As the Acheron continued to flee, Gemini found himself in an odd contemplative mood. He wasn’t sure how to describe it himself; it was as if he was on the verge of an out-of-body experience. The body he was in seemed to be transient, his very soul on the verge of escaping. And yet, despite the unease he felt, there was one constant the entire time.

The feeling of being weighed down, in both body and soul, by the three crossed lines on the back of his left hand. Together, they formed an equilateral triangle, one that radiated a desire to murder and destroy. He could feel the chaotic symbol attempt to encroach on his will, which he was only able to resist by sheer force of will.

Clouds continued to scatter in front of the giant ship, filled with the courageous and the brave. A circle, one that emanated violet light, was visible across the horizon.

That was the means of returning to the Five Lands. His experiments with Demigod Eliza and the Memory Sifter had shown that it was possible to manipulate the size of the passage that linked both worlds if the holder of the Violet Regret Crystal was strong enough…and more importantly, Gemini was in possession of an item capable of severing it.

His right hand touched the wooden cube the Sentinel of Space had given him. One issue with exiting from the Crater of Violet Rain was that the bearer of the Violet Regret Crystal, the key to opening it, could not pass through the portal itself. The bearer had two choices: the first was to relinquish it and pass through before the passageway closed. The second was to stay behind in the Wildlands and prevent others from taking it, like what Lila did.

Or the third, made possible by the Severing Cube’s existence, was to sever the connection between the Wildlands and the Five Lands once they arrived on the other side with the artefact. That was Gemini’s job, as the cube would only obey his will.

Still, thought Gemini, I didn’t expect that I would see a single-use Zeroth Armament here, let alone be its master. Hereward must have known of our plans beforehand, if nothing else. What else does he know? And what is he planning for himself?

These questions continued to echo out in his head every so often, and his grip on the Severing Cube tightened. Gemini couldn’t help but urge the damn thing to go faster, but his rational mind told him that the Acheron’s speed was already greater than that of Demigods’.

“Gemini…” Degurechaff, who was in rather bad condition, forced himself to sit up. “You…are you the one who saved us all back at Heritage Basestation? The Demigod who disguised himself as Sergeant En?”

“I was never a Demigod,” Gemini replied quietly.

“So you did save us all from Nox’s attack. Brought us enough time to bring everyone into the Wildlands.” The general coughed, and globules of blood flew. “To think that the hero who saved us all back then was you. When did you awaken from the Human God’s machinations?”

Gemini pondered on the general’s words. “When I entered Ark City as a civilian, and felt its warmth.”

“Good, good…” The general coughed again.

“Degurechaff?”

“Over-exerted myself,” he replied. “I’ll be bedridden for the next few months.”

He shook his head. “Constellation Gemini. You truly live up to the title of ‘hero’. For the others, it may be an embellishment, but it isn’t for you. We of Ark City know that you’ve been fighting for our sake, to set right the Human God’s past wrongs. Your past wrongs.”

With a pounding heart, Gemini tore his eyes away from the wounded Paragon. “I don’t think I’ve done enough.”

“No one ever will. The Second Extermination will not be forgotten,” Degurechaff said. “But at the very least, I believe I can speak for the beastfolk when I say that you were forgiven long ago.”

More blood flew.

“You need to learn to accept that you can never erase your past sins,” he said. “And more importantly, you need to move on and look to the future. Or else you will throw yourself into danger, over and over, like what you did for me earlier. Personally, I’m happy, but you must learn to love yourself.”

Gemini got up. The way Degurechaff put things sounded like he was saying his last words, and he didn’t like that at all. “General, you should rest. I have one more thing I need to do once we arrive at the Crater of Violet Rain.”

“Gemini!”

Ignoring Degurechaff, the Constellation walked over to the bow of the ship, settling down at a more comfortable position. The violet passage was far closer now, and the Constellation knew that within minutes, the Acheron would pass through it, followed closely by Demigod Eliza. And then, he’d close the portal from the other side and sever this backdoor forever.

And then, they would wait for the Great Divide to fall, before duking it out with the demons one last time. It was a tad funny, seeing how they escaped one impossible war just to fight another, but the Five Lands should be able to put up a far better fight then just a mere city alone.

Gemini stared at the approaching passage, and felt his heart tighten. Up close, the purple circle was indeed rather intimidating. Its diameter was at least twice that of the Acheron’s length, and made Demigod Eliza look like a tiny ant in comparison.

“You ready?” Eliza’s voice spoke in his head.

Gemini nodded, gripping the Severing Cube even tighter. Both of them didn’t want to risk the possibility that another demon might take the chance to enter, so he would use it immediately after he stepped out on the other side. With bated breath, the Acheron drew closer and closer, and in a blink of an eye, the ship’s bow had entered the passage, vanishing like a stone falling into water.

Red-hot pain filled his vision a moment later, as the three crossed lines on Gemini’s hand lit up. Something like a barrier repelled Gemini, and General Degurechaff’s shocked visage flashed past his vision for the smallest of moments, before the latter vanished into the passage. His body tumbled backwards, away from the violet portal…and away from Lila.