The Castle Lords haven't been quiet enough and even if they were, they couldn't have escaped from a Supreme Goddess' Divine Senses, which covered distances that mortals couldn't even comprehend. She could hear the conversation as clearly as someone speaking at arm's length.
Haru had heard it too. He frowned, not at the gossip, but at his own reaction to it. The truth was that the thought hadn't occurred to him before today, not seriously.
Before this incident at Arboriel, Svetlana had been an Ancient Goddess of Faith, a late-stage Supreme Goddess, one of the oldest and strongest beings in the Endless Continent. Haru, on the other hand, was a Castle Lord working his way up from nothing, still just a peak High God. The gap hadn't invited that kind of thinking.
But it was different now. He'd broken through to become a late-stage Supreme God himself. His divine power already matched hers and wouldn't be long before he ascended even further. The gap that had made the thought absurd no longer existed.
So if he thought about it now—
"Your Majesty." Svetlana said, her tone perfectly measured, "The branches of fate are quite readable at the moment."
Haru looked at her. Her silver eyes held a faint light that hadn't been there a moment ago. Her Divine Power quietly activated the Divine Law of Fate and read the threads that radiated off him.
"…That works on passing thoughts?"
"It works on a great many things."
After a pause. He decided honesty was simpler, "I was curious what our future looks like and took a peak."
Svetlana was quiet for a moment, the kind of quiet that wasn't empty, "The River of Fate has infinite branches, Your Majesty. I can see tendencies, not certainties. Any choice, any moment, can send things in entirely different directions." A slight smile appeared on her face, "What we can do is hope the direction is a good one."
She let that settle, then her shifted tone, "On another matter, Lily is progressing quite well. She's focused entirely on her cultivation and will soon become a High Goddess. When she becomes a Supreme Goddess, I'll transfer the position of 'Goddess of Fate' to her."
"I'm grateful for everything you've done for her." Haru said, and meant it.
Svetlana smiled at him, just briefly, with something in it that wasn't quite diplomatic, and then flickered out of existence, returning to the Endless Continent.
…
Celestia watched the space where she'd been standing.
"My Lord." She said, carefully, "The Goddess of Fate has shown considerable generosity towards the Empire. Perhaps more than what can be explained by goodwill alone. Is it possible that she intends to use Your Majesty's strength to compete for the God King's Throne in the coming Divine War?"
"We can't rule it out." Haru nodded.
She'd helped them way too many times, too consistently, taking nothing in return. Even the Elven Goddess Elunara, who was an ally of the Empire, hadn't come this far out of her way for them. Still, instinct wasn't evidence.
"There's another option." Celestia said, "Since Caelith also commands the Law of Fate, she can access the River of Fate directly. If you wish to know Svetlana's true intentions, or what future the river shows between you two, Caelith could attempt to look."
Haru had forgotten about Caelith entirely, "Sure, summon her."
…
Caelith appeared quickly, bowing with the particular deference she reserved for Haru alone. He didn't directly mention Svetlana and asked first about the Angel Reincarnation Pool.
"Nova completed the construction yesterday." Caelith said, "The sixth pool's construction can begin upon our return to the Endless Continent. Starting tomorrow, we'll be producing six thousand adult Angels every day."
"Good."
He knew that the number would keep climbing. Nova and Caelith together would eventually bring the Empire's production capacity to something comparable to the Illusory Angel Realm itself, given enough time.
"Now, I need you to look at the River of Fate. I want to know what the future holds between myself and Svetlana. Allies, enemies, something else."
Caelith's expression remained composed, "As you command, Lord Almighty."
She closed her eyes and what followed was not quick. Her Divine Senses extended into the River of Fate, the entity that existed throughout the universe but couldn't be touched by anyone who didn't command the Law of Fate. It swallowed even those who could if they pushed too hard. Haru could perceive it as a Supreme God, but attempting to read it himself would mean losing his Divine Senses, which risked him getting lost.
He waited and when Caelith's eyes opened, she coughed up golden blood. The backlash came from the river itself as peeking into the futures between two Supreme Gods, one of them being the official 'Goddess of Fate', carried a cost proportional to the attempt. Even the High God Tier Caelith had taken serious damage.
Celestia used a healing spell and immediately closed the wound, cleared the backlash and restored color to Caelith's face in seconds.
"Thank you, Your Holiness." Caelith straightened and turned to Haru, "My Lord, my power was insufficient to observe directly, but through the threads of fate connected to them, I was able to see a corner of it." She paused, "I saw…"
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