That beautiful sight greeted him again. His conscious mind took back the front seat.

Seeing the old man and the human female still standing there while observing him, he couldn’t help but scoff at them.

The old man started, "Let us start by introducing ourselves," with a relaxed, almost jovial tone.

"You can call me Tian, and this here is Oliveria," while pointing at his companion.

"Introducing ourselves, huh?" He replied with his hand on his chin while contemplating what the old man’s goal might be. He lacked any substantial information about the old man, so he could not fully comprehend what he was truly after, so he decided it wasn’t worth thinking about right now.

"We abyssals do not have a need for such useless titles. We do not socialize, nor do we care for any form of social hierarchy; we only identify strength. But since you have given your names and I have nothing to offer, I would give you something else instead. Ask a single question, and if I can answer, I will."

This response seems to stattle his audience. They were baffled by what he was offering. Truthfully, they knew little about the Abyssal Realm. For years, scholars have been trying to figure out the motive behind their malicious invasions. Even if captured, an abyss-born would rather die than let any information slip.

From Dark Alaric’s perspective, it wasn’t really surprising that he would offer such a thing to them; though abyssals were simple-minded creatures, they worship individual strength above all else and will do whatever it takes to achieve it. He only offered because Tian was several orders of magnitude stronger than he was; he decided to concede to any one request, and this might also favor him in the long run.

After the initial shock. Tian replied, "For most of my life, I have been either fighting against abyssals or planning on how to win battles with abyssals. It is an exhausting way of living, and still, we haven’t found a reason why we are fighting each other. You abyss-born just seem to attack us mindlessly. I am surprised you haven’t attacked like last time we met. I would like to know what you want. Maybe we can stop this fight through negotiation?" His frustration was clearly written on his face. He looked like someone who was at their breaking point.

Dark Alaric was speechless for a moment at the emotions this powerful old man displayed. He couldn’t believe for a moment that this man would lose control over a thing like emotion.

’What an elaborate act.’

"There’s no need to act old man, I already told you I will answer to the best of my ability." 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

"There is no way our conflict can be resolved through negotiations. If you know the reason for our hate, you would realize negotiation is not possible. As for not attacking you, it’s not because you are more powerful than I am, nor because I find the effort futile because of the power difference; it’s because I do not hold the same values as the other abyssals. I do not fancy your kind, nor do I hate them. That is all I can tell you.

Since my birth, I have hated only two things. Stagnation and Divinity Gods. Of those, Gods rank higher on my hate list, but I find myself considering a third." A look of malice flashed in his eyes as he gazed towards the retreating form of Eva. "I find myself despising that person’s existence. It is a stain that needs immediate correction. I can also smell the influence of Gods on her being, which only increases my hatred for her. Considering you are accommodating her, makes me think less of you."

’If there ever comes a day that I am left alone with her, I will kill her in the most painful way possible.’ He thought, radiating killing intent.

Oliveria looked like she was about to ignore all forms of morality and kill him right where he sat. Her face twisted in anger that solidified the air around her. Her usually calm form trembled, and the space around her strained to contain her as she twisted and groaned, but he paid her no mind. He was confident she wouldn’t kill him. She could make him feel pain, but that would only make his current vessel and, in extension, himself stronger.

Tian ignored all those platitudes about the young girl’s existence. It was commonplace for anyone who saw her and understood her origin to think like that. What caught his attention, though, was his refusal to answer his initial question. He just brushed it off, but from what little he told, he could tell a few things.

First, the non-negotiable part. This means whatever they might be after cannot be negotiated for or traded for. Of course, this can also be a matter of arrogance, but if one truly desires something so much that they are willing to invade another realm, ignoring the resources needed for such an endeavor, they should be willing to ignore what little pride prevents them from negotiating. Why spend so many resources on manpower to obtain something when you can just negotiate for it with fewer resources? This left him with the option that what they are after cannot be negotiated.

Secondly, the point that seems to complement and solidify the first, ’reason for hate,’ he said. Instead of stating a price, he mentioned hatred. This seems to imply that the reason they declared war against this realm was purely emotional. He refuses to accept such a deduction, despite it being his own. So many had died from both sides.

’What did we, or our ancestors, do to deserve such hatred, or is their capacity for hate simply immense?’

There is also the possibility that this abyss-born was deliberately attempting to mislead them, concealing his true intentions behind a mask of ambiguity. From their perspective, it was impossible to discern his rank or influence within the abyssal hierarchy; he could be a mere foot soldier or, conversely, one of the masterminds orchestrating the conflict. His aloof manner and cryptic responses offered no clues, leaving them to wonder whether he alone had the authority to refuse negotiations or whether he was simply following orders from even more powerful entities.

Tian shook his head, shelving the thought at the back of his head. "You caught on? Sadly, I couldn’t ask directly. How would I know if you will tell the truth? And I thought you abyssals were supposed to be simple-minded creatures. How did you figure out my intention?"

Dark Alaric gave Tian a deep, profound gaze. "Oh, I never would have thought. I heard this realm was divided into several domains. I never imagined you as the leader of such a place. If you were trying to confirm whether I can access this body’s memories, you could have just asked."

"You caught on? Sadly, I couldn’t ask directly. How would I know if you will tell the truth? And I thought you abyssals were supposed to be simple-minded creatures. How did you figure out my intention?"

On a normal day, in an average body, if he had truly accessed their memory, he would have slipped up, but this was no average body. He was calmer, and he thought of things he never could have in his normal state. He finds himself processing information at an unparalleled level, not just one at a time, but multiple processes simultaneously.

"Abyssals are simple, not stupid. Besides, I am different from others of my species," he proclaimed with arrogance.

Chuckling softly, Tian suddenly stretched forth his hand,, slowly covering the distance. This movement seemed slow, but dark Alaric couldn’t react before it landed on his head. The last thing he heard was the old man’s voice. "Let’s end this here."

He calmly thought, ’Mmm, I find myself desiring to stay more and more.’

The library does not end, as Alaric will come to jokingly name it.

The entrance hall is vast enough to swallow sound, its ceiling climbing into a dim upper darkness. As he stepped in, the shelves began almost immediately, stretching in rows so long their far ends disappeared into perspective. Brass plates mark the categories: History, martial cores, Spirits, Wars of the Unknown Eras, and The Culling, etc. Each aisle is a world in itself.

The floors are old wood, worn smooth and creaking underfoot. Reading tables sit at intervals beneath hanging lanterns, their surfaces unmarked as they were new and unused.

Staircases spiral upward at each corner, leading to galleries that ring the central hall, each one lined with more shelves pressing against iron railings. From above, the reading room below looks surprisingly small.

There are wings branching off in every direction. A cartography wing. A manuscript room with pages behind glass. A fiction section that feels, for reasons difficult to articulate, slightly warmer than the rest, almost motherly in nature.

Millions of books, and this was nothing but a fraction of what Tian could provide. He only gave what was necessary for his current stage of growth; anything more would be useless and might muddy his understanding.

Scanning the books closest to him that radiated an ancient aura through their scented pages, he thought, ’Time to educate myself.’