyes slowly narrowed.

"...Wait."

The silver haired man raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

The girl pointed directly at him.

"You’re speaking as though you actually lived during that era."

The man blinked once.

"...Perhaps."

The girl’s eyes widened.

"Wait..."

"...How old are you?"

Silence.

The silver haired man stared at her.

The girl stared back.

Neither of them spoke for several seconds.

Finally, the man sighed.

"How old am I?"

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"You know..."

"It is rather rude to ask a man about his age."

The girl tilted her head innocently.

"Doesn’t that only apply to women?"

The man opened his mouth.

Then paused.

"...Perhaps you’re right."

He gave an awkward cough.

"Ahem."

The pink haired girl smiled triumphantly.

"So?"

"How old are you?"

The silver haired man became strangely quiet.

His gaze drifted toward the endless sky.

"...How old..."

"...am I?"

He repeated the question slowly.

His brows gradually furrowed.

"...To be honest..."

"I don’t remember anymore."

The girl blinked.

"You don’t remember?"

The man scratched his cheek awkwardly.

"Was it..."

"...hundreds of thousands of years?"

He frowned.

"No..."

"That doesn’t sound right."

"...Millions?"

He thought for another moment.

"...No..."

"I feel like that’s still too small."

The pink haired girl’s mouth slowly opened.

The man continued mumbling to himself.

"Perhaps..."

"...tens of millions?"

"No..."

"...that still feels inaccurate."

He sighed helplessly.

"Honestly..."

"I really don’t remember."

"It has simply been..."

"...too long."

The pink haired girl completely froze.

"...Wait."

"...Wait."

"...WAIT!"

She suddenly jumped to her feet.

"You’re millions of years old!?"

Her loud voice echoed throughout Yggdrasil.

The silver haired man rubbed his ears.

"Must you shout?"

"But..."

"You’re..."

"...millions of years old!"

The girl pointed at him with trembling fingers.

The man shrugged casually.

"Millions?"

"I don’t believe that’s the correct number."

"I truly wonder how much time has passed."

He looked toward the distant stars with nostalgic eyes.

"...Though..."

"There is one thing I still remember clearly."

The girl’s expression immediately became serious again.

"What is it?"

The silver haired man’s smile slowly faded.

"...When I was still a child..."

The girl’s face immediately stiffened.

"...Child?"

The man nodded.

"I witnessed something..."

"...that very few beings throughout existence even know."

His ancient eyes reflected memories buried countless eras deep.

"I saw..."

"...Adam."

"And Eve."

The moment those two names were spoken—

The surrounding winds stopped completely.

Even Yggdrasil itself seemed to become silent.

The pink haired girl’s pupils contracted.

"A Adam!? E Eve!?"

The pink haired girl immediately shot to her feet.

The mana candy slipped from her fingers and rolled across the enormous branch of Yggdrasil without her even noticing.

Her eyes were wide with complete disbelief.

"The First Generation of Anomalies!?"

"The Anomaly of Light and the Anomaly of First Sin!?"

Her voice echoed loudly through the surrounding dimension.

"You are talking about ’those’ Adam and Eve!?"

The silver haired man simply looked at her before giving a small nod.

"That is correct."

The girl instinctively took several steps backward.

"N-No way..."

"T-That is impossible..."

She placed one hand over her chest, trying to calm her rapidly beating heart.

"T-That wasn’t millions of years ago..."

"It wasn’t even billions..."

She stared at him as though she were looking at an unimaginable monster.

"T-That happened trillions of years ago!"

"And even then..."

"The true number has already been lost to history!"

"Every historical record only says it happened before the Ancient Eras!"

"No one even knows how long ago it truly was!"

She pointed at him with a trembling finger.

"Y You’re that old!?"

The silver haired man scratched his cheek awkwardly.

"Am I?"

He looked genuinely puzzled.

"I suppose..."

"I never really counted."

Maiya stared blankly.

"...Never counted?"

"You’re not old anymore!"

She exclaimed dramatically.

"You’re a living fossil!"

The silver haired man burst into laughter.

"HAHAHAHA!"

"That might actually be the most interesting title I’ve ever received."

Maiya folded her arms.

"I’m serious!"

"You’ve lived long enough to become history itself!"

The man only smiled helplessly.

"I suppose that is one way of looking at it."

Maiya slowly sat back down, though her mind was still struggling to process everything she had just learned.

After taking several deep breaths, another question appeared inside her mind.

"...But..."

The silver haired man looked toward her.

"What is it?"

Maiya hesitated briefly.

"If..."

"If Adam really existed..."

"And if he fought alongside ’Mother’..."

She frowned thoughtfully.

"Then..."

"...What happened to Adam?"

"Because..."

She tilted her head innocently.

"Isn’t our Faction led by Mother?"

"If Adam was still around..."

"Shouldn’t both of them be leading us together?"

The very instant those words left her mouth...everything stopped.

The cheerful atmosphere disappeared completely.

The surrounding winds ceased.

The floating books froze in place.

Even Yggdrasil itself stopped moving.

Maiya’s smile slowly disappeared.

"...Huh?"

Then, an indescribable pressure descended.

"Gh..."

Her breathing stopped instantly.

It felt as though an invisible mountain had suddenly fallen upon her shoulders.

Every instinct within her screamed in terror.

She couldn’t move.

She couldn’t breathe.

She couldn’t even blink.

Her entire body froze completely.

"...W..."

"...What..."

Her voice barely escaped.

The pressure lasted only a single second.

Yet to Maiya, it felt like an eternity.

Then, it vanished.

"Hah!"

Maiya immediately fell onto one knee while desperately gasping for air.

"Haa..."

"Haa..."

"Haa..."

Cold sweat covered her forehead.

She looked toward the silver haired man with frightened eyes.

"What..."

"What was that!?"

She stood up angrily while pointing at him.

"What did you do that for!?"

The silver haired man sighed softly before rubbing the bridge of his nose.

"My apologies."

"It has become a habit."

Maiya blinked.

"...Habit?"

The man nodded.

"When enemies ask questions they should never ask..."

"My instincts react before my thoughts do."

Maiya stared at him speechlessly.

"...That’s a horrible habit."

"I know."

The silver haired man gave a bitter smile.

"Unfortunately..."

"It has saved my life more times than I can remember."

He became quiet for several moments.

Then his expression slowly grew serious.

"Since you recently joined our Faction..."

"There are three rules every member must remember."

Maiya immediately straightened her posture.

"Three rules?"

The silver haired man nodded.

"Yes."

"They are absolute."

"No exceptions."

"No excuses."

He slowly raised three fingers.

"Rule Number Three."

"Fear no one."

Maiya blinked.

"...That’s it?"

The man nodded.

"Our enemies can smell fear."

"If your heart breaks before battle..."

"You have already lost."

He lowered one finger.

"Rule Number Two."

"Always protect your brothers and sisters within the Faction."

"No matter where they are."

"No matter what enemy stands before them."

"We survive together."

"We fight together."

"And if necessary..."

"We die together."

Maiya quietly nodded.

"I like that one."

The silver haired man smiled faintly.

"So do I."

Then, his smile disappeared.

The atmosphere became heavy once again.

He slowly lowered another finger.

"Rule Number One..."

His voice became quieter.

"...The rule that nobody inside this Faction dares to break."

"Not even the oldest members."

"Not even me."

Maiya unconsciously swallowed.

The silver haired man’s golden eyes looked directly into hers.

"Never..."

"...mention Adam..."

"...in Mother’s presence."

Silence.

Maiya frowned.

"...That’s all?"

The silver haired man’s expression did not change.

"Yes."

"And do not ask why."

His voice became noticeably colder.

"Do not ask today."

"Do not ask tomorrow."

"And never ask me again."

Maiya had never seen him speak with such seriousness before.

The silver haired man slowly continued.

"Ever since Adam disappeared..."

"Mother..."

"...changed."

His voice carried a trace of sadness.

"She is no longer the person she once was."

"A mere mention of Adam’s name..."

"...is enough to make her lose control."

"She has destroyed countless factions, sects, clans, sovereign, monarchs and some gods from the Pantheons before."

"She has erased dimensions."

"She has nearly started wars against all in the universe"

"All because someone carelessly mentioned him."

Maiya’s pupils shrank.

"...That bad?"

The man slowly nodded.

"That bad."

He looked toward the endless stars.

"And the worst part..."

"...is that none of us knows why."

"Not me."

"Not the oldest members."

"Not even the ancient records."

"We only know one thing."

"Adam disappeared."

"And afterward..."

"...Mother was never the same again."

Maiya lowered her head quietly.

"...Nobody knows where he went?"

The silver haired man shook his head.

"No."

"Perhaps..."

"Only the beings who witnessed that era know the truth."

"Or perhaps..."

He narrowed his eyes.

"...Only the Will of the Universe remembers."

Maiya looked up hopefully.

"Then why not ask the Will of the Universe?"

The silver haired man slowly smiled.

"A long time ago..."

"We tried."

"And?"

The man sighed.

"The Will of the Universe refused to answer."

"It hesitated...even to mention Adam’s name."

Maiya’s breathing became slower.

Even the Will of the Universe...was unwilling to speak about him.

Just how terrifying was the truth behind his disappearance?

After several moments of silence, Maiya raised both hands.

"Okay."

"I understand."

"I won’t mention him."

"And it’s not like I enjoy causing trouble anyway."

She smiled confidently.

The silver haired man slowly turned toward her.

His brows gradually furrowed.

He silently stared at her.

Maiya blinked innocently.

"...What?"

The man continued staring.

"...Why are you looking at me like that?"