BXBX NOVEL Book 2, 201
“When the Lady of the Night fell, her divinity and power were absorbed by him. This allowed him to jump from a lesser deity to an intermediate one, and at the same time he changed his name. He is now known as the God of Time, Runai.”
This was confidential information. If this was true, it was undoubtedly one of the biggest secrets of the entire plane. If news were to spread, one would definitely arouse Runai’s wrath. And judging from how the sunset warriors had been treated, it was evident that the gods of Faelor would not like these rumours.
“Why do you think my guard is from the Sunset Shrine? Look, she’s still very weak.” Although he knew Phaser wasn’t from the Sunset Shrine, Richard was intrigued by this mysterious group Kellac had spoken of. If his words were true, they would be a natural ally to him in Faelor. The only unknown was whether they valued the gods or the plane more.
“The combination of darkness and divinity. It’s a common characteristic of the sunset warriors, and a unique one.”
Divinity was not something just anyone would be allowed to possess. A commoner with divinity was like a beggar with a bag of gold; the gods would undoubtedly intervene.
Richard frowned, gently tapping his hand on the table as he asked, “The Sunset Shrine seems to be the primary target of the gods. Since you think my guard is a sunset warrior, should I be worried about priests and paladins knocking on my door in the near future?”
Kellac’s mouth twitched, settling into a bitter smile, “The divinity of the sunset warriors rests deep in their souls. Even the gods cannot find them. Strong or weak, the only way to sense the existence of a sunset warrior is if you are one yourself.”
Richard was astounded by this revelation, “So you are...”
Kellac nodded, his gaze returning to Phaser, “Sir Richard, can you hand your guard over to me? I can guide her, and help her realise her true potential as someone of the Sunset Shrine.”
“Not possible,” Richard answered without hesitation. Phaser was the spawn of the broodmother; her darkness came from Sinclair, while her divinity came from various ancestral idols. She was definitely not a sunset warrior, so there was no potential for Kellac to bring out. Besides, she was already level 6 now, and would soon be an essential member of his party in the future. How could he hand her over to him? Whatever conditions he was thinking of, there was no room for discussion.
Kellac was obviously unhappy, he tried over and over to sound Richard out, but Richard was adamant. He was left with no choice but to drop the subject.
“Alright then, Mr. Kellac,” Richard changed the topic, “Let’s discuss that partnership with the Demon Hunting Spears. No need to worry, my lips are sealed about what I just heard.” He glanced at Phaser who had withdrawn into a corner, “If anything, I will do it for her.”
Kellac leaned back with a strange smile, “I trust you completely. Now, Sir Richard, what do you want?”
Richard got straight to the point, “I’m in urgent need of a dependable group of elite soldiers.”
Kellac nodded his head, passing a scroll to Richard, “The Demon Hunting Spears have a total of about 700 men, the weakest of us being level 6. They are loyal and trustworthy: this scroll contains details about them and their corresponding rates. However, the key to our partnership is not in gold, but the tainted scrolls you sold to me last time.”
“The tainted divine scrolls?” Richard had his doubts. He reached out to grab the scroll on offer, starting to inspect its contents.
Before Kellac could explain, Flowsand suddenly broke her silence, “Was your divine power burnt a long time ago?”
Kellac’s body shook all of a sudden, leaving him feeling incredulous. He raised his head, his hawk eyes giving Flowsand a death stare. The cleric’s eyes had turned dark as ink, but deep in her pupils was a pale gold glimmer. He felt as though his very soul had turned crystal clear under her gaze, all his secrets out in the open.
He managed to calm himself down quickly, “Indeed. I was once a high priest for the Highland Wargod, twenty years ago. I offended another deity, and was punished by the burning of my divine power. I was lucky to have survived.”
Richard suddenly looked up from the scroll and stared at Kellac, “Don’t you have to be at least level 16 to be called a high priest?”
“I was level 17 at the time.”
“A level 17 priest surviving the burning of his divine power? It’s simply a miracle!” Flowsand exclaimed. As a cleric herself, she knew clearly how unbelievable such a thing was. Even a level 7 cleric whose divine power was burned would be left half dead; it was unheard of for someone above level 10 to be able to survive the process.
“It’s because I was also a sunset warrior. The divinity hidden within saved me at the most crucial moment, but because of that most of my divine power faded away,” Kellac laughed bitterly.
Flowsand’s gaze roamed about as she asked, “So then, you need a new religion?”
Kellac hesitated. It seemed hard for him to make the decision, but eventually he nodded his head.
“My body is currently broken beyond repair, my life almost at an end. If I do not acquire the grace of a new god, I will not live to see the next year. However, I have a few unfulfilled wishes, I need to live on.”
He only grew more and more resolute as he spoke, “I inspected those tainted scrolls. If I am not wrong, that batch of scrolls came from a new power. This power is not amongst the current pantheon, so it likely comes from a new demigod. If I get the favour of this demigod and a new lease of life on my divine power, I can continue to fulfil my wishes. So long as this new god’s requirements do not contradict my wishes, I am willing to serve.”
Hearing what Kellac had to say, Flowsand opened her mouth to speak but was stopped by Richard. Richard looked Kellac in the eye, asking, “What would you offer to your new god?”
Kellac had long since been prepared for this question, “I was a powerful priest after all. If I garner the favour of this new god, I will grow very swiftly in level. With enough grace, it is not impossible for me to recover completely. A high priest in the mortal world can be of great use to a new deity.
“Secondly, outside of my unfulfilled wishes, I will give my body and soul to my new Lord. The entirety of my subordinates in the Demon Hunting Spears will be at His disposal, and we will dress in the church’s colours.”