Chapter 2

1099—

Cleonic, Eulacyda, Rivens—

In a kingdom in the world not Earth—Rivens, as it was called—There was an urgent and dire assembly.

Under the capital city of the Kingdom of Eulacyda—Cleonic—Countless priests, priestesses, deacons, and deaconesses gathered inside the large and spacious underground church.

Led by the most important man of the night—The High Priest, Eobard—They knelt on the floor to focus their faith and powers for the prophesied ritual. They crossed their arms and kept their eyes closed.

Their mind thought of one thing and one thing only.

Their supreme goddess and the central figure of their religion—

…Grantora, the goddess and patron deity.

She who blesses their daily lives.

She who grants their wishes.

She who cures the sick and forgives even the most sinful mortal.

For years they have been waiting for her divine order.

For years they have been waiting for her to choose a champion. One that will release them from the hold of the Demon Lord—The vilest of them all, the most corrupted of a demon can be, the darkest of a being can be—Caligo.

For one day the goddess will take a sacrifice to open a portal—A gateway that will connect their world to others.

That day is today.

The hero of the kingdom, Ava, took a look at the nearly countless number of religious figures in the capital’s underground church.

Unlike her companions who all put their faith to the supreme goddess completely and blindly she was not.

She never took religion seriously.

For her—They are all the same.

For her—Only mortals themselves could truly change their own lives.

But after years of unending war between the living and the dead—Caligo’s army of demons and those not touched by the divine—She began to feel some sort of draw towards the religion.

She has seen countless men and women die from the brutal and endless conflict. Every kingdom in Rivens has tried everything to push the Demon Lord’s conquest back or at least to a halt but no effort seems to even slow them.

Caligo and his army have taken nearly four fifths of all lands in Rivens. And it wouldn’t be long before he reached the northernmost and the last remaining human kingdom that still stands—Eulacyda.

One day he will come right on their doorstep.

One day he will put an end on them all—For them they need something to turn the tide of the conflict—fast, if possible.

For her—They would need something else—Something not a native of these lands. Something so unknown that even the Demon Lord himself would be perplexed to comprehend clearly.

A chosen champion of the goddess.

Eobard took his cane and tapped the bottom at the floor. His face was desperate yet hopeful at the crowd. He announced in a loud voice for everyone to hear.

“Good evening, everyone! My fellow Grantorarians… It has been an honor to be here in front of you all in this holy night to finally commence the most sacred ritual the goddess has introduced to our knowledge.”

The crowd scrunched their eyes harder and their palms crossed tighter. Their minds share the same thought—the goddess and no one else.

Each of them began to recite their prayers to the goddess in thoughts and whispers.

Eobard turned his back to face the sacred artifact—The dagger the goddess left behind for them—The Bane of All Evil.

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A magnificently made double-edged dagger about thirty five centimeters long and decorated with gold and a blue gemstone unlike anyone had ever seen on each side of its crossguard.

An artifact once used by the goddess herself in times of great peril in the old times. Once—She cuts through the undead army of the previous Demon Lord.

Every demon in the ranks was annihilated with only one swing.

Ever since that time thousands of years ago the dagger has been safeguarded by humans. Now sitting behind a safe and unbreachable vault under Eulacyda’s Royal Castle.

Walls of magic rings, enchantments of all kinds, curses and hexes of all severity, and runes so old that they themselves are lost to time prevent intruders from ever wielding it ever again.

But now is not the time.

The dagger needs to be out and ready to be wielded once more by the goddess. They patiently wait for the goddess to descend from heaven and appear before them.

And it happened…

…She manifested from sparks of lights. Slowly taking shape of the most gorgeous woman the mortals have ever seen in their entire lives.

She turned her body gracefully and left everyone in awe.

Even the most agnostic of them like hero Ava was not immune to her divine figure.

All Ava could do once the goddess took shape was gasp with her jaw dropped completely and her mouth agape.

The goddess Grantora walked towards the dagger.

The dagger gleamed with a golden hue once it sat on her hand. Shining bright like the sun itself. Everyone gathered covered their eyes from the blinding light.

With a dignified and divine tone she spoke.

“It is time…” She handed the dagger to the high priest and he bowed deeply, taking the dagger with his two open palms.

“Bring me the virgin,” She continued, reaching her hand out.

From the crowd out comes a young girl still in her teens. She wore an elaborate white dress and a crown made of dried roots wrapped like a bird nest and a single calendula sitting on the top.

She knelt before the goddess, her eyes nothing but reverence.

Eobard took the dagger and held it in his right hand. He began to say his prayers to the girl. Kneeling with her, he made a poking gesture from the center of her chest to her two shoulders in order and her lips.

“Be not afraid, mortal,” Grantora said, her tone calm and serene. “Do it for your people. Your sacrifice must come from your heart. Open your heart to the blade and you will not suffer.”

She looked up at the goddess.

“My god… What of my soul?” She asked.

“Eternal peace awaits you in my kingdom in heaven,” Grantora assured her. “Your name will be remembered by those of your realm and mine.”

She nodded her head and closed her eyes again.

Afraid but relaxed, she laid herself down on the slab of stone in the middle of the church. Every eyes are now looking at her. She put up a face of serene smile as she willingly drew her last breath.

Eobard raised the dagger above his head.

With a final nod from the girl, he pushed the blade down. The dagger went deep into her chest and stopped her heart from beating. Her blood began to flow down from the slab to the goddess’ feet.

“A blood sacrifice from a willing virgin…” Grantora announced loudly then reached her arms out. “...The key to open the hearts of many.”

Then a portal of blinding light opened before her. It looks like an endless space of white and humming sound.

Eobard bowed to the goddess, inquiring of her choice of champion.

“My god… May I, your simple creation. humbly ask you what kind of mortal will you summon to aid us?”

She pushed her hand into the portal before giving him a graceful and beautiful smile.

“Eobard, my mortal… The new Demon Lord is far more dangerous and more thirsty than everyone preceding him,” She said. “This one—Caligo, the 17th of them—would need a new kind of champion to defeat. Not one of pure bravery and mind full of justice. Not one of divine qualities. But one of pure unpredictability and will to commit even the most vile of acts and a heart already numb to pain and hardship. One with hands wet not from tears but of blood.”

Eobard blinked momentarily in confusion. Surely he wasn’t hearing the goddess correctly.

“Pardon me, my god, for my rude inquiry but I have a feeling that from the way you said it you are going to summon a mortal with qualities a jester and an evil equal to the demons themselves. Surely I am hearing these wrongly—”

“You are not,” Grantora cut him off, “This new Demon Lord is not anything you have ever fought. To battle a never seen before evil, one would need an evil of their own to fight him on equal ground. Fighting fire with fire, as you mortals said it.”

“But my god… Is not the chosen champion supposed to guide us and lend their wisdom that would aid us in battling the demons, not being just as worse as they are?”

“No, my dear mortal,” She shook her head. “I have seen a prophecy of my own. This would be the final conflict between mortals and the demons. There will be no more in the future.”

“My god, what do you speak of?”

“For the first time in my existence I cannot see the prophecy, my child. My next champion would be the key to a new age,” The goddess tapped his shoulder in assurance, “Be not afraid. Everything has a reason. And from this portal I opened, I shall summon an angel who knows no fear. An angel with wings made of the blood she spilled. An angel who cares for her loved ones and an unstoppable annihilator for her enemies. An angel with a mind so analytical, strategic yet cold and logical to the feelings around her. A heart made of love yet dark as the darkest of night itself. A creator and a destroyer in one.”

Ava tilted her head in intrigue. What does the goddess mean by a champion of those qualities—Qualities that befits not of heroes but a pragmatic savior.

What does she mean by wings of blood? Mind so analytical and strategic yet so cold and logical? A loving heart yet dark as the darkest night? A creator yet a destroyer? Is that even possible for one individual to have such duality?

Her explanation worried him in a way that he cannot understand. He was both curious and anxious about her supposed final champion. One champion that would bring about a new age for them and Rivens.

“Now let us begin… I hereby summon thee… “