Forsaken By The Gods, I Made A Contract With the Demon King

Chapter 56: Lost Child of Lunacy

While Levi struggled to comprehend what was happening, the system bombarded him with notifications.

[You are in the presence of a Goddess.]

[You have obtained a crest - Demon who met God.]

He glanced at the messages, but the joy of gaining a crest never came. He stood frozen, his gaze locked on the massive black bird before him.

The Forgotten Goddess.

Levi's body remained paralyzed, his eyes taking in the creature. The system notifications faded as he whispered, "A goddess... The Forgotten Goddess of the Tuatha Dé Danann?"

The moment he spoke, something stirred in the deity's gaze. Her massive head shifted, and Levi found himself pinned by eyes that seemed to pierce the fabric of reality.

[You have been noticed by the Forgotten Goddess.]

A shiver ran through him. Every instinct screamed at him to flee, but his body refused to move. Noir, still perched on his shoulder, let out a soft, distressed caw.

The golden pupils of the massive bird stared down at him, even while resting—it felt like being looked down on from the heavens.

Levi took a tentative step back, fear and shock warring within. He didn't dare speak, or rather, he couldn't—the pressure was too overwhelming.

Then, the Goddess spoke.

Levi didn't hear her words physically, but an ancient and alien voice echoed in his mind.

"A Lost Child of Lunacy... what strange fate brings you to my domain."

The weight of those words nearly drove him to his knees, as if mortals weren't meant to hear the speech of gods. But suddenly, the pressure eased, as though the bird realized something.

Breathing heavily, Levi looked up at the massive chained bird. He didn't understand a single thing it had said.

A Lost Child of Lunacy? What does that mean?

But that wasn't his main concern. All he wanted to know was why a goddess was in this sanctum—and why she was chained.

"Why… are you here? Why are you… chained?" Levi managed to ask, barely.

The bird's eyes contracted, as if surprised by his questions. Her voice rang in his mind once more.

"I am here because I was forgotten. Chained because I was feared. You, child of Lunacy, have stumbled into a prison that holds what even gods dread."

Levi's mind spun, trying to make sense of it. As always, little of her words made sense to him. Before he could respond, the goddess spoke again.

"But know this, little one. All you see is an illusion of my creation. This sanctum was crafted by my hand long before I was bound."

Levi's eyes widened in disbelief.

"An illusion?"

That couldn't be. The massive bird, its majestic body bound by heavenly chains, was right in front of him. It looked all too real for it to be an illusion.

"You are but a mortal. How should I explain the power of gods to you?" the bird said, almost amused. "But you are no ordinary mortal either. How did you end up in my domain? It should have barred any entry."

Her gaze intensified, curious. In that moment, Levi pondered—how did he end up in this sanctum?

His dark twin!

Did that bastard know what kind of sanctum this was? How?!

Levi stayed silent, but the Goddess seemed to notice something.

"I see... Is it the one inside you who brought you here? You are quite interesting—a body that holds two souls?"

Her words drained the color from Levi's face.

Two souls? What did she mean? Wasn't it his innate ability that created the other consciousness? Or had he misunderstood something all along?

Levi was about to ask, but the Goddess spoke again.

"It seems fate led you to me. Let me make you an offer, Lost child of Lunacy, help me break free from these chains, and I will make a contract with you."

Levi's ears perked up.

A contract with a god? He already had bad memories of his last contract, and he wasn't about to try that again. More importantly, he'd already made a contract with the Demon King—there was no way to forge another.

"I... I've already made a contract with a demon," Levi said, clearly uninterested in her offer.

That was a mistake. Telling a god he'd allied with a demon was like declaring allegiance to her enemy. But Levi didn't care, and it didn't seem like the Goddess could do much in her current state.

She, however, remained unfazed. "You think I don't know that? I am still a god, child," she scoffed. "But that doesn't matter. You possess a unique power, and I'm not suggesting a contract with your physical self—rather, with the one that resides inside you."

Levi was taken aback once again. If he had doubts before, now he was almost certain—there was something wrong with his ability, Shadow Self.

He needed to figure it out, and fast. But he had no intention of doing anything that would benefit his dark twin before that.

"I've sworn to kill the gods. You are a god—why would you think I'd help you when I could kill you in the state you're in?" Levi spoke without fear for the first time, though inside he was far from calm.

"Pffttt—!"

The Goddess burst into laughter.

"Good, good! You're brave, but foolish! As I said, what you see is merely an illusion—I'm bound in a place you can't even dream of reaching... at least not yet."

She continued, "And as for your hatred of gods—better still. I hold grudges against some of those bastards myself."

Levi's eyes flicked to the golden chains binding the bird. He suspected the chains were the work of other gods, but didn't know who or why.

He hesitated. He didn't want anything to do with gods. Even now, he felt like he might get tricked again, and this time he might not escape with his life.

The Lord of the Smoking Mirrors - that bastard of a god still haunted him—how that wretched god had screwed him over. He had no intention of trusting another.

He was about to reject her offer when two messages appeared before his eyes, almost simultaneously.

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Sorry there was some error while pasting the chapter - Its fixed now.