TREE OF AEONS 3

- Grandmaster Engka once said you were the templeÆs secret weapon. - Lozanna wanted to roll her eyes, but she resisted. She internally regretted taking EngkaÆs bargain. ItÆd been a decade, and the temple still made requests for her. She wondered whether she should just say no, now that she had a child of her own.

- IÆm afraid IÆm no such thing. - Lozanna bowed. - I happen to just carry out too many Aivan TriumvirÆs requests. -

The lord smirked. - No matter. You will need to do a task for us. I received a divine quest from both Gawa and Aiva to rescue the new heroes. -

- New. heroes? - Lozanna paused. What the hell? Why did the gods summon new heroes? Did something happen to the ten heroes?

In the Eastern Continent, news was rare. Communication channels were few, and information like the death of the ten heroes was a massive secret known only to the upper echelons of the priesthood and the kings. Rumors spread, but with travel in the Eastern Continent extremely difficult, it was an extremely slow move.

Locals all wondered what took the heroes so long to slay the demon king, and for Lozanna , it suddenly made sense.

Lozanna agreed. Even if the task was difficult, heroes meant a solution to the demon king problem and a path for her new family. The alternative was a perpetual quarantine in this city that offered nothing much.

They found the heroes hiding in a small cave, with a special compass from the priest of Gawa . Three young heroes, hungry, dirty, and weak, hiding in a cave. There were demon-drakes that flew overhead.

- Come with us. - The young heroes didnÆt have much of a choice. It was starve or take the only opportunity they had.

They had to fight a few demon drakes on the way back, but ultimately, they didnÆt encounter any exceptional number of demons or the more powerful demon-drake champions.

- Tough day? - Ardi asked as Lozanna walked back to what had been their home for the past three years. They didnÆt have much food.

- Yeah. - Lozanna sat. Lexi played with Arlisa in the small room they had. The Playing Swords disbanded two years ago when most of the team died during a massive demon-drake attack. Ardi, Lexi, and one other swordsman were all that was left. Ardi and Lexi both decided to call it a day. They were both not young anymore; the years displayed themselves on their hair, their skin. Even if Lexi still looked good as her holy powers granted her a slower rate of aging, she too had grown weary from the fighting and travelling and wanted a break.

Space was surprisingly abundant. Many of the cityÆs denizens died when the demon drakes attacked, so there were plenty of uninhabited accommodations.

- I met heroes today. Three young ones. -

- Eh, what happened to the previous ten? -

- I. donÆt know. But if there are three new young ones, that canÆt be a good sign. -

Lexi paused and nodded. She was a priestess, too, and she knew the rules about heroes. The gods only summoned new heroes if the previous generation all died. If there were three new ones, it only meant the previous ten all died. - ItÆs probably something you should keep to yourself, Lozanna . -

Lozanna paused, and she, too, realized the implication. - Thanks for the reminder, Lexi. -

Ardi nodded. The demon drakes raided every city on the continent. The cities that survived all relied on their heroic artifacts, but even then, those only granted a short period of protection.

- Lexi, what does the demon king do after it wins? -

- I donÆt know. The scriptures all didnÆt speak of such an event. -

The Dwarven City in the Mountain, Gurdarim, was one of the five mining cities on the Eastern Continent, and part of the Dwarven Miner Federation. Each city was ruled by a lord, but the lord may as well be the king of each of their own cities.

There was a massive chamber in the middle of the mountain, the rocky ceilings reinforced with magically enhanced pillars and plates. Home to almost a hundred thousand at its peak, now it was home to a third of that, only thirty thousand.

They purchased one of the abandoned units from the city hall a few years ago, and it had a small garden. There was no sunlight, but magical stones acted as artificial lights.

- Do you think weÆll be trapped here forever? - Ardi asked Lozanna that night. They sat in the garden, both with a cup of tea. Lexi and Arlisa had gone to sleep earlier.

- I hope not. If there are new heroes, that is a good sign, - Lozanna said. - Even if they seemed really, really weak. -

Ardi smiled and sipped on his tea.

- We donÆt have a way out, sadly. - All the ships in the nearest port city were all on official missions, either to deliver goods, carry men, or carry critical supplies. They had attempted to buy their way out, but even the merchants rejected. The surviving kingdoms paid top dollar to the merchants to deliver the necessities.

Many more merchants had been essentially nationalized during this period of time, and they operated shipping routes that supported the military.

Even if the heroes had died, many cities still chugged along, protected by heroic items so freely given out a few decades ago. Still, they were stressed, as the heroic items had a long recharge time, and if the demons attacked frequently, they would eventually break through the defenses.

Gurdarim, too, had one heroic item in its treasury, a massive mirror that collected energy and would release a heat ray that destroyed anything in its path. Still, it had an extremely long recharge time of two months, so the city reserved its use for the demon champions. Any lesser attack had to be repelled by the defense force. Some of the surviving cities had more heroic artifacts, and although that meant they had more weapons at their disposal, those cities were attacked more often.

Blasphemy, when Lozanna highlighted that the demon kings could sense the presence of heroes and their star mana.

But what else could it be?

A few days later, Lozanna was summoned again.

- The heroes must leave the Eastern Continent to somewhere that they can train. - Lozanna immediately thought of the Rottedlands, but she kept her mouth quiet. She knew that the priest would immediately say she was a heretic for even suggesting it.

- And? -

- We want you, along with our elites, to escort them to the port city on the western coast. WeÆre not sure which city will be safe when you get there, so Port Helas, Port Kelah, and Port Lawad are all on standby. -

Huh? What did such a statement mean?

- ThereÆs a large pack of drakes spotted. Fifty drakes. - The adventurers and veterans next to Lozanna immediately gulped. One of them quickly said, - Milord, thatÆs too much for us, even if we are escorting heroes. -

- CouldnÆt the heroes handle them? - Lozanna asked.

- ItÆs. complicated. - The priest sighed. - They are unable to use their powers for the time being. -

Lozanna frowned. That didnÆt sound good at all. There must be a catch.

- The demons are looking. If we keep them here in our city, a large army of drakes will soon attack this city. For the good of this city, we must take them away. -

- How could the demons find the heroes? CanÆt we teleport them away? - Lozanna asked.

- WeÆve recently noticed the presence of some kind of magical interference. WeÆre not sure what. and we do not dare to risk it. And as strange as it seems, we must face the evidence that the demons are able to see the heroes. somehow. -

The priests, of course, shook their heads. - The demons must have found a way to twist the gods blessings. But regardless, we must escort the heroes of the city. The gods command it. -

Lozanna mentally eye - rolled. - So escorting heroes past a large pack of drakes is your preferred solution? - Lozanna challenged the lord, and the lord frowned.

- Alternatively, - a priest said. - If there can be a big enough distraction, a team of adventurers with fast horses can rush the heroes to the port city. -

One of the adventurers present suggested, - Maybe theyÆll just go away? The demons may just move away after some time. -

- ThatÆs a possibility. We could wait, but like I said, weÆre painting a target on our back. -

- May I speak to the heroes? - Lozanna suddenly asked. She wanted to know how useless or what level these heroes were.

- Sure, - the priests said. She gave a light nod and left the discussion.

Lozanna found the three heroes in one of the houses provided by the lord. They were practicing with weapons. - Hello. -

- Hi. Are you one of the lordÆs people? - one of the guys asked. The three heroes were two boys and one girl. The girl immediately smacked the guy.

- SheÆs one of those who came for us. -

- Oh. Definitely the lordÆs people. -

Lozanna smirked. - May I? -

They nodded, and Lozanna sat on a wooden stool next to them. They continued practicing, at least, one of them. The girl was the first to talk. - Why are you here, lady? -

- IÆm Lozanna . IÆm one of the independent combatants employed by the lord. I just wanted to talk to you and get a sense of why weÆre having this issue. -

- Oh. - The three heroes just stopped.

- IÆll be direct. Is there a problem with your powers? - Lozanna wanted to understand what the priest meant by - unable to use their powers. -

The three heroes fumbled a bit. One of the boys was first to answer. - . yes. -

They sat together, and the boy, Alvin, was the one that explained. - Uh. itÆs complicated, but when we died in a bus crash, we met this god. He called himself Claude, and he said, well, we were summoned under extraordinary circumstances. -

Lozanna nodded. - Go on. -

- So, he briefed us quickly that the earlier group failed, so we are now tasked to fix the mistakes. But because we are an emergency team, we had a bit more restrictions. One of which is that our powers are locked for one year. We can level in our ordinary classes, but Hero is stuck at level one, and our Blessing of the Gods is inactive. ItÆs also locked for a year. -

Lozanna nodded. They were essentially regular people, then. - Why do you need to leave the continent? -

- Uh. we canÆt even fight the drakes. ThereÆs no way we can level, - Alvin repeated.

The girl, Kei, then added, - And Claude, that god fellow, said we should get out of the continent and come back when weÆre stronger. -

- I see. -

Hans was the other boy. He just nodded along. Alvin continued. - So we asked the lord to help us. We go back to the easy places, farm ourselves to a higher level, then come back and kick the demonÆs ass. -

Kei smacked the boy. - Stop talking shit, Alvin. -

- Hey, IÆm just saying weÆre gonna kick those demons asses once we have our hero powers. WhatÆs wrong with that? All we gotta do is survive for a year. WeÆve already survived a month! -

Lozanna just smiled. - IÆll come over and practice with you kids, all right? - It was weird to refer to them as kids, because they were the heroes, but Lozanna had to admit they were kids. - At least, until you get your ticket out of this place. -

- All right! -

Waiting was a good choice.

About a month after, the flock of demon drakes attacked somewhere else, and there was a small window of opportunity. They quickly rushed the heroes to the port town. Lozanna also took that chance to get her family to the port city.

But there were no ships willing to take them. All seaworthy ships were used for the military and temple affairs.

- We say goodbye here, Lady Lozanna . - Kei bowed. - Thank you for practicing with us and telling us about the world. -

- ItÆs fine. Remember, itÆs a secret you can tell no one else. - Lozanna spoke of her experience meeting Harris, the other heroes, and of the Freshlands when they practiced. The three heroes nodded. To them, it was a perspective different from what the priests had shared.

- WeÆll keep it in mind. - A ship would take them to the Southern Continent, where they would grind and practice for at least a year and get their Hero levels up. The heroes left that day. As for Lozanna and family, they searched for ships to take them to the Central Continent. None was available, even if they were willing to go to the Cursed Continent.

Then Lozanna stumbled on the old dockyards, where many damaged ships were under repair. Some of the ships were in terrible condition and had been put up for sale. That was when she had an idea. The ships were made of wood, after all, and her Warden allowed her access to some of A/ Æs rather strange abilities, even if they were weaker.Æ

- If I buy the ship, can I sail it wherever I want? -

- Uh, well, yes. ItÆs your ship. But weÆre full. WeÆre busy making ships for the army and the merchant corps, - the dock manager said, and she soon confirmed it with everyone else. Lozanna just smiled, and she thanked A/ for Warden.

So she bought one of the damaged ships. They were adventurers; naturally they had money. Furthermore, the damaged ships were cheap, and since repairs would cost a bomb, no sane seagoing merchant was going to pay a lot of money for a ship that couldnÆt sail.

Ardi returned from the tavern with a crew and a captain. It wasnÆt hard to convince sailors to sail with them; all that was needed was money.

- So. whereÆs our ship? - They were all gathered before the unrepaired ship, its wood in some parts rotten and broken.

Lozanna climbed aboard, sat in the middle, and in an instant, there was a green flash of light. Her body temporarily merged with the wood of the ship, and it was as if the ship itself returned to life. Rotten wood started to heal and broken pieces regrew. It took about an hour, but to the crew and captain, it was strange to see a ship heal itself.

Woodcrafting and Wood Magic . In the same way she and Warden could create wooden spears out of thin air, linking to wooden structures and revitalizing them was just an extension of that ability, taken to a larger scale.

- All right, letÆs go, letÆs go. This ship will not fail as long as my magic feeds it. WeÆre getting our asses out of here. -

It was a rocky journey; the oceans were not known for pleasant weather. But with a ship that didnÆt break, and Lozanna even able to directly steer the ship by linking Warden to the wooden rudders, it wasnÆt that bad. Just a bit of vomiting here and there.

They also fought some monsters along the way, nothing too large or scary. Mostly just common ocean pests. A few of the crew died from sea - monster attacks, too, but eventually, after two months of sailing, they finally saw land.

64

YEAR 142 (CONTINUED)

This year, one of my FTC graduateÆs class transformed into A/ ic Lord . I donÆt recall ever seeing any of the nobles obtaining such a class, so its presence was quite a surprise to me. I was able to upgrade a class to its A/ ic variants, but so far, no lord or noble had ever approached me to do so.

So, rather than be assured, I suddenly felt that all my nobles were not as loyal as I thought they were.

- Perhaps itÆs a matter of faith, rather than loyalty, - my artificial minds suggested. - I believe many are loyal, in their hearts. You are their King . But not their God . -

Hmm.

That was certainly possible. The mechanisms of faith were not truly understood.

At the same time, I revisited my Anointed King class again. If I gave it to him, what would happen? Perhaps the A/ ic Lord was an entry - level class into the whole path of A/ ic - aligned noble classes?

Kraviek, the relatively young student, was a treefolk noble. It was appropriate, I supposed, that the treefolks were the first to believe in my divinity. A young sapling in his mid - thirties, he was born in the early days of the Freshlands and grew up in a merchant house in the inner segments and then later was granted his own territory as his family was one of the pioneer settlers of the outer segments.

The treefolk had been one of the first to embrace my divinity, so my artificial minds suggestion certainly had a basis.

- Kraviek. - I spoke to the young treefolk lord, and like all my other A/ ic classers, I could sense him very clearly.

He immediately prostrated in the way treefolks always had. - Praise the Tree. - PatreeckÆs scan of his memories and thoughts was like flipping through the mind of a zealot. One who believed everything. Faith and more. - Please, how can I be of service? -

- Well done on achieving your class. - I started with praise. I wanted to know more from the person. - You are the first I know of. -

- You honor me, your holiness. - Holiness? That didnÆt seem right. I certainly was not holy.

- I prefer to be referred to as A/ . -

- Yes, A/ . -

- Tell me, how do you feel about your new class? What does it do? -

Kraviek was still prostrated on the floor. - My level twenty A/ ic Lord granted me a mix of A/ ic Weapons and Blessed Lands , which supports agriculture, husbandry, and forestry. - I see. So the A/ ic Lord was essentially a nature - focused lord, similar to a druid and lord. A variant, I supposed, of the druidic lords.

Progress was made on our anti - air research. WeÆd developed beetles able to fire thorny projectiles, similar to a mobile anti - air tank. The choice for thorny projectiles, instead of their own body parts, was simply because we wanted to amplify the damage dealt by using anti - demon wooden ballista bolts. So, a battalion of ballista - beetles could carry a load of three to five anti - demon bolts each, which they could then use to rain death on an army of flying demons.

They would unfortunately be defenseless once they exhausted their anti - demon bolts, but no matter. I was still quite proud of Horns.

This was like a medieval beetle version of a V2 rocket launcher.

If I wanted to make beetles with unlimited ammo, it was possible, but usually that would compromise on their range and their actual damage output. So if I wanted beetles who could provide long - range support with high amounts of damage, separate ammunition from the launcher was a good idea.

After all, IÆd been making anti - demon bolts all this time!

The next matter was an issue of force projection. I was now a continental power, and as a continental power, there would be occasions when I needed to project significant force in a particular location. Currently, I could do so by spawning multiple Giant Attendant Trees , but I believed that was insufficient.

So I decided to activate my second Titan Soul on the Walker. The idea would be to make the Giant Walker into a mobile anti - air fortress, loaded with all the anti - demon bolts and ballista beetles. That way, I could station it on the eastern coast, facing the Eastern Continent.

The Walker, I hoped, would be a walking Aegis supercruiser.

At the same time, my master woodworkers and war fletchers focused on making stronger, more powerful anti - demon bolts. Together with mages, who wove and enchanted the bolts with flight and target - seeking abilities, these were the magical equivalent of second - generation surface - to - air anti - demon projectiles.

This was a development that started five years ago, when we found out about the flying drakes, and had roots in the first anti - demon bolts and spears. Next up would be to figure out a way to cram more soul - power into it, essentially adding nuclear - tipped weaponry into my arsenal.

The WalkerÆs corpse, now covered with trees, bushes, vines, and animals who lived in it, shook. It was as if the ground itself broke apart. New trees emerged as the Titan Soul lodged itself in the center of the massive corpse, its rejuvenating energy repairing broken limbs and making new ones out of wood and stone.

It took a while, about three months, for the Titan SoulÆs energies to imprint itself on the massive building, and then finally, it was ready. When it first rose out of the overgrown forest around it, the entire city was immediately on high alert. They thought a monster had appeared.

We even received requests for help from the nearby kingdoms when they saw the massive tree - covered walker starting to walk.

- Do not engage. That thing is a special minion of A/ . -

The massive Walker mentally contacted me once it was fully awake. - Walker reporting for duty. -

- Ah, yes, I must grant you a name. You shall be Hytreerion. Your first assignment is to walk to Freshka, where you will be outfitted. -

It took about a week for it to walk from Lilies lake to Freshka, guided by my artificial minds. As it was so large, it had to take a path away from residential centers. Perhaps for my artificial minds, it was similar to guiding a massive truck.

Once it arrived, I had Hytreerion loaded up with Ballista - Beetles, a massive armory for all the anti - demon bolts and weaponry, and also it needed to be outfitted for habitation. Hytreerion came default with multiple rooms, similar to empty customizable rooms .

- How many people should be in the crew? -

- Demon walkers donÆt need a crew. Why should this need a crew? -

It was slower than a beetle, but it could walk without ever needing rest, so in long distances it would be just a bit faster. But since it needed to detour around habited spaces, it would still take longer to get anywhere.

In the end, after I explained just a few key traits of the Walker, the Valthorns eventually developed a crew. There would be at least two upgraded classers, one Great Druid and one Sharpshooter , and a few Commanders .

Outfitting Hytreerion took a month, and we spawned a special biolab in HytreerionÆs back, which allowed the person inside to communicate with Hytreerion and provide navigation guidance. I expect Hytreerion to be mostly guided by my artificial minds, but I had to prepare for the possibility that my communication network could break up should the demon king have a massive jamming ability. After all, it happened once; IÆd be a fool not to prepare for it again.

During the process, HytreerionÆs presence was a havoc of its own.

The Treetiary College students had a mixed view of my presence, and Patreeck detected multiple messages that spoke of Hytreerion to the rest of the continent. Even though we were technically on the same side, there was still a huge amount of suspicion among each other. Some of them were rather factual; a lot were just hyperbole. Some had a mix of worry and suspicion that IÆd somehow managed to create a walker - class creature.

For the Treeology priests, they were more deferential. They converted one of the customizable rooms into a prayer room and even asked for a Tree of Prayer to be placed in the walker. They spoke of this as a fact of divinity.

The commoners were just disturbed for a few days, and then they got used to it.

The Valthorns and the Valtorn Order were just busy outfitting the Hytreerion. They got to see it and the ballista beetles that had settled into the tree - towers on HytreerionÆs back up close.

Once Hytreerion was ready and fully equipped with all the anti - air weapons I could cram in it, it made the slow walk across the continent to the eastern seaboard of the Central Continent. I reckoned that the demons, should they arrive, would come from the east. They were not going to fly a curved path, unless there were islands that they could stop along the way.

I continued to experiment on the Tainted Demon Crystal Core , and I struggled to comprehend it. I could tap into the aspect of the core that was a native, but IÆd not been able to activate the other part, which was the demonic energies.

- Maybe itÆs not a good idea to use it. - I wondered whether using demonic energy was a step too far, in the same league as blood magic. If anything, demonic magic would make me a target for the heroes. The heroes had some kind of demonic - sensing ability, so using demonic mana would instantly flag me.

Still, IÆd deal with that later. Even if just for the knowledge.

Small battles broke out during the year, and we captured a few more temple - navies. Some of them just surrendered without a fight, and some attacked the cities outright. It was strange, but the navies were getting desperate, and the blockade began to crumble.

At the news of the navies deserting their blockade locations, more kingdoms pulled back their navies.

It happened rather quickly, too, and suddenly, there was no blockade anymore.

It ended rather naturally and did not even require any offensive from us. It was a big letdown for the young sailors and navies who were itching for a big break - the - blockade kind of fight.

I supposed that was how wars were lost sometimes; the logistics and planning at the back of it all just crumbled.

Now that the blockade was over, it was a lot easier for pirates and merchants to sneak to the other continents. They would have to quickly disguise their ships and attire to fake themselves as locals, but that was a lot easier than fighting a navy. Some of the ports usually would be willing to turn a blind eye if the right amount of money was paid.

So news from the other continents trickled in.

It seemed that there were three new heroes, and all appeared on the Eastern Continent, right in the battlegrounds. They were saved by the templeÆs forces, who had been forewarned. Were the gods of the temples the same one that summoned them? I remembered having this conversation with Harris, Mirei, and Gerrard, and they were not sure. It seemed like there was some kind of overlap, but it was also possible the gods took different forms with different people.

They were trying to escape, though, and that stirred a bunch of rumors about the new heroes being eunuchs or impaired.

Then. Lozanna returned. At least, she and her family, plus a lot of others, sailed a wooden ship to one of the ports. The ship was in bad shape, but it seemed that their skills somehow allowed them to escape and navigate through the ocean.

Laufen was overjoyed. Everyone close to that group was relieved. I felt relieved, too.

At first, when the ship landed, no one knew who they were. But the moment she landed on the shore, the Eastern Coast was filled with my trees, so she was immediately in the range of my telepathic communication. So once I told Yura , a huge convoy of beetles was on the way.

That was when I met little Arlisa. The young one - year - old half - elf toddler girl. There was something about her that was different, the way her soul seemed to resonate with my spiritual vision so easily.

Was this because of Lozanna Æs overlong exposure to my energies and the familiar? The second generation was therefore more adapted to it?

Why was I even thinking of it from an evolutionary angle? Maybe she really just was special and was born with a special gift, like how Indra had his gift that gave me this vision.

Tree.Æ

It wasnÆt a voice. But more of a thought.

TreeTree. Arlisa could respond to me telepathically even though she was only slightly more than one. I thought that was way too early.

- Uh. your daughter. -

- SheÆs cute, right? - Lozanna smiled, and she introduced Arlisa to her grandmother. Laufen was just overwhelmed. SheÆd been away for years and now she came back with a kid? What was she supposed to think?

- Why didnÆt you contact us? -

- I couldnÆt. All the normal communication lines were interrupted, and my flying birds kept getting attacked by the drakes. -

For the rest of the crew, we offered them hospitality in the port city. They were in a continent that was said to be cursed, at least for the past ten years, so they had a lot of preconceptions to adjust to. Most of them were just massively surprised to see normal people instead of mutants.

For Lexi, Ardi, Lozanna , and Arlisa, they were on a convoy of beetles back home.

- IÆm going to stay put for a while, - Lozanna said.

- YouÆre only staying put because you have a daughter, - Laufen teased her.

- Well. maybe thatÆs true. - Lozanna shrugged. Once back, Lozanna soon told me about what she learned from the heroes and her time in the Eastern Continent. There were parts she omitted, but she was not aware of PatreeckÆs abilities, so I soon learned of her house arrest by the Aivan church and her subsequent contract of community service.Æ

The heroes were handicapped. They would take a while before they were even able to kill the demon king.

All this pointed to one thing.

Why was the demon king not more aggressive? This sort of circumstance should result in an aggressive demon king. Unless something resulted in it not being able to do so?

Did the earlier generation of heroes almost win, so that the demon king was still recovering?

Or were the demons programmed to just go to sleep even if it did win? If so, what was the point of this conflict, then?

More importantly, why did the gods even give the new heroes a handicapÆ? They must have weighed their chances, and the gods must know something. Was the demon king unable to move for the next one year and that was why the gods did this?

Or was the handicap just an outcome of the second time summoning within a short period? I wished I could ask more, but Lozanna Æs knowledge only went so far. Maybe even the heroes didnÆt know the answer. But the gods must know about the handicap, so the fact that they went ahead with it meant they knew the chances of survival were decent.

The new heroes have a handicap. Do you know why? Lilies was one of those I asked.

The acts of the gods are puzzling. We know not the reason, either.

Puzzling.

I had Lozanna Æs daughter, Arlisa, tested in the biolab. The young toddler was turning two, and I wanted to know what made her able to respond to me telepathically.

As I dived into the young childÆs soul, I noted it was still unformed; there was a small spring in the middle without any bricks around it. The shores were still shifting and moving. This was normal for young children; I recalled Lozanna herself was unformed at that age. Then I noticed a little green crystal right in the spring.

Inherited A/ ic Compatibility (hereditary - 2 generations) - Skill transforms into Blessed by a Soul Tree if conditions met or will be lost.

Inherited Skills - (locked) - will transform to new skills on maturity.

- If Lozanna Æs able to pass on skills, Master, I believe Yura and Laufen may be able to pass on skills, too, - Patreeck said. - Given Yura Æs level and his unlocked soul, it would be highly likely that he can pass on a good number of skills. -

Uh.

- We should also consider those with the upgraded classes like Edna, Faris, whether their descendants will have inherited skills. If we can merge their skills with those from the nobles, it would create individuals of extremely high potential. -

Yes, yes. But why didnÆt everyone have inherited skills? Everyone had their own parents, and their parents all must be of a certain level. Surely there must be some condition.

And why was this the first time IÆd seen a hereditary skill? IÆd heard of it from Patreeck and the nobles, but surely IÆd seen so many Valthorns and so many others. Or did all the hereditary skills transform into a regular skill once they hit a certain age or just disappear? If they all transformed, perhaps IÆd been looking at them when they were older, and the hereditary skills by then had already transformed into something else.

Or was I looking in the wrong place? Or perhaps, like my soul forge, I needed a different lens to view them?

- Anyone else have Blessed By a Soul Tree? -

Patreeck immediately came up. - Based on the last checkup of the Valthorns, there are six others who possess the skill. But their blessing is only the basic level, not like Lozanna Æs advanced blessing. -

Ah. Problems of an empire, IÆd delegated most of the biolab Æs scanning to my artificial minds. But I couldnÆt be mentally everywhere at once, even if I sort of was everywhere physically.

- I want to observe all the Valthorns and upgraded classers children. This includes nobles. I want to know how this hereditary skill thing works. -

- Glad you finally agree with hereditary experimentation, Master. -

- I have not agreed to it. IÆm just analyzing the details. -

65

YEAR 143

WeÆd made contact with a few secretly dissatisfied kingdoms, and of them, a few more agreed to establish covert trade relations. Rather than fly any national flags, the trade would go via ships that looked like, behaved like, and were manned by pirates. Privateers, essentially.

We would also need to arrange with some independent islands to act as trading intermediaries to cover up the paperwork and trail, disguising the origin of goods. WeÆre a pariah state, at least in the eyes of the four temples, but clearly not all kingdoms thought so, even if they couldnÆt disagree publicly, given how far we were. I supposed weÆre like a certain nuclear state in that sense.

It was also a good way to formally engage many out - of - work merchants that had already turned to piracy anyway. So, the FFA organized a project to convert a few of the smaller port cities into pirate dens, where all these out - of - work merchants could start their new careers as state - sanctioned privateers and merchants.

This was where the Trade Lord , that young noble from before, volunteered to take up the task of changing the port cities for this purpose. One of the allied kingdoms was rather miffed, but we offered to compensate him for letting us run one of the port cities in the form of tax revenues. Someone else was going to accept the terms, anyway.

I spawned a few more artificial minds to track the ships that called on the ports. There was always a risk that real pirates would then come to these fake pirate dens, and the only way we could spot them was if we tracked the ships that were on our side and those who were not. The crews could change, too, so the artificial minds were there.

One of these fake pirate dens was in a swampy area, and IÆd imagine it looked like some pirate movie, complete with the mist and faint glowing lights that lurked in the swamp trees.

Swamps.

That was a relatively new territory for me, in the sense that there was still a lot of research to be done on swamp - adapted plants. IÆd used the biolab to analyze quite a few of the swamp samples over the past few years and did gain some understanding, but my focus had been on anti - air weapons and expanding the anti - air and anti - humanoid competencies of my beetles and spiders.

I did have the magic poop - resistant plants from a few decades ago, so those also could be considered a type of swamp plants, but those were more of a freshwater - swamp type of plant.

The issue, really, was saltwater. These swamps were next to the sea and ocean, and saltwater tended to make the regular plants feel dry, and they would die quickly. I also had to quickly pass barriers for my roots, so as not to draw too much salt into my root networks. My main body was adapted to all kinds of environments, and that also included saltwater, so I could control my roots behavior to a certain extent. But maintaining a connection to the saltwater and swamp plants meant placing some filters in place.

If I wanted to ever cross the ocean, the first barrier IÆd have to pass was to develop saltwater - adapted plants. That was ignoring all the other issues such as high underwater pressures, monsters, possibly underwater druids, underwater civilizations, and possibly even eldritch monsters.

IÆd probably start by finding a small island somewhere across the sea and attempting a small crossing. Conceptually that should not be so different from growing a root under the riverbed. Especially if the roots were deep enough not to be affected by the saltwater.

Anyway, I digressed.

The demon king had not been spotted leaving the Eastern Continent. After the collapse of the blockade, and also from Lozanna Æs experience on that continent, it turned out that a lot of small cities had managed to survive as they went underground.

By Lozanna Æs own measure, though, about 70û80 percent of all kingdoms had been destroyed; the actual casualty rate was probably around 40û50 percent as most of the citizens had fled once the demons started to expand. This even included nobles and royalty, who fled to allied kingdoms, or those with blood relations on other continents. The few kingdoms that were left were usually maritime - focused nations that had cities based on the islands or those who built their cities into mountains or other easily fortified locations.

Yet no demon king was spotted. The demon drakes had been flying and attacking the maritime nations, and so far, only the demon-champion class giant drakes had been spotted. I used my magical sensors to try and understand what was happening and couldnÆt detect anything, either.

Also, that batch of heroes did arrive and attack the demon king, and they were slightly above level one hundred, all of them.

So I was predicting that the demon king was either injured rather badly that it needed to recover, or there was some residual energy left by the heroes that kept the demon king immobile, or the demon king itself could not move by nature.

If it was the last one, that would be a great relief to the world, but that certainly didnÆt align to the drakes.

- No one has seen the demon king itself, actually. Only the heroes have dared venture close, - Lozanna said. Now that she was back in Freshka, sheÆd taken on the role as one of the Valthorns military trainers, together with Ardi. TheyÆd decided to put down their adventurerÆs hats and settle down as educators. For now.

When she was younger, Lozanna did not have much talent. I recalled that I had to feed her so many memories and dreams before she developed combat sense. Or maybe she was just a late bloomer.

But somehow I thought Arlisa started with a natural aptitude. Even as a two - to three - year - old little girl, she seemed like she easily mimicked the movement of her mother. I wondered whether it was because it was her mother that was teaching her, rather than anything genetics or inherited, but somehow, something told me she was gifted.

I wondered if I concentrated my resources on her, would I make her way stronger? Still, that family had been through so much, so I decided to look elsewhere.

Now that there was almost an entire continent under my observation, it was possible for me to spend more effort to spy and locate talent.

To most of the civilians, they thought I derived this ability to locate talent by some kind of soothsaying or predictive ability, but in reality, it was just a massive network of observation trees, artificial minds to crunch the data, and then a layer of reviews. So, for very young children, I actually didnÆt know anything, since the data needed to be gathered over a long period of time. This meant the earliest we drafted someone to join the Valtorn OrderÆs early - stage academies and training camps was around seven or eight years old.

In a way, my observations of Arlisa constituted special treatment from me. Which was partly why just last year I started screenings for the children of nobles and those of retired Valthorns and Valtorn Orders, and so far, I spotted some hereditary skills. Indeed, most hereditary skills were transient, in the sense that they would transform into another skill at a certain maturity period.

That age differed by race, by skill, and by many other factors, which I had yet to understand, and I needed a larger, larger dataset to form anything conclusive. I wanted to institute mandatory screenings of young children in a biolab at ages three, and age five, and then age ten, but from Patreeck and the other artificial mindÆs assessment, such screenings would be resisted.

If anything, I needed to mask it as something else and preferably tap into faith and religion.

Already, the priests performed some kind of ritual on young children, similar to blessings. So we decided to expand the blessing ceremony on young children so as to include a ceremonial dip in a biolab.

Of course, the biolab would have to be shaped and formed to be compatible with the priestÆs blessing ceremony, a baptreesm at ages three, five, and ten, if I may borrow from the religions of my world. The one aged three and five would be blessing with some additional nutrients and healing. The one aged ten could be the coming - of - age ceremony.

I gathered my Patreearchs and Matreearchs to roll out the new baptreesm process. Again, ceremonies, processes, and rituals were things priests loved. It gave them power and purpose. For the people, it gave them peace of mind.

All for the purpose of gathering a massive dataset and assessment of the continentÆs talent pool. This was a massive undertaking only Patreeck could handle, and even then I had to set up more artificial minds to take on the recording process, which led to me unlocking a new tree type.

Unlocked new special tree type - The Registree.

The Registree is a library of data and can store all kinds of information.

Yura sat one day and said something random. - ItÆs easy to believe that people are destined to do what they are meant to do. After all, we are not heroes. But sometimes when I look at Lozanna and remember how her parents were just ordinary elves, I think to myself maybe itÆs really possible for people to exceed what they were originally destined to do. Even me, I thought IÆd cap out at level sixty so many years ago, but since then, so much has happened, and now IÆm a level ninety - nine Warlord. -

- You need one more level to hit one hundred. - But I thought his comment on destiny, perhaps this register I was building was very much like a caste system, wasnÆt it? That I classified people by their innate talent and forewent the part on people working hard and striving against the impossible.

- I know. -

- Do you want to cheat? - I offered him one experience seed, wrapped up in the shape of a fruit. I had a few hundred experience seeds anyway, and IÆd been hoarding it forever. IÆd always wanted to use it, but I reckoned there must be a restriction of some kind.

He smiled, and he bit it. - We need every edge we can get at this point. -

Once he finished eating, he felt his body ache, and then his entire body started cracking. Those cracks appeared and then disappeared; it lasted for ten minutes. Then once it was done, he smiled.

- Wow. -

- Wow? -

- IÆm a level one hundred Warlord of A/ . I suppose I shouldÆve seen that coming with KraveikÆs A/ ic Lord. - Yura laughed. - Good skill, too. -

- Good? -

- Steelwood Barriers of A/ . - Yura laughed. - I can make your shields with the same strength. - Essentially, with this ability, he could stop demon walker attacks!

Still, for a level one hundred skill, that was quite a letdown now. But since I was on the topic of children and hereditary skills, I just casually asked, - Yura , do you ever plan on having kids? -

Yura laughed again. He laughed for a good ten minutes, then he stopped. - You know, sixty years ago, Casshern actually gave us a simple briefing on what to expect from Spirit Trees. For other spirit trees, it was common to receive questions about family, our intentions to breed, and they would bless our children. I was quite relieved that you didnÆt do any of that, so now, sixty years later, I wasnÆt expecting that question! -

Well, a part of me wanted to know whether his kids would have the kind of hereditary skills like Arlisa!

- If I meet the right person, maybe. - Yura smiled. - But as of now, IÆm fine being a lone twig. -

Trees now covered large swaths of the continent, and the Rottedlands itself had been cut into multiple slices by rows and rows of trees, kind of like a pizza.

In a way, the entire continent had never been so green and had so much forest cover. It even altered the weather; some places that were once really hot started to become bearable, and some colder places warmed up. Rain also started appearing more frequently in the once - dry zones.

Forests generated their own microclimate and amplified the creation of rain clouds.

Milestone achieved: 300 billion normal trees linked on the Central Continent.

The milestone triggered a level gain.

You gained a level. Level 170.

New Domain Ability obtained: Gift of Accelerated Growth.

Once a year, you can cause any one person to hit Level 60. Activating this ability gives you a full read of a personÆs classes. You may assign the additional levels. Does not work for those above Level 60. Does not work for Hero class.

New Domain Ability obtained: Gift of Accelerated Skill Evolution.

Once a year, you can upgrade any one individualÆs skill of your choice by one tier. Does not work on Hero or Divine skills.

I immediately wanted to test out my evolutionary powers, and my target was once again Yura . HeÆd been my guinea pig since so long ago, and once again, he would be again.

The new ability was activated by a simple touch of a vine. Instantly, I could detect all the skills that he had, and they were separated into pools, which seemed to correspond to their types. He had his old villager skills, then those skills that were from his original diplomat and fighter skills, and now warlord skills.

This was a special time - restricted power. Once a year wasnÆt so bad, really. That meant ten skill upgrades every demon king. Not bad, in my opinion.

I instantly chose the steelwood barrier. After all, it was his level one hundred skill. Naturally, I should use it on his strongest skill. Of course, it was entirely possible some skills, when upgraded, became far more powerful than even the level one hundred skill.

Still, I had time, and now I just wanted to use it.

It evolved into Triple Steelwood Barriers of A/ .

Whoa. Cool. Now I needed to figure out who to use it on next! Could I use it on Lozanna or ArlisaÆs Blessed by a Soul Tree ?

A lone ship sailed across the Southern Oceans. It was a fast, well - equipped, and heavily armed ship. It came to one of the ports on our southern coast, and instantly the military was at high alert. It flew the flag of the temples.

It wasnÆt aggressive, and it did not display any weapons, so the ship was escorted to the portÆs most distant dock just in case it carried explosive gems or weapons. This was, by and large, a trading port. It had just a few navy vessels in the dock.

A Valthorn was thankfully in the city at the time, Iasenos, a level fifty - three Centaur Spearmaster , so he ran to the port, fully armed and ready for a fight.

The ship docked, and out came adventurers.

- The Cursed Continent, - they said.

The soldiers and Iasenos tensed up. That was a horrible way to start. The adventurers didnÆt look that interested.

- DonÆt worry, weÆre sailing off soon. - A young girl hopped off the ship. The adventurers quickly climbed back up their ship, and then the ship started sailing.

- Uh. You guys arenÆt even going to come with me? - The girl sighed, and then she turned to the soldiers. - All right, uh. hi. - The soldiers looked uncomfortable; their weapons were ready and armed.

Iasenos put up a stern face.

They stared at each other for a few seconds.

Iasenos then started talking. - All visitors from abroad are required to fill out the necessary forms. Have you completed your documentation? Do you have your papers? -

The girl froze and shook her head. - I. uh. -

- Do you have a merchantÆs trade letter or an endorsement letter of your identity from your local authority?Æ

- I. no. -

- Are you travelling on a diplomatic license or a messengerÆs assignment? -

- No. -

- Then IÆm afraid you must come with us to our detention center and answer a few more questions. -

She nodded. - Okay. - She was dressed also in typical adventurer armor and weaponry. At this point, I had not sensed her; only my artificial minds were monitoring the situation. In the detention center, she was interrogated by the Valtorn Order.

It was when she finally explained who she was that the artificial minds sought my attention.

- My name is Kei. IÆm, uh. one of the three new heroes. -

Iasenos paused as he processed the information. He quickly chased everyone else out of the room. - New. heroes? The one from the second summoning? -

- . yes. - Kei stared at the centaur. The centaur merely stared back. He was quickly using his familiar to reach out to other Valthorns in the region. He took a few deep breaths and formulated a mental response.

- Why are you here, then? -

- IÆm here to claim the hero weapons. The one left to us by my predecessors. -

- ThereÆs no such thing, - Iasenos lied.

Kei frowned. - I refuse to believe that. Take me to A/ . -

- What gives you the right to demand an audience with our divine tree? - The centaur played hardball.

- IÆm a hero. -

- Prove it. A hero should be able to use star mana. -

She paused and sighed. - I. uh. my Hero class is still low. I canÆt use star mana yet. -

- Then what do you have as evidence of your Hero status? -

She thought about it for a moment. - Well, star mana isnÆt the only hero thing, right? May I demonstrate? I do need to be outside, though. -

Iasenos nodded. - Come. -

In the port city, the Valthorns building was a small one, an additional building built next to the existing local ruling governorÆs building. Outside, there was a small field for the local recruits to practice.

She sat and then floated. - Ship - mode . - Instantly, a magical frame appeared around her body, and it was shaped like a. shipgirl with a magical frame of cannons and guns at her side. - I can transform into magical adaptations of my world, and itÆll get stronger when I level. Does that count as sufficient evidence? -

She honestly sounded embarrassed explaining it. A shipgirl. Seriously. Who came up with that idea?

Iasenos paused. - That could be just some sophisticated illusion magic, but very well. I will raise a case with the regional Valthorn leadership for further advice. Until then, take this. - Iasenos gave her a wooden belt. - Tie this around your leg. That way, we know youÆve not fled. -

- If I am a hero, I could just break it. -

- If you break it for any reason, then we know youÆre not a good person anyway, even if you are a hero. So itÆs in your interest not to break it. -

Kei smirked. - I see. -

66

YEAR 144

After a bit of bureaucracy, Kei and Lozanna finally met again in Freshka.

- Hello again. Has the restrictions on your class lifted? - Lozanna asked.

- Yes, it has, Lady Lozanna . - Kei bowed. Lozanna was pretty much an old auntie for the eighteen - year - old Kei. - IÆve leveled a bit after fighting regular monsters, but still, my hero levels are way too low. Only in the lower twenties. No way near enough, if what you told us last time was true. -

- Well, the Rottedlands is a fine anvil to hone any Hero into a worthy shape. I may even take you there myself, but I have a kid to care for. - Lozanna shrugged. - WhereÆs Alvin and Hans? -

Kei waited for a while, pondering her response. - Uh. -

- They donÆt believe me, right? - Lozanna laughed.

- . yeah. They, uh. theyÆre really into the stories and legends the priests and temples fed them. So I had to travel alone. -

- Well, youÆll soon realize this continent does have its own propaganda. -

There was a period of awkward silence as both sized each other. Kei then continued. - You spoke of A/ Æs, uh. weapons. A stockpile of hero items. IÆd like to have them. -

- It is not mine to give, but A/ Æs. The previous heroes entrusted the task to A/ . It is for you to prove yourself worthy of them. -

Kei nodded. - How may I do so? -

- First, weÆll need to get your levels up to at least level seventy. Without star mana, the items are useless to you, for they respond to nothing else. -

- I canÆt be waltzing into the Rottedlands by myself, right? IÆm only level twenty in my hero class and level thirty in my soldier class. -

- Well. thatÆs actually one of the best ways to level quickly. Put yourself in trouble and fight your way out of it. Or we can spar a bit more under A/ Æs auspices and blessings. -

- Would that make much of a difference? - Kei asked.

- It will. But first, a familiar, - Lozanna said. - My black vines are from my familiar, and I am certain A/ wants you to have a familiar before he grants you access to the facilities available here. -

- Is that a must? -

- Yes. -

- Okay, then. - I gave her a familiar at the temple, then they used one of the many training rooms , with Yvon present, too. Yvon as an upgraded training tree would also have an effect of accelerating her level gain.

When Kei arrived at the end of last year, I had to decide what to do with the hero. It was clear I could not kill her; there was, after all, a moratorium on killing heroes until the demon king died, and I wasnÆt going to risk a divine curse. I already had a suppressed demonic curse to deal with.

So, after some consideration and discussions with the many different councils, I decided assisting the heroes was the best choice. Get her on my side, and at least if the other two heroes were nasty, itÆd be me and a hero versus two heroes instead of me against three heroes. It was also better to learn what they knew and discover how their powers worked. I would even offer her a familiar and reap the benefits if she died, just like the earlier bunch.

So far the gods had not warned against taking my familiars, so that was a good thing. I wondered whether they really hated me or they were just testing me in some kind of divine game.

Or maybe they didnÆt have the ability to communicate directly with the heroes. The people of the world could receive divine messages, but I had not heard of stories where the heroes received divine messages.

If the managers of the reincarnation process, Mozart and gang, were not the same ones as the gods who summoned them, it was entirely possible that certain messages didnÆt get through. Thinking back, Mozart did refer to the gods as if they were someone else. Or perhaps it was just a trick. Like seemingly different shops in a shopping mall all owned by the same person.

Anyway, I decided to help her along.

- Level sixty! - Kei said after two weeks. She was quick, and the regular hybrids of the Rottedlands were now too weak for her. A level sixty hero was easily stronger than a level eighty spearmaster or grand knight . It was just the nature of absurdly powerful classes like hero . Every few levels, a bit more of her regular mana transformed into star mana.

By level one hundred, all of her mana would be star mana, though she could change it to normal mana if she so desired. At least, that was how the earlier heroes had it.

- My two friends are only in the forties back in the south, and still they refuse to come here! -

- Well, a bit more for you to go. Perhaps level ninety, then A/ will see you. -

- All right! -

The next thirty hero levels came after four months of constant grinding. She had to travel the fractured Rottedlands to look for the giant hybrids, because only the massive hybrids gave her sufficient experience. Still, it was exceptionally fast levelling speed, but for the heroes, it still felt too slow. Still, I chose level ninety because I recalled one of the first few heroes I met unlocked their heavenly forms at that level.

KeiÆs level ninety skill wasnÆt heavenly form. Instead, it was Heavenly Guns Array . It created a massive star manaûpowered fortress around her with multiple magical floating flak - cannon lookalikes. They had a large range and clearly were meant to take out aerial opponents.

She was, literally, a walking anti - air fortress. A shipgirl. I had to resist really hard to ask whether she knew what a shipgirl was.

- Damn. Finally, back to civilization after hitting level ninety, - Kei said, finally back in a large city after spending her last few months camping out in the towns along the Tree - expressways. Those towns were her save spot as she ventured into the Rottedlands.

We granted her a small escort, mostly as a guide. There really was no need to attach an upgraded Valthorn with her, since her levelÆs already quite high, so her escorts were mostly a few regular A/ ic priests for healing and a small squad of regular Valthorn soldiers and rangers.

She quickly visited Lozanna . Somehow, Lozanna Æs her guide, even if she was still busy with Arlisa and just as a trainer.

- IÆm level ninety now. Can I meet A/ and claim my weapon? -

Lozanna just bowed. - IÆm afraid the right person to assist you is Yura . -

- Oh. -

She met Yura in the Valthorn Fortress and quickly made her request. - Yes. I believe A/ has been expecting you. Before that, there is someone A/ wants you to meet. -

- Kei, this is Astia. SheÆs a human from your world, I believe. -

Stella just nodded. She was nervous, afraid, and yet excited to meet someone from her own world. - Hi. -

- Hello. - Kei just nodded. - YouÆre. not a hero? - She scratched her head, baffled. Stella just smiled at her question.

- No. IÆm an accident. Collateral damage. -

- ThatÆs. really strange. And rather than let you die normally, they sent you here? -

- Uh. yeah. -

- Did you. die in a bus? -

Stella answered; she was more nervous. She now wondered why she even agreed to this. What did she want out of this meet, anyway? So what if the hero was from Earth? There was no way they could help her, was there? Those thoughts immediately made her blurt out, - Uh, do you know how to go back? -

Kei looked at Stella as if it was a strange question. - Why would I want to go back? This world is awesome. I get magical powers, I can slay demons, and I get to live like a queen once I win. -

Stella immediately realized Kei was just like the first batch, the kids. They wanted to be in this world. - Oh. I see. Well. uh. good luck, then. - Stella gave a wave and walked away.

- All right. Can I claim my hero items now? - Kei immediately changed the subject.

Yura smiled and led her to a nice garden with a gazebo and a small area. There were cookies, fruits, tea, and some other refreshments. - Well, IÆll take you there, but first, a short break, shall we? IÆve got some questions to ask as well. -

- Oh, okay. - She sat down, took a sip, and started snacking.

- Well, first, on behalf of A/ , what do you think is the role of a hero ? -

Kei paused. - Is that a trick question? -

- Not really, A/ promised the previous generation of heroes that he will grant you a hero item, but he merely wanted to be sure. -

She took another sip. - I donÆt know, actually. The god we met, his name was Claude. He said we were, uh. emergency summons. Our mission was to destroy the demon king, and we would be rewarded for it. Hero Æs probably too big a word for me. I donÆt think IÆm a hero, at least not yet, so I suppose you could consider us. uhm. demon exterminators? -

- I see, I see. - Yura smiled. - Have some cookies? They are good. - Yura took one and ate it, too. - Are you aware of the history of heroes and the demon kings ? -

- Yeah, I mean, I got the broad gist of it. The priests we met told us about how the world had regular demon kings and us heroes are summoned to fight them. ItÆs just the way the world is, a constant cycle of destruction and rebirth. Evil monsters from the beyond and heroes to stop them. -

- Well, lately, the destruction has been far too heavy for the world to bear. It is no longer just a regular forest fire, but an inferno that engulfed a continent. If there was a way to stop this cycle, would you ever take it? -

Kei froze at the question and seemed to have a headache. She didnÆt respond for a good minute, her eyes blank. - Uh. IÆm sorry. It was just really difficult for me to think somehow. - She took a big sip of tea.

- ItÆs okay. - Yura smiled. - Take all the time you need. -

- I think thatÆs a choice not for me to decide. I mean, the god entrusted me to slay the demon king. I think I should do it. ItÆs my purpose, you know. -

- Is it really your purpose or a purpose that was placed on you? -

Again, she took another big sip of tea and ate some of the fruits. - Whoa. WeÆre onto some heavy conversations before I get the hero items, arenÆt we? -

- Well, have you not wondered why itÆs so natural for you to want to kill demons? Why with such passion and determination? -

Kei seemed to struggle to respond. - You know. these questions are really making my head spin. I donÆt know, but demons are the bad guys, right? IÆm given all these powers to kill demons, so what do I do if not kill demons? -

Yura smiled at the young girl. - Surely, when all you have is a hammer. -

- Everything looks like nails, - Kei continued. - So yes, I have anti - demon powers, IÆm gonna use them, and then after I win, IÆm going to take a break. -

It seemed that KeiÆs mindset was quite heavily affected by the hero power, almost more than the previous generation, or was this because she had yet to see the destruction that followed?

- What was on your mind when you arrived in the Eastern Continent? -

- Destruction. So much destruction from the demon king. ItÆs only right we defeat them. -

Yura realized at that point it was useless to continue. - I believe thatÆs enough. Come. - Yura led her into the Valley of the Unrotten. It was a relatively long walk; there were no beetles to ferry them, even though that was possible.

Yura led her to one of the Giant Attendant Trees within, and inside it, there was a room with a selection of hero items.

- Well, on all the tables are the hero items. The previous heroes said that you may choose one. -

- Only one? -

- Yes. One item. And we will need you to contribute back to the treasury as well by making a hero item. -

Kei paused and thought. - Anything else? -

- There are some journals left by the heroes. They are meant for your reading but cannot be taken. You may also leave your own journals if you feel like it. -

Yura left her alone inside, and that was the first time I telepathically spoke to her.

- Kei. -

She froze. - . A/ ? -

- Yes. These are belongings of Harris, Gerrard, and Mirei. They came almost sixty years ago. They started the four decades of peace when they held back four demon kings consecutively. -

- I see. - She sat down, and she was drawn to the journals first. She started reading the handwritten notes. I wasnÆt privy to the contents, since the journal itself was sealed. Yet it opened for her so naturally, as if it detected another hero.

She spent a few hours with the journals, and I thought I saw her weep a few times. There was a kind of heroic energy in the journals that blocked my ability to eavesdrop or observe, and I certainly wasnÆt aware of this ability. It was when she finally closed the journal that I could talk to her again.

But she was just stunned. She didnÆt say a word for another thirty to forty - five minutes, but I could see she was thinking really, really hard.

- A/ ? - she asked after that period of silence.

- Yes? -

- Do you. still have herbal - infused wines? Or teas? The strongest ones? -

A small teapot appeared in the Giant Attendant Tree, and hot water, too. She quietly brewed the tea and sipped it, her mind still spinning. Patreeck could not read her mind once she passed level forty as a hero. She sat there and sipped.

- I. I wasnÆt ready to see those. visions, - Kei said.

- Sorry? IÆve got no idea what is in the journals. -

- I mean. they left memories behind in the journals. Some kind of dreamspell that contained a fragment of themselves. ItÆs like. itÆs like a part of them still lived in the journal. -

- Ah. - I certainly wasnÆt aware that a journal could be made so powerful. But since it was made with star mana, I supposed anything was possible.

- The gods want us to kill the demon and keep the cycle going, right? -

- Well, yes? -

- But they also want us to die so that the worldÆs constantly in turmoil? -

I had no answer.

- Do you believe what the heroes said? -

- I donÆt know what youÆre talking about. -

- I mean, that this demon and us. weÆre the gods way of resetting the system? Keep this world stagnant and stuck in a perpetual state of war. Do you believe that? -

- ThatÆs just one of the theories. Without asking the gods, no one knows. - I supposed that sounded like one of the crazy musings Gerrard had. I didnÆt know he recorded that into the journal.

She sat. - I. - She looked like she was about to have a nervous breakdown.

- It changes nothing for you, really. The gods have already predestined that you must slay the demon king or die. That is a task you have. -

- I can choose to do nothing. - She had a headache again, and she quickly took a sip of the tea.

- Your two friends will do it for you or they will die trying. It is best you go with them. Again, knowledge only changes your perspective, but not the task at hand. -

Kei sat for a while, and then she stretched. - Yes. You are right. And I, too, should do my part. - She walked over to the journal, and she channeled her star mana into it. The journal glowed, and I thought it became bigger. She then spent the next few hours analyzing the other hero items and a few more hours making more hero items.

All in, she spent almost three days there, and she left with a spear. But I felt she changed. I was really curious what was in the journal now.

- Thank you, A/ . I must now depart and join my friends. It will be time for me to do my duty, whether we like it or not. -

- Good luck. -

Kei left Freshka and started her journey to return to the Eastern Continent. She would have to travel from Freshka and to the port cities on the Eastern Coast, then arrange for a special pirate ship that would smuggle her there.

- HowÆre you, Astia? - Stella was in her studio, working on her paintings and posters. That little meet with Kei didnÆt go as well as I liked, and strangely, it made her turn to painting.

- IÆm fine. - No, she wasnÆt. Her mental indicators were a mess. She felt lonely, alone in the world. She wondered whether death would return her to her own world, and yet she lacked the guts to actually kill herself. There was no one who could help her.

- All right. - I decided not to push it. - The door is always open should you ever need to speak or want to go somewhere. The Central Continent is home to many beautiful sights, and if you wish, I may arrange someone to go with you. -

- Thanks. - Her mindÆs still locked up. I could force it open, but I decided not to. Perhaps she needed meditation. Even though itÆd been years since she arrived, she was still not yet accepted reality; her mind clung onto her old world, no matter how painful her life there was. She still yearned to go home. She had no friends, but many acquaintances.

I had tried to create environments for her to make friends, but she couldnÆt let anyone in. So it didnÆt go anywhere.

The runic formations necessary for a supermassive blood ritual were 60 percent complete. Creating them was far harder than I expected. Containing the energies that such a ritual would release was one of the two main struggles; the second point of difficulty was then compressing such a massive ritual into a single shot.

Runes were hard, especially at large scales. I hoped that I never had to resort to such bloody tactics.

On other preparations, Hytreerion, my tree walker, was idle. It was a massive anti - air fortress, and it sat at the edges of the Eastern Continent. It could not walk or swim across the ocean, and I wondered whether flight was a good idea. But then, I also doubted a Flying Titan could swim across the ocean. It was a distance far too large to bridge.

Still, the Trade Lord Æs efforts to convert a few of the port cities into mini - pirate dens were quite successful. Piracy had a kind of charm to it, and as a privateer, it was even better. They had legal backing of the Central Continent.

The Eastern Continent managed to hold on, even if so many had died. The demon king clearly was incapacitated or sealed to some effect.

At the same time, I wanted to activate my two unique classes. - Lozanna . I have a special class, A/ ic Demonslayer . Do you want it? -

- . no. -

- No? -

- No. Perhaps you could offer it to Yura ? -

- Why not? -

- I think. I think I donÆt deserve this special treatment, - Lozanna said. - I certainly lack the kind of genius talent needed to maximize such a class. After spending such a long time as an adventurer, I realized my talentÆs honestly just above average. My main advantage was really my high levels and the unique abilities that you gave me. In the hands of someone truly talented and gifted, I think your powers can go much further. And at the same time, itÆs also fear. I may not live up to the expectations such a special class would have, and I may do stupid things. -

I wondered whether it was because she wanted to be a mother. But I didnÆt say it.

- So. please, offer it to someone else. -

- Very well. -

67

YEAR 145

The Eastern ContinentÆs war against the demons increased in intensity. The heroes returned, and with it, they brought superior, star manaûpowered firepower. The heroes could take on large flights of drakes, and that meant the war was starting to shift in favor of the natives.

We knew this, because the temples propaganda machine was in full swing, boasting of the heroes success in defeating the demons. So the powers of the three heroes were now public knowledge. Kei essentially was a mobile flak fortress. Alvin was a mobile missile site, and he fired magic missiles by the thousands. Hans was the mobile beam weapons and drones person. Strange that the gods opted for ground - based anti - air powers instead of giving the heroes flight and ability to fight midair.

With their powers, the drakes were not a challenge. They just could not be everywhere at the same time. There were too many fronts, too many cities and towns under the attack of the drakes.

The drakes had multiplied tremendously over the past few years, and swarms of fifty to three hundred giant drakes were now common sight. Lozanna described them as mobile flying fortresses, and they were quite like dragons that sheÆd seen in her many dreams. I was expecting the war to end soon. The heroes would win, I thought.

In the Central Continent, the ruling class generally believed the demon king was a goner. They didnÆt think the heroes would fail the second time, even if they were the second batch. Personally, I thought they would succeed, simply because the demon king must be in a weaker state, perhaps due to damage from the earlier battles with the first batch of heroes.

So our focus was mainly on restoring the trade connections thatÆd been lost over the past decade of war, and it was getting easier. In particular, on a few of the island nations, there were some volcanic island nations located nearer to the center of the oceans that were keen to support us and essentially become our intermediaries.

Unlike the continental kingdoms where the temples influence was strong, these volcanic islands had a lot more to gain and, honestly, not much to lose.

That said, since most of our ships disguised themselves as pirate ships, privateers all, they had multiple sea battles with the navies of those continental kingdoms. We lost quite a few ships, but it was fine.

On the Northern Continent, often referred to as the Northern Isles, a few independent kingdoms went as far as permitting our merchant ships to dock, without a need to change our flags. Overall, a good sign, that trade and global relations were somewhat thawing. I really didnÆt see the point of pointless battles.

Solving the demon king in the long run was a bigger problem.

The Central Continent was big, and even though almost all of the kingdoms and nations in the continent were now allied to me, either formally or indirectly, there were still places where my root network and trees only had a little coverage.

Since many of these new kingdoms were relatively new to my growing federation, we had focused our subsidiary trees in the inhabited zones. This was in line with our support of the Treeological priests social and charity work. It would be quite similar to a network of expressways linking all the large inhabited zones, since I also needed the network of trees to break through the shattered Rottedlands and also to act as beacons for the beetle - truckers.

Therefore, in spite of my vast network, there were still gaps. And where there were gaps, there were mysteries to be explained and monsters I had yet to meet.

So, in the northern areas of the Central Continent, in a forest I recently just expanded to, we heard a creature calling out to us. - I sense a spirit in our midst, - a giant wolf spoke. It looked every bit like a regular giant wolf - animal, but the very fact that it spoke meant it was not ordinary at all.

It seemed to be having a conversation with something or someone.

- You are right, perhaps it can hear us, - the wolf somehow said. - So, spirit, show yourself. -

I thought about this for a moment and decided to telepathically speak. There was something strange about his form as a wolf; perhaps it was not really a wolf. - Greetings. -

The wolf paused, and it looked around. - I see. A spirit of the land? -

- I am A/ , a Tree Spirit. -

- Akrenaf, Wolf of the Hunt. - I had no idea what that was.

- It seems you speak the common tongue? -

- Ah, I am both wolf and man, and there are two of us in our body as we speak. - My spiritual vision seemed to clear up, and then I saw a wolf. and something like a man? But it was not really separated. - The man in me is Varik the Brave, a human shaman who died a century ago. -

- I see. -

- You are. - It paused, and then it seemed puzzled. - Where is your body? -

- Far, far away. -

- So. strange. -

- Not as strange as two souls in a single body. - I didnÆt recall that was possible. One soul should have purged the other. I focused my energies; my roots linked to more trees. The trees around them all added to my spiritual sense.

- Ah, we are not really two souls. Our souls fused, and we are one, but we are of two minds. - Ah, split personality. That was a lot easier to digest.

- How? -

- Varik the Shaman has a unique ritual skill called Living Memory . It made his soul into a memory able to latch onto anything, or in this instance me, - Akrenaf said. - I, the wolf, killed him a century ago. I was but a normal wolf then. - The memory changed the wolf, and it gained levels since then. It was now far stronger than before, and yet it refused to leave its forest.

- Ah. -

- I am dominant, but his memories, voices, magic, and thoughts remain in me. He lives through me. -

- Fascinating. Well met, Akrenaf, Wolf of the Hunt. -

It howled.

Akrenaf was a wolf that guarded this forest, and as a wolf, he was, in many ways, a monster like me. Yet he had memory of the world, and thought, and so he gained levels. As my roots spread throughout the forest. This was a young forest. It was not older than fifty years.

- This forest, it was destroyed before? -

- Yes. The demons came, we were powerless to stop it, so we hid in the mountains till they left. When they left, VarikÆs Shaman powers helped to restore the land and return the forest. -

- I see. - That explained how the forest didnÆt seem special. It was not ancient, and it didnÆt have history to it. It was no wonder it fell through all our radars.

This shaman class was interesting, so I quickly went through my stockpiles. I did have a few of them, but IÆd not given them to anyone. It was certainly a ritualistic class, with a focus on runes, sacrifices, ceremonies, and processions.

Exploration of the Tainted Demon Core continued. More tests and I still struggled. I had to wield both regular mana and somehow create demon mana to unlock it. It was going nowhere.

Arlisa was five, and she grew quickly. Her physique was at least 20û30 percent bigger than a half elf of her age, and despite her petite figure, her body was exceptionally strong. This was because her inherited class had transformed into Blessing of a Soul Tree (advanced) , and she unlocked Enhanced Strength and Resilient Body .

It was strange, and like Lozanna , quite a splitting image of herself. Laufen could finally have the joy of teasing Lozanna . - You were just like her. We couldnÆt handle you when you got too strong. -

- She didnÆt even get started on the dreams yet! - Lozanna protested.

Arlisa made a naughty face and ran away. It was a pain to find her, she hadnÆt unlocked any class yet, but she already had the Lesser Stealth skill.

- I donÆt know anyone who has lesser stealth at five! - Lozanna complained when she caught her daughter hiding on top of the trees in Freshka. - She better not end up stealing! -

The Demon King Raja - Naga has been slain.

None of the heroes died, and the news of their victory quickly spread. The war of the demon king was over. at least, for this decade. The heroes spent two months mopping up the rest of the demons from the Eastern Continent, and then. they all set out on their ways.

So. Kei returned to the Central Continent after that alone, and she immediately went to Freshka.

- I need an audience with A/ . - She met Yura , and there was a seriousness in her words. - No buts. I want to see him, or I will barge into the valley myself. - Yura shrugged and nodded. If she won against the demon king, then there was nothing Yura could do to stop her anymore. Not at his level.

We led her to the Giant Attendant Tree again, where she last chose her hero item. Once she was inside, she immediately sat down and demanded, - I want tea. - Oh, well.

Tea it was. She poured exceptionally large amounts of leaves into the pot and made a thick brew. She cast a spell to cool it down and then quickly downed the cup.

Then she yelled, - We were so damned stupid! - Thankfully, she was indoors. She poured herself another cup of the tea and downed it.

- FUCK THIS SHIT! ARGH, WHY WERE WE SO STUPID! -

- Uh, may I ask what happened? -

She took a deep breath. - Those fucking gods. Fuck, fuck, fuckfuckfuckfuck. -

Then she seemed to struggle against some kind of phantom pain. She quickly gulped down a cup of tea.

- You won, right? -

- We didnÆt have to kill the demon king! - Kei shouted. - We shouldnÆt have to kill a weak, defenseless demon king! -

What? I waited. That sounded absurd. The demon king killed so many. Surely killing the demon king was the right thing to. Wait. Was she trying to tell me something else?

- But the gods. Fuck Æem, they did something to all of us. All three of us. We broke the seal that the previous heroes made and killed the weakened and disabled demon king. It was pathetic of us. There was no challenge in slaying a weakened demon king. -

The more I paid attention, this was a very weird statement from Kei. Like, what did she mean, no challenge? Was that all she cared about? No. She was trying to say something without saying it.

She sat and started talking. - We shouldÆve walked away, rather than let the power in our hands get to our head. The previous heroes were not strong enough to kill the demon king, but the seal they left behind in their final hours left the demon king in a perpetually disarmed state, trapped in a magical tornado and magical web, sustained by heroic mana. -

- The demon king couldnÆt harm a fly in that state, and yet we walked up to it and killed it! It was pathetic! We should have waited for a proper fight. -

Huh.

- Why? - she continued. - I donÆt fucking know, either, but whatever the fuck that was, I should have slapped the hell out of my two friends and told them to walk away. But I didnÆt. The bloodlust won. Fuck the gods. They fucked with my mind so hard. I want a proper fight! -

She was not like that. She had a headache again. Another cup. - Even now, they are fucking with me. - No.

She was trying to say. what?

- Think about it. If we only killed all the other demons and left the demon king there and waited for it to recover, we could have a proper fight. We could wait a hundred years if we need to so that we can get a proper fight on our hands. -

One hundred years? Oh. OH.

She had a mental breakdown, a headache, and started crying.

- Why, A/ ? Why? -

I honestly had no idea. But clever.

- Are the gods secretly sadists? Are they gods of war, like Ares, that relished in victory? They just want the demon king dead, is that it? Even if itÆs defenseless? DonÆt they care about the struggle? The pleasure and satisfaction of a hard - won battle? -

Kei sat up. - Fuck the gods. Fuck Æem, and fuck my two brainwashed friends who canÆt see the mind control for the life of me. My answer is simple. A/ , I need your help. I believe in the whole wide world right now only you can help me. Even if I die in the end. - Another cup. - Next one, I want a proper fight with the demon king. -

Then she screamed in pain.

- And. -

- YouÆre a tree, a magical tree, and as far as I can tell, one of the strongest beings to exist in this world. If I give you all the star mana I have, including my soul if you need it, can you. -

She couldnÆt say it as she dropped down on the floor and struggled. It seemed like her head was in immense pain, and she pulled her hair.

This was too much for me to take, and if I was a human, IÆd be panicking. Thankfully, a tree did not panic. She struggled for a good one hour, and when she recovered, her eyes were blank, her face deathly pale.

She just sat there and finished her pot of tea. Then she asked for the journal, but I didnÆt say too much to her. She seemed out of it.

She stared at the journal for hours, then finally she added some additional notes into it. She slept in that room that day, then spent the subsequent few weeks, making more star - mana weapons.

Despite KeiÆs obsession and frustrations about slaying a weakened demon king, I thought she was actually trying to tell me something else without fully triggering the gods increasingly overreaching mental influences.

By not going all the way and making me think for myself what she couldnÆt say, did she just. figure out how to cheat the gods?

Her statement about a weakened, disarmed demon king opened my mind to a world of possibilities.

Seal the demon king. And probably the heroes, too. A seal that could last a century. Maybe more.

It was strange to think that this entire problem could be solved in such a simple method. Seal the demon king, lock it up, keep it alive but harmless. Essentially, it would jam a metal wrench into the cog. It was a lot easier to deal with the other demons without the demon king.

Peace. Sort of.

But how?

It was a proposal in the right intent, but we were lacking the tools. If this was to be done, it would need a few decades of preparation and far more levels than what we had now.

I gathered my artificial minds.

- The hero Kei was almost in the right direction. If we can somehow figure out how to disable both the hero and the demon king, we can delay the cycle as long as they are both disabled. Failure is unfortunately death, since if either one turns on us, our ability to survive them right now is low. -

- It can be done if the hero is on our side. By our calculations and our present abilities, I think we have an extremely slim chance this would succeed. I recommend significantly more preparation, - Patreeck commented, and naturally I agreed. This was going against heaven and hell at the same time.

- To seal a demon king and also a hero would require a spell far more powerful than anything we have, perhaps at an even higher tier than the superhexbomb. -

- But not impossible, and as the hero implied, a hundred years of peace may be worth it, and it would allow us all the time we need to prepare for the eventual failure of the seal. We are the only ones that can stop this. Only us, with the benefit of our long lives. Perhaps us and Lilies. Together. -

Silence from my artificial minds.

- We would have to convince Lilies to support this endeavor. It is risky, since the heroes will turn on us as our plans involve sealing both sides. We also donÆt know how far the gods mind - warping abilities can go. Should any of the heroes rebel so publicly, would the gods be able to turn their powers on overdrive and turn her into their puppet outright? -

I believed it was certain that the gods wouldnÆt let me seal the demon king. Why else did they load up the heroes minds with so much mental alterations? I believed the gods could make them puppets if they so desired, perhaps at a great cost.

- If so, Master, conflict with the heroes. -

- Inevitable. -

I recalled KeiÆs words. When she saw the demon king, she was swamped with an intense bloodlust. The heroes that supported and worked with us may betray us at that crucial moment, and that could go really bad very quickly. We would need very specific countermeasures for the heroes then.

The war with the temples would take a far nastier turn, if that happened.

Still, I wanted to thank Kei. She sparked a thought, a chance, of how this entire conflict could end. A perpetual truce.

Maybe it would not succeed in her lifetime, but I had the time to prepare. IÆd need all the time to prepare on this path that would make the gods and demons my enemies.

- Master, - Patreeck spoke. - It may be tempting to consider KeiÆs suggestion as something achievable, but at the same time, it is possible that you can gain sufficient power to alter the divine arrangement yourself without a need to directly seal both of the combatants in this conflict. -

- Hmm? -

- I mean. the heroes and the demons are beings from another world, right? If you could. seal this world away, hide the world from their sight, would they still come? -

- Oh? -

- ItÆs like the powers of the ancient vanishing forest, taking it to the next level. A vanishing world, away from the meddling gazes of the demons and the gods. A global shroud generator. -

Another option: go all out on the path of divinity, then run away, and take this entire world with it. There were other options that may emerge the higher up I went as I better understood the powers of the divine.

Options. Suddenly I felt like there was a path out of this stupid game.

- You are right. We must try what we can. -

68

YEAR 146

We had a lot of thinking to do, and as we seriously considered it, we discovered there were more options.

One of them, which also had some chance of success, was to break one of the heroes free of the gods control, permanently.

The risk was an independent hero could choose to do anything, including turn on me. Yet, unlike PatreeckÆs idea of achieving godhood and altering the world directly, I had some idea on how to succeed. Already I had some inroads on this with my teas and drinks that helped to suppress the effects of the gods influence. IÆd have to figure out how to superpower my tea and drinks to make a real antiûdivine influence tea.

So we started doing a lot more research on the tea.

What was it about the tea that made it work? We performed various tests, and to most people, the tea. did nothing much. It was just regular tea for most people, though gradually, we noticed that most of them were healthier after a monthÆs daily intake of tea.

There was a lot more research to do on teas.

Second, which was in the same league of difficulty as ascending to full divinity myself, was to create my own hero . If the levelling system allowed me to eventually reach full divinity, I should be able to alter the game either myself or via my agents.

All in, we had a few options.

One, seal the demon king and heroes, thus delaying the summoning of the next demon king or heroes. The risk with this was that what if there was no real restriction? What if the gods heroes and demon king could just arrive anyway when the time was right? Could the gods force a summoning?

Two, ascend to full divinity. It was significantly unclear what my options were and whether it allowed me to alter the systems at that point. But this should be a default option. As long as I was strong, sealing the demon king and heroes would be easier.Æ

Three, break a hero free of the gods control. Alternatively, would it be possible to also break a demon king free of their own control?

Four, make my own hero. May not need full divinity if there were worldly ways to reach that level of power.

Five, achieve the ability to kill the demon king and heroes extremely quickly. This would effectively minimize their threat level. Easier said than done, and again, it required me to probably achieve full divinity. Only a god could kill a demigod, no?

In the past two years, I used my new gifts on the priests and Valthorns.

Since skills could be upgraded and I had earlier started doing widespread screening of young children, I already had a decently sized dataset of skills. From there, it was a matter of triangulating those who were loyal, had good skills that could be taken a step further, and probably needed the skill to make an impact.

The first time I used it two years ago, I used it on a Treeologist high priest with the skill Presence of Calm , which upgraded it to Aura of Tranquility (Strong) , simply because he lived in an area where the population was angry and upset at the trade and industrial issues. It would take some time to solve the issue, since matters of industry couldnÆt be fixed overnight. They did need a period of time for a new reality to sink it. The aura helped to suppress the dissent for the changes introduced to take effect.

This was a people issue sometimes. A solution was available, but when the populace was already angry, often the solution was rejected and resisted. It was like trying to help the person in pain; first we must suppress the pain, then we could get to the cause of the pain. If the victim was struggling, it made life difficult for everyone.

Last year, I used the skill gift on EdnaÆs Grand Shield , and it transformed into Suit of Grand Armor , which pretty much made her a walking tank. It was a little bit of a letdown; I thought it would evolve into Triple Grand Shield or something. But oh well. Skills didnÆt always work the way I wanted them to.

So, this year, I went to Arlisa instead, and I tried to upgrade the Blessing of a Soul Tree (advanced) . It didnÆt work.

Then I went to another of the Patreearchs. He had a skill called Guidance of the Master , which generally helped the priests under his care gain new skills or speed up their levelling. But he could only use it on one student at a time, once a month. Again, I hoped it transformed into an aura or something, but instead, it just upgraded into Guidance of the Master (advanced) , which increased the number of students at any one time to three students.

Oh well.

I thought I would try it on one of the blacksmiths or woodworkers next. Maybe he could make something nice.

Yeah. Actually, I should totally make one of the blacksmiths into some kind of super blacksmith. No seal would work without high - tier equipment to match, and I did need alternatives that were in the same tier as the hero - items.

I spent a lot of time thinking about how to use my new levelling skill, and my sticking point was mainly giving sixty levels and skills may very well be a handicap. From my understanding of the people as a whole, things that were given so easily, especially a level gift, would be wasted on most people who were unable to wrap their head around the sudden surge in levels, that they would lose the ability to estimate their own strength, because they jumped up so fast.

It was like a man who just learned to drive suddenly getting a 1000bhp sports car. He wouldnÆt be able to cope with his newfound power and speed. Or how a person who just won the lottery would soon squander his wealth.

It wasnÆt earned. Unlike the upgraded skills, which were given to people who were already at high levels of power, the sudden surge in levels would be given to young folks with low levels for my gift of levels to be most effective.

There was also the issue of free will and choice. Since my gift dictated that I select the class and levels, what if they didnÆt want this class? After all, this gift was most effective on the young with low levels. It was like I forced someone to study through university for a degree he may not really like but thought he liked when he was young.

I struggled with this power for quite some time until I was then led back to the wolf with two spirits in it. Akrenaf was content to live in the forest, and though it was clearly intelligent, it decided to do nothing but stay in its forest.

Monsters.

I should use my gift on monsters. Monsters, after all, didnÆt have an issue of class. Monsters couldnÆt gain classes, like how I couldnÆt gain classes.

I decided to use my gift on a spider. It gained the levels all right, it transformed into a giant spider.

I felt static in my telepathic connections. It was trying to communicate and the spider was extremely confused.

Then it went on a rampage.

I had to kill it.

Damn this gift. It was a trap. IÆd need to figure out how to use it properly. Maybe on my artificial souls instead.

- Ms. Astia. - Kei bowed and then sat opposite Astia in her living room. They were neighbors, at least, for now. - Apologies for intruding. May I sit here and talk? -

Astia paused.

- You donÆt have to reply. I understand it makes you nervous. But just hear me out. -

She nodded. Kei had declared herself a resident of the Central Continent, and I agreed. Strangely, most of her decision making was guided by the journal.

- I read in the journal that the heroes receive fragments when their friends die in battle, but I want to know whether you get them, too. Is it something all of us Earthlings get? -

Astia nodded.

- I see. Thankfully, I donÆt have a fragment, at least, not yet. Tell me, what do you remember from Earth? Technologies, things. Do you remember any of the scientific formulas and equations? - The older girl shook her head.

Kei sighed.

- Me neither. I curse myself for not studying harder. Who knew all these things would be handy anyway? I wanted to make gunpowder, like, real gunpowder. -

Strangely, Astia interjected. - Why make gunpowder when there are local powders that do the same thing? Spark - powders. -

- . ah. Yes. True, true. There may be native equivalents of our human things. I suppose you donÆt remember anything about computers, either? -

Astia was baffled. - Computers are incredibly hard to make. The level of precision. -

- Well, like you suggested, thereÆs magic. Magic and precision crafting can be a substitute for clean rooms and industrial manufacturing processes. -

- But why do you need computers when magic can do the same and more? -

- Scale? For those without magic? -

It was a bit strange for Astia to be the advocate of this worldÆs methods. - Miss hero, you might think your way is the right way, and this world might seem primitive. But I donÆt think you should be introducing the things you want without thinking it through. -

Her heartbeat was fast and even weirder for her to defend this worldÆs way of life. Kei was silent as she considered AstiaÆs words. Patreeck peeked into her mind, and I sensed she was nervous, yet she did truly feel that this world wasnÆt that bad.

Kei sat and looked out. - My friends are going to wage war eventually. They will think it is right to continue the gods divine crusade against A/ . They are not doing so because the temples are consumed by the massive reconstruction efforts and funds needed for the Eastern Continent. I hoped we could have an advantage. -

We?

Astia shook her head. She was too nervous to say it, but we could read her mind. Once again, heroes were fools. They didnÆt know anything, but since they had power, and someone told them of the issues, theyÆd champion it even if they didnÆt know the truth.

Kei had enough and walked away.

She then brought her concerns to Yura . - The crusades will come again. This time, there will be two heroes on their side. - She wasnÆt here for the first one, but she seemed to think there would be a second one. Indeed, the heroes were overpowered. If they attempted to attack anyone, it was unlikely theyÆd lose. If anything, I should force them to a stalemate.

What countermeasures did I have against heroes?

Could I use poison against them? Did they have poison immunity as default or only for certain types of heroes?

Rather than have a discussion, it was better to just have a serious fight. Kei and Yura had a serious fight deep in a secluded forest.

- So, A/ is watching? -

- Yes. - Yura nodded. - If your two friends are coming, we must first know how far we are. As it is, IÆm one of the highest leveled. - Well, he was the highest level. There was no one else at level one hundred. Everyone else was stuck in their caps at level eighty to eighty - five.

- I see. Then I shall not hold back. -

- Well, donÆt kill me. - Yura laughed and prepared his spear. Bamboo floated around his body, forming a wooden structure.

Kei levitated; she didnÆt even need to say a word. A massive array of magical guns appeared and floated around her. The guns started to aim and fired rapidly.

Yura immediately used the Triple Steelwood Barriers of A/ , and the guns hammered the barriers, breaking off the wooden barriers chunk by chunk. But here was our first learning point: Kei was using star - mana attacks, but it didnÆt deal exceptional damage against my shields. This meant star mana was super powerful, but it probably had a special perk against demons.

It held briefly; the multiple guns did destroy the barrier after fifteen seconds. Yura had to quickly move, weaving through the hail of bullets. It was like watching an expert dance through a bullet storm. Kei was a shipgirl, and this was TouhouÆs bullet hell.

The shield had a recharge period, so Yura couldnÆt use it again, but it was time to go on the offense, return bullet hell with bullet hell, as Yura Æs Bamboo expanded massively, forming multiple flowers. The flowers took damage from the bullets, but some managed to activate and fired shells back at Kei.

Yet the same shells were shot down by KeiÆs array of guns. She had an array of close - range anti - projectile guns as her defense. Most of Yura Æs shells didnÆt even get close, and the few that did didnÆt do much damage to the array.

- What level are you again? - Yura ducked as bullets flew over his head.

- After killing that weak demon king? Level one hundred twelve. I think my friends barely crossed level one hundred. -

- And you can keep shooting? - Yura managed to create another set of Steelwood Barriers. They were blown up rather quickly. He tried to use the temporary cover to activate long - range spear attacks and then launched them.

- Well. Yes. For a few days, in fact. - KeiÆs gun arrays fired like multiple machineguns and knocked the flying spears out of the way.

- Shit, itÆs like cheating. - Kei kept firing. She didnÆt even have to move; her array of cannons did most of the work for her. Yura , on the other hand, had to keep moving. At this point, I wondered how sheÆd react to long - range attacks, so I arranged for a spear - beetle to shoot a spear at her from afar.

The spear was shredded in midair, but only after it reached a certain distance.

Yura launched a few ranged skills, one of which created hundreds of wooden spears and flew at her. The guns shot down most of them, but for a change, about 20 percent hit the array and destroyed a few of them.

Kei frowned and activated an ability. The gun was healing!

- A/ , curse you, - Yura cursed, and he did his attack again. More spears, and even more spears. The guns kept firing, and then he did a ground - based attack. It exploded right underneath Kei and destroyed one of the arrays!

Yura immediately amped up the pace, using his skills to create a massive dust storm. KeiÆs cannons fired wildly in all directions, but somehow their aim was slightly worse, so more of the spear projectiles got through the defensive guns.

Point two: she couldnÆt shoot what she couldnÆt see. She had some kind of super - sight, but even then it could be blocked or weakened. Powers like mist and hidden forests would be useful in a conflict with the hero. I would also have to consider various passive attacks.

KeiÆs body glowed, and instantly, a massive shell appeared around her, and it fired bullets in all directions like a turning multi - turret. It blew some of the smoke and dust away and whatever bullets that were in her way.

- That was pretty good, - Kei said. She emerged unscathed. - But you know, one of the heroes has missiles, kind of like flying super arrows, and the other one has lasers. I mean beam - light attacks. -

Damned bullet hell. They had beam dancers, too.

Yura still couldnÆt close in. Kei levitated further up in the sky, and I wondered whether lightning weapons would perform against her. Yura clearly thought of the same thing, as he switched weapons and took out two purple spears. He stabbed one into the ground and then ran. The guns seemed to have a sense of where he was going and would fire ahead.

Yura took a few shots to the leg; thankfully, Bamboo immediately activated thick wooden armor to absorb the shots.

He ran again, Kei still levitating toward him. Her guns had never stopped shooting. The ground was battered with mini - gunshot explosions, and then he stabbed the other purple spear into the ground.

- Oh, what is this? - Kei wondered. Her guns shot the spears, too.

Yura immediately activated them, and two large lightning bolts arced toward the other spear and, in doing so, zapped Kei and her array. She screamed in pain, and it seemed her arrays stopped shooting for that brief one or two seconds.

Then it resumed shooting.

- Ouch, - Kei said. She was fine, even if the shock did slightly hurt her. - That kinda hurt. -

The spears only had one lightning charge each.

Lightning worked. I would need more lightning weapons and lightning arrays. In short, extremely high speed was necessary to counter this generation of heroes. My roots could still be effective if they were levitating not far from the ground, but if they floated too high up, my roots would be useless.

Yura stopped. - I think we can have a break. IÆm out of ideas, and my leg hurts. Consider it my loss. - He was being honest. Kei could keep this up all day, since she didnÆt really get tired if she activated her star mana. Her cannons did all the work, whereas Yura , even though he did have immense stamina, had been dodging bullets the entire fight.

- Oh. Okay. -

- And thereÆs two of you on the other side. - Yura shrugged. - I need more levels to even think of keeping up. -

- Yes. -

Lightning would work, and IÆd activated my artificial souls to gather all sorts of high - speed weapons. Lightning, light beams, death rays, all the sort. IÆd need them in large quantities to hurt the heroes.

The heroes would be exceptionally tough from the extra stats of their hero class and their blessings, and they would likely have high natural healing ability, too. But they did not have a dedicated healer, and that was a weak point I needed to exploit. If I could wear them down over long periods of time, I could still win.

- How long does it take for your star mana to regenerate? -

- About a day if I sleep. If I keep fighting. I donÆt know, - Kei said. - A/ has a plan? -

- Well, they are two of them, and we are a continent. -

I couldnÆt feed the heroes too many kills, though; they might gain levels. In fact, the tactic would generally involve clearing out wherever they landed and using poison abilities to weaken them, then only engaging them with a large team of high - levelled individuals.

- I never thought IÆd have to fight a hero. Not in my entire lifetime, - Yura said. - Certainly, I never thought there would even be a reason where IÆd have to fight against a hero. well, except if they hunted elves. -

Kei smirked. - So. what does A/ have in mind? -

For Yura , a lot of experience seeds .

69

YEAR 147

Yura took fourteen experience seeds, a whole bunch of skill seeds until he vomited, and that moved his level to level one hundred fourteen.

- These experience seeds are so overpowered, - Kei protested. Truth was she was just upset that it didnÆt work on heroes. It was also my first time using so many of them, and I soon discovered there was a time restriction to the experience seed. Yura couldnÆt take more than fifteen experience seeds in total.

The additional levels gave Yura more power, speed, and abilities, but still, against KeiÆs Fortress of Guns , it was lacking. Kei was still absurdly strong, and even if Yura could get close, the guns would all bombard Yura Æs armor to smithereens.

- TodayÆs practice is a little special, - Yura explained. He was next to Edna and Faris, both level eighties. - A/ will be joining in our fight. -

Kei paused. - A/ ? -

- Yes. LetÆs go. -

Instantly, her array appeared, and it seemed like she still had some cards to play, as she activated two more arrays of cannons and guns. I wasnÆt going to let this chance slide, so IÆd activated poison roots , mist , and constrict . She levitated out of the way, and her cannons started to shoot the ground beneath her.

Yura , Edna, and Faris all spread out and attacked from separate directions, hoping to capitalize on the sight - dependent targeting function of the arrays. Still, the guns just carpeted her surroundings. I tried to buy time and space; I created multiple steelwood barriers in many places just so that the three had some cover.

Then she had large cannons shooting some kind of magical bullet. It blasted the barriers to smithereens in a single shot!

Yet Yura got close, his spear almost grazed her, but it was blocked by an array of cannons, which crumbled from the impact. At that distance, some of the cannons managed to land a point - blank hit on Yura , and Yura was flung to the distance. I had to immediately block with more steelwood barriers .

- Ouch. - Yura was hurt; he bled a little. At the same time, EdnaÆs new armor - skill also proved relatively useless against the hero. It lasted a good twelve seconds, and then her armor was entirely destroyed.

Vines popped up as she tried to regain her footing from the explosion; some of them managed to entangle her array of magical guns. We pulled in all directions and increased the number of vines. I kept spawning as many vines as I could, and KeiÆs guns kept firing. She used fire attacks, bullets, explosions, and this was when I discovered I could spawn as many vines as she could destroy and more.

I had the mana of the entire network of trees at my disposal, and I was going to use all of it if I had to.

It was a tug of war; her cannons kept shooting on the ground around her, destroying the vines, trying to create space between her and the ground beneath her. The vines were exceptional with my energies regenerating them.

The vines drained at her mana, but she had so, so much! It felt like Alexis again, back when she was that demon-possessed fire elemental form. I had beaten Alexis then, but that was because she was a weakened hero with demonic energy possessing her.

Kei struggled, and then her body glowed. Then she emitted an explosion that torched all the vines. At that moment, her array of guns vanished.

Edna and Faris were a distance away. They were horribly outmatched by her cannons and guns. Their armor didnÆt last. Yura , too, was nursing his wounds in the distance.

I had more vines appear. Kei took a deep breath and summoned another array of guns. She had different types of bullets, and the ground was covered in exposed roots, my roots. She fired more bullets at them. But somehow, regenerating roots and vines were proving to be quite a bad matchup for a gunner like her.

This constant resistance went on for a good two hours, and then she was slowly getting tired.

I didnÆt want to push her further, and I still thought she had a lot more to go.

- LetÆs stop, - I mentally signaled, and Kei relaxed.

- What? You didnÆt tell us youÆre in the Central Continent! - Alvin and Hans were on the other side of the magical call.

- I did, but somehow both of you seemed to have just ignored it. - Kei frowned. - Why? - She was feigning ignorance.

- Never mind. Then help us sabotage the Central ContinentÆs defenses. The temples want to launch a second crusade soon, this time with us as the main force. -

- Why? - Kei frowned. She already knew this much. Back when they were on the Eastern Continent, she already knew of the templeÆs plan for a second crusade after the war. The plan was only foiled when the first batch of heroes died.

- Because the cursed tree is actually an evil spawn of the demons! Think about it: how else did it survive the demonic corruption for so long? It must be actually a clever ploy by the demons to create a tree that appears to be on our side! The gods have decreed that a war must be waged against it. -

Before Kei could respond, I mentally whispered, - Play along. If we want to win, it may be a good idea to just let them think youÆre on their side. -

- Hmm. - Kei just acted.

- Is the demon tree aware of your presence? - the other two heroes said.

- Yes. -

- Beware of the things it tells you. The temples said the tree has somehow managed to convince and cheat past heroes as well. -

- Really? -

- They suspect the tree may have some mind - controlling abilities, psychotic substances, and drugs, since it managed to convince the heroes to part with their hero items last time. DonÆt take things from the tree. Be careful of what you eat and drink. -

Kei paused. - You mean itÆs been drugging me? -

- Yeah. Maybe! You have to be careful, Kei. ItÆs a very crafty tree. It managed to defeat the first crusade! -

- It must be quite crafty. -

- Why donÆt you escape? And rejoin us back in the Southern Continent? The three of us can launch the crusade together! -

- I. uh. -

- Has it gotten to you? That evil tree! I wonÆt forgive them. -

- I mean. I met someone whoÆs probably from Earth. -

- Oh no. The tree managed to catch someone else! Can you free him, too? -

- Her. -

- Yeah. Her. Can you free her? Both of you, can you escape? IÆm sure the temples will be happy to host all of you. TheyÆve been treating us really well. -

Kei rolled her eyes. - You mean girls, right? -

Both Alvin and Hans blushed. It seemed that the two heroes were serviced by a harem of gorgeous temple priestesses.

- I knew it. -

- IÆm sure they have good - looking boys, too! - Alvin responded. - Come back here, Kei. -

- IÆll think about it. -

- DonÆt think. That tree must be sowing doubt in your mind. Be careful of what you think, Kei. - I wondered what the hell the temples were feeding the heroes. But then, maybe the gods had some kind of godly surveillance ability, so it wasnÆt a surprise if it could see what kind of powers I had, though I suspected my later Domain - protected powers remained a secret.

Kei found it hard to play along as it went on. - Okay, okay. IÆll need to hide. Before he finds me. -

- Good. See you. -

- All right. -

The connection cut off, and Kei stood. She asked, - Do you have mind - control powers, A/ ? -

- No. - Well, PatreeckÆs not exactly mind control. It was. influence and mind - reading.

- Do you have psychotic drugs? -

- Yes. - If a hero wanted to investigate, I was not surprised if they could find the truth. So it was better to just be upfront about it. - I have various kinds of psychedelic substances, generated by my plants and organs. -

- I see. - Kei walked away. She spent a few weeks fighting demonic hybrids in the Rottedlands.

I spoke to Lozanna about the heroes plan for the crusades.

- Hmm, I didnÆt realize the two of them were so deeply influenced by the temples demagoguery. When I met them, they seemed. ordinary. -

- ItÆs been many years since the last hero summoning, and the temples are still formally at war with us, - Yura opined. - The rhetoric and propaganda are in full swing. Surely youÆve seen the tales that the people spin about us. -

The propaganda divided the world. Those on the Central Continent thought they were so absurd to the point that rather than improve the locals view of the temples, it merely made them look ridiculous. In fact, the fervor and passion of the locals to defend the Central Continent increased every time some ridiculous propaganda got circulated.

It was even a point of comedy.

On the other continents, they seemed to believe the propaganda. It wasnÆt a stretch for them to believe it, somehow.

The only ones that reacted nonchalantly to the propaganda were the border nations, the island nations that traded with us, and the kingdoms that secretly made trade arrangements. For them, the propaganda, on either side, seemed like just a sidenote. Money and resources were more important.

- The Valthorns wonÆt be much help against the heroes, - Yura admitted. - Unless you make more of those limit - breaking things. And even me at level one hundred fourteen now. -

- YouÆll need to reach at least level one hundred fifty to hold your own against them. - It was a simple concept that the system recognized level one hundred fifty as the tier of champions. Thus, level one hundred fifty must be like an entry - level hero. If they also unlocked their Domain powers at that point, I could see them gaining significant strength at that level, which would allow them to catch up to the heroes.

- Wow, - Yura said. - Level one hundred fifty seems so. -

- Crazy, - Lozanna added. - Seriously, I didnÆt know A/ had the ability to break level caps. When did that happen? -

- Uh. some time ago. Still, itÆs insufficient. In our spar with Kei, we lost badly. But A/ suggested the implementation of multiple high - speed attacks would be sufficient to weaken the hero. But they also have incredibly high base defense and stats, so it also needs to pack a bit of a punch. -

- Crystal bombs, then. We charge up hundreds or thousands of spell matrixes and plant them as mines. Detonate them when the heroes get near, - Lozanna suggested.

- ThatÆs a good idea. - We could try that out.

We gathered that the heroes would approach from the sea, and chances were they would come with a fleet of ships. The temples would give full backing and wouldnÆt half - ass this crusade, with the heroes in the lead. ItÆd be a sizable force, a coalition from all the continents. The temples would be eager to demonstrate their power and redeem themselves from their prior loss.

In short, a lot of bloodshed.

That said, if I couldnÆt nuke the demon king, I could nuke the heroes. I thought that had a far higher chance of success, but I thought I would make Kei an enemy. As it was, the chances of success for me, Kei, and my other high - leveled talents against these two heroes were quite good. Almost fifty - fifty.

If I could trap them properly, and Kei didnÆt defect, we had a very good chance of winning.

- Then letÆs get to it. We should start preparing what we need for the traps, all the crystal matrixes we can make. -

This required better enchanters and crafters, so I used my class fusion abilities to create a few High Enchanters and Master Crystalworkers . They would work on the base of the crystals to store our lightning bombs, and then I would add some of my own runic carvings to enhance them further. Production of these crystal bombs required rare materials and also the skills of my workers, so even after giving out the new classes, we were making thirty to fifty crystals a month. Hardly enough to mine the shores or prepare a weapon.

The continent was in full war - preparation mode, and at the same time, IÆd recalled Hytreerion back. I needed to outfit him for a different sort of battle now, no longer anti - air, but anti - hero. He needed all the high - speed weapons I could make, and the change in the loadout had to reflect that.

The heroes were all dedicated anti - air specialists, but from what IÆd seen with Kei, their detection abilities and other ancillary abilities such as defense and healing skills were relatively strong, but not insanely overpowered. It was still possible to capitalize on these lagging abilities and pretty much turn them into weaknesses.

Also, there was only two of them, and KeiÆs movement speed was just slightly faster than Yura at his top speed, so these two heroes would be at a similar pace. That meant their invasion fleet would not be as well protected as they thought.

If we could hold the two heroes off and keep them occupied, the rest of our forces could cut off their supply lines and force them to retreat.

A continent turned into a machine readying itself for war.

- Lord Kraviek. - An assistant bowed to the Treefolk lord. - This way. -

He nodded and was led to a fancy meeting room. A few others were waiting. The lords were gathered for a meeting in one of FreshkaÆs largest mansions, organized by the Trade Lord . - My humblest apologies to my esteemed peers, - Kraveik said. - Pardon my time, treefolks do not move very quickly. -

- No matter, no matter. Come. - The Dwarven trade lord nodded. There were ten lords in that room, all graduates of the FTC. - Come. The Second Crusades will be a storm that will soon sweep our lands. We, the noble class, have much to deliberate. -

- Go on. -

- I have been in contact with a few kingdoms on the other continents. - There was a gasp. - The heroes will lead the charge, and they say the female hero in our midst will turn against us. -

Whispers in the small crowd. - It does make sense that a hero summoned by the other gods would turn against us. -

- Indeed, a worrying thing. A/ may not be able to hold against three heroes. Few things in our known history have managed to hold the heroes back. -

- You speak like you have a proposal, dwarf, - a centaur lord immediately cut in. - LetÆs hear it. -

- Indeed, indeed. We must decide whether we should defect. -

Kraviek slammed the table. - I oppose that wholeheartedly. -

- Or pretend that we are defecting. It would be wise to play along and hedge our bets, - the dwarf said. - If Kei, the hero, really is defecting, I will make contact and suggest that we switch along with her. -

Kraviek again slammed the table. - Enough. I will have no part of this nonsense. Do you all have no shame to even consider it? We were given power by A/ , and now we turn against him? -

The dwarf immediately retorted, - We earned our classes by performing as the best in our cohort. A/ has done much for us, but our class is our own, and we must plan for the inevitable. Our survival must matter. -

- And I would rather burn than defect against my patron. -

The dwarf took a deep breath. - Calm, Kraviek. We are peers in this room, so please, hear me out. A/ very well knows that our present loyalties are because of the role his divine plays. If he falls, the glue that holds this entire continent collapses together. He would not begrudge us if we planned for that inevitability. -

- Again, I would rather burn. -

- I would love for A/ to win, Kraviek. But we are dealing with heroes. Heroes have reshaped the political landscape of the world many times already. Remember, elven heroes subordinated tree spirits, too. A/ Æs superiority in our continent is dependent on his ability to withstand the heroes pressure. -

- He would stand better with us on his side. -

The dwarf sighed, and the discussion was heated. One of the later graduates spoke. - I suggest we keep our options open at this point. We do not know whether A/ will lose or not. -

- Dwarf, you may be a master of trade, but it is my view this is a trade you should not make, - Kraviek warned.

The dwarf could only sigh. - If it was only so easy. Should the tree fall, are we going to be crushed under it or step aside? What is loyalty if it is death to all we care for? -

- There are times you should have conviction in your positions, not constantly weigh the shifting odds. -

- What if? - the dwarf retorted.

Another lord spoke up. - It is best whatever we discuss never leaves this room. The Valthorns will have our heads if they know we even considered defection. -

- I will keep my silence, but I fear it may be too late. A/ Æs ears are everywhere. Pray that he does not mete out preemptive punishment. -

The dwarfÆs eyes widened. - You mean. -

- Yes. -

I chose to do nothing. The entire continent had always wondered what would happen if I were to suddenly die or disappear. Every king and lord worth their salt had been planning for that possibility, and so far, all I needed to do was to send a nice warning letter if they took a step too far. I even let them make contact. It wasnÆt a problem for them to communicate with those on the other side. Who knew? The defection may even go the other way.

From what I could see, the dwarfÆs concerns were entirely from fear. Fear of my eventual destruction. It was valid, and so long as he did not participate in plots against me or reveal sensitive info, I would grant them some leeway.

If I were to execute everyone for even having a thought of betrayal, I would soon slaughter everyone. Everyone had thoughts of change. I could accept reasonable dissent and discussion.

- Patreeck, just keep an eye on them? -

- Certainly, Master. -

But we would always be watching.

70

YEAR 147 (END OF YEAR)

The second crusades brewed in the distant horizon. A thousand ships set sail from all the continents, but most of them would not make land; only the force led by the heroes would first make landfall. At least, that was the plan we heard.

- What is our victory condition? - I asked Kei this question as the war preparations went on. - Are you willing to kill your friends? - I wanted to be sure she was on the same side and what her line in the sand was.

She shook at the word kill. - I. IÆm not sure. I thought of defeating them, and theyÆll go away. -

Ugh. Now she lacked the conviction.

- IÆll keep defeating them. -

- ThereÆs two of them and one of you. And then they will come back again. Stronger and bigger. Realistically speaking, if we want to win, for this to be a victory, the two of them must die. The crusades will not stop if the heroes live. The temples will not allow the heroes to retreat. -

- Can we capture them instead? - Kei said. - I want them to see the journals. ThatÆs the minimum I want to try. Maybe we can change their mind. -

This was insane. - The journals canÆt leave the room. The heroes enchanted them so that they are magically bound to that tree. -

- Then we capture them and lead them here. -

- What you want to do will put us in tremendous danger. - Defeating the heroes was hard enough. Capturing these star manaûpowered superweapons?

She thought for a moment and then said, - Not if I play my part properly. IÆll need your help. -

- Kei! -

- Alvin, Hans. I got a plan, but I need both of you to come, preferably just the two of you. -

- Huh. - The two heroes paused.

- I think I can sneak both of you to A/ directly. No need for any large crusading party. If we defeat A/ first, together, the continent will fold anyway. What do you think? The army can come afterward, and itÆll be a resounding victory for them. -

- It smells like a trap, Kei. -

- I know, but weÆre heroes. ThereÆre two of you, and one of me, and the enemyÆs just a tree, - Kei said. - What do you think? ItÆs the best way to save the Cursed Continent without spilling too much blood. So much was already sacrificed in the earlier crusades. -

They thought for some time. - WeÆll have to discuss this with the High Command of the Crusaders. -

- Yes, do so. But please, consider my suggestion. A small strike team will be super effective. IÆll also lead you to the TreeÆs stockpile of hero items. -

- LetÆs do it. - Hans and Alvin reached out a week later. It was predictable, since the temples were not really willing to risk life and limb for victory. But if the temples were more than willing to let the heroes risk it all, it was really par for the course.

TheyÆd done it with the demon kings, and they would do it again with me.

- All right. HereÆs the plan, - Kei explained over their magical conference call.

Hans and Alvin arrived in a small, high - speed ship. Their ship stopped in a quiet, mostly secluded bay. There was no ship in that area.

The two of them landed with a small team of soldiers from the temples. The soldiers would stay back and keep watch.

- WeÆre here. - I had already emptied that targeted location once the plan was set in motion. - Rather lax defenses, not what we were expecting. -

I had a feel of their power, I had tree - sensors in the area, and the bay was filled with trees. They were weaker than Kei for sure. Kei had the benefit of power - levelling in the Rottedlands, so she scored more kills during the demon king battles.

- With all the trees here, maybe he already knows we are coming, - Hans said. - But I donÆt sense any magic. - Of course they couldnÆt. Their detection abilities were just above average.

- Hello, - Kei said. She appeared from behind a coconut tree. - Finally, I get to see you two again. -

Alvin immediately ran over. - Are you all right, Kei? Did the Tree torture you or anything? -

Kei smiled. - Look at me. -

Alvin paused. - Just to be sure, the temples gave me this. - He took out some kind of water, and he splashed it on Kei.

Kei immediately shouted, - What the hell! -

- ItÆs holy water, the priests said. ItÆll wash off any mind control and demonic influence. -

Kei frowned. - As if such things would work on me. -

- We never know. The Tree did manage to brainwash an entire continent to rebel against the four temples. - Alvin gave Kei a hug. - Glad to see you again. -

- Yeah. Come. - Kei took out a bag with a change of clothes. They were military uniforms of the Valtorn Order. - I stole some military outfits of the defense force. Remember, let me do the talking. -

The three heroes were soon at a military outpost in the far south. It was a small outpost, but there was a beetle - truck stop here.

- Walk normally like you belong. Think spy movies, - Kei said. The two boys straightened their backs. - Walk behind me. -

- Good evening, Lady Kei. - A soldier saluted as the three walked into the outpost.

Kei nodded. She was also in a military uniform, but her uniform was one of a higher status, similar to those of the Valthorns upgraded classers. The two walked behind her. - WhenÆs the next beetle arriving? -

- To where, milady? - the soldier asked.

- Freshka. -

- In two hours. -

- Got it. Thanks, - Kei said, and she turned. - We have some time. LetÆs eat. - She led them to a canteen in the outpost. There was a very small force in that outpost, and most of them left after seeing them.

- Why do they seem to be afraid of you? - Hans asked once there was no one else.

- Because I outrank them. IÆm an honorary Valthorn, which makes me part of the elite force. -

Alvin nodded. - ItÆs clever that you so easily snuck into - Kei immediately lunged forward, her hand covering his mouth.

- DonÆt say it. - Kei looked stern.

The boys both nodded. This was an espionage! One that I was watching through all the trees everywhere. Even Kei didnÆt know I could see so much.

- What are we waiting for? -

- Beetle - carriages. TheyÆre kinda like long - range buses that travel from selected outposts to various destinations throughout the continent. - The two boys nodded, impressed.

- Wow. TheyÆre advanced in this aspect. -

- Yes. Now, both of you are my assigned escorts. Here are your fake name tags and papers. - Kei took out a stack of papers with tags and various badges. She pinned them on them. - Refer to me as Lady Kei. If you see someone with the same uniform as me, refer to them as a superior rank. If you donÆt know their name, just say, Yessir. Got it? -

- Yes. Why didnÆt you tell us all this earlier? -

- I just didnÆt remember that I needed all this then, - Kei said frankly. - Now, come. The convoys should be here soon. IÆll get an exclusive one for us. -

71

YEAR 148

- How long will this journey take? - Hans asked a week into the journey.

- Five weeks. Usually it takes only two, but the express beetles are on other duties, and itÆs winter, so the travel speed of the beetles are slower. TheyÆre more sluggish during this time. This beetle will stop in a few cities along the way. Maybe we can try to catch an express beetle. This path also has less. traffic. -

They were wrapped in thick winter jackets supplied by the Valtorn Order. The south was usually warmer, but the path they chose took them through to the highlands. The beetles stopped at one of the snow - covered mountain towns. These were the winter - adapted beetles, product of my earlier research to counter the effects of cold. Still, they had to travel close to the subsidiary trees .

The mountain town also had a small group of soldiers. Here, it was a mix of militia and Valthorns. The local town maintained a militia to deal with various monsters that spawned from the snowlands.

- LetÆs take a break. I have to submit some reports to the local Valthorns, and weÆll need to do some monster extermination missions here. -

- Why? -

- To keep up our cover, stupid, - Kei said. They hunted some mountain icegoats and frost lizards for two days and then resumed their journey.

- All right. This beetle is going to take us to Fortress Arkiad. ItÆs one of the larger southern fortresses and a key staging ground of the defense force. I suggest both of you memorize this place well for your later battles. We will need the local commander, so again, let me do the talking. -

Throughout the Central Continent, we had many, many staging grounds and fortresses. Fortress Arkiad was one such fort. It had three Giant Attendant Trees and tons of wooden walls and defenses around it.

- Holy cow, - they both said. It was their first time seeing the giant trees.

- A/ is larger. So shut it, - Kei said as the beetle approached the gates. A group of six well - dressed soldiers approached them. The beetle also lowered its body.

- Papers, please. -

Kei quickly flashed her badge and handed over her papers. She looked at the two behind him. She coughed. - Papers. -

The two quickly scrambled to find their documents and presented them to the soldiers. - All right, you can pass. -

The beetle stopped right after the wooden gates. - Impressive, right? - Kei smiled. - These are all magically reinforced wood and hyper resistant to fire, contrary to common belief. -

- Resistant to fire? - both Hans and Alvin responded.

- Yes. Strange but true. Come. As a senior Valthorn, I must meet the commander. Both of you will come with me. ItÆs the first time youÆll meet a Valthorn classer, and the first time in a giant tree. -

The fortress commanderÆs office was high up in the Giant Attendant Tree, and getting there meant walking in the spiral stairs or taking one of the wooden pulleys. - Shit, this place is straight out of a fantasy. -

Kei glared at Hans.

- Oops. Sorry, milady. -

The commanderÆs office was a large room with open windows. - Greetings, Commander Lovis, - Kei said.

- Ah, Lady Kei. Welcome to Fortress Arkiad again. How long will you stay this time? -

- Just a day or two. IÆll need to head off to Freshka soon. A/ summoned. -

- I see. - Lovis instantly leaped and stopped right in front of Hans and Alvin. They both gulped. Lovis recently capped out at level eighty - five as a Spearmaster . - Strange, your two escorts. they smell funny. -

Only a select few were privy to the plan. Lovis was genuinely suspicious of Hans and Alvin. The two heroes froze. They were easily stronger than Lovis, but their mental state was weak. I wondered whether it was because theyÆd gotten their levels too quickly.

- ItÆs the sea. I believe they were stationed on the outer trade islands, - Kei responded calmly.

- I see. Both of you better get a shower. ItÆs improper for escorts to make your lady defend you, - Lovis said.

Kei chuckled. - IÆll see to it. If we may? -

- Yes, yes. Go ahead. Use our facilities as you please, Lady Kei. -

- Who was that again? - Hans asked. He clearly didnÆt pay any attention when Kei explained earlier. To heroes, most people were just NPCs. Not worth remembering.

- Lovis. Spearmaster . I believe sheÆs level eighty - five. -

- Shit. - Hans was impressed, even though he was clearly stronger. - I could beat her, but she has a presence. -

Kei smirked. - SheÆs not the only one. -

- No wonder the first crusade lost. The number of people at that level. I think the kingdoms have only a few. -

After another three weeks of travelling, they entered the domain of the Freshlands.

- On your left, in the distance, is what remains of the Rottedlands, carved up by A/ Æs magical energies, - Kei said.

- The temples said A/ made a deal with the demons, - Alvin said.

- Well, then the ground we are now on is all demon, then, - Kei explained. - There will be more demonic hybrids, and they are attracted to creatures that emit star mana like us, so be prepared for more fighting. -

- So, itÆs true. Demonic hybrids. This. A/ made a deal with the demons, and thatÆs why we have these cursed hybrids. The gods would never create such twisted monsters. -

Kei paused. As they travelled closer, they were attacked by a few demonic hybrids. They also saw beetles emerging from the trees to fight them. Then they reached the first walls of Freshka.

Over the decades, IÆd added layer after layer of defenses. There was a Giant Attendant Tree that functioned as the centerpiece of the walls and gates. Again, Valthorns and Valtorn Order soldiers quickly did the usual ID checks, both the heroes getting used to the investigations.

- Now we have the centerpiece of A/ Æs propaganda machine, - Kei said, half joking. - WeÆre passing by the educational institutes. - They passed by the Freshlands Treetiary College and the School of Treeology. The Valthorn Academy was on the other side.

- Should we blow them up now, especially that School of Treeology? - Alvin said. - They are a cult. This entire setup is a cult. -

Kei paused. - No. People donÆt need to die for this. Remember, the goal is A/ . -

The two of them nodded. - Okay. -

- Come. - Kei led them into the room of where all the hero items were kept. We had intentionally set it up such that it looked like the entire tree was just a simple building.

There were a few hero items on the table. It was a risk if they activated them, but I had to trust Kei at this point.

The journal was there, too, on the table. It was closed, though.

- So. this is it? -

- There should be more, - Kei said. - Where did it go? -

The two boys started searching, and then Hans walked over to the journal. He briefly opened it, and the star mana in the journal resonated with his own. Then he froze. Alvin immediately ran over and touched Hans. - Hans. you all right? -

- . No. - Hans said. - The journal. -

Alvin then went and looked at the journal, its pages open, magical words floating everywhere. Habitually he reached out and touched the journalÆs sides, and then he froze. The journal glowed. I still didnÆt know what was in the journals and why it evoked such a strong emotion.

Both of them were stunned. The journal glowed, and their own bodies seemed to resonate with it. They didnÆt move for a few hours. Kei just shrugged, sat down, and started brewing some tea.

When they finally broke out of the stupor, they both turned to face Kei. - You tricked us. -

Kei smiled. - Yes. -

- You sly woman, - Alvin said. - You wanted us to see this. -

- Yes. It is the only way we can stop being pawns of greater powers. -

They froze. - What now? YouÆve just shown everything weÆve known to be lies. - They had a headache. Kei offered them tea.

- I donÆt know. But I wanted to show you that this whole crusade is pointless. Fighting you on the battlefield wouldnÆt have proved anything, even if we win. I donÆt want to fight you, and we shouldnÆt be fighting with A/ . I donÆt want A/ to fight with the temples, either, as disgusting as the temples are. Our true enemies are not each other. -

- Then? We play arbiters of peace? - Hans said.

- The gods want us to be in perpetual conflict. The heroes and the demons are agents of that intention. We trigger more fights. More wars. Maybe this whole world is just a farm and we are the means of harvesting something. -

- How did the previous heroes know? -

- I donÆt know, but they seemed to have managed to resist the gods influence to a greater degree than us. Either they found a way or weÆre just too weak. -

- Then. -

- I want us to take a timeout. ThereÆs really no reason for more bloodshed. We can break the cycle, even if the gods want us to play our part in this. We failed with the demon king, but we can stop this one. -

- You truly think sparing A/ is the right decision? Not fighting him? -

- WeÆve committed too much, and an army will soon be on their way, - the other boy continued.

- A timeout. Please. LetÆs just pretend each other doesnÆt exist. Why must we fight? When heroes fight, so many people die pointlessly. -

- I. IÆve seen the good things the temples do. The temples are not bad, either. I wonÆt just switch sides, - Alvin repeated.

- IÆm not asking the two of you to be friends with A/ . But see the value of his presence in the world, even if he made a contract with the demons, which, by the way, I donÆt think he did. -

Alvin and Hans both just sat there. - I need more time. I canÆt process this. Not yet. -

- IÆll be here. IÆll go get food. Please, donÆt do anything stupid. We really, really donÆt need to fight anyone. Well, maybe just the demons. -

Kei returned later with food.

- Also, thereÆs more to the journals. I donÆt know how the previous heroes did it, but theyÆve somehow copied a large chunk of their minds and memories into that magical journal. IÆve. IÆve added my own to it, too. -

Alvin and Hans glared at Kei for a moment, and then they sighed. - They uploaded their minds into a book. Great. This is next - level crazy. -

- ItÆs been crazy since we got here, boys. -

That was how two heroes ended up camping in my tree of hero items for a few days. The crusades, thankfully, didnÆt move on. The temples were smart to suspend further action once they discovered the heroes had gone silent.

Sometime later, their bloodlust seemed significantly more subdued.

- I think we should head back, - Alvin and Hans said. - We wonÆt be friends with A/ , but we agree. We donÆt need to fight. It is pointless, as much as the temples want to convince us otherwise. -

Kei happily nodded. - ItÆs fine. I know youÆre too invested in the temples hierarchy by now. But all we want is to stop the outright fighting. The world doesnÆt need more deaths. We had enough in the Eastern Continent. -

- Yes. We can agree on that, - the two heroes agreed, though they had not truly switched over to my side.

Kei escorted them off.

- So, itÆs over? - I asked Kei as their ship sailed away.

- I think they wonÆt attack us, at least. The temples might still continue the crusade, but itÆll just be the temples own forces. -

- Then they wonÆt. -

Alvin and Hans returned to the Southern Continent and soon advocated a focus on healing and restoration rather than a second crusade. The Eastern Continent still needed a lot of healing, and that was the angle they took.

Yura continued to fear for a large crusade, and personally, I was just happy I didnÆt have to fight heroes. But I was now super interested in what was in that magical journal. What did Gerrard, Harris, and Mirei write in there?

- So. all our military work, what do we do? -

- We can slow it down and prepare for the next demon king. Take a break. You all deserve a bit of it. -

This year, I significantly dialed down the war efforts. Still, I kept those things, the anti - hero countermeasures in storage. I may still need them someday.

Kei managed to diffuse the situation with the journal, and in a way, it was very lucky that it worked out the way it did.

Though I knew that someday I would have to fight a hero for real, I was happy that this second crusade ended before it even started. For once, a war was fought and won with cunning, instead of blood. In a way, Kei really did something heroic.

72

YEAR 148 (CONTINUED)

- Thank A/ that went well. - Edna breathed a huge sigh of relief. The two heroes, Alvin and Hans, returned to the south.

On the very day the three heroes came to Freshka, we summoned quite a few of the high - levelled Valthorns for an emergency preparation. The valley itself was loaded with many traps and magical weapons, ready to go off if the encounter in the Tree of Hero Items did not go well.

I was also personally relieved that, for once, we avoided a battle. That was a rarity in this world, where fighting often was the way to settle large disputes.

- I didnÆt know they were the heroes, - Lovis complained, and her fellow Valthorns sympathized. Almost all of them were informed only when they came into the many holding areas prepared around the valley. - In hindsight, itÆs obvious. -

Edna laughed in relief. - Most of us are just going to serve as meatshields for A/ Æs magical weapons. - I had multiple hero items prepared and was prepared to even detonate the entire valley around me to secure a victory. In PatreeckÆs simulation, we would likely have deaths of about half of Freshka and almost all of the high - leveled Valthorns dead, most of it collateral damage, in a battle between us and the two heroes.

It wasnÆt going to be pretty, and I wasnÆt sure if the two heroes had any trump cards.

When Patreeck had included a 30û50 percent increase in their damage and power, and IÆd probably lose my main trunk, Freshka and all the colleges would be a smoldering ruin. As long as my heart was hidden somewhere deep below, I thought I could still rebuild. But if they had some kind of detection ability, I was dead.

I would need more levels.

The goal of breaking this cycle demanded it.

News from the temples. The refusal of heroes to wage a second crusade seemed to set off a chain of internal conflicts, and rather than let the populace question whether the gods truly were in control of the heroes, the gods seemed to have decided on a second divine message.

Full - scale war was prohibited, but the Central Continent and all that was associated with A/ was to be a pariah, persona non - grata. Essentially, a return to the status quo. The Central Continent remained cursed, even with two heroes on their side.

I was rather amused that the gods would so quickly intervene and issue a second divine message.

Kei also returned to Freshka after the incident.

- Good job. - I spoke to her after she sent the two off. - It went pretty much the way you planned it to. -

- The book only managed to convince them to suspend conflicts. Too bad they werenÆt willing to add their own to it. -

- Now that issue is temporarily fixed, whatÆs next? -

- The next demon king, of course. - It was getting boring, honestly. Come on, how many demon kings did we have to go through? That was the nature of maintenance - it was all boring and no one ever thanked you, but when something fucked up, then everyone was out to get you.

After the announcement, the story from the temples pivoted massively.

- The temples now claim that A/ is a fallen archangel of the gods that has been punished for going astray and thus turned into a tree, that A/ is still a servant of the gods that has lost its way, so the temples now preach that the Cursed Continent are people who need salvation and clarity, that A/ is one in need of guidance, - one of the spymasters explained the news from the continents.

It was a massive WTF moment.

- The crusade was the temples attempt of guiding A/ back to the proper path, but the gods have now found mercy and decided to let time bring A/ back into their fold. -

Who wrote this sort of propaganda for the temples? And the populace just bought into this sort of wonky reasoning so easily? Seriously?

- So, A/ , other than the cursed and heretic, is also now the Fallen Archangel of Gods, the wayward one, the deceived and the deceiver. The heroes must brave a journey to the cursed land to reclaim the weapons of gods left in the Fallen ArchangelÆs hands. -

- Wow. - If I had a jaw, it would be wide open now. - Seriously, the temples propaganda machine is quite impressive. -

- So the Cursed Continent is also the Lost Continent. Lost, because our people have fallen astray from the light of the gods Gaya, Aiva, Hewa, and Neira. The heroes, in their mercy, have convinced the gods that it is unnecessary to slay the wayward ones on the Central Continent, and instead, the heroes will devote their efforts in convincing and guiding the lost back from the brink. -

They somehow managed to twist the failed second crusade into a draw.Æ

- A/ would denounce the declaration and claim that they are not followers of the gods, but it is a lie. -

If I even came out to say it was wrong, itÆd just play into their claim that I was lost. Still, I had to do it. I summoned my Patreearches and Matreearches and made them start a series of counter - propaganda sermons.

But war with the other temples was indeed pointless. Ugh.

The nobles that contacted the outsiders were surprised by how quickly the four temples folded and that the crusades were dead before they even landed. The fact that the two heroes actually came into Freshka and then into the valley was a secret unknown to most, only those alerted to the emergency combat preparations.

The lords were clearly smart enough to deny such a conversation of shifting sides ever happened. It wasnÆt in their interest, now that the winds had shifted, to admit so.

I decided to let it go. There was just far too many people planning for contingencies anyway; they would not be the first nor the last.

Arlisa hid in a small tree in the forests on the outskirts of Freshka. She was now almost eight, and yet she looked like a fifteen - year - old. As a half elf, maybe it was the human side of her.

- DonÆt tell Momma where I am, - she mentally whispered to me, her lesser stealth upgraded into two skills, Forest - blending and Stealth . She was dodging her sparring lessons again. Lozanna needed to work to find her.

- Why do you dislike sparring anyway? - She was good at it.

Arlisa pouted. - I like hiding more. -

- Found you. - Lozanna smirked as she appeared next to her in a quick jump. She gave her daughter a tap on the head.

- Ouch. -

- Now back to class. -

- DonÆt wanna. -

- Why not? -

- I just donÆt wanna, - Arlisa protested. - Let me play. -

- I donÆt recall being so rebellious at your age, young lady. - Lozanna frowned. - You gotta go for classes. -

Arlisa didnÆt care. She just shouted and protested. She preferred to be playing hide and seek with her mom.

73

YEAR 149

ItÆd been twenty - eight years since I last used a soul - strengthening seed , and also, I had a few ginsengs of sufficient maturity. This time, I had a few twenty - five - year - old ginsengs. IÆd planted them around Freshka, a few near the ley lines, and some in the volcano. Surrounded by a huge army of beetles.

- Lozanna , do you want it? -

- What. is this? -

- Something to break your level limit. -

She thought for a while and then shook her head. - As with the special class, I believe there are others more suited for it. -

So I went for another.

- Edna. YouÆve served me for the past twenty - nine years as my first Grand Knight , and it is time for me to grant you a blessing like that of Yura . With this, you will be able to exceed your current level limit and take on responsibilities far greater than what you have now. -

She nodded, and as with Yura so many decades ago, she had a whole night of pain and aches. The next day, she looked healthier, her soul glowing just like Yura Æs. I could tell she gained a few levels, just like Yura , overflow levels from all her accumulated experience.

- So we were right. Yura really received a gift from you. - Edna marveled at her body. Breaking this limit seemed to unlock more vitality in them, and that reflected in their physical strength, all increased by a bit. I wondered whether heroes were therefore different in this key aspect, that they were born with far greater vitality than anyone else, since the concept of a level limit did not even occur to them.

- Was it not obvious? -

- No. Yura did not explain, and we have been wondering for quite some time. - Edna paused and knelt before the Tree of Prayer. She thought for a while, and then she just quietly prayed.

After Edna was Faris. I had some concerns of making a druid stronger, mainly fear that the power he gained would allow him to gain control over me.

Lately, IÆd begun to gain some confidence in my own abilities, and Domain was a far stronger shield for all these subtle manipulations and controls than I expected. So IÆd dabbled with the idea of making Faris stronger.

I offered him the same blessing, and he too took it. Just like Edna and Yura , he had a day of pain and aches, and the next day he emerged with an extra two levels. Unfortunately, their classes did not change.

- I believe both your classes will change when you hit level one hundred, - Yura explained to the two. - Just as mine did. It is a great privilege and honor and also a responsibility. More than ever, your lives are now intertwined with A/ Æs will. -

- A/ Æs will? -

- You have spoken and discussed with A/ many times, but this choice reflects that he, too, has greater plans for both of you. -

- What sort of plans? -

It was then I immediately jumped in. - These plans are not one for the outside world or for the temples. Not even your fellow Valthorns, unless they, too, receive this same blessing. -

The two gulped.

- I aim to end the cycle of demons and heroes. To do so, I must have champions at my side. - Yura shrugged. I had privately discussed this with him earlier. - Over the next few decades, or perhaps centuries, but it will be so. My champions will be there to lay the foundations and to do what I cannot do. It is a position of tremendous trust and responsibility. -

Faris seemed lightheaded for a moment. - End the cycle. -

Edna had a serious, contemplative look on her face.

- Think about it: do you think the other gods seriously want to end this cycle, or are they just content with this present status of constantly fighting with the demons? -

They thought about it for a long while. Edna was first to say. - What do I do? -

- Not immediately. It is important that you gain strength, and secondly, watch your mind. The other gods have attempted to attack my mind multiple times, and I will attempt to aid you to resist those powers. Every day, you shall have at least a cup of herbal tea, and if you ever feel like you have a mental attack or feel lightheaded, you must let me know, and I will attempt to support your mind. It is one of the things we must do to gain the powers to resist mental attacks. -

PatreeckÆs able to use his mental attack powers to also provide some limited shielding, but only in the valley of Freshka.

- Your goal is to reach level one hundred fifty. At level one hundred fifty, you unlock the first of the Domain powers and enter the realm of true champions. Only then, we can dream of catching up to the heroes. -

For me, even at level one hundred seventy, fighting a level one hundred tenûplus hero like Kei was still a fifty - fifty thing. If Kei had a more ground - focused ability or was a more martial - oriented hero, she would have won against me easily. Level one hundred fifty was nothing more than a ticket to be in the race, with a huge advantage for the heroes. I thought they would need to be level one hundred seventy or one hundred eighty to fight a level one hundred ten hero.

Or maybe, the Domain choices they had then would be more combat - oriented.

- One hundred fifty! - they both gasp. It was twice their current level.

- I will help you. Some experience seeds will get you closer to that goal, but after this, the three of you must fight many strong foes by yourselves. Only then you will gain the experience needed to level up. -

I believed IÆd have to give out fragments, too, once I got past one hundred hero fragments. The experience support and anti - demonic buffs would be useful.

- It is a huge task, one we will need to achieve over the decades. It is all right if we miss the next demon king or the one after. All we need is one successful shot, and we can end this madness for good. Too many lives have been lost over the millennia to this pointless conflict. -

They all nodded.

- IÆve always lived thinking this demon king thing was just a regular event, where even kings or heroes canÆt stop it. To be part of an attempt like that, I must say, fills me with a purpose I cannot describe, - Edna said. - It is a worthy goal. -

- Speak to no one else of the goal. The other gods are watching, and they will attempt to use their powers to influence you. - Again, another set of nods. - If anyone asks, the goal is to gain power. For now, you are dismissed. -

Faris didnÆt return home. He summoned a wolf and went for a long trek through the high mountains. The knowledge seemed to weigh on him a lot more than Edna.

- I hope they can take it. - I spoke to Yura privately.

- They had to know. Just like me. I had always suspected you have a larger goal, but I was not certain of the extent of how large it would be. -

- Yeah. This is a conflict far bigger than any one of us. They must know. This is a path that may take us in open conflict with the other gods and heroes. -

Yura nodded. - Of the Valthorns, they are most ready. Perhaps Lovis next? Or would this power also extend to Yvon? -

Yvon was a soul - contractee, and I was not sure how the soul - contract would interact with the soul blessing. - IÆm not sure whether it can work with Yvon, not in her current state. -

- And that mind control thing. really? The gods tried? -

- Yes. I have deflected divine energies a few times. -

- Shit, - Yura said. - How do we even know if weÆre compromised? What if IÆm already under the influence of the gods? -

- At this point, I donÆt know. It is something I am working on. -

- A/ wants all books on heretics, rebellions against the gods, and all such things. If the other temples have records on the prior struggles with rebels and disbelievers, he wants it. -

It was clearly something that made people uncomfortable. - Is A/ really a heretic? -

- DonÆt ask me. A/ wants a massive magical study on the work of heretics, their weapons, and their processes. - The Decarches received the order first. The goal was simply whether there were some kind of objects that naturally resisted divine powers. If so, those items or elements would be very useful in the process of countering the gods.

May we know your intent? Lilies discovered that we were gathering the books sometime later.

The entire continent has swayed to my side, including Lilies inhabitants. It seemed to maintain an aloof relationship with their inhabitants, not bothered to really give directions or orders. But they were clearly monitoring them.

Ah. Yes, I should ask Lilies. Do you know of any items that may protect oneself from divine influence and mindfuckery? Pardon the language.

Blackstar Gems. They resist, but not absolute. We have some.

Blackstar Gems? How does it work?

Best eaten or consumed or fused to the soul. Strengthens the soul from otherworldly influences.

What did that do to heroes? Lilies seemed to detect my thoughts.

Reacts dangerously with star mana. Often explodes on contact.

Where do I find them?

Really deep underground, where the sun doesnÆt shine, where the light of the heavens does not touch. If you cannot find, you can make them. Leave most types of precious gems really deep underground, away from all light for a hundred years, with some anti - magic or anti - mana enchantments, and about one - tenth will turn into Blackstar Gems.

A hundred years to make.

- Blackstar Gems? - The temples seemed to have not made any mention of it, nor any books or records were kept on this. It existed mostly in geological and blacksmith books but did not seem to elaborate much on its use.

We soon found some from the merchants such objects kept in various stores.

It was a rather brittle object, small, really pitch black in color, and seemed to reflect no light. It appeared quite like a matte black stone. It was not hard and did not store magic or mana like most gems.

Quite like coal, if not as shiny.

We eat this? I was rather confused by that.

For a temporary resistance against the divine.

I decided to just place it into my various types of labs for further study. If such an object really had anti - divine properties, perhaps I could make weapons or armor that granted those around me the ability to resist these forces.

74

YEAR 150

Research into the Blackstar Gems soon yielded some results. They had mild generic anti - magic properties, but these anti - magic properties were exceptionally effective against holy and light elements. That said, once consumed, they only stayed in the body for a short moment of time.

I had no way of recreating divine magic to test out the effectiveness of these Blackstar Gems.

- Do you have any divine abilities? - I asked Kei.

- Nope. -

Sigh. It may be effective against Holy and Light, and it was a conjecture that this extended to divine type of magic. I had preferred something more conclusive. Next was research on how to actually use these Blackstar Gems. For Edna, Faris, and Yura , I made specialized helmets with these gems inserted; hopefully that would give them some protection against the mind - controlling effects of the gods.

Again, it was speculation if this worked.

My requests to gather the documents, records, and books went quite okay. It wasnÆt hard to gather details about people who were punished for their heresy.

Heretics were those who turned against their gods. I also wondered whether there was anyone that turned against me with a special class.

Was there a heretic class?

The Valthorns and Priesthood were responsible for combing through the documents for any objects or items that may be of interest. Most of them were crap, and there was a lot of misinformation in the records, things written down or speculated by some priest that over time became the canon understanding of a particular subject.

Again, rubbish.

But from the pile of rubbish, there were some possible chances. Items or weapons mentioned in passing. Sea serpents and certain items harvested from the deep sea. Strange. Items from the sea were common, but for them to be used by the heretics?

Why?

This was where old myths emerged. Neira, Gaya, Gawa , and Aiva were referred to the four temples of the continents, but in many smaller islands, many had more localized faiths, shamanistic rituals, and animism. For smaller islands with their lives intertwined with the seas and oceans, many sailors paid homage to various sea gods and sea guardians, and strangely, the four gods didnÆt overtly oppose such homages, even if they frowned on them.

If the land had seen so much destruction from the demons, the sea, for most part, had been spared the destruction.

If there were any civilizations deep underwater, they must have watched the surface fight endless, pointless battles, and they would have records from a long time ago. The demons did not invade the sea. Naturally, the faith of those island nations seemed to be a bit more obscure and strange.

I felt like I was going down a rabbit hole, trying to find what was going on, really. Maybe my answer to this problem lay in the past.

If the memories of that ancient tree were true, there may be a time from before the demons and heroes. The lands, which had over the millennia seen hundreds or thousands of demon kings, would have been so destroyed that the odds of records surviving would be close to nil.

But the sea, the ocean, was so vast, if there were records somehow submerged, they may still survive. If luck was on our side.

Thus, I commanded the Valthorns and Priests to gather all the myths, legends, and folklore of the smaller island nations and the beliefs of the seafarers and sailors. If there was an equivalent of Polynesian myths, I wanted to know.

Again, it wasnÆt hard to gather a general one, but to have it in detail, most of such myths were spoken from one generation to the next, hardly written. The Valthorns and other employees of the overall FFA would have to go and meet these islanders and conduct interviews. They started with the nearby islands.

The variation in founding myths and all that differed rather greatly, and quite a few seemed to have suffered influence from the four temples. There were far more parallels than I thought was normal.

The sea and the oceans were home to many giant creatures; the largest of them were the zaratans or world turtles. The floating zaratans, large turtles with islands on their backs, were creatures spoken of in legends and tattoos, very rarely appearing, and even if they did, their presence was often accompanied by a thick fog, so no one was really sure. The most unique of these beliefs stated that the first denizens of the world came on the backs of these zaratans and that these zaratans had the ability to sail from one world to another through portals mortals could not even fathom. Long ago when the world was bare and empty, of only land and sea, the zaratans came to the world and brought the first plants, animals, and trees.

Another variant of these myths, more common in the southern islands, was that the world and many others were on the back of massive world serpents, zaratans, and fishes. Those stellar bodies that moved quickly across the sea of stars were travelling on speedy world serpents, the slower ones on the zaratans. If these zaratans did exist, they may well be minor deity class creatures, maybe more if they lived for very long.

If they were indeed of the multiverse, then it would make sense that they had the power to resist the divine. Surely creatures of that level would consider gods nothing more than peers.

There were lesser myths, too, and it still took some time to digest them, to separate those that may have some use and some that did not.

What was strangely common in the island myths were the tales of local heroes, quite unlike the common zeitgeist from the temples that often contained heroes from faraway lands. These island epics were tales of how ordinary men rose up to challenge great beasts. That said, the power level described in these epics were not at the level of the demon kings. They were more local nuisances, dealing with problems that affected the islands or just the smaller chain of islands.

- The bards are having a good time. - Yura chuckled. Edna and Faris were next to him. They met more regularly now that they had similar challenges. - With all the stories that A/ Æs asking for, theyÆre making good money. -

They met in YvonÆs academy, in theory supervising but mostly just watching a large group of young students practice simple movements. Jabs, thrusts, parries. These were children aged six to twelve, and they were separated into groups to reflect their relative levels of competence.

- So, did you get a mental attack? - Yura asked. - I havenÆt, but then again, maybe I wonÆt know. - I made them all a necklace and a ring made of the Blackstar Gems after Faris complained that the helmet was impractical. Sometimes, simple stuff was best.

- No. But I really wish there were more of us. -

- Leveling someone up to the cap required something like the Rottedlands, and now that the Rottedlands was much smaller, itÆs also harder for it to generate high - tier hybrids for us to fight, - Yura explained frankly. - Outside of our spars with the heroes, weÆll most likely have to travel to fight demon champions and walkers to gain levels. WeÆll be busy once the rift opens. -

- Tree Spirit, are you there? - Akrenaf the wolf asked one day. - We wish to speak. -

- Yes? -

- We wish to leave the forest, and if you may, guide us to where there is magic in the land? -

- Magic in the land, you mean ley lines? - Now that my network of trees and roots spread across the continent, there were actually multiple ley lines. But my soul forge required different types of energies, so an increase in the quantity of ley lines merely increased the total mana available to me but did not result in me unlocking a different color to my ley line.

There were multiple dungeons across the continent, too, and they were either black or red , or blue , colors which I already had. So, despite my expansion, my soul forge colors did not grow.

The wolf sniffled momentarily, shaking and nodding its head, and then answered. - Yes, I believe that is what they are called by the mages. The shamans refer to them as just magic in the land. Can you help us ensure safe passage? We see many humans and creatures who would fear us and attack us. -

- That can be done. I shall assign you an escort. -

Faris arrived five days later by express - beetle. - This is Akrenaf, a wolf. He wishes to travel to the ley lines of the land, and I saw it fitting that a great druid is to escort him. - Druids were also commonly seen with animals and tamed monsters, so a massive wolf - monster travelling with a druid would not raise alarms.

- Well met, Wolf, - Faris said with a friendly bow. Akrenaf sniffed him slightly and spoke.

- He smells of the city. -

Faris shrugged. - My tasks often lead me to the cities. But that should not detract from my task of escorting you. -

- It is fine. - The wolf shook its head. - Let us go. - They travelled mostly through the smaller routes, walking the entire way.

When they finally arrived at the nearest magical ley line, a blue one, the wolf sniffed and tapped its massive paws on the ground a few times. It was using a skill of some kind, and then. that was it.

That was rather boring. The wolf repeated it a few times in most of the other ley lines or places with natural mana.

- Are you looking for something else? - I asked at the fourth ley line they visited.

- No, not really. This is right. We merely sensed its strength, - the wolf responded. - And your reach is far. -

Ah.

- It is for a shaman to regularly visit nearby ley lines, as shamans tap into ley lines for strength and power. Their health and condition are critical to a shamanÆs strength and also why certain types of shamans often live in strange places. Quite like that of a witch. -

Faris merely shrugged. Had I met a witch?

Kei could fly was something I expected. What I did not expect was how high she could fly. She could fly almost to the edge of the sky itself, almost crossing into space. Space was, as she described it, strange. The moons moved erratically at times, as if forcefully yanked out of place.

It also occurred to me that if she really wanted to win her fight against me, all she needed to do was fly really high up and bombard me from where I could not reach. Her magical projectiles would lose some of its power at that distance, but she would not be harmed at all at that distance. Of course, I kept my mouth shut.

The heroes could have used a similar tactic against the demon king, too, unless, of course, the demon king also could fly at that distance. I wondered what the world would be like if the next demon king was some kind of alien monstrosity that floated on low planetary orbit, bombarding the world with dropships filled with demons.

- We killed the demon king five years ago. - Yes, Year 145. - ThereÆre five years left, right? -

- The rifts usually open one to two years before. You can start hunting demons once that happens to raise your levels if you feel not confident. But once you cross level one hundred as a hero. -

Kei nodded. - Oh, yeah. -

It felt like IÆd done this umpteen times. Was this what being a non - player character felt like? Repeating the same shit to different players every damn time. It was boring.

In the meantime, I scheduled more practice sessions for Kei with Edna and Yura . Edna gained a level or two from spars with Kei.

The Rottedlands shrunk even more. At this point, it was only a quarter of the Rottedlands peak. Furthermore, this quarter was sliced up by all the tree - roads and the new nations that now inhabited the reclaimed lands.

I wondered whether there was a way to tap into blood magic as a source of new mana - color for my soul forge. Perhaps by way of a rune on the general population that granted some of their mana to me?

I had Red from a volcano, Yellow from a runic formation, Blue from my existing trees and networks, and Black from a magical ley line.

From ley lines throughout the continent, most of them were already Blue, Black, or Red. Did I have green? ShouldnÆt trees be Green ? Or was it from something else? If there was black , there should be white , too.

Frustrated, I shared my concerns about the colors with Lilies.

How do I get green ?

No clue. Mine is Black from all the death of people.

No progress. I believed demonic magic was perhaps one color. This blood magic was also another. What other sources of magic? Wind? Water?

I decided to try for both.

If Wind could be a source of magic, all I needed was to spawn a lot of trees in places where there was a lot of wind and find a way to convert that wind - energy into mana. Perhaps thatÆd give me another source.Æ

If my experience with blue was correct, IÆd need at least ten thousand wind - harnessing trees to unlock a new color.

For a month, I experimented with various grasses, reeds, and coconut trees, attempting to find a way to convert wind to mana. Of course, my artificial minds submitted some rather fascinating tree species for my consideration, too.

Dandelions. And wind - mill tree - monsters. The windmill trees were trees with flexible branches that could twist along with the wind. They were monsters first, trees second, and they actually attacked people around them. Carnivorous little creatures.

Naturally, they went into the biolab .

Research option unlocked: Windmill Trees - 18 months needed.

Research option unlocked: Wind Energy Harvesting - Grassy Fields - 18 months needed.

Research option unlocked: Wind - to - mana - 24 months needed.

Fuck. Two years.

I decided to work on water - based plants instead. We were already experimenting with swamp trees and swamp adapted trees. Now, the goal was to turn wave to mana and its associated relationships.

The druids already had a large collection of plants that existed on the shoreline. These also included certain forms of seaweeds and algae.

Research option unlocked: Algae - to - energy (Seaweeds) Stage 1 - 12 months needed.

Research option unlocked: Swamp wavebarriers - 18 months needed.

Research option unlocked: Saltwater Tolerance Stage 1 - 24 months.

Oh, well. I started the research anyway. If I could unlock both of them, that should lead to more mana and hopefully a new color. Wind and water seemed natural enough.

A few minor wars broke out among my subordinated states. The Valthorns had to abstain from conflict and also work with the Priesthood; together they were tasked with protecting innocents from the fighting.

The entire Central Continent was a hodgepodge of rulers. The FFA and the Valthorns essentially existed as a federal government with power over all outbound diplomacy, religion, certain military rules and rights, interstate trade, racial matters, and certain overarching criminal prosecution powers. There were also federal taxes, and the FFA regulated all of the major transport and trade routes.

Below that were the states, who retained domestic power, budgetary control over the finances of their own states, internal state trades, local criminal and law powers. These were the allied and subordinated states.

It was complicated simply because certain states were captured, but we had spared the local rulers in exchange for their cooperation. So there were differences in the laws and powers of the local rulers, depending on their respective history with the FFA.

Those who converted to my side willingly retained most of their domestic powers, surrendering only minimal external - bound powers.

Again, this hodgepodge of powers, laws, and all was from history. I did not want to forcefully standardize the laws, simply because there were local cultures that affected things. For example, a nation with a treefolk majority had certain local rules and regulations that catered to their needs that would be unrealistic and burdensome to apply in a city with a centaur - population as a majority. There simply was no way to apply a one - size - fits - all approach to laws without creating unhappiness.

In fact, in the Freshlands Treetiary College, there was quite a large segment of the curriculum that focused on the various variant laws throughout the Central Continent. The administrators and nobles, unfortunately for them, had to be able to navigate this massive landmine of rules and regulations.

Taxes, too, were increasingly complicated. At the federal level, we levied a tax on the nations itself, a 10û30 percent cut of all incomes, depending on their past agreements with us.

Some places, like the Six Ports, and Freshka, were considered directly administered territories of the FFA, so they only had a single layer of tax. But for the allied states, they would sometimes face dual taxes, one from the state and one more from the federal authority, if the state decided to pass on the tax obligation to the local rulers.

Naturally this was also a source of dispute. For example, a kingdom where one of their larger merchant organizations moved to another, perhaps for trade and tax issues, would then raise a complaint to the FFA and the Representative Council, but even if we made a good decision, things didnÆt always work out.

Over time, Kavio explained that it was quite normal for a decision to be made by the council, but the two disputing parties still resolved to war. It tended to flare up more when the entire continent was at peace. It was like, after they were no longer scared of a war with the temples, they now turned on each other.

So we just let them fight. The Valthorns and the federal forces would abstain, and we would also set up certain rules of engagement. Even assassinations were permitted, so long as the targets were all members of the ruling party and the local military force. There were also separate food stockpiles, the general food stockpiles and water sources which were acceptable targets, and the Valthorn and PriesthoodÆs stockpiles, which were off - limits. If the combatants overstepped the boundaries, the Valthorns would interfere and we would crush whoever offended the rules first.

It wasnÆt hard to pinpoint whoÆs at fault when my army of artificial souls monitored it. If that failed, and I couldnÆt pinpoint it, it was also possible to just capture the leaders and ship them to Freshka for a trial. Patreeck would then use his mindreading abilities to discern the truth.

Occasionally, I would send a reminder to all the other nobles by skewering the offending noble. I supposed I was a hypocrite.

Of course, the idea of letting my states fight each other was strange for Kei, who seemed to have the concept that the world should be all kumbaya and everyone should be friends. People would have disputes. Even if there was no demon king, no demons, even if there was excess, people would fight.

It was good for the army, too. Those who fought gained levels, and I had more people that I could poach for the Valthorns. It also helped to clearly delineate the difference between the federal authority and the state authority.

Citizens that lived through such interstate wars all learned that we had different roles and generally had far higher loyalty to the federal authority than the state rulers, simply because the wars caused them to realize that their state rulers were just all about power.

75

YEAR 151

The clock was ticking, and my research continued. Some of my research commenced a little too late, so only the algae - to - energy research was completed. There were many, many kinds of algae, and each type chose a slightly different mix of specializations to excel in their respective environments.

I recalled in my earlier studying days that there were certain types of seagrass or seaweeds that swayed and moved with the motion of the waves, and there were also documentaries about how certain types of deep - sea algae actually fed on geothermal vents or certain fungi that lived in volcanic lakes. These were alien life in some ways.

Either via waves - to - mana or geothermal - algae - to - mana, IÆd hoped to arrive at some new source of mana.

The thought about algae also brought me back to my much earlier days of coping with a growing country.

The poop problem. There was also the whole trash - to - energy, an incinerator. There may be a way to do the same to poop. Poop - to - mana. I wondered whether this soul forge thing was just some subliminal messaging about power - source diversity. Anyway. Poop problems. Poop - to - mana, taking my earlier research to the next stage, in combination with the algae blooms.

As the research into water - based plants continued, one of my skills upgraded!

Rootnet upgraded. Basic connection with shallow seagrass established.

Then came the usual messaging spam. I had to filter out a lot of garbage from the seagrass. In places where the sea wasnÆt that deep, the seagrass created underwater meadows, where fishes and other monsters lived.

I found them similar to floodplains where the grasses and other plants had adapted to recurring floods.

Still, this connection into the seagrass was the first time my senses extended out to the shallow sea. Again, everything was really murky, and my hearing and sight abilities didnÆt work that well underwater. It was muffled or too noisy and loud.

Yet this was a positive thing.

If seagrass was possible, then ocean - grass would be the next step. I remembered in our world that seagrasses were local and constrained to the seas and did not grow in the deep oceans. But if I could expand my research into seagrass and make them more durable and hardier in deep waters.

Either that or I could have a look at the undersea maps. Perhaps there were ancient land bridges where seagrasses could cross, though from what I saw so far, the Central Continent was really far from any of the other continents.

Or maybe there was a hidden underwater chain of mountains.

Ah, well.

- Mom, - Arlisa said to Lozanna one morning. - YouÆre good at fighting, right? -

Lozanna paused and turned to face her daughter. She wasnÆt sure where her daughter was going with this question. Kids tended to ask the weirdest things. - I am, but against monsters or bad guys. Why? -

- Can you win against a demon king? -

Lozanna shook her head. - No. - That stung at a part of her that once wanted to be a hero. - A demon king is a special existence, my dear. ItÆs one of those creatures where only those chosen by the gods can defeat it. -

- He chose you, right? I mean, a long time ago. -

She sipped on her morning cup of tea and bit into a slice of bread. Arlisa noticed her momÆs silence. - Is A/ a god? -

- Sort of. -

- What does that mean, Mom? -

She took a deep breath. - Gods exist in a spectrum, a range of powers. There are weak gods and stronger gods. A/ is one of the world - bound demigods and is on the weaker side, but he is gaining strength over time. Someday he will be as powerful as the elder gods. -

- Ah. - Arlisa nodded. She appreciated the honesty. She somehow knew, despite her youth. Perhaps it was a gift of children, to be able to sense the truth and lies of their parents.

- So yes, I was chosen. By luck or misfortune, I was there with Grandma in the village then. We hid. We survived. A/ has watched over us since then. Honestly, I remember little of those early days. I was far too young. -

- Okay, Mom. - Arlisa nodded. Some of the meaning was lost on her, but she got the gist of it. - Can A/ choose me, too? -

- . I believe you have already been chosen. - Lozanna sighed. She knew of the Blessing - IÆd told her - and she took it with a mix of gratefulness and fear. Something she confided in Laufen a lot.

- Mom, how did you deal with it. when A/ started training me? - Lozanna asked Laufen. - How did you cope with. the expectation? -

Laufen shook her head. - I didnÆt. Things were smaller back then, when it was just us in that small ring of trees. When we were just hustling to survive the winters, when the girls had to hunt our own animals without any of the trained warriors. When A/ trained you, it was just helping us survive. Giving us a chance. Not now, though. Now, A/ Æs power has grown, and he is the guardian deity of the entire continent. For Arlisa, her expectations and what everyone wants from her will be higher. Her challenges, her enemies. they will be like yours in your later years. When you were special. -

Lozanna blushed. It was embarrassing to remember the days when people referred to the then - teenager as lady. They still called her lady today, but somehow, it was a lot more normal and appropriate.Æ

- As your mother then, all I could do was pray and hope for your safety. Elves like us rarely betray the guidance of our home tree spirits, their wisdom and foresight beyond that of our own. If you let Arlisa walk the path, itÆs something you should really sit down and have a long chat with TreeTree. His power grows, and so will Arlisa. Even if her talent is no better than yours, she will exceed your power once she reaches maturity. When that happens, she will be fighting nothing less than the greater demons. -

- That makes me afraid. I never knew what itÆs like to fear for someone else. -

Laufen gave her daughter a hug. - Then you know what itÆs like for me to feel, with you so far away. But A/ was always with you, right? -

Lozanna thought about Warden. WardenÆs power grew with mine, the star - mana link allowing it to always reproduce a lesser variant of almost all my powers. It was something unique about the Possessions of the Devoted.

- She is young, and one day you will have to let go. A/ will give her wings and weapons we cannot yet imagine, as he once did with you. ItÆs now on you to choose. Clip her wings or teach her how to better use them. A/ will not impose if you choose otherwise. He has eyes on the young talents all over the continent. He can spare you that choice. Times have changed. We are no longer desperate, our survival no longer hanging by a thread. -

Lozanna sat and wondered. Indeed, Laufen was right to say I would not force them. The blessings I granted to Lozanna was both her luck and misfortune to be in the right place and at the right time.

ArlisaÆs in a position of privilege. In a way, she inherited her power.

- Hey. - Kei walked into StellaÆs apartment. - You sure you donÆt want to come along? - Kei tried to reconcile with Stella after their bad first encounter a while back, partly because Kei had matured enough. Kei even told her about the journal, but Stella just shook her head.

- No. I am rather content here. - Her apartment was filled with artwork, much of it made as posters for the various Valthorn projects. She found confidence and joy in painting; if anything, the sense of progression from levels seemed to make her feel better and helped to reinforce her identity.

She poured her energy and negativity into her art. It was strange how the sensation of levelling up made her progress seem more real, more. tangible. Even as she toiled at something as abstract and subjective as art, the levels were an anchor. It made me realize that maybe levels would be useful for those who struggled with their own self - worth. That having something to hold onto, that I was a high - leveled artist, or I was a high - leveled warrior was a strong reminder that things were not that bad.

Kei sighed. - The world is a large place, Astia. Come with me, see the world. ItÆll help your art. -

- I will, someday. But let me hit level forty as a painter , then I will. - She was at the crux, a level thirty - nine Painter .

- Do you want me to wait for you? -

- No need. If I do travel, I will first visit the sights on this continent. - Though her confidence had seen some improvement, her people skills remained lacking. More like she was still not very fond of being with people. Maybe she was just allergic to people.

Kei nodded and just left. After that, Kei came to see me.

- IÆve arranged with Alvin and Hans to visit them in the south. IÆll be gone for a year or two. -

- Sure. - I mean, what could I say? She wasnÆt exactly my servant; weÆre just partners at this point. She packed up, said goodbye to some of those she was close with, mostly merchants and some other adventurers. She had a big travelling bug, and sheÆd been going from town to town, visiting almost every kingdom and nation along the way, mostly to just have some local coffee or tea, sit around, fight a monster or two, make some money sparring with some upstart nobles, have sex with some gorgeously good - looking dude by the beach, things young teens on a European - style backpackerÆs trip or gap year did.

I supposed it also tied in with her confusion and lack of direction in her life as a hero. The journal loosened her chains, but she still didnÆt know where to go. She needed this time off to think and find herself.

Both of them were lost in their own ways. Then again, most of us were lost.

There was a bit of drama in the Treetiary College during this year, when one of the lordlings attacked and significantly paralyzed another lordling. My eyes were watching, but I decided not to act, simply because this wasnÆt the first time the two squabbled, and it seemed like they had a bit of bad blood. Rivals and stuff.

I thought I could help the paralyzed lordling, but I decided to wait and let the drama unfold.

Life should have consequences, and I wanted to see it. The family of both lordlings got into the fray, and they had discussions that quickly broke down to little wars and skirmishes. Again, we let it happen. I saw this as a way of the natural aristocracy imposing its own cruel version of meritocracy and survival of the fittest.

The principal asked me to intervene, of course. I rejected him and told him to buy a big pack of popcorn and watch the drama unfold. If I let kingdoms go to war with each other and assassinate each other, was I going to stop them here?

- But you said the FTC is a safe place. -

- Safe from everything else. But I suppose not each other. HeÆs only paralyzed. That can be. fixed. And if they ask me to, I will. At a cost, of course. -

Conflict was natural. Survival of the fittest was natural, too.

I considered the implications of ending the cycle, what would happen in a world without heroes and demon kings. If I removed this source of conflict, what happened next?

It was not world peace, and I thought of my own world, too. Home. Earth was never at peace. They would fight; they would go to war and use heinous weapons. Individuals with desires and needs would inevitably clash with each other.

This world would then naturally go to war. Perhaps the four temples would then be at each otherÆs throats, the current unity - in - a - common - enemy no longer applicable. But those wars would be less devastating than the demon king. I was sure of it, simply because the kinds of power the temples could unleash was fearsome, but nowhere near the multi - million single - day deaths that demon kings had done before.

So it was still good to end the cycle, especially from the perspective of the living, sapient beings. But for trees, the end of the common enemy would result in an expansion of sapient beings over time, and that would encroach on the natural territory of the others.

Would the next stage of that conflict be man versus nature, once the demon king was out of the way?

It wasnÆt a pleasant thought to consider.

The two heroes that Kei would soon meet were busy doing what heroes normally did. That was build a harem, make babies, establish new kingdoms, and generally enjoy their lives.

Alvin established his kingdom in the Southern Continent by essentially turning a few of the princesses and queens into this harem. Their territories were then amalgamated into his new kingdom.

Hans travelled back to the Eastern Continent and claimed the right to rule over a few cities and towns that lost their leaders from the terrible demonic attacks. Of course, this also involved admitting a lot of women into his harem. The two kings were clearly competing on the harem part, even if they both didnÆt say it.

I thought all these heroes needed a harem - education program to explain the risks of establishing a harem and the subsequent problems that would arise. Harris had the problem. Even today, his successor kingdoms continued to fight with each other. They had trade wars, stupid sanctions against each other. Again, I was not in the business of correcting stupid people, so I let them be.

I gave Lovis the fourth soul - strengthening seed as my specialist spearmaster . I also asked the three of them - Edna, Faris, and Lovis - who would want to take on the role as A/ Æs Demonslayer . Faris flat - out rejected it, as the new class deviated far too much from his current one as a druid. Edna was rather happy as a knight, so Lovis also accepted the new class as my new unique - class holder.

Once she accepted the new class, her spearmaster class disappeared, but her classes were subsumed under the A/ Æs Demonslayer class. She obtained my anti - demon aura and buffs against demons. In short, the damage she took from demons reduced significantly, and the damage she dealt to demons significantly increased.

But like my own hero fragment buff, I was not sure whether it applied to demon kings. We would have to test it out the next time a demon king came around.

It took her a good month to get used to the power of her new class, and it was also a strangely. twisted class.

Once she accepted the unique class, I somehow gained access to her thoughts and memories and also some insight into her history and her past. She was one of the orphans, just like Edna and Faris, and when she received the class almost thirty years ago, back in Year 123, she was a child. She was brought into the Valthorns as the Freshlands recovered and had since then moved up. She lagged behind both Edna and Faris in levelling, though she had practiced a lot more. This was at a level beyond PatreeckÆs mind reading, in the sense that it was a lot more personal, more. nuanced, and contained more details of things.

I felt bad, really, that this class gave me such direct access into her mind. It made me realize that perhaps the hero class was actually a unique class granted by the gods, and as such, if they had access into the minds of their heroes, then the next step after access was that they could significantly alter them. Which was thus evidenced by all the mind control.

I spoke to her personally, alone as she dipped herself into the biolab for further examination. She was slightly afraid but also excited and honored. Her soul spring was now different; instead of the usual blocks, it was made entirely out of a tree, with roots holding onto all the blocks. The blocks themselves had roots growing into them.