This again...

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As soon as I acknowledged the notification, the white landscape morphed until it coalesced into a familiar towering corridor. The passageway was layered with marble on either side, and it stretched for a dozen meters before eventually opening up. It felt like years had passed since I had last been here. However, it had only been a few weeks in reality.

I walked forward, and into the expansive, marble-clad room. The familiar glass-domed ceiling high up in the air refracted a myriad of light. The light itself filled the space with a rainbow of colors. It was clearly not coming from the blazing yellow ball of fire in the sky that I had been so accustomed to on Earth. Which begged the question; what supernatural source was causing the light?

Dotting the circumference of the room was once again all too familiar marble pillars—twelve in total—each gargantuan in their girth, resembling the Washington monument in size.

My steps echoed within the room as I boldly strode in, expecting once again the large round table—with its twelve seats—that had been displayed so prominently the last time I had been here. When I entered, that's exactly what I saw, however adjacent, standing up were two figures instead of one.

The first was recognizably Astia, the God of Chance—uncannily resembling my grandpa. However, that only extended to his face. Perhaps most old people had started to the same to me?

His hair was snow-white, while his arms bulged with taut muscles, denoting an absurd level of strength.

His stare made me stiffen, eyes penetrating into my very soul—appraising. I stopped in my tracks as eye contact was made.

I could barely see, in the corner of my vision, the other individual. A woman, with hair that looked as though it was made of literal gold. Her visage was like that of a caring mother who was watching a child return after a protracted time away from home.

"L-Lord Astia," I stammered.

The glare that had caused me to stiffen suddenly relaxed.

"Perhaps your arrogance has been quelled... slightly," Lord Astia began. "A much more proper greeting than the last time we spoke at least."

With those words, I knelt—the situation demanded it.

"I had yet to properly thank you for your... Assistance the other day. Without it... I don't know what would have happened," I groveled on the ground.

Lord Astia's eyes glittered, but then a frown emerged. "Don't expect divine interference to happen so freely again. It was a... Particular situation. Your Community was forced to face a threat it had not yet been ready for," Lord Astia pointedly said. "My powers have only become more limited with the passage of time."

I looked at the God, making my best attempt at appearing grateful. Had we been overrun... People could have died. Kevin, Alex, my Father... Even Rachel... Not to say I didn't care about the others. However, understandably I was much closer to those that I had bonded with before the Apocalypse ever began. But regardless, every death would have been devastating.

One question lingered in my mind, however, why now? Why was Astia summoning me here, now?

Lord Astia cleared his throat as if in response. Right, he can read my mind, can't he?

He nodded towards the individual beside him—which, now that I had a closer look, was frankly one of the most beautiful women that I've ever seen. Her golden hair cascaded down her shoulders, meeting with an elegantly flowing white dress that crisscrossed in a multitude of eye-catching patterns. Every movement she made seemed designed only to accentuate her beauty. Rachel would have probably killed me if I had said that in front of her, however, divine beauty was clearly something else. But, she also looked like she could have been my own mother's age. So, ya, my analysis was only appreciative in nature.

I mentally facepalmed as the Goddess looked at me, a smile on her face.

"While I am flattered by your praise of my appearance, that is not something that deserves focus. No, there are some... Particular matters to discuss—to reveal," the unknown Goddess said.

"I am Ahhena, Goddess of Life, and one of the twelve deities of the Round Table. Normally our meeting would have been postponed until... More appropriate circumstances, however, that is no longer advisable," Ahhena said.

I listened attentively, having learned the last time not to interrupt a God... Unless specifically addressed.

"Qhezemis, one of the seven Demon Monarchs has personally taken charge of the invasion of your world, and it is only by fate that the one detriment your world has had throughout its history has become its saving grace," she continued, "eons ago, in the millennia before your current written history began, magic reigned across your Earth. Ancient leylines served as wells that advanced the prowess of humanity. Some of the greatest heroes across the known planes originated from your world—until they arose no more."

Okay, now what the hell is she going on about? I was completely and utterly perplexed.

Her eyes narrowed, and my face immediately tightened. Shut. Up. I told myself.

"Your world once thrived along the network of mana-blessed worlds. Until the ancient Leylines ceased their blessings upon your people. Your world lost its magic, for reasons unknown even to us. Civilizations collapsed, and without magic to support humanity, they disappeared into the annals of the divine books, supposedly cast like ashes into the great abyss—except, they weren't," she said, with wonder-filled eyes, "even cut off from magic humanity rose once more, beyond the sights of the numerous Deities and residents of the planar worlds. Legends remained, but miracles ceased. Only by chance did Balfour rediscover humanity across the dimensional planes and set his sights on your world. We immediately interrupted his designs with the remaining power of the round table, in order to prepare your people. The rest... Well, Astia has already explained," she finished solemnly.

A history lesson was great and all... But I was still failing to see the point of it all. Despite the pure fascination I had with the mere idea of magic once running rampant across Earth, I was perplexed as to why this was relevant now of all times.

Once again, the God's deigned to reply in accordance with my thoughts. "Magical beings require magic to live," she said succinctly.

Suddenly, as though a light had just turned on in my head, I realized what she was saying. It was the exact same theory that Kevin had been hinting at.

A smile returned to her face, "Yes... Your loyal fellow. His deduction was correct. Mana is only just now returning to Earth. Nearly all the worlds previously vanquished by Balfour had some degree of magical energy. However, not one possessed nothing; not until his sights were set on Earth was the discovery made that the once nexus was not lost to the void."

"And now, what had once been your people's detriment, may now be its greatest blessing. Your world now possesses the one thing that all the others had not. Time," she emphasized.

Astia rejoined the discussion at that point, "your world shall pass into the frost once more, but upon its emergence, Qhezemis will no longer stand idle. His Champions shall have free reign to wreak havoc across your world. Soon thereafter, so too shall his Lords. Then, as the mana levels mature—so too shall Qhezemis himself."

My eyes widened, we had a year?

Almost dashing my hopes, Ahhena responded shaking her head, "above the areas that had once been the major population centers of your planet, the interplanar rifts that had appeared at the invasions advent have now stabilized. From them, magical energy is spreading into your world with a vengeance. The closer one comes to the rifts, the more saturated the mana, and the stronger the fiends. As such, the more robust demonic beasts will increasingly range further and further as the magic spreads. In your case, you will have until the longest night. Then shall you be faced with the horrors of the demonic legions."

Astia then interceded, "As such, you must prepare, Paragon of the High-Human's. Lest your people be torn through like a sickle at the harvest. If your people fall, eventually so will Humanity. Even now, scattered remnants of your world fight on. You must organize them, and fight as a united front. Grow your Community, reach the higher tiers of the Ruler System, build armies, war machines, innovate. Repel the Demonic Invasion. Then... Save the other worlds.

"That," Ahhena began, "shall be your divine mandate, title-holder of Genesis. The obstacles shall only increase, the challenges will mount. The inevitable war shall bear down on you and your people. Resist, for If you fail, Balfour may never be stopped. The Round Table shall break asunder; and all shall be enslaved by the Degenerate God, the Demon King of the Planar Realms."

I was paralyzed. I was just heaped upon with the ambitions of divine beings, a mandate near impossible to fulfill, and a task that seemed so grand that I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed by my inadequacy. There was only one question—of the multitudes—that seemed to rage in my head, begging to be answered.

"Who really is Balfour?" I asked. Holy Arc Online held the same being, however, I couldn't help but believe that it only held part of the truth.

My question, instead of sparking indignation, was alternatively met with Ahhena's face displaying an inconceivable amount of sadness—denoting an unimaginably tragic history between the Demon King and herself. Astia in turn held a look in complete contrast to Ahhena's—his face morphing into one of rage. Neither was directed towards me.

Ahhena spoke first, "a wayward lover who had embraced his domain to its most corrupt core."

"The great betrayer, usurper to the sacred divinity," returned Astia.

Both answers did little to shed light on the Demon King I was being tasked with defeating, but the extremes of their reactions forced me to cease any further questions of elaboration—lest they target their emotions upon me.

Astia's visage relaxed, as his gaze returned towards mine.

"Now, you shall receive our last, and greatest blessing. A skill that has yet to be revealed unto you—for the title of Genesis unlocks secrets only beholden to the few who are chosen. The instrument of its design is meant to prepare you for a nearly unassailable task. Your very being may not normally be able to handle its power, but our sanctification shall unlock its potential," Astia finished, as he raised his hand towards me.

A light suddenly erupted, eliminating any ability to discern color in the environment around me; all except for a blue notification.

As the light receded I was once again greeted by Astia and Ahhena.

"W-What?" I stammered.

"Normally, at you're level, the activation of the skill would have caused your body to implode. We rectified that issue by reinforcing your core. However, don't expect anything grander. We simply transplanted a spark of divinity, allowing for the skill to take hold," Astia said.

Still! A skill allowing for quicker leveling was simply unheard of. Frankly, it was a cheat. Even I recognized that. My Paragon class was something else, overpowered, yes. Cheating? Perhaps not. This skill on the other hand...

Well, I could see its benefits.

"Now go, holder of Genesis," both deities said in one voice. "Repel the invasion from the Degenerate God, and save the interplanar realms from its Demon King."

Everything faded, and then a sudden burst of energy expelled my body away from the leyline itself—a notification being the last thing I saw.

 

END OF VOLUME 1: GENESIS