We continued marching through the snowy forest, engaging in small conversations to pass time.
Nothing of much importance was discussed, though I was told a bit about Lasandra's relationship and history with Diogen, the seventh god.
It seemed she was helped similarly to how I was, appearing in his already established domain upon arrival in the world.
She said that she was the first one to receive help from him, and from that time onwards, Diogen had made himself even more of an enemy to some of the gods that liked to prey on newcomers.
Since then, he helped all gods from numbers eighteen to twenty one, which was me.
I remembered what one of the other gods had said about Telios, the nineteenth god. Apparently he was made incredibly powerful due to Diogen's help, though I didn't ask Lasandra about him just yet.
One problem at a time..
The forest remained the same, empty. We spotted another Iglod but managed to walk by it with no trouble. Infact, it seemed afraid of us.
A few tents were scattered about, but all were empty. The forest was decently large, seemingly covering a space larger than Diogen's castle.
I wondered what the other gods' domains looked like.
Finally, we reached the edge of the forest, and before us was a snowy plain that seemed to stretch further than the eye could see.
"That plain stretches on for miles. Miles and miles of emptiness. At the end is where I believe the demigod's domain is, and this is the path the beasts take to infiltrate my domain."
So I will most likely encounter the beasts before reaching the demigod. I cannot say that does not increase my worries.
"Before you go, there is something you should be aware of, though you may have noticed already. Alongside the blessings, your body is many times stronger than what you will have remembered on Earth. You do not hunger or thirst, and you do not require sleep as frequently. Once you get the hang of it, you'll realize that your sprint speed, jump height, and stamina are currently double what they were before, with much room for improvement. Oh, and don't forget your overall strength increase as well. Traveling through the plains at a sprint will have you arrive in less than an hour, if you take no rests and are not interrupted much."
I was eager to test the capabilities of my body, but I realized something we seemed to be overlooking.
"What if the demigod is not there when I arrive?"
"They are there. I can sense them."
Sense them?
I used the perception ability that allowed me to focus on the presences of other gods nearby, but I felt no one in the direction of the plains.
Only Lasandra next to me, and other small presences far away.
"Don't bother; your perception is not strong enough yet. Demigods' presences are much smaller than gods', but I can sense it. That's why I know that it is a weak demigod, weak enough to be beaten by even you."
She let out a laugh, and I frowned at her remark.
"Now then, go and put yourself to the test and earn your worthiness. While you're gone, I have matters to attend to. If I'm not here when you return, wait for me in my tent."
I nodded to show that I understood.
"Thank you, Lasandra. You've been a real help. I appreciate what you and Diogen have done for me. You did not need to look after me, yet you did."
She waved off the thanks.
"Don't mention it. Let's just hope that Diogen is fine and that we can all sit down together soon and discuss the events of the world, and what to do next."
I appreciated that I was now included in her team. There was still too much that I didn't know about the world, and I didn't wish to have to figure things out on my own.
We said our goodbyes, and Lasandra headed back into the forest, disappearing behind the trees.
I realized then that it was the first time I had been left alone in the world of Arnos.
I tested the grip of my smart shoes along the snow and found that it was surprisingly strong.
Let's hope that this outfit can hold up during the journey.
Then I set off.
My pace was steady in the beginning,
running at a speed I was used to. However, I slowly increased my speed, getting faster and faster.
At full speed, the wind blew in my face, and the scenery flashed by me.
Lasandra was right. I'm running faster than horses. Or at least the same speed.
I continued my long strides for the next ten minutes, undisturbed.
My legs were hardly tired, and I found that I had as much stamina as I did when starting the run.
I truly felt I could keep up the pace forever, and it seemed like I was slowly getting faster and faster the more I ran, breaking past my speed limit.
Then I spotted something in the snow ahead of me, forcing me to slide to a stop. The plain was roughly flat, so I was able to see far ahead.
Just within my sight, something was prowling in my direction at a fast speed.
I had to focus to see what it was, and when I did, I felt the urge to stop and turn around.
The creature was fast and ran on four legs like a lion. In fact, it even looked like a lion, if not for its black skin and white mane that was so long it almost flowed over its whole body. It was larger than usual as well, perhaps twice the size of a lion on Earth.
I slowly backed away as it spotted me and changed it's direction, sprinting towards me, still roughly a hundred meters away, but closing the distance fast.
No, backing away will not do anything. The beast is faster than me. I have to fight.
How can I hope to battle against demigods and gods if I can't fight a simple domain beast?
I crouched into a ready position, waiting for the lion to reach me, preparing to use my Golden Eye and predict its every move.