Arriving at the restaurant, Aurelia informs Slithori, the Lamia who works the front desk, of our intention of booking a private room. Much like everything in this place, it's pretty expensive to do but not caring for the cost, Aurelia gets us the room. Having paid for the room, Slithori personally guides us up to a second floor and to one of several rooms. Bringing us to a sliding door with flower patterns, we enter and take a seat around a nice table in the shape of a large flower petal. Following the same motif, the walls have various flowers painted on them and flower vases sit in the four corners of the room. Handing us three menus, Slithori points to a button on the wall to call a server over when we are ready, giving us a light bow as she leaves.
"Here we should be free from any unwanted ears. So, you wish to know about the hierarchy of Celestia and Spirit World? Is that right?" Aurelia asks.
"Yeah, that's pretty much it. We Dragonoids mostly believe in the Nature Gods but given the disorganised nature compared to the way the Church of Wisdom operates, we don't know much more than the few Gods whose domains we live in. As a scholar, I'm more informed than most, but I went most of my life believing that the Nature Gods and the Church of Wisdom's Gods were all that there was. And I believe this goes for most of the inhabitants of our world. But now I know there are far more Gods than I even imagined and the image I've held of Demons has been turned upsidedown. And I don't even need to mention the part where our world is just a playground for a particularly powerful God," Lia says.
"Where should I start... I guess I should correct you in that last statement you made. He isn't just a particularly powerful God, rather, he is regarded as the most powerful. Do not forget, he is the creator of Grauntia as well as many other worlds. You have a long ways ahead if you seek to vengeance, Cordelia."
"Yeah, I kinda figured that one out first hand a while back. But I don't believe that I can't someday get my revenge on him."
"Optimism is good and I am more than willing to assist you in your endeavour against Akkre, but killing him simply isn't an option. The most that we could do is seal him with a barrier for some time."
"And why's that? I have the Immortal Slayer title so it's not like I can't take down an Immortal being."
"Allow me to clarify this for you, that only applies to those within the confines of the System. To even think of challenging him, you will need to break free of the System and Leave Grauntia. This also means you will have to learn how to use your abilities without the aid of the System and you will lose access to any bonuses the System grants you, which includes the Immortal Slayer bonus. Moreover, there are three types of Immortality, Partial Immortals also known as Half Immortals. This category is resistant to disease and toxins, they are also unaffected by ageing, so as long as they aren't killed they can live forever. The next is your standard Immortals, they normally don't die when killed and have the same benefits as the Half Immortals. They can be killed under special conditions like eating their soul for example but are generally impossible to kill for most. The final category is the True Immortals, they can't die under any circumstance and only Primodials can be True Immortals. The soul of a True Immortal can't be touched even by Demon races that can eat souls."
"Let me guess, he's a True Immortal, ain't he?" I ask.
"Correct, this is why I said killing is impossible and sealing him is the best case scenario. But given his abilities, he can't be contained for very long. Actually catching him is even harder since we would need to catch both him and his wife together and then trap them inside the same barrier."
"And why do both of them need to be there?" I ask.
"The two of them could be considered to be opposite sides of the same coin. The two of them are Soul Bound, which is essentially an upgraded version of your Soul Connection. Their souls are merged and they can instantly appear next to each other surpassing any restrictions and distance."
"Didn't you just say that the soul of a True Immortal couldn't be touched?"
"There is an exception to that, and it's naturally themselves who can interact with their own soul. Although even among Primordials, not many can do so."
"So what are Primordials?" Lia asks.
"I'll be getting to that shortly," Aurelia says, closing her menu, "going up from where I left off previously, let's move on towards Demons. 'Demon' is an overarching term for a being that consumes the life-force of others for substance and/or power. This can include soul eaters like the Eithgar and Bloodsuckers like vampires. Cordelia could also be called a Demon a she too is a soul eater. Ancient Demons are the progenitor's of certain Demon races and their descendants within five generations, Akkre also falls under this classification."
"But it's my understanding so far that he's a God though, what's up with that?" Lia asks.
"He is. While I don't know the specifics behind it, Akkre's official racial status is 'Infinity Wolf Demon-God', a Half-Demon Half-God. On that topic, let's move on to the Gods. You had questioned me about High Gods before, it is simply a rank. The Gods of Grauntia are the low ranked Gods. Low ranked Gods are typically those without strong foundations, are forgotten and no longer worshipped, or just weak. Mid ranked Gods are the most common ones and are just the middle ground in terms of power between the Low and High ranked Gods. Speaking of which, the High ranked Gods are generally ones with a strong foundation and well respected, pantheon leaders, or have overwhelming strength compared to Mid Gods. Being a Primordial will also guarantee that one is a High God."
"Go on, what are the Primordials?" Lia asks, while barely being able to contain herself in her seat.
"They are beings intrinsically tied to what is known as the 'Will of Existence', they represent the most basic functions and laws that govern everything in existence. The Three Keepers, Akkre, Raziel, and Chronos are prime examples of a Primordial. Akkre is the personification of creation and destruction, Raziel personification of knowledge, and Chronos is the personification of time."
"I can understand Akkre and Chronos, but Raziel seems a bit odd. Knowledge doesn't have the same level of impact that the other two represent," Lia says.
"While what you're thinking isn't wrong and isn't complete either. Knowledge most certainly contains what things such as history and culture, that isn't all. It is also the basic formations of all that is, for example, everything is made up of various chemical elements, Cordelia you should at least be familiar with the concept."
"Yeah, like how water is H2O, two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom, right?"
"Yes, and similarly, hydrogen is made up of various protons and neutrons, but what makes up those protons and neutrons, and what makes up those, and even further, can you answer this?" Aurelia asks.
"Err... no, I never really learned what was beyond just periodic table. I knew of protons and stuff but I never knew much more than the name."
"I honestly couldn't tell you the answer either, only Raziel knows the absolute base form of everything in existence. Raziel supplies the knowledge, Akkre creates the material, and Chronos gives it time to develop, this is the process that created not only Grauntia but what you know as the universe as well. All other Primordial are below these three, but they are all forces that push existence forward."
"Fascinating, truly fascinating! I need to organise and write this all down, I'll be famous if I can get this accepted publicised!" Lia yells.
"I would suggest you don't do so, unless you want to be chased until death by the Gods of Grauntia. Why do you think I chose this restaurant to discuss this with you two? And it wasn't for the food."
"Say, I've been wondering this for a while now, but how do you even know all of this?" I ask.
"You saw it on my status earlier, did you not? The 'Eithgar Inheritance' Soul Skill. This is the accumulated knowledge and wisdom of my ancestors. I believe this is sufficient for now, let's order some food for the night."
"But there's still more I want to ask," Lia says.
"if you wish to ask more, then go get some work done. As a reward for a job well done I might share some more information, so work hard."