The Pantheon of Mythical Beasts [2]
"Miss Cat Woman, can you please repeat what you said?" Nox asked, feeling as though he had misheard the ethereal goddess.
As he waited for her reply, he thought to himself. Controlling powerful creatures to do his bidding was cool as Nox, a full-fledged otaku, had read about such themes many times in his spare time. But, he'd rather spend quality time with the gorgeous woman than mess around with some beasts.
"Boy, how dare you address the goddesses like that?" The short, rabbit-like creature blew into a fit of rage once more as it glared at Nox. "She has a name, you stupid mort-"
"Enough! Gaunri."
Before he could continue any more, the goddess silenced him, and he immediately plopped into his seat while staring at the boy with a hateful gaze.
Just within a couple of minutes, this lowly mortal had made his beloved goddess reprimand him more than once!
'Hehehehe, even if you get selected, I'll make sure to make your life difficult… you dare mess with the god xxxx, let's see if you get an easy time taming my kind.' A malicious light flashed within Gaunri's eyes as he looked at the boy.
'Hmmmm.' Feeling the gaze that seemed to bore a hole in his back, Nox briefly looked around; just now, he felt as if his life was in danger… but couldn't detect the source.
While he was standing there, the beautiful, robust Cat Woman finally opened her mouth.
"My name is Terra," the Cat Woman stated, attracting Nox's full attention… for some reason, he was very compelled to listen to what she was saying. "I'm the goddess of Beast Taming, or was the goddess of Beast Taming." She quickly corrected herself with a bitter chuckle.
As she said these words, Nox felt a somber aura envelop the grand hall. The lively mood had taken a 180-degree turn. As his gaze scanned the hall, he saw his sworn enemy, the rabbit, clenching his fists along with the other beings.
With a closer look, he could even see accumulated tears in the eyes of the women. The older ones struggled to keep the tears back, but as for the younger ones, a stream was already rolling off their cheeks while a few held hands so tight, as if they let go, the other person would disappear.
What could elicit such a reaction from these powerful-looking beings? Nox wondered as he looked at the Cat Woman again.
'Damn, seeing this sight, I'm no longer aroused.' Now all he wanted was to know the reason for their reaction. For some reason, he didn't like seeing them all gloomy like this.
Unbeknownst to him, all the beings present could also feel his empathy, and the ones that loathed him were now looking at him in a new light.
"It would be laughable if I still called myself a goddess with this fickle divinity I have left." Terra waved her hand, making beautiful golden patterns in the air. "Do you want to hear a story?" She asked the boy, who shouldered the fates of everyone present here.
Nox nodded his head, and the goddess started with a small smile on her lips. "Among all the countless universes, there was no world as beautiful and fantastic as Eos."
Immediately the last words were spoken, the golden patterns that were swirling around Terra's hand burst into countless golden fragments like fireworks in the air… those fragments rushed towards Nox, whose survival instincts kicked in to dodge, but it was too late… the golden fragments enveloped him.
Opening his eyes again, Nox found himself hovering in white space… and the next second, that space morphed into a colorful fantasy city with castles surrounded by imposing walls, cobblestone streets filled with gryphons pulling luxurious carriages, an adventure guild filled with lines of people in magic armors and robes, and a tavern bustling with customers, laughing heartily to themselves.
"Wow." Nox couldn't help but open his mouth wide in amazement when he saw (in his bird's eye perspective) flying beasts mounted by noble-looking armored warriors… a group of adventurers raiding dungeons and slaying powerful monsters… then most important of all.
"A system!" The boy exclaimed in excitement.
Yes, Nox saw a ginger-haired adventurer bathed in a golden glow and proceeded to summon her system panel, which displayed her class, level, and skills.
"This…" The sixteen-year-old was speechless.
This was the dream world of every weeb out there!
'Scratch this, I don't want to wake up from this dream again.'
"Beautiful, right?" At that moment, Terra's melodious voice woke Nox from his salivating state. Because he was invested in the scenery, he had failed to notice the presence of the beautiful goddess who had remained beside him all this while.
"But like every beautiful thing, even the world of Eos has its dark side."
The scenery started to change once more, the lively atmosphere gone, now replaced by a gloomy atmosphere… Although he was just watching the illusion, everything felt very surreal, and the oppressive aura even weighed down on him.
"In the world of Eos, where the gods reign supreme, a young man named Gustavo Cromwell inherited a powerful legacy. A legacy that could change the course of history."
The scene flashed, and a tall, mightily built man appeared. He was draped in the hides of beasts, and a fierce scar ran through his left cheek—a medal of war. The warrior-looking man was standing at the forefront of a battlefield.
His army? It was composed of colossal dragons, ancient leviathans, and monstrosities he had never seen before. They were regal and prideful… the sheer aura emitted from them could bring an entire planet to shambles.
Nox stared at this being with fascination. If the aura emitted from the feline goddess was fierce, then the aura emitted from this man was like a raging flame that wanted to devour anything in its path.
"Powerful, right? The mere mention of Gustavo's name gives those prideful, arrogant gods nightmares."
"What made him this powerful?" Nox inquired, his voice laced with curiosity.
"Beast Taming." Terra smiled as she thought back to the past. "A class so powerful that it could turn humans and mythical beasts alike into loyal pets. In fact, all of civilization wasn't safe from its wrath!"
"Unfortunately, this class was the reason for his demise." The next moment, the smile disappeared from Terra's face, and Nox subconsciously braced himself for what he was about to witness next.