"Let's talk..."
About what? Cheese balls? What kind of god halts his behalf for some kids' snack?
Robin is certainly surprised in this kind of situation.
Has he ever met a god that loves cheese balls this much?
No.
This time, something is different.
"So..."
Beside the enormous, godly serpent staring right at him. The situation has become a bit awkward.
"Umm.. how is your morning so far?"
With a shaky tone, Robin reluctantly agrees to confront the serpent. Maybe stopping himself from getting eaten by the serpent has become an essential motivation; some would say drunken confidence is the worst kind of confidence, yet that might be what he needs right now in front of this world-eating god.
(...)
After a few seconds pass by. There is yet a response from the serpent. Was he being rude? Is asking a question of a great being like this venerable one considered a crime worthy of death?
Probably not....
Then perhaps there is a misunderstanding here. Either way, who would ask somebody for a conversation just to stare at them like a toddler staring at a candy store?
This awfully weird serpent seems to be quite rude, but what could Robin really do in this situation? Lecture on the enormous serpent with god-like magical power about social expectation?
The only option left is to entertain this conversation by himself to a degree.
"Hm... well, I'm glad your day seems to be going well!"
In an attempt to resurrect the dead conversation. Robin decided to try again and humor the giant serpent with a topic that it might like.
"Did you know they also have a spicy flavor of the cheese ba-"
"Silent"
The mood shifted in the opposite direction immediately.
Robin wasn't speaking with a random heckler, but a god that can destroy worlds with no effort.
Assessing his position in front of the serpent. Robin knows, for the first time in his life, his cure to this situation might just be him shutting up.
"Name"
Surprised by the question. Robin nervously looks up at the serpent, who unnervingly waits for Robin's response.
"Wha-? Who? My name?"
[...]
Whose else's name would the serpent ask for? Robin has a thing for playing stupid?
"YOUR. NAME"
Even the serpent seems to be dumbfounded by this earthling's lack of intelligence. It has just him, yet the dashing amount of surprise is certainly unexpected.
"Oh... my name is Robin. Robin Hatt"
...
"Amusing..."
"How did a human with a funny name like yourself get inside my domain?"
The serpent puzzled for a moment, yet there was something more alluring than the curiosity of that question.
"Anyways... that's not what is important right now."
The serpent seems to slightly crack a smile. Even if it tries to hide it, something gigantic is bound to show big feelings, especially that satisfied smile in the shape of rainbows.
"Welcome to my domain. Thief"
A completely staggering statement from the great serpent. Even Robin didn't know exactly how to respond to that. Thief? How? And what?
"What?"
Before Robin can process his thoughts.
The serpent lets out a small chuckle.
"Hah!"
It seems to be in a good mood.
"Reckless thief! You don't even know what you did to piss off that half-rotten bird, didn't you?"
Half-rotten bird. The serpent must be speaking of the colossal angel. Even in a somewhat relaxed and mocking manner. Calling something like that a bird, half-rotten even.
Atonished, Robin still didn't catch the situation. However, what did he really do to piss off an angel? Bad enough for him to be atomized and sent to another universe?
"What do you mean? What did I do exactly? And, I'm no thief!"
The serpent is puzzled by Robin's lack of awareness.
"Foolish one... You clearly stole a divine artifact that was meant for a god!"
"Yet, here you are telling that you are no thief. While flaunting your stolen treasure."
Stolen? What could be stolen from a being capable of mass destruction?
Robin started to question the validity of the serpent's statement.
"I'm not flaunting anything! What the hell could I possibly steal from a god-like angel?"
The serpent's eyes cut sharply at Robin's question.
"Angel? You call that old hag an angel?"
...
"Hag?"
"You sound like you know each other rather well..."
"Is she your friend? Gods should know each other well, right?"
...
*RUMBLING*
"Friend, you say..."
!!
"With that hag!?"
!!!
*RUMBLING*
"IS MY FORM THAT OF A VILE CHICKEN!?"
!!!!!!
"HOW DARE YOU!?"
"TO EVEN SUGGEST THAT I, THE GREAT SERPENT, OUROBOROS"
"THE DIVINE INFINITITE"
"IS FRIEND WITH THAT..."
"DISGUSTING HALF-BORN!"
!!!!!!!!
The entire realm shook violently. Thousands of golden lightnings suddenly burst out of the body of the serpent, striking stars and shattering them across the infinite cosmos. Just to be duplicated into a new one.
Horrified by the serpent's fury. Robin instinctively cowers in front of the mighty and angry being.
"I-I'm sorry! I didn-"
Before Robin could finish his sentence.
The serpent mood seems to have died down quickly. As if an otherworldly power is restraining it from destroying the entire universe in a pit of rage, and it's working.
"I'm sorr-"
*sigh*
"It's... fine. You're only as smart as you look."
"What do you mean by that-"
"Enough! While I am infinite, my patience for stupid questions is NOT."
The serpent angrily shut down any further unpleasant conversations.
"Fortunately for you, it seems that she has greatly overestimated herself."
Overestimate? Has she not already won whatever goal she has? Humans have no chance to win against her and her army in this war; this pointless massacre.
"But in what way did she fail? Earth is in utter chaos; we're basically just waiting for inevitable destruction. It's just a matter of time. Everyone is going to die!"
"Except for one..."
The angel herself wouldn't expect Robin to still be alive. Existence erasure is an absolute power that. Yet how is Robin still alive? How could a mighty being like her have made such a simple mistake?
"If her goal was just to destroy humanity, then doing it one millionfold would still be too easy."
"However, not only did she fail to destroy your existence. You somehow managed to escape with an artifact important enough for her to use her strongest magic on you."
Robin's mind races, trying to comprehend what kind of mind game these tasteless gods were playing with him. Talking about artifacts and divine magic.
A calculus lecture would've made more sense than this kind of conversation.
"A god like me can easily sense any kind of energy, the energy of the artifact residing inside you, and her ominous energy, especially. That power capable of unmaking reality itself, that hag's specialty."
It wasn't just the cheese balls that intrigued the serpent, but also the energies inside Robin. One of those energies belongs to the artifact. Soaring around him, yet remaining unseen to the untrained senses.
"Now..."
"I want to know what kind of divine artifact you stole that concerns that hag to this extent..."
The serpent's manner shifted completely. It's true, sly nature showed. A serpent is still a snake, even if it is a god. A sketchy shakedown of a cosmic thug.
Robin has no choice but to look for the artifact. Where is this said artifact? Not in this pocket or hair. Is it even tangible?
"I'll check my backpack. Maybe it's in here!"
Robin scrambles through his backpack.
Seconds become minutes.
...
"Your backpack isn't getting deeper!"
"But it isn't here... or anywhere on me, for that matter."
"Fool... a divine artifact isn't just some toy you'd put in your backpack!"
The serpent angrily scolds Robin. What kind of idiot doesn't know that a divine artifact is no ordinary object? Rather, a divine artifact is tied closer to an idea than it is to a weapon or object. To hold it, one must have the absolute desire to wield it.
"Then how can I reveal the artifact? Can a human even wield this so-called divine artifact?"
"I'll teach you how to. With me as your instructor, you wouldn't even need to be a god to wield such power."
Robin's confidence grew closer to the sun. For the first time, he feels like the protagonist in a fantasy novel.
"Now do as I say!"
"First, empty your mind... Close your eyes if you must. Make that of a blank canvas."
"Your feelings and emotions. Paint it, not a picture, but pure desires and belief."
Robin listened to the serpent's instructions. For a moment, it seems crazy, yet if the serpent is confident that he could summon the artifact, then why else should he be concerned?
*wishh*
A wave of golden energy forms around Robin. As his imagination gathers the very essence of reality, drawing out his deepest desires to atone for his conviction.
!!
[Artifact revealed: Heart of Daimon]
[Rarity: Divine+]
[durability - ∞, Cooldown - 24 hours]
[Ability: Turns desires into will]
"Whoa..."
Robin collapsed as his stamina reached nearly empty. Yet he feels a sense of accomplishment; he really summoned the artifact.
In front of him...
Slowly and gently flowing. A bright red heart, imbued with a summer glow, exists for the sake of being wanted. It responds to Robin's desire to see the everlasting grace of magic, boundless, yet still with a warm touch of a goddess's benevolence.
"This is... a heart? So warmth, like a hand warmer mist in winter."
It was light, almost weightless. Yet, at the same time, Robin felt a sense of familiarity.
"This can't be... this feels like that dagger... from my sister's doppelgänger!"
Suddenly, the glowing heart imploded upon itself, turning its energy into a gold-like liquid energy. The energy was then forcefully shaped into the shape of a key, solid as steel, yet forever forming.
"A key?"
"A shape-shifting heart?"
Just as Robin is about to understand his own situation with the artifact.
"How did this divine artifact end up with him here?"
The serpent smiles at the artifact. Its eyes glimmered with a brew of excitement and fear. For the very first time. The God of Infinity finally sweats with anxiety.
"Hah, this is... ridiculous. I can see why she would try to kill you now."
"I would've done the same thing."
...
If anyone knows anything about this artifact, it would be the great cosmic serpent. By luck, this is Robin's only option.
"By that expression of yours... I'd assume you have an idea of what this is?"
The serpent grinned at the boys with care. Choosing his words for the first time.
"Of course I do... You are holding a small fragment of an outer god."
"A tiny fragment, yet enough to rewrite an aspect of reality to a certain extent, depending on who holds its power."
The serpent then gazed over at Robin with a sharp look of curiosity.
"You have stolen an unfathomable relic, well beyond the limit of a human. Not only that..."
"It seems like the divine artifact somehow bound itself to you."
"Even through death."
No wonder the angel is pissed. If she can't have it, nobody else can.
"But, you're obviously well, alive, and all."
Its gaze then shifts toward Robin.
It was then a being old as time, wanted something from a mere human. A hidden agenda masked with sugary sweets.
"Impressive! Evading that hag and acquiring this kind of divine artifact is certainly no joke."
"Good job, Robin."
...
Robin?
"Hm?"
Since when does this egocentric snake call people by their names?
The serpent notices a change in Robin's expression. Doubts grew in his eyes. Could he have started to question the serpent's motive?
Panic and desperation set in... the god of infinity realizes it has just made a mistake. It certainly did too much.
If it wants to continue, a bargain must be made. After all, humans love a good bargain.
"Since you're quite determined to live... and to see your sister again."
"I will help you achieve that goal!"
"How about we make a deal?"
"A Celestial Contract"
The God of Infinity. Reduced to a cosmic sales rep.