CHAPTER 807: GRISELDA’S SOLUTION

Since Alice wanted to sort out the issue of her soul, she didn’t hesitate to ask Griselda for some help. Especially since she seemed like she was going to keep her word regarding Duality.

"How much of Duality can you use?" Griselda asked while Syrion and Gwen were sparring outside.

Ever since Alyss taught her some extra moves for her to link her combos together, Gwen’s fighting effectiveness has soared.

"Pretty much all of it, I think. But specifically, I can use Inversion, some parts of synchronisation and restriction only really works on myself. I’ve tried to access more of it but... Well it didn’t work." Alice stuck out her tongue.

When she tried to use her sixth Sigil, she realised that she only got a fraction of Duality’s power as a whole.

Most likely the limitation that was stealing this Sigil from the Inverted World instead of the original source.

"You can use that much?" Griselda creased her brows.

She thought that perhaps Alice could use it due to a mimicry type Sigil.

Something that can emulate a small portion of the original host.

But this? This was beyond mimicry. It’s like she has access to the original power.

Folding her arms, Griselda contemplated the options.

Duality was not really an authority linked to the Moon. Rather, it was simply a coincidence that Esse got this title.

With that in mind, even as the Apostle of Immortality, she wasn’t exactly certain of the limitations with this power.

But based on what she had seen Alice perform, her greatest power would be inversion.

’Inversion... What can this girl do to make a barrier around herself?’ Griselda sighed.

She said she’ll look into things but this...

Griselda was beginning to regret her choice.

While Griselda was trying her best to figure out a method, Cayla was also beginning to regret her words.

Doing anything with the soul had a risk in itself. Hell, inversion came with its own set of risks, just look at what happens when they invert Exile.

Sure, they made it safe but that’s only by constantly switching it on and off. The same couldn’t be done for the soul since they needed a barrier to keep things out.

They needed to be able to choose when and where Alice should steal abilities rather than being forcefully bestowed it whenever she drinks blood.

What they had to do was turn this passive ability into an active one.

[We could try to invert the nature and make it so that we project souls outwards? No, that’s a stupid idea. That’s basically asking for your soul to shatter and break.] Cayla shot down her own idea before Alice could even say anything.

"Kid, what if you try to overlay the souls you have on top of one another?" Griselda suddenly spoke up with Alice raising an eyebrow at the word kid.

To begin with, it’s not exactly wrong. Griselda was definitely older than her while she’s not even in her twenties if you count when she actually appeared.

But still, it irked Alice a little being called kid.

"Overlay?" Alice ignored it for now and focused on the main issue.

Scratching her hair, Griselda sighed and reached towards her chest.

Tapping it twice, a compartment slowly opened as she revealed a strange crystalline heart.

"Watch carefully since I don’t know to properly explain. It’s probably better for you to get a feel of it instead of me trying to find the right words."

One by one, spectral phantoms started to hover around the heart. Chains that bound them to Griselda.

Making sure that Alice was watching, she snapped her finger and they began to merge. Each one being torn apart and rebuilt from the ground up.

A little brutal she’ll admit.

But very effective when it comes to shielding against attacks.

"What happens to the soul after they’re shredded?" Alice asked with a frown.

"You retain a portion that you don’t use. But at the end of the day, you have to consider this to be a type of fuel. Say I defend against an attack, the pieces of the soul that absorb the attack is recycled into the great beyond, waiting for reincarnation I suppose." She shrugged nonchalantly.

But this only made Alice crease her brows.

Based on what Griselda is saying, so long as she has souls, she could defend against attacks. But to what extent?

What if they keep attacking? What if it gets to a point where Alice has no choice but to give up some of the more important fragments like Tiamat or Esse’s soul?

And even if she makes this kind of sacrifice, there’s no guarantee that the enemy would stop.

Hell, it might even encourage them to continue.

Alice needed a different method, one that didn’t come with such a steep price.

Griselda placed her heart back into her chest once she noticed Alice’s disinterest.

"No go huh?"

Alice nodded.

Griselda leaned back against the chair.

She glanced towards Syrion who’s training with Gwen. The smiles, the laughter, the feed back after every brief exchange.

Despite fighting being involved, in a sense, it was peaceful.

"Why don’t we take this moment to talk about something else first." Griselda spoke up, surprising Alice.

What would the Apostle of Immortality want to speak about?

"As an enemy of the Moon, what do you think of its current state?"

". . ."

"Just speak your mind. I’m not going to flip out on you because you say something bad about Lumiria. I can tell, you’re an ’outsider’. I won’t say it directly, but you don’t feel like you belong to any of the three orders." Griselda continued. "Gwen over there is the same. Her beliefs are changing, there’s doubt in her trust towards the Sun."

She turned back to Alice, staring her dead in the eyes.

"So tell me, what does an outsider like you think about the moon in its current state? Is it the order of healing it tries to make others perceive it to be or do you think it’s something else?"

Alice folded her arms.

[Seems like after all these years, the Orders are slowly collapsing from the inside out.]

’Mnm. But if we’re being honest, Griselda feels different compared to the her we saw in the Inverted World. If it was the her from back then, I don’t think she’ll be able to say these words. Something happened between then and now.’

[I mean, I got a rough idea. Perhaps a certain someone just outside the house right now.]

’Perhaps.’ Alice chuckled.

If it was a cardinal or anyone else, Alice would be tempted to convert them. But not an Apostle.

Despite what she’s saying, Griselda has still stuck with the order till now.

She probably has her own objective or...

Lumiria was able to maintain her control over Griselda.

In this regard, Alice was thinking it’ll be more likely to be the latter.

"I’m not familiar. But If I had to say, I think major changes and shifts probably started to happen 10 or so years ago. And if I’m going to be blunt, I don’t think the Moon should continue to exist. In fact, non of the Gods should. Not Solaris, not Lumiria and certainly not Enris." Alice leaned back.

Griselda’s pupils trembled for a moment. A smile formed on her face as she let out a laugh.

"Yes... you’re right. This is no longer the age of Gods. In fact, it hasn’t been for a long time. They act as icons, doing nothing to help but simply indulging themselves in whatever catches their fancy." Griselda recalled Lumiria’s obsession towards Tristan.

"But getting rid of them... Syrion told me about Gwen’s desires. How she wished to overthrow Solaris if he puts her father in danger. It’s a nice thought to have but a dangerous one." She shook her head.

"Even if I dislike the Moon, what can I even do? They’re gods at the end of the day. Unlike Lords or Apostles, they don’t die easily." Alice shrugged as Griselda let out a chuckle.

"Yeah, I suppose you’re right. They relax on their lofty thrones, enjoying the luxuries of life. Yet despite their actions, they are blessed with such radiant and overwhelming power.

"But if a God has no subjects, what can they do? It’s for this reason that the world hasn’t been destroyed. With each day that passes, an invisible clock ticks down to the inevitable. We do not know how much time is left, just the fact that it’s running out." Griselda muttered, thoughts dancing in her mind.

She had a few... ideas on who Alice may be. The knowledge she possesses and even the way she acts.

"Is a wall really necessary?" Griselda asked, surprising Alice.

"What do you mean?"

"At the end of the day, isn’t it still YOUR soul? In Syrion’s words, it’s YOUR house. What you have inside is completely up to you, even if enemies attack it easily." She turned to Alice.

"I’m saying you should embrace the fact that you have little to no defence. Turn this weakness into a weapon."

Alice realised what Griselda was suggesting.

In essence, she should set up traps inside her soul. With this, her weakness stops being a non-existent barrier but rather a lure.

The main question now was how she would achieve this kind defence.

Alice froze before letting out a laugh, confusing Cayla.

’The obvious answer was staring us in the face all along.’

Alice licked her lips with a menacing grin.

’If they’re in my soul, can’t I just devour them? Who cares if I don’t have a barrier.’