Chapter 201: Gederick vs Arnold (1)

The spell uses runic phrases for activation so Arnold was saying the incantation slowly with consideration for Rafaela who has to cast it for the first time.

Said spell falls under the list of Banishment Spells.

Banishment spells are a special kind of sub-category spells in Star Fantasy that send aberrations like ghosts, undead, demons and devils to a different plane of existence that can neither be entered nor exited through normal means. Some of the spells works on the Star Beast's kin too since it uses divine power.

If one were to try and use a Banishment Spell of higher tier on the Star Beast, then you would need the Holy Sword of Song and Light to achieve that.

Gods use the same kind of spell when they imprison their enemies on artificial worlds, that magic is on a much grander scale than any other spells falling under the Banishment Spell category but are similar in some ways.

Arnold finished the runic incantation. Luckily, Rafaela was able to get it first try, evident by the small bells on the Borati Chime ringing by themselves.

"[Shelorr's Glyph of Eternal Slumber]" Rafaela repeated the name of the spell.

In an instant golden energy was sent flying towards the curious slime creature.

Its screech could probably be heard from kilometers away once the divine energy engulfed its body. Arnold could hear a sound similar to flesh being burned by fire.

It tossed and turned and even jumped into the water but the flames didn't die out.

The creature went silent after a few seconds. A magic circle appeared underneath its charred remains. The magic circle turned into a glowing pyramid. It broke like glass the next moment.

All evidence that the creature managed to make it here was gone.

"…Ugh." Rafaela almost fell on the ground. Her breathing sounded heavy.

Arnold scanned the forest. Naturally he sensed nothing but critters in the vicinity.

His paranoia was insanely high at the moment.

"What is the matter?" The merchant asked the silent Arnold.

"It's possible there's more of them out there. We can't let the little ones live."

"Perhaps but even if there is, chances are that they might've already been killed or hunted down by other monsters," said the skeleton, "The infants take decades to fully mature so they will not be a threat to anyone."

"The only ones we should be worried about are the ones closest to the wall. It's a good thing the forest obscures this place and the wall is so high up," Arnold looked up at the wall in the distance, "Plus, the smaller offspring are harder to spot. But it's not entirely impossible for them to be seen."

"You should go now." The merchant said.

"I know. Come on, Rafaela."

"Right…" Rafaela walked ahead. Her pace was a little faster than usual.

Arnold spoke to the merchant before he followed after her:

"If I ever need to buy something, where will I find you?"

"Oh, dear customer, hearing your need for my products makes this one very happy. You need not worry about that. I go where I am needed most. Sometimes I may sell things that is crucial to a situation. Who knows when that situation might come?" The skeleton shrugged.

"You never told me who you were before you died."

"Is that important? Surely, it should not matter since I pose no threat to you?"

"I'm curious, is all. If you could just tell me your name then that'll be enough."

Arnold knew almost every named NPC and quest giver in the game. The system can identify NPCs that he doesn't know (evident by how it could identify the Soul King earlier).

"Let's just say I was a prominent wizard in my days as a mortal before I became a merchant."

"That's not much to go on, is it."

He's being vague just like earlier.

"Kakaka, then here's another clue: I participated in the Demon Human War. Intentionally or not, who could say? Who was I? Which side did I fight for? What role did I play in the war?"

·        System updated!

·        Patch notes: new entry added to Vulris Queen, Lyra's memories

'Hoh.' Arnold's eyes narrowed.

"I will be leaving this world soon, same as you." The undead said before looking back at the Arcane Dome, "Will that barrier hold, I wonder. The gods have been complacent the last two centuries. Surely it could not be that difficult to order the Three Gate Guardians to use their armies to dispose of these creatures?"

He was obviously speaking to himself but Arnold answered regardless.

"Letting the guardians—who defend the Rune Bridges from possible invasions from the Outer Gods—go on some killing spree for the sake of peace will not bode well. You never know who might be watching, waiting for the moment your defenses are weakened."

It should be obvious to the well-informed who is being spoken of here. Of course, the only well-informed person here is Arnold.

The light flashed in the undead's eyes:

"You say that as if something is sure to happen, Your Excellency."

"I'm just trying to understand their intentions. Will they risk it and come wipe out these monsters or remain in their own realm while the mortals face certain doom? Anyway, I better get going."

Arnold followed after Rafaela after he was done speaking to the merchant. The merchant didn't reply after the two were done.

Arnold glanced back one more time.

"He's gone, huh. Such a mysterious guy."

◇◇

Arnold met up with Rafaela back on the Path. She was fully dressed at this point.

The two didn't have the leisure to have a quiet chat due to all the violent rumblings and roars.

Arnold could see Rafaela visibly shaking with every rumbling accompanied by powerful roars.

"—Were you there when those things killed the Sky God?" Arnold decided to speak while the two were heading to the portal.

Rafaela looked back. Her ears drooped as if she recalled something unpleasant.

"…When He discovered that their weakness is divine power, our God had all His angels out on the frontlines as the main attack force. I witnessed firsthand how powerful and dangerous the Outsiders are. Their bodies are nigh invincible against any sort of non-divine damage, be it martial arts, magic, curses, blight rot, decay… So many of my master's magicians perished in that war against those… those things… Even though we had the advantage in numbers, they had more power on their side. We were defenseless without barriers or any other sort of protection, which is why most of us were killed. I didn't have the opportunity of going to the frontlines since I was a healer who tended to the wounded."

"Why didn't Yorm and the other two Gate Guardians lend aid during that time?"

Or Josuapher for that matter.

"…I don't know."

"Then can you answer my next question: why did the Sky God still allow the Gate Guardians to connect their Rune Bridges to his dungeon even after they gave no support to him?"

A Rune Bridge is known to connect many worlds to the divine realm. This makes entry into the divine realm possible.

But why should the rune bridges be connected to the dungeon as well?

"From what my master told us, it's to fulfil some destiny…"

Destiny… If Arnold had to take a guess, this destiny was the "gods' champion" fighting his way through the dungeon in order to reach one of the three Rune Bridges and enter the divine realm.

The outcome will be the gods gifting the holy sword to the Hero.

"I suppose that must be why Arthur is here…"

"Hm?" Rafaela looked back when he murmured.

"It's nothing."

In the distance Arnold could see a purple glowing object that floated above the ground. It had the shape of an oval and was about the size of the average adult human.

Arnold and Rafaela quickened their pace. Although they were very far from the area where they encountered the infant offspring, Arnold could still feel the rumbles and hear the roars from the monsters.

He glanced back. He could see dozens of those things beyond the Arcane Dome and the High Wall.

Their number is enough to take down the empire in a single night.

The scariest thing about the Star Beast is that it's still out there making more Offspring, seeking the perfect mate to pass its genes to.

If a perfect Offspring was born… Not even an endgame level Hero would be enough to kill it. Of course, there's less than 1% chance of the Star Beast encountering a species that can make the perfect child.

"What's wrong? Don't tell me you're thinking of going back." Rafaela called out to Arnold.

"No, it's just… I'm wondering how long these Arcane Domes will hold."

Being Seventeenth-Rank magic, there's little possibility of anything being able to break the barrier completely. Couple that with the high walls that were keeping the Offspring at bay, chances of them escaping are close to null.

Of course, not everything is guaranteed.

Arnold and Rafaela were just about to step through the portal.

The hairs on Arnold's neck tingled.

His warrior sense activated all on its own.

He shoved Rafaela to the side and tried to turn to defend against what was about to come. However, his right shoulder was gripped by a powerful invisible force.

Two large paws held onto him, preventing him from turning his body.

"Guack!?" two spears of golden light were pierced through his thighs.

"A-Arnold!" Rafaela quickly got up, noticing only now what was happening.

Arnold shouted, "Keep your distance!"

"….." Rafaela solemnly nodded and hesitantly stepped back.

Arnold could feel the pressure through his armor increase. The thing holding onto him was definitely a beast of some kind.

He tried to move but the thing's grip on him got even stronger.

The thing that had been holding onto him appeared to the naked eye.

'An owl bear with golden fur…?'

It was a divine beast.

He said status in his mind.

·        Mimic Divine Beast, Fiannei

·        Level 100

'A mimic… A divine beast that can take on the forms and power of other divine beasts…'

Such a Divine Beast was a rarity in Star Fantasy since they're genetically engineered by the gods and aren't born naturally throughout the worlds of the divine realm. Think of them as super soldiers for a nation.

Mimics are less aggressive but also more intelligent than all the other species of Divine Beasts that you can encounter.

Now then, who was the one who threw those golden spears at Arnold? Fiannei doesn't ring a bell. Maybe the Beast was so unimportant in the game that it was never mentioned.

Arnold looked straight ahead when he heard the nearby trees rustling.

His eyes widened when he saw the status screen above that individual that emerged.

    Gederick, the Silver Majestic.

·        Life Phase 2

·        Level 66

A middle-aged man walked into the open area of the forest, nearing Arnold with calm strides. He had an air of nobility and seriousness surrounding him. His armor was a dark silver, matching his gunmetal-silver hair.

His eyes were reminiscent of gold.

"—Thieving mortals, I have found you once again," The man—Gederick's—deep voice resounded like an echo in a cave, "Each passing second is crucial to securing the godly item which ye stole from mine castle. Each step makes the countdown to losing Lady Fate's favor. This me had feared that I would have journeyed across multiple planes of existence yet here you are, a mere few jumps across space. I prayed to thank Lady Fate for giving this me such luck—"

Gederick was now a mere few meters away from Arnold.

Arnold spat in his face, causing Gederick to pause his sentence.

"Get this over with or fuck off. I'm not in this dungeon to entertain washed-up gods."

There's no doubt about it. That old man who he presumed only had Gederick's name coincidentally turned out to be the real "God of War" himself. A washed-up god who lost all the power he possessed in his prime and reduced to a demigod.

Gederick calmly took out a napkin and wiped the spit from his face.

"Uncouth monkey. Now I see why my brother, Deralett wanted to slaughter the mortals all those years ago. It seems times have not changed as I had expected. Mortals still lack respect."

'This guy seems different than the old man I nearly killed. Why is he younger? I don't recall Life Phases regressing an NPC's age.'

Gederick slapped Arnold across the face.

Arnold glared at him.

An annoyed expression appeared on the younger Gederick's face.

He slapped Arnold again.

"Tch."

This time it was stronger. Blood flew out of Arnold's nose and mouth.

"Even if you curse me, they will never amount to anything other than empty threats. I can see it in your eyes, you want to kill me. Unfortunately, you will die by my hands today if you do not return what you stole."

"…And if I say no?"

He had an idea what this guy was referring to. The question is: why does he think that Arnold and Rafaela has it?

'Wait a second… Don't tell me his useless innate skill gave him the idea that we have the artifact.'

Gederick held out his arm to the side.

A spear of pure gold, one that was twice his height, manifested out of nowhere.

Gederick pointed the tip of the spear at Arnold's chest.

"I sense no shred of power in the elf over there so she is no threat. On the contrary, she can lead me to where you hid the World Ring Fragment, making my search infinitely easier."

'I knew it.'

"Do gods really kill mortals with no shred of hesitation?" Arnold spoke just as Gederick pulled the spear back, resembling a wind-up to a thrusting motion.

"Aren't you guys supposed to be virtuous, perfect beings with no hostility for your creations? Surely, you can let this one incident slide? What would you do if we actually sold the Fragment?"

"You… traded a divine artifact for mere gold!?"

"That's not it. You see, I'm just trying to understand how important this artifact is to the gods and why you go through so much trouble to get it back."

"H-Hmm…"

"Are you willing to talk or are you going to keep restraining me like this?"

Gederick stepped back a few steps.

"Fiannei, release the boy."

Arnold could feel the immense pressure on his shoulder being lifted. The Owlbear slowly made its way to Gederick's side.

"Even thieves deserve a fair hearing, is what I have learned through my time as a member of the Divine Court. However, there are no other witnesses so choose your words carefully."

If you don't cooperate then you'll die, is a pretty bizarre thing to hear from a god.

Not even the goddess that every other god hates—Aedri—casually threatens to murder mortals who oppose her. Even the Goddess of Dark Magic, the lover of the Death God, has her standards.

But it would seem that Gederick has none. Is he what you would consider a delinquent god?

'I'm going to kill you.' Arnold almost said that out loud.

Although Gederick was somehow at level 66, he was confident that he could beat him in a fight. Of course, a head-on fight was risky even without the Mimic Beast by his side.

"First I'd like to know what the relationship between the remaining two remaining Lords is like."

Gederick frowned.

"I am the one asking ques—"

"—Not good," the owl bear spoke, interrupting Gederick. It had a feminine voice but sounded a bit deep, "It's been almost 10 000 years since they were entrusted with the pieces of an artifact that can control laws and physics itself. Possessing such an artifact means possessing a fraction of what the Timeline Gods are capable of. Both are incredibly hostile even in rare social gatherings."

"I see. Who could say no to such power. If I were in their position, I'd have long plotted to kill the other two Lords and have all the power to myself. Say, if one of them does end up killing the other with the intention of taking their Fragment: what would the consequences be like?"

"As far as I recall, the gods do not have permission to hand out punishments to those selected by the Timeline Gods themselves. If anything, they would fear the wrath of the Timeline Gods and not who gets to have the complete artifact."

"Why not look after the fragments themselves? The oh-so-powerful Timeline Gods should be able to stop anyone from getting the artifact, right?"

"I do not know."

Typical, the gods and demigods are left in the dark when it comes to their plans.

The Timeline Gods have never appeared in Star Fantasy but the impact they have on the game's universe was huge. There was no reason for them to establish communication with Luke or any of the other characters.

"Serving them like lapdogs despite never seeing them or speaking to them—reminds me of the mortals who worship that incompetent Melis and the other gods."

"…You do not worship any god, I take it?"

"No. The Berkley Family don't put their faith in gods who favor only special mortals."

One of them being Angelica. The other, well, Luke the Hero.

"What do you prefer, human? Do you want the gods to walk amongst you?"

"No, that would be awful. They'll put us in all kinds of danger. Let the mortals in the divine realm worry about world-ending threats looming outside their realm. I'm aware that gods have their own conflicts and struggles in the divine realm just like humans have war, crimes, famine, threats of world hunger. Still though, it be nice if gods could lend their creations some aid during times of conflict."

"Let me say it like this: the purpose of your creation is to handle your own problems. You were given a will for that reason."

Arnold scoffed.

"Is that so? What if mortals could help gods? Do you think that's possible?"

"I will entertain your hypothesis… I believe so since the gods have many followers from all kinds of backgrounds."

"Not every one of them is born special, like say, a God's champion. Not just that, only one human can wield the Holy Sword of Song and Light."

"What's your point?" Gederick asked impatiently.

"What if a mortal other than the hero—with the power to help the gods—were to appear in front of them?"

Arnold smiled meaningfully.

"If they truly do possess the means to help the gods, I would wager that the gods would welcome them with open arms." The owl bear spoke again.

"You mean enslave, right? You said earlier that all mortals are born with their very own will. What's to say that mortal will save the realms out of the goodness of his heart?"

"….."

Silence.

It seems they have no retort to that.

Why was Arnold asking this? Well, he was transmigrated during a time when gods need that hypothetical mortal to save the realms.

Of course, he won't just reveal this to them. He'd be in chains on some far off world forced to labor away to save the gods' asses.

Plus, he doesn't want to do it. Of course, he'd have no choice to further in the future if he wants to benefit from it. He was only throwing this out there to see if these two know what rewards await this "hypothetical savior".

"Enough of this! Tell us where you hid the artifact at once!" Gederick pointed the spear at Arnold.

"Or what?" Arnold sharpened his gaze, "Are you trying to threaten me? That's not very smart if you consider what the artifact is capable of and what would happen if it landed in the wrong person's hands."

Arnold spread his arms with a smirk on his face.

"There's bound to be people out there who know what the artifact is capable of. Once all pieces are assembled, it can take you straight to the doorstep of the divine realm, without the need of crossing the Rune Bridges and facing the Gate Guardians. I'm sure someone from the Between Realms would want this artifact, right?"

He could see Gederick flinch.

"Imagine an army of god-like beings plotting to take over your homeland, threatening to enslave your people and destroy everything you loved, everything you fought for. It's due to this why the divine realm is so heavily guarded. The gods created the Realm Gates that connect all nine realms together. No one other than the gods can pass through these gates. Each has a guardian assigned, all of whom are powerful beings who have the full trust of their people. What if all your precautions were for naught? What if all it takes to shatter the mindset that you're safe behind your defenses, is just because you pissed off a mortal?"

Choose wisely what you're going to do, he said with a hearty laughter.

"Y-You little…!" Gederick tried to approach Arnold but the owl bear stopped him.

"I'm a simple man, I side with the person who offers the most benefits. Giving the Fragment back to you doesn't seem to be in my favor. In fact, my body might be put on a pike before the citizens watch me burn for being a thief."

In other words, give me a bigger offer than the opposition.

Of course all of this is merely a bluff. There's no way Ladiath can get the other two fragments and raid the divine realm. Maybe in 100 years or 1000 years. He's just too weak. This is evident by how he asked Arnold to kill a dragon lord while he prepares his forces.

"Your threats are cute but I won't fall for them," the owl bear slowly transformed into a humanoid. It then took form of a boy, "We can simple kill you and take control over your body which can lead us to the Fragment. You underestimate the powers that even demigods possess."

"How do you know I haven't given the artifact away already?"

"You would've said so already instead of wasting your breath trying to dissuade us from pursuing you. That's what a cornered mouse does. You have a gifted mouth but not everyone will fall for whatever words come out of it."

Arnold sighed softly.

"I tried to do this peacefully and benefit from it but you just had to ruin it." He released his aura and summoned his Soul Armament.