New law of Beast Taming

"Amane, regarding what is going on…I have a favor to ask of you. Would you help father out?"

Chen started speaking, but then he noticed the pair looking at them. He immediately quietened down and looked at where Melissa and Kristia were hiding.

He was about to go out and expose the pair when Amane held her hand up and signaled for Chen to continue.

'Are you sure?'

Chen mouthed back hesitantly, but Amane only smiled and shook her head. It was okay if other people heard what they were talking about. Amane did not intend to come back here.

"Father and you left us behind, and it did not take long for the consequences that 'The Law' spoke of to come into existence. We tried to slow down things as much as possible, but we couldn't handle it ourselves."

Chen informed, and Amane sighed. She was beginning to get a clear idea of what was happening.

"I see. I am beginning to understand what happened here. No wonder Kori disappeared suddenly one day. It was because she did not have a choice. Also, how long are you both going to listen in on us? It will not help you even if you eavesdrop on us."

Amane warned, and the pair quickly came out with a sheepish grin. They both looked guilty, but only because they had been caught during their exploitation.

"Amane, what are you planning? I know that we have only known each other briefly, but…"

Melissa looked worried. She looked hopeful, and her eyes shined as she considered keeping Amane near her.

"Chen, I have decided what to do. I will go and confront Kori. It doesn't seem like anything will be resolved if I run away."

Amane could draw the confrontation out and drag things over a long time. But she had a feeling that things would still end up like this by the end.

Kori was impatient, so she might take offence to be kept waiting.

"Looks like you finally made your decision. Now, follow me, and I will take you to the upper heaven."

Chen turned his back to Amane and continued walking. Amane was also about to follow when her instincts told her she needed to look out. She turned back to see Melissa's angry expression before she attacked Chen.

Luckily, Chen managed to get out of that attack's way in time, but Melissa did not look ready to give up.

"Melissa, what's wrong? Hey! What the hell are you doing? Melissa, come back to your senses."

Kristia tried to make Melissa remember where she was. But nothing was getting past Melissa's senses.

There could only be one reason for a beast to behave like this - Melissa had imprinted on her.

"Ugh! This could turn out to be quite troublesome. Kristia, keep a hold on Melissa, and I will take care of her now. Also, brace yourself."

Amane warned Kristia before she smacked Melissa in the gut. Melissa went down, but she did not go out alone. Kristia felt the impact in his gut and almost lost consciousness as well.

'W-What monstrous strength! Fuck! I can still feel my guts ringing.'

"You managed to endure it quite well. Your iron stomach will help you deal with many problems in the future. I have high hopes for you in negotiations."

Kristia gave a grim smile at Amane's words. This was not something Amane should be bragging about in front of him.

"Tsk, should I be saying thank you? Man, it hurts a lot. Could you not have been gentler?"

Kristia asked, but he already knew the answer to this question. This much force was the bare minimum to knock out Melissa. Thankfully, the half-human female had already been knocked out.

Her calm face looked serene, and Kristia wanted to keep looking at her.

"Well, I am sure you understand why I knocked Melissa out. The next few days will be tough for her since I will disappear from the public eye. So, I hope that you take good care of Melissa for me."

Amane asked, and Kristia had a weird feeling that he was dealing with something troublesome.

So, he decided to look away and not ask any questions.

"Hump! I would have cared for Melissa even if you had not asked me to."

Kristia puffed his chest and held it out. He looked toward Amane, and she had a serene expression. Her eyes sparkled, and Kristia unconsciously leaned more into her before catching himself in time.

And even though Amane noticed this, she did not say anything. She ignored it, allowing Kristia to save his dignity.

"Chen, let's head out. We are already late to meet Kori. Knowing her, she must be waiting for us without saying a thing."

Amane reminded Chen, and he just smiled a weary smile.

"You are right. Father is weird like that, and I often have difficulty reading her. I will open the gate now."

The portal opened, and Amane quickly walked through it. She did hear Melissa waking up and her cry of anguish. But Amane did not have enough heart to look back.

'I am sorry, Melissa. But I am not someone who can give you what you need. Finding someone who loves you for who you are will be better. Or perhaps it will be better for you to look around yourself than to chase after me.'

Kristia was still holding on tightly to Melissa to hold her back. But his hold was tender and filled with love. They would make a decent couple and had Amane's blessing.

"We are here, the upper heavens. This place has changed a lot since you were last here, right?"

Chen asked, and Amane looked around the ruins of the upper heaven.

All the buildings and structures had collapsed, leaving only a limited infrastructure intact. The amount of Flora and fauna left intact was the bare minimum of what was required.

But the most disturbing thing in the upper heaven was the lack of strong energy. This place looked barren and impossible to recover.

"Father sucked the life out of this place when she took the throne. She was too enraged and out of control. So please ignore it if you see anything that you do not like. There is no longer anything we can do to save this place."

Chen sounded apologetic as he likely considered this place important to Amane.

She had never fit into the upper heaven, but it had been home. To see it be destroyed to this degree was heart-wrenching.

"This is fine. I don't care for this place as much as you think. We should hurry up and meet Kori. I can tell that she has sensed me already."

Amane could feel the energy leading her inside. Kori was begging for Amane to come and find her.

And Amane was weak for the people she knew and liked. She could not deny Kori's request.

"I see. So, Father is asking for you to head toward her. Then, this should be the end of everything. I need to tell you in case we never meet after this, Amane."

"Thank you for being a mother when I had none and raising me to be a person. I am saying this on behalf of everyone you ever adopted - thank you."

Chen's words were heartfelt, and he looked away in embarrassment when he said these words.

Since Chen was not outspoken, these words must have taken considerable courage and willpower to muster up. It warmed Amane's heart to hear these words.

"Well, we are family after all. So, there is no need for you to feel indebted to me. If you truly want to do something for me, then keep a healthy meal prepared for me when I return."

Amane smiled as wide as she could at that moment. She wanted to erase any doubts Chen might have about her. And even though Chen did not believe Amane's assurance, he smiled wide.

"I understand. When you return, I will ask the chefs to prepare your favourite. Is there anything I need to avoid?"

Chen asked as he watched Amane walk away from him.

"Just flavour it strongly. Strong enough to make even Kori flinch when she tried to eat it. If you succeed, I will reward you with something you want."

"Oh, and Chen. I know that I was the one who asked you to stop the apocalypses project, but I want you to start it again. We will need a vessel to contain the rift soon. I hope you know what I mean."

Amane waved before disappearing into the only intact building in the upper heaven.

It felt heavy and restrictive inside that building. Rift magic covered every corner, making it impossible for anything to escape its grasp.

Such a situation made breathing harder for Amane, but she was used to the rift's restrictive atmosphere. She quickly walked past the barrier and toward the inner room.

"I have come here to pick the princess up. Kori, it's time for you to leave your job."

Amane broke the door down and looked toward Kori.

Kori's body was slumped against the gigantic chair, and her breath was labored. She looked as if she was dying, but the look in her eyes was different.

This was not Kori but the void.

"You are a little too late. Your beloved could not last; the world is too unstable for me to step down. There is nothing you can do…"

The void replied while looking at Amane. It sounded certain, but Amane knew that there was one thing she could do.

"Oh! But there is something I can still do. Will you make a bet with me and reverse the time? I am sure that I can prevent all this."

Amane proposed, and the void smiled a wide smile.

'Ah, it's the exact words and the same actions. The outcome will be the same this time as well.'

"A bet? Sure, I will take it. If you think you can prevent all this next time, you are more than welcome to try."

"No, this is not what I meant."