Ceric walked into the now empty room.
"Hey! They said that you are good to go, so-" He ended his sentence as he stared at the abandoned bed.
"I swear, the captain and this bastard must be related or something..." He grumbled before shaking his head and rushing out of the room.
Meanwhile, Kellen finally entered the massive library bustling with people in uniforms after getting some directions from a passing student.
'Woah... This is definitely the place!' He thought excitedly.
The library towered over the multiple buildings in its surroundings at the heart of the academy. The multi-pillared structure was giant but what really set it apart from the others was its intricately decorated statues.
On the very top of the library's spired roof was an eagle with a piece of rolled parchment held in its beak. Its wings were fully spread and its jagged talons were pierced into the spire. Similar statues of various creatures representing intelligence or fortitude lined the building on its lower levels.
Kellen was intrigued by the many creatures dotting the library's landscape as he studied them while proceeding into the vast labyrinth of books.
A section sign, hanging from above one of the many arched doorways inside the library, immediately caught his attention.
History of the Empire|
'They dedicated an entire section to this?'
Kellen groaned at the thought of having to read through shelves upon shelves of books to locate the information he needed.
As he entered the specific section, he breathed a sigh of relief after seeing a reception desk designated near the arched entryway.
"Hello, I'm searching for information on the Legionnaire Gods and origins of the Empire."
A woman, seemingly in her late thirties, straightened behind the desk as she adjusted her uniform and spectacles.
"Ah, Legionnaires and the Legionnaire Gods, that's a pretty hot topic amongst the incoming runts. Sure, you can find what you're looking for back there and to the left in section five. That's where we keep the Imperial Records." The attendant responded in a rough voice.
Kellen nodded his head in thanks before rushing over to the aforementioned section.
A few titles from the many books lining the shelf entranced him.
Ascension of the Gods|
Feats of the Fourteen Originals|
Beginning of the Empire|
Kellen pulled the couple books off the shelf with increasing anxiety.
Excluding himself, there were originally fourteen Romans transported alongside him from the laboratory. The title "Feats of the Fourteen Originals" could not have just been a coincidence. But what made his hands slightly shake from nervousness was not the possibility that they were indeed these legionnaire gods. No, it was whether they still existed or not.
According to Osiris's guess/estimations, Kellen had been outside of this world for nearly a thousand years in which, somewhere along the two hundred mark, the Roman Empire emerged.
'Could they have really survived and lived for that long?' Wondered Kellen.
However, he decided it was not completely impossible considering he was now here in a body that was still of similar appearance to when he first arrived in this forsaken world.
As he opened the books and flipped through the different pages, his eyes grew wider and wider.
The many tales and legends of these legionnaire gods were out of this world, or at least his previous one, but what really shocked him were their names.
'They're just Roman numerals?'
All the way from one to fourteen, the Legionnaire Gods were named with only "Legionnaire" and their accompanying roman numeral identifier.
'This... This... Can't be! How the hell am I suppose to find out if they're the same people?'
Kellen angrily flipped through the pages of the multiple books but found no other clues. Besides the Legionnaires' strange names, the establishment of the Empire eight hundred years ago, and the surprising discovery of some form of electricity, Kellen was unable to obtain any other relevant information.
According to the books, the Legionnaire Gods had disappeared about two hundred years ago, leaving the rest of the Empire's affairs to their subordinates known as the Mortal Legion, or current Legionnaires.
'I don't understand... Why would they just leave? Are they even still alive?'
Kellen flipped to the last page of "Feats of the Fourteen Originals". There he found an answer that left him with more questions.
Apparently, the purpose of the Legionnaire Gods forming the Empire was to unite the continent in preparation of a great war. It explained how the Legionnaire Gods, upon ascending above the power of mortals, broke the system known as "Status" and realized the plot of the two-faced gods. In the hopes of stopping this plan, the Legionnaire Gods set out to gain more power in preparation for a war against the gods. The return of the Legionnaire Gods will symbolize and initiate the potential end of this world...
Kellen closed the book and leaned his head back. He was at a loss for words and emotion until a thought emerged.
'Osiris broke my "Status"... Does that mean I've already ascended?' Pondered Kellen.
'Eh... I wouldn't call it something like that, considering it was an external force, specifically my intervention, that removed that stupid system. I'd think of it as just opening your eyes to reality.' Commented Osiris.
'So then what's the difference? Am I seeing things differently than others?' Asked Kellen.
'Let me explain this a little better, this system was made by that stupid Goddess to monitor everyone here, right? She's able to keep tabs on everyone here because all the information displayed about and to you, through this "Status", all gets sent back to her.' Explained Osiris with annoyance.
'So she's basically the world's greatest stalker.' Summed up Kellen.
'Yes, but actually worse... It's the most sophisticated form of manipulation ever created. It's like one big game system that is forced onto the beings residing in this world. Did you ever stop and think what kind of drawbacks and limitations this kind of system actually has?' Questioned Osiris.
'What, besides it practically eliminating privacy?' Retorted Kellen.
'Besides that! If such things as "levels" and "stats" exist then this creates a whole new set of problems. Problems that weigh down on a worldly scale!' Stressed Osiris.
'And who dictates the level cap or max level? That celestial bitch does! Not to mention the quests... In order to level up, these "status slaves" have to complete quests to gain experience and increase their levels. And guess who issues these quests?' Led Osiris.
'The Goddess...' Responded Kellen with enlightenment.
'Correct.' Finished Osiris.
Kellen massaged his furrowed brow while he processed the enlightenment provided by Osiris. If what Osiris said was true, then that would mean he was the only person free from this manipulative game. At least, besides the Legionnaire Gods, if they were still alive that is.
But that also meant that the easy route of gaining power through leveling was no longer available for him... Kellen rubbed his head as more problems continued to appear one after the other.
He knew that finding the missing Legionnaire Gods was his future goal in order to confirm whether they were indeed the Laboratory Romans from his world. However, to achieve this goal he was led straight back to the beginning, like an endless broken loop. Power, he needed more power...
He would not be able to rely on Strom or the others in completing this endeavor since they themselves were Status Slaves. Sure, the academy could provide him with information and some techniques, but those were all of the mortal level controlled by the Goddess's stupid system. Kellen hated to admit it, but he needed to trust and rely on the two psycho deities currently housing up in his mind if he was to surpass this tricky obstacle.
'So what should I do now to get stronger? Go on another uncontrolled berserk killing spree?' Kellen asked Osiris sarcastically.
'Hm, your demonic energy did seem to get stronger afterwards and it was entertaining to watch, but I would prefer a route that doesn't threaten my existence as well. Just saying...' Osiris slyly remarked.
'I would rather remain in control as well...' Agreed Kellen.
Osiris floated and hovered about in Kellen's mind as he searched for an answer.
'Blood cores...'
An eerie but strong voice echoed inside of Kellen's head from the depths of his mind.
'Oh, the mute suicidal fool finally speaks... Must be a leap year.' Retorted Osiris.
Nergal ignored the insolent deity and continued.
'Search for my blood cores... If you can absorb them and survive then you will gain more power.' Nergal offered with his usual menacing voice.
'What are these blood cores? How come I've never heard of them?' Huffed Osiris as he asked Kellen's next question for him.
'They are fragments of my body that were scattered by the Celestials after killing me. They are concentrated shards or crystals filled with my blood, the same blood you were injected with in those experiments.' Responded Nergal.
'How am I supposed to find them with only knowing that?' Kellen asked with exasperation.
'Just like how I can sense it as my own blood, so should you, as a part of my bloodline.'
No further responses were heard as the strange deity went silent once again.
'As idiotic as that sounds, it's probably our best bet kid... It's definitely the fastest way, but I'll still try to come up with something on my end just in case.' Concluded Osiris before returning to lounging about.
Kellen sighed as another headache decided to add itself to his quickly compiling problems.
'And here I thought I would finally get to enjoy a somewhat regular academic life...'
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Author's Note: Story will begin to get more in depth and thorough from here. More explanation about the current world and how it links to the mc will be covered as well as some new characters! The tragic past of some current characters will also be depicted...
Here is the latest chapter release! The next ones will take a little extra time to be uploaded due to their length and content, so this weekend I will try to release more than the usual to make up for it. Enjoy!