Reading the notice, I realized Avenor was a little too restless.
“If humans have other settlements like this one, then they can gather hundreds, maybe thousands of mages and warriors. What can we do against such a force?!” he thought, already walking away from the notice board, pulling his hood over his face.
It was more of an instinctive response to his emotions than an actual need to hide. He had openly participated in the tournament not long ago. If Aria’s spell had deceived humans then, there was no reason it would suddenly fail now.
“What should I do? Should I return immediately? Or try to escape… no, Aria wouldn’t agree. And I don’t want to betray my friends either. Damn…”
For a moment, I was surprised that the thought of betrayal didn’t disturb me in the slightest. From a mortal’s perspective, his reaction was understandable. But Avenor was no ordinary mortal. He was my avatar. He should have understood that while his connection to me came with responsibility, it also ensured my protection. No other deity would be allowed to claim him.
I felt disappointment more than anger.
Still, I didn’t dismiss the fact that he had chosen to stay of his own will. He had clearly formed a bond with the other velmoryns.
Even so, his reaction puzzled me. Could he not see the obvious advantage in this notice? Could he not realize the implications it carried?
I decided to test something.
Shifting the Window, I moved it to Amon. He had already left the velmoryn and was now with Karla.
“Can’t you come tomorrow?” Amon complained. “I could go with you until we reach the dungeon, then continue toward the human kingdom. Well, to be honest, I have no idea where it is… but it should be fine. By High Father’s will, I’ll find it. So? What do you say, will you come?”
“I have told you this already, Amon,” Karla replied, her brows furrowed. “I must first select a champion for the dungeon. This is not a decision that can be made in haste. It is a direct command from Father, one that also involves Mother, and our brethren’s life will be at risk if I choose poorly.”
She sat on her bed, a large, soft pillow beside her, two massive eggs resting on top of it. She continued channeling her mana into them, trying to hatch the beasts as per my command.
“You take orders too seriously, Karla. Lord wouldn’t mind if you—” he stopped speaking abruptly as I cut him off, making my voice deliberately loud in his mind.
“Do not speak for me.”
He flinched, then quickly composed himself when Karla gave him a puzzled look.
“You were listening? I wasn’t trying to trick her…” he tried lying to me while avoiding Karla’s eyes.
With a sigh, he stood up and picked up the bag from the floor, several books sticking out from the top.
“I’ll be leaving then, I know when to admit defeat,” he said.
“Are you certain you do not want a Veilspace ring?” Karla asked. “I could spare one.”
“No, but thank you, Karla. You’ve been very helpful. I learned a lot from you.” He gave a slight bow, a gesture he had likely picked up from the velmoryns, and left the room before she could respond.
“Why would I need a Veilspace ring when I have all that space, right, Verde?”
He grinned as the bag appeared in my realm.
“Fine. You can keep it here,” I said. “Take a look at this.”
I showed him a vision of the notice board and the recruitment announcement.
As the image settled and he processed what he was seeing, a small, sly smirk formed on his face.
“Verde, we might have been wrong about the God of Night. He might be weaker than we thought. Why else would he start gathering random mercenaries and openly announce his plans?”
Strangely, despite not being a perfect copy of me, Amon’s reasoning mirrored my own, while Avenor had only grown tense after reading the same notice.
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Still, I chose to argue against him. Challenging his logic would help expose any flaws in my own.
“What if he is like me?” I said. “Someone who believes increasing his chances of victory can only be beneficial. A larger army is always an advantage. Even if the recruits prove weak, they can still serve as fodder, forcing us to reveal our hand.”
Amon turned down the street, cutting left as he passed the large butchery.
“Verde, you need to introduce money. I tried to buy meat yesterday, but…” He waved it off. “We’ll deal with that later. Now, that twisted bastard…”
He kicked a stone, harder than intended. It struck a piece of metal on the ground with a sharp clang.
Amon immediately glanced aside, feigning ignorance.
“Don’t you find it strange that he used Athena’s name alongside his?” he continued. “You wouldn’t have done that, right?”
I considered his question. I understood his point, but instead of agreeing, I searched for a counterargument.
“I might have,” I said. “If I were certain of victory, then no. Sharing credit and influence after the war would be undesirable. But if I had doubts…”
“Exactly,” Amon cut in, his voice rising with excitement. Then he let out a chuckle, giving a few awkward nods to the velmoryns staring at him before returning to our telepathic exchange. “You’d only do that if you weren’t confident you could win. Which means he isn’t either. And that would only happen if he weren’t as strong as we feared… but more importantly, now we can place spies in his army, and he can’t do the same because we have absolute control over velmoryns.”
“I already considered that. But I do not wish to risk Aria and Avenor. If they are exposed, I won’t be able to pull Avenor into my realm because of his Hollow Core. And Aria has no understanding of how humans live - she would be discovered immediately.”
“I wasn’t suggesting them, Verde.” He chuckled. I could tell he was enjoying this moment, and, to be honest, so was I.
“You mean him?”
“Yes.” Amon grinned. “He wants a new life. A different path than dark magic. And I don’t see that happening in Eriavel, not with a war approaching. But if we grant his wish… or more precisely, if I do…”
“Did you suggest him because you believe he’s the best candidate, or because you want to use your power for the first time?”
I already knew the answer.
“Yes,” Amon said, grinning wider.
His excitement was obvious. But that didn’t matter.
His idea could work. No, I was almost certain it would.
The velmoryn had spent nearly two centuries among humans. Even if he had never tried to become one, he would have learned their ways.
That was all I needed.
Now I need to figure out how to disguise him as a human who follows their gods rather than me.
I already knew Amon intended to give him a new face by granting a wish. Alternatively, I could do it myself without relying on such methods. But I was curious.
I wanted to see how Amon’s power would reshape a living being into something new. Granting minor wishes like curing headaches or improving a harvest was already an impressive feat. But this… this was different. Changing the very form of a person was on another level entirely.
Still, even if he succeeded, and there was no need for me to intervene, I would have to understand how humans were marked by their gods.
So far, I only knew what they didn’t have. No markings on their bodies like the velmoryns.
But perhaps there were other signs.
Eyes. Hair. Something less obvious.
Guidance.
[Forming a Divine Contract with a Lesser Soul]
When a mortal accepts a god, a divine contract is formed between them. The nature of this contract is shaped by the mortal’s perception of the deity. Such contracts do not impose direct obligations upon the god, nor do they compel specific actions.
In exchange for faith and divinity, the god assumes responsibility for the mortal’s soul after death, provided the god possesses the means to do so.
The nature of these contracts varies by race. Immortal beings such as elves provide significantly greater divinity than other races. Velmoryns share a similar trait through their bloodline. Their souls are strong enough to be directly bound to a deity and marked. Once a mark is placed, the god gains a claim over that soul, and no other deity may freely claim it.
Humans, however, possess short lifespans and fragile souls. While they may form a connection with a deity, their souls cannot withstand the divinity required to place a mark. Attempting to do so would result in the soul’s destruction.