"No, our talk can't wait that long." Kamila replied. "Tomorrow you might leave again and when you get back, things would be even worse than they already are. As absurd as it sounds, this is the perfect moment." "I guess you are right." Lith sighed. "Do you want to do it here or in my room?" "Neither. I want to speak with Solus as well and I don't want to take you away from your family. I can wait until after everyone has gone to b-" A booming sound and the house shaking cut her short. Lith raised the shields to the max, knowing that whatever was going on it couldn't be simple. The arrays that surrounded his house were supposed to protect it from anything short of a natural disaster or a Divine Beast on a rampage. "What the heck is going on?" Raaz opened one of the windows facing toward the Trawn woods since the noise came from that direction. The sun was slowly disappearing on the horizon but there was still enough light to clearly see the source of the commotion. Or better, the sources. "Farm me sideways, I hate being always right!" Just as Lith had predicted, there was a Divine Beast on a rampage fighting against a natural disaster. The colossal figure of Crank the Hyperion was perfectly visible despite the distance. In his real form, he resembled a colossal pitch-black bear, 30 meters (100') tall at the withers with a white streak running from his head to the tip of his long, armored tail. The white streak wasn't made of fur, but of a crystal-like substance that crackled with the power of the elements. On the sides of his mouth, there were curved tusks that Hyperions used to hook or maul their victims according to the circumstances. Crank's figure shone with the golden light from the Mana Body bloodline ability that made him impervious to both physical and magical damage. It was the only reason he was still alive. His opponent was much smaller but also much deadlier. It emitted black bursts of Chaos that pierced through the golden aura and burned the thick defensive fur of the Hyperion, leaving huge patches of bald skin. While his parents only saw the Chaos spells and their effects, Lith's Tiamat eyes could easily spot the figure of Apep the Apophis. The Eldritch was laughing his ass off while he toyed with his prey. "Everybody, stay here. There's nothing to worry about." Lith lied through his teeth. "Tyris? Baba Yaga?" The Red Mother and Solus had returned to the living room when the tremors had started. Tyris shook her head with a sad smile, not wanting to be dragged in Lith's personal mess. "Count on me, kid." The Mother said while looking at Solus. "I'm no Guardian and I'm not letting a crazy idiot mess with my people." "You can count on me too, kid." Tezka said. "I'm still pissed off from the kidnapping attempt and I'd love to have the opportunity to stretch my legs." "Great, but let me do the talking, please. This might just be a huge misunderstanding. Maybe even a bad roll of the dice." Lith inwardly sighed in relief. A white core and an Eldritch hybrid were no Guardian, but together they were the next best thing. "Don't worry about us. I'll stay here with the others." Kamila knew that Tyris was bound to protect her and had no qualms about exploiting the Guardian's vow. A snap of Lith's fingers Warped the four of them near the area of the fight. At the same time, the members of the Queen's Corps protecting his house called for reinforcements and applied in droves for a transfer to a less dangerous job. Like fighting on the frontlines or hunting Abominations. "What the heck is wrong with the two of you? Cease this madness immediately!" Lith yelled at the top of his lungs, drawing the attention of the contenders. "Quit yapping and unleash your wife." Crank panted, using his breathing technique to regain his strength and make the lost fur regrow. "Otherwise we are all dead." "My wife?" Lith asked in confusion. "The female with angry Guardians for bodyguards, you numbnuts! We are no match for Mogar's Serpent." Much to the Hyperion's surprise, the mention of Kamila made the Apophis dispel the spheres of Chaos he had kept at the ready. Apep fondly remembered the nice woman and didn't want to put her in danger. "Sorry, it doesn't work this way." Lith shrugged. "What are you two doing here? There's no enmity between us." "There better not be, kid. Or you and I are going to have a problem." Tezka reverted to his true appearance, skewing the odds to the point that the Apophis didn't need to roll the dice to decide his course of action. He knew about Tezka. The Suneater was already old back when Apep had just arrived on Mogar. The stories about him were just the tip of a deadly iceberg the Apophis had no intention to crash into. No dice roll would change the outcome of their encounter. He could either talk or die. "There is no enmity between Verhen and I. I came here in peace when this furred jackass attacked me out of the blue!" The Apophis pointed at Crank, his voice a mix of snarls and hisses. "Peace my itchy ass!" The Hyperion gave his left cheek a good scratch while pointing fingers as well. "I know what kind of a bad day you had, Scourge, so I decided to wait until tomorrow to talk about my Light Mastery lessons. "I was looking for a nice spot where to spend the night when I saw that scaly bastard slithering toward your home. I had to protect my inve- I mean, I couldn't let a psychotic serial killer ambush a hero of the Kingdom." "Long story short, you attacked Apep to defend me and he attacked you in self-defense." Lith said while holding his temples in frustration. "Yes." They answered while glaring at each other. "What do you want Apep? I'm not in the mood for games and I'm pretty sure that whatever I can do, Inxialot can do it better." Lith asked. "You are almost correct. There is one thing you can do and he can't." A white line opened in the blackness of the Apophis' face, forming a predatory smile filled with fangs and a forked tongue. "I came here to ask you one question. Is your offer open to everyone? The girl for the tool?" "Correct." Lith nodded. "Eldritch, Divine Beast, human, I don't care who brings me Phloria Ernas. I want her alive, though." "Then our business is over. For now." The Eldritch laughed, emitting a sound similar to a raspy cough. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖 "Wait a second. What use do you have for Blade Spells? You can't handle artifacts." Lith asked. "I can't handle them here but up there my hunger is contained."Apep pointed at the sky. "Soon I'll find a way to get my body back. In the meantime, I could use learning Blade Magic. "By combining it with the power of the black and the white core, I'll be unstoppable." The Apophis opened a Chaos Steps and Warped away to not waste any more time with idle chatter.