How a Villain Defies Destiny Chapter 99

There was no intention to mock or provoke.

 

It just seemed like Fenrir had completely forgotten about Yves and me in his perception, so I wanted to remind him.

 

Fenrir, finally recalling our presence, glanced around cautiously and then offered a subtle apology.

 

[Hmm, I didn’t mean to ignore you, but I’m sorry.]

 

“Don’t worry about it. I understand perfectly.”

 

I decided to let it slide because it was kind of cute how he pretended to clear his throat even though he wasn’t speaking through his mouth.

 

‘The visual effect of his fluffy tail and droopy ears is quite strong…’

 

Honestly, the reason I hadn’t gotten properly annoyed with Fenrir, despite his frequent provocations, was largely due to his appearance.

 

Since I’m fond of cute animals, even when he spouted nonsense, his large dog-like appearance naturally softened my irritation.

 

‘Now that I think about it, all three of them here have something that weakens my resolve.’

 

After Fenrir, I glanced at Huluppu and Yves in turn and suddenly realized.

 

Coincidentally, this gathering included an animal, a child, and a beauty—all elements that could soften my heart.

 

‘No wonder… I haven’t been getting annoyed by most of what’s been said since earlier.’

 

I looked at the three of them—no, to be precise, one person, one divine tree, and one divine beast—with a renewed gaze. Then, noticing that three pairs of eyes were fixed on me, I quickly spoke up.

 

“By the way, shall we go through the reason behind Huluppu’s sudden question step by step?”

 

[Alright. First…]

 

Just as Huluppu began to answer, Fenrir suddenly cut him off.

 

[Wait, I’ll explain that.]

 

Huluppu’s face showed a look of disbelief.

 

[What do you think you’re doing, interrupting like you know what I’m about to say?]

 

[Weren’t you going to start by explaining the principle of your ability?]

 

Huluppu’s lips twitched, but he didn’t deny Fenrir’s accurate guess.

 

Fenrir, ignoring Huluppu’s reaction, continued.

 

[But it happens to tie into something Laura was curious about. That’s why I’m going to explain it.]

 

Meanwhile, I was left baffled by their exchange. I hadn’t expected Fenrir to suddenly bring me into the conversation.

 

With a sincere explanation, Fenrir, though still skeptical, readily obliged.

 

[Earlier, you asked how I could read the thoughts of living beings without using my innate ability, didn’t you!]

 

“Ah!”

 

A thought flashed through my mind.

 

It was the question I had given up on because it supposedly required explaining the creation of the world from the beginning.

 

“Of course, I remember that. I just didn’t realize it was related to what we’re discussing now.”

 

[Well, that’s good to hear. Anyway, Huluppu’s innate ability, when you dig deep, is fundamentally connected to what we were talking about earlier. That’s why I stepped in. I’ll explain Huluppu’s ability while also addressing your question.]

 

It seemed Fenrir was trying to be considerate in his own way.

 

Recognizing that his offer was closer to genuine goodwill, I thanked him.

 

“Thank you for thinking of me. I’ll listen carefully.”

 

[Good! But since starting from the creation of the world would take too long, I’ll focus on the most important points.]

 

Fenrir began his explanation with an energetic tone.

 

[This world consists of three realms: the divine realm where the gods reside, the surface world where we are now, and the underworld where souls dwell.]

 

The divine realm, also known as Dilmun, was a place even Huluppu and Fenrir had never been to, so he briefly mentioned it and moved on. The main focus of his explanation was on the surface world and the underworld.

 

[The surface world and the underworld are closely connected. In fact, you could say they are two parts of one world.]

 

According to Fenrir, unlike the divine realm, which is perfect and complete on its own, the surface world and the underworld are incomplete and cannot exist independently.

 

[Lady Astarte once told me that the original space was split into two to create the surface world and the underworld.]

 

Huluppu had been silent the whole time, but whenever Fenrir’s explanation seemed lacking, he chimed in with a word or two.

 

[Since you’re a priestess, you should already know about souls, so I’ll skip that part.]

 

He was about to gloss over it lightly, like a teacher summarizing key points during exam season, assuming I’d look up the basics myself. I quickly interrupted him.

 

“Wait a minute! I don’t know about that.”

 

[What? You don’t know this?]

 

I was the type who needed to fully understand something before moving on, so I admitted it honestly. But Fenrir gave me a strange look.

 

With only Laura’s patchy memories and my knowledge of the game, I was even more puzzled by Fenrir’s reaction.

 

‘I’m sure we never covered this in theology class… Is this something every priestess is supposed to know?’

 

I hesitated, unsure whether to stubbornly insist that I didn’t know or to make an excuse that I’d heard it but couldn’t remember. Meanwhile, Yves spoke up.

 

“Laura, it’s okay. Apprentice priestesses haven’t learned this yet. In fact, even most full-fledged priestesses probably don’t know.”

 

So I wasn’t the odd one out. I felt relieved at Yves’ words, but Fenrir, on the other hand, was visibly shocked.

 

[What? Do modern priestess doesn’t even know this? Then, do they even qualify as priestesses? Back in my day…]

 

Just as Fenrir was about to launch into a ‘back in my day’ rant, Huluppu, who had been observing, abruptly cut him off.

 

[Let me explain. He’s actually been disconnected from the world for quite some time. That’s why he sometimes makes comments that don’t keep up with the times.]

 

Somehow, it felt like an older generation desperately trying to keep up with the new generation.

 

When I mentioned not knowing about Xenon earlier, and he scolded me as if I’d been living in isolation, I wondered if that was his way of projecting. A sarcastic remark bubbled up to the tip of my tongue, but I held it back.

 

Fenrir might seem arrogant, prideful, and incredibly strong-willed at first glance, but deep down, he seemed to have a surprisingly sensitive personality.

 

This was evident from Huluppu’s actions when we first arrived in this space, where he told Fenrir to stop joking around because he might genuinely get upset.

 

‘Usually, people who look tough on the outside turn out to have fragile mentalities.’

 

While I was suppressing the urge to tease Fenrir, the others had apparently continued their conversation. By the time I snapped back to attention, they were already discussing souls.

 

[All living beings on the surface possess a soul. The body is merely a shell, while the soul is the true essence of life.]

 

I might have missed a bit of the beginning, but it seemed the important part was just starting, so I stayed quiet and listened attentively.

 

[However, the gods placed one restriction on souls. Without divine permission, they can only remain in the underworld.]

 

Huluppu explained that when a body dies on the surface, the soul naturally moves to the underworld. 

 

There, it stays until the time comes for it to return to the surface and inhabit a new body.

 

‘The cycle of death and rebirth sounds a lot like the concept of reincarnation.’

 

Of course, the finer details like merit or karma were different.

 

[And divine permission is what we call divine power.]

 

[That’s right. Which means every living being on the surface possesses divine power.]

 

At that, my eyes widened, and I asked in surprise.

 

“Huh? Then why do sacred objects that respond to divine power only react to certain people?”

 

Part of my surprise came from how different this was from what I’d understood about divine power. 

 

But more than that, the question about the sacred object Enheduane had brought to the Euphrates Kingdom was the first thing that came to mind.

 

If Huluppu and Fenrir’s claims were true, then every living being should have reacted to the sacred object she brought.

 

But when they heard my question, Fenrir and Huluppu exchanged glances and then burst out laughing.

 

[You really are an impatient one, aren’t you? We were just about to explain the difference between us and ordinary living beings.]

 

Fenrir followed up with a light-hearted remark.

 

[I like that about Laura, though.]

 

Huluppu, who had already had a conversation with me before, casually brushed it off as if he was used to it.

 

The problem was that both Fenrir and Yves seemed to take the word ‘like’ a bit too sensitively.

 

[Wait, Huluppu, isn’t your taste a bit weird? You like that about her?]

 

“Even if there’s no romantic intent, please refrain from making statements that could be easily misunderstood.”