Chapter 245 - The Ex-Goddess

Rynold closed his fist as he heard the Mech God's dismissal of his actions. It irked Rynold so much that he narrowed his eyes in speculation.

"Care to explain?"

Rynold tried to convey a positive attitude, but he asked while gritting his teeth regardless.

Either way, though, the Mech God didn't seem to care so much for Rynold's current attitude. The god instead chose to focus on explaining the dire reality of the situation.

"She's the goddess of mythical creatures. Or, you know, at least she used to be," the Mech God said, a tone of sadness in his voice, "Although we didn't really have the same interests, we still got along pretty well. She preserved life. I wanted to create it. Even so, we still had a good relationship."

"Okay," Rynold interrupted as he crossed his arms, "You sound like you've got a special relationship with that chick, whether you'd like to admit it or not."

Rynold acted rude, more so than usual. Even if he were to find some sympathy as to what the Mech God was saying, he wasn't all that keen to show it. The fact that the Mech God was being vulnerable with him was already weird to think about. Rynold had to make sure that the Mech God wasn't becoming soft. Especially considering that they had a new troublesome opponent ahead.

"That's not the point."

"Well, get the damned to it then. I don't need a complete recollection of what happened between you two. If you keep staying on that course, I'm going to keep making fun of you. Really, it's your choice."

As much as Rynold cared for heartfelt stories, he didn't have the luxury to enjoy one right now. Granted, he had the time to listen to the Mech God's tale. But, the explanation of what had happened to him was more appealing. Rynold couldn't care less about anything else.

"Fine," the Mech God turned away from Rynold and sighed, slightly regretting choosing Rynold as his Candidate, "A disclaimer, though, you're not going to like what you hear. It's not for everyone."

Despite the warning, Rynold remained the same. He stared directly at the Mech God with unwavering, unhesitant eyes.

"So be it," the Mech God said as he let out a deep breath, "Let's start with the first stupid thing you did. The sprite dust. Did you really not reject it? Or at least stop it from happening?"

Rynold remained quiet, unsure where the Mech God was going with this.

"It's the first step of all of this. Don't you see that? This whole ordeal was because you chose to accept the sprite dust for what I can only assume to be stupid reasons. While I get that you may have no idea what that was, you ought to acknowledge how careless you were."

Upon hearing that, Rynold's expression dropped. He wasn't sure what was worse. The fact that he had intentionally let in the lady or that he had been so careless. Either way, this was the end result. His carelessness had led him to this point.

"It was the bridge that led her to you and your Mana Core. She had done so in a way that even I couldn't sense. It was subtle, worthy of my respect and your praise. That kind of magic was at a caliber that even I can't reach. No matter how hard I try…"

"Then," Rynold read the room and reeled in his aggression, "How'd you release me from her grasp?"

"Honestly, at first, I didn't even know it was her. She was just that good. All I did was try to release you from the magic with a revelation magic array. At best, it could've liberated you. At worst, you could've died. Kind of glad that you were in between."

Rynold clicked his tongue, acknowledging the fact that a god couldn't possibly understand what a mortal's life was worth. With that in mind, Rynold asked something that he couldn't quite put into context.

"Was there really no way for you to detect her presence?"

"We gods each have our unique qualities. She's great at casting long-distance magic and has this special relationship with Mana. Meanwhile, I'm nothing like that. I can make things better than anyone else. Insight and dexterity, qualities that I honed to perfection."

The Mech God's backhanded compliment caused him to sneer. Nonetheless, though, Rynold was unequivocally glad that he was free. Well, as free as his could possibly be. But, the method of doing so still bothered him. The delicacies of human life were more than enough to make Rynold upset.

"While I appreciate the help, you still betted on a coin flip, man! Really? That's the best solution you could have come up with?"

The Mech God gave Rynold a complicated expression as the mortal's ungratefulness was nearing the limit. That said, it wasn't some baseless emotion that Rynold had come up with, though. He understood that a mortal only had one life.

"Unfortunately, yes," the Mech God answered Rynold's question a second later. His words were spoken as though they were unmistakable. "Whether you question my methods or not, there were no other options at the time. You were losing your mind. I'm not about to let that happen."

"Hm," Rynold let out a sound, acknowledging the Mech God's response.

"The next thing after that was her initial approach to you. While both of you were talking, she must've planted something on your Mana Core. Something that activated at an opportune time, making you more beast than man. Either way, that one's on her. Nothing you could do about it."

Rynold nodded, letting the Mech God further explain.

"Next was when you started acting all loopy. You had nearly jumped into the ocean, if not for the other mortal's interference. Even I didn't notice it until you started to act delusional. Or, you know, more abnormal than you really are."

"Right," Rynold answered, disappointed, "Get to the point."

"Then, I brought you here to cleanse you," the Mech God added while stifling a chuckle. "The method I used was simple. I infused a magic array into your Mana Core, with the help of the other guy who was here. We added it to your Mana Core while you did the rest of the heavy lifting."

"Yeah, I get what you mean," Rynold nodded in agreement. "The whole thing still felt like a dream, though. But, at some point, it felt like I was wiping away the clouds in my head. Didn't take very long, but each swing I made felt exhausting. And, before I knew, I woke up."

"Mhm," the Mech God nodded, "It's a normal reaction. She had nearly possessed you, after all. All I really did back then was to let you see the way. The rest of what you think you did back then was nothing more than a way for you to get out."

"Still," Rynold brought his hand up to his chin as he reflected, "The whole thing felt surreal. It was as though what I did back then was my own actions. There was no distinction whatsoever."

"I wouldn't expect it to," the Mech God added, expecting Rynold's experience fully, "The current level of your Mana Core is vulnerable to all kinds of attack. Even if I had temporarily strengthened it with a magic array, its uses and duration are all but limited. In a few hours, you'll be back to normal. In fact, I'm kind of surprised you're still standing right now."

"Dude, what?"

Rynold wasn't quite sure how to process that information. No. It was perhaps more accurate to say that he wasn't sure if he was upset or not.

While his Mana Core was strengthened, it was still tampered with. Rynold wasn't particularly happy about something like that, especially since the whole symbiotic incident. Rynold felt frustrated and offended, even though he knew that logically it was the best option to pursue.

"In about a few minutes from now, your Mana Core will be back to the way it was. Until then, I suggest you get your bearings, little human."

The Mech God paid Rynold's confusion no heed as he walked away from the building. Rynold stood there by his lonesome, processing the information that he had.

'This is annoying.'

Rynold fell on his butt as he sat down on the metal floor. His thoughts were a flurry of information, only to reach a rather substandard conclusion. He was troubled, to say the least, and Rynold knew why.

"Why me? Out of everyone in the world, did it really have to be me?"

Even though Rynold was somewhat of a logical person, he was still human. The whole ordeal that had happened to him was more than enough to freak him out. He had yet to recover and wrap his head around all the things that had happened.

The question he asked himself was an accurate description of what was going on in his head right now. But, if Rynold had actually thought about it, the answer was already obvious. A part of him knew what the reason was, but he was too afraid and hesitant to admit it.

He had the power to change fate — a power that was coveted by those who knew what it's worth. Rynold already established that it would soon attract the attention of unwanted people. It was something he had learned a long time ago.

Rynold soon realized that there was no point in running away from who he really was. He had a good foundation of his own strength. And, if anything, this setback showed him what other way he could use to get stronger. The Light-Attributed Augment was proof that he had room to grow.

That said, Rynold had to find other ways to get stronger. Any method outside of being held up in a workshop all day. He needed to gain levels and skills. Rynold knew that his mastery over Mana was unbeatable. All he needed now was something to strengthen that.

But, Rynold knew just as well that it won't be easy.

Turning to the Mana Crystal at the center of the room, Rynold recognized the same signature coming off of it. There was no doubt that the Mech God owned the Mana Crystal.

"Damn it."

Cursing in the empty room, Rynold felt frustrated by his arrogance and confidence. Even though he had survived through countless endeavors, he was still in his infancy. Rynold knew there were gaps that still had yet to be conquered. He was still nowhere near where he expected he should be.

Facing the reality of his condition, Rynold sighed.

Rynold recollected what he had done so far, why he had done those things. He reaffirmed his determination. And, soon, Rynold stood back up and walked out of the building.

'No time to overthink.'

Unfamiliar with his surroundings, Rynold took a stroll on the uninhabited island of a workshop. The previous Mechs reverted to their forms back to the shape of buildings as if nothing had happened. But, Rynold acknowledged the marvel of creating such complicated machinery.

He kept walking and only stopped at the plaza Crimson had been in before. Rynold had no particular reason to stop, but something suddenly had just dawned on him.

"Am I even going on the right path?"

The Ex-Goddess approached him was right, even though he didn't want to admit it. Rynold wasn't playing things smart. He had to do one grueling task after the other, making him think that his approach was entirely wrong. The straightforward approach to most of his challenges up until this point was inefficient and winding. There were better solutions, if only he had done things smarter.

"She was right. I'm being stupid about all of this."

Rynold acknowledged the fatal mistakes he had made until now. Mistakes that had cost him too much because he was being emotional and stupid. He focused on all the things he's done and soon reached a conclusion.

"I shouldn't be a Candidate."