Is this guy out of his mind?
Not paying Arnold's bewilderment any mind, Ladiath continued.
"There are three parts to my plan. I must free a certain personage imprisoned within the confines of one of the gods' worlds. To free them I must gain entry into the Nine Realms. Naturally that is something that won't be given just like that. Beyond the gates are bridges that connect to the Divine Realm. I must cross them. Before that comes the second part. There are nine guardians who stand in my way. They must die. I am not confident in taking them on all at once. Three out of the nine of them are beings on my level so I cannot attack them with a frontal assault alone. Things are even harder since some archangels from the Golden Order is accompanying them. That's where the third part comes in—I need an army."
Ladiath pointed down at the rampaging monsters.
"They will become that army. Seeing as how I cannot free the ones imprisoned in the dungeon, I'm left with only one option," Ladiath looked back at Arnold, "—I must break down the barrier that Melis created in your world and lead them to the divine realm."
"What did you just say…?"
"Hmm, it will not be easy as there are some nuisances in that world. The dragon lords will be a major obstacle as they have made a pact with the gods to protect the humans and other humanoids should the need arrive."
"Answer me… What barrier are you talking about?"
Ladiath waved his hand which made the scenery change.
The two were now floating above a familiar place. Arnold could recognize this place easily since he used to travel through here as a solo adventurer in the game.
It was the Empire's border. The end of the land that belonged to a great nation.
He could even see the Great Ridge which wasn't that far from here.
Arnold turned his head.
The barrier—which should've kept the monsters on the other side from coming to their world—was gone. No, more like only pieces of it remained.
Picture a window after being thrown with a rock—that's what the barrier looked like.
Monsters were still travelling in hordes from beyond the damaged Intermid barrier.
"Making it to the Divine Realm with an army of this size will be much easier than doing everything myself."
"You don't understand…" Arnold grabbed Ladiath by the shoulders, "These things follow no one! All they'll do is rampage and kill innocent people. They can't be tamed or reasoned with. They're simply monsters!"
"Monsters, you say?" Ladiath stepped back and shook off Arnold, "I understand your concern. You are human, after all. Regardless, I will not stop. I need an army. Collecting souls and creating an army of High Homunculi is going to take many decades to complete. I decided to create six of them instead. Five of which are almost completed. They will handle the demigods and archangels while I take down the three guardian gods."
High Homunculi are similar to monster lords—they're the highest form of their species in Star Fantasy. They're much stronger, faster and more resistant to physical damage than humans.
To successfully create one you need a soul to breathe life into it.
Meaning…
"So the reason you want Kalda's soul is related to this army that you want to build?"
"Her abilities will serve a greater purpose under my lead as my sixth homunculi."
"That doesn't make sense. Souls can't transfer the powers of one individual to another. All mortals have the exact same type of soul."
"You're not wrong. However, that woman's soul power will be transferred with her soul itself. Of course, the powers won't be on the same level as before so I will have to train the host who will inherit the soul. Soul powers go back to its infant stage when transferred to another being."
"Wait, are you saying that you'll take Siana's power that way and give it to one of your homunculi?"
Doesn't that mean that Ladiath tricked Kalda and Siana?
Ladiath chuckled.
"I have no means of safely extracting a soul power. Either she keeps her power and dies or she gives her soul and continues living her life as an emotionless doll."
"You bastard…" Arnold didn't know why but rage welled up inside of him.
"The condition for our deal was that I remove the soul power, not keep her alive." Ladiath shrugged.
Shouldn't that be insinuated!?
Ladiath chuckled again.
"Playing with mortals will never bore me. Let me ease your worries, dear Lufulur, I can extract soul powers without the soul itself. I can also transfer the ancient power to another soul without any adverse effects."
"…." Arnold narrowed his eyes at Ladiath.
"Seeing how you reacted to my little lie makes something clear to me: You care for that girl. That mortal from Earth is still a part of you. Instead of battling for dominance, why not embrace this new Arnold? Of course, it's your choice in the end."
"…" Arnold lowered his head.
Maybe it was because he was mentally exhausted but even the smallest thing can get him riled up.
He sighed in relief.
It's true. He cares about Siana.
He's felt this way before—about Elora and Victoria. Hell, even about Lauran back when he saved her from Ruduli… This feeling wasn't that unfamiliar.
Liam being part of him is the reason for feeling this way.
"That's a weakness anyone can expose. It makes you vulnerable. Had it been one of my associates then you would've been playing in the palm of their hands right now. I should probably make sure that they never meet you for this reason."
He probably means the other gods from the Between Realm.
"I, on the other hand, prefer working together with my acquaintances instead of controlling them. You will play a very important role so it's only natural that you'll be treated as my equal."
"What makes you think I'll work with you?"
He didn't even understand what he has to do. All he knows is that Ladiath has some feud with the Divine Realm's gods.
"My army will run wild once they are set free. Only I can stop that from happening. I cannot just teleport them to the Divine Realm. We have to march to the Mountains of Wails where a portal will be waiting for us."
"So, you're going to use the portals built by the ancient civilization that lived in those mountains."
"Oho, so you are familiar with their history? I suppose it's only natural that you know them."
Arnold's plan to build portals for transportation purposes—something that only existed thousands of years ago—involved retrieving the remains of what was left of that civilization that lived in the Mountains of Wails before it became a breeding ground for all sorts of monsters.
He wasn't in a hurry since no one really knows where the civilization's ruins are, except him and Ladiath, of course.
"The problem is that I'll need to cross half the continent with my army. If possible, I want to avoid attracting attention to my little plan. That's where you come in."
"…If I say yes then what would I need to do to get their attention away from you?" Arnold asked carefully.
"The most important part is to kill a dragon lord. That will be enough to keep them at bay. In fact, they might even go into hiding again like they did after the Demon-Human war. That, or they might seek retaliation by looking for the murderer. The outcome will be the same regardless of what happens. Killing the dragon lord isn't your only objective. I want you to bring me its soul—the soul that will complete the sixth elite soldier that I'll need."
"…What?"
"Like I previously mentioned, I need an army strong enough to follow me into the divine realm. Six of which will help me kill the guardians. Special souls play a key role in that. I do not possess the power to extract divine souls as they are creations of the human gods. Dragons are descendants of the Dragon God which was a divine being that could swallow worlds. It died after a devastating battle. Taking its soul was impossible, I'd assume its descendants are no different. No being other than their own kin can extract a dragon soul."
Unlike mortal souls, dragon souls grant special abilities and immense power to those who can extract their souls.
Absorbing a dragon's soul… To Arnold's knowledge this is something that only individuals with dragon's blood can do—they're called dragonkin.
The Taelith Family is an example of a dragonkin family. Their ancestor, an Oracle of Melis, fell in love with the Black Dragon Lord during wartime. The two travelled together helping the innocents from the flames of war and onslaught of demons.
This naturally led to a physical relationship.
The Oracle had a child with the Dragon Lord. Something that's considered rare.
'But dragons can't just copulate with anyone.'
The Half-Blood born from a human and a dragon will also share this trait with their father or mother. They can even become dragons at will at a certain age. However, their children will be born as normal humans. They can also copulate with any human they please since the restriction of species won't be a factor anymore after the second generation.
They still possess the ability to tame dragons and extract the souls of dead dragons.
"Did you hear me correctly? You—Arnold—will bring me a dragon lord's soul."
"Are you serious…? I don't have dragon blood in me. No one in my family is related to dragons."
"You humans misunderstand that having the blood of a dragon is the only requirement. A dragon's power goes beyond just having the genes of one."
"What?"
Ladiath drew closer and tapped Arnold's chest.
"Within this mortal body of yours lies a demon lord soul ready to bloom, trying to take control. Beneath that soul is another soul, which had remained dormant ever since your birth. I wonder how you obtained that soul as an infant? I have never seen anything as remarkable as this—two powerful souls co-existing."
"You're saying I have a dragon's soul inside of me…?"
Is Ladiath lying again?
"I'm sure the subtle signs were there before. Have you ever noticed how fast your damaged cells can be replaced? Or have you ever encountered a dragon whose voice you could hear inside your head while its mouth did not move?"
"I found about my abnormal healing when I started training under Sebastian at five years old. The pain from every punch and kick would vanish within minutes while cuts and fractures heal after a day depending on the injury..."
'Am I really… a dragon?'
"Now that I think about it… I remember hearing a voice when I fought a wild dragon during a quest as an adventurer. Was I not hearing things?"
"A wild dragon is unable to comprehend human speech so it was certainly not speaking in Diacreerian. What you heard was the language of drakum. No translation spell exists that makes words spoken in Drakum intelligible to humans."
Drakum, the ancient language of dragons. It's not spoken words like human languages, rather a voice that comes from within the body. In other words, dragons communicate through their souls.
There was only one line of dialogue that was spoken in Drakum in the entirety of the story.
Luke and his party found a "Speech Rune" imbedded onto a runestone near the mountainous bones of the Dragon God located in the Dragon God's lair.
Those words on the runestone belonged to the Dragon God—
-"Arcane must not become one with its creator. A being so powerful without its true form must never reach perfection. If it can defeat the one above human gods without its full power then even the creators of time and space will fall."
The Hero Party had no idea what it said but the words floated on-screen for players to read.
"How can I be a dragon…? This doesn't make any sense."
What was strange was how he never noticed that there was another soul inside of him before the Star Draw gave him Oriel's soul. Was the dragon soul in slumber or was it hiding itself on purpose?
In that case, there was only one other way to tell whether he really is a dragon.
"I've impregnated many women before. I've even met one of my children for a brief period before his mother completely broke contact."
"What about the other women you've slept with? Have any of them introduced you to your other children?"
"No… Only Denise visited us with my son on a winter night. We were having a ball in the Berkley Castle. A servant came to get me. She was in distress for some reason. All she told me was that someone was there to see me. There, in the servant quarters kitchen was a woman with a child in her arms. She was holding a baby in her arms. The child was freezing cold so the two sat near the fire. I could tell then why the servant was in distress. Denise braved through the cold just to come see me."
Ladiath watched him in silence.
Arnold recalled his first meeting with that woman.
There wasn't anything special about her at first. She's the daughter of a baron who rules some land in the Berkley territory. While they weren't exactly rich, they weren't poor either. The girl worked as a manager at an event catering business that belonged to the Rynald Family conglomerate.
Arnold met her during a banquet at their castle. While Denise was there for work, her family was also invited on the list so she mingled with the nobles once she finished arranging everything.
Arnold eventually approached her to ask her to dance with him.
To him of that time she was the most beautiful out of all the women he laid his eyes on.
Arnold was a 14 year old boy at the time while she was 21. She didn't have a dance partner or even any friends so it was the perfect opportunity for him to approach her.
Of course, at that time it wasn't long after he had his first time with one of his former slaves. Only sex and female bodies registered in his brain. He even neglected his training to pursue women. Of course, Sebastian just beat his ass whenever he didn't go for training.
He used every method he could think of to get a woman in his bed. Intimidation and money were two of those methods that he used often.
When intimidation didn't work on Denise, he threw money at her. Despite there being more willing women who wanted to be with him, he had eyes only for Denise—those blue eyes, velvet-coloured hair like a bloody rose, tall nose, narrow waist and wide hips… He couldn't resist such a beauty.
It was around that age that things got rocky in his relationship with Olivia and the others. Maybe he was trying to find new love since Olivia pushed him away so much. Granted, she was young so she didn't understand what love truly was, nor did he.
Money seemed to work but Denise didn't give herself to him just like that. The money was no small amount. It was enough for her to be independent from her family. An adult woman relying on her family for financial support was nothing short of embarrassing. Not just for her family but also herself.
One could say that Denise used Arnold for his money. She received so much money that she started her own catering business. She was finally independent from her family.
It took a year for the two to truly become intimate. At that time, Arnold thought it was worth it since nothing but sex went through his head. The casual flings he had while he waited for her was nothing compared to how he felt pulling that woman to his bed.
Denise wasn't as cold as the first day the two became lovers. She never smiled back then or even allowed him to touch her that much.
Things took a turn when she finally got her business up and running.
He asked her why she suddenly changed.
Her response was:
-"I always dreamt of starting my own business. My family's connections got me a job at one company but I wasn't satisfied with just that. I wanted to serve high class nobility and royalty but that company was just too small for that. Even your father using our services back then was a special occasion. I turned to my father and mother for help but the two refused to help me start my own business. Too many risks and financial responsibilities. Then you came along. A lustful but rich young master from a ducal household."
-"So you became a prostitute to achieve your dream? You threw away your dignity and self-respect for money?"
-"If it means I'm a prostitute for wanting my dream to come true then I definitely am one."
Two years went by. Unfortunately he got bored of her after finding another woman he had his eyes on.
This was around the time that Denise announced that she was pregnant.
Arnold could remember the insults that Denise hurled at him when he said that the two had to break up. She also threatened to cut out the baby right then and there while holding a knife.
Arnold just turned around and walked away after saying "I don't care".
**
"I already had several woman to pay child support for so I didn't think Denise would be any different. My father might've been upset with me at first but he began paying for her as well after she came forward. But she didn't want money. She had plenty of that. All she wanted was for the two of us to meet. I chased her away. I told her that I've already given her enough that she deserves as a hole."
Ladiath chuckled.
"What an amusing story. Am I correct to assume that you grew up a little and feel regret over how you handled the situation? I suppose you were a child who didn't understand the weight of your choices."
"Yeah… It's all coming back now…"
"You saw the child. Did you notice anything or did the mother of the child say anything about it?"
"No. Only that she wanted me to spend time with the kid."
"Hmm. Well that doesn't matter. The fact that she could give birth to your child is enough. She must have strong genes. Possibly a descendant of a High Elf."
"So the other women who only sent letters to my father demanding child support… All of them lied."
Only Denise came to the castle in person. The others just sent letters, demanding he pay them.
Arnold clenched his fists.
How dare they make a fool out of him?
How did they even pull this off?
'Should I kill a family member of theirs—No, I'm not in a right state of mind to decide something like that.'
"The likelihood that there was one or two others who actually had children as well is low but not impossible."
Arnold looked at his hands.
How many cuts and bruises had healed in mere seconds during his lifetime? How many times had he been stabbed in battle only for the wound to be gone the next day?
"That is why you're the most suitable. Well, I have no idea if there are other Bearers out there."
"Do you know what kind of dragon soul I have?"
Maybe. Just maybe that soul can overwhelm Oriel's soul and save him.
"Whether it's a wyvern's soul that somehow made its way into you or even the soul of the Dragon God, I couldn't say. I know more of mortal souls than I do of divine souls."
"Those homunculi you mentioned… How far are they coming along?"
"Four are almost ready for battle but I need a soul for the sixth soldier. I need a soul equal or greater to that of the woman you killed—whose soul will be given to my fifth soldier. A dragon lord fits that requirement. I suggest Suarif Elipis as he is the weakest of the bunch and will pose no greater threat than that woman. Avoid the Ice Dragon Lord as she will pose the most danger."
"So Kalda was comparable to a dragon lord? I guess that shouldn't come as a surprise."
"You will die in a fair fight against Suar. He is the wildest lord amongst the seven dragon lords so fighting him head-on will be suicide. His mastery of Destructive Runic Magic will complicate things as well. Of course, I won't let you fight him without giving you a little help."
"Help? As in?"
"I will provide weapons, potions, armour or anything else that you will require for your battle against Suar. Naturally, I will be in contact with you."
"Ladiath… If I were to do this for you, will you leave the people alone?"
Forget Arnold, even Luke isn't strong enough to defeat an army of Offspring. Lauran might stand a chance against a few but she's also too weak to handle them alone.
Relying on Freya York and Alitus would be humanity's last hope. Of course, there are individuals near their level all over the continent but it's a question of whether those people will help to save humanity.
Everyone will die. All because Arnold was too prideful to bow down to a god.
"I will spare your people as they are not part of my plan."
"…."
"Should you consider it—which I'm sure you will—visit me in the World Tree forest on your world."
"Wait, you're going to my world? Why?"
"I need to be somewhere close to the Barrier. The World Tree forest is a very large and remote location which is perfect for observing everything from a distance. Elves are peaceful individuals so they won't try to fight me if I do get caught. There should be a tomb underneath the forest that leads to the remains of an older civilization. I will wait for you there."
"How long do I have?"
"Do not fret over the time. I have not prepared everything yet so it will take a while for me to begin the first phase of my plan. It could take months or even years. Getting my fifth and sixth soldier ready for battle will be my primary goal for now. Gather allies if you must, just bring the Lord Soul to me once everything is over. I will remain in contact with you through various sources and acquaintances."
Ladiath then went on to say, "I'm going to release the [Time's Forgotten Law] now."
"Wait, I have one more question!"
"Go ahead and be quick about it."
"If you know who I really am and where I'm from then you should be familiar with my former guild as well, right?"
"Hoh. Pray tell, can you not even access your own system?"
"I was locked out of the system's full interface when I was transmigrated…"
"Locked out of your system's interface? Hmm, the transmigration could be the reason since you're not using your character from this game you're from. Go ahead, I'm listening."
"I've been searching for players ever since I transmigrated. At first I thought that the signs that I've found up until now indicated that players will arrive soon as the game is done with its beta testing phase. But that can't be possible since the game is now reality. It wouldn't make sense for players to appear when there are signs of them being here even before I came here. My guess is that the game reverted back to its alpha stage after kicking out everyone who was logged in. It's just my conjecture but maybe there are others who got trapped in this world."
He doesn't know if he's right. But does that matter at this point? He doesn't need to know the truth as to why no players have shown up until now.
He was a villain, a perfect target for players. If they truly exist in this reality then they'd aim for his life. He wants to at least be prepared.
Arnold went silent for a moment before he spoke:
"I want to know if any of my guildmates from Misteltein are still in this world."
It's possible that they also transmigrated. Either that or they were kicked out of the game.
"There are several who transmigrated with you. There's no way for me to tell if they are from your guild until I gain access to their system."
"!"
It felt like Arnold's throat clogged up, unable to swallow.
"Our discussion has come to an end. Do not mention what we spoke about to anyone, especially that angel friend of yours. I do not need the Sky God's disciples breathing down my neck."
A light blinded Arnold.
For some reason he could see a dark silhouette in that light.
It turned to him.
Its face became visible.
A woman.
Narrowed blue eyes and golden long hair.
'Alecs…'
It was Misteltein's guild master that appeared in the light. Was it real? No, perhaps his desires to meet her manifested her here.
'If you're really out there then I'm going to find you. All of you.'
No matter what.
'Then we can finish this story together.'