Ch.7979. Boreas

This was the second time I directly witnessed a ‘god’ with my own eyes.

I know that gods truly exist in this world. After all, it was Caordix who bestowed divine power and blessings upon me. Yet somehow, he never felt like someone to be worshipped, but rather like a companion I’d known for a long time.

The moment I faced Boreas, I finally understood why. All this time, Caordix had been suppressing his divine nature. He did it out of consideration, so that I, a mortal, wouldn’t be frightened.

‘The God of Wind.’

Boreas was different. She made no attempt to hide her divinity.

On the surface, she appeared to be just a beautiful, mischievous girl.

An ordinary person might have thought so. But Rex, as a Sacred Knight approaching the stage of Radiance, had developed what’s commonly called the ‘sixth sense.’ This sense awakens in the face of danger.

My skin tingled. Boreas, who had smiled and called it a ‘prank,’ showed no hostility. Yet my blood ran cold. It was clear that if she were to casually wave her hand, my life would be extinguished in an instant.

[Do you know why I summoned you here?]

Boreas, who had been floating in midair, gently descended onto a cloud. Just her gaze from those sky-blue eyes made me feel as if a cool breeze was seeping into every pore of my body.

Rex managed to move his stiff neck and shook his head.

“…No.”

[I thought not. Actually, I was curious about something. A secret conversation we couldn’t have where other humans might hear.]

“Where exactly is this place?”

[My mental realm.]

Boreas replied briefly, then continued in a nonchalant tone.

[You asked why I dropped you from the sky. I apologize for that nasty prank. I know you’ve done nothing wrong, but thinking about that damned fellow made me want to tease you. So if you want to blame someone, blame your master, not me.]

“Pardon?”

Rex looked at Boreas with a puzzled expression. From context, “master” seemed to refer to Caordix, but beyond that, he understood nothing. Noticing his confusion, Boreas furrowed her brow and grumbled in a displeased voice.

[When I first saw you, I considered bestowing my blessing upon you. Even though I’m now relegated to a provincial city, I thought that by making you my follower, I could once again increase my influence.]

While all gods possess transcendent abilities without exception, there are still hierarchies among them. The lowest-ranking deities cannot maintain their own temples. Just as seeds need soil to germinate, gods build dungeons to gather Sacred Knights and exert influence on the world. The world is full of nameless gods who failed to meet even this basic requirement.

They were closer to spirits than gods.

Though she called it provincial, Lindveil was a major city with thousands of inhabitants. Compared to minor deities who couldn’t even establish their own temples, Boreas qualified as a high-ranking deity, if not among the highest.

Which meant she didn’t quite reach the level of ‘true’ high deities.

[I knew someone had already claimed you. It was partly out of greed. But why, of all beings, did you have to be Caordix’s subordinate?]

A god’s divine authority isn’t determined by the number of followers. However, almost all high-ranking deities have their own religious orders that worship them.

Caordix was different. In terms of ‘rank,’ he boasted divine authority that was among the most powerful, counted on one’s fingers.

[To think that one who had been in seclusion for hundreds of years would suddenly emerge. I’ve spent no small amount of influence trying to calm that rampaging one down.]

A god’s sense of time differs from that of humans, but it was still long enough to forget things—at least partially. They couldn’t completely forget, especially not an oddity among gods like Caordix.

That war god had not created a single follower since the great war of the past. Before that, he had only ever taken one human as his subordinate. The number of followers isn’t crucial to establishing divine authority. Regardless, all gods aim to establish their own religious orders and ultimately create their ideal world.

The reason is unknown. Whether they are deities born from nature or mortals who shed their physical bodies to be reborn as gods, once they attain divine status, they naturally develop a desire to expand their influence.

Caordix was the only god who didn’t follow this instinct.

[I dislike him. He’s willful, frivolous, and tries to destroy everything that displeases him.]

Rex nodded with a sour expression. Now he recalled how Caordix had disparaged Boreas before, hurling insults like “lowly scum” and “whore.” It was becoming clear why Boreas detested him so much.

Though it wasn’t his own doing, Caordix was a god closely connected to him. Feeling as if his family had made a mistake toward someone else, Rex awkwardly scratched his cheek.

“So… what did you want to ask me?”

[Are you Leonhardt?]

Rex’s eyes widened at the sudden question. Boreas erased her smile and stared at him with an expressionless face.

“Leonhardt…”

It was a name he knew. The first emperor who unified the continent, the founder of the Argentia Empire located in the Central Continent. His detailed actions weren’t recorded. All that was known was that at some point, he passed the imperial throne to his subordinate and disappeared. Naturally, all this information came from Berger’s teachings.

While he didn’t understand why she would suddenly ask if he was Leonhardt, the answer was obvious.

“No, I’m not.”

He was a figure from the distant past. Rex was just a fifteen-year-old boy who had lived his entire life in a quiet rural village. The question’s premise was fundamentally flawed—how could he be an emperor?

Boreas’s eyes narrowed at his immediate response, given without much thought.

[I have seen Leonhardt before.]

“What?”

[Your face closely resembles his. Blonde hair, blue eyes, even your features. Unlike you, Leonhardt was a man with a wild nature… but as you grow, you might become like him before long.]

Just because of a resemblance, she’s having such a far-fetched delusion? Rex wore an incredulous expression but kept his thoughts to himself. Boreas’s voice was deadly serious, and Rex wasn’t bold enough to directly contradict a deity.

[That’s not all.]

Boreas extended her hand. A gentle breeze caressed Rex’s body.

[I sense a familiar energy from you. At first, I thought it was Caordix’s, but the more I look, the more I think it isn’t. It’s as if something is sleeping within you. It’s ambiguous. If I could directly probe your inner self, I could determine it for certain…]

Just as Boreas’s hand was about to touch Rex’s cheek—Crack! Suddenly, a bright yellow lightning bolt shot up from the void. Rex’s eyes widened. The electric current didn’t harm him. It merely circled roughly around Boreas, as if rejecting her touch.

[As expected, it won’t allow it so easily.]

Boreas calmly withdrew her hand, and the current gradually subsided.

“That just now…”

[Caordix’s protection. He must have cast a spell to prevent other gods from meddling while he’s away. He’s still as fiercely protective of his subordinates as ever.]

Boreas examined the back of her hand with furrowed brows. A clear burn mark was etched on her translucent, pale blue divine form.

[I can’t investigate any deeper. It’s disappointing, but if I continue to probe, Caordix will likely cause another commotion. I’ll set aside my curiosity for now.]

Rex asked anxiously, hesitating:

“Do you know what state Caordix is in right now?”

[Of course. You seem anxious because your master has disappeared. I don’t know the details, but it doesn’t seem to be anything serious. If I had to guess, he’s probably releasing some kind of lock.]

“…Lock? What do you mean by—”

[He’ll return when the time comes.]

Boreas waved her hand dismissively with an indifferent expression.

[Don’t ask me. I don’t know either.]

“Then, what about the others…”

[Don’t worry. I’ve placed them all in safe locations. Among them, there’s a child with interesting potential—not as much as you, but interesting nonetheless—whom I’m interviewing elsewhere.]

Rex let out a small sigh.

He felt like a fish that had been waiting at the surface for the fisherman to throw bait, only for the fisherman to tease him without offering anything and then leave, resulting in the fish getting nothing to eat.

In other words, it was frustrating.

‘Is this… a god?’

This wasn’t how he had imagined gods to be. He had thought they would be more noble, majestic, and transcendent beings. Of course, Caordix had already shattered that image, but he had still secretly hoped other gods might be different. Especially after seeing fragments of Pandemius.

But the girl before his eyes now…

[You look displeased. Is something wrong?]

“No, not at all.”

Rex answered with an awkward smile. Then a thought suddenly crossed his mind.

“What about the trial?”

[……]

Boreas closed her mouth and blinked.

Rex’s expression became strange.

‘Don’t tell me she forgot?’

Boreas spoke with a sulky face.

[What’s with that look? How rude. The trial… will be conducted. There are no exceptions once you’ve set foot in the temple. I just needed time to consider the fact that you’re Caordix’s subordinate.]

“I see…”

Rex merely nodded calmly, but Boreas raised an eyebrow as if his reaction irritated her. She snapped her fingers.

[There’s no need to wait. We’ll start right now.]

A dazzling flash erupted. Rex closed his eyes.

The light that had engulfed his vision gradually diminished and transformed into a small figure.

Boreas whispered with a raised corner of her mouth.

[Kill it. If you overcome the trial, I’ll reward you as you wish.]

Rex found himself gaping involuntarily.

“No way…!”

The trial opponent that appeared before him was truly an unimaginable monster.

“This is… a slime.”

Plop. The jelly-like semi-solid monster puffed up its threatening body and jumped.

Rex brought his palm down.

Squish.