It was a week after Zelig's death. Everything went to a complete halt as the kingdoms reformed themselves, reviewed their alliances, and planned their new future. Everyone knew the old Kingdom of Ten was no more. It was yet to be made official, but it was evident that in the end, there would be separate, independent kingdoms, all being their own masters. The most urgent problems were the two kingdoms in the north. Out of them, the most devastated was the Enjins. Their royal family was exterminated, their government in complete shambles, their capital city gone, and ⅓ of the populace killed. It was only a kingdom in name by now. Ultimately, it was decided that they would be put under the rule of their neighbor, the Lotharin Kingdom, led by Ludwigh. It prevented their home from falling into more chaos and the potential danger of warlords rising up and trying to take control by shedding even more blood. They will be considered a somewhat autonomous province, their officials elected from their own, but they would fall under the rulings of Ludwigh.
The other big question was the Nervadask's fate. Their King was also dead, but his line was still unbroken; an heir was already waiting to be granted the title of King. Yet their role in all that happened was unquestionable. There were still debates going on amongst the rulers to decide what their fate would be. Still, it was almost guaranteed that they would be significantly isolated from every other nation in the future and even lose territory in war reparations towards Paoma. Their fate was unsure, but nobody intervened, not the Immortal Wonders Sect nor the Empire, as it was the kingdoms' job to decide their next step. The four in the south were the ones who came out with the least problems as they only needed to pay reparations with money or resources. It guaranteed they would have no real obstacles in trying to build bridges with the others and the Sect.
"You were invited, once again, to their next meeting, Master!" Ariana walked next to Ren, who was sitting on the rocky shore of the Storm Coast, watching the wild waves in the distance and the constantly rumbling thunder.
"And I will refuse it, once again!" She chuckled while the wind blew her long hair backward. "Seya can do it, and if not, then Keina! Especially the latter, she always wanted to be Queen! Then here it is! She can do it all night and all day!" she looked up at her with a grin.
"Heh… they won't be happy to hear that! Especially not after Rabout just went ahead and left for the Sect!" Ariana shook her head, sitting down next to her.
"Well, that is their problem!" Ren stuck her tongue out. "I'll visit them from time to time; they are family! But my main goal was this, putting Zelig out of the picture and tidying up my messy maternal family line! The rest also got their freedom back. No more fear of brainwashing and a maniac pushing you down! Now it's their job to make something out of it!"
"Hmm… so… where are we going next? Back to the Sect?" she asked after a little bit of silence, tilting her head to the side.
"For a little, yes. See how everyone is doing, then I'm going to the Wall of the World. Kai said demigods are lurking in the western part of it. I need to see them myself."
"Demigods? From… the place Sect Head talked about?" She perked her ears up.
"Most likely. And most likely, they are not friendly! We need to make sure we are safe. I'll need to deal with them if they are hostile. Plus…" Ren looked back towards the still-empty city, where Aerthus's golden 'prison' was for now.
"Plus?" Ariana followed her gaze.
"Until Sect Head is out, I can't leave for the western continent. I will only feel safe to travel far away if there is another Demigod here, protecting everything I love."
"Master, you are going to take me with you, yes?" Ariana asked quickly, looking a bit worried.
"You wouldn't take no for an answer anyway… no?" Ren smiled, patting her head.
"No! I mean, yes! I mean, no! Damn it! You know what I mean!" She pouted, confusing even herself.
"Ahaha, yes, yes! I know, I know!" Her Master laughed loudly. "For now, you will stay in the Sect and cultivate diligently! Host some lessons and train the disciples! I'll pick you up before leaving."
"What? Why?" she asked with evident shock in her voice.
"Because if the demigods who are coming are not friendly… Your being there is going to be my biggest weakness, which they will exploit! Every. Time." She answered seriously, "I won't be able to defend you, and it would pose a huge risk having you there!"
"But-"
"Listen to me well now, Ariana!" Ren turned her voice way stricter. "They would quickly grasp the situation, and you would be used against me, do you understand? Bringing you along would be me killing you!"
"I… I understand…" Ariana took a deep breath, seeing the logic behind her Master's words. "I'll wait in the Sect."
"Good!" She flashed a small smile. "Plus, I need to have you keep an eye on Kyu and train her a little! She is coming with us to the west! I would hear her cries for a lifetime if I left her here and denied her the opportunity to taste some new cuisines!"
"Yes, Master!" She nodded with a clear resolution, already getting over the fact she would need to separate from her for now.
"You really got attached to me, huh?"
"I…" lowered her head, turning red. "You are my only family… Master…”
"I thought you would be weirded out when you figured out my past life!" Ren chuckled, hugging her, pulling Ariana into her lap, and wrapping her arms around her body from behind. Her disciple smiled with true bliss, leaning back, rubbing her head backward like a perfectly content little kitten.
"I was surprised, unsure for a long time, but it was also exciting! It still is!"
"Did you tell anyone?" she looked down at her with a smile.
"No! Not without your permission Master! I would not spill it, not even under torture!" Ariana exclaimed immediately.
"It's not a secret! I just don't go around advertising it. If someone figures it out, I won't deny it, but I try to minimize the clues as much as possible. I don't want others to look at me like a God or something stupid like that! I want to be looked at as Ren~."
"Master… you are weird!" She chuckled in the end, looking up at her face.
"Yeaaaah…" Ren rolled her eyes, "I get that a lot!"
"Wasn't it weird to be reborn as a girl?"
"No!" She answered quickly, "A life is a life! Girl? Boy? I don't care; I am me! The body is just a vessel! I use it to live my life to the fullest! I love who I want, hate who I want, and do what I want! Everything else has no impact on how I look at things! I fell in love with LeiLei not because he was a cute boy, I did so because he was Leinor. His soul and mind were what I got attracted to! If he were a princess, I would have still seduced her~ Same if he had been a demon!"
"So… girls have a chance… with you?" She asked, fiddling with her fingers, still remembering the exchange they had one morning.
"I already pledged my loyalty to LeiLei," Ren answered honestly. "I won't break that. Ever. I won't marry either a human, demon or a creature of legends, even if he offers the world for me! I may look like I'm fooling around here and there for a little fun, but I won't betray my vow I made on that day!"
"Oh…" Ariana nodded slowly, with a somewhat sad voice.
"I know how you feel about me." Ren caressed her face gently, freezing Ariana a little, "I like teasing you as your shy expression is such a little cutie~" Ren chuckled playfully. "Plus, I do like you." As soon as she said that, Ariana's heart skipped a beat immediately. "But if you want me to love you... I can't do that. Sorry..."
"..."
"Don't be so down~ You are my most precious little flower! You can stay my disciple for as long as you want!" She tickled her disciple a little.
"It's enough!" Ariana replied, almost melting in her Master's embrace with a smile. "It is enough for me to be with you, Master!" she whispered, closing her eyes with pure bliss on her face, enjoying Ren's gentle embrace as she rocked her back and forth like a caring parent would do with her own.
…
….
…..
After a month, Ren arrived at the Wall of the World. She was floating in the air with Kai, watching the endlessly ongoing, sharp, snow-covered ridges, sneaking everywhere the eye could see.
"Everything is okay?" Kai asked, scanning her, a bit surprised by the speed she was advancing with. He saw geniuses outside of the realm, even taught a handful of them, and Ren could call herself one in each of the other worlds, even with the advantage of being reincarnated.
"Yep." She nodded, watching the swirling snow in the distance. "Rumira stayed where Aerthus is at, and most of the demons' forces are keeping an eye on the kingdoms. They are making sure there won't be any unexpected guests popping up. I visited Thunder Valley briefly. Once again, it needs an expansion! Their populace is nearing a million souls soon enough. The human way of living is more enticing for the demons than I initially thought. They adapt quickly!"
"Of course!" Kai smiled, "Intelligence is universal, and it is drawn to progress! No matter if the being with cognitive thinking is a rock, a chair, a squid, or a human. They just need strength to accompany their intelligence, and they will build a civilization!"
"I assume there are demons in the outside world, too?" she asked, tilting her head to the sides.
"There are realms that are governed by demons only. Some realms even see humans as a virus. A disease, purged if they show up."
“Grim… but… I can see why!" She sighed, holding her head, already remembering some of the worst people she had met only in her current life.
"They say this because we have a weird ability." Kai continued, "We are extremely adaptive. Our species finds a way to live and overcome difficulties. Even enslaved humans reproduce, breed, and find a way to live. Not one realm where humans were a minority was, in the end, taken over by them. Risen up from salvedom and dominating the other species. It may take eons, but eventually, it will happen. Worst, from their perspective, we can breed with almost any other species. Our bloodline is invasive; most half-breeds outside are from other species mixing with humans."
"No wonder we are called a virus!" Ren twitched her mouth.
"You'll see for yourself one day." Kai patted her shoulder. "It has been inevitable since the day you opened the Sky."
"I am already excited! I can't wait to see what other wonders are out there! What about you?"
"I won't go." he shook his head. "I am fine here. Even if you leave one day, I'll remain. My time has already passed; I am content with just living and seeing how life finds a way to move forward!"
"I see." she crossed her arms. "I can understand that. But… first, I still need to finish what I started~."
"Hehe, true- oh?" Kai flinched simultaneously as Ren, and their heads snapped to the left, entirely in sync.
"It is one…." Ren whispered, "Weren't there more?"
"There were three of them." Kai nodded, "I lost them when they entered underground."
"Hmm…" She furrowed her eyebrows, "Well, we can't just guess; let's go and meet this lonely demigod and ask what the hell he is doing here!" she smiled, teleporting away, quickly followed by Kai to meet with the lone scout of the God Nilier.
It was a week after Zelig's death. Everything went to a complete halt as the kingdoms reformed themselves, reviewed their alliances, and planned their new future. Everyone knew the old Kingdom of Ten was no more. It was yet to be made official, but it was evident that in the end, there would be separate, independent kingdoms, all being their own masters. The most urgent problems were the two kingdoms in the north. Out of them, the most devastated was the Enjins. Their royal family was exterminated, their government in complete shambles, their capital city gone, and ⅓ of the populace killed. It was only a kingdom in name by now. Ultimately, it was decided that they would be put under the rule of their neighbor, the Lotharin Kingdom, led by Ludwigh. It prevented their home from falling into more chaos and the potential danger of warlords rising up and trying to take control by shedding even more blood. They will be considered a somewhat autonomous province, their officials elected from their own, but they would fall under the rulings of Ludwigh.
The other big question was the Nervadask's fate. Their King was also dead, but his line was still unbroken; an heir was already waiting to be granted the title of King. Yet their role in all that happened was unquestionable. There were still debates going on amongst the rulers to decide what their fate would be. Still, it was almost guaranteed that they would be significantly isolated from every other nation in the future and even lose territory in war reparations towards Paoma. Their fate was unsure, but nobody intervened, not the Immortal Wonders Sect nor the Empire, as it was the kingdoms' job to decide their next step. The four in the south were the ones who came out with the least problems as they only needed to pay reparations with money or resources. It guaranteed they would have no real obstacles in trying to build bridges with the others and the Sect.
"You were invited, once again, to their next meeting, Master!" Ariana walked next to Ren, who was sitting on the rocky shore of the Storm Coast, watching the wild waves in the distance and the constantly rumbling thunder.
"And I will refuse it, once again!" She chuckled while the wind blew her long hair backward. "Seya can do it, and if not, then Keina! Especially the latter, she always wanted to be Queen! Then here it is! She can do it all night and all day!" she looked up at her with a grin.
"Heh… they won't be happy to hear that! Especially not after Rabout just went ahead and left for the Sect!" Ariana shook her head, sitting down next to her.
"Well, that is their problem!" Ren stuck her tongue out. "I'll visit them from time to time; they are family! But my main goal was this, putting Zelig out of the picture and tidying up my messy maternal family line! The rest also got their freedom back. No more fear of brainwashing and a maniac pushing you down! Now it's their job to make something out of it!"
"Hmm… so… where are we going next? Back to the Sect?" she asked after a little bit of silence, tilting her head to the side.
"For a little, yes. See how everyone is doing, then I'm going to the Wall of the World. Kai said demigods are lurking in the western part of it. I need to see them myself."
"Demigods? From… the place Sect Head talked about?" She perked her ears up.
"Most likely. And most likely, they are not friendly! We need to make sure we are safe. I'll need to deal with them if they are hostile. Plus…" Ren looked back towards the still-empty city, where Aerthus's golden 'prison' was for now.
"Plus?" Ariana followed her gaze.
"Until Sect Head is out, I can't leave for the western continent. I will only feel safe to travel far away if there is another Demigod here, protecting everything I love."
"Master, you are going to take me with you, yes?" Ariana asked quickly, looking a bit worried.
"You wouldn't take no for an answer anyway… no?" Ren smiled, patting her head.
"No! I mean, yes! I mean, no! Damn it! You know what I mean!" She pouted, confusing even herself.
"Ahaha, yes, yes! I know, I know!" Her Master laughed loudly. "For now, you will stay in the Sect and cultivate diligently! Host some lessons and train the disciples! I'll pick you up before leaving."
"What? Why?" she asked with evident shock in her voice.
"Because if the demigods who are coming are not friendly… Your being there is going to be my biggest weakness, which they will exploit! Every. Time." She answered seriously, "I won't be able to defend you, and it would pose a huge risk having you there!"
"But-"
"Listen to me well now, Ariana!" Ren turned her voice way stricter. "They would quickly grasp the situation, and you would be used against me, do you understand? Bringing you along would be me killing you!"
"I… I understand…" Ariana took a deep breath, seeing the logic behind her Master's words. "I'll wait in the Sect."
"Good!" She flashed a small smile. "Plus, I need to have you keep an eye on Kyu and train her a little! She is coming with us to the west! I would hear her cries for a lifetime if I left her here and denied her the opportunity to taste some new cuisines!"
"Yes, Master!" She nodded with a clear resolution, already getting over the fact she would need to separate from her for now.
"You really got attached to me, huh?"
"I…" lowered her head, turning red. "You are my only family… Master…”
"I thought you would be weirded out when you figured out my past life!" Ren chuckled, hugging her, pulling Ariana into her lap, and wrapping her arms around her body from behind. Her disciple smiled with true bliss, leaning back, rubbing her head backward like a perfectly content little kitten.
"I was surprised, unsure for a long time, but it was also exciting! It still is!"
"Did you tell anyone?" she looked down at her with a smile.
"No! Not without your permission Master! I would not spill it, not even under torture!" Ariana exclaimed immediately.
"It's not a secret! I just don't go around advertising it. If someone figures it out, I won't deny it, but I try to minimize the clues as much as possible. I don't want others to look at me like a God or something stupid like that! I want to be looked at as Ren~."
"Master… you are weird!" She chuckled in the end, looking up at her face.
"Yeaaaah…" Ren rolled her eyes, "I get that a lot!"
"Wasn't it weird to be reborn as a girl?"
"No!" She answered quickly, "A life is a life! Girl? Boy? I don't care; I am me! The body is just a vessel! I use it to live my life to the fullest! I love who I want, hate who I want, and do what I want! Everything else has no impact on how I look at things! I fell in love with LeiLei not because he was a cute boy, I did so because he was Leinor. His soul and mind were what I got attracted to! If he were a princess, I would have still seduced her~ Same if he had been a demon!"
"So… girls have a chance… with you?" She asked, fiddling with her fingers, still remembering the exchange they had one morning.
"I already pledged my loyalty to LeiLei," Ren answered honestly. "I won't break that. Ever. I won't marry either a human, demon or a creature of legends, even if he offers the world for me! I may look like I'm fooling around here and there for a little fun, but I won't betray my vow I made on that day!"
"Oh…" Ariana nodded slowly, with a somewhat sad voice.
"I know how you feel about me." Ren caressed her face gently, freezing Ariana a little, "I like teasing you as your shy expression is such a little cutie~" Ren chuckled playfully. "Plus, I do like you." As soon as she said that, Ariana's heart skipped a beat immediately. "But if you want me to love you... I can't do that. Sorry..."
"..."
"Don't be so down~ You are my most precious little flower! You can stay my disciple for as long as you want!" She tickled her disciple a little.
"It's enough!" Ariana replied, almost melting in her Master's embrace with a smile. "It is enough for me to be with you, Master!" she whispered, closing her eyes with pure bliss on her face, enjoying Ren's gentle embrace as she rocked her back and forth like a caring parent would do with her own.
…
….
…..
After a month, Ren arrived at the Wall of the World. She was floating in the air with Kai, watching the endlessly ongoing, sharp, snow-covered ridges, sneaking everywhere the eye could see.
"Everything is okay?" Kai asked, scanning her, a bit surprised by the speed she was advancing with. He saw geniuses outside of the realm, even taught a handful of them, and Ren could call herself one in each of the other worlds, even with the advantage of being reincarnated.
"Yep." She nodded, watching the swirling snow in the distance. "Rumira stayed where Aerthus is at, and most of the demons' forces are keeping an eye on the kingdoms. They are making sure there won't be any unexpected guests popping up. I visited Thunder Valley briefly. Once again, it needs an expansion! Their populace is nearing a million souls soon enough. The human way of living is more enticing for the demons than I initially thought. They adapt quickly!"
"Of course!" Kai smiled, "Intelligence is universal, and it is drawn to progress! No matter if the being with cognitive thinking is a rock, a chair, a squid, or a human. They just need strength to accompany their intelligence, and they will build a civilization!"
"I assume there are demons in the outside world, too?" she asked, tilting her head to the sides.
"There are realms that are governed by demons only. Some realms even see humans as a virus. A disease, purged if they show up."
“Grim… but… I can see why!" She sighed, holding her head, already remembering some of the worst people she had met only in her current life.
"They say this because we have a weird ability." Kai continued, "We are extremely adaptive. Our species finds a way to live and overcome difficulties. Even enslaved humans reproduce, breed, and find a way to live. Not one realm where humans were a minority was, in the end, taken over by them. Risen up from salvedom and dominating the other species. It may take eons, but eventually, it will happen. Worst, from their perspective, we can breed with almost any other species. Our bloodline is invasive; most half-breeds outside are from other species mixing with humans."
"No wonder we are called a virus!" Ren twitched her mouth.
"You'll see for yourself one day." Kai patted her shoulder. "It has been inevitable since the day you opened the Sky."
"I am already excited! I can't wait to see what other wonders are out there! What about you?"
"I won't go." he shook his head. "I am fine here. Even if you leave one day, I'll remain. My time has already passed; I am content with just living and seeing how life finds a way to move forward!"
"I see." she crossed her arms. "I can understand that. But… first, I still need to finish what I started~."
"Hehe, true- oh?" Kai flinched simultaneously as Ren, and their heads snapped to the left, entirely in sync.
"It is one…." Ren whispered, "Weren't there more?"
"There were three of them." Kai nodded, "I lost them when they entered underground."
"Hmm…" She furrowed her eyebrows, "Well, we can't just guess; let's go and meet this lonely demigod and ask what the hell he is doing here!" she smiled, teleporting away, quickly followed by Kai to meet with the lone scout of the God Nilier.
