ORACLE

Leonel found it all to be so amusing. Rather than distrusting him because of his strength, Dreadmaw actually trusted him more. It was so paradoxical. But this was exactly how Rapax were.

It didn't take much effort at all, and suddenly Dreadmaw was telling Leonel about plans he should have kept close to his vest.

It was almost certain that only the highest echelons of the Rapax knew of this information, yet here he was spilling it all.

After getting over the amusement, though, Leonel realized something else.

This was all triggered by the Idol Battlefield? Then didn't that mean that it was his fault that the Rapax were involved in this at all?

No one knew even to this day that Leonel was at fault for its early appearance. In fact, until Leonel heard of information circulating about it, he hadn't been aware of what he had done either.

But in the end, how could he not put two and two together?

He had felt his Spear and Bow Forces communicating with a distant plane, even though he had mostly been out of it during that time.

How could he not understand that it was his fault at that point?

Was this a good thing? Or a bad thing?

It was hard to say. Who knew if the zone Dreadmaw was speaking of wasn't something that he'd be very interested in as well? If it was something that could help Shadowclaw progress, then how could it not help him as well?

At the same time, it would be difficult to get the Rapax to actually help him fight against the Barbarian Race because they might see it as "ganging up".

Plus, they had come here without any intention of clashing with the Barbarian Race at all. So even if they didn't have such a culture, they might reject it anyway, just purely because of the difficult position it would put their Race in.

Alliances might have worked had they also been a Demi-God Race, but how could they be willing to go up against one as a mere Mortal Race themselves?

Dreadmaw and Shadowclaw wouldn't have even come to the Rapax of this Incomplete World if not for the fact they needed information on this Zone they were looking for.

As for the mutated Sub-Dimensional Zone itself, Leonel had his own thoughts about it, things that kept him... curious.

How had the Rapax sensed it? How were they so sure that it would be helpful to Shadowclaw without even coming across it first?

He could only conclude that they had something similar to the detection treasures that Leonel had once relied upon. These were devices that could give information about the parameters of a Zone without ever stepping inside.

If Incomplete Worlds could have such a thing, how could these larger worlds not?

The only reason Leonel was questioning it in the first place was one very specific reason...

Incomplete Worlds were so valuable that they were the preferred currency of the Gods. How could finding them be so easy?

So how had the Rapax, a Mortal Race, done so?

Dreadmaw finished his explanation and looked into Leonel's eyes.

"You might know this already, but we have no plans of getting involved with whoever is currently in control of the Sea Gods. So how exactly would you plan to work with us in the first place?

"The Zone and its treasures are not something that we are willing to give up or share. We also cannot afford to offend a Demi-God Race, not given the current situation in the world. A good deal of might not even notice if a Mortal Race suddenly vanished from Existence. It's happened before and it can happen again."

Leonel didn't respond immediately.

He was almost certain Dreadmaw was referring to the Human Race, and he wasn't exactly wrong, although they hadn't been quite wiped out. That said, was there much of a difference?Content © 2024.

Given the fact everyone was focused on the war between the Void Race and the Owlans and Fallen God Beasts, it really might fly under the radar if the Barbarians were to suddenly attack the Rapax out of revenge.

Even under normal circumstances, few would care. But in these ones...?

This put Leonel in another tough situation. How could he best take advantage of the Rapax when all the matters he needed them for were likewise things they weren't willing to do?

In the end, he didn't have enough information.

"First, how about I settle for a reading of the Rapax's historical records?"

Until now, he had only managed to read the history from the Human Race's perspective. As for the Oryx, he obviously hadn't been able to. Much of the information he had gathered over there was built from eavesdropping and speculation.

If he could get another piece of the puzzle, maybe it would be more obvious what he was dealing with.

There were too many actions taken by the Barbarian Race that he didn't quite understand.

Dreadmaw gave him a confused look, but in the end, there was no reason for him to refuse.

Soon, Leonel was going through the records of the Rapax, if they could even be called that. They felt quite bare bones, but this had its benefits as well.

The Rapax were bound by their honour and culture, so they rarely, if ever, embellished tales. They always told it exactly like how it was, even if it made them look bad.

As Leonel began to cross-reference what he had learned from the Human Race with this recounting, he found that several pieces of the puzzle were being swiftly filled.

That was when he stumbled onto something that made his eyes narrow.

The "Oracle".

That was something referenced in this history again and again. It told of a woman of the Sea Gods capable of seeing the future and how she not only single-handedly allowed them to rise, but was also capable of passing down her ability...

Just how similar was that to the Barbarian Race's abilities?