"I asked, and Ouroboros said it's fine," Alaric said confidently, having actually posed the question to Ouroboros.
As for whether fabricating Medici's past based on real events would affect the ritual's effectiveness, it wouldn't. The ritual's requirements weren't that strict; a largely fictional backstory was sufficient.
"You…!" Medici was clearly exasperated, momentarily at a loss for words. After a few seconds, he took a deep breath to calm himself before asking, "Have the ritual requirements been met?"
Some things might be unknown to others, but Medici, being one of Alaric's closest allies, was well aware of the situation.
"Almost!" Alaric nodded with a smile. "In fact, I've nearly fully digested my Sequence 3 potion during this time. Once you ascend to Red Priest, I'll be ready to advance to Fictionist. Then, I can resurrect your father."
"Not bad!" Medici's lips curled into a slight smirk, clearly looking forward to it.
No matter what, The Ancient Sun God was an immensely important figure to him, and he naturally anticipated his revival.
"So, when are you ascending to Sequence 0?" Alaric asked with a grin.
"That depends on when the Primordial Demoness makes her move…" Medici glanced at Alaric and added, "You probably know more about this than I do. Don't tell me all you've been doing lately is writing my little stories."
"As expected, I can't hide anything from you," Alaric said with a chuckle, making no attempt to conceal his actions. His expression turned meaningful as he continued, "The Primordial Demoness did reach out to Farbauti, proposing an alliance. Farbauti initially wanted to refuse, but he changed his mind in the end."
"Because you contacted him," Medici said with certainty.
Others might struggle to reach Farbauti, but Alaric had countless ways to connect with the Devil Monarch.
"I just think he's redeemable," Alaric admitted with a smile. "So, I decided to give him a chance to save himself. If he helps us take down the Primordial Demoness, I'll pull him out of his predicament."
"Sounds like you don't see that Devil Monarch as entirely bad," Medici said, glancing at Alaric. Knowing Alaric's moral compass well, he smirked and asked, "So, when's it happening?"
"Soon... within seven days," Alaric replied with a smile. "Barring any surprises, seven days from now, you'll reach the capital of Intis. That's when they'll make their move."
"Pfft, as expected," Medici scoffed, his ruby-like eyes seeming to blaze with fiery anticipation.
He, too, longed to kill the Primordial Demoness, driven both by their ancient grudge and the inherent pull of their neighboring pathways.
For those of similar Sequences, it was either love or death.
…
The war progressed even more smoothly in the days that followed. The resistance from Intis seemed to weaken significantly.
In fact, it wasn't just Intis... opposing forces across various nations appeared to falter, allowing the rebel armies to advance their fronts with unprecedented ease.
But both Alaric and Medici knew this was merely a facade. In truth, these forces had allied with the Primordial Demoness, planning to concentrate their strength for a decisive strike against Medici.
They might not believe killing Medici would change the tide, but these people... unwilling to relinquish power even in death... were determined to drag Medici down with them, despite knowing it was likely futile.
This was their final act of defiance, their last desperate struggle.
Alaric and Medici were fully aware of this and welcomed it. For them, wiping out these stubborn rebels in one fell swoop was far preferable to dealing with their strategic retreats and sporadic disruptions later.
After all, even Alaric, before the rules were fully established, couldn't monitor the entire world. If these enemies truly went into hiding, he wouldn't be able to track them all down and eliminate them.
Time passed under these circumstances, and soon, the seventh day arrived.
On this day, under Medici's leadership, the rebel army finally reached the capital of Intis.
And on this same day, as the rebels stood at the city's gates, many figures who had vanished from the battlefield suddenly appeared en masse in the Intis camp.
"Things have come to this point, so no more hiding. Throw everything you've got at me... otherwise, after today, you won't get another chance," Medici said, looking down at the demigods before him, his tone as mocking as ever. He then raised a hand to cover his nose in disdain. "Honestly, your stench is getting to me, Demoness."
"After all these years, your words are still as grating as ever. No wonder you, the Hunter, were the first to die back then," a female voice responded.
As the space around them shifted, Medici felt a tugging sensation. He raised an eyebrow but didn't resist, casually petting a cat as he was pulled into the Mirror World.
Simultaneously, as Medici vanished, Amon's figure appeared. Looking at the demigods nearby, he smiled and said, "Ladies and gentlemen, Medici has his own matters to attend to. How about I keep you company for a while?"
…
Upon entering the Mirror World, the first thing Medici saw was a graceful figure. The Primordial Demoness, stunning in both appearance and presence, looked at him with a smile, saying wistfully, "And yet, someone like you is so fortunate... fortunate enough to make me…"
She paused, leaving her sentence unfinished, but another voice spoke from behind Medici: "Make me jealous... jealous enough to want to kill you right now. Why was it you who was resurrected? Why were you the one to assimilate the Red Priest's uniqueness? You don't deserve it!"
Medici raised an eyebrow, unsurprised. He knew exactly who the other voice belonged to... the Primordial Demoness's mirror self.
He merely smirked, his smile bold and unrestrained. "Then keep being jealous. No matter how much you envy me, that fortune won't belong to your beloved…"
Medici hesitated for a moment before spitting out the name: "Tudor."
"Hahaha!" He burst into laughter, barely able to catch his breath. When he finally calmed down, he said, "You love him? That's hilarious. You love him, yet you killed him with your own hands. You love him, yet you destroyed every other means of his revival, ensuring he could only be reborn through you. That's just too rich. You call that love?"
The Primordial Demoness's expression turned cold. She stared at Medici, then suddenly gave a radiant smile. "How would you understand? Someone like you, who knows nothing of love... how could you possibly comprehend? To love someone is to consume their flesh and blood, to bind their body, to ensure they can never leave you, to make them coexist with you for eternity."
"That is love. That is what love means."
***
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