TREE OF AEONS 6

Void weaponry, made from the body of the Void Tortoises, was one means of defeating the Darklings. The other was the use of the hero weapons. Heroes. There were heroes here, but the last demon king came to this world about seventy years ago.

Lumoof chuckled to himself. - If Stella was here, perhaps sheÆd be a goddess. -

- Or any of our void mages. - Kafa nodded. They were given the most beautiful guestrooms, and they were escorted into an area.

Thankfully, these dwarves of Delvegard were quite straightforward in their dealings. The actual meeting with the dwarven lord went as expected, at least; they didnÆt tell a lie, just an omission of truth.

Darklings were creatures twisted by the void, and that was because in the depths of the core the magical minerals came in a few variants. First was Sunsteel. These were the rarest ones, and they could only be found in the deepest of the magical mineral veins, where the presence of the Darklings was highest. They didnÆt know how it was made, but when Lumoof held the sample in his hand, it felt familiar.

- This looks like the base component of the Sun Rings , - Lumoof repeated. It wasnÆt in its processed form.

Next was Sunmetal. It was an inferior form of the Sunsteel, where the ratio of those unusual metals had not been properly formed. They were found on the outer areas of the magic veins.

Then the last one was the Dark Ore. This were often found around Sunsteel and Sunmetal, and it had intense light absorption abilities. Sunsteel and Sunmetal were excellent weapons, incredibly magically conducive, durable, and could store way more magical enchantments per size.

But they had a downside. Once formed, they were not very easily recycled or remade. The magical enchantments were baked into their structure. Melting Sunsteel turned them back to Sunmetal, and melting Sunmetal turned them back to ordinary metals. With each process, they turned into lesser, more mundane variants.

Even the purity of Sunsteel varied. Because even making them into an equipment required a bit of processing, and each additional process weakened the natural qualities of Sunsteel. Most crafters that worked on Sunsteel essentially did it through a process called Cold Forging, where the metals were cut using a type of ice crystals.

Kafa looked at Lumoof. - I believe we need Lady Stella here. -

- I believe we do, - Lumoof said.

The dwarven lord proceeded to narrate why these metals were important. This, in many ways, was a typical dwarven society, with a heavy emphasis on crafting, technology, and equipment. Sunmetal and Sunsteel were critical for their prosperity, because it allowed creation of equipment capable of delivering more for less.

Most crucially, they allowed the creation of the strongest of the dwarven war machines. The giant spiders.

Lumoof frowned at the mention of war machines and asked to see one.

The dwarven lord gulped. - We only possess two. -

- I will not harm them, - Lumoof said.

The war machines were gigantic weapons. They were smaller than the demon walkers but big enough that they were easily one of the largest weapons. But their design was surprisingly elegant and slender. It reminded Lumoof of one of A/ Æs memories, a Protoss Colossus from Starcraft.

- We pack as much Sunsteel as we can onto these things, - the dwarven lord of Greyhold explained. There was a dwarven engineer who walked over.

- And these are your most powerful weapons of war? -

- Yes. -

Lumoof once remembered Stella and the heroes spoke of a world that ran on steam and pipes. Of machines made of steel. But looking at the machine in front of him, its slender legs and small body, it didnÆt match what Stella told him.

Lumoof knew that Alka couldÆve made something better. Easily. In combat ability. Or design. But to achieve the same power - to - weight ratio, it would require a fair bit of high - level craftsmanship that only those in the level one hundreds could achieve.

- Do you all not have crystal weapons and crystal equipment? - Lumoof asked, curious.

The dwarves looked at each other. - We do, but we mostly use them as a magical storage to power the SunsteelÆs enchantments. -

LumoofÆs eyes watched, and the artificial minds quickly analyzed the data. It was likely that they needed Sunsteel for the hinges, because the Sunsteel offered significant performance without weight. The legs and hinges of the war machines were slender structures, only possible because of Sunsteel.

My priest looked back at dwarves. - And why do you need these weapons of war? -

- Well, other dwarves, of course! -

The dwarves of Delvegard were territorial and frequently fought brutal wars. They tried their best to negotiate, but once war broke out, all combatants would pull out all their stops. In short, when they went to war, it was all or nothing.

Kafa was shocked to hear that the dwarves were so brutal and ruthless. - They are nothing like MountainworldÆs dwarves. -

- A different history, - Lumoof commented. - History is a shadow, forever looming over the psyche of society. -

Kafa nodded. The two sat in a room.

- What do you think of this world, Kafa? - Lumoof asked.

The lizardfolk closed his eyes. - Hungry for war. -

- Not that. How is this world valuable to us? Or it is not? That ultimately depends whether we intervene or not. -

KafaÆs eyes opened. - Patriarch Lumoof, that is a question that is worth? -

- A million lives. Probably more. - Lumoof smiled. - Our type of engagement is vast. Ignore and do nothing, which is the least engagement. Then thereÆs a trading relationship. Then as a colony or vassal state of some kind. And at the end, full domination. -

- ThereÆs also the friendliness of that engagement. Do we engage the locals? Do we ignore them? Do we send our own people because we canÆt trust these guys? Do we. enslave them? -

- Surely not. - Kafa reacted at the last word.

- I know. But the range of engagement remains present. It is a choice, even if a choice we do not like. -

Kafa thought of that conversation with Edna. This was truly the weight of their task. They were now the eyes and ears of the Order, and the Order was a machine that would consume worlds. - We need more information. -

- That is also an option. - Lumoof smiled at the younger domain holder.

- What - what would you do, Patriarch Lumoof? -

- I will first propose a friendly relationship. A trading relationship to buy these Sunmetals and Sunsteels from these dwarves. -

Kafa paused. - Given how critical it is to their war? -

- They are unlikely to agree. If the Sunsteel proves critical to our war, they will therefore need to be conquered. Or at least, we will need to establish our own presence and start mining this Sunsteel using our own forces. -

- Is the Sunsteel that important? - Kafa interjected. - It doesnÆt seem like it would be. -

Lumoof waited. Kafa was right. It wasnÆt critical, but good to have. - No. We have alternatives. But let us propose a trade, and weÆll see how these dwarves react. -

34

YEAR 265 (PART 2)

EdnaÆs visits to the world of Satrya

- No. IÆve had it with gods control over me, and IÆm not keen on it. All of this sounds like itÆll take away time from me. - Colette objected to the idea.

Well, what was the idea?

I rejected the offer to adopt the World Faith System, but I realized the ability to have an audience with both Bach and Mozart was way more powerful. Through them, I could gain knowledge of the past, of history and of how things came to be.

Sure, they were not willing to share a lot, but even if they refused to tell us that, the mere act of asking questions about the System and understanding the mechanics of the System would allow us to make projections and plans. So, among the senior leaders, we thought of creating even more people like me.

Level two hundred fifty. It was a crazy, crazy number. Of course, by telling this, I revealed my power level to everyone around me.

It was an act of trust, of course. But at the same time, I believed it was also an act of intimidation. The rest of the domain holders didnÆt even reach level two hundred. My fellow domain holders of the other worlds refused to share their levels, but from the weight of our presence, I was fairly sure they didnÆt exceed my levels.

We approached the heroes first.

I remembered BachÆs words that even heroes who met the necessary thresholds could get it. I wondered how this was so and whether, perhaps, heroes were robbing the gods of the faith values, therefore they decided to remove the heroes once their usefulness was over?

At some level, faith values made their control over the world a zero - sum game. Heroes who, given a certain level of independence, could create their own faith with their god - given powers and, at level two hundred fifty, rise to the point where they ascended. Their followers would compete in the same pool as the old gods.

- ThatÆs a horrible way to look at things, - Kei acknowledged. Prabu looked at Colette.

- Sure you donÆt want to do it? -

Colette looked at the growing child sitting on her lap. - No. Not at all. -

Kei sighed and spoke to me. To everyone looking, it seemed like she was talking to the air. - Who else? -

- We need someone who could have a religion built around her. -

Roon, Johann, and Ezar rejected it. All three of them didnÆt want to be a god of any sort. Stella thought it over and decided that her void abilities seemed more useful than whatever divine shenanigans this system was up to.

- This WFS enables an old god to do everything alone. All that matters is the faith cost, - Stella said. - Because the old gods are solitary existences, they exist above and beyond their old societies. -

As I mulled it over, I realized StellaÆs observation was true.

The old gods gained immortality, the means to open pathways through the stars, summon heroes, and tremendous combat ability.

Whereas the experience system was intricately tied to the class and later the domain . This allowed for a far higher peak, but much more narrow scope of abilities. In short, the gods chose width and breadth of abilities over depth and focus.

A pantheon, essentially, a team of domain holders with a wide variety of domains , should outperform the WFS. But if there was only a single person, the World Faith System was truly the best choice forward.

- I believe the WFS is a good choice in situations where we need a backup A/ , - Stella answered. - A lot of what we achieved today is because of the society change created by the Valtorn Order, backed by A/ . If we want to plan for a situation where we may have to survive without A/ for a while, one of us would need to take on the WFS to bridge that gap. -

- ItÆs an insane idea, to raise someone up just to be a temporary A/ , - Kei countered. - A level two hundred fifty warrior domain holder, per EdnaÆs calculation, should be very, very strong. WeÆre talking about a literal god able to deliver as much power as a full team of level one hundred plus heroes. -

- Edna, - Stella suggested. - She may not need it, but I believe if thereÆs anyone worthy of a religion, or at least a mini one, it should be Edna. -

My void domain holder wanted EdnaÆs Order of Knights to become a quasi - religious institution with faith in EdnaÆs powers. Edna would be elevated into a patron deity of the Knight Order, and a group of Valthorn priests would have to start the process of making her into a saint or a goddess.

An order of Templar Knights, in worship of a Martial Goddess.

Edna squirmed at being made into a goddess but ultimately agreed. On one condition. - LetÆs do it outside of Treehome. I - IÆd like to be a mere mortal at home. -

- You stopped being a mortal decades ago, - Stella countered.

- I mean, you understand. - Edna glared. Stella chuckled.

Alternatively, the other possibility was to elevate Kafa into some kind of lizardfolk god. Or god of the swamps. Or something of that sort.

It was a long way to go for someone like Kafa. He was barely level one hundred fifty, while Edna was already close to level two hundred. It was a lot more sensible to try it with Edna, but in many ways, we could do both. We would start to include both of them as minor deities of our pantheon of gods.

- First was A/ . The great tree sheltered all that came after. To nourish the land, for them to grow. Then came Edna, our guardian protector, defender of the weak, and the shield of the Tree. She was later joined by Kafa, warrior protector of the lizardfolks. -

Edna squirmed. Everyone did. But the drafted story, the tale of a god, would be weaved. - I really donÆt want this to spread on Treehome, - Edna said with her face in her hands. It was incredibly embarrassing.

I didnÆt like religious talk. It was cringeworthy.

I hoped they made better, less - cringeworthy versions of the mythos in the future.

Edna sighed. - We should just add all the domain holders to the myth. That way all of us get a chance to gain faith. -

It was a fair assessment, and so the priests went back to the drawing board.

- Well, rather than dwell on that stuff, time for you to go visiting. -

- My turn, I suppose. - Edna smiled at Stella, then at the two men that would accompany her on their visit to the other worlds. - Ready, boys? -

Roon and Ezar shrugged. Ezar tried to joke. - ItÆs my first time! Be gentle! -

It wasnÆt. He made many trips to other worlds, but it was their first time as the - lead - explorer. Edna laughed. - When youÆre on the other side, no one can hear you scream. -

Ezar paled. Roon just tapped him on the shoulder. - YouÆll be fine. -

Stella smiled. - Off you go. -

The world they visited was immediately filled with the stench of blood and war. Edna could feel it in the ground, in the air, and feel the presence of battle.

Roon and Ezar glanced at each other. RoonÆs senses were the strongest of the three, but if Edna could feel it, it must be quite near.

- Why not scout it out? - Edna proposed.

Roon nodded as his body turned into a shadow and then vanished. Edna looked at Ezar and smiled at the new domain holder. - Any thoughts about your first trip as an explorer and representative of A/ ? -

- Horrified, - Ezar answered.

- You should be. How we act, and what we do, shapes the natives impression, and vice versa. -

The brawler nodded as they walked. There were trees here. There were markings left by blades and swords. Arrowheads were embedded into the trunk of trees. The trees had been used for practice. Edna took out a black helmet from her magical storage and wore it. It gave her the ability to see the astral paths in space. This world was also connected to a few others. Stella or the Void archmages would need to be here to investigate.

Edna frowned as there was the clear tale of demonic invasion. There was a bright path in the sky. The demon king should be arriving on this world any time soon.

Roon was back. - Demons. As usual. There are local defenders. Pretty rough fighting, from what I can see. Demons appear to be the Sabnoc - variant. IÆve already spotted a few demonic encampments. The variant appears to have taken up demon knights as their form. -

- Oh. Demon armies again. - Edna frowned. - ThatÆs a tough one, generally. -

- Smaller, demon armies, actually. More like demon knight packs. -

EdnaÆs eyebrow arched. - Packs?! ThatÆs somewhat unusual behavior coming from the demons. -

Ezar sat and frowned. - That should make it easier, should it? Small packs means less bodies to punch. ItÆs a lot easier to just get rid of them. -

Roon nodded. - They seem to have fairly high combat strength for demons. Each pack seems to be at least a champion - level threat. The demonic leader looks to be somewhere around level eighty to one hundred. -

EdnaÆs eyebrow arched again. - So this is a Sabnoc that only spawns champion - level packs of armies? -

It wasnÆt entirely unusual, Edna thought. There was a time when the demons only spawned dragons, and those packs of flying demon-dragons could easily be considered champion - level threats.

Ezar laughed. - They wonÆt last very long. A few punches and weÆre done. -

- LetÆs just go visit some and see. Keep our domains hidden. -

- IÆll try, - Ezar said. - I donÆt have much practice! -

The group of three arrived in what looked to be a fortress city defending itself against the demons. The fortress looked fairly battered, with its massive stone walls that looked like theyÆd taken damage for some time.

- ThereÆs like six thousand people in that city, - Roon commented. - Almost all humans. -

Edna smirked. - IÆve won the bet, then. Well, what else are we seeing? -

Ezar looked at the battlefield. On one side, there was a group of thirty demonic knights. They rode on large demonic horses that had no face or eyes but had sharp fangs. Their hooves were massive, and in some way, they looked more like bulls than horses.

All of them looked to be waiting for a sign.

On the other side was a group of human defenders, dressed in similarly heavy armor. A few of them looked badly injured. One of them rode to the front and stood holding a large steel sword. There were about a hundred of them, and yet, in a straight battle, it was fairly clear that they would lose. The demons were more powerful.

- Come get me, foul beasts of the dark! - the knight roared and charged alone.

Edna, Ezar, and Roon collectively squirmed. - HeÆs going to kill himself charging alone like that. -

Then only one of the demons rode to meet him in battle.

- What? - The three domain holders could not believe what they were seeing.

The demon brandished its dark blade, and that same blade clashed against the steel sword of the knight. They fought each other, and yet it was clear that the human knight was losing. They exchanged about twenty blows, and the human knight retreated back, injured. The demon had somehow landed a few hits on the knight.

Yet the demon didnÆt chase. Instead, it returned back to its pack and waited.

This scene repeated itself as the second knight confronted the demons.

- What in the hell is going on here? - Roon looked and tried to sense. - ThereÆs great magic at work in this world. -

The three didnÆt feel it, because their domains had protected them. But once Roon mentioned the presence of magic in the air, Edna and Ezar easily found it woven into the land itself. She looked at Roon and concluded the magic at work was out of their understanding.

Not just that, it even felt like divine intervention.

- We need a mage here, asap. - Edna pinged back home. Stella responded.

- All archmages on duty. Will get back to you in a week. -

Edna rolled her eyes. - Since when couldnÆt I override their duties? -

- Treehome defense, - Stella countered. - Is it really that urgent? -

- ItÆs some divine shenanigans in this world. I want it looked at. -

StellaÆs eyes brightened somewhere on Treehome. - That means we are close to the gods! And no, if itÆs divine shenanigans, IÆm not sending any nonûdomain holders over. -

Edna paused, contemplated StellaÆs reasoning, and then sighed. - Fine. WeÆll ask the natives. -

Roon looked at the city. - I can sneak us in. Easy! But let me just check who should we disguise as? -

The ranger activated some kind of surveillance skill before concluding that there were merchants in this world and immediately altered the disguises to match. - All right, letÆs get in. -

The three snuck into the fortress city easily, even as the battle against the demons went on outside. Inside, it was very quiet, as if most of the citizens had evacuated.

Roon quickly approached one of the soldiers who walked alone and greeted, - Hey there, soldier. -

- Yes? Eh? ThereÆs a merchant? All merchants should evacuate the city. The Combat Procedures will end soon. -

Roon pretended to be blur and took out a little bit of coin. He had taken a look at the coinage used by the city folk and managed to pilfer a few for use. - Yes, about that, can you tell me whatÆs happening? Like, itÆs my first time encountering this Combat Procedures. What - whatÆs going on? -

Edna and Ezar hid nearby but listened in. The soldier laughed. - Oh. I thought everyone knew by now, but in any battle, the attackers and defenders must first have ten rounds of knightly one - on - one combat, known as the Combat Procedures, or some people call it the Ten Jousts. If the attackers win less than three battles, they cannot proceed with the attack. If they win more than three, they may proceed to the next phase of the battle, known as the Assault. ThatÆs where the attackers may attack the city. -

The three domain holders couldnÆt believe what they were hearing. It was absolute nonsense. - But - but why do we stick to it? CanÆt - canÆt the demons just march in without care? -

The soldier looked at the merchant named Roon like he was an idiot. - Is your village not protected by the Great Gawa Æs Divine flames, or the Divine Protection of Proper Combat? Even the dark demons are bound to it. -

Edna glanced at Ezar. They were close to the god Gawa .

- What happens when they break it? -

- They get weakened by divine curses and burned by the divine flames. Weaker creatures will die. -

- But why does god not just crush the demons? -

The soldier stared at the merchant. - That is blasphemy. The Gawa church will have you skewered if that ever gets out. -

Roon acted horrified. - Ah, my apologies. Another coin for your silence? -

The soldier looked at the coin and laughed. - Very well, very well. I heard nothing. But you should leave. Most of us are leaving before the last of the ten Combat Procedures are over. -

Edna, Roon, and Ezar glanced at each other, wondering how the rules of this world operated.

Most of the citizens fled, but Edna noticed there was a group of knights tasked to defend rather than escape. They all had the resignation that they would die today.

- Do we just watch? - Roon glanced at Edna. He was fairly all right just letting the natives die.

She gulped, closed her eyes. - No. WeÆll step in. -

The group of thirty demon knights charged against the walls of the city, and the walls held, for a while. The demons took a while and destroyed the fortified gates and then charged into the city where the knights waited.

- But let us watch where we can. At the last minute. -

- At the last minute, - Roon and Ezar said collectively.

It was going to be a bloodbath.

Then a burst of arrows and the group of thirty demons were slain. Roon, Ezar, and Edna arrived before the group of shaking soldiers, who were all prepared to die.

They were shocked but not immediately thankful. Instead, they asked, - Who do we owe the favor to, and what do you need for saving us? -

The three realized this was the best time to extort the knowledge and demanded it.

The world was bound by a great divine magic of Gawa , known as the Bindings of Gawa .

Each city with a temple of Gawa , a lord or ruler of suitable rank, and sufficient number of knights may activate the Combat Procedures . These combat procedures applied for a period of a week and could be activated once a month per city. The Combat Procedures forced all combatants to engage in a multi - stage battle, first with the Ten Jousts, then the Assault on the city.

Knights , Priests and Lords who did not obey the combat procedures after activating them would be inflicted with a divine curse. Also, in order to fulfill the rules of the Assault on the City , there must be defenders. Otherwise, the Combat Procedures would be canceled, and the Lord and also Priests that cast them would suffer another divine curse.

This was how cities throughout the world slowed the demons attack, because the Bindings of Gawa could be used on the demons as well, and during combat procedures , interfering parties would be punished by divine magic. Because of this, the demons were forced to play by the gods rules.

In this world, Knights were essentially Gawa Æs warriors. The knights of this world were an order of warriors who believed in Gawa , and as a martial group, they believed in strong, fortified cities and stone temples.

Priests of Gawa blessed each and every city, and the Gawa priests of this world were particularly good at blessing stone walls and knights. Knights who survived multiple Jousts were awarded special skills by the System.

The Lords of this world were naturally knight - priest focused as well. Many were either promoted Knights or Priests, so most Lords eventually set up knight branches of their own and built fortified cities.

- There must be a source for such powerful divine magic, - Edna mused, resting in the home of the defenders. They were clearly glad not to die so were more than happy to host the three. A few left the city to deliver the message that they had been saved.

After interrogating the surviving soldiers, they eventually realized that they needed to visit the cities of the world.

- There are divine relics in this world, - Roon concluded after summarizing all the interviews. - A few of the kings control powerful divine relics, but the soldiers have no idea whether they are linked to this Divine Law. -

- If the gods could do this, why donÆt they do it everywhere? They could essentially force the demons to obey certain laws of engagement. -

- There might be some kind of Faith - Point cost to maintain such a system, and itÆs only a realistic solution if itÆs not too far from the actual god, - Roon answered.

- We should just ask Stella to send us closer. Skip this world and find where the gods are, - Ezar countered.

- I think we should talk to the most senior priest in this world. If they can put us in an audience with Gawa , that would significantly help our cause, - the knight concluded while she looked over a map of their region.

This world was filled with many small kingdoms, with just a collection of a few large kingdoms. The land seemed fairly hostile, with multiple monsters, and there were even living dragons on this world.

Roon paused. - We should have Lumoof here if we want an audience. A/ should be the one facing this Gawa . -

- Agreed, - Edna answered. - But we should get information before we get to that stage. Stella will make the preparations back home. We need to get things ready. LetÆs fan out and infiltrate more places. ThereÆs at least six different kingdoms with these divine relics. -

- Are we stealing them? - Ezar looked unsure. - No, right? -

- No. Just investigate, send information back. WeÆll match it to what knowledge we have. - The Order collected information on Gawa , Gaya, Aiva, and Neira over the decades. If there were some matching information on the Gawa faith of this world, it shouldnÆt be too hard to line them up.

After some interrogation of the locals, the three also found that the locals referred to the world as Satrya. Edna initially wanted to call it Gawa world but then decided against it. It was likely this wasnÆt Gawa Æs main world, because Gawa Æs presence should destroy whatever demons. This wasnÆt Gawa Æs home world, but we were close.

Then, just as Edna thought they were done with the unusual affairs, one of the soldiers revealed a strange piece of information.

Sometimes, the heroes of this world were selected from the locals directly by Gawa instead of summoned from another world.

The immediate implication of this was that the gods could select heroes directly! They didnÆt need to go through the complicated summon mechanism! The Gawa locals referred to the chosen champions as Gawa Æs Champions , and they would receive a selection of Gawa Æs Battle Relics to battle against the demon king.

- We must see the relics and speak to Gawa . -

It wasnÆt hard for someone like Edna to get enough money, and collecting it from the dead was even easier.

As she traveled across the kingdoms of Satrya, she witnessed even more demons. In cases where the local defenders did not invoke the Combat Procedures or ran out of the relevant materials to invoke it, the demons could easily assault the city.

As a result, the demons were incredibly fond of night strikes and especially strikes on cities that should have been safe.

Then as she entered one of the more heavily defended cities, she saw warriors that probably could give the demon knights a good fight and then some.

Knights equipped with divine relics. They were not stronger than Edna, that was for sure. A quick survey of their abilities suggested they were in the level eighties, but Edna felt the presence of divine blessing.

- Those are the Gawa Knight Templars. They are blessed by the high priests and granted divine powers, - the traveler next to Edna explained to her. It seemed those who believed in Gawa generally had a high level of faith in the god and thus appeared to do so.

EdnaÆs eyes noticed that the individuals themselves didnÆt appear to manifest divine powers, but this was the first time she had ever encountered someone with divine relics so didnÆt have a good idea of how they stacked up in battle.

But if this world had Gawa Æs Chosen .

- They have not selected the candidates for this centuryÆs chosen, - the traveler answered as Edna probed for more information. - The war with this generationÆs demon only started two years ago, and itÆll be some time before the five or six chosen are awarded an audience with Gawa itself. -

- Five or six? -

- Sometimes. - The traveler shrugged. He seemed to be a fairly knowledgeable merchant, so Edna kept him talking. - The demons will come and linger for five to six years. Even the king of the demons has not descended yet. -

- It hasnÆt. - Edna paused as the pieces came together. Back on the worlds where heroes were summoned, the gods summoned them after the demon king arrived. If the demon king hadnÆt arrived on Satrya, it naturally followed that Gawa wouldnÆt bother to choose its champions. But the gods clearly had a choice of adopting a different set of procedures for its - closer - worlds.

What everyone thought was a - normal - procedure may just be something they had to do for faraway worlds where they had little information.

Edna arrived in one of the supposedly largest cities on Satrya after two months of travel. In truth, she would have covered the distance within a few days, but she did the long way to learn from the locals.

Gawa Æs faith was ridiculously powerful in this world. Each city had Gawa temples, almost everyone believed in it, at least nominally, and many truly believed in Gawa Æs blessings. The priests themselves also appeared more powerful here, with high - ranking Gawa priests wielding powers not normally seen in priests, as if borrowing them from somewhere.

- Milady, welcome to Museo, home of the royal family of Museo, and one of the seven Relic cities of Satrya. - Relic cities were names given to the seven cities that hosted the Seven Great Gawa Relics. The one on Museo was home to an item known as the Chalice of Eternity.

Edna could feel it in the air itself, the sensation of divine presence. From the intelligence that she gathered so far, the Gawa Temple of Museo was an institution that had power not inferior to the royal family, and the Chief Priest of Museo was a man of incredible faith.

It would be difficult to gain access to the chief priest via normal means, since he was busy and would not normally entertain guests.

- What would Lumoof do if he was here on this case? - Edna sat in her inn, thinking to herself.

She considered her options. She could barge in. In terms of raw levels, nothing she saw so far even came close to her, but the presence of divine relics meant she didnÆt have one hundred percent certainty.

That would probably cause offense, and she would rather not do so, especially if she wanted to maintain a working relationship.

After thinking for a while, she decided the best way was to visit the temple and ask for an audience directly.

Those that couldnÆt see in the darkness often remarked how it was all black, but those who could see often saw in colors that couldnÆt quite be described to man. I would be able to unlock all three choices in time, and I thought to myself that the Dark Void seemed to be the power I needed the most.

IÆd struggled with the void for all this while. Our pace of expansion was dictated by the void, our travels through the void were the clear limiting factor of how we could visit new worlds, and eventually, the conclusion of the council was fairly decisive.

I would select the void.

The Dark Void .

The selection itself was immediate and quiet, but what immediately happened soon after was the appearance of black lightning over the skies of Freshka. Void Lightning.

A single blast to my first body.

I wondered whether this was heavenly retribution.

I felt my soul, already separated across my clones, begin to change, and the view of the void came instantly. One moment it wasnÆt, and the next I suddenly saw the different shades of darkness in the skies above, in colors I couldnÆt quite see.

My immediate description of the void layers was.

Magical photo filters.

This was like looking at photos of the stars with infra - red or ultraviolet light. They revealed things that were not there before or in different places.

Each of these filters revealed a different version of the stars with different locations. As I shared it with Stella, she immediately understood what this was.

- This is the different perspective weÆve been looking for all this while. ItÆs hidden behind a domain ability?! -

I thought about it, and perhaps it could be a domain ability for me, but there may be certain races or species who could see the different void layers themselves. Stella immediately began to experiment on her newfound access to the void layers .

We were all very excited to see the new worlds hidden within the void layers, but we had to be prepared. We were not sure what exactly lurked on the other side.

35

YEAR 265 (PART 3)

- A/ finally has mechs, - Prabu said, amazed, as he watched the magical construction emerge from its hangar on the moon. My Valthorns outdid themselves when they built the first moon base, and they outdid themselves again when they constructed what was the first orbital battle platform.

We were expected the first of the remnant meteors to enter our void teleportation range soon, but given that they were such small objects with hardly any bubble of reality, we felt the risk of engagement in such a situation was too high.

With such small bubbles of reality, even if we succeeded in destroying them, we wouldnÆt be able to flee in time. It was likely that their - reality - was very fragile to begin with, so my void archmages recommended against attacking them in the void sea itself. The best area of engagement was once they entered TreehomeÆs now - expanded sphere of reality.

This was, in a way, the equivalent of letting the meteor enter our solar system.

The means of engagement were these orbital battle platforms, the first few usable space warships, and these mechs. The mechs were not really mechs but instead were intended to facilitate the heroes in their movements and survival in space. They were only made possible due to a combination of clever crystalwork from our crafters.

- I wish we could make mechs with our hero forges . -

Kei, on their shared communication network, responded, - I could. You guys just need to work around your limitations. -

Each heroÆs hero forge was different, tailored by their assigned powersets. Kei, being the shipgirl that she once was, could make mech suits. Basic ones, but mech suits nonetheless. For Prabu and Colette, their weapons were smaller.

Khefri didnÆt want to participate in the defense of Treehome. She said she had things to do back on Threeworlds, so we didnÆt force her. Similarly, Adrian had his own set of tasks back on Mountainworld.

Chung. Well, being Chung, he decided to ignore us altogether.

I wasnÆt bothered. But Prabu and Colette tested out our first mechs.

They struggled, and we had to send the mechs back to the workshop to work on the synchronization. In theory, mechs and golems were pretty much the same thing. But golems ultimately were controlled by their masters, and so the System facilitated the control and manipulation of the golemÆs many parts.

However, a mech, in our case, was piloted by heroes, and these heroes didnÆt have the relevant skills and classes. Sure, they could still be manipulated and moved about relatively well, but not at the operating level expected of heroes.

Certainly not a level of performance where these mechs could see battle against the demon kings, even if it should still be quite sufficient for lower levels of demons.

Most conventional weapons continued to work as long as they were within the boundaries of TreehomeÆs reality bubble.

Now that we were able to move in - space, - we attempted to reach the very edges of this reality bubble and realized it was more like a rubber ball than a soap bubble. As we moved closer to that edge, we were pushed closer toward the center of that reality bubble. So itÆd feel as if we were moving forward, but in reality we were not going anywhere.

In other words, it was like there was a - treadmill - at edges of reality that pushed inward.

With enough force, and a high enough speed, it should be possible to overcome this - force - and pierce the reality bubble directly.

Still, day by day, I could sense the bubble of reality continued to expand.

My domain ability was gradually pushing the world wider, and soon it would be large enough to accommodate a secondary world.

I wondered what itÆd be like.

Did the world just pop out of thin air?

Or like a world drifting out of the void? Would it come with an inbuilt population, or would it be empty?

Threeworlds. With the crystal king imprisoned, the first moments of war began to emerge. The human kingdoms and nations struggled to realign in what was a tectonic shift in power.

We sent diplomats everywhere, accompanied by our Valthorns. We had to show force, even if I didnÆt want to use the stick all the time.

But I had to. There was a point of no return. When the crystal king attempted to sabotage our preparations, that was the point of no return for me. They put my people at risk.

Now, I put them at risk again by making them force these human nations to bend their knee. Bloody or not.

As with any large group of people, some were loyalists, and despite my declaration, they were not convinced. They fought. And what began was an unfortunately brutal occupation by my forces.

Old leaders had to be expelled, especially those that sought to fight against me. Those that didnÆt were actively and openly monitored. It was the noble class that opposed me most, and it was them that I had to remove. I tried a mix of carrot and stick. I enticed those willing to bend the knee with food supplies, resource assistance, and protection. Those that didnÆt were punished.

I assisted family struggles, using those willing to work with me to overthrow those that didnÆt.

The human nations, some attempted to attack us with their military.

Johann became my enforcer. He traveled the land with his dragon and struck fear into the kings and queens. Yet they were attacked frequently, and in response, they were punished. Jailed.

And at times slaughtered.

It made me churn.

A little.

But then I remembered that there were times that we had to make an example of a few to scare the masses.

I had imprisoned the crystal king. What was done was done.

Now I dealt with the consequences.

It was a scene that was repeated across the kingdoms of the crystal kingÆs land.

- You come into my kingdom and demand I bend the knee? - the king roared, surrounded by his soldiers and knights. Golems.

Johann was flanked by six elite Valthorns, all level one hundreds, and his golden dragon. The dragon grew day by day, feasting on the meat of the land. He laughed and flexed his domain easily. The soldiers buckled. The king trembled in his seat, even though he stood. He held his scepter tightly, using it to support himself.

It would not do for a king to cower in his throne.

Johann smirked. - No. I demand you work with us under the old arrangements with the crystal king. You either accept or you will be removed and replaced with those who will. IÆd rather not invite the brutality of A/ Æs Mercy onto your land or let you experience a little of A/ Æs Perspective. -

- You! - The king held his scepter and called on the strength of his class to withstand the weight of JohannÆs domain.

One minister tried to speak up. - Your Majesty, please, we should discuss this further. -

The king stared at the minister, but another minister spoke up for him.

- Your Majesty, the minister is wise. We - weÆre dealing with a god. -

We had sent our spies and agents into the many kingdoms, to bribe, to talk, to convince those who could be convinced. This occurred before JohannÆs visit to - prepare the field - for the agreement.

The same king agreed later on, convinced by his council of ministers. We bribed half of them and attempted to bribe the other half. But they were wise enough to remain silent.

They had seen our beetle armies.

Many had used magic to look at what happened to Maelga and were made speechless.

But ultimately, we used the stick.

There was an unfortunate king that opposed us to the end. He evoked war.

And Johann made him into an example. We announced our intention to remove him as king, using charges collected by my spies. Then we killed him there and then, publicly before his own citizens and subjects.

Death was a scythe we threatened on every noble.

About two - thirds of the kingdoms eventually capitulated to our rule, even if we had to reward them with wealth. Wealth was no big deal; after all, it was a resource I could always create.

One - third of them saw the writing on the wall and realized I was stronger than their crystal king. They agreed out of fear. The other third agreed with bribes.

As for the remaining one - third, we had to engage in power struggles. My agents helped those in favor of our new regime to overthrow their existing rulers and functionally install our people as the puppeteers of their new ruling state.

Naturally, there was blood spilled.

Kidnappings, murders, and assassinations. All to prevent a bloodier war.

The next one was to deal with the priests, and similar to the kings, we bribed them. Those that we couldnÆt bribe, we removed. My spies and assassins were busier than ever.

Accidents.

Visits to another world.

I offered exile to those who wished to resist. I granted them the chance to live in Lavaworld.

The priests of the crystal kingÆs land were granted the right to operate as normal, so long as they did not incite riots or attacks against us.

The commoners and citizens of the crystal kingÆs lands, most of them couldnÆt be arsed, and in the era where high - speed communication was only available to the rich, most farmers and peasants didnÆt even know there was a change in power.

They would learn of such changes over a longer period of time, through the stories spoken by merchants and bards. Again, bribes. It was honestly because I had the wealth of Treehome that I could engage in such outright bribery of the masses.

My spies fed these folks coin and made them tell more pleasant versions of the story. We asked them to speak out how the crystal king attempted to sabotage the hero KhefriÆs battle against the demon king.

We were the crystal kingÆs divine punishment.

It was an angle that worked well and helped pacify the commoners. Many didnÆt really feel strong loyalties to the crystal king. He was too distant, too aloof. His empire was more of a ragtag coalition of vassal states rather than a proper federal structure.

The improved farming yields from my druids and trees that came after soon placated the commoners who usually dealt with hunger and heavy taxation.

Naturally, among the commoners, not all accepted the change of regime. This was most unfortunate.

We tried to reeducate them. Expose them to what happened.

But ultimately, some were violent. And death was the only way to deal with them.

It was unfortunate that regime change must occur this way.

But I accepted the blood on my hands. I would pay the price for my brutality when my day came.

With blood on my roots and leaves, I would transform the world and the human lands into an economy that could support this war against the demons.

36

DWARFWORLD

My mages and crafters analyzed the Sunsteel, and we believed it should be one of the components of what the demons used for the Sun Rings . At least, we believed the Sun Rings to be some kind of metallic alloy. It was this Sunsteel mixed with something else altogether.

So Lumoof went with the first proposal. Trade. The dwarven lord rejected the offer, but Lumoof wasnÆt bothered. There were many dwarven cities, and we would be able to find a smaller dwarven city that we could support.

- Trade? - The dwarven lord looked absolutely shocked. - You want half of the Sunsteel? You might as well rob us. -

Lumoof frowned. - Half is fair. I will be doing the work. I really rather work this out on friendly terms rather than invade. -

- I donÆt know who you are threatening. - The dwarven lord didnÆt understand. Naturally, in front of him was just a man. A powerful man, but he didnÆt grasp exactly what he was faced with.

Lumoof waited for a bit and realized he might have a point.

Though the dwarven lord rejected LumoofÆs trade deal, Lumoof decided to explore the world some more and realized this world, despite the constant brutal wars between the dwarven cities, was also filled with many relatively high - leveled dwarven craftsmen.

Many were level fifty to sixty, and they were available in very large quantities. There were multiple dwarven craft academies throughout the world that produced the smiths, crafters, and engineers needed to construct their gigantic war machines.

And they loved large - scale construction projects.

He pinged Stella.

- Stella, do you think youÆre keen on sending some dwarves from and to our home world? -

- Sure - but why? -

- IÆm thinking of some good ol perspective. I think Alka would love this world. He could turn this world into one of those Forgeworlds. -

Stella paused. - If they are a bunch of war - hungry dwarves, why not give them war? -

Lumoof paused as he digested StellaÆs message. - You know what? YouÆre right. We should give them war. -

- Oh. Do you want an invasion force? WeÆre a little tight with half of our folks dealing with the comet remnants and the other half occupying Threeworlds? -

- No. I think I have something else in mind. -

- Really? Will this world be worth it? - Stella challenged. - What do you have in mind? -

- Get me a group of dwarven lords from the academy willing to rule over some alien dwarves, - Lumoof said. - I believe this world has potential to assist our war efforts. A node should be sufficient, since we should be able to claim some land as our city. -

- Got it. - Stella laughed.

The dwarf world was filled with many small dwarven towns and cities. Not all were competent, and not all had war machines. There were smaller towns led by less powerful lords that we could depose. High - leveled, well - trained lords trained by the FTC could sweep in with Valthorn support, take over these smaller towns, and effectively cobble the smaller towns together into a coalition.

Then we could effectively convert the cities into our dwarven workshops.

Rather than fight each other, it was time to channel the dwarven crafts toward a more productive war.

We would turn this world into a forgeworld, and those war machines would find themselves battlefields where they could do some good.

37

SATRYA - EDNA, ROON, AND EZAR

Edna spent days in the Relic City, observing how the temples and the people worked. With her advanced surveillance tools, it was fairly easy for her to soon get a sense of where everything was and how it worked.

It was a beautiful city. Especially the temple of Gawa . It was incredibly grand and made with an opulence unmatched in any world Edna seen before. Its structure was made with a kind of shimmering marble, and the arches were decorated with gems and a kind of gold paint that looked more gold - like than gold.

It was magic, and the presence of divine magic in the area was unmistakable. The relic in the deepest part of the temple bubbled, twisting the fabric of reality in a way only domain holders like Edna could feel.

Here, they were close to the gods, and Edna was sure of it.

She hoped that she would be able to arrange an audience with the gods. That would help with the war effort and figuring out what the hell went wrong with the demons.

So the time to make a scene finally arrived.

- IÆd like to see the head priest, - Edna declared frankly in the temple. She had been watching the place for a while and noticed that the head priest was present for a meeting with the cityÆs king. He was frequently away, but this was one of the days when she saw him enter.

The priest stared at Edna like she was an alien. - Who do you think you are? No one sees the head priest? -

- I insist. - EdnaÆs aura flared, and the priest felt his hands tremble. She thought of more discreet methods but decided against it. It was better to just hit it directly. If they were unfriendly, then sheÆd deal with it that way.

- I - I will let him know. Who - He will want to know who wants to see him. -

- Tell him IÆm a warrior from another world and representative of another god, - Edna repeated, and the priestÆs trembling looked even more intense. His eyes met EdnaÆs burning gaze briefly.

- At once, milady. - And he ran.

Edna expected an army of templars to charge down at her, and so, when an army of templars armed with divine weapons did in fact emerge, she wasnÆt shocked.

- This way, milady, - one of the priests said, escorted by what appeared to be a decent army of templars. They were all about level seventy to eighty, which made them very strong by most measures.

With their divine equipment, they could stand a chance even with the higher - level Valthorns.

Edna was escorted into the depths of the temple, and she could sense people moving throughout the temple. There was a huge guard force appearing around the relic, as if worried that the relic would be attacked.

She just smiled and walked past the corridors of paintings and tapestries all speaking praises of their god, Gawa .

Eventually, she was led to a chamber far from the relic and was clearly not the actual chamber of the head priest. But the head priest was there, decked from head to toe for war. Divine armaments, rings, armors. They would take a hit.

- Greetings, milady. Of all the outlandish attempts to get an audience with me, yours is the most ludicrous. A visitor from another world, and representative from another god? - the head priest said. He was smug. - So ridiculous. So you succeeded. What do you want? -

Edna didnÆt feel the need to answer it with words and merely allowed her domain to ripple outward. It shook the cloth and tapestries. The magical defenses in the room vibrated. The head priest felt his rings tremble, as if begging to be activated.

It caused the head priestÆs face to contort from smugness, into horror, and then to fear. He stood. - YouÆre not lying. -

Edna shrugged. - Why would I? I come from another world, a world that also has Gawa as one of our peopleÆs faith. -

She looked around and withdrew her domain. The trembling in the room vanished.

- I will cut to the point. I want an audience with Gawa . -

The head priest stared at Edna as if she was mad. - An audience with our god? Are you insane? -

- No. We found the demonÆs sun, and we need your godÆs help. Only gods can hope to strike at the demonÆs power. -

The head priest frowned. - You are insane. How do you hope to? -

- ItÆs not the first time weÆve spoken to a god, - Edna countered. - If it helps, let your god know we have spoken to Aiva. -

The head priest shook his head. - Communion with our god is a costly, resource - intensive process? -

- And it happens whenever you select your champions for this world. I know Gawa can be reached from this world. -

- And why should we do it? -

- Because we will get it eventually, - Edna answered. - All the delays merely add time but do not prevent the inevitable. We will find the gods, one way or another. Be it Aiva, Gawa , Gaya, Neira, or whoever other gods out there that we have not seen. And. -

The head priest stared.

- We can help. We have the ability to breach distances through the System. Our patron god can create permanent pathways between worlds, allowing your god to extend power further than ever. -

He paused and closed his eyes. - You mean it? Proof that you are from another world? -

- I would gladly send you to our world if you want to, but I ask that you trust me and consult whoever you need to consult, - Edna repeated.

The Gawa Temples of Satrya were a coalition of Gawa churches, each with a relic, each with its own head priests. Collectively, they operate as a council of equals, though each branch of the Gawa church was functionally independent.

They often did not intervene with each other, outside for the rare moments when Gawa descended and transmitted a message.

Divine Communion.

Edna heard that it was possible since a long time ago. Some priests and priestesses heard the voices of their gods in their minds, through dreams.

It was unmistakable, because the godÆs presence was extremely difficult to fake.

The head priest looked at Edna uncomfortably before letting out a long sigh.

- Can you show me that aura of yours? Again. At full strength, - the head priest answered. - IÆll take it as proof of your claims. To initiate a conversation with our god requires agreement of all the head priests. This is a matter far more serious than what I can do alone. -

Edna sighed and let it rip. This time, the walls cracked as the full weight of her close - to - level - two - hundred aura rippled through the entire city. The whole city would have felt it, as if something pressed on them.

A weight of power.

The head priest and all the divine guards clenched their weapons.

Edna smiled. They were strong enough to resist, because Gawa Æs blessing was exceptionally strong in this world. But even the weaker few felt their legs buckle. If Lumoof was here, they would all be kneeling.

- That is unmistakable indeed. -

- Tell the rest of the head priests that we offer a return trip to our world to have an audience with my patron, A/ . I believe once you meet A/ , you will find that our request to meet Gawa to be not unreasonable. -

The head priest nodded. - I will need some time to speak to the rest of my peers. The Gawa Æs Circle donÆt meet often, and the next meet is in a few months. I will bring this matter up then. -

Edna nodded. - We can wait. I have plenty else to do. -

- HowÆd it go? - Roon and Ezar asked over their shared communication.

- The head priest said they will bring it up to the Gawa Æs Circle meet in a few months. How are things on your side? - Edna said as she retreated to an inn.

- Went as well as expected. I popped into the head priestessÆs room, and I got misunderstood as a suitor and apparently, if a single man appears in a single womanÆs room at night, IÆm supposed to take her as my wife, - Roon said.

Ezar facepalmed from his part of the city. Edna chuckled. - I think this is the second time you did something like that. -

Roon just shrugged. - I seem to attract the wrong kind of people. -

- You shouldnÆt be popping up in peopleÆs rooms at night, - Edna said.

- She is heavily guarded as hell, and I really donÆt want to knock people out just to talk to her. My attempts to get in through the front door got shut off because the head priestess gets too many people trying to meet her that way. -

- She sounds cute. - The knight smirked.

- Oh please, - Roon said.

- HowÆd she take your confession? -

- She asked me to call the rest of you here, - Roon said. - And she still wants me to marry her. -

Edna laughed. - She takes that pretty seriously. -

- ItÆs a faith thing. Some religious mumbo jumbo. I didnÆt see such a rule in the Gawa documents we have back home! -

- Tell her you are married. -

- I plan to. Next time, we should insist on same - sex night visits, - Roon countered. - IÆm not visiting a woman at night ever again. Never seems to go well, not with my kind of shit luck. -

- I wouldnÆt call it shit luck. - The other two domain holders laughed.

Edna smirked. - All right, all right. Ezar, whatÆs your situation? -

- The head priestess is an old woman. She listened, but she thought I was a madman, so she chased me out. I think weÆll need Lumoof here to speak to her kind of person. ItÆs just a vibe IÆm getting. Think sheÆd respect someone like Lumoof. -

- Darn. Very well, I think we should make ourselves seen during the coming meeting of the Gawa Æs Circle, - Edna added. - That should be our best place to make our case to Gawa . -

- They donÆt even say where it is. ItÆs one of those super - secretive meetings, - Roon countered.

- Ask your fiance where it is, then? - Edna asked.

- SheÆs not - and IÆm not manipulating a womanÆs love for that, - Roon countered. - ThereÆs some red lines in my life, and thatÆs one of them. -

Edna chuckled. - YouÆre pretty chivalrous, despite your fondness for late - night visits. -

- Ugh, stop it. Edna, Ezar, just come over to my side of the world and visit this woman with me. And Edna, youÆre going to pretend to be my wife. -

Edna laughed. - You really want an old woman like me as your pretend wife instead of a beautiful young priestess? Why not tell her you have a wife somewhere else? -

- IÆm not marrying some priestess I barely know. So shut it and play along. -

- Very well. - Edna laughed.

Edna realized all the relic cities were flat - out beautiful. They were so well protected and covered with divine magic that it didnÆt seem likely that the demons would be able to attack them.

The relic city of Olpash was located along a gentle slope along the hills, and the temple occupied a central location, surrounded by walls. There was a beautiful silver statue of a man with a sword, a shield, and wearing a knightÆs helmet that was fifteen stories tall.

There were five castles throughout the city, each located along the walls, and each home to one of the ducal families of Olpash. Among the five, one would be king at one time, and the role of king rotated among the five families.

But Olpash was also home to a relic, and it was a gigantic divine shield too big for any man to wield.

Still, even from afar, Edna could feel the divine energies stored within. Should a demon king attack, it was likely they could hold the city. Just like the other relic city, the presence of Gawa was strong.

Divine magics rippled in the air, the shieldÆs presence warping reality. Edna briefly wondered what itÆd be like to move all the divine relics together.

- So your prospective wife is located there? - Edna said.

- Yes. -

- Okay. Remember, our goal is really to get an audience with Gawa . This priestess is one of the Circle, so she can help facilitate that objective, - Edna repeated. - Ready? -

Roon shrugged. - I donÆt really want to see her again. Can you just go? -

- Please, youÆre a domain holder and you donÆt want to see a woman again. Come on, - Edna countered.

Ezar just grinned. - I must say, Roon, I donÆt recall ever seeing you this flustered. -

- Look, Ezar, you go visit a woman at night. -

- IÆve done it! - Ezar laughed. - They donÆt mistake me as a suitor. Maybe I just have a punchable face that women hate. You, on the other hand, look like the pretty boys that woman absolutely adore. -

Roon flushed.

- Oh, IÆm never gonna let that slide. - Ezar chuckled.

Roon glared. - I hate you. -

Edna just rolled her eyes. - Boys, focus. We got a priestess waiting for us. LetÆs convince her to side with our cause. -

- Yes, maÆam. -

The priestessÆs room was located in a magically protected sphere, in one of the inner buildings of the temple. It was heavily protected and most mages wouldnÆt even be able to get in, but for domain holders, the restraints and magical protections just washed off their bodies.

She was half asleep in her sleeping gown when she noticed the window was open and felt the presence of others in her room.

Despite her seemingly youthful experience, Edna was fairly sure she was a high - leveled priestess, in the same league as the other high priest sheÆd met. She was likely to be around level seventy to eighty, and she wore a special necklace around her neck filled with divine magic all the time.

- Oh, youÆre here again. With guests? - the priestess spoke. As Edna expected, she was a beautiful woman, well equipped in all the right places, and blessed by Gawa . Edna could feel the presence of Gawa Æs blessing, just like in the high priest. It was likely they had a Gawa High Priest class or something similar. - Are they the suitorÆs party? -

Roon frowned. - I am not marrying you. -

The priestess frowned. - Am I that unattractive? So many men desire me, and here you are, I offer you my hand in marriage and you reject me. -

RoonÆs frustration was palpable. - Woman, I am here to continue that conversation. We need an audience with your god, Gawa . -

She frowned. - IÆll raise your cause during the Gawa Æs Circle if you agree to take me as your wife. -

- IÆm married! -

- DonÆt lie to me. I donÆt sense a womanÆs presence on you, - the priestess countered.

In truth, that was because the priestess couldnÆt sense anything on Roon, who was protected by his own domain. - I donÆt believe in your god, - Roon countered.

- DoesnÆt matter. Gawa will forgive you. -

Edna inwardly felt sorry for her fellow domain holder. He seemed to attract a certain type of crazy. Edna decided to breach the topic. - Milady, we wish to have an audience with Gawa . What else can we offer to get your support during the Gawa Æs Circle meeting? -

She thought about it for a moment and stared at Edna briefly. Then she frowned. - Nothing. I want this man to take me as his wife. -

Edna countered, - Priestess, we really do not wish to mix personal matters into affairs involving the fate of worlds. There are worlds that could benefit from our mutual cooperation. -

- I know. But as head priestess, I have full prerogative and discretion in my decisions, as granted to me by Gawa . And so my condition remains. He takes me as his wife. -

Edna realized this woman was nuts and looked at her two colleagues. - Well, I believe we have nothing more to add. LetÆs go. -

Edna would rather take the chance and convince the other head priests and priestesses. This woman was probably a little messed up in the head.

But as Edna, Roon, and Ezar were about to vanish through the door again, the priestess realized her ways were probably too aggressive.

- Wait. -

Roon and Edna stood. - Oh? -

- You claim to be from another world, correct? - the priestess spoke.

- Yes. -

- Take me on a trip together. Just the two of us, to your world. I donÆt believe I canÆt convince you to take me as your wife. If you remain unmoved, fine, IÆll support your cause anyway, - the priestess said to Roon.

Edna looked at Roon, and Roon made a long sigh. - Fine. IÆll take you on a trip to our world. Later. -

The priestess smiled beautifully. - I canÆt wait to see you again, husband. -

Roon rolled his eyes and vanished through the window.

They would visit the other head priests and attempt to convince them of their cause.

38

YEAR 266

The first of the comet fragments emerged from the void. We had been tracking it the moment it appeared within our vision, and we watched with great interest for the moment it entered our bubble of reality.

The first few meteors popped out of the darkness, like a cluster of rocks that suddenly shed its cloak of invisibility. A quick scan revealed that we didnÆt detect MultipusÆs presence, but among the rocks was a slightly larger chunk of the cometÆs core, and that rock maintained a small bubble of reality.

- Engage! - my mages ordered as the meteors entered our range.

Mages, in our tree - based environmentally controlled battlesuits, attacked the rocks. They were much smaller, and it seemed the very act of travelling through the void had - eroded - them one way or another.

It was a good sign. It meant that without a strong bubble of reality, the rocks we expected to face should be smaller than the main comet.

The distant dark skies, not visible from Treehome, erupted in explosions of magic. With extremely powerful telescopes, it would be possible to see some small sparks and explosions, but we destroyed the smaller remnant meteors. For the core remnant, a few of our mages hopped onto the rock and tried to steer it.

Core material was valuable. I had it in such little quantities that if there was a core chunk from the demonÆs comet, we wanted to see whether we could process it and learn from it.

But like core mana, it degraded quite quickly, especially when exposed to the light of the sun. Which was strange.

One of the quirks of core mana.

For now, with magical propulsion, we guided this remnant rock from the core of the demonÆs comet and directed it into a somewhat stable orbit. My Valthorn mages then quickly set up a basic manipulation system, just a few magical patterns and formations that created some propulsion to steer the core away from Treehome. This would allow it to maintain that stable orbit.

It wasnÆt big, but we wanted to examine this core remnant in greater detail.

I was fairly impressed that we now had our first space - based research station.

The station consisted of portable living quarters from our almost century - long experience of building underground bunkers and later on our developments on the demonÆs comet, Lavaworld, Cometworld, and our moon.

Travel to and from the research station in our world was a lot simpler, since we had access to magical portals and teleportation spells. We didnÆt need rockets.

Even deploying our new wood - based mechs involved teleportation to the closest undisturbed space.

Stella watched as the first engagements with the meteor remnants proceeded as planned as my forces exerted themselves on Threeworlds, on Mountainworld, on Dwarfworld, and now even this world of Satrya.

- And so begins the Imperial Era of A/ , - Stella said as she arrived in Threeworlds and watched my Valthorns crawling all over the city of Maelga.

- You speak of it as if itÆs new. - I chuckled.

- ItÆs just an observation, really. - My void domain holder watched. Within a year, we had to quell dissent in the human lands.

In many ways, it was an era of great political change for the Threeworlds humans. In normal times, the Sandpeople and the Centaurs would capitalize on this to wage an attack and try to claim some fringe territories from the human kingdoms.

But with the presence of my overwhelming beetles, they knew better. The Centaurs had seen my warriors in their lands and knew that we had far stronger warriors than them.

Zhaanpu, of them all, seemed to have most to think about. The nature of our relationship was perhaps an ally of convenience, but my occupation of Maelga had made him feel a little.

Queasy.

As if he invited evil into his home.

Perhaps it was a sensation to have power challenged.

I thought it might be a sense of vulnerability.

Or perhaps it was how relatively easy it was to suppress the crystal king, even with the crystal kingÆs huge array of hero - items. He didnÆt manage to use them, and I also discovered they were primarily designed for use against heroes that turned rogue.

The hero - items effectiveness against Lumoof was suspect, and this was something that I saw Zhaanpu thinking about keenly. I noticed because he began asking Khefri for more general - purpose hero - items instead of human - killers.

- So this empire. - Stella looked at the human lands. - What do you have in mind? -

- The war to free ourselves from the demons will not end. Not with how they bend the System to its will. We will need warriors. We will need equipment. The myriad worlds will supply them. -

- I see, - Stella said. - It is like that. -

MaelgaÆs priests of Maelas adapted surprisingly easily. I still wondered who Maelas was, whether Maelas corresponded to any of the religions of Treehome. Gaya, Neira, Gawa , Aiva. Those were the main four of Treehome. There were a few smaller ones, but their presence had been minor, and it was hard to tell whether they were real gods or just fake ones.

Then on the Satrya, there were Gawa Æs gods.

Then on Delvegard, the dwarf world, the dwarves, so far, didnÆt seem to believe in any of the gods we knew of.

Looking at the trend, there may be more than ten gods, scattered over a vast area. The gods may be able to exert significant power over a set of core worlds, but a much more reduced presence over the rest.

- An empire gearing up for a war, but I canÆt help but think about the day after. -

- You make it sound like we will win. -

- We will, - Stella said, unsure of herself. - But I hope there is something for the people, after all of this. That, you know, we become a post - scarcity society, where everyone lives at peace and can decide to live the lives they want. -

- That will happen after. -

- Will you let go? -

- Yes, - I said. I was sure I would. IÆd be more than happy to shed the mantle if life was no longer at risk of extinction. If forests and my trees were allowed to prosper, why would I want to meddle in all this shit?

It was pointless. The squabbles of life against each other.

Pointless. I didnÆt care for it.

But I had to, because I needed them to win this fight.

Stella looked at the growing empire and sighed. It was a mess. - You know, IÆm torn whether thatÆs a good thing. -

Kei watched as the city of Freshka fell asleep that night. It was getting dark, and the skies were clear. There were lights that littered the city; it was said that Freshka could be seen from miles away. The sprawling mess of FreshkaÆs city, at times, never seemed to sleep.

The streets glowed from the colorful lights. Magical stones, not fully formed crystals, were somehow converted into magical lights through the inventive manufacturing processes of crafters and enchanters.

The crystal shortfall due to the manufacturing of bombs significantly drained the traditional supply of crystal - based lights, so cities such as Freshka and many others found alternatives. Some cities used a type of glowing bug that was specifically bred to provide lighting. Some cities found glowing trees and plants, which provided much - needed lighting.

Others reverted back to fires. With the huge variety of woods these days, there were a certain variety of slow - burning woods that gave enough light. Some just embedded a light spell into various types of magical material to cause them to emit light. But this required a mage to constantly maintain lights throughout the city, instead of materials that could draw in ambient energy.

Freshka was still busy at night, but traffic was less heavy than daytime.

The cityÆs resource demands were so high that logistics guilds resorted to moving goods at odd times to maximize efficiency.

Kei dodged a convoy of beetles. The Valtorn Order leased cargo - ferry beetles to the various merchants guilds for commercial use, and they were a large source of income for the Order. Cheap, magically sustained, and hardy, they significantly reduced the need for horses for goods, but most kingdoms, especially those that feared A/ Æs retribution, still maintained their own stables and horses.

Just in case.

Dinner was over, and there were streets filled with bars and clubs. It was a scene that sometimes reminded her of home. People everywhere still had a need for entertainment, especially those of the flesh. Taverns were noisy at this time.

Past the noisy commercial streets, she walked into one of the quietest, most privileged corners of Freshka.

She arrived at her destination. It was a large mansion. Quiet.

She knocked on the gate, and it opened magically.

- Lady Kei. - An Order guard stood at the guardhouse. There was also a maid waiting for her. - You arrived earlier than expected. SheÆll take you in. -

She was escorted into a quiet waiting room. Tea was served, along with some fruits. The walls had paintings of places.

- Kei! - Lozanna walked into the room. - Thanks for dropping by. -

The crystal golem smiled at the master of the house. Laufen and Lozanna didnÆt live together. Her mother lived a few doors down the street.

They talked about Arlisa, how Arlisa was still spending her time with adventurer stuff. About Lozanna Æs son, Lauda. Both Arlisa and Lauda were more than one hundred years old now, and both as half - elves, their lifespans were going to be shorter than Lozanna , unless they gained a lot of levels. Still, they should live until at least their two hundreds or three hundreds if all went well, unlike Ardi, who died so much younger.

Despite being a quasi - royalty of Freshka, Lauda founded his own small magical entity that focused on research and ruins. He didnÆt want to be too closely associated with the Order, even if they still received Order funding. Unlike his mother and grandmother, who were still Order members to this day.

Partly because he saw how Arlisa went through a rebellious phase and essentially burned bridges with many of her old friends.

- What about you? WhatÆve you been up to? - Kei asked.

- I visited the Northern Islands recently, you know, to meet Meela and Alexis? -

- Oh. Them. How are they? - Kei said with subtle contempt. She still struggled to fit them into the plans. Even Ken didnÆt really want to include them, given their complicated past with A/ .

- They are fine. They took my advice to bunker up well. The NorthÆs growing well, and the cities feel a lot more prosperous since I last saw them a few years ago. The vassal and guild wars didnÆt hurt them as badly as the rest. -

The vassal wars had mostly come to a standstill. The resource demands of the great comet attack drained much of the fire out of the war, and now that it had basically ended, both sides settled into a comfortable ceasefire and status quo that neither wanted to restart. There might be an incident or flare - up that caused it to resurface, but for now, both sides were focused on licking their wounds and preparing for the eventual resumption of hostilities.

Crystals also began to trickle back into the market.

Kei looked at Lozanna and then dropped the question on her mind. - Lozanna , would you be willing to take up arms again? -

She paused, realizing KeiÆs question was serious. - Why? -

- Your children are old now. You no longer have to care for them like you used to. You have free time, and now, more than ever, we need you to do what Yura once did. Be on the front lines once more, and be one of the pillars of our world. -

Lozanna closed her eyes briefly. - Is this request from Patriarch Lumoof or Edna? -

- No. Me - and maybe Stella, - Kei answered. - Of all the elves from the first days of Freeka, only you remain. Well, and your mother, but she is not a warrior. -

- RomaÆs around. -

Kei grinned. - You know itÆs not the same. You are the first. The first true Valthorn. -

- That should be Yura . -

- HeÆs dead, - Kei said. - I believe A/ would still give you a soul - strengthening seed if you ask for it. For decades you are at level eighty - five. ThereÆs probably some overflow experience in you that would? -

Lozanna looked at her room. - You want me to abandon the comforts of my beautiful home and head back out there in the wilderness, battling demons and monsters. -

- Yes. Because you are special, Lozanna . Till this day there is no one with your tier blessings. Sure, there are many, many others with the lesser variants of Blessed by the Soul Tree , but knowing the System, there is an unspoken value as the first Blessed One of A/ . You are the first, and that grants you a weight you can wield. -

Lozanna closed her eyes. - Tell me whatÆs really on your mind. -

Kei sipped her tea and allowed the question to linger a bit before she spoke her mind. - A/ needs moral guidance. There are the domain holders, but we know he needs more than that. He needs a bit of your presence. You have history and a past. A bond few others can claim to have. -

- A bond that has turned distant. -

- All I see are your internal struggles, Lozanna , - Kei answered. - YouÆre doing nothing with the rest of your life and you know it. You had just reason when you wanted to care for Lauda, but those days are over. Long over. -

- What if I donÆt live up to that? There are so many with far better innate talent. The domain holders are all incredible people in their own ways. -

- Is that what you fear, Lozanna ? To try once more and find yourself not worthy? -

Lozanna closed her eyes. In many ways, it was a crisis of self - confidence. She didnÆt answer.

Kei continued. - You once said to A/ that you wanted to be a hero. We now know that the path to power exists. Edna is close to that point. It is no longer an impossibility. Not like your earlier days. A/ Æs access to the other realms enables opportunities for growth we never had before. Lozanna , please. ItÆs time to give that old dream of yours another chance. Yura once said your dream was foolish. But even he didnÆt see how things developed. -

Lozanna listened, her heart swirling. A part of her was convinced. - WhatÆs. whatÆs your interest in this? -

The golem laughed. - Must everything be about interests? -

- But you have an interest in this. -

- IÆd like to see an end to this. Properly. I feel sorry for those like me, that we are on this treadmill of endless fighting, summoned to fight in worlds that donÆt know us. -

- Lies, - Lozanna countered. - ThatÆs bullshit. -

The golem smirked.

Kei closed her eyes and then spilled the beans.

- I - I look at Arlisa and you and see different versions of wasted potential. Arlisa is one where she couldnÆt take the expectations and crumbled. You could and some, but you chose to walk away. WeÆve known each other for years, decades, centuries! Lozanna , ever since the day you trained us, protected us, and got us to level, back when we first met in that dwarven city, in the Eastern Continent - that day, almost one hundred thirty years ago, in my eyes, you were always a hero. You can still be one. With A/ Æs resources, I have no doubt about it. -

Lozanna stared at Kei.

Both of them looked at each other for what seemed like an eternity.

Eventually, Lozanna let out a long sigh. - I have. I have a lot of catching up to do. -

39

YEAR 266 (PART 2)

Void layers.

Stella felt it immediately, as A/ said he would select the Dark Void. The world twisted and distorted ever so slightly, as if the entire world was an old cathode ray tube television that just experienced an interruption to its signal.

The world was the same but different. There were now layers to things.

A/ immediately mentioned the term - filters, - as if everything was photography filters. That was an acceptable way of looking at things - but Stella wondered whether it was more appropriate to see things at different levels of magnification and zoom, that this was the world at different levels of zoom and magnify.

Even Treehome looked different once Stella applied the void layers.

It was just plain nothingness in some and some others - something else.

Stella wondered whether this was some kind of magical version of seeing quantum entanglement. That objects here were tied to some other objects far away, and the void layers merely rearranged the world in accordance with how things were entangled together.

The void layers shifted things about.

Each layer moved the position of the different worlds in wildly different positions, and incredibly, they were all true at the same time.

If teleportation was possible, in short, an ability to cross vast distances through linking two locations together, why wouldnÆt it be possible to have naturally occurring variants? These were the worlds and realms cut up and pasted again in different places.

A puzzle with multiple possible answers.

Each world was a puzzle piece and each layer a different acceptable variation of how the puzzle was solved. Depending on which layer, a world could be infinitely far away or just next door.

Stella stared as her mind flipped through the different layers, and she could only process about fifteen - no, about twenty - layers. She may have access to them, but her mind could not process those that were still too different. It hurt just trying to look at them, and she didnÆt even know why.

- Your nose is bleeding, Lady Stella, - one of the void archmages, Veter, commented. Veter, too, had gained access to the void layers, and he only managed to see six of the layers before his mind began to feel the strain.

- I need PatreeckÆs help, - Stella commanded as she walked into the special brain augmentation tree designed to expand her mental processing capacity.

The minds linked with hers as she attempted to push the edges of the Void Layers . Incredibly, the moment she could see it, it didnÆt take her more mental energy to see it again. Once she got it, she got it.

Twenty - three layers.

- Darn it. - Stella emerged exhausted and sipped on a fruit punch filled with nutrients prepared right outside. The archmage, Veter, nodded.

- ShouldnÆt push it too hard, Lady Stella. A few of the lesser void mages had bad nosebleeds and had to be under healer Æs watch. -

Stella shrugged. - The Void worlds. Do you see it? -

- One of them. - Veter nodded. The order had about seven void archmages now, though none of them close enough to get to the domains yet. They would have to participate in combat - perhaps intentionally triggering demonic mothers - and use their void energies on the black sunÆs shards.

- I can see two different layers with them. - Stella frowned.

In some versions of the void layers, the world was entirely of a different color, as if these were special worlds and they contained worlds entirely unseen on any other layers. These were hidden in the gaps of the void sea.

The equivalent of folders and files that were hidden from view through some administrative rights and no matter how the files got shuffled around, these hidden files remained hidden.

Veter nodded. - Preparations to visit is underway - though our collective view is that we should get over the meteor remnants. -

Stella understood. - I agree. Tempting as it may be, it is not the right time to jump to these void worlds now. -

Veter breathed a sigh of relief. - A/ Æs node seeds. They could be sent to these void worlds. -

The void domain holder paused. It was true. But right now, they were spoiled for choice. With the expanded star map provided by the rescued Zaratan, they could see even more worlds that were linked to Delvegard.

Then, on the other side of Satrya, there were the Gawa - controlled worlds. Stella knew they were close to the gods, because of how Gawa Æs power permeated through the world of Satrya. That was also another front for exploration.

They really didnÆt have enough void mages to go around.

Not just that. They didnÆt have enough domain holders to explore the worlds safely.

40

YEAR 267

Delvegard.

- What do you think? - Lumoof asked as he guided the dwarven lord Sundus through the small town. It was a relatively rundown, undeveloped place, but the local dwarves still built a small town here. Here, in this small dwarven town of Odeos, with no resources of worth, they were not worth the attention of the nearby dwarven nations.

Sundus, a relatively young dwarven lord from the Freshlands Treetiary College, nodded. - Can be done. But I will require assistance. ThereÆs a lot of construction to do, and I will need the Treeology priests to back me up. IÆll need some time to convince the dwarves to accept our rule. -

Lumoof glanced at Kafa. Kafa nodded. - IÆll handle it, Patriarch. -

My avatar nodded. - IÆll leave the responsibilities for this world to you, Kafa. It appears I am needed elsewhere. -

The lizardperson gave a salute. - I wonÆt let you down. -

- I know you wonÆt. But do not fear failure. We will inevitably fail somewhere. Even A/ fails. - Lumoof smiled and looked back at Sundus. - Lord Sundus, IÆll return to Treehome and arrange the resources. -

The Delvegard force was not a full invasion army, unlike Threeworlds. We deployed almost thirty thousand Valthorns and Valtorn Order operatives throughout the human kingdoms, in order to manage the transition period and enforce our rule.

At about one hundred people, it was pretty much a small but elite reconnaissance force. But with Kafa around, the likelihood of threats that could threaten them was fairly miniscule.

Sundus was one of five dwarven lords recruited from Treehome for the task; each of them would be assisted by about twenty others elites as bodyguards, spies, and also to act on their instructions.

They would each claim one of these smaller dwarven towns as these towns did not have a high - ranked lord leading them. The five would then form a shadow alliance, acting in concert with the rest of the Valthorns.

Once a certain scale was achieved, the plan was that I would deploy one of my Node Trees in SundusÆs town. As the situation on Threeworlds and the human kingdoms stabilized over the next few years, we would then have more resources to redirect to Delvegard and properly begin our colonization process.

Of what we knew of Delvegard so far, we had two actual goals and one optional goal.

The main one, in my brief assessment of Delvegard, was to properly capture the dwarven academies of Delvegard. These craftsmen and smithing academies trained a lot of the crafters that worked on their war machines, and if we could maneuver our FTC - trained dwarven lords into a position where they controlled these academies, that would be ideal.

The second one was to gain access to a stable supply of these Sunsteels and Sunmetals and conduct experiments on how to better use these new materials for our war against the demons.

The third one was to recruit the dwarves for our war. I would like to channel their thirst for war toward the demons. That should bring about some semblance of peace and unity to the Delvegard dwarves. If not, we would like to convert the dwarves into our war suppliers, providing assistance to our forces.

Right now, the Valthorns manufacturing processes were strong, but some variety of goods and an expansion of our total military industrial complex would allow us to mount more attacks and reduce our lag time between attacks.

We felt this keenly with the demonÆs comet, where we had to tap into all our crafters and manufacturers to make sufficient bombs. Even then, it felt insufficient. It took us too long to ramp up our production, and our bombs were still not good enough.

As an institution, we would learn from our mistakes and get better in the art of fighting demons. We would roll with the punches and hit back as hard as we could.

Back on Treehome, the situation was calm.

More fragments emerged from the void, and during this time, the heroes got some additional practice with the meteors and their tree - mechs.

Then we finally had one that carried a part of Demon King Multipus. It was fairly small, and the heroes annihilated the creature easily.

So far, so good. None of the meteors had gotten past our first layer of defenses. But the bulk of the meteors should only reach us in about three years time. Our space - based defenses would be truly tested then.

- Here. - Kei held out the strange seed in her hand. Lozanna trembled slightly as she touched it and consumed it.

I remembered when Yura ate it for the first time and felt like his soul was on fire. Lozanna immediately went and rested on a bed. - I feel queasy. -

- I was told itÆs a common occurrence. -

She slept for a day, and when she woke up, her soul weighed more.

- So how many levels did you gain? - Kei asked as she came to check on her friend. - I was told some folks have overflow levels. -

- Level ninety - eight, - Lozanna said, trembling slightly. - I seem to have done a lot since I hit my peak. -

- Darn. Thirteen levels is pretty good. I hit level one hundred some time ago, but itÆs getting pretty damn hard to level outside of the dungeons. IÆll take you with me. -

Lozanna paused. - When I was sleeping, I was thinking about this - about what IÆm doing. -

- What? - Kei looked back.

- What if. what if one day we have to fight him? -

Kei shook her head. - IÆd rather not get to that point. We bend it, we mend it, but IÆd rather not end it. ThatÆs an ending weÆll regret. -

Lozanna looked out of her home and into the streets. She wore Valthorn armor, custom made. Her position in the society meant many gave her special rights and access, even when she didnÆt ask for it.

- ItÆs been a while since IÆve visited dungeons. -

Kei smirked. - Well, itÆll get easier with time. -

Throughout Treehome, with the winds of the vassal wars behind us, trade and mostly normal life resumed. Piracy, a problem weÆd pretty much allowed to occur due to the leveling it generated, came back in full swing, this time pitting the pirates against their former clients.

This time, adventurers participated in the defense of the guilds. Adventurers generally tried to stay out of the war between the guilds and empires of the other continents, simply because their nature of work wasnÆt designed for regular combat, even if their high levels made them valuable irregular units.

Most empires and guilds dangled huge amounts of money in the past, during the heated years of the vassal wars, and hoped to entice adventurers to support their war. It worked, to some degree, but some adventurers didnÆt want to offend either the guilds or the empires and decided to stay out of it.

- Once more, nothing from you. Why do you endure these pirates? - ItÆd been two decades since the day Emperor Erranuel ascended to the throne of his holy empire, but we still occasionally spoke. With my reach, it was not impossible for me to contact him even in the safety of his palace. The range of my telepathic abilities had increased, a result of the cumulative increase in levels over the years.

- Why not? It is only the natural course of mortals to attempt to subvert known ways of achieving wealth. Why do you expect me to do something? -

- True. Sometimes, I think nothing is exactly what you want to do. - Erranuel chuckled in his throne room. There was no one present; he chased them out whenever we spoke. But I knew some of the emperorÆs aides were secretly listening, and he knew about it, too.

But a semblance of privacy was better than none.

By most measures, his holy empire prospered since his ascension. His elevated powers brought prosperity, as the average health improved, farming yields improved, and somehow, the earth itself rewarded them with new mineral discoveries.

A king or an emperor bent the luck and destiny of his nation. Earthly minerals and resources were certainly not finite in the traditional, earthly sense. System shenanigans could trigger the creation of new mineral veins, just as how the flow of magical ley lines changed the mineral structure and qualities of the rocks they passed through.

To a certain extent, there was a friendly competition between us. Erranuel wanted his empire to catch up with the Central Continent, and for most part, I didnÆt get in the way. With our domain holders, we remained so far ahead that it would be difficult for them to even think of competing.

I believed it was the open communication between the two of us that allowed this to happen. As the Order expanded into a multiplanar institution, our capacity to monitor and to truly control all the minutiae of local policies and politics was limited.

Already, Stella informed the council of the presence of at least fifteen more worlds that could be accessed directly from Treehome due to the newly unlocked Void Layers .

- Fifteen worlds. Just from us directly through the new void layers. - My council gathered, and I wondered whether we should just send spies to them directly.

But with domain holders at a shortage, using my level one hundreds was an elevated risk because they lacked the protections a domain holder had.

In a way, it was ironic that I didnÆt hesitate a full army to demon worlds, but I hesitated with these alien worlds. This was partly because demon worlds, for the most part, felt like a known quantity. We were expecting demons, not other domain holders or gods. The range of possible enemies was somewhat predictable.

If there was a domain holder hiding in the world of demons, they would be hiding really well. Gods, well, we didnÆt expect them in the world of demons, because gods could easily defeat demons on their own home worlds.

- I hear from the grapevine that youÆre exploring more worlds, - Erranuel said. It wasnÆt that much of a secret. We explored worlds, and we publicly announced that we wanted to explore more worlds.

It was a recruitment pitch, really. People who had that exploratory streak would join us. The curiosity and desire to learn was a valuable quality to have.

What I was truly afraid of, with all these new worlds, was the discovery of a potentially hostile civilization with the ability to travel through the multiverse. If they possessed mind - reading abilities, that meant only my domain holders were the only ones that could interact with them with high certainty that their minds were not compromised.

- I am always exploring. There are many worlds out there, and we hope to find allies among them. -

- If you find our god, let him know IÆd like to speak to him. -

Ironically, we were.

Holy Emperor Erranuel was blessed by the combined blessings of Gaya and Gawa Æs archpriests to create a king above kings.

- We are close to one of them. When we do speak to him? -

- I want to be there, - Erranuel said. - I am a holy emperor of an empire, created in Gaya and Gawa Æs name. But in the end, I want to know whether they care. Whether there is purpose in this foolish conflict that we inherited from the earlier set of Divine Communions. Whether we can end this long - standing conflict and work together. -

I wasnÆt sure. I didnÆt know whether Gawa would be friendly or hostile.

Of all the four major gods of Treehome, personally, I thought it was most likely that Gaya was hostile.

Gaya didnÆt even like spirit trees in his temple grounds. I still remembered their priests kicking me out of their templeÆs garden.

- What if he doesnÆt want to speak to you? - I asked.

- Then there is no point for this faithful one to be faithful, is it? -

- YouÆre the holy emperor. Surely your faith goes beyond such interaction. Is your faith so weak that it crumbles from being spurned? - I countered. I didnÆt know why I was testing his faith, either, but I suspected I didnÆt like how transactional it all sounded.

There were those that believed with all the frills of our societyÆs interactions stripped out, it came down to our expectations. Each transaction led to current or future benefit, or fear of retaliation.

Many people behaved well, because they knew being nice had future payback. If there were no future consequences, only a select few would be nice just to be nice.

Emperor Erranuel chuckled. - Praise Gawa and Gaya, for I am a fool that canÆt see their greatness. If a god doesnÆt speak to me, even as a holy emperor, what more do I expect of my subjects? What more do I expect of the men who I send to their deaths in his name? I continue to believe in him, for his ways are as mystical as the darkness of the skies above, but a holy emperor is holy only because he is the conduit. He is the link between the Heavens and the Earth. If he doesnÆt speak to me, then I must abdicate my throne and choose someone who will be granted an audience with our god. -

- Ah. - That was a sensible angle. He was a holy emperor, because he must speak for his god. Without the ability to speak to his god, he was nothing but a normal emperor. It was a fairly common expectation in medieval societies that the emperor was the god incarnate.

- What is GodÆs Hand, if the hand cannot see God? I see your avatar, the Patriarch and the Voice of A/ , and wonder where I stand. -

I supposed even emperors experienced impostor syndrome.

Satrya, the Home of the Seven Gawa Relics

- I doubt Gawa would actually refuse to see you, - the high priest said. It was the sixth high priest theyÆd met so far, and of the ones they met, two had refused to entertain them. The High Priest of Museo was willing to speak for them, as was the High Priestess of Olpash.

Two in favor, three against.

This high priest shook his head. - I will not oppose it. But I will not support you. It is His EminenceÆs choice. -

- We merely request for the delivery of the message to Gawa . -

The sixth one abstained. He frowned. - Sorry. This is as much as I am willing to do. It is the matters of our god, and a mere mortal as myself would not step in. -

It was a common stance. Those that opposed generally had the same stance, that with the matter of God, Edna would be the one to seek out an audience herself. The priests had no say and should not be seen as working for another god. Even if it was just the act of delivering a message, all matters around their God were dealt with velvet gloves, and they would not dare to even consider modifying old customs and processes.

Faith. It did so much good to their world. It gave them protection and gave them structure. But there were times Edna hated dealing with them.

- Can you imagine our own priests turning out this way? - Ezar said with a scowl.

- They could, - Edna responded earnestly. - We better remind the patriarchs and matriarchs not to be such stubborn fools. -

- ItÆs a balance between accessibility and mysticism, - Roon said with a sigh. The ranger - archer was surprisingly knowledgeable. - With more access, god loses mysticism. -

Edna frowned. - ThatÆs so stupid. A godÆs presence is self - evident. Anyone standing in front of A/ knows that. -

Edna remembered the day when Aiva descended for an audience, and she remembered how it felt. It was truly an unmistakable experience. Those who were there knew who they saw, and no words could explain it.

A god was a god, and there was no need for all this pomp and process. Before divinity, there really was nothing else to compare to.

- But A/ is not in front of everyone, - Roon countered. - Think of it this way: if Gawa is so freely accessible, then it so happens that one can no longer speak to Gawa , will Gawa suffer from a loss of faith? Therefore, the base assumption for a faith is that speaking to a god is only in very, very special situations. -

Edna realized Roon had a point. If the god was always seen as there, then suddenly disappearing would be bad for them. But if he was always unseen, then whether he was or not was of no consequence to the faith.

- But we are asking for an audience? -

- And I bet kings and emperors have asked for an audience, too. That two of six are willing to speak for us is actually pretty good. -

The Council of Gawa high priests numbered seven in all. Seven relics, and seven high priests.

- But this means we donÆt have a majority. - Edna frowned. - We need Lumoof here to convince that old woman to change her mind. -

41

YEAR 267 (PART 2)

Delvegard

Sundus found it quite easy to bribe the existing dwarven lord to resign from his post and hand it over to him. After all, he was the lord of a small town worth nothing; a bit of money and high - quality equipment did more for him than his position ever did.

So Sundus soon found himself lord of the small dwarven town of two thousand dwarves. They worked at a mine that produced regular iron, and they had forges to make high - quality steel, which they sold to the other dwarven cities.

For food, some of the dwarves farmed. It was a matter of great reluctance for the Delvegard dwarves, since they didnÆt like farming all that much. On Treehome or on places like the Eastern Continent where the dwarves had their hidden underground cities, they loved to fund the other races to produce all their food and wheat or buy their food from others. It was for this reason dwarven cities were rarely mono - racial cities, because they needed some people to be farmers and would treat them well to do what they were meant to do.

It was a productive, symbiotic business transaction. The dwarves supplied high - quality equipment and ale, and the humans supplied the wheat, barley, and rye. The dwarves were also stockier, sturdier, and generally better brawlers than the humans, so they often provided protection to the human farmers, who also enjoyed how the dwarves generally stuck to their word.

On Delvegard, there were no humans.

And so the dwarves had to do their own farming. In most dwarven towns, dwarves did their own small - scale farming, where their produce was enough for themselves and for the brews they made. Dwarven homes in Delvegard usually came with a small patch of land next to their existing homes where they cultivated some of their farms, or in more structured cities, there were designated shared lands where the irrigation was centralized.

But in most cases, large - scale farms were extremely rare, except in certain dwarven cities where there was a functional - slave - class or - underclass - of dwarves. This was an underclass of dwarves that were forced to do farming.

- ThereÆs an opportunity here, - Kafa said to Sundus, and Sundus readily agreed. A monocultural dwarven society wasnÆt able to do what they needed to do well. The dwarves farmed, and they tried their very best to automate the process through large magical machines meant to run their farms. This was an option available to the strongest of towns, because automated farming golems were fairly difficult to make. For dwarves who were so picky with the quality of their wheats, the unskilled golem Æs output was still pretty bad.

A farmer with skills and levels produced high - quality food. Materials for brews.

But dwarves didnÆt like being farmers , and those that did were few and far between, and so they became rather precious folks. Despite this, their society looked poorly on them. A dwarven farmer Æs social status in Delvegard was shit, so most of them doubled up as brewers , which was a better - ranked - position.

Still, the split focus and the micro scale meant farming output in Delvegard was low.

Despite farming being an absolute necessity for survival, dwarves in Delvegard generally avoided taking up too many farming skills. They would take one or two just to ensure that they had some viable crops, but no more. In fact, most of them preferred to subsist on a diet of hunted meats, foraged berries, and fruits.

So Delvegard dwarves tended to base their cities and towns near large hunting grounds, large forests with a decent amount of berries and fruits, or near rivers where they could engage in fishing.

- But the options are fairly limited. If we bring in an entirely new race of people to serve as farmers, that is a risk of its own. - The two discussed their options. Disease, environment, and we would essentially alter the racial composition of Delvegard.

In some ways, we were already altering it with our actions, but large - scale import of an alien race to a world like Delvegard did feel a little wrong. It felt like we were introducing a potentially invasive species, even though we already were an invasive species.

The alternative was to engage in import of the common necessities of the Delvegard dwarves. We had the ability to produce large quantities of high - quality food on Treehome. In short, we could be the remote breadbasket of Delvegard and pretty much throw the economic balance of Delvegard upside down.

In a way, we really had three main options, though our ultimate solution was likely a combination of them.

We could start introducing a migrant race to do farming. We also could use my trees and my blessing abilities to boost natural food sources. We could import.

- Actually, - Sundus asked, - whatÆs A/ Æs time horizon for Delvegard? Do we want to take over this world in two years, ten years, fifty years, or a hundred? -

- Fifty. But within ten years we want a solid foothold with at least two to three cities, - Kafa said. - The things we want in Delvegard are people, skills, academies. Things that would be destroyed if we acquired them by force. Our preferred strategy here is to trade and win over, similar to how A/ won over the rest of the Central Continent with trade and pretty much overwhelming power during FreshkaÆs first century. -

Sundus looked at the domain holder and scratched his head. - You need to make yourself into a scary person, if thatÆs the case. Are you going to be the stick that looms over us all? -

The lizardfolk frowned. - ThatÆs. thatÆs still a strategy that weÆll need to shape over time. -

Sundus countered, - Lord Kafa, I hope you donÆt find this offensive, but I believe you are ill suited for this assignment. If Alchemist Alka is here, we should have a significantly better time. His sheer presence as a domain - tier dwarven Alchemist should convince many to join us. -

The lizardfolk actually froze momentarily. But he was willing to entertain the idea, and as the thought swirled in his mind, he eventually nodded. - You are right. But AlkaÆs resurrection is still a decade away. For now, I will have to suffice. -

The dwarven lord could only sigh. - I guess so. -

All the other dwarven lords successfully took control of their new towns. There was hardly any resistance, not when the right amount of money was paid.

These towns were - worthless, - but with the Valthorn presence and all of the dwarves selected from our own academies, our work began.

In some ways, we gave dwarves huge options. With access to the wider Valtorn Order network, the dwarves of Treehome could select duties that they were most suited for, and with a large enough net, we could have dwarven druids , alchemists , blacksmiths , and builders .

We deployed them in these five towns and used their skills to give our new towns advantages. New walls, improved yields from the foraged berries.

As the year reached its end on Delvegard, Sundus finally said his town was ready for the node.

And so I deployed my first node tree on Delvegard.

Mountainworld

Adrian, the last hero of Mountainworld, prepared for battle.

In a year, another demon king would arrive. Fifteen years seemed too short, or too long, depending on how you saw it. Fifteen years was enough for a human child to become a war - ready soldier.

Because on this war - obsessed Mountainworld, a life of war started early.

Fifteen. Ten. Child soldiers aplenty.

- Will you be calling them back? - Lumoof looked at Mountainworld. He was slated to visit Satrya, too, but that was a risk.

I thought about it. It was a suboptimal choice, and the exploration of Satrya took longer than I expected. Partly because I wasnÆt expecting to find a world touched by the gods. - I should. -

WeÆd scouted out the connected demon world and found it to be some kind of wolf world. The demons took the form of gigantic wolves but with elemental powers. Each of the slightly different variants of the horned demonic wolves controlled either fire, earth, or lightning.

The demonic champions were shapeshifting demonic wolves that possessed a demonic form. They were either wolf form or demon form, where they were the stereotypical winged demons with horns.

It was amusing to witness the demons with shapeshifting ability, so I captured some of them for research.

Lumoof wouldÆve balked at this assignment decades ago, but now, capturing a demon champion and overwhelming it with mana?

This assignment was no sweat.

It was nothing next to being stuck in a demon comet.

We hauled three demon champions back to Treehome through the void gates and sent them into my gigantic biolabs.

- That way. - Lumoof looked as the group of Valthorns carried the pacified demon champion. The wolves had been trapped in magical stasis in a kind of crystalline prison invented by Alka a few years before the comet.

It was meant as an anti - hero countermeasure. As a prison for heroes, it was still insufficient, but it proved effective in weakening demons, too, because the combination of anti - mana glass used throughout its structure and magical formations drained the demons of their magical energies.

Once upon a time, this amount of demonic mana would prove too much. But we had changed since then. Advancements, all the little steps along the way added up, and now we had prisons able to subdue a weakened demon champion.

The Valthorns walked through the tunnel.

Here, the Valley of the Unrotten, the presence of magic was sometimes suffocating. The Valthorns gripped their equipment, and their breaths were heavy.

A/ could have opened the valley up long ago.

But it remained the way it was, with only a small opening where A/ Æs canopy reached into the skies.

The rest of the valley remained hidden under the hardened, root - reinforced walls. The sludge was long gone, transformed into regular dirt and soil.

But here in the valley, it was a land of magic. Each tree here was slightly different, and anyone with magical sight would instantly notice the huge cacophony of signals throughout the valley. This was A/ Æs extended mind, large numbers of A/ Æs assistant trees whose sole purpose was to augment A/ Æs sight over the worlds.

There were smaller versions of these orchards of Artificial Minds around each of A/ Æs clones. But here lay the greatest of them all.

Lumoof stopped and looked at a grotesque existence that looked like human brains cut out and piled into the shape of a tree.

Patreeck, the Titan Grand Mind Tree. And there were two of them. There were crystals and gems in them, turned into strange shapes. The crystals and gems were used as connective tissue. Precious metals turned into a web of links throughout the strange tree.

Lumoof didnÆt remember the other oneÆs name. But A/ planned for more of them.

It hummed, and for someone with LumoofÆs senses, he could hear a constant buzz as Patreeck thought.

But this was not where they would be. There was a section where A/ conducted demonic experiments.

Deeper.

There were massive trees here, but to say they were trees would be a stretch of definition. They were all a massive hollow log that could be covered, filled with A/ Æs vines. They would thoroughly examine any creature thrown inside, though its ability to study materials was significantly weaker.

Here, in the depths of A/ Æs valley, there were no concerns that the weakened demon champion could cause damage. A/ Æs presence alone petrified the demonic creature, and his vines pulled the struggling wolf - demon into the log.

It would be torn apart and eventually transformed with A/ Æs mana. Such was normal. One of them was already transformed in the field. But for those that were still purely demonic, A/ wanted to peek into them.

A/ would learn from them, and often, new discoveries were reflected in the beetles. Shapeshifting beetles would be a welcome addition to A/ Æs arsenal.

Lumoof stood and watched. No. He could feel it as A/ Æs vines began to work on the wolf - demon. He could feel the vines pierce the skin and hide of the creature and felt it crawl through its body and grab what was left of the demon championÆs dried soul. It was vivid, and A/ loved studying creatures that it never encountered.

Across all worlds, Valthorn and Valtorn Order operatives continued to harvest and collect new specimens for studies, a tradition that started long ago during the days of New Freeka.

A/ had reached the wolf - demonÆs body, and Lumoof knew A/ had just made a copy of the creatureÆs dried soul spring. He would attempt to rebuild it on Lavaworld later on.

Lumoof noticed the other Valthorn operatives trembling hands as they pushed the second crystal prison close to the log. TheyÆd done this many times, but for non - domain holders, they knew this was face - to - face with the jaw of the beast. They knew it was safe. They knew what to do.

But fear was primal.

Lumoof merely gave them a knowing nod. They had to face their struggles. It was safe. A/ would not hurt them.

As A/ finished digesting what was left of the third demon champion, he concluded his research. Biolabs were one of A/ Æs favorite tools, and he loved experiments. He was also eager to study the Delvegard dwarves and the humans of Satrya, but itÆd have to wait for a while.

- Silver weapons will be needed, - I remarked. This message was delivered to the Mountainworld hero, Adrian. He visibly facepalmed.

- Oh, great. IÆm facing werewolves. Are the others coming to help me? -

- Only Prabu, Colette, and Khefri. Chung? -

Adrian shook his head. - DonÆt have to explain. I get it. -

Werewolf demons were surprisingly hardy, resistant to magic and also blunt weapons. But like their nature, silver somehow pierced through those defenses fairly easily. It wasnÆt too hard to modify some of our existing weapons to incorporate a bit of silver, and many of our existing weapons already had some silver element within them.

My void mages triangulated the location of arrival and prepared for the battle.

In our usual way. The surplus weaponry from the demonÆs comet were redirected for this purpose. Lumoof and the other domain holders would return for this. Their adventures on those new worlds would have to wait for a while.

Satrya

Edna, Roon, and Ezar explored all the relic cities, but they eventually concluded that Patriarch Lumoof would have to be present in order to convince the other two head priests to switch sides.

The head priests of the seven relic cities met once a year for what was known as the Gawa Æs Circle. Gawa himself only selected Gawa Æs Champions after the demon king arrived, and that was a few years more.

In short, they had at least a few more years before Gawa would come. If they had to, theyÆd have to crash a meeting with Gawa Æs Champion.

- Well, letÆs head back, - Edna concluded. - We need to be there for the fight with the wolf - demon. -

Stella would open the portal from the other side.

- You donÆt want to say goodbye to the priestess? - Ezar teased. - I bet sheÆs going to hate you if you just disappear without telling her. -

Roon was about to roll his eyes.

- You promised her youÆd take her on a trip. -

He gulped. - Ah, man, come on, I canÆt be taking a woman on a trip. Not when weÆre going back to fight demons. -

Edna laughed but nodded. - Ezar has a point. I think you need to be more sensitive to how a woman of her age thinks. LetÆs take her with us. -

- What if sheÆs a security risk? - Roon countered. - SheÆs a high priestess of Gawa . WeÆre revealing information about ourselves! -

- Agree on that, too. But at least tell her youÆre going away. I know sheÆs trying to observe you even now. -

Roon flinched. It was true he was notified that his domain blocked attempted scrying.

But there were ways around it. She attempted to scry locations close to them, and it was possible to do so when their locations were not secret.

He frowned but nodded. - IÆll send her a message. -

- IÆm leaving your world, - Roon said via a magical message. He activated an item that allowed him to have a magical conversation. - Also, you can stop scrying now. -

The spell only facilitated a voice conversation, partly because Roon didnÆt really want to see her. - You know? -

- Of course. I keep getting notified itÆs blocked! -

- If youÆre leaving, can you take me with you? -

- No. - The unspoken reason was clear. She was a risk, and they didnÆt want to expose our location.

- My god is not a threat, - she answered, clearly sensing the cause of her rejection.

- We donÆt know about that, - Roon said. Edna and Ezar listened nearby. There really was not much point for privacy in such situations.

- IÆm certain of it. We have a common foe. -

- I hope so. But until we are sure, weÆre not taking the risk, - Roon countered. - If youÆd arrange for the audience? -

- ItÆs all about the audience, - the priestess repeated. - Fine! IÆll tell Gawa ! But if you get to speak to him, I want you to take me to your world. -

The ranger sighed. He wondered why he had this type of trouble. - Look. ItÆs not my decision. ItÆs a collective decision as an organization. I cannot promise you that. Goodbye. -

The magical spell was cut off.

- There. -

Edna laughed. - Well done, but I do think you need some relationship coach. The way you spoke to her was quite harsh. -

Roon shook his head. - Why are you trying to matchmake me with a foreign priestess? CanÆt you just let me date A/ Æs priestesses instead? -

- IÆm not. ItÆs your personal choice in the end. - Edna nodded. - Come. LetÆs get back and deal with a giant pup. -

42

YEAR 268 - DELVEGARD

The security situation in most of the newly controlled towns was stable. The dwarves were fairly respectful of power, and they voiced their disagreements and dissatisfactions in a straightforward manner. In the face of strength, they respected and accepted that and so didnÆt make much of a fuss.

These small towns didnÆt have much concept of pride and its identity as a town or nation state wasnÆt fully formed. This was due to the relatively short history and the lack of unique selling points. As a result, the five lords from Treehome were generally free to consolidate their power and make changes.

It was likely things would be trickier with older dwarven nation - states. These states and cities would have longer history, more pride, and generally a stronger desire to keep control within itself.

But for now, nothing much occurred.

The void creatures found in the mines of the other dwarven cities were nowhere near the five towns we now controlled. But it wasnÆt that difficult to find them.

The dwarves, incredibly, had a special class for it: Sunmetal Prospector .

These dwarves seemed to have an inbuilt radar that detected the presence of these Sunmetals whenever they approached a new land, and stronger, higher - leveled prospectors could even sense their presence just by standing on top of them.

From our informants, it seemed that the dwarven lords themselves usually had some Prospecting or Mining classes because of how valuable the Sunmetal was to their war efforts.

Sunmetal, in other words, was DelvegardÆs gold.

The void creatures were the dragons that guarded them. Large veins somehow generated and caused the creation of particularly strong void creatures, and in Delvegard mythology, there were stories of the Void creatures as the spirit of the Sunmetal, expelled from their flesh due to their crimes.

In those stories, the void creatures guarded the Sunmetal veins like an obsessive spouse and would fight tooth and nail to protect their bodies.

In other regions of Delvegard, another version of the story placed the veins as the remains of an old dwarven god, and the void creatures were the poisons that killed the old god and now feasted on its remains.

Kafa found the stories fascinating and traveled to learn more about Delvegard. His levels and domain made his physique exemplary, and he used it to his full advantage, moving from place to place. We wanted to visit all the large kingdoms of Delvegard and improve our knowledge.

One of the key concerns Lumoof had was whether there was divine presence in this world. We wanted to find out who these dwarves worshiped and whether there were other domain - tier individuals. Most of the dwarves weÆd met so far seemed to believe and worshiped a god called Eras.

But Eras was more like a craft god, and it was a familiar name. We had records of Eras, as mentioned in the Margmarian recordings. But unlike the records in the Margmarian city, ErasÆs faith in the world of Delvegard was more casual and unregulated.

Here, the teachings of Eras were passed down from parents to children and so were twisted in bits and pieces. What was left of the original Eras scriptures were scattered across the dwarven nations, but no one actually attempted to piece them together.

In some ways, the dwarves didnÆt take Eras all that seriously, and the pious was a real minority.

It was a blend of an old faith with dwarven superstition.

One of the largest dwarven factory - academies on Delvegard was an institution called the Delvegardian Yards. It was a large mountain that was hollowed out over the centuries and home to the third largest war machines and factories on all of Delvegard.

It was, politically, a subordinate of the nearby dwarven kingdom of Ruthfyord, but in substance, the factory master of the Delvegardian Yards was the true king of Ruthfyord. Even today, it was the Ruthfyord kingÆs father that controlled the Delvegardian Yards.

Kafa tapped the illusionary device, and it cloaked his presence. He could do so with his scales, too, so the illusionary device was made not to interfere with the functionality of his colorful scales.

Colossal war machines stood motionless in the yards. Here, hundreds if not thousands of dwarven crafters worked on separate parts of the war machines. Some worked on their legs, some worked on their body, and some worked on the weapons that would soon be in operation.

Kafa walked about untouched. In this factory - academy where masters taught their apprentices, the sound of metals banging and hammers hitting steel was the background music. No one noticed the invisible lizard.

He snuck through the vast academy and then into the hangars located on another side of the hollowed - out mountain. They had at least thirty war machines just under maintenance and another ten more that seemed ready for use at any time.

They had pilots. Dwarven Machine Operators , each forming a bond with their gigantic war machines.

The war machines had to be charged. They had large crystal power units, and the operators themselves supplied some of the war machines power requirements. Just as Sunmetals were used for joints, they also used some kind of Sunmetal - crystal mixture for batteries.

I was tempted to steal one and even suggested it. I was fascinated. Such equipment and design were unseen on Treehome, and I believed Alka would love it.

But I was interrupted.

- But what if this leaves a bad mark? Do we really want to start a relationship with these dwarves on the wrong foot? - Some of my dwarven diplomats advised otherwise. - I believe we can obtain this above board, through trades. -

- Very well. LetÆs try trades, then. - We could easily trade void weapons for it. My void mages produced enough void weaponry, but that was something we wouldnÆt reveal. Not yet.

Kafa soon learned that the kingdom of Ruthfyord controlled about seventy war machines. There were a few other kingdoms with such similar size. Most smaller kingdoms and city states controlled two to three such war machines, and even those were of a lower quality than the giants.

The war machines themselves had surprisingly powerful beam weapons, and the legs were pretty much stabbing weapons. By my own estimates, two of these war machines could take down a demon walker.

- Their protections are rather weak, - Kafa noticed as they mainly relied on the natural endurance qualities of the Sunmetal and Sunsteel. - Most of them were focused on energy reflection spells. -

KafaÆs espionage continued, and he snuck through the Delvegardian Yards easily. He quickly detected the presence of a hidden chamber and entered it. The factory master worked on a super - colossus. Ten legs and enough weapons to match ten colossus, it was engineered for the factory master.

It wasnÆt that unique. KafaÆs exploration of the other large factories and academies revealed that most kingdoms worked on some superweapon.

Bigger. Stronger. Each factory master wanted to go above and beyond a war machine.

It seemed even dwarven kingdoms needed a trump card. His visit would be cut short. For now. He would return for another visit.

- Kafa. Time to go back. Demon king coming. -

- Rift emerging. The demon king is departing from the core of the werewolf world. - The void mages on the demon world now linked to Mountainworld sent the message. I wondered how the Canari would react to another canine world, but the wolves of Werewolf - World were shapeshifters. I wondered what sort of people they had when they were still populated.

- Well. Moment weÆve been waiting for. - Edna laughed as she took out a gleaming blade of silver. Everyone was armed with enough enchanted silver to properly stock a jeweler, but in many ways, it was a shame.

We even modified our bombs to embed little bits of silver beads and alloys in order to amplify their effectiveness. In theory, it should work.

But every demon kingÆs skillset was unknown. Demon kings could be resistant to things their demons were weak to. Adrian, the lead defender, prayed. He prayed to his friend. Even his older friends, those that passed away long ago.

Demon King Marchosias has arrived.

The place of battle on Mountainworld was a large forest. WeÆd rigged the place with bombs. The werewolf champions emerged from the rifts and were swiftly shot down.

Then we all felt the demon kingÆs presence. It emerged from the rift, its fur like a living liquid. Once we detected it, the bombs exploded. Edna and the domain holders prepared for battle. I was partly expecting the fight with Multipus first.

The pulse of the chained explosions blasted upward, and I knew it was slightly weaker. Without AlkaÆs presence, some of his skills were inactive, and that impacted the strength of the bombs.

The large forest was instantly transformed into a crater.

It was a pity. I felt pain in my soul when such a large forest was leveled. But I would restore this forest later. I made a note to my artificial souls to do so.

- The wolf is coming. - Marchosias, the wolf - shaped demon king, lunged for Adrian like a furious war god.

It was wolf shaped, but not a wolf, because that was when we saw a few more magical claws and limbs emerge out of nowhere.

- Stay back! - Edna charged ahead, and her silver blade shone like a glorious full moon. She slashed, and the demon king recoiled. Her power was fully activated then, and she tanked the demon kingÆs powerful claws.

Each claw strike contained the power of a demon king, and though Edna took it like it was nothing more than a pillow strike, the aftershocks from each strike still left small craters around the domain holder.

She landed a few slashes, her silver blade leaving magical wounds on the demon king, but it was clear those wounds mended.

The heroes continued to bombard the demon king with spells and immediately noticed how lackluster their attacks were.

- Its magical resistance is astronomical. - Prabu frowned. - Switching to blended magical spells. -

If magic didnÆt work, the heroes were each given a nationÆs arsenal of physical spears and projectiles. They would wrap these projectiles in their magic and use them as bullets, empowered by their hero weapons.

The heroes magical attacks bombarded the wolf - demon and impaled it. Its fur was magically resistant, but physical weapons still hurt it quite a bit. I didnÆt really get why silver weakened it, but I supposed it was some System shenanigans.

The demon pulsed.

We thought it was going to blow.

But it didnÆt. Instead, it merely shapeshifted and transformed into a different form. A smaller, much smaller demon.

Faster. Smaller. Edna tried to step in the way and slashed it. Edna traded a few blows, but the demon king wasnÆt keen on fighting the domain holder.

Instead, it looked around, and aimed at the four heroes present. It tried to battle Khefri and soon realized KhefriÆs armor was too strong. Khefri, the scorpionoid heroine, was quite good at close - range combat, and her natural carapace could take more hits than most heroes.

She traded blows with the second form, and the demon king immediately realized it didnÆt want to engage Khefri in combat. It shifted and tried to target the mages instead. But Prabu and Colette were too close, and they were also protected by my domain holders, Lumoof, Kafa, and Ezar.

No go. I watched it try to attack Roon and Johann, but my rangers move speed meant they were able to maintain a distance.

Marchosias was trying to pick off the weakest member of the party, and domain holders were not its priority. It wanted heroes, and so its sights landed back on Adrian.

Edna immediately retreated. - I donÆt like how itÆs looking at you. -

Adrian laughed. - You think itÆll get me? -

- We donÆt know. It tried everyone and couldnÆt get far. - Prabu and ColetteÆs combined bombardments meant they could sufficiently prevent the demon king from getting close, so that meant only Khefri and Adrian were in the - melee - range. - LumoofÆs with the mages, so IÆll be with you. -

It also seemed quite afraid of Lumoof and my avatar mode. So long as Lumoof was there, Marchosias seemed to understand it wouldnÆt be able to get near the two mage heroes.

Khefri immediately leaped over. - Well, itÆs weakened and looking to pick the weakest of us off. Who wants to be the bait? -

Adrian frowned. - I suppose thatÆs me, since it didnÆt seem to like fighting with you. -

They watched the demon king dodge attacks from my ranged heroes and my roots. It was surprisingly still speedy, and the rift above continued to release smaller wolves.

- Is that necessary? - Lumoof asked as he activated his fury of the avatar . - IÆll try to restrain it. -

The entire terrain was surrounded by roots, and for once, the gigantic wolf seemed tiny. It was a wolf trapped in what seemed to be a mess of vines and woody tentacles. Marchosias immediately emitted an aura, a layer of black energy that formed around its body like a protective barrier. It briefly protected itself from all attacks and my vines.

- A demon king with shields. - Lumoof smirked. - ItÆs been a while since IÆve seen a demon king with shields. Well, letÆs go for it. -

Immobilized, despite its shields, the demon king was a sitting duck.

We charged our weapons and waited for that protective layer to fade. Once it faded, we blew up the demon king.

Demon King Marchosias has been slain.

There was no explosive destruction. The demon king left a core that was tainted by star mana, but that was no matter. The entire crater was seeded with crystals as the remnants of the demon kingÆs corpse transformed into daemolite.

- Well. Time to clean shit up, - Lumoof declared. The Valthorns quickly descended on the forest to mop up the residual energies.

Adrian looked at Khefri. - You know, I had the strange feeling like I was supposed to die today. -

Khefri laughed. - You think too much. With so many other combatants present, you think youÆd die today? -

- Well, itÆs just a weird feeling. Like it was written in the stars, but it did not happen. -

Khefri frowned. - DonÆt say such inauspicious things. ThereÆs still Multipus. -

- I donÆt think so. ItÆs inevitable that we will die. - Adrian laughed. - I just wonder when. -

Cometworld floated through the vastness of the void sea. Its bubble of reality expanded slightly, very slightly. This was a world with no core remaining, so its bubble of reality was maintained by my existence. I wondered whether only domain holders emitted a bubble of reality or whether it was something that all living creatures had.

It floated by places. Darkness.

Its movement in the void sea brought us even further away from the demons, and I wondered where it was headed.

WeÆd been working on manipulating an objectÆs trajectory through the void sea for ages, and even now, we hadnÆt succeeded. With the void layers, we wondered whether this was even necessary.

Perhaps, in one version of the void layers, Cometworld was headed in the right direction after all.

- ThatÆs so optimistic. - Stella laughed.

- But true, - I countered.

- ItÆs like falling upward. -

- The void sea defies all normal types of logic. The void sea is pretty much whatever your mind thinks it is. ItÆs like a painting on a canvas. -

My void domain holder chuckled. - I canÆt wait to start exploring the void layers. We need to hunt Multipus down and be done with this meteor storm. -

The demon king was out there somewhere, on one of the meteor remnants.

I doubted it was consumed by the void. It just didnÆt seem like a thing for demon kings.

Chung was alone in his part of the world. He trembled as his mind weighed on him.

It wasnÆt the demon king of his world. And yet, when he heard that a demon king came for Mountainworld, his mind seemed to strain.

A hero was compelled to fight demon kings. It wasnÆt that strong if the demon king was of another world.

But it tugged at his mind, and he lashed out.

He abandoned his puppet state and found a place in the mountains. There were no sapient beings here, only animals and monsters. He lashed out, his arrows blasting the surroundings. Everyone knew the area was off - limits. It was where the Archer Hero went to blow off steam.

The place was filled with craters and holes. I hadnÆt bothered to repair it and left the mountainous region riddled with all the scars of his attacks.

It happened more and more. Especially in recent years.

I spied on him and realized that he was slowly losing it. Conflict with this hero seemed inevitable, and the only one left on talking terms with him didnÆt want anything to do with him.

Internally, we prepared for conflict. We ran simulations of battle against the hero Chung. If he actually turned on us, the ideal state was a surprise attack.

I didnÆt want to kill a hero.

Yet, as his erraticism grew, I knew that it was inevitable.

I only hoped that there wouldnÆt be too much collateral damage.

43

INTERLUDE: Lozanna ÆS REALIZATION

ItÆd been decades since she saw active duty, but Kei was right all along.

A part of her had wanted to go back now that her kids had all grown up. It wasnÆt hard. It was only hard in her mind.

What was worse was that she knew it was her own mind working against her. A/ said once, apparently, from an old philosopher, that the mind was its own unmaking. It was true, and yet it still happened to her. There were things that were so clearly headed their way, and yet the mind would refuse to do anything.

She stretched, her elven muscles and bones regaining their old flexibility. It was magic. SheÆd even say it got stronger. Since she took the Soul - Strengthening Seed, she felt she was more complete. More whole.

Matters of the soul were hard to explain. The concept of being more whole, more complete, when the soul was already complete, seemed counterintuitive.

But the soul could grow.

The soulÆs density. Its weight. Its presence.

More.

When she was a child, A/ spoke to her at length about the nature of the soul. Of everyone in this city today, she remembered many small talks between her and TreeTree. Even now, she could feel him there, at the very edges of her mind.

A door she could open at any time. A voice she could reach out and talk to.

She remembered that Lumoof once said that if the mind was a house, A/ was like one of the rooms in his mind. It was there, and she felt it was apt. For her, it was a door.

At times, it was like an invisible limb.

It was that door that allowed her to sense A/ Æs return from the Rottedlands.

Long ago, during the days of her travels in the Eastern Continent, she remembered how the door wasnÆt even there.

But these days, even in the Northern Islands, or the mountainous underground cities of the Eastern Continent, that door was still there. She knew what it meant. A/ Æs reach had covered the entire realm.

She could speak to him anywhere and felt the rest of her soul. She wondered why she could sense herself.

A rare ability, the priests and other mages claimed. She wondered whether it was something she inherited from A/ .

The soul grew. It grew when nourished. Each act of - gaining experience - was forming a brick that grew the spring of the soul.

She picked up the spear. When she mentioned she wanted a new weapon, multiple high - level craftsmen volunteered to make her something customized.

Lozanna swung it around as she practiced with her sparring partner, Kei. Her golem opponent used her golem abilities to her benefit. She could create shields of crystal, a temporary - growth - from her limbs, and block her spear strikes.

- You donÆt seem to be in the zone today, - Kei said.

Lozanna laughed as her spear thrust slammed into KeiÆs shield, then followed with a rapid series of jabs. - No. IÆm not. -

- WhatÆs on your mind? -

- WhatÆs on yours? - Lozanna countered. Kei didnÆt like the idea of the League of Heroes all that much, despite being - forced - to accept the task, and Kei believed a volunteer group, composed of people like Lozanna , would work better in the long term.

Kei wanted a mix of summoned heroes and native champions because she saw the flaws of the summoned heroes and believed that native champions could augment the gaps. The summoned heroes were too unstable, despite their power, and strong native champions could serve as their anchors.

Lozanna , therefore, served two purposes. Kei wanted Lozanna to be a counterweight to A/ Æs increasingly expansionist ways. It was impossible to stop an expansionist A/ , and given the state of the world, some worlds definitely needed an expansionist A/ to make up for their lack of support.

Along that path, Kei hoped that Lozanna would also support Kei as the - anchor - of the mixed group of heroes. Of course, Edna or Roon or Johann would have worked as well, but Kei knew that group was part of the exploratory force that visited all the new worlds.

Eventually, there needed to be some kind of specialization. A defense - focused force of domain holders and heroes, and an offense and exploration focused force of domain holders. The worlds out there were too large, and they needed more pieces on the field.

But despite all that, Lozanna told herself she was doing this for the right reason. She didnÆt do it because she was selfish. She was not here to satisfy the hole in her heart.

She lied. She knew it was there.

A gnawing sensation.

She liked this.

She enjoyed it. Far more than being at home.

- Mom, youÆre really going back to the military? - Lauda asked. She had gone through six dungeon tours by then, and this was the fifteenth time he asked.

They were not young anymore. Lauda was an adult and would soon have a family of his own. She would be a grandmother in due time.

A grandmother back in the military.

Laufen, her own mother, once said it was rare for elven grandmothers to serve in battle, but not so for grandfathers. But she wasnÆt just any grandmother. She looked at her own mother and knew the life of a doting grandmother filled with social work and societal duties was not a role for her.

In her heart, her calling was still out there.

She suppressed it during Lauda and ArlisaÆs younger years. Tried her best to dedicate her life to her growing children.

But the joy and lightness in her heart when she sparred with Kei was all she needed. She knew it when she went back to the dungeons and slaughtered monsters. She could feel it in her limbs.

- Yes. ItÆs where I should be. -

- Why? - Arlisa asked.

- Because I enjoy it. - She was good at it. She still was good at it. She may be a long way from being the best, but she was pretty damned good at it.

Lauda understood. - Stay safe, Mother. - But he would ask her again. Her son couldnÆt help but worry. Because doubt never faded. However remote, there was a chance she would not return.

That was life on the battlefield.

Arlisa looked at her mother like she was insane. - YouÆre already so old. -

Lozanna nodded. It was a response from her human half. For elves, and especially Lozanna with the soul - strengthening seed , she felt fitter than ever. - I know. But I still want to do this. -

Level one hundred came a few weeks ago after one of the level ninety dungeons, and her class transformed into A/ ic Phantom of War . A fairly unique class, despite it being an upgrade from the A/ ic Weaponmaster , though Kei said there were about twelve others with the same class in the entirety of the Order.

Her blessings also mutated at level one hundred, turning into the only one in the entirety of the Valtorn Order, First Sentinel of the Tree .

She didnÆt like the name. She wondered whether Yura had it first, and a part of her felt a little torn for taking what should have been someone elseÆs.

That door in her mind felt wider, and the way it linked to her familiar felt stronger. A/ Æs familiars had been able to replicate some of A/ Æs powers, and it was often capped at their own levels.

Someone at level eighty could access a variant of A/ Æs level - eighty ability through the familiar. It was usually weaker. Much weaker. It didnÆt come from A/ directly, of course. The access of power came through the System. The System replicated A/ as a template and granted access to variants of that template.

It was similar to how the Court of the Deitree retained the skills of its predecessors.

She looked at her children. Arlisa disagreed.

- I must do this. -

Arlisa frowned. She knew her daughter opposed it. Her son didnÆt look at her.

Two years later

Lozanna sweated it out in the final room of the secret dungeon. She heard of its existence, but itÆd been a long time since sheÆd delved into the level one hundredûplus dungeons, located deep in the subterranean chambers of Treehome.

Kei smiled. - That went well. -

Lozanna nodded. The boss of the level one hundred ten dungeon was some kind of gigantic thorny lizard. The materials harvested from the lizard would be given to the Order, and they would usually make some weapons or potions out of the remnants.

She formed a small team of Kei, Lozanna , and two other younger Valthorns that were in the early level one hundreds.

They were surprisingly stressed out. Kei and Lozanna were famously known as members of A/ Æs inner circle. Royalty. Elite. Whatever they called it, the two of them had A/ Æs ears, and almost everyone treated them carefully.

After the dungeon, they went to that secret town in the underground chambers.

The nomadic dungeon town. Every building here was movable, and when the dungeons moved, the buildings moved with it. They had to, because the dungeons expired after a while, and the ley lineÆs energy dwindled over time.

Their goal was level one hundred twenty - five. They could get there with the experience seeds, but there was a flaw to it. Someone who worked hard to get to level one hundred twenty - five was going to be a little bit stronger than someone who got there through consumption of experience seeds.

Long ago, Edna and the first generation of domain holders needed to move every other month, because the dungeons energies would be exhausted.

These days, they didnÆt have to move as much, and the dungeons energies recharged faster. The domain holders claimed that it was A/ Æs enhanced vitality after A/ hit level two hundred fifty. Lumoof claimed it was a combination of factors, such as the enhanced energy of Treehome that meant stronger ley lines and also the higher levels and skill.

Kei stretched and asked. Kei asked the same question many times, and Lozanna realized the golem had a tendency to repeat herself. - How long is it going to take for you to hit level one hundred twenty - five? -

- I donÆt really know how long itÆll take, - Lozanna said, but Kei said her leveling speed was extraordinary. In many ways, it was. Lozanna gained three levels when others gained two. Even next to Kei, with her fragmented heroÆs blessing, Lozanna Æs levels were still faster.

But to Kei, it was absolutely normal. - A/ Æs been watching you since forever, and youÆve got all of A/ Æs blessings. If you canÆt gain levels, I doubt anyone else can. -

She remembered LumoofÆs explanations. Level one hundred twenty - five was where things got harder. They had to earn the right to be a domain holder. The System didnÆt like power levelers much at that point, and it was well known that most - blessings - began to dwindle in effectiveness.

Except for the hero shards .

Those divine objects worked at all levels and were so thoroughly broken, Lozanna wondered how the System even allowed the hero shards to exist.

It upended all the principles that everyone else followed.

- Mother, howÆve you been? - Lozanna asked as she visited Laufen in her home some distance away.

- Well. Better, now that youÆve decided to take up arms. - Laufen smiled at her daughter. The two didnÆt look far apart in terms of age; for humans, theyÆd be mistaken as sisters.

Lozanna said nothing. She remembered her motherÆs emotions when it came to her service fluctuated from acceptance, support, to sometimes disagreement and objection. It often depended on the mood she was in, and the news she heard from her social circle. So nothing was said. Sometimes, it was better that way.

Laufen looked at her. - Do you remember when Yura died? -

Lozanna remembered taking Arlisa to visit the place that eventually became the city of Tigashfall. It was a vivid sensation to speak to Yura through spiritual communion, facilitated by A/ .

Something she didnÆt wish to do, ever. But sadly, death forever remained more frequent than she hoped, and she knew A/ Æs priests facilitated that service for the spirits that managed to linger for a bit.

So she nodded.

Laufen smiled. - Good. I donÆt intend to speak to you that way, ever. I hope to see you as one of the domain holders. -

Lozanna let out a long sigh. The path was laid out, but it was not an easy one. - I will try, Mother. -

Laufen held her daughterÆs hand. - ItÆs one thing to see our children die in battle. ItÆs another thing entirely to see our children die inside, hollowed out like a husk. If this is what you want, go. -

The younger elf nodded. - Was it that bad? I didnÆt feel it was. -

- I could smell the fetid stench from my mansion. -

- No, you couldnÆt. - Lozanna laughed.

Lavaworld was different.

ItÆd been a long, long time since she visited this hellhole, and she was instantly disturbed by how peaceful it seemed. There were demonic trees right around A/ Æs clone tree.

Here, she looked at the gigantic tree and understood why Kei and the domain holders had concerns.

A/ Æs clones were infinitely adaptable. They would adjust themselves to fit its natural environment, and here, A/ Æs tree took a hybrid form, a blend of a tree and the demonic energies of Lavaworld.

- I thought A/ limited its use of demonic energy. - Lozanna gazed at the titanic tree; its presence on Lavaworld was a testament, a monolith of natureÆs defiance. Its tree was both green and red, its trunks glowed, and it was filled with streaks of red, blue, and green. Its leaves were mixed, some bright, vividly green, some in a shade of demonic red, and some others withered and dead.

She could feel it here, the throbbing blend of natural energy, demonic energy, and something else. - This is the testing ground, - Kei countered.

- It seems on a larger scale than I expected. I was expecting just a small farm of demonic trees, not an entire forest. - Lozanna looked and in her heart understood the domain holderÆs concerns.

In her mind, maybe it was just their scale of things that didnÆt line up. To A/ , a forest really was tiny. If its trees covered multiple worlds, relatively, what was an entire forest of demonic trees?

It could be just one percent. No, less than that.

But seeing it for itself, it did make her feel a sense of disturbance she couldnÆt quite explain. Lavaworld was a land of magma and lava. If any, what little original vegetation here consumed the minerals and gasses of the vents.

The demonic trees didnÆt attack her at all. No. As someone who could feel a connection to A/ , it disturbed her that she felt that same connection with these demonic trees. A/ was the master of these demonic trees. She saw the demonic beetles crawling between the branches of the demonic trees, jumping, stumbling, falling.

- The demon champion is around here? - Lozanna asked.

- No. ItÆs far ahead. -

- Why are we not teleporting? -

Kei looked around. - I thought you needed to see this. What A/ tries to do with the demons. Learning. Absorbing. Assimilating. Studying our opponents to become better. But the humans once said, just as one gaze into the abyss, the abyss also gazes into them. I fear A/ learns more than he bargained for. -

- YouÆve become really good at propaganda, - Lozanna countered. She felt shaken.

- ItÆs standard espionage and insurgency training. The spies talk about instilling fear. They speak of the gravity of the offense. To show proof, to spin small realities into great horrors. To show darkness such that they drown out the light. To rig the scales by playing with the emotions and expectations within ourselves. -

- And youÆre still doing it. - Lozanna frowned. - YouÆre scaring me about the spy operationÆs insidious nature. -

Kei laughed. - IÆve spent too much time with Spymaster Intip. But the best propaganda all starts with a little grain of truth. By showing angles to the truth. By showing how the same fact can be interpreted wildly differently, just by taking a different position. ItÆs like the void sea. -

The elven lady and the golem walked past even more demonic trees and into an area where A/ bred and experimented on large amounts of demonic beetles. The entire spawning area was filled with purpose - built demonic trees.

- The truth is whatever you think it is. - Kei laughed.

- You donÆt believe that sort of flimsy statement, - Lozanna countered.

Kei laughed some more. - I donÆt. I do believe there is some objective truth out there. I believe there is right and wrong, good and evil. IÆd like to believe IÆm still innocent and naive. -

Lozanna nodded. That sounded a bit more like the Kei she knew. They stood there and watched the demonic beetles emerge from their large tree - sacs. These were experiments, and they noticed each beetle was slightly different. Very slightly.

It was essentially evolution by sheer quantity and brute force. The demonic trees all spawned little beetles. Some collapsed, and their bodies were reabsorbed by the trees.

She felt a bond with them. She could feel them through that door in her soul.

These were A/ Æs.

She knew it.

And she wondered, as her eyes gazed at the strange, alien creatures, whether what A/ needed was really a moral guide.

- Kei. -

- What? -

- I donÆt think my role is to be A/ Æs moral guide. - There were others to guide the ship.

- Oh? -

She thought about her own history. From the very first days of Freeka, to New Freeka, and then to Freshka. She held faith that their tree was there to protect them. Even when it seemed like TreeTree was overwhelmed by the demonic sludge, the entire valley overflowing with demonic energy, it tried its best to protect them.

- Then what do you think it is? -

- To be his first believer. - Lozanna looked at the demons and felt her connection to the world around her. It was not malice. It was curiosity.

A desire to learn.

- Despite how dark and grim A/ Æs actions may seem, it is guided by a desire to save us all. Even if all else fails, I want to believe in it. IÆve seen him in weaker times, and his desire to resist has not failed. Even when he converted demons, even when the demon kings threatened to overwhelm us all, I believe. -

Kei looked around. Lozanna guessed Kei knew people a lot better than she let on. Kei seemed to have a sense of how to press buttons.

- Progress does not come instantly. Progress does not always take a straight line. - Lozanna recited it, but her heart trembled at how it felt so relevant to herself. - Progress often requires us to gaze into the depths and discover where we should not go. When a cave explorer dives into the deep dark caves to find whatÆs down there, our role is to keep the faith and ensure that the ropes for the diver remain secure. We protect the path, for them to climb back out of the darkness. -

Lesser beings could not even try to explore the depths of the demons corruption. The demons would overwhelm them. There truly was no one she knew that could even hope to venture into the darkness and live to tell the tale. If it was not A/ , then who?

Someone had to be foolish, insane, and a bit twisted to venture into the dark and create the first light. To touch the unspeakable, to understand the taint of their corrupt energies, and master the means to reverse them.

Kei smiled. - You have more faith in A/ than you have in yourself. -

Lozanna felt that. - That is true. -

- And IÆd like to say you are born from pretty much the same cloth. Or patch. -

Lozanna shook her head. Her mind thought of Uncle Yura . She wished for many things, but ultimately, she accepted his decision to die a hero.

He died a hero and left a set of shoes that was always too big for her.

It wouldnÆt be possible to fit into his shoes. But she hoped her shoes would walk the path he once did. To continue the journey that ended for him. It just took her more than a century to realize it.

A/ wouldÆve said she wasnÆt ready back then.

She probably wasnÆt.

Now, with lesser worries behind her, she would be.

44

YEAR 269 - SATRYA

The world of Satrya thrummed with the power of the divine. To the others, they were faint strings that required some work to notice. For Lumoof, a man of faith, they shone in his eyes, like markings made of wispy lights. They were the signs of the presence of a godÆs touch.

Divinity, at some point, was how the System flagged the presence of an administrator.

Gawa Æs power was a lot more noticeable in a world like this. The way it threaded in the land itself and how the core of the world was even intertwined with it.

This was Gawa Æs world. Whether it was a - core - world, that was not immediately clear to Lumoof, but it didnÆt matter.

And now, they would crash a meeting of the high priests.

The high priests, or Gawa Æs Circle, as they were called, were having a secret meeting in a mountain far from society. It was one of those secret temples that only the high priests knew about.

For those who were not a man of God, it would be difficult to find it, with the illusion magics and even the presence of strong illusions. But for Lumoof, the presence of Gawa Æs energies made the location as obvious as the suns and even easier for him to trace it. All they needed to do was follow it, like the threads left behind by a hero as they ventured in the labyrinths. The Circle priests were blessed by Gawa .

They said Gawa rarely descended.

The priest of A/ knew that exceptions could be made, and the group followed them to the secret mountain temple. Lumoof wondered whether heÆd meet another god, just like how they met Aiva.

The place was hardly populated, though the presence of the Gawa CircleÆs Divine Guards should be enough to deal with most enemies. They were decked in divine - touched equipment from head to toe.

- What is it with priests and their secret enclaves? - Roon complained as my domain holders stalked the priests. It wasnÆt the first time theyÆd seen secret enclaves. Even back on Treehome, all the temples had secret bases.

- We shouldnÆt be complaining, - Edna countered with a grin. - We have enough secret bases to rival them. -

Roon wanted to respond but realized Edna was right. Valthorns and Valtorn s really had a lot of secret bases all over the realms. It would be the pot calling the kettle black.

They watched, and their own senses stretched. The secret enclave of the Gawa was protected by magic, but they were not prepared for trees. Our trees and grasses grew through the magical defenses easily, and through them, we knew what happened within.

The Circle conducted their secret meetings in an indoor, fairly covered garden with a large airwell. The reason it had an airwell was to allow for Gawa to - visit, - should the divine being decide to grace them with his presence.

That was exceptionally rare, of course, but it was tradition, and so every generation of Gawa Æs circle continued its meeting in this beautiful garden. The entire garden was the very picture of serenity, and as a place Gawa once visited, the touch of Gawa Æs divinity could still be felt even in the ground and the rocks of the indoor gardenÆs walls and pillars. The plants here were radiant and magical, as they were touched by the gods. The flowers here were exceptionally beautiful and flowered without withering.

The single sun - beam through the airwell was somehow at the exact level of strength, neither too harsh, nor too soft, and the small man - made pond shimmered.

It was a place perfect for a tea party.

But instead, it was the venue of the priests secret meeting.

- The demon king will arrive in about two years. How many warriors have you shortlisted for Gawa Æs consideration? - They were a council of equals, but it was often led by the oldest priest in the circle.

Each of them started to name a number. Gawa Æs champions were nominated candidates, chosen from the strongest warriors of the priests. The divine guards were often candidates, as the divine guards themselves, selected by each of the high priests, were all incredible warriors.

But Gawa often required warriors of a certain youth and strength, so older, more experienced guards were omitted.

They needed to constantly replenish the divine guards with talented young warriors, and each of the relic cities created dedicated academies and institutions for such purposes or co - opted existing military structures to function as the feeder institution. The Relic City of Museo had two feeder orders, the Order of MuseoÆs Knights and the Museo High Guards. The Relic City of Olpash relied on the OlpashÆs Gawa Templars to select its divine guards, and the OlpashÆs Gawa Templars recruits from the general army.

All in, the Gawa Æs Circle named about forty names, and by tradition, Gawa would select between five to fifteen to be blessed with the powers of Gawa Æs Champion , and each would receive a special set of ChampionÆs Armaments .

The forty, naturally, would have to face Gawa Æs divine presence. Fainting before Gawa was naturally a rejection.

After the shortlisting of names for Gawa Æs Champions, what followed was mundane administrative matters, such as the coming Gawa celebrations, and other smaller conflicts. This was part and parcel of their yearly priestly affairs, and Lumoof inwardly chuckled at how familiar it all sounded.

The patriarchs and matriarchs of the Treeology had very similar meetings, with even similar topics.

Gawa Æs Circle spoke briefly about the demons, and from our understanding, they were not worried. The demons may win certain battles, but when the divine - blessed took the field, victory was all but assured. The divine guards, armed with divine - blessed weapons, could take on demon champions and the demon knights. The only reason why they were not deployed was because there were not many of them, and most of them were in the relic cities.

According to RoonÆs scouting reports, only twenty percent of the - divine - blessed - guards were deployed outside of the territory of the relic cities. The rest of them didnÆt go very far.

In other words, the suffering of the other cities could be partially attributed to the relic cities refusal to deploy more people outside. The relics were infinitely more important than the life of the cities. It was a case quite similar to how the Valthorns were mostly deployed on the Central Continent and our allied lands.

Eventually, after what felt like half a day, the meeting neared its end. The eldest of them said, - Anything else to discuss? -

- ThereÆs the matter of the otherworlders, - the priestess of Olpash asked suddenly. - Visitors from the other world? -

- Ah. They visited you, too. - Another head priest frowned.

- What did you tell them? -

- Of course I didnÆt tell them anything. Who would believe liars like that? -

- But they are real. They really are from other worlds, - the priestess of Olpash defended.

- Do you truly believe there are people outside of Gawa Æs greatness? - the other priest countered.

The priest of Museo sat quietly. - The power they display is real, at least. -

- It must be some kind of stolen relic. -

The priestess of Olpash spoke up. - I did not detect such things, and Gawa would have informed us? -

Then the unexpected happened. The skies twisted, as if a portal opened in the skies above them. The once - blue skies turned dark, and then, from the darkness, a golden beam of light pierced through the swirling black clouds.

Here, in a land far from the rest of humanity, the skies parted.

Gawa Æs Circle knew immediately. Their eyes widened in shock, and their jaws slackened. The eldest of them immediately prostrated on the floor, and the rest of them followed. The divine guards quickly followed.

Gawa came.

I felt it through Lumoof. The twisting of divine threads, the distortions of reality. The presence of divinity. Familiar, like Aiva, but different. Just slightly different.

The entire world felt it, too.

The beam of golden light shone from the skies above, and in a sudden increase of intensity, it shot what seemed like a golden burst of light. Lumoof looked up, and with our senses, it was easy for us to pierce it.

The light came through a divine portal. Gawa was somewhere else, and I believed we would be seeing a representative.

Edna, Roon, and Ezar looked at each other, and the newer domain holder trembled. Edna looked at Lumoof.

- This is a familiar sensation. -

Lumoof nodded. - I suppose it knows we are here. We will be fine. -

Gawa appeared in the middle of the garden courtyard in the form of a golden shadow. It was as if light itself took the shape of a warrior knight with a golden tail on its helmet. The golden shadow glowed faintly, and it was possible to see the outline of swords and spears in its figure.

A million swords and a million spears. It was as if gazing into a world filled with fights and battle.

- Greetings, my faithful. -

Gawa Circle knelt and did not speak. Their heads were on the ground. Their arms were as well. They waited.

- You may speak. -

The eldest of them spoke. His forehead was on the stone floor. - Lord Gawa . It - it is not yet time for you to select your champions. Is there something else we can assist you with? -

- Ah, yes. The demons. They are coming soon. But I am not here for them. -

The group present didnÆt dare assume anything. So the eldest asked, - What can we assist you with? Say the word and we will do it with all our might. -

The golden shadow shifted and walked toward the eldest priest. - It is not something for my faithful to do. Instead, we have visitors. Eavesdroppers, itÆs time you make yourselves known. -

I didnÆt know how, but the Golden Shadow looked at us. I instantly felt my domain spam me with notifications. This was Gawa Æs realm, and that meant Gawa should monitor this world with far greater attention than the rest.

In a way, this was expected. We saved time and resources. A part of me was pleased that this went as how I thought it would, even if it did occur a little earlier than expected.

Lumoof, Edna, and my domain holders were nearby, but not so nearby. So it was a surprise when their own domains were hit with the flood of notification. Lumoof gulped but nodded.

- Looks like I must face the god. -

Edna gulped. - LetÆs go together. -

At the same time, the priests of Gawa were incredibly surprised and looked around, wondering who their God referred to. - Lord Gawa , do we call the guards? -

The golden shadow laughed. - Guards? You face visitors who would soon be my peers. A thousand guards would not hurt them. -

Lumoof landed right in the garden, and the three domain holders landed behind him. The priests of Gawa all yelped.

- You! -

The golden shadow raised his hand. Gawa Æs energies were so thick that it was oppressive. - Be silent, my faithful. This is a conversation with those a few steps into the divine. Listen well, and learn. -

Lumoof clasped his hand in respect, and Gawa Æs energies bounced off his body. I felt a strong force push against my own, but it wasnÆt enough to push me back.

- Lord Gawa , I am Lumoof, avatar of A/ . I come representing A/ , and we come to seek an audience for guidance and assistance. -

The golden shadow was faceless, and yet it felt like our eyes met.

- I shall now call upon A/ , - Lumoof said, and instantly, the avatar formÆs energies rippled outward. The priests, already suppressed by Gawa Æs powers, now felt my own power flooding the space.

- A newly ascended one, - Gawa Æs shadow spoke. - Greetings, A/ . -

- Greetings, Gawa , - I answered in response, my voice speaking through Lumoof. The priests around us trembled. The divine guards froze in their place. - WeÆve been traveling the other worlds in search of the old gods. -

- I see. Have you met my peers? -

- I have only spoken to Aiva. -

- Ah. The one of the Great Lakes. How is he? -

- Drifting far away. -

- We all are, - Gawa said with what felt like a sigh. - I felt your request to meet through my priests and decided to cut the fats. Let us get to it. What do you wish to tell me? -

- WeÆve found the demon sun, and there is a barrier that stops us from getting close. We ask for your assistance to help us. -

Gawa looked at one of his priests. His eyes were like a beam of light, and it shone on the priest, marking him. - Priest Salazar. Present yourself before A/ . He will show you what he has seen. -

Salazar was the eldest one of the priests, and he trembled. He walked over to Lumoof and knelt before him. - I am at your disposal. -

Through Lumoof, I touched his head. In an instant, through my Dream Academy , I injected Salazar with our memories of the Sun Rings , the demon sun, the black blob, and our detected divine energies within the demon sun.

SalazarÆs eyes widened as if he had gone insane. But he was brought back to the world when Gawa spoke. - Now come to me. -

Salazar walked over as if he was a puppet, and the Golden Shadow touched his head. A ball of light emerged from his forehead and was instantly absorbed by Gawa Æs Shadow.

- Such memories should not be seen by mortals. My apologies, Priest Salazar. It is best if my people do not see the great darkness that festers outside of my worlds. -

We waited as the golden shadow seemed to study the memories.

- This Sun Ring is unfortunately too far from me. I am centered around my core worlds, my existence weighed around my believers. -

- I can bridge worlds with my clones. I can send your champions there, - I countered.

- Access does not change my weighted core, and my resources are limited. -

- Then can you help us, summon heroes and equip my men with divine equipment? Or fight with us? -

- My champions pale before the foul spawn of the corrupted cores. What they send to invade our worlds are not what they have to defend their own, - the Golden Shadow said. - This foe of ours fought us since the earliest days of the realms, and even now it holds one of my peers as its prisoner. It defeats us by attrition over the eons, flooding us with its foul spawn, wearing us down over the millennia, until we are unable to bless enough champions to resist. If you come to request for me to fight with you, I cannot do so. I am weakened by distance from my core worlds. -

I offered an alternative. - If you are too distant, surely there will be some others that are closer. If you know where they are, I will seek them out. -

- I do not, and I suspect my peers would be the same. We cannot take the field with you. If we could, we would have done so long ago. But that does not mean I cannot help. -

I suspected a task was coming.

- You were offered the pact. -

- Yes. -

- Then you know that each of us has a duty to protect the peripheral worlds. These distant worlds where we summon the raw souls from the Immagical worlds to serve as our champions. -

The source worlds. Earth.

- Distance. It is a strange thing. We have a duty to them, and yet each of these worlds consume so much of our energy. So much that I have little to spare for other matters. I hear your request, A/ , and I am willing to aid you. I will forge a weapon powerful enough to shatter the Sun Rings barrier, but to do so, I will need to reduce my energy expenditure. -

If the gods constantly spent their faith points protecting the faraway worlds, they likely didnÆt have much left. However, if the faraway worlds could be - saved - without requiring the use of heroes, the gods would be able to have a - faith point surplus - and could do something with it.

- Help me protect the peripheral worlds. You will have to defeat about fifteen of them and hold it for some time. I will transmit their locations through Salazar. These are the worlds that drained most of my energies. Freeing them will give me the capacity I need to build something for you. -

Fifteen worlds.

- But exercise caution. Even if you shattered the Sun Rings , that same power isnÆt enough to break through the demons foul prison. To take the battle to the demon sun, you will need more than just my power. Seek out the other gods and convince them to lend you their power. I will lend you mine when the time comes. Perhaps together, we could remove this foul sun and free my peer from its grasp. -

- Do you know who is trapped within? - I asked.

Gawa paused, as if examining my memory. - I do not know for sure, but I suspect it is one of the ancient steel worlds, the engineer, Eras. That is ErasÆs true body, and though it is captured and its energies used by the demons, it is not yet dead. -

Not yet dead.

- So long as his corpse remains, Eras can regain his presence. He still has believers in multiple worlds. -

Through Salazar, I received bright locations in the void sea. These were worlds under Gawa Æs rule, but we were so far away from them.

- What are the demons? - I asked.

- I do not know. They fought me ever since the day I gained awareness in this world. Perhaps the ancient one, Gaya, or the First of the Suns, Shura, would know. Once you complete your task, you can return here, and I will see you then. -

- You canÆt help me speak to the other gods? -

- I do not know where they are. We agreed not to pry into each otherÆs affairs eons ago. We agreed to leave each otherÆs core and outer core worlds alone. The war amongst the stars did no one any favors. -

I didnÆt know what to say to that. Instead, I looked around at the trembling priests and priestesses. - And yet you have believers even in my world. -

The golden shadow paused and, as if a realization dawned on him, spoke. - Ah! Your world is a peripheral world, too. I am amused that your world spawns something like yourself. In many ways, this audience is indirectly the fruit of your efforts. Did they send an invasive world your way? -

He must be referring to the comet. - Yes. -

- I see. -

The Golden Shadow glanced at the priests and the divine guards, then back at the papers listing the champion candidates.

- Actually, let us not bless the champions. I wish to see your powers in battle. -

- My powers are fairly limited. - I frowned. I did feel a little set up. - And we fight unfairly. -

- A victory is a victory, regardless of the means. The demons spawn will descend in two years. Help my priests with the demon spawn, and I will redirect my resources where it can help you. -

I looked at my forces. Edna shrugged. Roon and Ezar looked uncomfortable in the presence of a god.

But a demon king was a demon king. Valuable experience to be gained. I wondered whether this was a trap to lure my domain holders here. But somehow, I didnÆt feel that Gawa needed to trap me.

I recalled that they fought us long ago. - Why did you order your faithful to wage a crusade against us? -

Gawa paused. - I did? -

It took a second before the Golden Shadow realized what I meant.

- Then I must apologize. Peripheral worlds are always under attack, and I canÆt spare the energy to scry so far away and study in great detail. -

A war.

So many deaths.

And all I got was an apology.

I couldnÆt help but feel that the gods were callous. But then again, so was I.

If I was in that same situation, would I have done things differently, given the limited information? What if it really was an evil force and I chose to do nothing?

Actually, that was what I did all the time. I usually chose to do nothing until I was sure.

But some gods thought differently.

- We will meet again, A/ . Till then, my priests will extend their warmest welcome for our distinguished guests from the other worlds. -

Gawa vanished.

And the world could breathe once again.

Lumoof looked at his fellow people of faith.

They were of a different religion, but people of faith just the same. - Looks like weÆll have to help you prepare for a demon king. -

45

YEAR 270

- How many damned rocks are we expecting? - Prabu cursed as his biomechanical suit augmented his movement in space. He darted from rock to rock, propelled by his own magic and the vines from the suit, which functioned as extendable limbs, in the way Doc Ock would move about in space.

Rocks popped out of the void by the hundreds, as part of clumps or clouds of rock, usually anchored around a single larger chunk of rock.

On another side of the vastness of space, Colette fired magical spells repeatedly, blasting the rocks.

Despite the seemingly mundane nature of the act, I was nervous. We were nervous.

This was about the time the comet should have reached Treehome in one piece, and there was a demon king that we didnÆt kill.

We were waiting for Multipus.

It was on one of the rocks, and we expected it to appear.

I suspected it was alive. We didnÆt get notifications, but it was likely we wouldnÆt get notified if it vanished midway? I wasnÆt sure when the System gave notifications. Maybe only when we shared the same - world, - and so if I wasnÆt there when it vanished, I wouldnÆt even know?

- More rocks coming it? -

The edges of the reality bubble bent, as if the skies and the stars were a flat lake that suddenly bulged upward. It burst, and a gigantic rock was here.

- All right, all right, volleys away! - Stella and the void mages coordinated the defenses. The space - based ballista and magical cannons were already aimed at the expected entry point of the rocks.

More rocks popped up; this batch was even larger than the one before.

Demon King Multipus has arrived.

- Oh fuck, - I cursed, and the heroes did, too.

Right now, only Prabu and Colette were in space, dealing with the rocks. Chung was back on Treehome doing whatever shit he was doing. Khefri was in Threeworlds, doing stuff in her little queendom. Adrian was still busy with cleanup of the remnant wolf - demons.

My domain holders were scattered, too. Lumoof, Roon, and Edna were still on Satrya, Kafa was back in Delvegard, and Johann was still enforcing order in Threeworlds.

Even though we knew Multipus was coming, we had too many competing priorities that we couldnÆt just camp on Treehome and wait. I immediately sent out a ping and summoned them through my Court of the Deitree , and they were all immediately pulled back from their current worlds.

- We need to support Prabu and Colette against Multipus now, - I declared and prepared to deploy another clone, if needed. I still had a few slots available, and having seen what Multipus could do on the demonÆs comet, I was fairly concerned about what Multipus could do here.

A - swarm - of smaller, multi - limbed, octopus - like demons exited from the larger rocks. They were hiding within the rocks, and their limbs or spines shot out like really long spears and javelins. But this was space, and space was huge.

- Keep your distance and bombard it from afar, - Stella advised through our shared magical network. With the huge distances of space, every attack from the demon king took longer, and so, for Prabu and Colette, they were able to maintain their distance and maintain their attacks.

- Aye, - Colette said as she blasted magical projectiles toward the demon king. - Which oneÆs the true body? -

There were about fifteen smaller demon kings, and each of them contained fairly similar levels of power.

- None, - I responded as Lumoof teleported onto the nearest space - based platform. - Would it be better to force a battle on one of the rocks? -

- No. - Edna arrived soon after. - That sounds like fighting on the demonÆs home ground. Fighting in space is effective against it. -

- But that means we canÆt get near, - Lumoof countered. It was harder to reach the floating, moving bodies of Multipus in space.

- But we have the advantage. We have enough bombardment weapons to take it out. - Roon and Johann arrived next on the space platform. They wore a kind of wooden suit similar to the heroes. - How far can you make roots? -

- These days? Very far, - Lumoof said. - But space is big. -

- We just need platforms to stand. Just support us and weÆll shoot it out of the skies. -

- Very well. -

Prabu and Colette were both relieved to see the rest of the domain holders arrive. - Took you guys a damn while. -

- We were out on other worlds, - Lumoof countered. - It is only natural that we will take some time. -

The multiple Multipus bodies attacked, rolling like gigantic space urchins through space. Its tentacles hardened into spears and spines and attempted to smash into the heroes and my domain holders.

But once more, space was big. We found it hard to hit each other, but we outnumbered the demon king here.

- You know, we shouldÆve called it a sea urchin instead of an octopus. ItÆs more like a sea urchin, - Stella quipped while she helped use her magic to move some of the floating platforms around.

Multipus attacked with a combination of piercing strikes, using its spines to try and hit the heroes and my domain holders from afar. In space, we traded projectiles. Lumoof summoned gigantic roots and trees that reached into space. The domain holders would then hop on them and use them as platforms to get into better firing positions.

The platforms, made from rocks such that trees could still be summoned on them, were transformed into living platforms. A few of the void mages maintained open portals, such that my roots could sustain the trees on these platforms and allow them to give the fighters extra mobility.

- Wait. Multipus is here? - Khefri commented as the news arrived on Threeworlds. - Well, send me there. -

Khefri teleported to my main body, and then she arrived soon after.

The space began to bend some more.

- More rocks incoming! -

Another gigantic cloud of rocks appeared out of the edges of reality.

- Well, shit, - Prabu cursed. - We canÆt destroy rocks and fight Multipus! -

As the heroes and my domain holders concentrated on the demon king, most of the rocks drifted past the first line of defenses and flew toward Treehome. Flying toward Treehome did imply some intentional movement, but these rocks were - guided - to Treehome. They fell toward it, tugged there by its magical gravity.

Our bombardment weapons were concentrated on the multiple Multipus bodies.

- More Multipus bodies inbound! - Stella watched as more gigantic space urchins popped out of the newly arrived rocks. - Keep firing the bombardment weapons! Aim at the rocks, too! -

It was a hard decision whether to aim at the rocks or Multipus.

- Khefri, you should just target the rocks! - Roon suggested.

- No, I wonÆt. Not the best use of my skills! -

There were some additional space - based weapons platforms spread throughout our space, and they began firing weapons at the clouds of rocks. They were very effective on the smaller rocks. Most of them crumbled and turned into space dust within two to three shots.

The bigger ones were hardy. Still, the impact from the projectiles slowed them down, buying time for us to deliver more attacks on them.

Meanwhile, Khefri suited up in a full suit of heroÆs armor and charged directly at MultipusÆs body.

We were weakening some of these giant space - urchins. The spines throughout its body absorbed some of the attacks, preventing some of our spells from reaching the softer inner body. The wall of spines around the body functioned like modern active tank defenses; they launched spines that met with the incoming attacks.

So spells like fireballs and conventional explosive spells were diverted and triggered slightly outside the body. The spells still injured it, but not as much as a direct hit on the inner soft body.

- We need to impale this damn thing, - Lumoof said, but we could only do so if we charged right into that wall of spines.

It was hard enough trying to catch the giant urchins barreling across space. Thankfully, its trajectory was somewhat predictable thanks to the sparseness of space, and it clearly wasnÆt that good at moving in space.

- I thought weÆre supposed to fight damned rock golems! - Roon asked Stella. Roon and JohannÆs magical arrows were extremely effective, and after a while, they took out two of the demon kingÆs bodies.

The heroes themselves also changed their attacks to enchanted javelins, coated in magical power. These were more effective at hitting the body through its thick wall of spines.

Still, Multipus used the spines on its body as anti - missile projectiles and launched them to meet their javelins. Despite this, we made progress. We were slowly taking out the demon king, but the rocks drifted past our initial defensive lines and headed toward Treehome.

On Treehome, my Valthorns immediately activated our early warning system as our defenses swung into action.

- This is a warning from the Central Authority. There are meteors expected to collide into our world in a few days. Please ensure that your underground bunkers are adequately stocked for one to two months of hiding. Please ensure that your bunkers are registered with the Central Authority so that our forces will be able to find you. -

Sky - gazing observatories were able to spot the little streaks of light that were headed to the surface of our world.

It was beautiful.

And a little scary.

We deployed our second layer of defenses as mages, armed with bombs and teleportation spells, teleported onto the surfaces of the larger rocks and began to plant bombs. We also had cannons and various weapons stationed on our moons and nearby asteroids that started to bombard the nearby meteors.

We whittled the meteors bit by bit.

The skies were filled with streaks of light and little bursts in the sky, some occasionally as bright as the sun. Our weapons, firing as fast as they could, bombarded the coming rocks. Our mages worked tirelessly to redirect them away.

The locals wondered what it was.

Was it the day when the skies were lit aflame?

The locals called it the days of Starspark. Some called it the Day of the Falling Stars. For some, safely protected by magical barriers and walls, it was beautiful. Romantic.

But it was not all beauty. There were the smaller fragments that were missed, and most of them burned up as they approached TreehomeÆs atmosphere and magisphere. In areas closer to the Central Continent, our ground - based defenses did their best to intercept the meteors before they crashed.

WeÆd started construction of these ground - based anti - meteor defenses the moment we succeeded in cracking the comet. They came in all shapes and forms. Some were large cannon arrays powered by ley lines. Some were beam weapons, similarly powered by ley lines. Some were shields, since some mages didnÆt like the idea of hitting rocks midair.

The variety of defenses performed reasonably well.

Throughout Treehome, not all of these meteors were caught; there were slightly bigger ones smashing into the ground, leaving craters. Thankfully, the world was mostly ocean, so the bulk of the missing meteors fell into the seas and oceans. A few caused big waves and tsunamis, but they were well within our expectations.

Meanwhile, the heroes and my domain holders battled it out, slowly; we destroyed MultipusÆs multiple bodies. Piercing weapons were more effective, since explosions and blunt weapons were diverted by its gigantic spines.

We used teleportation spells extensively, but Multipus itself generated a small sphere of magical disruption that messed with our teleportation.

We really could use ChungÆs arrows at this moment, but he didnÆt care. He was still too engrossed in his grief and frustrations to entertain us. In fact, I suspected he was fighting the hero class inside his head, because the hero class compelled him to fight the demon king.

This was his duty.

And he didnÆt want to do it.

The two forces in his soul battled.

For us, we kept at it.

MultipusÆs gimmicks were fairly limited in the vastness of space, and it looked like it had things it wanted to do but couldnÆt.

Both sides fought in an uncomfortable environment, and it was quite amusing that the demon king struggled with it more than we did. Multipus might be optimized for battle on land.

As our attacks continued, the demon king seemed to have realized it was running out of options. The multiple giant demonic urchins began to escape and roll toward Treehome. Our weapons and defenses caught up.

- Stop it! - Roon and Johann said. We had harpoon - like projectiles from our earlier days, and we used them to great effect. We attempted to ensnare the multiple bodies of Multipus, to some success.

We caught some and, with a heavy bombardment, destroyed a few of them.

- Some rocks are slipping through! - a void mage almost shouted through our shared communications network.

The skies were lit in beams of light and magic. The heroes themselves went all - out as the two archmage - heroes fired spell after spell at Multipus and the rocks.

- ItÆs gaining speed! - Roon and Johann said as everyone chased after the urchins. Our weapons and spells tried our best to catch the urchins, and we managed to hit a few of the urchins with really strong attacks and destroyed them.

But of the ten to twenty smaller bodies, we only managed to destroy slightly over half of them. The remaining half were all injured to some extent, but they flew toward Treehome at high speed.

- Surface team, intercept, intercept! - Stella roared as her own set of void weapons launched toward the demon king.

- But there are rocks headed our way, - the mages manning the various defensive structures countered. - We canÆt target both at the same time. -

There was no point hitting the demon king with weak attacks. It didnÆt hurt the demon, and our energies were better used dealing with other threats such as the meteors.

- Focus on the rocks, - I said. - WeÆll deal with Multipus once it lands. -

The starry skies were lit aflame as six gigantic streaks of light burned through the outer sphere. Our weapons and magical attacks chased after the remnant bodies of Multipus.

Each world had an atmosphere, and to some extent, a magisphere that protected the world. Stronger worlds had stronger protections from such incursions, though the demons had clearly mastered the art of circumventing these protections through their rift gates.

- Multipus incoming, - I declared as Freshka entered a rare emergency siren.

We found Multipus somehow charging toward Freshka directly, which I found amusing. It must have felt my presence and determined that I was the threat they needed to eliminate.

Out on the streets, there was panic as the sirens blared.

- WhatÆs happening? - the folks asked.

- Demon king incoming. Expected to land somewhere around Freshka. Please seek shelter or teleport out immediately. -

Freshka quickly emptied out as I used my teleportation abilities to send people out of Freshka and toward the rest of the city. My domain holders and mages continued to attack Multipus body as it spun through space and pierced through TreehomeÆs atmosphere.

Around this point, I created a huge wall of shields around Freshka as the six injured bodies of Multipus crashed in the lands around us. Its impact on the land around us caused huge shockwaves that smashed into my wall of shields.

The bodies did not move for a moment, and that was the opportunity we needed. Lumoof teleported down and immediately charged into one of MultipusÆs bodies.

His body glowed with the Fury of the Avatar as huge, magically empowered roots pierced one of the bodies. It died instantly.

Edna landed right next to the another MultipusÆs bodies. She took the spines to her flesh unharmed and slashed right into its actual body.

My roots attacked the remaining four bodies, and though I injured them, it felt like they still lived. I immediately wrapped my vines and roots around the remaining four bodies, and I felt it struggle against my vines.

I attempted to drain Multipus of its power, my vines immediately sucking the familiar demonic energies of demon kings.

Hate.

All I felt was hate. We destroyed two of MultipusÆs bodies, and the remaining four were not in good shape. Lumoof quickly teleported to the third body and once more, with his fury, crushed the third body with an empowered piercing root - spear.

The three remaining bodies melted through my cocoon of roots and immediately tried to merge. I battered the remaining bodies with my roots and weakened it some more.

The melted bodies reformed and then reshaped into something resembling a golem.

Only to die.

The heroes and the rest of my domain holders arrived, and they came with the heaviest barrage of magic and weapons.

It died before it turned into its golem form.

Demon King Multipus has been slain.

YouÆve gained 6 levels. You are now Level 265.

Your abilities and skills have been strengthened, range decay for abilities and skills reduced.

46

YEAR 270 (PART 2)

Multipus was defeated after what felt like a prolonged campaign. Even if the final battle on Treehome was anticlimactic, I was relieved that it was finally, finally over.

There were still some remnant rocks to destroy, and the skies would continue to be filled with momentarily sparks of light from our magical attacks. Some would streak across the skies and burn in the atmosphere of Treehome, creating beautiful meteors.

Now we could redirect our attention to the other issues.

Chung.

I watched him from afar and through my vines and trees. His situation eroded.