Tim couldn't believe it.
He had just wanted to join the Monster Gods. He had just wanted to flare his aura as well, to show the council who was pulling the strings.
He had been lucky.
Tim clutched his head; his eyes filled with dread and confusion.
"Hehe... Hahaha... I am such an idiot... FUCK!", he slammed the wall to his side, creating cracks that spilled along the entire underground structure.
Lucifer's warnings were there. He should have listened as well. Now, Tim could do naught but regret. His millions of years of preparation for the perfect moment. Gaining the highest trust of Dan and securing plans of the city's formations. All for naught.
After a few minutes of self-loathing, he finally caught himself, though.
Looking at the sunshine shining through the cracks in the underground structure, determination filled his eyes again.
He wasn't exposed. It was only his plans that were ruined.
"I still have the formation keys. As long as I plan again... hehe... they will pay! THEY WILL ALL PAY!"
"Oh. Who will?"
The sudden appearance of a voice behind him startled Tim, who turned around, ready to kill whoever had appeared. The moment he saw that figure, though, he regretted not running the instant he had been noticed.
It was Ina, who stood with her arms folded behind him, a sly smirk on her face. Although she had been prepared to face death just moments ago before being surprised by the appearance of Cely, she, after all, was still a Transcendant God. It wasn't hard for her to tell that there was someone at the site where Monster Gods had emerged from, so she had come to investigate.
Turns out, there was a traitor among the higher-ups of the city.
"Who are you really, hmm, Tim? Why don't you tell me?" Her voice was seductive, a pink glow emerging from her eyes as she stared at Tim, who could do nothing to resist due to the immense difference in power.
"I am Timothy Grimm. Last surviving member of the Grimm family. I was born from the relations of my father, the duke, and a concubine. That was the reason I managed to evade capture. No one knew I was his child, except my mother, him, and me. After I advanced to a Great God, I wanted to take revenge. So, I killed one of the children in the city, took over their body, and hid myself for as long as possible while infiltrating the higher-ups to gather intel and have easier access to important points of interest. I then..."
Tim continued to explain his entire backstory. He couldn't resist Ina's powers, forced to tell her every detail, having completely lost his sense of self in the conversation.
"I see. Well then, that's gonna be it with questioning. I have recorded what you said and am going to show that to the higher-ups together with your body. Now then, kill yourself."
Without hesitation, Tim, under the influence of Ina's power, made his energy go berserk. His soul shattered, killing him instantly. The body fell powerless to the ground.
"I wonder who gave him that technique to hide himself? To fool even me and His Majesty, truly no joke."
Ina's eyes narrowed slightly as she thought about it, but she couldn't really identify any one particular individual. Ignoring this matter then, she swiped her hand, taking the body into her storage ring, and preparing to go back to the council and tell them about this.
Before she could, though, she saw Cely collapsing through her divine sense, and appeared next to Cely.
"So she truly died. How did she retain her power through reincarnation? No... she only retained a trace. Does Lucifer know?"
Ina was confused. She had never heard of anyone retaining power and memories through reincarnation. The only time when a being would gain memories of their previous lives was when they became a god. At that point, all previous memories reappear.
Another thing Ina noted was how Cely's soul, which she had just seen nearly shatter, was already completely mended. No sign of damage could be seen. Remembering who was before her, though, it all seemed to make more sense.
Shaking her head, Ina teleported Cely back into Cely's house before going to the council to report what had happened. After a fervent discussion and another revelation that Dan's brother Seth had been involved as well, the day came to an end.
The next morning, as Cely woke up, she was not surprised to see herself back in the house she had gotten from Dan. Standing up from the bed, Cely leisurely walked outside onto the porch, where, again, teacups stood on the table.
Sitting down leisurely, Cely took her time to lean back in her chair and relax before even thinking of picking up the cup. Soon enough, though, she did and enjoyed the nice tea that had been made. It was Soul Calming Tea, a type of tea used for, of course, calming the soul, but it also increases comprehension for a limited time.
"Not been easy on you, this place, huh?"
In the chair opposite her, Lucifer had appeared at some point in time, sipping the tea leisurely with a smug expression.
"Don't give me that, Lucy. I know you were just watching what was happening. There's no way that formation could have blocked your smug ass from perceiving what was happening. Why did you not intervene?"
Anger was palpable in Cely's voice as she looked at Lucifer, who just kept smiling.
"Who knows? Maybe I was busy?"
"Bullshit! What would you be busy with besides breaking your seals? What happened?"
Lucifer's smile faded as he looked at Cely. His eyes no longer showed a friendly expression.
"You need to die, Cely. For the sake of everything. You need to die. I can't interfere directly, but I can try to pull as many strings as I can. I am sorry, but... things have changed since you reincarnated. You don't need to know why, but your death is the key. So please, be fast."
This time, Cely was completely dumbfounded.
Lucifer was truly someone she regarded as a friend. Even through all his perversion and shenanigans, she saw him as a friend. This... she had never expected.
Tears streamed from Cely's eyes as she looked at the man she thought she knew. His eyes, distant. His face, unsmiling.
"Why?"
"I can't tell you."
"WHY?"
"Even if I wanted to, I can't."
"Ẁ̵͉̳͉̪͈̅̊͑̕͜H̵̠̬͖̰͎̾Y̵̹̺̬̦̱̼̋͊̈́?̶̲̠͐"
Killing intent spilled from Cely; without the support of the power of her previous life, though, it was immaterial, without substance. She couldn't understand why Lucifer was doing this. She couldn't
"If you want me dead... why not just kill me directly?"
Cely's eyes had become slightly vacant. She had known Lucifer too long. This punch... she didn't know how to handle it.
"He wouldn't let me do that."
"Why tell me?"
"Because we are friends. Trust me. I can't... sigh. Just... if you truly want to live. Advance as quickly as possible. Time... is grinding. I..."
Lucifer stopped. He couldn't say more. And he couldn't stay longer. So, he disappeared, leaving a devastated Cely behind.
It took hours. The tea sat on the table, undrunk, with Cely sitting vacantly next to it.
Finally, she moved her head. She was still confused. Still felt betrayed. But she had to move on. Originally, Cely had planned to go to the Demon Continent, hang out there until she regained her strength.
Now, though, she knew that would be a bad idea. Going to the Central Continent instead would be way safer. Considering how most factions there had life-and-death feuds with Lucifer, she would be able to avoid his attempts for the most part.
Just as she was planning to inform the council of her departure, she felt something stir in her ring. Her decadent expression bloomed into one of surprise as she saw her egg stir. Quickly, she took it out, seeing how, with every further shake, the power increased.
A smile bloomed on her face subconsciously, though the melancholy was still bearable.
She didn't know why Lucifer did this. And it seemed he wouldn't tell her. If he was truly unable to do so, or he just didn't want to, she could not care anymore, as she focused fully on her to-be child.
What would they look like? What species would they be?
Questions sprouted more and more as the egg continued to shake. Slowly but surely, defusing an aura of serenity into the room, which calmed Cely and allowed her to overcome this immense shock with ease.
Suddenly, a tender, pale-white human foot broke through the bottom of the shell, filling Cely with excitement.
Her child was about to be born!