Just call me Thor

Chapter 572: Unfortunately, that person was me



"Ares wants to see me?"

Mike froze for a moment, a sense of unease creeping over him.

This couldn't be good.

He cautiously asked, "So... should we head out now?"

Cedric, still sipping his tea, replied indifferently,

"Ares wants to see you. What does that have to do with me?"

Mike: ???

You could've said that earlier!

Mike nearly cursed out loud.

This guy is ridiculous!

Suppressing his frustration, Mike muttered, "Fine, I'll head to the First Abyss then."

He took a few steps but hesitated, turning back with a sheepish grin.

"The abyss is dangerous. How about you escort me there?"

Cedric nodded, agreeing with a straight face,

"Indeed, you are quite dangerous... to the abyss."

Mike: ...

With no other choice, and Ares waiting, Mike grabbed Michael and left.

As for what Cedric planned to do in the Forest of Truth, Mike couldn't guess, nor did he care

to.

However, the Eye of Truth, now in its fourth awakening, reminded Mike of something interesting:

Cedric's talent, [Divine Endowment], was an SS-grade ability that was extremely close to SSS-grade.

In other words, if Nathan hadn't existed, Cedric would have been humanity's first Supreme Being.

Now that's interesting.

Mike had always known Cedric was strong.

Even though he was stuck at level 989, unable to step into Ultimate Lord, his strength was still terrifying.

Calderon, who had fought Cedric for a lifetime, had lost more battles than he'd won before finally surpassing him by becoming an Ultimate Lord.

And Cedric's inability to break through wasn't due to weakness-it was because his talent was too powerful. The threshold for leveling up was simply insurmountable.

The sword case Cedric carried on his back had been nurtured for many years.

What kind of power it held when drawn, no one knew.

The Eye of Truth's evaluation was simple:

[Capable of slaying Demon Gods.]

As Mike walked away, the message floated before his eyes, and he couldn't help but chuckle. "Interesting."

...

After Mike left, Cedric casually tossed his teacup onto the ground.

From a nearby tree, black text appeared:

"Littering fine: 500 gold coins."

Cedric nodded in acknowledgment.

"Put it on Thor's tab."

Shadow Four: ...

Without another word, Cedric walked forward.

He passed the Monument of Faith, pausing briefly to glance at the many inscriptions left behind.

He didn't linger long. He had seen this monument countless times before.

Soon, Cedric arrived at the base of the Tower of Truth.

Standing at the first floor, he looked ahead.

Before long, an old man appeared inside the tower. The two locked eyes across the barrier.

"Whatever you're scheming," Cedric said coldly, staring at Gregory inside the tower, "don't get in my way."

Without waiting for a response, Cedric began ascending.

He stepped into the void, leaving footprints in the air as he quickly reached the 99th floor.

Without knocking, he pushed the door open and walked in, sword case still on his back.

Inside stood humanity's current Supreme Being-Apollo.

Cedric sat down on the floor, his tone calm but his words sharp enough to kill.

"I didn't kill you back then. You owe me a favor."

Apollo, with a butterfly perched on his shoulder, slowly opened his eyes as Cedric entered.

He wasn't surprised by Cedric's sudden arrival.

"No."

Apollo shook his head, correcting him with precision.

"You didn't kill me. I owe you my life."

Apollo was always meticulous.

Cedric blinked, clearly not expecting Apollo to calculate it this way.

Back then, when Ares had ascended to the position of Supreme, the Supreme Demon God was gravely injured and dormant, and the abyssal Demon Gods were trembling in fear.

At that time, Ares was truly invincible.

Cedric, meanwhile, was the undisputed second strongest in the world.

If Apollo had died...

Mike had once heard from Apollo that Ares had never harbored any intention of killing him.

But Apollo had never mentioned something else:

While Ares didn't want to kill him, Cedric did.

Humans are complex creatures.

The noble can act despicably, and the virtuous can fall from grace.

Likewise, the wicked can rise to heroism in moments of crisis.

Cedric, as a swordsman, was straightforward in both his virtues and his flaws.

If Apollo had died, the Supreme Demon God wouldn't have emerged. Ares would have continued guarding the abyss, and humanity would have enjoyed another century of peace.

As for Apollo?

Cedric was willing to trade his own life for Apollo's.

Cedric had made no secret of his intent to kill humanity's third potential Supreme Being.

What was more interesting was that Ares hadn't stopped him.

It wasn't that Ares wanted to use Cedric to do his dirty work.

If Ares had wanted Apollo dead, he would've done it himself-no need for such roundabout

schemes.

Ares simply believed that Apollo, a potential Supreme Being highly praised by Nathan,

wouldn't die so easily.

And Ares was right.

Cedric, carrying his sword case, had found Apollo shortly after his awakening-beating even

Shadow Nine to the punch.

Bullying a newly awakened old man? Cedric had been confident he could succeed.

Their conversation had been brief.

No one knew the details of what was said, and only a handful of people even knew the meeting

had taken place.

But after that conversation, Cedric abandoned his plan to kill Apollo.

What Apollo had given up in exchange, no one knew.

What was certain was that Cedric's visit had brought Apollo closer to death than he had ever

been in his life.

So now, when Cedric visited again, Apollo acknowledged the debt.

He looked at Cedric. He could have remained silent, simply observing. After all, humanity's current Supreme Being wasn't Ares-it was Apollo.

The invincible figure of this era was also Apollo.

The Apollo of the past would never have spoken.

But now, curiosity got the better of him.

And so, Apollo asked, "What do you want?"

Cedric's answer was simple.

"I want a path."

"A path to the Heavenly Realm."

...

Meanwhile, Mike's journey was progressing smoothly.

With Gabriel and Sylvanas escorting him, he quickly reached the First Abyss.

If Ares wanted to see him, it was undoubtedly for something important. Standing before the golden version of the First Abyss, Mike's eyes gleamed with undisguised

greed.

An abyss made entirely of gold-and it was his. What was wrong with admiring it for a bit? Unfortunately, he couldn't take it now.

Before long, Mike found Ares, who was teaching Maxen how to wield a sword.

Maxen, carrying the Golden Tree, swung a flail like a sword with one hand, looking incredibly

fierce.

Ares stood nearby, pointing out flaws and giving instructions.

Noticing Thor's arrival, Ares waved Maxen off.

What followed was a conversation between two SSS-grade talent holders. No outsiders

allowed.

Maxen, having finished his lesson, happily scampered off with the Golden Tree in tow. Spending time with his Second Godfather was stressful enough.

The oppressive aura of a Supreme Being wasn't something to take lightly.

With both Ares and Thor present, the pressure was doubled. Maxen fled as fast as he could.

After Maxen left, the Archdemon, lying on the ground, pretended to be dead.

It sealed off all its senses, refusing to acknowledge anything happening around it.

This wasn't a conversation it could afford to overhear.

Seeing the Archdemon lying there, Mike couldn't suppress his killing intent.

His desire to kill was practically written all over his face.

This was the creature responsible for Nathan's death.

Maxen had once vowed to kill the Archdemon in his lifetime.

Calderon, even in his madness, had dreamed of trading his life to take down the Archdemon.

For Mike, if the opportunity arose and the conditions were right, he wouldn't hesitate to kill

it.

But for now, Mike had more pressing matters to attend to.

Humanity's second Supreme Being and fourth potential Supreme Being were casually

strolling through the First Abyss.

Mike hesitated.

"Ares, you..."

"I'm still alive."

Ares cut him off bluntly, even throwing in a bit of sarcasm.

"Can't you tell the difference?"

Hearing it directly from Ares, Mike couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

It wasn't that he didn't trust Apollo, but hearing it from the person in question carried more

weight.

Ares added nonchalantly,

"But I'll die eventually."

His tone was light, as if he were talking about someone else entirely.

In truth, among all those who had fought the Supreme Demon God, Ares was the only one who

had survived.

Nathan had once had a chance to live, but he gave it up.

For a moment, Mike didn't know what to say.

He had expected this conversation to be heavy, but he hadn't anticipated Ares being so

straightforward about it.

"I called you here to teach you some powerful moves."

Ares spoke casually, while Mike listened absentmindedly, his thoughts elsewhere.

Suddenly, a wave of killing intent enveloped Mike, snapping him to full alertness.

Ares, satisfied with Mike's reaction, continued, "Don't worry about me."

Mike scratched his head, unsure of what to say.

Ares shrugged.

"I've already given up hope."

He gestured to the sword servants around him and said,

"You know Apollo created the sword servants..."

"Wait!"

Mike knew interrupting was rude, especially when it came to Ares.

But he couldn't help himself.

"The sword servants weren't created by you?"

Ares chuckled and countered,Nôv(el)B\\jnn

"Why would I create sword servants? What's the point of having a bunch of swords following

me around? They don't even flatter me."

For a moment, Mike was stunned.

The Guardian Shadow had been created by Ares, but the sword servants were Apollo's

creation...

Mike realized that Shadow Nine, the "historian," truly lived up to his title.

If he didn't rewrite history for a day, he'd probably feel uncomfortable.

That old trickster hadn't told a single truth.

Ares continued,

"The sword servants record my every move, every strike.

When I die, all my sword servants will enter the Forest of Truth, waiting for someone worthy.

You can also use the sword servants to try locating the white horse..."

This was the most Ares had ever spoken to Mike. Mike hadn't expected the sword servants to have such a purpose!

But every time Ares mentioned "death," Mike felt a pang of discomfort.

When Nathan had died, Mike hadn't been in this world yet-there was nothing he could've

done.

But now, with Ares still alive, Mike felt he had to try something.

He'd rather make a mistake than do nothing at all.

Mike rarely had things he truly wanted to do, but this was one of them.

"Um..."

Mike hesitated, trying to find the right words.

"Is there... any way to keep you from dying?"

Don't die.

Those two words were easy to say.

When most human powerhouses died, they could be transformed into Guardian Shadows.

Even Michael had been resurrected after death.

But saving a gravely injured Supreme Being? That was another matter entirely.

The stronger someone was, the harder it was to save them.

In response to Mike's question, Ares offered a sharp critique:

"If the person I fought had been a little weaker, a little less skilled, maybe I'd have a chance."

Even Ares, who considered himself the world's greatest swordsman, had to acknowledge the

caliber of his opponent.

Mike: ...

How strong must someone be to earn such praise from Ares?

"Sigh."

Ares shook his head, a hint of regret in his voice. "Unfortunately, that person... was me."