Aergia lowered her eyes slightly.
“Thank you for Your praise.”
Nyx did not press further.
Naturally, she did not believe that the young goddess before her, who was already capable of independently condensing multiple godheads, was truly devoid of thoughts regarding her own future.
Yet the other party clearly understood very well how to handle this matter at present.
She had neither rushed to make a choice due to Thanatos's recruitment nor expressed excessive gratitude for Hypnos's attempt to keep her.
Even when facing a Primordial God such as herself, Aergia had not noticeably lost her composure.
Such composure was actually rarer than that of many deities who had been born for countless ages.
Just moments ago, while her two divine sons were arguing, the godhead of Cessation that Aergia had newly condensed within her body had actually shown extremely faint fluctuations of law several times.
Clearly, this little one had not focused all of her attention on the dispute between the two master deities.
She even had the leisure to study her godhead.
The smile in Nyx's eyes deepened by another fraction.
She was truly worthy of being the goddess who held Sloth.
She certainly knew how to save herself unnecessary trouble.
Nyx turned her gaze back toward her two divine sons.
Hypnos remained calm, though those pinkish-purple eyes never closed again.
Thanatos was visibly more anxious; seeing that his Mother Goddess had finished observing Aergia, the young God of Death immediately stepped forward.
“Mother Goddess, what do You think?”
Nyx glanced at him.
“Think about what?”
“Aergia's allegiance, of course.”
Thanatos answered as a matter of course.
“You saw it just now as well—she indeed possesses immense talent on the side of death. If You let her follow me to continue her research, she will surely be able to create even more valuable godheads in the future.”
Hypnos frowned slightly.
“Aergia is equally irreplaceable in the domain of sleep.”
Nyx felt somewhat helpless.
Even though they were twin brothers born from the night, and even though sleep and death shared such a close connection, these two children happened to be exceptionally stubborn when vying for a subordinate deity.
Had it been any other deity, Nyx might have reached a decision long ago.
However, Aergia's situation was indeed special.
The godheads she possessed did not purely belong to either sleep or death.
Sleep Induction was closely linked to the authority over sleep, while Rest and Cessation involved the laws of death; yet the true foundation of these godheads had always stemmed from her original Sloth.
This meant that no matter which deity she was entirely entrusted to, it would restrict her growth to some extent.
What was more, Nyx still needed to consider another even more important matter.
Gaia's entrustment.
Aergia's true origin remained a secret that could not be easily exposed.
Back then, Nyx had placed her in the Temple of Sleep both because sleep and sloth were naturally aligned, and because that temple located deep in the Underworld was sufficiently concealed.
Moreover, Hypnos was a divine son she could trust.
A weak, newly born goddess holding the divine portfolio of Sloth would hardly arouse much real interest even if she were occasionally noticed by other deities.
This was originally the most suitable protection.
Yet now, Aergia had displayed such astonishing growth speed.
Nyx pondered for a moment before finally making her decision.
“Hypnos, Thanatos.”
Both gods raised their heads at the same time.
The voice of the Goddess of the Night slowly reverberated throughout the entire temple.
“Aergia shall retain her status as a subordinate deity of the Temple of Sleep.”
Hypnos nodded slightly.
The weariness in his pinkish-purple eyes seemed to thicken again by a few degrees, clearly quite satisfied with this outcome.
Thanatos, however, immediately furrowed his brow.
“Mother Goddess...”
However, before he could continue speaking, Nyx spoke once more: “At the same time, Aergia shall also serve as a subordinate deity of the Temple of Death.”
The two brothers looked at Nyx in unison, almost identical confusion surfacing on their faces for the first time.
“Mother Goddess, You mean...”
“Since you both believe Aergia is suited to your respective domains and neither is willing to yield, there is no need to force her to choose only one side.”
Her voice was exceedingly calm.
“Sleep Induction is closely connected to the laws of sleep, while Rest and Cessation involve death. Whichever aspect it may be, it has already become part of Aergia's own divine portfolio.”
“Remaining in the Temple of Sleep will not prevent her from reaching into death. Likewise, serving as a subordinate deity of the Temple of Death will not alter the Sleep Induction she originally possessed.”
With that, Nyx first looked toward Hypnos.
“Aergia will still reside in your temple and continue to fulfill her original duties. She may still assist you in refining the domain of sleep.”
Then Nyx turned her head to look at Thanatos.
“As for you, from now on, you may officially incorporate Aergia into the ranks of the Temple of Death's subordinate deities. Inspecting the earth, harvesting souls, and other divine duties involving authority over death—you may take her along to fulfill them together. The Rest and Cessation she has already condensed can also officially become powers that assist the divine portfolio of death.”
Thanatos's eyes brightened instantly.
However, before he could break into a smile, Nyx continued:
“One more point: Aergia now holds divine portfolios on both sides, sleep and death. You may arrange for her to perform her corresponding duties, but you must not deliberately obstruct her involvement in the other party's affairs due to disputes between yourselves.”
“The godheads she has already acquired will remain under her own control. As for which law she continues to grow from in the future, that is her own affair. If an unresolvable conflict truly arises between the duties of the two temples, come to me for a decision.”
Nyx paused for a moment before finally adding, “This is my decree.”
After the Goddess of the Night's words fell, silence returned to the entire temple.
Hypnos and Thanatos exchanged a look, both of their expressions somewhat complex.
This outcome was clearly not entirely in line with their initial expectations.
Hypnos had originally thought that since Aergia was a subordinate deity personally entrusted to him by his Mother Goddess, she would naturally remain in the Temple of Sleep in the end.
Yet now, look at how things turned out.
Although Aergia had not left, he had somehow gained a fellow who shared a subordinate deity with him out of nowhere.
And that fellow was Thanatos, no less.
At the thought that Thanatos might come running to his temple every few days in the future to drag Aergia out to fulfill duties of death, Hypnos felt a headache coming on.
He could even already picture a future scenario where he simply wanted Aergia's help sorting dream crystals, only for her to be swept off to the earth by Thanatos to harvest souls.
Tsk... what a hassle.
On the other side, Thanatos was clearly somewhat dissatisfied as well.
Although his Mother Goddess had permitted Aergia to officially become his subordinate deity, she still had to live in the Temple of Sleep.
Why?
The domain of death was clearly more suited to her!
Besides, Hypnos spent all day lounging on a stone couch sleeping; how could he possibly be as dutiful a master deity as Thanatos, who was willing to personally lead his subordinate deity on patrols across the earth?
Still... Aergia's talent in the domain of death had already been proven. As long as she continued to be cultivated, she might even be able to condense more godheads on the death side in the future.
When that time came...
Thanatos could not help but glance at his elder brother.
He wanted to see what Hypnos could possibly use to compete with him then.
The young God of Death's lips curled up slightly.
And Hypnos happened to look over at that very moment.
The brothers' gazes briefly met in midair.
For some reason, both of them actually detected a rather familiar aura from each other's eyes.
It was a competitive spirit that refused to easily concede defeat.
Hypnos slowly withdrew his gaze.
If death could birth new godheads, who was to say sleep could not?
Besides, Aergia had grown up in his temple first.
He could not let Thanatos reap all the benefits.
At this thought, the God of Sleep seriously considered how he ought to cultivate his subordinate deity in the future for once.
As for Thanatos, he was already calculating which deeper laws of death he should introduce Aergia to the next time he took her to the earth.
Rate on N.U.
