"—ng master!" Foster's warped voice startled Arthur, causing him to flinch and involuntarily shut his eyes.
When Arthur's eyes opened again, he grew confused. He found himself suddenly facing his carriage, reaching for the door handle as if time had reverted to the moment before he heard the stranger's chilling voice.
"Are you ok? What's wrong?" Foster's nervous voice entered his ears.
Arthur ignored his guards, turning around in a flash and scanning the area for the stranger, but only the lively streets of Munn entered his eyes. He wasn't sure what horrified him more, the thought that the stranger was real or that he had suffered from some mental break that caused him to experience a hyper-realistic hallucination.
The thought of being unable to discern reality was up there on Arthur's list of horrors he'd rather not experience. If he had to number it, then nihility would take first place while an inability to discern reality took an infinitely close second.
Arthur turned back toward Foster and Jeren. "Explain to me what happened since we left the alleyway. Step by step."
"We left the alley, turned left, and walked to the carriage. When we reached the carriage, you suddenly stopped moving as if you were frozen in place." Jeren replied in a soldier-like report.
"How long did I remain that way?" Arthur asked as he calmed himself.
Jeren looked confused but still replied professionally. "Only about five or six seconds, lord."
Arthur glanced at Kyren for confirmation. "Pretty boy #2 is right. You just froze like a statue for a bit. I thought you were messing with them at first, but it didn't even look like you were breathing. What happened?"
Arthur felt a chill creep up his spine despite the scorching heat. "Forget it. Let's go."
After informing the driver about his next destination, he entered the carriage and departed as his mind replayed what had transpired. Gods did exist on Nithe, and while Arthur had never seen one, if the stranger wasn't a god, he didn't know what sort of being could claim such a title.
The pressure he felt from the stranger was like nothing he had ever experienced. It was as if the old man physically radiated pure aether. It was so overwhelming that Arthur was surprised his legs didn't buckle when he turned around to face him.
It was a rare occurrence, but it wasn't unheard of for gods to directly interact with mortals. Like Earth's mythology, Nithe's gods did plenty of meddling, or so the legends claim. However, as far as Arthur knew, no gods on Nithe looked like an old beggar.
Of course, Arthur was hardly an expert on the matter. The moment he realized gods truly existed on Nithe was the moment he decided to have nothing to do with the religion of this world. He thought that any tangible beings claiming to be gods wouldn't have the people's best interests at heart.
Yet, the stranger's eyes gave him the impression that the old man had witnessed eons as mortals witnessed seconds. It was a level of detachment to all things that couldn't be faked, and just recalling it caused him to shiver.
"What makes a god, a god?" Arthur asked the silent carriage, causing Jeren and Foster to tilt their heads and squint at him.
"Gods are powerful and live forever, young master." Foster replied confidently.
"So if a human becomes immortal and grows powerful enough, would you worship them as a god?"
Foster scratched his head. "Well, no... They'd still just be a human."
"Gods are wise, lord." Jeren added.
"Wisdom is gained through experience and experience through time. If that powerful and immortal human had lived a thousand years, would you worship them then?"
Jeren puckered his lips. "I don't think so because it would mean that I could reach the same heights they did. So they wouldn't be a god."
Arthur clicked his tongue. "We listen to and revere our elders because they have experienced more of life than we have. If a human who had lived ten thousand years told you not to cultivate mana because it would lead to your death, would you listen to them?"
"Possibly, but I'd want to know why it would lead to my death before I forsook my cultivation."
"Would you dare ask the gods that question if it was one of them that told you not to cultivate?"
"I..." Jeren hesitated to speak and seemed to contemplate the question honestly. "No, I don't think I would."
"So is it the faith people have in a god that makes them a god? Or is there something more? What conditions would a human have to fulfill before they shed their title as a human and become a god? How many empires would they need to see rise and fall before you believed in their words unconditionally?"
The carriage grew quiet as the trio, Arthur included, contemplated his words.
"Young master, are you... Are you trying to become a god?" Foster nervously asked.
Arthur laughed and shook his head, feeling a little better than before. "No, I was just curious about your thoughts on gods. That's all."
It was the truth. Arthur had previously thought about it after being reborn and found his answers similar to theirs. Ultimately, he concluded that a god was a god because their origin couldn't be known to those who worship them.
If one's neighbor suddenly gained incredible power, it would be difficult to worship them as a god because they were once a peer. They'd still be Jim or Bob from next door, just a more powerful version of themselves.
However, if a stranger appeared with incredible powers and proclaimed themselves a god, it suddenly became a little easier for most to accept.
Of course, that example would have less effect on Earth, but Arthur wasn't on Earth anymore. The people of Nithe were without all the science and technology that allowed Earthlings to expand their thinking and grow skeptical of the unknown.
They weren't any less intelligent than Earthlings. They simply lacked access to the same knowledge. Arthur surmised that such ignorance allowed the gods of this world to take root. How they benefitted from the situation was still unclear to him, but he remained skeptical.
That was until he came face to face with the stranger. Assuming he didn't just suffer some sort of psychotic break, his mind struggled to stand firm in his assumptions about the gods. Arthur felt the vicissitudes of time within the stranger's eyes as if the old man had experienced all there was to experience within the vast universe.
If what he felt was true, then how could he deny the stranger's godhood? Even if he was a mortal once, Arthur felt like it didn't matter, and he struggled to wrap his head around why he instinctively came to that conclusion.
How could a being that appeared to witness the dawn of the universe be anything less than a god? Even if the stranger was powerless, the mind-boggling amount of time he seemed to have experienced was surely worthy of reverence, if nothing else.
He almost wished it was a psychotic break from the buildup of stress over the past few days. At least then, his worldview would remain intact. He wasn't sure if it was correct to write off the gods as simply powerful beings playing gods anymore.
Despite Nithe's similarities, it wasn't Earth. Arthur had no way of knowing if he was even in the same universe as Earth, so he felt as though he should be more cautious with his assumptions in the future lest they lead him towards a dead end.
The carriage stopped as the driver notified Arthur of their arrival. He shook off the concerning thoughts and exited the vehicle as the smell of animal dung baking in the hot sun entered his nose.
He decided to take Thoran's advice, so his second destination was a large stable. Arthur could only ride his carriage while the army remained in Revan, so he needed a mount. Unfortunately, the Revan estate only had fully grown tufts which were uncomfortable to ride with Arthur's smaller body.
Of course, a fully grown tuft would perform better in battle, but Arthur would spend most of the war atop a mount, so he wanted to be comfortable.
After some browsing, he chose a juvenile tuft with an auburn coat that seemed especially friendly toward him and named him Aithon. He didn't breathe fire like Ares' mount, who shared the name, but it felt fitting considering the color of his fur.
Despite being a little over a year old, Aithon was almost fully grown. However, he was still thinner and lankier than full-grown tufts, similar to a German shepherd puppy, allowing Arthur to be more comfortable while riding him.
Unfortunately, Aithon set him back three hundred Riis, which was only marginally cheaper than an adult tuft.
"Let's head to the slave market next." Arthur declared after Aithon was tied to the carriage.