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Chapter 588: The Gathering of Heroes

The next day, as promised, Tsubaki created a portal within the Sky Citadel, connecting it to a room within the elven capital. There, the seven ‘heroes’ that would go to invade the enemy world were waiting, and so they walked through to arrive. However, when they appeared at the citadel, they were startled to see not only Tsubaki and Dana, but myself as well.

Of the seven, one of them was a dovah, one a heroc, two halflings, and the last three humans. As expected, they seemed to mostly come from Fyor. Upon seeing me, they all quickly tried to kneel, and so I used a bit of ki to make sure they remained standing. “None of that. You all will be helping me out this time, and it will be harder to understand Tsubaki’s instructions if you aren’t willing to lift your heads.”

Although hesitant, they seemed to understand this concept as well, eventually giving in. Only once I was sure that none of them were going to try to kneel again did I remove the influence of my ki. Once I did so, Tsubaki stepped forward. “Before we begin, there are some questions that I would like to ask all of you. Specifically… you three.”

The ones that Tusbaki singled out were the dovah, heroc, and one of the halflings. “You three have already converted your body to divinity, and should be able to ascend any time you wish. I would like to hear why you have delayed doing so.”

I could tell that she had changed to speaking the language of Fyor when conversing with them, and she seemed to be rather fluent in it as well. However, such a thing didn’t really come as a surprise, given how diligent she is with her work.

The dovah was the first to speak, scratching his head with one of his clawed hands. “In truth, I don’t actually know what domain I want yet. I felt like it would be a waste to ascend before I’ve made that choice. Now that I have my divine body, I don’t feel as stuffy from the energy building up, so I have more time to choose.”

Next to him, the heroc nodded with an expression to indicate that he was in similar circumstances. Which left the halfling… “I thought it’d be more fun to just play around at this stage for a while!” She said with a wide grin. “Maybe if I get lucky, I could get a fortunate encounter that would be even better than a normal divinity!”

…Aurivy, you don’t happen to have an incarnation about to reach divinity, do you? Given this girl’s attitude, I immediately thought of a certain pink-haired halfling I knew.

Hmm? Nope! My incarnation isn’t even a perfect self yet. Unfortunately, she denied my guess rather quickly. So, we had two that were just waiting to figure out what domain they wanted, and one that was looking for a lucky encounter. As for the other four, they had yet to take the step of condensing their divine bodies, so there was a bit less need to worry about them.

Tsubaki gave a nod, as if understanding their answers. After which, she turned to the humans. “You three. What is it that made you accept my request to join this group?”

The three humans all appeared to be brothers with fair skin. Two had muscular builds while the other was rather slim and wearing a black robe. It was this man that stepped forward to speak on behalf of him and his brothers. “We wish to challenge ourselves, more than anything. My brothers and I have reached the top levels accessible to Fyor, and desire a new adventure.”

“Although that world is large, it will be nothing when compared to exploring an entirely new world.” There was a passion in his tone as he spoke, widely smiling.

“You are aware of the dangers involved in this operation, correct? There is a good chance that you will never be able to return.”

At Tsubaki’s warning, the man simply shook his head. “It wouldn’t be an adventure if it were safe. The fact that we will need to brave dangers in order to accomplish our trial is the greatest reason for us to participate.”

After hearing that, Tsubaki turned to glance towards me. I could tell what she wanted, and nodded my head. The man had not been lying, and didn’t seem to contain any hidden agenda with regards to this mission.

With that confirmation, Tsubaki approached the only one that had yet to speak, the second halfling. She looked down at him for a long moment before speaking. “Of the ones gathered here, only you have a criminal record. In order to ensure the cohesion of the team moving forward, it would be best for you to explain yourself.”

The halfling gave a dark chuckle, his brown hair swept back. “There’s nothing much to explain. When I was gone from my home to train, a group of people broke into my house and killed my wife. Lackeys of the mayor who didn’t like the thought of me taking all of my business elsewhere while living in his town.”

“So I severed his arms and legs, and gave him a front-row seat to his house burning down around him and his thugs.” He seemed proud of what he had done, without the slightest bit of remorse.

“And?” Tsubaki raised an eyebrow, clearly knowing that there was a bit more to the story as well.

Clicking his tongue, the halfling continued. “And I returned the favor they paid me. Wouldn’t want to leave any angry widows behind.”

When the others heard that, their eyes went wide in shock, looking towards the halfling. However, Tsubaki held her hand up to stop them. “His presence is very important in this mission. When you arrive at the enemy world, there is a good chance that you will need to build connections in the criminal underground.”

“The rest of you are all law-abiding, and have never killed another outside of self-defense. The presence of someone who understands the mind of a criminal will be the best chance to integrate with them and gather information that would be otherwise unavailable to you.”

“Do not fear, this situation is not without its restrictions. If you manage to complete your mission, he shall be pardoned for his crimes. That alone shall serve as a motivator for him, as the only thing that awaits him otherwise is a life in chains. Furthermore, one of you will be chosen as the team leader. This leader will have access to a special magic brand that is able to dissuade him from rebelling once you reach the other side.”

The other six people looked skeptical at first, until the mention of the brand. Although it was rarely used in the present day, there were several cases of crime slaves within the numerous worlds. Criminals who are offered the chance to atone for their crimes as a servant as opposed to rotting in a cell. Of course, these offers are not made to those who willfully carry out brutal crimes, but rather those whose crimes were born of circumstance.

“Dana, would you mind going over the equipment that they’ll be given for this mission, while I converse with the Keeper?” Dana nodded her head happily at that request, pulling out seven storage items that she had prepared while Tsubaki and I walked away.

I could hear her excitedly explaining the functions of the mana scepter for several long moments, until finally we entered the citadel itself and the sound was blocked by the thick walls. “These are the forces that I have gathered, my Keeper.” Tsubaki spoke in a more reverent tone than what she had used with the others outside.

I gave a faint nod, my eyes glancing back towards the door that we had just emerged from. “As long as they are properly equipped and cultivated, they’ll make a good strike force. The invasion is happening seven days from now according to my own time, so let me ask you. How long do you need to get them ready?”

Tsubaki considered the situation carefully. She knew that time could flow vastly different between her own perception and that of the Keeper. Any amount of time she gave could be less than a single day to him, so long as she did not require his presence. “Six months should suffice.”

“Will you be able to help each of them ascend to godhood within that time? Without making them subordinates to yourself?” If they became subordinate gods, they would carry a trace of the master god’s domains on them. While that would normally be a good thing, it also meant that the enemy would have the chance to read my domains from their aura.

Having understood that same logic, Tsubaki nodded her head. “I will allow them to choose others from the gods we have if they wish to become a subordinate. Otherwise, I believe that I can teach all of them how to properly ascend within these six months. At that time, I will hold a ceremony for them to ascend together, to make sure that the brand on Tyrian’s soul does not come undone.”

Thinking about that, I gave a slight nod. “Send me a list of the domains that they’re aiming for when it’s time for the ceremony. There’s the chance that they might be more suited for a different domain, but we’ll plan this strategically as a strikeforce. Better to have domains that compliment one another, even if it isn’t their greatest affinity.”

“I understand, my Keeper. In that case, I shall plan accordingly. If you have any other arrangements, please let me know in advance.”

I watched her bow, thinking if there was anything else important for their training. They were already being provided the ‘weapons’ that were nigh-unlimited supplies of the four primary energies. The only thing left was… “How long will it take to craft divine artifacts for them, after they ascend?”

Tsubaki tilted her head slightly at that, looking up at me. “I believe we should be able to accomplish that during their training period. As long as they tell me the type of item they require for their artifact, I will ask a craftsman to forge it for them.”

I gave a faint nod at that, before a thought struck me. “Speaking of which, I don’t think I’ve seen your artifact yet, have I?”

Tsubaki shook her head, extending one hand. A long-barreled rifle appeared and dropped into her arms, after which she held it close to her chest. “I don’t have a name for it… but this is my weapon. With it, I am capable of condensing the power of light and firing it as a powerful beam of energy.”

I raised an eyebrow as I considered that, thinking it was a bit… lacking for someone like Tsubaki? “Is there more to it? I mean, this is you we’re talking about. It can’t be as simple as that, right?”

She seemed to take a moment to consider that. “The shot is capable of reaching the speed of light due to its natural properties. Additionally, it has a tracking feature, and I can fire it at any target that is not completely isolated by solid barriers.”

“Yeah… that sounds a bit more like it.” Meaning, theoretically she could aim the gun into the sky, designate a target on the other side of the planet, and the shot would instantly curve around the world to seek them out. Definitely more impressive sounding than a simple laser rifle.

Now it was only a matter of returning to the admin room and accelerating time. Hopefully, none of the people that Tsubaki had gathered would run into any problems with their ascensions. But, whether they did or not, I knew that I’d have several new gods in the coming days. It was about time for the rest of the first generation to complete their own ascensions…

As I was turning to leave, Tsubaki suddenly spoke up to step me. “My Keeper, I do have another matter to report to you. While not urgent, it is… unusual.”

Already in the process of selecting the option to ascend, I paused my actions to face her. “What is it?”

“Dana and I have been working on a personal project, similar to when we created the reality marbles. By using gemstones of all four primary energies, we have been trying to create stable worlds. However…”

“I saw the results already.” I assured her with a smile, earning a look of surprise from the kitsune. “I’ve been keeping an eye on that project myself, quite curious how it will turn out.”

“You aren’t going to be upset that we are infringing upon your territory?” She asked, seeming more curious about that than anything else.

“Of course not. If you have the power to do it, be my guest. Just be sure to be careful. If a stable universe like that were to erupt… taking out a planet or two wouldn’t be out of the question.”