Chapter 179: Second Shot

Estelle did not look back in the slightest, she just kept marching to a place that she herself did not know. She wanted to be isolated with the woman behind her.

Minerva followed her just as she predicted, but she could tell that the woman was starting to feel uncomfortable by the whole situation. It was easy to misunderstand Estelle's intentions as wanting to call Minerva out for a beating or violence. Unfortunately, revenge wasn't her agenda for today. She wanted to seek a cooperation.

Once they got to a secluded place, Estelle turned around and stopped walking. Minerva also halted in her place. She had been keeping her distance as they walked all the way here. They were separated by quite the far distance. Rising a brow at this disparity, Estelle began to take a few steps forward and approached Minerva, closing the space between them.

"..Hey, why don't you say something. You called me out like this, I thought you didn't want to see me at all," Minerva awkwardly shrugged as she found it extremely hard to deal with Estelle considering the previous matters. She averted her gaze, not wanting to look at Estelle any longer.

Estelle smiled gently. The charm and charisma she carried was definitely exemplary, and she chuckled as she began to speak.

"I have regained the ability to become the Constellation Leader, and I will be henceforth going on a journey to collect the twelve members from now on. My priority is to obviously fulfill my goals, and I think that you would be a great ally to have. You will be suitable for one of the Constellations' positions. What are your thoughts on this matter?"

Minerva's brows knitted, and she looked in horror as her heart trembled.

"...Are you seriously asking me this? After saying that I was a traitor, showing hostility, and ignoring me on multiple occasions? I know that I was partly wrong at some point, but you can't be this unreasonable, Estelle. You can't just jump around the parties like that as you want. One day you want to be left alone, another day you want to stick with me. Do you think that's fair to me? No. You are incredibly selfish, and I don't want to play your game," Minerva lashed out, voicing out her frustrations.

The feelings of discontentment had been piling up inside her for a long time already. She was just a bystander when Heine executed his plans. She did not know whose side to pick, so she chose to stay neutral. However, this neutrality was seen by Estelle as a bad thing. The child purposely scolded her and distanced herself away, but now she wanted to act as if all of that did not happen and recruit her into the Constellation?

Back then, she was extremely positive in regards to this recruiting fiasco, and she did not deny it when Estelle said that she was going to be one of the members. But now, she felt conflicted. She was wronged by Estelle. The child was selfish enough to lose all trust in her. Perhaps being a bystander and not saying anything was also a mistake on her part, but she was just as close to Heine as she was to Estelle, if not much more.

"Ha. Selfish? Maybe. But if selfishness is what it takes for me to achieve my goals without being fucked up by people who I trusted wholly, then so be it. I will be as selfish as I can be, so selfish that you wouldn't be able to stand me. Even so, aren't there still people like Shirley who follows me on their own accord?" Estelle laughed out loud, as if Minerva just told her the best joke of the year. "Well, I won't let every single member be people like Shirley. But my point still stands,"

"I am not forcing you to join. I think that you would be a suitable member, and that's why I came to recruit you. If you think that I am incorrect, or that you are unwilling to follow me on my quest, then you can freely leave as you wish," Estelle said as she looked at Minerva with patience. Her smile was so angelic that you would think that she was the purest flower ever.

"What's with this.. This is unfair. What about my sister? Heine? Have you contacted them yet?" Minerva's focus shifted from left to right as she felt extremely confused as tow hat her choice should be.

It was supposed to be an obvious choice back then. Back when they were still scouring about to look for ways to regain Estelle's power. It was certain that she was going to join. But now, in face of the changed child, she felt discouraged.

"I haven't met them, and you were the first one I encountered right after unlocking the power. I used the first ticket on the Elven Queen Shirley," Estelle told the crimson haired woman.

"Wha- you just randomly selected her out of nowhere??! Where did it happen- don't tell me, it was just now? Inside the Sanctuary?? Estelle Clareste, you really are..." Minerva sighed in distress.

It wasn't like there was any special attachments or rewards to the members' numbers, but the order they were recruited in were the code names the Constellations used to communicate by. They assigned each of themselves a number which went along with the order, and a name that suited their power.

For example, the Sage, being the Constellation Leader, was number Zero and had the Constellation name Sage.

"Not out of nowhere. I bestowed divinity upon her, and she now knows about my complicated past. I'm sure that you've already figured it out by now, but I was the basis of the Moon Goddess in the first place, so she became extremely loyal to me when I convinced her of my identity,"

"I feel bad for saying this, but Shirley underwent severe brainwashing ever since she was a child and made to sit in the position of the Ruler. She wouldn't betray me since her beliefs are that of 'The Moon Goddess is the omnipotent source of life that I need to follow',"

To glimpse over it and conclude Alfheim's religion in a short manner, it would be that of a cult. A cult following the Moon Goddess blindly even though the deity stopped giving them any proof of her power and existence since long ago. It was an unreasonable faith, but the people still kept their trust intact.

"..I also know that fact," Minerva nodded, agreeing even if it was a dark truth. She had been close to Alfheim's side a long time ago, when she was helping her sister sort some things out inside the country in order to gain favor. Then, she was able to meet Shirley, who was receiving her education. The brainwashing system that Alfheim royalties were exposed to was very hard to get out of.

People like Estelle's grandmother Silvanna, who couldn't take it anymore, would run away. But to those who couldn't muster enough willpower would have to be chained there.

"That isn't exactly relevant to our case right now, though. All that matters is your decision. What do you think you want to do? Follow me, or perhaps even oppose me in the future?" Estelle asked, not minding the fact that the woman had an internal turbulence.

Minerva stayed still for a few moments, her body tense and her fists clenched hard. She was debating what to do. Weighing out the choices that were presented to her.

"I will.. Urgh," Even though Minerva was somewhat unwilling due to the negative setbacks she had received from Estelle time to time again, she couldn't deny that she did want to be affiliated with the Constellation.

More importantly, knowing the fact that her most important people in her life were going to join in the end did not help with her will to refuse either.

Taking several deep breaths in and out, she finally made up her decision. The child in front of her was frightening. She had already harbored this feeling ever since she first met her, and that same sentiment started to disperse due to their increasingly close bond. Unfortunately,a ll of it crumbled down when Estelle started to scrutinize her with hostile eyes.

"Haa, I will join you, I will just join! I will take that damned second position, for God's sake," Minerva rubbed her temples, wondering if the choice she made was a bad one that she would regret in the future.

She knew that Estelle and Heine both had strange pasts that she couldn't put her hands on at all. However, she and her sister Yulia were only strong people who did not have such complexities at all. There was a clear difference.

Estelle had a goal that she was dead set on completing, whereas she was just trying to steer her life in her own way and try to lead it into the best way possible.