Chapter 121 – One Sponsored by the Gods
Chapter 121 - One Sponsored by the Gods
”More like, tampered with…” ~Shallies Mythernal”It’s not just any tournament,” Shallies began, after everyone had settled back into their seats. “Needless to say, holding this is one of our methods to prepare for the upcoming Divine War. It mitigates panic while calling out to the future would-be heroes of Ysvil.”
“How come we’ve never heard of it?” Mayor Schooner asked. He passed Guildmaster Robert and Maxims a look, who had silently gestured that they had known about it all this time.
“It’s a closely guarded secret,” Shallies answered simply. “We make it a point to avoid the commotion while spreading the information to the right people. Much like how it’ll be impossible for you to convince others of my true identity, the kindest reaction you’d get from telling others about a godly tournament would be enthusiasts humoring your fantasy.”
The Godkiller then went on to share her direct involvement with the Adventurer’s Guild, and every other prominent guild in the entire world. She also divulged her connections to each kingdom and why no territory was mad enough to cause wars against each other without proper cause, and why they would settle into blatantly forced truces should a Divine War suddenly occur in the middle of one.
There would be no safe place for common folk during such times, but the same would be true even for the mightiest of kings and queens.
“That’s not to say that everything will go smoothly,” Shallies concluded. “One way or the other, the common people will eventually hear news about the upcoming Divine War, but by then, the information should’ve been morphed and warped so much that our intervention isn’t even required anymore. The tournament will have been long done by then, and it won’t even be part of their discussions. They’ll be too busy preparing to survive.”
“But how is the tournament going to help you prepare for the Divine War?” Elesia asked, tilting her head. “I don’t get it.”
“The specifics will be explained to those who’ll participate,” Shallies started. “But basically, its main function is to find the right people who’ll join the war. It’s also a rare opportunity for them to become exceptionally stronger quickly.”
“What about the armies and the other gods?” Grace inquired, her eyes widening with excitement. “Do the gods participate in the tournament?”
The question filled the group with anticipation, especially those who had heard about the tournament for the first time. The notion of gods fighting each other in a competitive sense was pretty much unheard of.
Shallies raised a hand to calm them down.
“The tournament’s not for them. I said ‘would-be’ heroes, remember? It’s for the younger generation,” she calmly explained. “The matters of armies and other gods are something I’ll handle outside of the tournament. Though there will be a lot of divine entities interested in putting their hand into the contest, just not as themselves, of course. I’m not the only one who utilizes the Mentor System.”
The realization hit the Shalliesters Party and their parents almost at the same exact time. The level of excitement and anticipation shifted drastically, causing each one to react differently from the news. Grace was pumped, while her parents were proud. Tayin was nervous, while her parents tried to comfort her. Ren was calculating, while his father gave him encouragement.
Amused, the Godkiller raised an eyebrow. “I thought I was making my implication pretty obvious…”
“I think you were,” Guildmaster Robert began, smirking. “They’re just not used to being involved.”
Shallies pointed at Yoshelle, who was listening in the entire time.
The Guild Princess stiffened. “Am I joining, too?”
“You’re under the Gaiamaxims Guild,” Shallies began, referring to the leaders of the guild. “I’ll be sending an invitation this time around, since your raid was directly involved with this discovery.”
“We don’t have that many Favored class doublers,” Maxims began. “But we’ll send who we can.”
“Wait until I send my formal invitation before you commit to an answer. You have a point, you’re too few. If even fewer of you make it back, it’ll be hard for your guild to recover from. So I don’t mind if you choose to sit this one out.” Shallies returned her attention to the Guild Princess. “Instead, have Syakumishi assess Yoshelle. If he thinks she’s good enough to represent him, then send her to the tournament. Of course, that’s after you’ve considered if you’re willing to potentially send your heir to the Divine War or not.”
“But he knows I’m asking for your favor instead,” Yoshelle intervened, already moving past the implications. “Wouldn’t it be rude to ask that of him?”
Shallies shrugged at that. “I already told you how it works with me. What you do with that information is up to you.”
With determination pushing away her hesitation, Yoshelle gave a firm nod. “I see. I’ll do my best.”
“Alright, there’s one final thing with you guys, I think,” Shallies said, turning once more to the leaders of the Gaiamaxims Guild. Towards Coraline now, specifically. “I can still take you up on that contract, if you want.”
It took the Vice Guildmaster a second to recall what she was talking about. Then she quickly shook her head.
“Oh, no, no, no, Lady Shallies. I couldn’t possibly take your precious time just to help teach our members about The Perpetual Method. We can consider doing that after the Divine War instead.”
“Alright, first of all, if we’re all just talking in private, there’s really no need to address me as ‘Lady’. All you’re doing is reminding me of how stubborn Valor’el really is. Second of all, I will never pass up on the opportunity to try and train a new generation of adventurers in the Perpetual Method. You know the rumors about it, but as long as I can keep trying and sharing it, eventually, I’ll see the day where the method will become more common and accepted. Just imagine how much that would help me out in the long run.”
“If that works, that’ll change the entire landscape,” Maxims commented. “The academies should adapt the method, right?”
“Well, the problem is that, that doesn’t really work,” Shallies said, weakly laughing at her own irony. She turned to Coraline. “If it did, I would’ve spent more effort in enforcing it a long time ago. Nowadays, I just pick my opportunities when I can. So I’m leaving that decision up to you, Vice Guildmaster. You’re more than capable of assessing your people, and you can base your judgement on what you’ve observed from Yoshelle’s attempts so far. If you manage to get at least five potentials, then I’ll help out. Still, there’s no guarantee that it’ll work.”
“And you’re not asking for any amendments in the contract?” Coraline inquired. “Now that we know who you really are, it feels like we’re shortchanging you.”
“No need,” Shallies said. “Since my time is my own, I have no issue with the compensation. Just make sure to let the potentials know that I won’t be holding their hand every step of the way. Which means you need to make sure that there’s someone else who can monitor them closely whenever they train the method, so that they don’t damage their mana-channels.”
“I can sort that one out.”
“Oh, and one final, final thing. Let me buy one of the buildings you built. I just need one, and you can demolish the rest. Take the furnishings, of course. I just need the structure.”
“Which one?” Coraline inquired. “And what for?”
“Give me the one you think is best and easiest to convert into an inn. I’m not sure if this’ll work out, but it wouldn’t hurt to try.”
“The buildings are already built,” Maxims started. “We can just give you one of them free of—”
Shallies made a scowl, and he quickly hesitated.
“We’ll have to sort out the prices, then.”
“Good!” With every important item on the agenda tackled and discussed, Shallies clapped her hands and stood.
Everyone reacted out of respect, standing as well. All save Yoshelle and the Shalliesters Party members, including Arun’dul, who knew the actual reason that the Godkiller had actually sprung out of her chair.
“Sit down,” she started, asking the adults to settle in. “I know it’ll take a while for you guys to readjust, but I’m still a Chef. And this is still my tavern. It’s almost lunch. So get to ordering.”
“You ended up paying, huh?” Shallies commented, looking over at Schooner who was settling the bill with Apple.
“It was just common Cinterbrim humor, Shallies,” Elesia answered, taking a sip of tea as she sat at the bar. “We didn’t mean it. Aside from the fact that this whole thing went under our nose the entire time, of course.”
“None taken. And it’s not your fault. My interactions with you were minimal, since you two are more perceptive than the others. My veils did the rest.” Shallies poured another cup of tea for the mayor. “This tea’s on the house. For real, this time.”
“I still can’t believe you’re actually the Godkiller, though.”
“I’m as real as it gets.”
It was just the four of them in the tavern. After lunch, the Shalliesters Party, including their new member, Arun’dul, went outside to train. They had a lot of teambuilding and adjustment to do before Shallies had to intervene and give them their next important task. The leaders of the Gaiamaxims Guild also went on their way. They had a lot of things to prepare, given that they were about to leave tomorrow. And everyone else had to return to work.
“Why settle here?” Schooner asked, joining them. He gave an appreciative nod as he accepted the tea.
“It’s less of choosing to settle, than it is fulfilling a promise,” Shallies replied. “Catelyn wanted me to take a break.”
“Guess that’s not working out for you?” It was Elesia who asked this time.
“Guess not.”
“Do the other gods know that you’re here?” the Mayor asked. He quickly cleared his throat. “Just curious, if we have to prepare anything, should they choose to take a visit.”
“Initially no,” Shallies started, taking a sip of her tea. “But some secrets are never meant to be kept forever. The Thrush’ven Alir Raid made me reveal my location to one god. I’m pretty sure he’s already divulged it to others.
“You don’t have to do anything, though. Divine Entities are discrete most of the time. You’ve probably encountered some of them during your adventures without you even knowing. They’re not expecting you to receive them with grandeur hospitality, especially if they arrive unannounced.”
“Is there anything else we can do, then?” Elesia asked, taking her turn. “For the Divine War, I mean?”
“Nothing, right now,” Shallies replied right away. “Just support your kids. You already had your chance to talk them out of it, so don’t do it anymore. You’ll only distract them. Make sure the others know.”
“Yeah,” Schooner said, sighing. “I apologize for reacting that way.”
“Don’t be. It’s only normal.” Shallies also sighed in return. She purposely left out the fact that she had been through just about every variation of this sort of discussion before. It didn’t make talking things out easier, however, since people would always react differently. Though this one ended particularly calmly, all things considered. “But it’s out of your hands now.”
Suddenly, the orcish mayor lifted his head, as though a mana-lamp suddenly sparked to life on top of him.
“I just realized, the Decade Battlefield still has six years on it. Wouldn’t that conflict with the Divine War? There are people there that should probably be joining your cause.”
Shallies smiled at that. It was a more comfortable topic, as far as she was concerned. “Actually, I’m sending your kids there to train before the tournament.”
“What?” Schooner blurted out before catching himself. He cleared his throat and relaxed, trying to remain calm. “Isn’t that place for Hero class adventurers?”
The question was rhetorical. Everyone from the El’doron Continent knew about the Decade Battlefield. It was the only constant and significant raid they had to prepare for, which was why the kingdom had the fewest number of private guilds across Ysvil. Towers were once in a red moon. Outbreaks hadn’t been witnessed in centuries.
There was a reason why Catelyn had chosen to retire here.
As for Schooner’s question… It didn’t matter that they had killed a Great Kraken, or participated in a sub-raid, or gained levels in record time. A son or daughter’s greatest challenge had been, and always will be, to prove to their parents that they were more than capable of what was assumed. More than their titles. More than their classes. More than their levels.
But this time, Shallies knew he only asked because that was part of his nature as a parent. He was only being cautious. So she gave him a reply he couldn’t refuse.
“If you want, you’re more than welcome to join them.”