Chapter 291: What if? I

The Myrrnith Throne did not flinch under Achilles’ piercing words.

Her gaze moved calmly between him… and the three Thrones standing behind him.

As if she was analyzing exactly what worth she should give Achilles! And she came to her decision soon after.

But before she could respond.

A figure moved.

With slow, unhurried majesty.

A regal Royal Panthera Lion floated forward from among the ranks of the Pride of Aeonthar, his massive golden-blue wings parting the air as if the world itself bent to allow his passage. His fur shimmered with radiant strands of celestial azure and glistening gold, each strand of mane glowing like woven starlight.

In the center of the Keep, he halted midair.

Gloriously shining with the air of Neuronova Stage Astral Core Ascension!

Before all the Thrones, Dynasties, and Ancient Ones, his body glowed…

And began to shift.

Wings folding inward.

Fur shifting to skin.

And then…

A tall, resplendent man hovered in the air, his blue-gold hair cascading behind him like a waterfall of celestial essence. His robes were interwoven with the Runescripture of Aeonthar, and his face held both youth and wisdom, handsome to a degree that few mortals could match.

He turned his gaze to Achilles.

There was no animosity.

Only a polite, calm smile.

“Why such hostility among humans?” he asked, his voice like a noble breeze over sunlit hills. “We are here to work together.”

“And if you truly wish to know what this working together means…”

He turned his head, golden pupils shining.

“I will voice it for all to hear. For all to discuss.”

He placed his hand across his chest and bowed slightly.

“I am Alukarth, Crown Prince of the Royal Panthera Lineage of Aeonthar.”

A few mutterings rose among Dynasty members and Ancient Ones alike.

Alukarth continued, his voice never wavering.

“Many of our kin died to uncover the truths now before us. The Eyes. The Chains. The Long Slumber.”

His gaze swept across all present.

“And now… the veil lifts. And the enemies from the stars… they will return soon enough.”

He paused.

Then gestured to the sky above.

“Everything now rests upon one force. One element.”

“Planar Destiny.”

A reverent silence followed.

“Humans,” Alukarth said slowly, “carry the Planar Destiny. It has chosen you. That is a truth none can change.”

“But we, the Ancient Races, are powerful. Stronger than most can imagine. Not using our power to prepare… would lead to ruin.”

“And yet…”

He raised his hand, letting a golden thread of energy form and twirl between his fingers.

“Planar Destiny is not ours to claim. It cannot be taken by force. It resists what it does not accept.”

“The only way for us to partake in it… is through cooperation. Through mingling with those it chose.”

His words were calm. Clear. Logical.

But beside Achilles…

The Glacivane Throne rose.

His icy armor crackled as Lancelot stood tall, his gaze sharp, his voice booming.

“What,” he asked, “exactly does this ‘mingling’ entail?”

Alukarth turned to him without offense.

His eyes glinted with quiet gravity.

“Planar Destiny is unique,” he replied. “There is still much we do not know. But what we do know is this…”

“It flows through Will.”

“It follows Leadership.”

“And so… when Humans elect an Ancient One to lead them- when Wills intertwine…”

His hand closed over the golden thread.

“Their Planar Destinies intertwine.”

“Their fates become one.”

…!

BOOM!

A thunderous ripple of power burst through the Keep.

Dozens of Dynasty members jolted.

The Ancient Ones stilled.

Such a truth… such a proposal.

The energy in the Triarcan Keep shifted.

Buzzed.

Crackled with tension.

Achilles stood utterly still.

His gaze, frigid and quiet, was now locked onto Alukarth.

The Crown Prince of the Panthera Lineage smiled softly.

Sincerely.

As if he had just shared the greatest gift possible.

Achilles stood still amidst the chaos of unveiled truths.

The words spoken by Alukarth echoed like blasphemy in his mind.

Elect Ancient Ones to lead?

Entwine Will and Destiny?

He didn’t flinch.

But within, his thoughts churned coldly.

His gaze rose, sharp and deliberate, as he looked at the Ancient Ones spread across the Triarcan Keep.

The strongest among them, the Neuronova stage entities, the Ancients in humanoid guise- were either silent… or worse, smiling.

As if they’d expected this.

As if this had always been the plan.

His eyes narrowed.

Selamira.

She stood at the forefront of the Atlantian Tribes, her robes glimmering faintly with the shimmer of moons. Her expression was serene. Controlled.

But as Achilles activated Destiny Perception…

…!

His pupils constricted slightly.

Golden strings.

Threads of fate.

Dozens.

Hundreds.

Not merely drifting into Selamira… but flowing from her.

Flowing through her.

He followed them, tracking the radiant strands across the Keep, and what he saw chilled him.

Many of those strings coiled toward the other Ancient Ones.

The Crown Prince of the Panthera.

Solmyron of the Acheron Phoenixes.

Even certain Elven Monarchs near the eastern edge.

…She was influencing them.

No.

Controlling the direction of the fate surrounding them.

Guiding it.

As if she were pulling invisible strings behind every declaration made here today.

Achilles’ cold gaze locked on her unmoving figure.

Of course.

This was the same woman who shattered his forward momentum in the Atlantian campaign with his Spores.

The same woman who emerged in the chaos of the Ancient Millennium Acheron Phoenixes, redirecting their course of being controlled by him just when he was gaining ground.

And now…

Now she was here, silent, still, calm…

Yet orchestrating everything.

But how?

How was she capable of influencing the very fabric of fate of these beings?

Unless…

Achilles’ mind buzzed for a fraction of a second.

There was only one force known to him that could subtly veil destinies and remain unreadable even to his perception.

The force he could never peer into.

The source that clouded every calculation so far.

The Primordial Light of Darkness.

…!

A truth that was not yet spoken aloud.

Someone who didn’t even appear!

But one he now realized had already begun to act.