THE VILLAIN'S POV Chapter 702: The Truth Behind the Abyss (2)

Frey’s eyes stretched wide at those words. A vital piece of the puzzle—the unresolved mystery—had nearly slipped his mind.

"The Missing Fragments of the Self..."

In the distant past, the system had assigned him a quest to locate three specific relics intended to mend his true essence: the mask, the weapon, and the armor.

Currently, he held only one.

"Could it be... that your being is fractured because the remaining pieces are still missing?"

Nameless did not offer an immediate reply.

If the mask was the only relic in Frey’s possession, then it stood to reason that the consciousness of Nameless was tethered solely to it.

The logic finally clicked into place.

The Dual Soul had been triggered the moment Frey secured the mask back in Londor.

This confirmed that Nameless was truly oblivious to German’s schemes; his perception was limited to whatever the mask contained.

"For the time being... German is the only one who holds the entire truth.

The truth regarding you... and regarding me."

Those words dragged Frey straight back to the beginning.

He let out a sharp, cynical chuckle.

"How pathetic... Nameless, you are just as wretched as I am."

Even the fabled king—the entity that gods and demons viewed with terror—was fundamentally clueless.

Ignorance was their only common ground.

Raw power was meaningless when one lacked an understanding of their own nature.

Nameless might still command immense strength, but he was merely a remnant of what he once was.

"I have no interest in seizing your body... or participating in this misery.

I have no wish to be consumed by these... emotions."

A subtle weight sat behind his words.

The more intense Frey’s emotions became, the tighter their link grew.

This had been evident during the clash with Zibar. When Nameless had taken control of Frey’s physical form, their connection had been pushed to its absolute threshold.

In that moment, a shift had occurred.

Rather than Frey transforming into Nameless... it felt as if Nameless was gradually being molded into Frey.

Suddenly, the spectral copies of Frey surrounding the fire shifted their gaze toward Nameless. Every single one of them pulsed with that same dark violet light.

They stared at him in silence, their heavy, bottomless eyes seemingly trying to absorb him into their collective self.

For the first time, the masked king appeared almost exhausted—as if he were engaged not in a physical war, but a battle for his very existence.

Recognizing this, Frey let out a weary breath of resignation.

"Hah... my life is so miserable that even a legendary being like you wants to flee from it.

That is actually quite funny."

A soft laugh escaped him.

"First, I am told I must face the Demon King,

and now another enemy of that caliber could surface at any moment."

Nameless looked up, his voice steady yet filled with gravity.

"Agaroth is beyond your reach.

Not yet. Even utilizing my power, you will fall short."

He spoke with the tone of someone recalling a haunting memory.

"Agaroth is an anomaly... his strength is without boundaries.

Even if you manage to corner him, he will only grow more powerful as the fight progresses.

He undergoes infinite evolution... until victory is his.

That is precisely how I was defeated."

Nameless went quiet, the violet glow in his eyes dimming.

"The core of Agaroth’s power is evolution.

Mine... is adaptation.

The talent within you, once fully realized, will allow you to adapt to any phenomenon—much like Agaroth’s own nature."

In the ancient past... during their final showdown... the collision between Agaroth and Nameless had triggered a literal cataclysm.

Initially, the Demon King held the upper hand.

However, Nameless adapted to every technique Agaroth threw at him, eventually surpassing him entirely.

Then... Agaroth evolved once more, reclaiming the lead.

The cycle continued without end...

Agaroth would dominate for a time...

then Nameless would take the lead...

They traded blows endlessly until the Demon King ascended to a height Nameless could no longer reach..

and the conflict reached its conclusion.

In that final moment, Agaroth birthed a technique unlike any other..

the most devastating strike ever envisioned,

one that Nameless was powerless to block.

In essence, their duel had been a direct confrontation between Agaroth’s world-shattering ability—the power of a predator that consumes all—

and the Shadow Adaptation belonging to Nameless.

Inevitably...

the edge went to Agaroth.

"To bring down Agaroth... you require a second deciding factor to complement Shadow Adaptation."

That was the verdict Nameless reached.

Frey offered no response, falling into a pensive silence.

That "deciding factor"...

Nameless was clearly pointing to Frey himself, the designated vessel.

Perhaps this was German’s ultimate objective from the very beginning.

"The Demon King has many powers... you can analyze those later.

But Odin is a different matter entirely. My knowledge of him is limited."

For the first time, a trace of curiosity colored Nameless’s voice as he discussed the mysterious ancient entity.

"He was here long before I arrived—before any of us.

His resonance eventually reached me...

and we spoke on one occasion."

Frey’s attention sharpened instantly.

Odin was an unreachable figure..

a presence only the Great Ones were supposed to perceive.

And yet, Nameless had made contact.

It had occurred eons ago, when Nameless had decimated countless lives on a far-off world during his dark research into life and death.

In retaliation, the Great One of that realm descended to halt his rampage...

and the two fought in a disaster that soaked the planet in slaughter.

Nameless had been at the height of his power then, and he naturally claimed victory.

But once the fighting ceased... something bizarre happened.

"I suddenly found myself in a realm of pure white—a blinding, colorless void.

And he was standing there... without shape or form... nothing but luminous eyes watching me."

Odin had discarded his physical shell long ago.

He was no longer capable of direct interference with the physical world.

This was the very fact that had frustrated Agaroth in the past when he sought the ancient one ..

for even the Demon King could not destroy something that lacked a physical presence.

Odin’s only reach was through whispers of his will scattered across the cosmos.

One of those whispers was his meeting with Nameless.

"He spoke very little... only mentioning the nature of life and death ..

of how both could be wielded...

of the Lords of Life and Death who defined the world as mortals understand it...

and of the thin shroud that masks the ultimate truth from the living."

Then, as their brief encounter concluded...

Odin uttered a cryptic remark.

"Your radiance has dimmed... when compared to the Demon King."

Those were his parting words before vanishing back into the void.

Nameless cast his eyes downward slightly.

"I know very little about him... but he is certainly not an entity to be underestimated."

"No one understands the true nature of his power...

but rumors persist..."

Frey listened, his brow furrowing deeper with every word.

"They claim he is immortal.

It is said he has existed since the beginning of time... that no being is more ancient than he.

And they say... he is the one who birthed aura itself."

Upon hearing this, Frey’s face grew even grimmer.

"And I am expected to fight a thing like that?"

He let out a joyless, bitter laugh.

Nameless said nothing.

In that quiet moment, it felt as though the two of them—Frey Starlight and the mythic Nameless—

were bound to the same path.

A cold, unforgiving destiny.