We were now fully enclosed, the world outside this cave completely shut out. It was just the two of us.
Perfect.
I hide my growing smirk and continued the act.
“I will now use a restraining seal on you,” I stated calmly.
“A restraining seal?” Amaterasu echoed, her voice filled with confusion.
“It’s similar to a slave seal,” I explained, watching her reaction closely. “Once it’s in place, you won’t be able to break your oath. You just need to repeat your words, and the seal will ensure you keep your promise. Do you understand?”
As soon as the words “slave seal” left my lips, I saw her eyes narrow. The very mention of such a thing was enough to ignite her suspicion. But I remained composed, my expression unreadable. I knew that if I showed any signs of deceit, any hint of malice, she would be on me in an instant.
I needed to tread carefully, to make her believe that I was being straightforward, even if the truth was only half-revealed.
In reality, it was indeed a slave seal, a powerful binding magic that would force the bearer to adhere to their promises or face dire consequences. But the tricky part was that for the seal to work, I needed her full consent, or I had to catch her off guard when she was in a weakened state. With Khione, it had worked because of my extraordinary luck.
She hadn’t seen me as a threat, a newly summoned hero who seemed utterly naive about the world. The last thing she had expected was that I would wield a divine rank skill, especially one that was originally her own. That element of surprise had been my greatest weapon.
But Amaterasu was different. She was wary, cautious. Her divine presence radiated power and control, and she was clearly on guard. I couldn’t rely on luck alone this time. I had to be more strategic, more deliberate. She stared at me, her eyes probing, searching for any hint of deception.
But I kept my face impassive, a mask of calm certainty that gave nothing away.
“Do it,” she said simply.
Her response was quick, almost too easy. A red flag in any negotiation. She had accepted my proposal with surprising readiness, but I didn’t miss the faint smirk that flickered across her lips, only to vanish just as quickly. That subtle shift in her expression spoke volumes—she had something planned.
I realized what she was thinking. By agreeing to let me place a slave seal on her, Amaterasu had set a trap. Trying to impose such a seal, regardless of the outcome, could be interpreted as a direct threat to her. And in that moment, she would have all the justification she needed to kill me, framing it as an act of self-defense. Rena and Kaguya, under her influence, could easily back up her story.
My death, however, would not go unnoticed—my fame had grown too large, my actions too significant. If I died, there would be questions, and answers would be demanded. She knew that, but she also knew she could spin the situation to her advantage if it came to that.
Still, I had to play my part. I approached her, the ice sword I had conjured hovering ominously above Kaguya.
I closed the distance between us until only a meter remained, a mere breath of space separating my body from hers. Slowly, deliberately, I extended my hand toward her chest, stopping just short of touching it. My fingers hovered there, as if I were about to invoke a powerful spell.
“What do you swear?” I asked, my voice calm and measured, pretending to initiate the restraining seal. I knew I had to sell this deception perfectly, playing my role to the very end.
“I swear to not attack Tenebria unless in retaliation,” Amaterasu responded, a small, confident smile tugging at her lips. She was certain she had the upper hand, her arrogance evident in the way she carried herself. In her mind, she was already savoring her victory, imagining the moment when I would dig my own grave with this foolish attempt.
I could feel the subtle rise in her mana, the energy coiling within her like a serpent ready to strike. She was preparing to slice me apart the moment I attempted to use the seal. Her focus was entirely on killing me now, every ounce of her attention devoted to the thought of obliterating me where I stood.
Why wouldn’t she be confident? From her perspective, there was nothing to fear. She believed she had nothing to lose—no reason to protect herself against someone she saw as a mere human. After all, I had no visible power capable of harming, let alone killing, a goddess like her.
She was so consumed by the prospect of ending my life that she completely overlooked the presence of my new ally who she hadn’t seen until now…
“Red Chains.”
Her eyes widened in shock, the smile vanishing from her face. A red circle materialized beneath her feet, glowing ominously, and in an instant, chains erupted from the ground, wrapping around her arms and legs. They bound her with an unyielding grip, her hand just inches away from my throat, halting her in her tracks.
“Lord S-Samael…” Medea’s voice trembled as she watched the scene unfold, her expression a mixture of pain as she restrained a Goddess. All this time, while I had been occupied with taming Kaguya, Medea had been carrying out the task I had given her the previous day—a spell capable of binding a goddess, even if only for a few precious seconds.
I felt a surge of satisfaction as I watched Amaterasu struggle against the chains. My lips twisted into a smirk as the white glow of magic began to envelop my hand.
“Divine Rank Magic: Forbidden Seal,” I intoned, my voice filled with the weight of absolute authority.
“No… Nooooooo!!!” Amaterasu’s eyes blazed with a fiery orange glow, her voice breaking into a desperate scream. She thrashed against the chains, her divine energy bursting forth, shattering Medea’s restraints one by one as she tried to break free.
But it was too late.
“Hargh!” Amaterasu gasped, her defiance shattering as my black sword, a relic of the previous Demon King, pierced her stomach. The blade sank deep, its malevolent energy consuming her strength. Her face drained of color, and she coughed up blood, her eyes wide with disbelief. The white glow of the Forbidden Seal began to take effect, spreading across her weakened body like a curse.
With a flick of her fingers, Medea summoned ten more chains, binding Amaterasu once again. The goddess was now ensnared, her power draining away with every passing moment. The combined forces of Medea’s chains, the Black Sword, and the Forbidden Seal left her with no escape, her strength siphoned off to feed the sword that now impaled her.
Amaterasu fell to her knees gasping for breath.
I looked down at her, my golden eye narrowing with sick satisfaction as I observed the White Seal glowing ominously on her chest.
“What is an enslaved Goddess?” I asked her coldly.
“Just a slave.”
“!” Amaterasu flinched looking up at me with horror.