End of the World Palace

Archie slowly pushed himself up off the floor, the pressure he had felt before gone and his heart calmed. He didn't feel comfortable lying on the ground in front of these creatures. What had the Evil God been saying? That he was the moon? As far as he knew, he was definitely not the Moon, at least not yet.

"Home?" Archie had to repeat what this goddess had said. He remembered Moon talking about this Liege, but he wasn't sure of the connection. Something about regret. However, what did he regret?

"Yes. Home. This is your home," the goddess nodded her head.

Archie found it funny; these creatures had killed his people, and now they were welcoming him like some long-lost son. "I don't remember being buddies with a bunch of monsters," Archie said out loud, exactly what he was thinking. He noticed that the atmosphere in the hall changed again after he said it. The other creatures surrounding the throne began to look hostile again.

A chill ran down Archie's spine, and he mentally slapped himself. He shouldn't insult when he's outnumbered and alone. He looked around and noticed that besides them, there were many other statues in the hall, most of which were in a bowing position and facing the throne.

Archie looked again at the goddess on the throne, who sat there comfortably and didn't seem to be concerned about anything. But for some reason, he couldn't look at her for long. However, it was different from when he looked at his people who followed him. This was more... like when he had made some trouble when he was younger and then returned home to find his uncle waiting for him, looking at him expectantly but at the same time not asking any questions. That kind of feeling.

He took a breath. "I come in peace," he said finally.

"I know," the goddess replied, pointing her hand at him. "If it were different, you would be dead by now."

Archie rubbed the hair on the back of his neck and decided to continue. "As you can see... I became the successor to the God of the Moon and the Night. I mean the true Moon and not Baa..." He began to explain.

"I know," Caila replied, but she didn't really know. She could feel the resemblance to Moon from the man in front of her, and he reminded her a lot of him, but she didn't know that he was the true successor. She didn't even know how succession worked in this case. Not to mention that while she knew that Supernova had started creating Gods at some point, she still didn't know how she did it.

Caila thought that she had learned quite a lot from Supernova's memories already, and because of that, she could play the role of the Goddess better and more believably. But she didn't really know anything! What was the use of her knowing about Eon and the higher realm if she didn't know the half of this world and how it worked? She hadn't even had time to properly think about everything new she'd learned.

She looked at Archie and thought quickly. Baa wasn't the original moon; in fact, she thought her Moon had been killed a long time ago and Baa was the one that replaced it. But this man claims that he is the true successor. What does that mean? Is Baa the Moon God or not? So Baa was the usurper? An impostor? Caila wished she could look into Archie's memories to understand, but he wasn't her worshipper.

Archie continued, running his eyes cautiously over the creatures in the room. They weren't doing anything yet, but they were staring at him rather intensely. "Right. If Baa finds out what happened, he'll eliminate me quickly. I quite liked my life so I'd hate for that to happen."

Caila scoffed inwardly. 'Of course. Who would like that?'

But out loud she said something else. "So you're looking to me for protection? You want to become my worshipper?"

Archie shuddered. "What? No!" He quickly denied, flinching as an oppressive silence fell over the hall after his statement.

Caila sighed inwardly before saying, "So what are you asking for? You want protection, but you offer nothing in return. You may be the successor of my Moon, but you're still also the enemy that attacked my home. Just hearing you out is a favor from my Moon."

The young man blinked and looked at the goddess hesitantly. Her Moon? What did she mean by that? He knew the original Moon had something in common with this goddess, but why was he talking about it as if he belonged to her?

Archie thought for a moment, but since the Goddess was willingly talking to him, he decided to ask. "Your Moon? What do you mean?"

Caila tilted her head and stared at Archie; he didn't seem to know everything. This played in her favor because she didn't know everything either, thus reducing the possibility of being found out. "I am a Goddess that existed in the ancient ages. I existed before your Recognized Gods even took their first breath. All of the ancient Gods were my children." Caila inwardly squirmed a little as she said this. Children. It was true that she kind of thought of her followers as children, but it was still strange to her. She didn't feel like a mother. Does she have even a clue what it feels like to be a mother?

She shook her head at herself. She had no idea. The creator of the ancient gods was Supernova; she only inhabits her body, so could she consider herself a mother? Maybe that's why it didn't sound right to her. No, she considered herself more of an older sister. She sighed aloud. "It pains me to know that all my little ones are gone."

Archie's eyes bulged when he heard that this goddess was the mother of the ancient gods. So too for the true Moon! That's why his last words were that he was regretful. He regrets not being able to meet his mother! Now it made sense to him! Archie clenched his fists and thought about Baa. Is that why he sent them here? Had he found out that the ancient goddess had awakened and wanted to destroy her before she regained her power? What a murderous bastard!

He quickly took a few steps forward but stopped when he saw everyone in the room tense up. "Baa is the one who killed your child! True Moon! And also his successor!" He said passionately as his own mind formed a theory.

Her worshippers who were in the room with her began to mutter softly among themselves.

"Did they kill the Moon?"

"Who is Baa?"

"Idiot. The ones who came here are following Baa. Have you been paying attention at all?"

"Not really."

"What about the Sun?"

"Didn't Liege say all the old gods are gone? What happened?"

"Oh no! I was a fan of the Goddess of Earth and Natural Disasters! Oh no, my Goddess! No one could shake the earth like her!"

"I can't believe they're all gone! Surely someone must have survived! What about the God of Knowledge and Mystery? That dude's too cool to just die!"

"My Earth Goddess... sniffle... sniffle..."

Lambert frowned and looked back. "Be quiet!" He shouted at them. They all immediately obeyed and fell silent, and Lambert bowed apologetically to Caila.

Caila rolled her eyes inwardly because she could still hear one of them sniffing a bit. But at least she heard something interesting. Apparently, there were more gods than just the basic ones. But then how many gods had Supernova created?

"Successor to the Moon. Explain," Caila asked Archie because she wanted to know what he knew.

Archie didn't hesitate too much and told her about what he had seen and experienced. Caila listened and was starting to feel a little depressed. Poor Moon. The boy had suffered a lot to keep this world working. She closed her eyes and tapped her fingers on the arm of the throne while she thought. If Moon survived, it's possible others survived the war, but they're hidden. Or the Recognized Gods may have hunted them down as well.

Caila couldn't imagine what it must have been like for Moon. At least Caila woke up with nothing but a few shreds of memories. Moon had been guarding the planet all by herself for... how long? Thousands of years? And then some bastard comes along and kills him? Caila felt sad and angry. She hadn't originally had any special feelings for Baa, but that was starting to change.

Zenobe watched from the side of Liege, who remained silent and slowly tapped her fingers on the back of the seat. Everyone felt a little tense because they all knew the original Gods. In the end, all of them had come out of their community and their Liege was taking care of them. Zenobe was moved to tears just imagining how their precious Liege must feel. She wanted to take Liege's hand and comfort her! All of her worshippers had similar thoughts and waited anxiously to see how their Liege would react.

However, Caila did not feel devastated. Yes, she was sad, angry at the injustice and fate of poor Moon, but she was not absorbed by it. "I understand. Moon has had it really hard. The poor boy has endured a lot for us." She finally said with a sigh and looked at Archie. "So what are you going to do about it?" She asked.

Archie was surprised by the goddess' words. He? He's supposed to do something? Isn't she the mother of the Moon?

"Um." He hesitated what to say.

Caila turned her head, an idea forming in her mind. "What, you're not going to do anything? Haven't you become Moon's successor? If you're going to become the real Moon, you need to deal with Baa and take back what's yours."

Archie was startled. He hadn't thought that far. He wanted to avoid being exterminated by Baa, and all he was really thinking about was how to retrieve and free the original successor turned into a disgusting face mask. But should he become a true god? The idea was unimaginable to him. He had always thought that he would be faithfully served not that there was anyone to be faithfully served or even worshipped.

"Um. I don't know if I'm..." He began, but Caila cut him off and pointed a significant finger at him.

"Too late. You have accepted the will of my Moon. You have become what you have become. Or do you intend to stay at the End of the World for the rest of your life, hiding from a treacherous, false god?" Caila spoke louder and more firmly now.

Archie, who had a fiery temper, couldn't imagine it. He definitely didn't want to hide, especially from someone like Baa. The flame of anger from the betrayal still burned within him. "No." He replied with a frown. "But I'm not a damn suicider either! I'm not strong enough to fight him!"

Caila lowered her hand and snorted. "Who do you think you're talking to? I'm the one who makes the gods!" Caila inwardly praised herself for the dramatic words. She still didn't know exactly how gods were created, but she was sure she would figure it out eventually.

Now she just wanted to get this future god on her side and make him her follower. Just the fact that he was the successor to the moon god had to make his Prana better than the others. And even if he wasn't able to take care of Bao in the end, it didn't matter. Caila was determined to roast the filthy god alive.

Archie swallowed and thought. He had a feeling that his life was going in a completely insane direction. "Can you make me stronger?" He asked, not knowing if he should really believe it. It just sounded crazy.

Caila considered it for just a second. She was sure she could do it. She'd seen well how Supernova manipulated people's DNA, and while it was exhausting, she didn't find it difficult. She was glad, however, that the memory of it came before she could harm more living beings in her attempt and mistake.

"You are the successor to my Moon. And I am the mother of the Moon. If he didn't provide you with guidance, I will have to do. Now you will be my child too." Caila was a little unwilling to say it, but she would have to stick with this mother and child concept. Unfortunately, it just sounded better than the concept of an older sibling.

Archie shuddered a little and backed up a bit. He may never have had a mother, but this still seemed strange to him. "Ew, no thanks." He replied automatically.

At that moment, Zenobe exploded. "You reject the good will of our Liege as your mother!? What insolence!"

"Yeah! You don't know how lucky you are, brat!"

"Everyone wants to have our Liege as a mother!"

"And he's even grinning about it! Dammit! Somebody hold me or I'll slap him!"

Archie's quick refusal outraged the others in the room. Caila sighed again at the overreaction of the others and glanced at Lambert, who caught her gaze and looked over again. "Silence!" He shouted, silencing them again.

Caila continued as if nothing had happened. "I understand. This arrangement is not comfortable for you. Then you can think of me as an Elder Sister. In any case, I will still provide you with what you need. All you have to do in return is accept my blessing and eliminate Baa."

Archie considered this; in truth, it sounded rather good. He didn't know if the goddess wanted to help him because she wasn't strong enough to kill Baa yet, or if she actually felt a duty for the sake of the real Moon, but it still sounded a lot better than granting him sanctuary, which was his original thought.

"If you give me a blessing, does that mean I will be your worshipper?" That was the only thing that worried him.

Caila wanted to shrug, but stopped herself in time. She herself didn't yet understand the solid laws of how Prana actually flowed to her through prayers and blessings, but for now, it was enough that it just worked. Just take the example of Marik, who didn't really worship her even though she noticed he was speaking to her more and more often. He wasn't praying, but rather telling her things that bothered and annoyed him. Caila felt like a therapist in his case, yet it worked.

However, for Caila it opened up new possibilities. People like Marik and Archie who didn't really want to worship her also had benefits for her. "No. If you don't want to worship me, then you don't have to," Caila replied calmly, and that seemed to put the future Moon at ease.

"Still, with my blessing, you will have the same choices as true worshippers. Now, if you're ready, we can start now. Once you have my blessing, we can move on to the next step," Caila explained.

Archie took a breath and felt nervous. Almost like when he went to get his first blessing, he didn't know what the next step would be, but this was a journey that was inevitable. He couldn't afford to leave and be unprotected from Baa. Moreover, True Moon actually had some sort of relationship with this goddess, and he was greatly comforted by the fact that the goddess didn't make him feel bound by anything. If it were otherwise, he would probably be much more hesitant.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

"Alright. Let's get this over with," he said.

Caila smiled inwardly. She already understood Supernova, why she was gaining followers this way. People in need were much easier to convince.

"Looks like I'm just in time." A new voice suddenly sounded.

Caila looked towards the entrance and was not surprised by who she saw.

"Primas Jason. Welcome," Caila said in a calm voice while Archie was startled and turned sharply to the newcomer.

Primas Jason was definitely not panting like Archie had been before, but his skin was very white. It was understandable that his level made him easier to come by, but it still left an impact.

Jason looked around the throne room and was inwardly slightly shaken to see strange creatures he had never seen before. He was curious but also wary. What surprised him more was the presence of Archie himself. What is that boy doing here? He had only overheard a little of the conversation, but it seemed like the boy was making some sort of deal with the Evil God.

It made him concerned. He thought the Goddess was only going to make a deal with him, and now he found this kid here with milk still running down his chin. Jason was very unhappy.

Jason looked at the Goddess on the throne and raised his eyebrows. He couldn't see much of her form, most of it hidden by the long enveloping cloak, but the fiery eyes glowed a sinister blue from the darkness of the hood. "What's that supposed to mean? Liege... right?" He asked, not hiding the irritation in his voice.

Caila wasn't surprised that Jason was here; she was just surprised at his speed. She had expected a man of his caliber to require more time to consider her offer. "You got it right, Primas Jason," she replied, glancing at Archie, who suddenly had a wild look in his eyes that flicked from Jason and back to her.

Caila smiled, then raised her hand to beckon Archie to come closer. Archie hesitated and looked towards Jason, but then took a step in her direction, at which point Jason spoke again.

"Bishop, don't take another step," Jason said coldly, fixing his gaze on Caila. She turned her gaze to him and frowned a little. She didn't really like the fact that he was acting like he was in his own house.

"What's wrong, Primas Jason?" Caila asked in a slightly colder voice.

"Didn't we have a deal?" Jason said, and Caila lowered the hand she had folded in her lap.

"A deal? I don't know about that. I just made you an offer. You didn't agree to anything. And who hesitates, don't eat," she answered him.

Caila could actually use both, but she wasn't sure she could handle them both on the same day. Honestly though, she cared more about Archie. Aside from being the successor to Moon, he was still young and his loyalty could still be earned fairly easily. Jason, on the other hand, was much stronger, but he was an old fox and would probably be following his own plans and probably even looking for an opportunity to kill Caila.

So Caila did make him an offer, but she was still thinking about what she was going to do. It depended entirely on his attitude. But she was counting more on the possibility that she would have to trick him and kill him. Caila grinned inwardly. Actually, she could still do it. Primas Jason probably wouldn't take too well to her dumping him and going ahead with his original plan after all.

Caila considered it for a moment before making her decision. "I suppose you want to see proof anyway. So why not see it right here on Archie?" She suggested, raising her hand again towards her new Moon.

Jason hesitated for a moment, but nodded. That was what he wanted too, and he had originally intended to sacrifice one of his group he had left outside for this experiment. He wasn't worried about them trying to escape. Without a signal from him or one of the other group leaders, the ship would not return for them.

He watched as Archie approached the Goddess, with thoughts racing through his mind. It was a good opportunity to kill her, but her strange worshippers would probably tear him apart. He swept his gaze over them, shuddering a little as he saw the old man staring at him, worms wriggling in his whites. He stared at a small, furry imp, blue in color, showing needle-like long teeth, its fur bristling with hostility, and the skeleton... it didn't look dangerous, but it certainly wasn't as fragile as it looked.

Next, and probably the biggest problem, was the red-haired goblin and the tall woman in the witch's hat who stood at the side of the Goddess's throne. The goblin was slowly circling a brass pipe between his fingers, his sharp eyes constantly scanning both Jason and Archie. The woman, on the other hand, had most of her attention focused on the Goddess, and she seemed displeased because her lips were pressed into a thin line.

Jason could have attacked and then quickly retreated outside, but the strange pressure outside the throne room made things difficult. It was tiring to move around in it, so Jason judged that even if he attacked he wouldn't come out a winner. For now, he decided to wait to see the outcome, and if he wasn't satisfied, it would be best to retreat and reconsider the approach. Given the passivity and neutrality of the Goddess, they should let him go if he had a good excuse.

Caila focused on Archie and didn't notice Jason yet; there was no need, the others were keeping an eye on him. She had a difficult task ahead of her now, one she couldn't screw up.

"Do you accept my blessing?" Caila asked the successor to the Moon, looking up at him.

Archie, who felt Jason's eyes stabbing him in the back, gritted his teeth inwardly. It wasn't pleasant for someone who was his superior to see him switch sides. On the other hand, Jason seemed to be doing the same.

This Goddess seemed to have some sort of magic that she could use to convince people. Or maybe it was just her presence. Archie had never met a god in person. Nor had Baa ever interacted with his worshippers in person.

Dealing with God in person is definitely different. "Yes," he replied, lowering his head a little.

Caila raised a finger on the tip of which a tiny blue flame appeared and sent it towards Archie. Archie froze and watched the blue flame hit his body and disappear into his flesh, then felt a burning sensation on his arm. He quickly rolled up his sleeve and saw a silver mark on his arm that began to burn with blue flame. It stung, but it was nothing terrible. The flames quickly disappeared, but his silver mark remained, only now it occasionally glimmered blue.

Caila paused and actually stepped into her Divine Space and saw that a new light had appeared. This one, however, was completely different. It had three colors. It was golden like all the others, but it also had a mix of silver and now blue reflections. "Interesting," she muttered to herself as she watched the light.

"Strange that the silver color hasn't faded and there wasn't even any resistance. Weird. Jason was different. I had the same problem with him as I did when I was removing Monte's blessing," Caila pondered this.

"Maybe it's because this didn't come from Baa, but from Moon?" she considered the possibilities. Baa was an unreal god, Moon, on the other hand, was real and was also created and raised by Supernova. His original power came from her, so aren't their powers in conflict? Maybe the All-Consuming Flame itself recognizes its own kind and so doesn't absorb it?

Caila would have liked to ponder this more, but she didn't have much time. She touched the light and entered Archie's subconscious. Memories began to spin around her, their frames looking like wind vortices.

Again, some memories were grayed out, but others shone like beacons.

Caila chose one and entered the memory.

She found herself in a small room that looked like the living room of a modest household. A woman sat on an old and faded sofa, embroidering something. Her hair was light purple, and she had dark, unhealthy circles under her eyes.

A moment later, a boy of about ten with blue-purple hair, wearing old clothes but clean, entered the room, his expression turning into a scowl of defiance as he entered. Caila thought he was rather cute, and she could also easily tell that he was Archie's younger self.

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The boy held a single red rose in his hand and approached his mother. It could only be his mother; the resemblance was undeniable. "Mom," he addressed the woman who looked up at him and smiled.

"Tsk. You should be sleeping. You look terrible," the boy assessed the circles under his mother's eyes, then reached out to her with a rose.

"Here. I found this. I don't like it at all, and it smells awful, but you like this garbage so I brought it to you." As he gave it to his mother, he wore an annoyed expression and looked away.

Caila had to laugh because it was very cute, especially seeing the boy's ears turn red.

His mother laughed too and took the rose from him. "Yes. Your mother likes this garbage. Thank you, Archie," she replied and patted his head. After a moment, little Archie flinched under her touch and snorted in annoyance.

"I made bone soup. Come eat," her mother said and stood up. Little Archie followed her after a moment, and the memory faded to black.

"Huh? That was quick," she thought, expecting the memory to be longer since it was so important.

But the space cleared again, and Caila realized that the memory hadn't ended, but for some reason it had changed significantly.

She was now standing in a stone room dominated by several rough wooden benches, and a coffin stood at the head of the room. It didn't look too flashy either; it seemed to be made of cheap material. Red roses were placed on the coffin, and little Archie stood in front of the coffin, his small hands gripping the handle of the coffin tightly. Little Archie didn't look any older than he had before, which meant that this had happened very breezily after the first memory.

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"I brought you those stinky things you like so much. Take your favorite trash with you on the trip, Mom. Haha," Archie mumbled, his eyes sad with unshed tears.

"Archie. We have to go," a male voice came from somewhere outside. Caila looked back but didn't see the man's appearance.

"Yes, Uncle," Archie's knuckles turned white as he said it, but after a moment, he let go, and his hands dropped lifelessly down before he turned and followed the voice.

"Uggghh. Why do I always have to see these miserable memories?" Caila sighed as she stepped out of the memory. She complained, but she knew why. Because the memories where one experiences the most pain or conversely the joy that is connected to a strong emotion are the most clear in the memories.

Caila did wonder what was in the next memory that was linked to this one, but she didn't have time to investigate further. What she wanted was to understand Archie's personality a little more. She may not have gained as much from that memory, but at least she had some basis and left her Divine Space back to the present.

Caila looked at Archie, who had stopped examining the mark on his arm and wore a slightly confused expression. Jason, in the back, looked disappointed again. Caila snorted inwardly. What were they expecting? That he was going to put on some epic show for them?

Archie was honestly confused. He felt no difference; nothing seemed to have changed except for that brief burning sensation. Maybe this way the Goddess still wasn't strong enough? "Um. What happened?" He finally couldn't stop himself from asking.

Caila focused on him. "I granted you my blessing. It's okay that you didn't feel anything. My blessing is not invasive to your body."

Archie was surprised and remembered his first blessing from Bao. It hadn't been an entirely pleasant experience. It was as if someone had suddenly doused your insides in lead and all your senses had briefly collapsed. It was a quick sensation, but most people feel sick afterwards or even vomit on the spot.

"The second step, however, will be somewhat more intense," the Goddess said, and Archie looked up at her. He could see the blue fire flickering on her fingers again, but this one seemed stronger.

"Huh? More intense?" Archie repeated.

Caila nodded. "It's going to hurt. In the end, it's a complete reshaping of your entire existence. Try to endure it, and don't worry. You won't die." She reassured him and herself. She was sure she could do it, but she was also a little scared. After all, this was the first time she had actually done what Supernova had done. She wondered if she should have knocked him unconscious first, but Supernova hadn't done that either, and Caila had no idea if it was because it caused complications or if she had just not thought of it.

She took a stealthy breath and sent another flame at Archie. Archie didn't move and watched the blue flames hit him again and begin to spread rapidly. He felt nothing at first, but then the pain hit him full force. He widened his eyes in astonishment and opened his mouth, but Caila worked quickly, and the flames swallowed Archie whole. The roaring of the flames muffled Archie's screams but didn't hide it completely.

Caila leaned forward and concentrated like never before. When the flames began to turn green, Caila knew she was doing it right. She moved her hands even though she knew using her hands wasn't entirely necessary, but it made things more comfortable. The flame split, revealing a slowly spinning DNA helix.

Caila felt her energy fading fast, and she didn't have much time. She focused her attention on the parts of the helix that were illuminated in golden color and began to move them.

Jason, who was watching everything, was first startled when Archie was engulfed in flames, but then he was confused, and finally stunned because he had no idea what Liege was doing.

The blue flames were mysterious, but when he saw the thing inside the flames, all he could think was could it be the source of the Prana? The essence of life? Could she be playing with human life like a toy as she pleased?

His chin dropped a little, and he looked at the Dark God and had to wonder how it was possible for such a lowly god to be capable of such a thing.

Caila concentrated on her task, oblivious to anything else. She found that moving the golden part of the helix required a fair amount of strength; every time she moved one, she felt it exhaust her. The golden parts fell into place, and Caila noticed one detail. Some of the parts that connected stayed the same, but others, when she connected them, expanded a little and colored the next part gold.

So did that mean that some parts fit together better than others? But she didn't have time to investigate further. By the time she was done, she was very tired, and the helix was only one third golden. She brought her hands together, and the flames closed in again, and she could finally rest. She prevented herself from draining back both her power and Prana, and then all she had to do was watch the process complete itself.

The blue-green flames hummed in place for a moment before beginning to take shape. First, they were humanoid outlines, but then more and more details appeared. Caila made a mental note that it was like watching a work of art being created.

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It only took about a minute to complete the process. The flames didn't evaporate but were absorbed into the body of the new being.

Archie was born as a new entity. He lay unconscious on the ground, naked as a newborn, and his appearance changed. Caila looked him over and nodded her head in satisfaction. He looked well.

His hair had shifted to a more purple color than blue, his face had become a little softer, and his body was muscular. The biggest change, however, was that a pair of large feathered wings the same color as his hair had sprouted from his back. His entire back was then covered in tiny, fine feathers that appeared in various other places on his body.

But what caught Caila's attention the most was the thing right in the middle of his chest. It appeared to have a heart-shaped object embedded in its flesh. The red heart looked like it was made of crystallized blood, and there was also a tiny image of a rose in the middle of the heart. The entire heart then slowly beat with light in accordance with Archie's heartbeat.

"Lambert. Zenobe. Take care of him," Caila said as she looked at the young man and thought about what was in his DNA that made him grow wings. It seems there are still many secrets in the blood of the people of this world.

Zenobe and Lambert stepped forward, no one yet taking notice of the stunned Jason, who was currently at a loss for words. He had finally witnessed a true miracle.

Lambert pulled something out of his pocket and then bent down to the naked man. He was holding a small vial of some kind of powder, which he put to Archie's nose.

Archie inhaled twice before he opened his eyes sharply and began to cough. "Cough! Cough!" He sat up, gasping for breath.

Caila wondered what the hell was in that bottle that could wake someone up so quickly. Once Archie had calmed down a bit, he looked around in confusion and suddenly realized his nakedness. "Shit!" He exclaimed, covering his private parts with his hands.

Caila grinned in amusement, but then thought to herself. She didn't really feel anything. She could appreciate when someone was pretty, but the man's nakedness didn't stir any feelings in her. She frowned and then looked at Zenobe and tried to think of things in a romantic sense, but there was no response.

"Hmmm..." She grumbled and then shrugged at that. She didn't feel like worrying about it. Maybe she was getting too mentally old? Or did this body not have those needs? It didn't matter.

She glanced again at the awkward Archie, whose eyes were searching for something to wear, but at that moment, Zenobe threw her hat at him, which spread wide enough to cover all of Archie, who let out a surprised muffled cry. From the way the fabric of the hat bulged, Archie was fighting with it.

"Stay still, little bird. I'll be done with you in a minute," Zenobe said and snorted while she snapped her fingers, once, twice... then she thought and finally snapped a third time. Her witch's hat pulled itself off again, revealing a dressed Archie.

Caila cocked her head to the side. Well, at least he was a little faded. He had a purple loincloth around his waist and at least some short shorts underneath. But other than that, he wasn't wearing much. His shoulders and arms were covered by his armor, which was held together by a piece of material that crossed over his chest and was connected to a prominent heart in the center of his chest.

[https://cdn.leonardo.ai/users/e70a625f-a29f-469a-912e-d78c50e456f1/generations/54e997ad-f918-4f13-8297-282727d70a02/Default_Man_dark_ninja_Cupid_bluepurple_hair_a_human_heart_sun_7.jpg]

Archie looked over and frowned, glancing at Zenobe who looked smug. "I'm still almost naked!" He complained.

Zenobe wrinkled her nose. "That's called style, you feathered bird! You're one of us now and you need to look good! Don't embarrass our Liege!"

"I look like a male prostitute, dammit!" Archie shouted, and his wings started flapping excitedly behind his back.

"Huh?" Archie paused and looked back. At the same moment he did so, he suddenly flew away in a flash. "Aaaaahh! Nooo!" He yelled just before he hit the wall.

Caila sighed. "Guess he'll have to take flying lessons," she noted when she saw that he was completely out of control with his new wings.

Jason, who was still standing off to the side, watched it all with confusion. Was this a town of fools after all? How was it possible that the atmosphere was changing so quickly? At first, it was serious, then shocking, and finally ridiculous.

He watched Archie pick himself up off the ground and looked back at his new wings with bulging eyes.

"Anyway..." Jason muttered, his eyes fixed on the Goddess who sat on her throne, looking comfortable.

"How is this possible?" He lowered his arms along his body, which were folded into the ones on his chest, and strode over to Liege.