Chapter 464: Why Don't You Give Me Your Blind Trust?
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-「For this is the end, I have drowned and dreamed this moment, So overdue, I owe them, Swept away, I'm stolen…」
Although Neji had witnessed Icons singing before, he never had the opportunity to ponder why such a power was used that way. Looking at the million Icons in the sky that sang in unison, he understood that this feature was simply added because the Beyond Omnipotent entities lacked a music player.
A chill ran down Neji's spine at the realization.
'A million [Icons]...'
There was an almost invisible, dome-like area around them. If not for that, Neji didn't doubt that his existence would have crumbled like glass.
Apart from the existential threat, he was more curious about what she just said. It's not as if a being of her caliber would experience speech problems, right? Then what did she mean?
"System," The entity, [SBOP], raised a hand at Neji and he suddenly gagged. A slithering form swept out of his body, with long white hair and blue eyes.
All of a sudden, Neji felt a piece of himself missing. His 'Control' over the system was gone, he couldn't even bring out his Status Screen. He didn't feel powerless, but he couldn't access his System features. Sisty was gone.
Raki's hand didn't touch Sisty, but the world around them did. The Icons in the air shimmered, and an invisible force gripped Sisty and brought her to face Raki. Her golden eyes peered deeply into the AI. "White hair, blue eyes. You appear to be in harmony with the Gamer. No wonder you attempted deception."
Neji stood up, "Let Sisty go! It's not her fault-"
"Silence." The entity said, and Neji's lips zipped. His lips fused shut as if sealed by a literal zipper, silencing him instantly.
He began to use his divinity and authority over his own Icons to open it, to no avail. While Raki spoke to Sisty who was choking because of the powerful aura Raki was exuding. "I… I knew you wouldn't be tricked… that's why I…" she struggled out, while Raki smirked.
"That's true. You'll need to try harder if you want to trick me; saying 'The Gamer shattered the wall between Reality and Dreams' was obviously bait." She nodded, tossing her form beside Neji.
"I doubt I need to introduce myself, you came here knowing it. I like to go by Raki, the One Beyond Omnipotence," she said as if she was the only one, claiming with an arrogant tilt of her head. "I shall look over this mistake if the reason you three came here is interesting. On that note, isn't that a Nergal?"
She stood up and approached Neji. Her golden eyes stared down to look at Kurai, who tried not to hiss at her, narrowing her own golden eyes. Kurai's black fur was glistening here, almost reflecting the stars like the woman's hair.
She Beyond Omnipotence smiled softly, "Come here," She asked but didn't wait for an answer, she couldn't be bothered to. She didn't pick up Kurai, the cat just appeared in her hands. Neji didn't react negatively, he let her take Kurai as she didn't seem to have any harmful thoughts.
Raki returned to her little throne and sat down while running a hand down Kurai's back. Kurai glared at her throughout it all but didn't say anything. Kurai could feel that the one wrong move and the entity might as well throw them out of this dome, and into the pressure of the Icons.
"I like how this one looks," Raki said with a hum, pondering over something. "But a Nergal? What was a Nergal doing in your Omniverse? They don't exist there. Someone must have brought it there- ah, right." She blinked, and her eyes shimmered for but an instant. Neji could see lights as if hundreds of realities, worlds, and Omniverses formed and died in those pupils. All of a sudden, she knew everything there was to know about this situation. "There it is. That Kimi girl brought this kitty there a long time ago. What a little schemer."
Neji frowned at the situation, and Kurai also looked confused. Were Nergals really that rare?
Nergal was the name of a Mesopotamian God, but back in the day, System let him know that a particular Nergal had left so many offspring that it was made into a race of its own. Yet, Neji hadn't met any other Nergal to this day. Was this Entity saying that it was Kimi who brought Kurai here from another Omniverse…?
So that day when Neji and Kimi found Kurai in the street… Did Kimi plan that too?
"…."
Was anything with her real?
For what it counted, Kurai was confused too. She had no idea about this; at the very least, she wasn't someone who had been manipulating him.
Ms. Beyond Omnipotence was playing with Kurai's ears while pondering. "Could she have anticipated this day, down to this incident? Hmm…. Could she have known that I'd like this kitten? What a flatterer."
Neji didn't like how she talked as if Kurai was a gift, a sacrifice for her. Kurai was his familiar, now her plaything. Still, he held in his complaints for now.
"I doubt that," Neji said, finally being able to speak. He finally managed to overwrite the command that shut his lips, but he could feel that it was only possible because she allowed it. "No matter how good her plans were, and no matter how long she had been cooking those plans, they had failed. Otherwise she wouldn't be dead."
"Oh, she died?" the entity blinked and looked at Neji. Then she scoffed. "No, of course she died. You'd only come here if she died."
"…." Neji frowned again. That reminded him to ask something. "If I may, can I ask you a couple of questions, Miss?" He spoke gently while bowing a bit. From what he could feel, this was not like being in the presence of the Primordial. She didn't even need to kill him; in fact, the only reason he was alive was because she was shielding him from her presence. He could tell that without this barrier, he had already died.
"Permission granted, little Gamer, speak your mind." She dismissively said while petting Kurai.
"Earlier you said, 'welcome back'. What did that mean? It is not as if I have been here before, have I…?"
"What? No, no, you haven't." she shook her head. "Allow me to apologize, since I don't keep my [Omniscience] active, as it ruins the fun to know everything. I got a little confused without it, it's a lot of information to manage, you see? Anyhow, as I exist beyond time, space, and fate, this situation is more along the lines of—you were 'fated' to come here, and now you are. Since I exist beyond the concept of fate, I have lived through this interaction already. But right now it's the real, first one."
"That doesn't make any sense."
"You are still a mortal by my standards, so it's not supposed to. Do not worry about it, that would be meaningless." She waved it off, running a hand down Kurai's head. "Anyhow, speak your business. I can only spare so much of my precious time."
"Alright," Neji nodded. "But before I get to it, I have another question."
"Hm?"
"Do people find your form to be similar to someone they know from their life? Like how Gods work in some stories." He asked and she raised an eyebrow.
"My, do I look like someone you know?"
"Yes, but I am not sure." Neji nodded, as that person was nearly not this celestial looking.
"Heh. They usually do since I take a form like that. But right now I'm in my true form. Well, for the most part." She stared at him.
"....I see," Neji nodded. He didn't want to say who she looked like; that was a person he didn't like, there was no need to ruin this woman's image in his head by mixing her up with that person.
Instead, he moved on to the main point. While Neji was sure that this place existed outside time and space, he still wanted to get out as fast as he could.
"I summoned myself before you, Miss, because I'm stuck in quite the conundrum. Back in my world, the Primordial God is after me, and killing my people. He's also the one that killed 'Kimi', the Director, too. At first, I only came here to ask you about a way to bring Kimi back, but now I am unsure what to ask. I do want her back, but even if I get her back, the situation below would not change. She died at his hand already, so it's not as if we can beat him just because I got her by my side. So I… my wish is, I just want to fix all this somehow." Neji said, keeping his tone respectful.
He wanted to fix all this no matter the cost. He would put his pride on the ground and stomp on it if it could help him. Not that he had any pride left at this point, after losing everything. Of the countless universes that were destroyed in that fight, he was unsure if DxD survived. Heck, maybe even the Naruto and Fate worlds were in there. Neji had all the reason to believe that he had nothing left to his name.
"Hey, I'm not a wishing genie." She let out a soft, derisive chuckle that seemed quite condescending. "And I told you not to waste my time, this is not interesting at all. The only reason I'm still here is because of the kitty."
That was frustrating. Did he have to play into her palm to make things interesting? At this point, he didn't mind doing that. But how could he? He was unsure what a being of this caliber would find interesting.
On that thought, he decided to be honest with it.
"...Pardon me, but I'm unsure what can be interesting to a being as old and powerful as you. To most people, the situation where the Primordial God is trying to kill me would sound interesting. But if that doesn't budge you, I am unsure what will. I am not giving up, I am simply asking you how to make this interesting for you. I am willing to do anything and everything to make you interested."
"Hoh," she smirked as if amused. "At the very least you're not rude. Good grief. But you see, I can't help you with this. Not in the ways you're expecting anyway. Me and Brother are in a merchant-type relationship with the Prime and the Cube Omniverse of your reality, so the Primordial God, as the Ruler of Prime, is a dear customer. I won't kill him for you."
"But you can help me in other ways." He said and she smiled. "I'm willing to do a lot. Just tell me a solution."
She smiled. "Telling you a solution? Where's the fun in that? I can't tell you that, but sure I'll allow you an opportunity to grow. I can't tell you the details, but you should prove your conviction by trusting me anyway. You can trust me blindly since it is for the sake of you and your women's lives, right?"
"...."
"You'll find the details on your own. Actually, I think you'll realize everything the moment it happens. Your INT is high. So you just have to agree to partake in it.." She said as a smile stretched across her face.
Neji stayed silent. Neji gazed down and pondered. There was a literal Omniversal war going on outside, with himself at its center. Yet, she found that situation dull. So what could interest her? Naturally, a situation that was far tighter than this.
This was akin to making a deal with the devil.
However, Neji didn't even hesitate to make the choice. "I agree."
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