Murai appeared angry just for a while, before refocusing and remembering his current position. He sometimes had problems coming to terms with his mind and how to often act.
He didn't necessarily think of himself as someone lofty, but no matter what or how it happened, his living made him less than pleasant. It was the cause and consequences that always challenged it. Problems occurred all the time, which meant that coming up with their solutions was always pending in his mind, rather than the bodies of his living lives.
Now, he needed to rest. Not be himself, per se. And he needed it quickly, which was missing the resting charm.
He was perhaps in no position to be wasteful or slow, but to this day, he had no clue how to solve the biggest issue that loomed over this current time.
How to escape this place exactly, or what to make of his living? Why did he keep going deeper into this temple? It all felt like a game that had very little purpose, forgetting the means to get more powerful of course.
He followed Lisa's idea, being hunted in all kinds of ways, and feeling that the living did improve, but where was the sense in that? Not only did Gods want some problems with him, making Centralis Kingdom their toys, but this place wanted his neck too. Or was it something else? Manager Kil did give him some ideas, followed by Levandis and her interest.
It all seemed weird, but Lisa assured him for the past day that he should be patient and deal with the Gates for his or her sake. She didn't mention how senseless it could be in the end, or how the means to escape this place acted for the flighting itself.
She had some doubts about her plans, yet kept thinking of a way to get him out of the Seventh Death Forest because it wasn't something he could do on his own. This place proved its worth to help her plans, even if it put complications ahead.
She wondered if her memories made sense, or if she should rely on them like facts. It was all about information.
Murai laughed at her back then, thinking for himself, lying for the sake of his focus and his power rather than her words.
This quickly changed him for the better or worse, depending on how either of them viewed the situation. At least it allowed his mind to focus and fight like he wanted, while Lisa kept her planning state of wonders in her head.
It wasn't turning this whole situation into something that had a start and an end. It felt like Murai was delaying the inevitable curse that was looming behind his neck.
So with the fighting and some misery left behind him, Murai watched the portal with some hesitation as if it was an illusion close to dissipating. Confidence and the road to power were deeply rooted in his core, but how much of it was something this duck could take?
“Give me their essences,” Murai ordered Lorry, although he was considering taking Goliath Golem's core structure of runes for something worth it. It wasn't that damaged, albeit his Blade did pierce its core. With some repairs, he thought it could be workable or sellable. Such things as golems of this caliber should be worth more for some people than a single essence around High Grade 7 or Low 6.
In the end, he had no time to think of that because this golem was huge, and he was curious how the essence-gathering construct of this temple worked with non-living things like a golem.
He thought only living things possessed the means to create an essence, but he was wrong. This was his first golem in this temple after all. They were expensive and less normal to meet than undead which were easy to replenish in the Chaos.
Lorry cluttered his teeth, flying at the pair of fallen foes. His eyes glistering, his purpose and this action was one of his favorite activities as a Guide.
He obliterated Extremes in the past, turning them into nice glowing spheres of luster and tight feelings. Those were nice times, so these little ones would never sway his soul.
Obliterating them to dust and light, mana surged, and golem and Uqari disintegrated into light fissures that danced under some rules.
Murai watched it with his eyes, cursing his luck to not have Sonar at his disposal. Well, it was, but any touch to his mana wouldn't be pleasant after what he had been through. He was still tired and glad to be standing on his little feet.
His eyes were enough to see this artificial essence gathering. Goliath Golem essence extraction happened as a surprisingly regular procedure. Its metallic body turned to dust, runes did too and so did its Artificial Core. It all swirled, creating a High-Grade 7 essence, which was kind of an expected drop.
Uqari ended up dissolving into parts of velvety mist and bloody mana, leaving no blood or bones behind. Low-Grade 6 essence from her wasn't that surprising, considering she was much stronger than that golem in all regards, but she met the wrong match.
Murai killed her with relative ease, but without the past islands behind him, it would've been straight-up impossible.
Her Lust wasn't that weak either, but it was like asking a mountain to fly over a wall, considering Robust Spirit's existence, or his soul in general. It was all thanks to them that he was entirely unaffected by the aspects of her Bloodline.
Lust was spiritual, capable of influencing the mind and enslaving others. Will would often not stop it; only halt or ease its effects. Erasing or ignoring it completely required powers beyond Lust, or such a firm Will, Lust wouldn't find its roots in a person.
Whatever Murai was, he was the perfect match against any Lust demon, but he wasn't so sure about those with better powers or Bloodlines. What if a powerful succubus surged their Lust at him? Would he become their pet? At least in the physical touches, he would lose against them. The rest was... questionable.
If Uqari had a much better physique or stronger defenses, he would be stuck like a boat frozen in the seas, unable to penetrate her or come closer. Then, she would penetrate his feathers sooner or later, regardless of Robust Spirit.
Robust Defense had some notable limitations. For example, Murai can't attack in that state, so if she didn't hit him because of her momentum and his great timing, things would be different.
Alas, Murai took that fight into his beak, killing her rather than experimenting or wasting time. Expectations and outcomes ended up great, albeit it ended up meeting the worst foe in all of the Islands combined.
Anatiade Golems was a clear experimental test.
Uqari did leave some marks of that too, testing his soul and the Lust. None of the past enemies had that kind of power, thanks for being relatively common fodder below level 50.
The results were neither predetermined nor poor. Someone decided to test his patience, power, and possibilities. All combined, it turned into a nice course of fights. Goliath tested his strategy of fighting against a golem in general. Uqari tested his Will.
Anatidae Golem tested everything and almost succeeded in crushing the floor with him.
Either way, those figures remained behind him. Taking a long breath, it didn't take that long for his legs to calm down, spine to relax, and core to ease up. As for his neck, tensed-up bones and muscles, most of his flesh was still screaming at him.
Nothing was broken... he thought. Hoped. Some parts between the feathers, muscles, and bones were tensed as if torn.
Slowly, it was turning better the more he waited, but he had no time to waste.
Murai walked to these essences, absorbing them into his Artificial Core while keeping the gifted essences in Lisa's hands. Manager Kil's gift will wait for its purpose like those from the last Vault.
Without further ado and after quick work of these essences, he walked to the opposite end of the street.
The portal was wide and tall, so it was almost stone-certain it would fit a giant. Stepping into the huge portal that swirled in its path forward, he disappeared into the finishing sequence of this Gate without noticing the layers of thin fissures running around the waves and portal itself. They were thin, looking like mana but not mana at all. They were denser and thinner like Laws but not Laws either.
Lisa and Lorry didn't waste their time either. They had no time to spare when Murai had a great time ahead. Question Mark and his Keys were still pending for their time and Lorry was curious about his choices.
Lisa was already half with a mind in Gate 3.
***
Meanwhile, the spatial torrents of space and gravity glid through the Chaos Space, allowing Manager Kil to travel through it as he saw fit. His purpose was coming under his desires, powers, and clarity.
He held enough power not to be fearful of the Chaos Space as long as he wouldn't be too arrogant or moronic to think of it as the common backyard of any God. It was never that, so not touching or traveling without any path would help anyone, but he had no portal in mind. He rushed in and created his own line.
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
Beings like him could crack the space apart and open the land into the Chaos Space and its mysterious properties that carried countless time, ancient, and cosmic insanities. Flying too deep was never a smart choice, similar to the travels through the dark cosmos, but that was an entirely different matter.
He was still no God, so he had some things he shouldn't touch or consider.
Why, one might ask this Overlord? He had far too important of a task in hand to deal with, as behind him, pieces of Anatidae Golem's shattered body flew towards him, while even the golem itself was there, flying behind him.
Soon, he crashed his travel with a swing of a finger, creating a hole into the end of his line that touched his Path and desired line of his travel.
It went into a completely different space altogether, into the Depths that held Hell Haven that Levandis created many millennia ago. It wasn't that far away place from Gate 2, as her Hell Haven was a separate space that was stretchable, connecting various places to her temple. After all, the maze and construction of this entire temple were ancient, with each layer being fairly separate from one another, yet still connected.
It was a work of art from the ancient Sun God.
Manager Kil had few clues or stories of what it used to be like before his Lady got it to her hands. It created a maze of interest, giving her Hell Haven a treasured place of the past Sun God, who was known to possess power beyond supreme. That was a long time ago. In time before the current Pantheon of Gods even came to this planet altogether.
It was here, alongside hundreds of different kinds of constructs not one bit worse than this temple, including the mesmerizing aspects of dungeons, or other things. There wasn't a lone lifeless planet when they came here, but it surely had no Gods for some reason.
Manager Kill emerged from the Chaos Space with the Anatidae Golem close. Clutching its neck as if it was a foolish tool he couldn't wait to toss behind, he hardly gave it any attention when he stepped forward. Pieces of its armor, wing, and layers flew on their own behind him, as if possessed.
Before him was a humongous hall. 100 meters tall, dozens of meters wide, and longer than it was tall. Many layers of red curtains around the edges flared under the brief surge of the Chaos Space. Around them, archaic architecture made of many supporting pillars acted as part of each flank of this hallway, or they were like this because of the overly detailed ceiling that was far above the ground, adding contrast or style.
There were curves to every wall and pillar between the curtains, and details of many textures created a maze of pictures, mosaics, calligraphy, or simple pictures or paintings. One would wonder if there were even some signs of battles, but it was all seamless and detailed, it was hard to notice something wrong.
The shiny and solid floor was a single piece of marble, littered with golden and crimson veins, stretching into the room at the end of this hall. The majority of pillars were relatively simple, as they were beyond sturdy to make them workable for art. Made of Dark Obsidian, they were almost impenetrable for anyone below the Extreme.
Veins below his feet put light on his path, as this place couldn't have any torches or flames.
Dark Obisian gobbled the light up, turning this place dark and filling it with death aura and suffocating pressure. They were as heavy as massive, but the lustrous golded accent to the veiny pattern made his path passable and clear, thanks to the rune scripts running around every vein.
Manager Kil wasn't praising this scenery or the architecture. He had seen it far too many times to care for it, as it was no hideout or place that was meant to be hidden. It wasn't even that important, as it was one of many halls.
Though it looked like something important, he thought of it as that when he saw it for the first time, or even now. It was hers, passing as a hall that was part of a palace. The Lady of Thousand Graves resided her interest here like a hegemon and Ruler of her piece of land and Authority. She spat at the facts and powers of the Sky, viewing their lofty Divine Kingdom and rules as nothing but hindrances that weren't honest and free.
Many argued against such views, but many did not. There was nothing wrong with either side of this clash of interests.
Everyone was right in their own light or darkness.
Those were the rules of demonic lands, where Chaos snarled at every Order, creating a mash of crashing dreams, dramas, and powers that opposed the Surface and choked the Sky. None of this was one bit surprising if one truly saw the truth of the universe.
Expecting a colorful parade of rainbows wasn't fit for this sort of philosophy. Seeing dark, blood color, and dark shadows enveloping every corner was almost too fitting. They hid soldiers, powerful Extremes hiding in the darkness, and a curious family, Manager Kil feared. Everything here was set exactly how Levandis wished. How it had always been.
Stretching in the middle portion of the hall, there was even a thin but long pool of blood filled with bones and corpses of all kinds of creatures. Carved and made of them too, the pool's structure protruded in hideous, yet stylish architectural styles. There were two sides to deciding his walk because Manager Kil did end up at the start of this hall.
Left or right. Each path looked the same, but each was different.
One was to walk to her.
Another was to walk away from her.
It was a simple course of Order, but some unwelcomed guess would end in the pool anyway, sizzling away without their souls remaining. Or they could end at either side of this pool, living but tossed like ragged dolls. Levandis didn't care for details.
The atmosphere here was hard to describe, as it was dull at some parts, or sinister beyond common means. There were highs and lows of unrestrained Dread and Death, exactly how many would describe Levandis and her mastery over her Path.
There was nothing minimalistic about this, similar to the palaces and lofty places where most Gods resided regardless of their affinity or style. Each of them was old and wealthy, and they showed it because time and reputation mattered.
When one had to walk the power structure of the godhood, face counted for half of the power. Reputation, power, and politics for the rest. Luck was somewhere between them, but one could hardly count on that.
Manager Kil walked to the left side of the pool. There was no need for guards to be around. He was relatively slow as usual.
At the end of this hall, he walked toward the big gate, which had ridiculously large red curtains that were also around the sides of the hall. Dim light shined through the curtains of this gate, revealing a room that seemed to be a dining hall. There were no meetings here for the most part.
It was for times when meals mattered.
Or, in his case, his status can be called for anything at any time.
Levandis expected him regardless if it was time for a meal, sex, killings, punishment, runesmithing, or anything else. Sometimes it was all the above, but rarely it was fitting or sensible. It could be a meeting hall too if she desired.
He walked in without any sound or fear, dragging Anatidae Golem behind him to follow its destiny that was not in his hands. As for the rest of its body, he ignored it apart from the wing because it was important.
And this golem will come into her hands, as there she was, sitting on her dining throne, waiting for something, or nothing.
Dim, but shrouded in the flickering shadows thanks to magma lamps, there was no one here in sight beside her, but that was wrong.
There was always someone behind every God. Especially when they ate. No guards though. Those weren't needed. Simple servants were required for meal prep or to give her drinks.
The place was surprisingly small for his sort of frame and the previous grandiose hall. Still, for Manager Kil, hardly anything changed. Nothing or nobody would obscure his walks unless they would notice him first and crawl.
He arrived at the dining table in a similar style as the hall from before. However, the interior and aura of this smaller place were cozier, warmer, and filled with the smell of food. There was no Dread left here, making this almost inviting with its wide and lengthy table filled with many plates of warm food and fruits. It seemed like a set from a tavern in the middle of the lunch.
At the further point from the long table—which started fairly close to the gate—was the only seat that wasn't empty. Calling it a throne would be the correct term, and it was large like the table, yet it would still disallow anyone to notice Manager Kil's arrival.
He was like a lost kitten in this large room, but he didn't seem to care. He saluted with the free hand, taking the left side of the table, and walked beside the empty seats.
There was never a wrong time to eat. That was a saying some monks or drunkards invented, or was it about the drinks?
Empty seats had no plates. All of them surrounded the further seat that overlooked the whole table and the gate.
All seats allowed anyone to see any arrival, but this arrival was far too small and easy to overlook.
The front seat was the biggest and widest, and the back support was made of many pillars and shadow fissures. There was some fur, pillows, and some ornamented skulls around it.
Levandis always preferred facing all troubles, arrivals, and guests at this table. Arriving a couple of meters in front of this seat, Manager Kil made a quick 90-degree bow and spoke loudly without kneeling. As an Overlord, he didn't have to do it, but in public, he would lick her feet, crawl on his arms, and force his tiny knees deep into the ground.
“Your humble servant greets you, my Lady. I bear gifts and accomplishments of your desires.” He said with a surprising amount of power and strength. He even ignored the fact that she knew all about his arrivals and details anyway.
But she preferred the voice and face to speak up first, before running into any conclusions.
Levandis perked up her ears as she sat on her large throne, barely noticing her zealous Overlord's sudden arrival.
A moan echoed from her crisp lips that were half biting into a chicken. “What is it here? Have I heard a fly?” a pleasant voice said, echoing like a song of elves.
“I presume you did,” Manager Kil agreed, remaining in his 90-degree bow.
A sigh echoed in the room, followed by a gulp and more gulps of wine. Dressed sporadically but with no indecency and shame, Levandis bent her head behind the table to see what mattered. Stretching forward, she wondered what sort of fly wanted to let her chicken fly away. It was cooked, so it was a wonderful idea why she would even consider it, but it wasn't the wrong assumption.
The cooked and juicy half-eaten chicken winced as she tossed it to the plate. Then, it wanted to run in its single stomp of feet. Headless and with little crisp skin left, it ran from the plate. She stabbed it with a fork without looking, penetrating it and stopping its escape plans. Then, she glanced at Manager Kil.
“Ohhh... Kil. What is it then? Tasks and bearing the results? I see you have my long-time prototype in your hands, but it misses more than a couple of feats. Is the task successful? Have you had your fill in my temple? How long it lasted? Is it dead? Finished or what occurred?”
An absolutely bewitching beautiful face spoke upon leaning from the chair, revealing her face to Manager Kil, but he didn't dare to look at her.
Levandis looked surprisingly young. Like a perfect depiction of her imagination, her face carried the wisdom and age of many generations. Almost all Gods reached mastery over their physique, perfecting all the aspects they could ever dream about, and making all matters of energy in their bodies as one. Infinite changes occurred with achieving the actual godhood, but the further one followed its ranks, the crazier they became.
Like most would be, she was a gigantic figure compared to Manager Kil, but she wasn't more than 3 meters tall. Her throne was far more capable of seating a couple of her figures, as her body was relatively slim, curved in voluptuous flesh that was hiding under a layer of thin coat of silk. Her eyes were black like the finest charcoal, and her long luscious crimson hair went behind her back and shoulders, bathing half of her front. Every stream of her hair was shiny and crisp red, flowing in its thick vitality and soft textures.
Few would notice a crimson loose silk robe underneath her hair, albeit she wouldn't mind being not dressed at all. Her hair was part of her Bloodline after all, strong and shiny like the finest steel while being thin and soft at the same time.
Why should she take any shame to her mind? She was the Ruler of one of the major demonic factions that almost had no qualms about most decisions in the Sky.
Lady Levandis trembled Manager Kil's knees, showering him in cold sweat with her voice alone. Her face was thin, with a sharp nose and chin. But her eyes were sharper, followed by her eyebrows.
Manager Kil shuddered after taking his godly being speaking to him with unnerving affection in his ears and mind. Eyed by many, be it demons, devils, and even many humans or all kinds of species and races, she was having a feast after waking up from her sleep.