Alex silently watched them settle down, Dabok silently walked up to Alex without saying a word. Torrelsav had guilty expression on his face but Alex didn't feel he had any reason to blame him.
The moment he found Mako's name within the quests description, He understood that, That fellow was the variable that caused their raid to fail. So he only said a few words, "What happened?".
Quickly, Torrelsav explained the situation while the others looked on with worried expressions. The other who had been working got agitated as well, including the few pregnant goblins.
Dabok watched Alex's expression without saying a word.
"I see...you guys go in and rest for now." At the end that was all Alex could say, no matter how he looked at it, that seemed to be the best option for now. After all, they'll need every capable hands right now and He also saw that the main reason he sent them had been achieved.
They were mostly a step away from breaking into the 2nd circle, with Dabok being the lowest level at Level 17.
As he was thinking, He felt the same sensation he felt on the night Ayaseh visited
.
[Detecting divine mana signature...]
[Owner Detected: Ayaseh has descended, please proceed to the Temple]
'Why is she here again?!'
He watched the group return to their Quarters and it just occurred to him that Urim had been living in the small room on the left side of the Manor.
'Why didn't he take a full house for himself, I'm sure no one would compete with him' This was Alex's thoughts as He couldn't help looking at Urim's retreating back strangely with a wry smile creeping up, making him look a tad bit ugly.
One of Torrelsav's daughters kept looking back at him like she had something to say but changed her mind, Unfortunately Alex didn't see this, since he was already walking to the temple with confident strides.
Dabok on the other hand began to wonder if this was the 'God' Alex normally mentions as He stared at the carvings on the temple door.
He watched the doors open to show a pitch black interior, welcoming Alex in.
Seeing this scene, He couldn't stop his mind from wondering,
'to increase my power, do I follow you?', his question was directed to no one in particular, He just stood there in a daze but after a while, he also retreated for now, hoping Alex would have a solution to the approaching crisis.
What spread before Him was a familiar scenery he had once seen before, Once again, He was within this pitch black Hall, Whispers and silent wails on the walls but no sign of the Goddess
"Olhani...!" An eerie whisper traveled to his ears as he became more vigilant, the white marbled statue at the center of the Hall had an eerie green glow within it's eyes. It stiffly turned its head and the moment it locked eyes with Alex, The entire hall lit up with grey colors.
Goddess Ayaseh lounged lazily upon an throne made of shadows, Alex could faintly see arms attempting to claw their way out of the throne. This time she took the form of a woman you would normally see in Greece, Her iconic green eyes looked at Alex teasingly.
"you've gotten quite handsome, haven't you?" She said as she scanned him from up to down, full hair that swayed as though it had a life of it's own, like several shadows trying to make themselves known.
Huh? Alex on the other hand, had his head filled with question marks but couldn't help but wonder, 'could this be her real form?'
One thing that made Ayaseh a mystery was because the author never let her show up twice with the same appearance.
The mother of the night raised an eyebrow at his shocked expression but she found something interesting, 'His soul is definitely healing as I had suspected and He evolved so quickly...hehe I wonder what Ragol would think.'
Unbridled curiosity flashed through her eyes as she asked cryptically while putting thoughts of the stupid sun God on the side, "and? are things going well?".
"depends on what you are referring to."
The Shadows by her feet was now more active. Her pure white toga squirmed for a second before relaxing again.
The goddess soon emanated a dignified and coercing aura befitting that of the ruler of the Abyss.
'was she satisfied with my answer? or was she not?'
Her two Green eyes narrowed themselves into a slit like a snake's. she folded her hands together, resting her perfectly sculpted chin over it as she stared at Him.
"I've been to Coga...I suspect your old enemy is making a move with Mileesi".
"what are you talking about?" Alex asked, 'She went to the Heavenly Sun kingdom? The mysterious realm that Ragol resides in? and what's this about the goddess of fate?...'
'Right!!... the misunderstanding, was she probing to see if I got back my 'memories'.
As if satisfied with herself, the goddess's face twisted into a smile just like a little girl who's enjoying herself.
"Forget it..." She said with a smile as she mischievously looked up at the roof like she was imagining something.
Seeing her smile like that, Alex felt wary..."what are you scheming?".
"nothing Really… as of now," she chuckled. "Hey why don't you become my champion."
Oh no!
"I don't think...I don't think I can" Alex cautiously said.
"Eh??. how vexing, to think the first person I ask would reject me... Why?!."
Sound of high-pitched laughter resounded across the walls, The goddess suddenly scowled and glared at it.
'Whats the deal with this walls...is it only like this when she comes around or is this thing usually just lying in my territory?'
"ha ha ha… well I just wanted to offer assistance, because the Enemy approaching has become a champion".
'What?! Mako?! Already?!', A scowl spread across his face as he thought about it.
'He must have sacrificed his clan'
"why don't you consider my offer?!" She urged once more. Alex squinted at her words, 'what is she scheming?!. Why is she so fixated on me to the point of being polite, if she really wanted to, she could do it like in the novel where she forced it upon the antagonist.'
'Unless, She can't force me!!! but why?!' His brain worked at an accelerated rate but he still chose the side of caution, yes killing Mako would easier because of the hierarchy amongst gods but once he becomes her champion, the world would be alerted and that would be asking for trouble. not just because of the war of Gods or even Davis Fairchild, the situation would put him before the lordly houses earlier than needed. Ultimately, the cons outweigh the pros.
"I'm sorry, but my answer remains No" He finally said.
" you wouldn't mind if you lost all you have here? is that what you're saying?"
her gaze was sharp, piercing through me into my very core.
"O…of course not, I will solve this problem."
"ahahaha, Interesting... truly a sight to behold."
when those words entered His ears, He couldn't help but feel relieved.
'She didn't get angry'.
"I look forward to seeing how you solve this problem, The danger approaching is going to be tough."
declared the goddess with an expressionless face.
"If You do win, perhaps I could strike a deal with you" Her Voice echoed as Alex was flung out of the temple.
Alex stared at the doors with a solemn expression.