As Liebe was at church, he was dreaming of the night before going to Celesport. As he was sleeping, he saw a light and woke up. It was from Domr's office. He saw through the crack in Domr's office door as it was left open slightly. He saw Domr sitting in his chair and talking to Tenebris.
As he watched their conversation:
Tenebris said, "Why did you call me here today, sir?"
Domr said, "Listen to me, son. I don't have much time left. Age is finally catching up to me. I don't have much time left."
Tenebris said, "But sir, how? You are one of the strongest people in the world."
Domr said, "Listen, Tenebris. No matter how strong, every human has a heart, and at one point it wants to give up. And I know mine is near its wit's end. And I wanted to talk to you about my will. I left everything to you and Liebe. I know you will take care of my daughter."
Tenebris said, "No, sir. Please give my part to Lilith or Liebe. It will be better. The fact I got to be a Faust—even if by name only—and all you did for my broken home of a church, I can never repay you enough. So please—"
Domr said, "Listen. Lilith is strong, but she isn't capable of managing these matters. And you have repaid me plenty. You have raised quite the capable child. I'm proud of my grandson. Today, his battle—Liebe was truly winning. Unfortunate it was a draw, but it was for the best. Otherwise, someone could have died."
Tenebris said, "Yeah, I'm sorry about that. So far, we only taught Liebe how to give more and more power, not if he should restrain himself."
Domr said, "Listen, Tenebris. That child has compassion. He cares for the weak and ones he holds dear. I'm sure with time, he will come into his own."
Tenebris said, "Yeah, I wish so."
Domr said, "Listen. When we were in Mikill, I saw that boy see the sorrow of a criminal and save a dying snake. He cares. He just needs to restrain his strength. You have truly raised a fine boy."
Tenebris said, "Yeah, Liebe is a good kid, but he has some destructive tendencies. But pretty sure that's from Lilith."
Domr said, "He is a lively boy, that's for sure. But if you ever feel like you want to repay me, make Liebe into a man who is kind and gentle. I know my end is near, but all I wished to see was Liebe turn into a knight. And today, even that wish was fulfilled. I have truly seen all I wished to see. Now my heart can rest easy, and I can die with a smile. And don't tell Lilith I said that. She will just start crying like a 5-year-old. I swear, for God's sake, when will that idiot really stop being a crybaby and act like a vice captain already? I'm supposed to be retired and dead soon."
Tenebris said, "Please don't say that, sir."
As Liebe came in rushing, crying as he grabbed Domr's leg and said, "Grandpa, don't leave me. I don't want you to vanish and leave me. I'm sad. I want to eat donuts, Grandpa."
Domr patted Liebe on the head and said, "Liebe, it's alright. I'm not going anywhere. I still have to live to see my beloved favourite grandson become one who protects his family. And seeing how you care for your friends—Alysa, Licht, and Elizabeth—I couldn't be prouder. So it's alright. And since you are awake, let's enjoy donuts from my secret stash. And don't tell your mother we had donuts without her, alright?"
As they started to eat, a few minutes later, Lilith busted through the door screaming, "Got you!"
As Liebe and Domr were stuffing their mouths with donuts, Lilith joined them.
As Liebe was hearing, "Child, wake up. Child, wake up." It was the father of the church.
The father said, "Child, you fell asleep. You must be one child faithful to God or one hardworking one. Either way, God must be watching."
Liebe said, "Guess so." As he left the church.
Later, after classes, Licht and Liebe were at the Vale Estate.
Licht said, "So you still skipped Professor Lilith's history class?"
Liebe said, "I just didn't feel like attending. That's it."
Licht said, "OK. I wanted to ask something about Horn."
Liebe said, "Sure, go ahead. Not sure if I can answer, but go ahead anyways."
Licht said, "Who is she? She isn't human, right? But what is she?"
Liebe said, "Great question. She is a fae. But she is a being that stands far above existence."
Licht said, "What? And why is she after Níðhöggr so badly?"
Liebe said, "Simple. She wants Níðhöggr's flesh. But she saw how Níðhöggr was defeated, so she made a plan. She will take Níðhöggr's flesh and mix it with Loki's flesh to get her ultimate demonic form—the form strong enough to destroy Celestial Island. Because Níðhöggr was the one who saved her that night a thousand years ago by attacking Celestial Island. She saw the power she needed. So she plans to reunite Loki and Níðhöggr. Literally, she thinks having both will be strong enough."
Licht said, "Exactly how strong is Níðhöggr?"
Liebe said, "OK then. Do you know Níðhöggr is desperately gnawing at the roots of the World Tree?"
Licht said, "Yeah."
Liebe said, "Did you know the Underworld, where the devils reside, is expanding?"
Licht said, "No, I didn't know that."
Liebe said, "The secret truth is, there is no Underworld. The World Tree's roots are protected by magic. So Níðhöggr underground is gnawing at the roots to break out. The more she gnaws at these roots, the weaker the seal gets. And the more roots she gnaws, the closer she gets to Loki. And the thing—the Underworld is simply a giant hole made by Níðhöggr. So when the Gates of Nerthalis break, that is the breaking of the seal, and the devils will be let out. Of the 25 floors of the Underworld, all are just a part of Níðhöggr's body, with the lowest floor being her head, where Lucifer stays. Even if the gates break, she won't leave. She will continue to gnaw at the roots of the World Tree, desperately trying to destroy the World Tree."
Licht said, "What? This is too much to process. Then what about the part of Níðhöggr's flesh found in the Arctic?"
Liebe said, "That's still a part of her body. The thing is, 1000 years ago, she was chopped up and severed, made weaker. Now she is trying to regain her strength. The head collected the pieces and continues to grow and devour and gnaw at the roots of the World Tree."