THE VILLAIN'S POV Chapter 700: A calamity equal to Agaroth

"This is... bewildering."

Frey whispered, struggling to process the situation unfolding before him.

Almost instinctively, he let out a subtle ripple of aura, scanning her presence to understand what he was looking at.

In that moment, the truth became clear.

"With your current level of power, you should be able to perceive it, Frey. You aren't slow-witted... you can see that this is merely a projection, a tiny sliver of my consciousness."

Audrey spoke with a composed tone as she drew nearer.

"So, this isn't your actual physical form..."

"No," she confessed in a low voice.

The figure standing in front of him was nothing more than a fleeting manifestation—a butterfly that had fled from Helmund, acting as a vessel for a portion of her mind.

Her true self was completely unaware that this encounter was taking place.

In reality, the genuine Audrey was a broken shell, imprisoned in a state of perpetual agony and exploited by demons as a permanent font of Aura.

She had lost her grip on reality, oblivious to the fact that she had even rescued Frey and Snow.

Eons of suffering had completely fractured her psyche.

Now, this solitary fragment—this butterfly—was the final remnant of the woman once revered as the Crimson Saint.

While her physical body had been violated and destroyed, the state of her mind and soul was far more tragic.

Frey, of course, was ignorant of these details.

However, recognizing that the woman before him was just a projection made it easier to comprehend why this version of Audrey felt so distinct from the one he remembered.

Even so, a lingering question remained in his mind.

"Have we met before? You seem... strangely familiar. And you saved my life—both mine and Snow’s. I am in your debt for that."

Frey’s voice wavered with hesitation, as if he were unsure of how to address her or how to interpret the inexplicable warmth he felt toward her.

Audrey gave a soft shake of her head.

"Yes, we have crossed paths before. And there is no need for gratitude... because you have saved me more times than I can count."

A gentle smile touched her lips as she closed the distance between them.

Frey’s bewilderment only intensified.

He possessed no memory of such events.

"There are so many things I wish to tell you... so much that needs to be said... but my time is fading. I have already expended too much of my strength on you and Snow just to maintain this form."

Holding her temporary shape together was becoming an agonizing struggle; her essence was evaporating at a rapid pace.

"With the moments I have left, listen to this, Frey: the seal binding Agaroth is failing. If the current path continues, the Demon King will liberate himself long before you can reclaim your peak Cultivation."

Her warning was sharp and urgent. Frey’s face clouded over instantly.

"What are you saying?"

Then, Audrey revealed everything.

The reality she spoke of shattered the quiet air between them.

As Frey grew in power, the seal grew proportionately more fragile. Agaroth’s strength was so immense that he wouldn't need to wait for Frey to become the next Nameless; his escape could happen much sooner.

That was Audrey’s initial caution.

But before Frey could even digest the news, she continued, her voice growing swifter and more frantic.

"Be careful, Frey. The Demon King is not the only threat you should fear. Another entity, one just as lethal, is attempting to find its way back to our world. It is the one we all gave everything to annihilate."

She reached out, cradling Frey’s face in her palms.

"Be wary of Odin, Frey. Do not face him. Not until you have attained the Seventh Stage of SSS Rank... not until your original strength has returned."

Her form began to tremble and flicker, bits of crimson light drifting away like embers in the breeze, yet she pushed through to finish her message.

Frey fought to keep up as his mind reeled. The news about the Demon King was a heavy enough burden—now there was a second enemy he had never even heard of?

"Odin is the creator of the Great Ones. They are merely his instruments, extensions of his will meant to pave the way for his return. Ages ago, he lost his corporeal form in a conflict so ancient that it has been wiped from history. The most powerful masters of that era combined their strength to end him... and we thought we had succeeded. But Odin did not perish. His spirit survived—a presence that exists beyond the reach of any mortal."

Her voice shook, not out of terror, but from the weight of her memories.

Audrey had lived through it. She had personally battled Odin, fighting alongside Agaroth himself.

"There is nothing you can do against him right now, Frey. Just... stay alert. Do not forget that he is out there."

Odin—a nightmare that the world had long forgotten. A catastrophe whose very name had once signaled the downfall of entire nations.

If he were to return, perhaps only the Demon King would possess the power to stand against him.

Audrey spoke on, desperate to impart every bit of knowledge before she vanished.

"Frey... the world is vast, and your foes are everywhere. They will try to trick you, break you, and test your resolve. But I will not allow you to wander in the dark any longer."

Her voice broke, thick with emotion.

"You are vital, Frey. Never doubt your worth... never look down on yourself. You are the most essential being in this entire world."

"There is so much more I want to share... so many secrets I've kept locked away for so long... but time has run out. It hurts so much..."

A single tear escaped Audrey’s eye—her final one—as her physical form started to dissolve.

"Audrey... I—"

Frey’s words caught in his throat, his mind still spinning from her revelations.

But her time was up.

"I will return, Frey. I won't leave you to walk this path alone. I'll come back to you... no matter the cost!"

She cried out her final promise, then lunged forward to embrace him.

Before their lips could meet, her body shattered into nothingness. Crimson dust scattered into the atmosphere, shimmering as it drifted toward the sky.

Frey remained standing, paralyzed, as he watched the light fade away.

Agaroth. Odin.

"Just... what is happening to this world?"

He gripped his fists tight while the earth beneath him began to shake.

It felt as though the gears of destiny had resumed their turn, dragging him toward unavoidable conflicts, toward the peak of power, and toward the most formidable beings in history.

The sensation was crushing.

Foreboding.

And absolutely inevitable.