Windemere was coming back to life. The people had complete confidence in their King to do this. After a long campaign in which I traveled across the continent crushing any trace of worship of the Butt God, I dedicated my time to reviving and regenerating Windemere's vegetation and bringing back the fauna.
I had about a hundred churches in storage. A lot of gold because the Butt God priesthood really loved the metal. With that, I bribed some elements to spread rumors and stories about Bundeus' fall. I expected him to come down get some satisfaction but it didn't happen.
Three years later, Windemere was a living and thriving country again. That's when I dropped my guard and shit happened.
The priest of Galbarar barged into the throne room. "Sire! Sire! Galbarar has spoken!"
"Speak freely, friend. What does the Lord of Justice say?" I ask after using my daily curse suppression.
The priest started to speak,
> The Age of Eclipse upon us descends
>
> When darkness rules and reason ends
>
> Against those they begrudge
>
> The weary travelers shall judge [1]
Why did he say "travelers"? Is there more than one transmigrator? Eclipse is the shadowing of the sun or the moon. Since we have three of them, it is hard to be the latter. Why the Gods are breaking their silence now, that's also a very good question. But I had a feeling of finality. That my task here was done. I looked at Lorna, my Queen. Playing the facade of the King was both easy and hard. Easy because I didn't need to pretend to act like a male. I knew how. But it was a falsehood. Rosewise's public appearances became less and less.
I was glad the Eleons didn't agree to migrate. They would be dead now. I lost all the promising youngsters I brought. They are in new silk bodies, but they aren't truly alive. They can't gain experience but they can use all their Skills and perks. Even magic. I wish I could do something for these hundreds of people now living as cloth.
A week after the prophecy, a priest of Bundeus came to my court. There was a commotion but if he boldly came here alone, I would listen.
"King Anomaly!" He shouted. I waved the guards to stand down. "My Lord Bundeus challenges you to a duel. A week from now, meet him where the Black Dragon King fell."
I put a geas on the priest to leave Windemere and never come back before sending him on his way.
I took Lorna to the solarium. "I'll have to go," I told my Queen.
"You won't come back," She started to sob.
I hugged and kissed my cat lady. "But the prophecy says that I win. The Age of Eclipse. Bundeus loses."
"How are the crops going to grow without sunlight?" Nenandil mused.
"Damn. You're right," I smiled at the fairy's wisdom. "I need to prepare. Lorna. I want to give life to your brother and the cloth golems. Make them real people."
"Is it even possible?" She asked.
I remembered the Raggedy Ann books my grandmother read to me. Pinnochio. Granting true life to animated objects surely is within the possibilities of a fairy, although the costs would be enormous.
"Yes, it is," I answered with a reserved whisper.
"At what cost?" She demanded to know.
"A big one!" Nenandil replied without her usual levity. "Remember, when Silverstreak blessed the cat princesses, she gave up her life. Rosewise is orders of magnitude stronger than Silverstreak. But the cost will be ridiculously big. Do not take this lightly, mortal. It is not about you. The sacrifice offered shall be honored."
"Your brother will live again. And so will everyone else," I cooed.
"One week. Will this sacrifice take from the scant time we have together?" She asked.
I wiped her tears. "No. It will only greatly weaken my powers."
"I'll do as you ask, elder water fairy," Lorna said, resigned. "I'll honor the sacrifice."
The next day, I gathered the cloth golems. Over six hundred of them. At their inhabiting spirits' request, I made modifications and reshaped their bodies to look more life-like. Then I blessed all of them with my {Fairy Godmother} perk.
The cost to do what I wanted was Twenty-five million SP. I didn't have that much. The leftovers would be split between my HP and MP. It had the irritating side-effect of blocking me from my spiritual powers. No more geas unless I leveled again. It wouldn't happen.
I spent the week with Lorna at the Eleon village. After going around to say my goodbyes, I went to face the final boss. Before I arrived, I activated an emergency perk. I needed help.
----------------------------------------
I sensed his divinity as I approached. I was in my were-jaguar form, wearing my silk bodysuit. I was bloody pissed at this asshole, and eager for a chance to sink my claws in his Butt-Godness.
"I thought you would run away, Anomaly. I'm here to end you once and for all," Bundeus - I assume - boasted.
"What changed? You still can't touch me."
Was he luring me to strike at Windemere behind my back?
"A duel," he answered. "Sponsored by the System. Whoever loses suffers final death."
I sat down and yawned, showing my fangs. "There's no incentive for me to accept that. I do not wish your demise, just that you stop meddling with my affairs. If you are here now, it means you are desperate enough to play even if it's a bad hand. So, no. You gang-pressed me into ruling a country, I'm doing that. Do not waste more of my time, God of Butts."
"I'll destroy everything you hold dear," He threatened.
I sighed and shrugged. I expected a god to be dignified. Not a bratty bully. "Mutually Assured Destruction. My people are well aware of that concept. Sure, go ahead. You can try."
I stood up and ran toward him, claws and fangs bared.
> DUEL FOR DIVINITY
>
> As the Champion of [REDACTED], you accepted the challenge Bundeus, God of the Sun, Humans, and War for a divine duel. The winner shall absorb the divinity of the loser.
>
> Do you wish to set the terms?
"The winner shall absorb the divinity of the loser," I mused. Did I have any? I got no answer.
I set my terms.
> No attacks by either party can affect terrain or other creatures.
>
> The holdings, Realms, and domains of the contestants, along with their followers, sympathizers, family, subjects, friends, and employees of both parties will be protected from harm until the duel ends.
>
> The contestants will be moved to a cavern five hundred meters above the mantle. Half the cave will be air, half the cave will be solid bedrock.
>
> None of the parties can leave a cube a kilometer wide centered on their current location. They will be restrained by force walls. This shall be known as the barrier.
>
> There is no time limit.
>
> No enchanted item worth more than ten enchantment points can be used.
>
> No contestant can exert power or request aid from outside.
>
> This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work.
>
> No outside parties can interfere, not even familiars, followers, scions of the contestants, or other deities.
>
> The duel ends only when one party suffers Final Death.
>
> No contestant can abscond or hide part of their power outside the barrier. They cannot project power outside the barrier either.
>
> No contestant can receive power or sustenance of any kind from outside the barrier. Power can still be sent out if it is not for offensive use.
>
> Dimensional magic and abilities are forbidden.
>
> Time will pass a billion times faster inside the barrier. The contestants agree to pay for the time dilation with their own divine energies.
The System adhered to the spirit of the terms, not to the letter. That should be enough. I set the rules and waited. I guess that since he was the one to issue the challenge, the rules I set were accepted by Bundeus without questioning.
This guy didn't notice I set him up. I couldn't wish for a better battlefield.
I sent my silk suit to the storage and waited. The world around us moved as we were teleported to the underground. The next message was all I needed to know.
> DUEL START
I rushed him in a flurry of claws, rage, and spite. Bundeus deftly dodged all my attacks. I came close several times but he was in control. Then he kicked me. I managed to scratch him but he sent me to smash my back at the force wall.
Change of plans. The impact cleared my mind. I wouldn't win against him in a frontal assault. But when he kicked me, I felt some of his divine energy sent to Loki. I felt him approaching and ran up the force walls. {Absolute Clinging} specifically said I could.
I felt him swing a sword. He severed the tip of my tail. I didn't have a {Favored Enemy} against him and the lack of combat bonus from the Perks was showing.
> Bundeus cut you for 17,483 HP. Mana shield burned 5,828 MP. (Base 185 x 5 Strength x 7 Skill x 3 Grandmaster x 3 Perk x 2 Perk x 0.2 glancing blow).
His Attributes and Skills were all set to two hundred. I couldn't face him head-on. We played this game of cat and mouse, or god and cat for a long time. Bundeus showed no signs of slowing down. He came close to cutting me with what I assumed was a normal sword several times.
I fired magic at him but I might as well have splashed him with a thimble of water. His pursuit was relentless. My only silver lining was that he didn't have chains in his weapons. Or a blue-glowing returning ax. Or red tattoos, a bald head, and a sick beard. Maybe he did. I couldn't see it.
He scored a hit here and there. I was growing tired of running away, while he had an Endurance score four times bigger than mine and showed no signs of slowing down. He was an enemy I couldn't win on my own.
Time to cheese this duel.
I dove down into the rocks and stopped a meter below the surface. Then I crossed my paws behind my head and waited. Bundeus slammed the ground and pulled a Luigi. I wanted to win doing exactly nothing.
I took a nap. Then I sensed Bundeus bashing the ground, the walls, walking around, screaming, and cursing. Another nap. A dozen naps. Whenever I was bored, I popped out of the ground and ran around a little, then dove back. I had literally all the time in the world.
> Great Longevity (ultra-rare): Increase your natural lifespan and reduce the rate of aging past your race's age of maturity by a factor of ten.
>
> Extreme Metabolic Efficiency (ultra-rare): Your need for air, food, water, and sleep is reduced by 96%.
>
> Deep Sustenance (very rare): You thrive on the magic energy of the depths. The deeper you go, the less food, water, and sleep you need, and the slower you age.
>
> T'ai chi ch'üan (unique): Improve body recovery rate, reduce the duration of debuffs, and increase your lifespan by Rank x Willpower x 0,01%.
At this depth, more than a dozen kilometers below the surface? Bundeus would run out of divine power before I got gray hair. Because {Great Longevity} didn't extend my lifespan by a factor of ten, only. I also aged at a tenth of the rate. So if an eleon could live about a hundred years, I would live ten thousand. Multiply that by how much {Deep Sustenance} and {T'ai chi ch'üan} slowed down my aging and we'll see who has the greatest endurance.
It was boring as hell. I practiced my Skills, especially the Earth martial arts and meditation. I knitted a sweater with normal (non-living) fae silk. The bedrock this close to the mantle was a warm cozy cushion. Whenever {Suppress Curse} was available, I would expand my Skill cap and train like crazy for one hour. Then sleep.
How many years passed? I don't know. Bundeus gave up on trying to bash the indestructible ground and walls. He was sitting on a corner, mumbling. I would've gone crazy if it wasn't for {PInnacle of Ego} and {Meditation}. Which by the way, reached the Master ranks through System recognition.
> Meditation (rare): After a few minutes of concentration, you can clear your mind and control your emotions. During the meditative state, you gain an extra Willpower test modified by the Skill level to resist mental influence and perceiving illusions for what they are.
>
> Your rank in Meditation is Master 60.
>
> You gained this perk: Master Meditation (very rare): The Skill bonus is active at all times. When you stop to meditate, you enter a deep state of healing. In this state, all your resources recover at double the normal rate and you are immune to emotional and mental control and instabilities.
I felt slightly hungry. I couldn't eat the rocks for the same reason Bundeus couldn't break the ground. I needed a morsel, and there was one up there. I walked out of the rocks and Bundeus scrambled to his feet.
He attacked me. I sacrificed an arm and drained a couple of years from his life with my banshee powers. That would sustain me for two months. I picked up my severed arm and dove back in the rock. But these two months were a hundred because of {Extreme Metabolic Efficiency}. Times the hidden multiplier from {Deep Sustenance}.
I reattached my arm. More time passed. I reached Master ranks in T'ai chi ch'üan and Aikido.
> T'ai chi ch'üan (very rare): Improve body recovery rate, reduce the duration of debuffs, and increase your lifespan by Rank x Willpower x 0,01%.
>
> Your rank in T'ai chi ch'üanis Master 60.
>
> You gained this perk: Master T'ai chi ch'üan (very rare): Increase all physical Attributes by 3. This bonus can raise your traits over the cap.
>
> Aikido (unique): Improve dodge and parry chance, the accuracy of counterattacks, and mobility in combat.
>
> Your rank in Aikido is Master 60.
>
> You gained this perk: Master Aikido (very rare): Your joints flexibility is increased by 25%. Add your Dexterity to MInd to sense attacks from hidden enemies or traps. You take no damage from attacks you properly block or parry.
I got hungry again. Time to feed on Bundeus' lifespan. This time I didn't lose an arm because I deflected the sword with new mastery. The next time I surfaced, I found Wyxnos, Galbarar, and Queltphion arguing with the God of Butts. It's interesting how one God presides Justice while another god rules Balance. Because one doesn't mean the other. Justice can and most of the time was uneven, and balance can be injust.
"There she is," Wyxnos remarked. "We tried to contact you. Didn't you notice we hit the ground?"
"Not really. I thought it was Bundeus banging his frustrations again," I snarked.
"How long have you been here?" I heard Queltphion asking Bundeus.
"Six thousand years of relative time," Bundeus answered. "I'm almost spent. My energy is all but gone."
Damn. No wonder I was so bored. But that was just a bit more than three minutes outside. They found Bundeus really fast. I guess that when the Sun goes out in the middle of the day, that happens.
"What are you doing here?" Galbarar asked.
"This Ano--"
I cut off the Butt God, "Dueling. Bundeus challenged me, I accepted and put us here."
Bundeus wanted to keep trying to slice me but Galbarar held him back. Now I could notice that the Sun Lord's soul was a bit dimmer.
"You dare challenge a God?" Queltphion roared.
"Wyxnos. Please," I asked the guy that should have a level head in the room. "Clear the misunderstanding."
"Bundeus was the one to issue the challenge," Wyxnos said without altering his tone. He could talk about ADHD toddlers into sleep.
"And also the one to scheme with the Broodmother to turn Windemere into a graveyard. In fact... System: Declare the Quest from Bundeus complete because of undue interference!"
Nothing happened. It was worth the try.
"End this duel," Queltphion ordered rudely. "We entered the Age of Eclipse. Bundeus is needed on the surface."
"Queltphion, I don't think the duel terms allow this," Wyxnos said. "The fools locked themselves here until one of them suffers True Death."
"Then we should kill the Anomaly," Queltphion said.
Just to be sure, I checked my Quest progress. I was winning.
"I'm willing to comply, at a cost," I said. "Shall we bargain again, gentlemen?"
"Queltphion, hold it. What do you want, Rosewise?" Wyxnos asked.
It was the first time they ever used my given name.
"Yes, brother," Galbarar soothed, "Negotiation is the best path."
"Go ahead," Queltphion conceded.
"You will not interfere with my birth anymore. No delaying, no choosing, no setting me up to be stillborn," I said the last one staring in the general direction of Bundeus. "And because I don't trust you, I want it in the shape of a Perk. It shall read, 'No outside force or agent can interfere, delay, hasten, select, or divine the conditions of your birth beyond what is stated in your traits. The conditions of your birth are improved by your Luck score. You also automatically access the System upon birth.'"
I felt a stern gaze. I think Wyxnos was giving me an "Oh, really," stare.
"We can't allow you to have an early activation. Sorry," Galbarar said. "Would you agree to drop only that last statement?"
"If you three agree to keep the dragon bitch and the Butt God from harassing me again. And no retaliation against the people I care either."
"That settles the score," Queltphion declared.
"Wyxnos, do it," Galbarar ordered.
I heard an annoyed grunt from the god wearing a business suit. Honestly, it ruined the immersion.
> You are offered the perk: Sheltered Rebirth: No outside force or agent can interfere, delay, hasten, select, or divine the conditions of your rebirth beyond what is implied in your traits. The conditions of your birth are improved by your Luck score.
"Wyxnos, why did you change 'stated' with 'implied'?" I asked, imitating his annoyed tone.
"Because there are hidden conditions and effects linked to several perks and traits that you should not know of. Sorry, it has to be that way," The God of Logic said.
I groaned, "So long you keep B and B from interfering with my future lives and I have both Queltphion and Galbarar's guarantees, that's okay."
"You can rest assured," Queltphion said. "If someone violates the spirit of the agreement, they will suffer our wrath."
I accepted the perk.
All that was left was to kill me. Time to lift another curse. I went with {Slow Learner} again. Shaving one level of that curse was as good as gaining 3 free levels at each rank. it still required me to sacrifice one perk. I dumped a {Corrupted Blood Resistance} from the ones I gained for killing the third Demon Lord.
> Luck test passed. Critical success.
>
> Your Remove Curse Skill canceled both stages of the {Slow Learner} curse.
>
> You completed your Quest. All Royal Perks retained. The following Traits were removed:
>
>
>
> Windemere Territory Awareness (very rare).
>
> Windemere Happiness Awareness (very rare).
>
> Windemere Development (curse, unique).
>
>
>
> You gained 2 Very Rare perks. You gained one unique perk of your choice.
>
>
>
> You died.
>
> You lost the duel. All your divine power will be transferred to Bundeus.
>
> ERROR. NO DIVINE POWER FOUND. This has been logged and sent to the administrator.
>
>
>
>
> Emergency allocation overridden by [System Administrator] Wyxnos.
>
> - Your unallocated Perks can be selected by your next incarnation. Peace, Old Soul. - Wyxnos