"Hela."
Casting a sidelong glance at the man who stood unfazed amid the corpses at his feet, Hela extended her hand, the tip of her finger gently brushing against Ego's open palm.
A touch as light as a dragonfly skimming the water's surface... brief, fleeting, and precise.
"Ah... the divine essence of death," Ego murmured, a flicker of surprise flashing through his eyes. From that delicate point of contact, the power flowing from Hela surged into him, swift and silent, like a pebble vanishing into the sea.
Not a ripple left behind.
"Now I understand how these wretches died." With a nudge of his foot, Ego casually prodded one of the lifeless bodies beneath the table. A dazzling smile stretched across his face.
The divine nature of death, among the most terrifying forces in the universe.
And the woman before him had awakened it to this degree at such a young age. Given time, it wasn't impossible she could stand shoulder to shoulder with those few.
Assuming she lived long enough.
"You're... unharmed?"
Watching Ego drink without a care, Hela lowered her glass, brows furrowed. Her suspicious gaze earned a chuckle from him.
"Your death essence can instantly kill ordinary people because their power is far beneath yours."
"But I'm different."
"I... am a god."
The corners of his lips curled into a smirk, the amusement in his eyes deepening.
His deliberate seriousness made Hela push her glass away. Leaning back against the chair, she crossed one leg over the other, arching a brow with intrigue.
"Really? Because so am I."
"I'm the Goddess of Death, of Asgard. And you? What kind of god are you?"
Her voice brimmed with pride, regal and fierce.
"The god of wine?" Hela eyed the glass in Ego's hand, then glanced at the heart-shaped stone that had somehow appeared in his palm.
"Or maybe the god of rocks?"
"Amusing," Ego laughed, raising his glass and downing the contents in one swift motion. He tossed the stone into the oversized goblet.
Boom!
A plume of fragrant smoke burst forth—scarlet roses bloomed in dazzling profusion, flooding the entire glass.
"Actually... I am the God of Creation."
He slowly pushed the rose-filled goblet toward Hela.
"A Creator who enjoys fantasies. Care to indulge?"
Hela plucked a rose from the drink, bringing it to her nose. The scent was intoxicating.
"Not bad. Probably a hit with the naive little girls back on Asgard."
Like an expert evaluating a precious blossom, Hela let the deep red petals fall from her hand, one by one. Eventually, nothing remained but a bare stem.
She held it with disdain.
"Perhaps you should take lessons in charming women."
"This kind of trickery is outdated."
Rising to her feet, Hela's hips swayed as she walked away, disappearing from Ego's sight.
"How to charm a woman, hmm?"
Ego retrieved the black sunglasses Hela had left on the table and slid them on.
"These Gafa-made trinkets really are something."
"Waiter, check, please." he raised a hand.
"Sir, that lady already paid for everything," the server replied respectfully, with just a trace of envy in his voice.
"Did she?"
Ego raised a brow, a grin tugging at his lips.
Seems like I've met my match.
Whistling, Ego stepped over the corpses at his feet and exited the bar, sunglasses gleaming.
A woman who had awakened the divine essence of death to such a level at her age, Ego had never met one like her.
"Asgard… so, she's Aesir?"
"How have those primitive apes evolved this fast?"
Ego had wandered across the stars in search of mating candidates for evolutionary advancement, and he had been to the Nine Realms.
But back then, his impression of them had been… unfavorable. The only memorable one was a giant named Ymir.
Strong, but died too soon.
A race evolving this quickly, paired with a prodigy like Hela, made Ego lick his slightly parched lips. Just like that, the bitterness from being dumped by Jennifer evaporated.
It wasn't like he hadn't been dumped before in his long life.
But women like Hela?
He hadn't come across many.
"The Goddess of Death... from Asgard..."
...
Shortly after Ego's departure, a woman in a flowing red dress, golden hair fluttering, burst into the tavern—Jennifer, flanked by her newly acquired allies.
"This is one of only three places on Gafa where the law doesn't apply."
"Usually, when I get bored, I come here for a drink, and maybe hear a few bizarre tales from across the universe."
Perhaps because it was still early, the tavern lacked the usual nighttime bustle. Finding a table by the edge, Jennifer ordered her usual and ran her fingers through her cropped blonde hair.
She looked across the table.
"What'll you have, Lothar?"
"Pointless pastime."
Lothar sat stiffly upright, arms crossed, his face an unyielding mask of impatience.
"House specialty's decent," she shrugged and ordered for him anyway, leaning back in her chair.
Ten minutes later, Jennifer watched in stunned silence as Lothar, still with a look of complete indifference, obliterated the entire table's worth of food in moments.
She had barely picked up one fried beast-meat roll.
"Waiter, another round. Same thing." Jennifer sighed, raising a hand.
Another ten minutes passed.
Still clutching the same fried roll, Jennifer watched as Lothar shamelessly devoured everything again.
"What are you looking at?"
Lothar wiped his mouth, frowning.
Even two full rounds wasn't enough to fill the gap between his teeth.
The rations back at Gaitz's base were much better, hearty, nutritious, and all-you-can-eat.
"?????"
"Can I ask… are you full now?" Jennifer asked helplessly.
"No." Lothar sipped from his drink through a straw, his face cold and expressionless.
"Another ten." Jennifer massaged her temple in defeat.
Ninety minutes later, the tavern staff personally escorted Jennifer to the counter.
"Miss Jennifer, your friend has eaten everything in the tavern." The pudgy owner's face was plastered with a professional, if clearly strained, smile.
"Tell me honestly… are you people playing some kind of joke on me?"
After multiple apologies and paying a sky-high deposit, Jennifer finally returned to the table.
Lothar, meanwhile, was pointing and swiping across his brilliant-blue holographic screen. When she sat down again, he dismissed the display with a wave.
"Full now?"
"Half."
Jennifer nearly stumbled into the table as she sat, barely catching herself before hitting her head.
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