(Noah Numen POV)
Transmigration? The Divine Realm? It sounded good on paper, but in practicality, it sucked.
As I arrived at the Divine Realm immediately after my unexpected death, I was struck with reality. I would never be able to see my father again. He was my everything, even if we often got into arguments.
Instead, I was greeted by the creepy face of a geezer who spouted some incomprehensible words.
Calm down, Noah.
Let's do this with a clear mind. I could understand the language, which was a positive sign. There was a tall, elderly man who stood beside a muscular man who seemed like a soldier.
The former possessed a bushy beard and an attractive face. Encompassed in glamorous robes, his appearance was majestic. Mesmerizing as he was, his personality did not seem to suit his supposed age.
I would say he was in his sixties…?
The one beside him possessed a square jaw that seemed to have been crafted perfectly. With a stubble, the soldier seemed anything but attractive. Instead, he seemed akin to a hungry wolf.
Dressed in a tight tunic, the soldier was a well-built man. His abdomen was incredibly small, while his latissimus dorsi caused his body to appear huge from the top.
Latissimus dorsi was a muscle we recently learnt about in school.
Anyway, the soldier carried a sword that was stuffed within a scabbard that hung at his waist. He was scary. Yet, his features seemed gentle when inspecting his expression. It didn't match his appearance.
Lastly, the place I currently stood was shady. A medieval atmosphere encompassed the area, providing it with a touch I was unfamiliar with.
From torches ignited using real flames to floors and walls built using medieval bricks. It was out of touch with reality… the reality I knew of, anyway. It seemed the Divine Realm was vastly different in terms of culture and resources.
One aspect I found peculiar about the geezer who welcomed me to the Divine Realm was his staff.
A long, brown stick connected to a purple orb remained clutched within his fingers. The orb often emitted a faint light but reverted to a stagnant state immediately afterwards.
Furthermore, a faint stream of energy traveled from the orb to an unknown location, which I couldn't deduce.
However, paying no mind to incomprehensible phenomena, I approached the elderly man after calming down.
"You said you're Prometheus, right?" I inquired, inspecting the elderly man's appearance closely. "The creator of humanity, brother of Epimetheus, the one who gave humans the heavenly fire?"
Prometheus raised an eyebrow as if surprised by my plethora of knowledge. He nodded, affirming the claims before puffing out his chest in a display of arrogance.
"I am, indeed, Prometheus," he announced, directing a glance at the soldier beside him for moral support. The soldier flicked his wrist, and flames burst from Prometheus's feet, intensifying his claim.
I had to admit that Prometheus looked majestic during the display.
"I don't know where to start, so can you explain a few things about this world?" I asked. I hadn't had time to sort out my thoughts, and the most rational choice was to absorb any information I could squeeze from the so-called "God."
As per the elderly man's words, I would be residing in the Divine Realm until death.
If that was the case, familiarizing myself with the place was obvious.
"Sure," replied Prometheus before flicking his wrist casually. Immediately, the scenery changed, and I now sat in a cushioned chair.
I was in an office. The office was enormous, with four brick walls encasing us. Before me was a table, and on the other side was Prometheus, who now rested his feet on the table as he sat in his own chair.
Perhaps sensing the incredulous expression that bloomed on my face, he decided to stroke his ego. After realizing that I had no interest in his words, he let out an awkward cough.
"The place you are currently in is called the Divine Realm, as I have already mentioned," explained Prometheus, initiating a prolonged explanation that soon began eating away at my sanity.
The info dump was too much.
"The Divine Realm consists of eight Godly Societies, which include Olympus, Othrys, The Heavenly Court, Hell, Sins and Virtues, R'lyeh, Asgard, and finally, Devas."
"We are currently in Othrys, which is governed by the Titan Gods, including me."
I listened intently as he explained the inner workings and intricate systems of the Divine Realm, leaving not a single piece of information behind.
Finally, after a few hours of explaining, he suddenly dropped a bombshell on me without warning.
"You are the child of Chaos, Noah," said Prometheus as his expression turned emotionless. "Your mother is the Primordial God of Void and Chaos, while your father is a human. That makes you a demigod."
"You are a demigod possessing the divinity of Chaos and Void, although they are currently sealed due to your residence on a mana-free planet."
My expression froze, and I almost fell from my chair. My mother… her name was Sarah Numen… not… Chaos?
Prometheus was full of shit, but would he lie about who my mother was?
"Do not surprise him like that, your majesty," the soldier reprimanded, suddenly appearing from the shadows like a spy. Noticing my distraught expression, he revealed signs of pity.
"He needs to know, Jacque," Prometheus protested.
"You are starting to become like your twin, Epimetheus," the soldier, also named Jacque, said.
"Do not compare a God of Foresight and a God of Hindsight," Prometheus dismissed, furrowing his brows. "I think before I speak, and this was necessary. Now, what else would you like to know, child?"
I maintained my silence, but my expression of shock might have drawn some attention.
"What's wrong?" Prometheus asked, narrowing his eyes as he noticed something wrong.
I simply waved my hand in dismissal, extinguishing all concerns. "Nothing. I was just processing how good of a woman my mother must have been."
Prometheus's gaze lingered for a moment before softening. "I didn't get to know her very well, but I was one of her best before the… incident a few trillion years ago."
"What incident?" I asked. Unfortunately, before I could dig for any answers, Jacque patted Prometheus's shoulder before shaking his head.
The God of Fire and Foresight hesitated before sighing. "I can't tell you that. I'm sorry."
I conjured the best childlike expression I could muster before displaying it to Prometheus. However, Jacque stepped between us, ending the discussion immediately. It seemed he was against me knowing anything.
"All right," I said, taking a step back from the topic. "There are a few questions I have, though. What are Gods? In the explanation, you didn't describe what Gods exactly are. Are they omnipotent beings?"
Prometheus turned towards Jacque, who nodded.
The former then placed his forearms on the table before initiating the explanation.
"There are three types of Gods in the Divine Realm."
"Firstly, there are the Primordial Gods. These types of Gods were the beginning of the Universe, combining their strength through the use of their domains to initiate the creation and bring light upon the following generations of gods and mortals. Your mother is a Primordial, the mother of all Primordials."
"Secondly, the Successor Gods. They are the descendants of Primordial Gods, also capable of bringing the initiation of creation or destruction upon the universe through their decisions. I am a Successor God."
"Lastly, the Ascender Gods. Once demigods, these former mortals have had the luxury of achieving the threshold called 'Divinity' and emerging out of Divine Cocoons as 'Gods'. Ascender Gods mostly consist of former Demigods, but there have been some cases where a pure mortal has ascended the soul and bodily capabilities of its species. Jacque was a demigod in the past and is now a Mid-Ranked Ascender God."
"Now, Gods, in their entirety, are beings who have transcended mortal bounds. They cannot be classified as a whole in a specific description, but they are the absolute rulers of nature."
"Gods wield divinity and mana, but that is a subject for another time. Oh, I need to explain the Ranks of Gods."
"Gods are ranked through a table of transformations that display their level of divinity. The rankings begin with Lowest-Rank Gods. Then, there are Low-Rank, Mid-Rank, High-Rank, Supreme-Rank, Cardinal-Rank, Sub-Universe Rank, and finally, Universe Rank."
"Your mother is a Universe-Rank God, and I am a Supreme-Rank God."
A sharp pain arose in my brain as I attempted to comprehend such a dump of information.
It seemed information about Gods held a significant value, and knowing too much could corrupt one's mind. Sensitive much?
Anyway, I'd managed to divert their attention from the topic of my mother and had squeezed quite a lot of information.
Now, I could inquire about my purpose. Why had I transmigrated?
I was expecting a positive reaction, but as soon as I voiced my question, silence descended atop the room.
Had I said something wrong?