Chapter 1051: Chapter 389: One Third of the Truth

Let’s be honest, Aiwass is indeed the Pope now.

Even if he is just the Vicar Pope, he certainly has the right to judge blasphemous heresy!

Although this painting is filled with all sorts of theological errors… especially the pure white head of Candle Master which is the most outrageous, Aiwass did not show any abnormal reactions; instead, he followed Sasha’s gaze towards the entrance.

At this moment, a beautiful youth with black hair and red eyes, about sixteen or seventeen years old, made his grand entrance amidst the crowd’s surround.

His appearance was even more beautiful than many of the young ladies present, with crimson eyes sparkling like rubies, and a pair of slender, curved black and red dragon horns atop his head. His black hair cascaded down to his waist, and from his high-collared formal attire, one could not discern his Adam’s apple…

But such a beautiful person did not give off any soft, androgynous vibe at all.

On the contrary, he possessed an intense sense of confidence and masculinity, shining brightly like The Sun–

When “Cain” appeared, the originally melancholic dance music in the hall suddenly transformed into a resplendent and sacred symphony.

Even the lighting focused on him, following his every step forward.

Cain, too, wore a smile similar to everyone else’s, spreading his arms wide. It was as if he was ready to embrace someone, or it was akin to a star greeting his fans.

Everyone stopped dancing and turned to send out a never-ending roar of cheers to him.

As he walked into the crowd, the people naturally parted to either side. Amidst the increasingly fervent cheers, Cain breezed through the center of the crowd without touching anyone.

As he passed by Aiwass, he nodded with a smile at Sasha, and also glanced up in mild surprise at Aiwass, whose hand still rested on Sasha’s shoulder.

Then, Cain crossed through the crowd and walked under the white Candle Master statue.

“Ladies and gentlemen!”

He spoke loudly, his voice surprisingly young, clear, and full of vitality.

Cain’s face was brimming with a smile: “Let no one be sorrowful, let’s revel to our heart’s content! Celebrate the death of Mad Dragon, and may he ascend to heaven!

“Dance without rest, drink with abandon!

“This is the day of endless celebration!”

As he spoke, from seemingly nowhere he produced a glass of wine.

The Children of the Dragon raised his glass high, toasting the crowd: “To my father, Zagreus!”

“To Zagreus!”

Peals of laughter echoed through the dance floor.

Unbeknownst to Aiwass, his empty wine glass was somehow filled once again.

“To laughter!”

He cried out cheerfully, and the crowd below echoed: “To laughter!”

“To wild dancing!”

“To wild dancing!!”

“To all heroes! To that glorious finale!!

“–To the death of Mad Dragon!”

Calling out loudly, he downed the wine in his glass in one go.

The people also complied, cheering as they emptied their own glasses: “To the death of Mad Dragon!”

“To the death of Mad Dragon!”

Along with screams and celebratory cries, people threw their wine glasses forcefully into the air. The glasses blossomed and shattered in the sky, turning into fireworks that sparkled with light. Meanwhile, Cain watched with a smile, his hands raised high like an orchestra conductor.

With a change of his gesture, the party also turned chaotic.

The band switched to a new piece of music. It maintained the melancholic tone of the previous dance, but with a slightly altered rhythm and one or two new tracks added, the once melancholic slow dance became much livelier.

As the music heated up, people passionately kissed each other, screamed, started to take off garments, and threw them high into the air; those flying coats ignited into flames mid-air, and pure white birds emerged from within.

Around the dance floor, a circle of hollow round tables appeared as if conjured from nowhere. Like rings, the tables filled with dishes, and the birds landed on each one–every bird transforming into a different delectable dish, emitting a rich fragrance. Glass after glass of fine wine appeared beside the tables, inexhaustible and within easy reach.

Some resumed dancing in each other’s arms, while others made a beeline for the tables to feast.

However, at this moment, Aiwass suddenly felt the surrounding time slowing down… Most noticeable was the drawn-out and now very strange sound of music, followed by people’s movements also gradually freezing along with the music.

Preserved in the posture of revelry, faces adorned with smiles.

Cain stood beneath the glow, raising his hands to look towards the guests.

And whether it be “Cain” or “Sasha” beside Aiwass, both maintained a motionless posture.

Aiwass reached out to touch Sasha’s cheek but couldn’t feel the softness and warmth from her body anymore. It felt more like he was stroking a rough canvas, which even felt somewhat damp.

He slowly removed his hand from Sasha’s shoulder and walked alone in the stillness of the dance floor.

Surrounding people were frozen mid-celebration, mid-dance, their intriguing poses and expressions solidified in place.

Only the sound of Aiwass’s boots echoed as he walked on the ground in the silent space.

It wasn’t that he wished to move about aimlessly… but he noticed something unusual near Cain.

Next to Cain, three wooden doors appeared out of nowhere, located in front and to his left and right.

At his feet, a line of white text emerged.

[What is the purpose of this feast?]

Then, underneath each of the three doors, corresponding phrases also appeared.

The door ahead read “Funeral and Ritual”.

To the left and right were “Celebration and Revelry” and “Madness and Slaughter” respectively.

In the center of the three doors, there was a second hand ticking away. It appeared to be a timed decision of one minute.

“Ten minutes…”

Aiwass murmured softly.

It had been about ten minutes since he opened his eyes.

A choice every ten minutes?

One minute… It’s somewhat forced to expect any detailed analytical thinking, there must be a part that relies on intuition.

Although by the atmosphere, it seemed like “Celebration and Revelry” should be the obvious choice, Aiwass felt it couldn’t be that simple.

He felt Cain’s words had an underlying meaning… and the option for “Madness and Slaughter” made him feel uneasy.

From the words he had heard, it seemed that Zagreus was already dead. And this was a banquet convened by the heroes who killed the “Mad Dragon” Zagreus…

…although it was strange.

Why would the heroes who killed the Mad Dragon “pay respects to Zagreus;” why would Cain be the one to hold this ceremony.

If he were in a different instance, Aiwass might have considered “the hidden truth of history” as the direction of his thoughts.

—-But the problem was, he didn’t know what the artist of this painting was thinking!

Or could it be…

“To complete a painting means… that any choice is correct?”

As Aiwass pondered, he saw that the second hand had already made three-quarters of a rotation.

Without any further thought, he pushed open the door marked “Funeral and Ritual”.

When the door opened, the inside was filled with fantastical and vibrant colors, even to the point of giving Aiwass a bit of a headache.

It took him just over a minute to reach the end of the hallway filled with fantastical colors.

At that moment, Aiwass discovered three different doors — on each door, there was an adornment featuring a flower with three petals.

One of them was the rustic wooden door Aiwass had just chosen, with all three petals now lit up. And the three illuminated petals, all shone with equal brightness.

But the other two doors were different.

The second door was an ancient stone door wrapped with verdant vines, with only one of its three petals illuminated, its brightness equivalent to the sum of the brightness on Aiwass’s door.

The last door, however, was made of steel, with two petals lit up, one clearly shinier than the other.

“…So, does this mean different people’s choices?”

Aiwass suddenly understood and knew how to switch to the other paintings.

After every choice, can one switch to a different world? Then, how is the “mission” triggered?

Considering he was already quite familiar with the situation inside the first painting, and also a bit curious about what would happen next… Aiwass still chose to push open the first door and stepped inside once again.

When Aiwass opened his eyes again, he found himself still in the middle of the dance floor, his right hand resting on Sasha’s shoulder as they danced together.

But “this painting” began to show anomalies.

Aiwass had a good memory and so he clearly felt that there were more people in the dance floor–

Originally, it was just nice and not cramped, but now it had become obviously crowded. There must be an additional pair or even more dance partners in the dance floor!

—-Someone had entered!

And not just one person!

Aiwass tensed up and heightened his alertness.

It seems it’s from here that one enters the online mode…

But Aiwass quickly identified one of the persons among them.

A blonde woman let go of her dance partner’s hand and walked resolutely towards the Pure White Candle Master, standing in front of Cain.

“May I have the honor of this dance with you?”

She stretched out her hand, a smile on her face, extending the invitation to Cain.

Cain looked over at her with interest–or rather, at her crimson eyes.

“Why not?”

The young man with long black hair smiled in acceptance.

Meanwhile, on the other side.

In a completely different world with a style unlike here.

The entire world there turned abstract and even more vivid, as if drawn by a child.

On the vast prairies, Aleister had turned into a deep red fire fox.

She stood unabashedly on the back of a tall white horse, brazenly yelling out:

“Get him!”

In front of her, a crow unhesitatingly lunged at a baboon holding a Magic Wand!