Amadikols comes into view well-before we arrive at it due to us coming from higher up the mountain the Holy City is. Much like Caniton, Amadikols was constructed by leveling off sections of the mountain rather than on a flat area. That has created layers to this city as well, though the settlement is much larger than Caniton was.
There are also two rivers here, one flowing past the eastern edge of the city and another that flows through the city, in a series of waterfalls thanks to the terrain. The latter river flows out of the city's southern end and continues down a little bit further into a lake.
Walls a hundred and fifty feet in height surround the city, towers fifty feet taller than the walls spaced out evenly along it. It's truly an impressive sight and I don't doubt for a moment that even magical sieges would struggle against it.
"You'd be right about that," Caleb answers. "Those towers aren't just there to add distance the guards can watch from, they have potent magical wards woven into them. You can probably sense the magic if you try hard enough, but there's actually a barrier over the city as well. The towers help guide the magics for that."
"Managing to destroy one tower won't break the barrier, too," Leif adds. "By the size of this city, I'd estimate that you'd need to destroy three or four of them. Just breaking one would take a massive effort."
Leif is floating alongside us as though fairies apparently don't typically have wings, they do have an innate flight magic that consumes very little Mana. Without wings, they can't do much more than hover outside of the Fairy Realm, but he says that he can soar around just fine when he's home.
"It must take a massive expense just to maintain it," I say.
"It's a Holy City," Caleb says. "Even if the gods mysteriously went silent thirteen centuries ago, that still means something. Those in charge wish to keep it ready for the day the gods return."
"If they even believe it will happen," Adam says. "They're really just keeping up appearances because it being a Holy City makes it a place for pilgrimages for those who still believe and a tourist destination for those who don't. It also helps retain researchers, which results in more money being brought in. They just want money."
Adam's probably only saying that because of his own desire to have more money and grow his hoard, but I'm leaning towards his version of events more than I am Caleb's. After thirteen centuries, the odds of a leadership still believing in the gods is slim.
"Caleb," I say. "What other things are there I should know about the city?"
The reason I'm asking him this despite him never having really been out this way before is because Wesley's message to him contained information about the city.
"It's a mix of peoples," he answers. "Humans, beastkin, elves, and dwarfs. Demihumans used to be accepted because of the ancient preachings, but it's been centuries since then. Though they still claim to be the same Holy City of old, they've subtly changed a few of the teachings over time. We can probably expect some hostility over Adam's presence.
"That said," he adds. "Summoned are also viewed highly in certain circles within them. If it gets out that you're a Summoned, you'll be viewed rather highly and probably get a decent bit of attention. Those who still believe in the gods view the Summoned as the gods' chosen, their new version of Heroes in this silent era. A test to see how worthy we are of their power."
Even those who don't believe in the gods view the Summoned in a high light because of our extraordinary abilities. They don't know why we come to this world, just that we are the top of the food chain and have some protections that shield us from being forced into servitude.
"A test that's failed constantly," Leif says. "Light says it's a bunch of crap and that it may be some sort of automated system the gods put into place when they abandoned us. Kind of makes sense considering what happened."
Something we've learned since meeting Leif is that the Fairy King's name is Light. Apparently, he's also extremely old, though Leif hasn't given us an exact age and I suspect he's not entirely sure of it, himself.
"What do you mean?" I ask as Adam and Caleb both stare at Leif in confusion.
"Er…" Leif hesitates. "So Light said that mankind has basically forgotten about it. Honestly, I think the only reason he knows is because he was around for it. But the reason the gods abandoned us… was because there was an extremely rare occurrence: a demigod."
"Considering the gods of this world are all gay," I say. "I can see that being a rare occurrence. So the abandonment was because one of the gods did that?"
"No," Leif shakes his head. "According to Light, it was a child of the God of Mysteries, though how it happened is, well, a mystery seeing as he definitely wouldn't have actually done it with a woman."
I stop walking and hold up a hand.
"Hold up, Leif," I say. "There's a God of Mysteries?"
"Yeah," Leif answers. "The statues in the Dungeon Fountains take his form. He's also the godking of this world. The other gods are all his harem."
Talk to a fairy and learn quite a lot. So the mysterious god who's acted a few times and made those offerings at the Choosing Rooms isn't a mysterious god, he's a God of Mysteries. I suppose that's why his identity felt a mystery to me – because it is mystery itself.
"Anyway," Leif says. "The God of Mysteries somehow had a kid about thirteen centuries ago. There was a lot of turmoil going on and groups were claiming that the gods' Heroes were the reason there were so many monstrous threats and blah-blah-blah. A collection of nations gathered together… and kidnapped the demigod to sacrifice him both as an act of defiance against the gods and to summon a demon god, who they felt would do a better job of running this world."
"Damn," Caleb breathes out.
"No wonder the gods abandoned the world," Adam says. "That… was an ultimate act of heresy."
"Yeah," Light nods. "The only real trace of them since has been the arrival of the Summoned, but even that may be an automated system. I know you believe that one may have given you that map, Jamie, but it's unlikely. And the smote incident you mentioned… dunno. Could have just been a powerful mage who decided to handle things with surprising coincidence."
No wonder Leif has been skeptical about the jar and pouch and their origins. He probably believes they came from special chambers in a Dungeon. Now that I know the reason the gods went silent, I can understand doubting that the gods are around.
"The God of Mysteries seems to have been forgotten," I say as we continue walking. "Why's that?"
"He was the godking," Leif says. "But he was never a prominent figure among the mortals. Light says that he was forgotten pretty fast among those who didn't actually know him or his former chosen. Well, within a few generations. Though he's also the only one that Light was able to confirm having left Tielmar, too. But he believes they all up and abandoned us for a new world."
"How was the Fairy King able to confirm that?" I ask.
"Light used to be one of his Heroes," Leif answers. "A rather devoted one who ended up with a touch of divinity in him. He could semi-access a divine space devoted to the God of Mysteries and can still sense it. According to him, it's been empty for the last thirteen hundred years."
I know for a fact that the gods are still here, watching over things. Maybe not all of them, but some are. It might be possible that they come and go on their own. However, the God of Mysteries disappeared after the incident thirteen centuries ago…
And has returned now, around my own arrival.
"Oh. My. Fucking. Gods."
Everyone stops walking again to stare at me.
"What?" Adam asks. "That sounded like a revelation."
"A massive one," I say. "But not something I can share with you guys. Not yet. Come on, let's get to Amadikols. I want to rent a place for the night so that I can get a nice, hot shower. May not be close to night yet, but doesn't mean we can't turn in early to recover from the trip."
They try to press me for more information but I say not a word about what I realized. I'm not sure about the other Summoned, but I think I was directly brought here by the God of Mysteries. He must have spotted me during his travel of the universe and felt I was perfect to bring to his own world.
It would explain why no one I've talked to has heard of my world before, why Earth seems like it was an entirely new world for Summoneds to be pulled from. That's because Earth is an entirely new world to have peopled pulled from. Either the god or gods or system that's doing the summonings must not have known about Earth – it was probably too far away.
That's also why the God of Mysteries is acting so much around me. I'm essentially a Hero without being a Hero. When I prayed to the god of the Dungeon Fountain to deliver them their karma, he acted to smite them down in response because he chose me. The jumping fish were a sign to the beastkin in the villages and the giant whisperwater gill was sent there by him. The voice I heard was probably his as well.
I now understand why he could just steal something from another god – he's on top of that one. Honestly, I'm pretty sure the God of Desire just sighed and rubbed his temples or something in response. The [Pouch of Infinite Tricks] and the origins of the marbles makes it clear that the God of Mysteries is probably ADHD and I wouldn't be surprised if the others are used to his antics.
In fact, he may have even completely forgotten about the event thirteen centuries ago. If [Unlimited Potential] is something in the core of my soul, then he probably saw it and got curious about what would happen on Tielmar if someone with it were here once more.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
Not that I'm complaining, as I'm very much enjoying life here on Tielmar. Even if I've yet to figure out what I really want to do…
We enter a line of adventurers and hunters returning from the north of the city as they wait their turn at the gate. Caleb wasn't kidding when he said there was a variety of people here. With a city of almost fifteen thousand residents and a Holy Dungeon within it, there are a lot of adventurers around. Just this line that we're waiting in has four groups, each of seven or more members. Of them, I can spot humans, elves, dwarfs, catkin, foxkin, lionkin, wolfkin, and a bearkin.
They do all seem a bit uncomfortable by Adam's presence.
"Guys," I say. "Why is this city's Dungeon a Holy Dungeon? I mean, what's the difference between a normal Dungeon and a Holy Dungeon? I get that the city's a Holy City because it used to be a gathering place for Heroes, but is there something more to it? Or is the Dungeon just called a Holy Dungeon just because?"
"Actual reason," Adam states. "And it's the Holy Dungeon that drew others here and turned this place into a Holy City. Unlike most Dungeons, a Holy Dungeon allows a person to skip straight to the Boss Chamber of any Zone they've completed, provided all Party Members have beaten that Zone Boss before. There won't be a Zone Boss there if you do that and you can go straight to the next Zone."
"Also," Caleb adds. "There's a decent chance that Zone Bosses will drop [Dungeon Warp Stone]s. Not using the looting technique, as I really doubt that's widespread considering I didn't know it. I mean that they just appear on the ground after the room is beaten."
"Partially correct," Leif says. "A chest appears. We have a Holy Dungeon in our capital and I've seen it happen a few times. The chest is decent in size and has some good loot in it and there's a chance for there to be [Dungeon Warp Stone]s inside of it, an amount equal to one per Party member. So a full Party will have fifteen of them inside."
"What do they do?" I ask. "Let you warp to the Dungeon Gate from elsewhere?"
"Sort of," Leif answers. "They let you warp out of the Dungeon from anywhere. Even in a Boss Chamber, in the middle of a fight. However, they only work within the Dungeon they dropped in. There's a chance of the chest appearing in normal Dungeons, but it's extremely rare and only has the stones if it does."
"While the chest is a guarantee in a Holy Dungeon, with other loot in it and a chance for the stones," I say, and he nods. "Nifty. I take it that means most Parties go in with one for each member?"
"Not sure about here," he says. "But in the Fairy Realm, it's standard. Everyone who goes in keeps up to three on them and gives any they find beyond that to the Dungeon Guild. The Guild then distributes the stones to new delvers who don't have them."
People probably have to buy them here. I can see why the Dungeon is considered holy now. Such an item is extremely useful and was probably originally thought of as a blessing from the gods.
We finish waiting for our turn at the gate to the city, where the guards eye Adam suspiciously. There are more guards here than there were when we first joined the line.Something tells me that they're going to turn either Adam away or all of us away. There's no reason to bring more guards in otherwise.
"What's your business for coming here?" A guard stare at Adam, this one a black pantherkin.
"We're here to-" I begin.
"I'm asking that," the guard points at Adam.
"I'm a Summoned making a pilgrimage," I ignore him. "And this Holy Dungeon was on my list of destinations to go to. I was told that I may have a chance of conversing with the gods if I managed to do well enough in the Dungeon and I was hoping to ask about the reason for my arrival here and if there's a way to return to my family."
Whether or not they believe me about being a Summoned doesn't matter too much. If they believe me, then it should add some protection to me due to the rumors of what happens when someone messes with a Summoned. The tale of what I'm here for should also make me seem less threatening. If they don't believe me, well, then it will make them suspicious of my real motives and probably a bit cautious of me at first.
Long enough that they'll probably find that I'm harmless as long as they leave me alone. I really don't want to play into someone's politics or scheming.
"This here is Leif, and as you can see, he's a fairy. Members of a demon-worshiping cult in the Old Valdaliis Ruins broke into the Fairy Realm, drugged him, kidnapped him, and tried to use him to summon a demon. We slaughtered them and rescued him and he's joining us as he waits for the Fairy King to show up and bring him back as the Fairy Gates are currently closed as a result of the breach."
Word that an extremely powerful being will come looking for Leif as a protective figure should put some level of protection on the fairy. Someone might be willing to risk the rumors of the Fairy King's might being false, but I doubt many will. From what Caleb and Adam have told me since we met Leif, there are plenty of rumors of what happens to those caught messing with fairies so he'll have some safety, anyway.
"This here is Caleb," I indicate Caleb. "He's a mercenary from the Titan's Grasp. When he found out we were coming to Amadikols, he asked to tag along for added protection on the journey. It seems that some of their members have disappeared around here recently and they asked him to investigate it instead of simply sending out a larger group."
Caleb shows the guards his membership badge for the mercenary group. Knowledge that he's here instead of a larger force to investigate something will probably add some protection to him as well. If he disappears, then his superiors might send out an even more powerful force – and more numerous. It could also cause some conflict between this kingdom and the beastkin kingdom if it's known that an investigative force vanished here.
In other words, it may not be just a mercenary group sending out investigators if something happens to him.
"And this is Adam," I say. "The only reason he came with us was because he liked bottoming for me. Between you and me, I think he just doesn't want his ex-fuck-buddy to get more from me than he does. He seems to be the petty sort."
"Wh-hey!" Adam exclaims as Caleb chuckles and Leif laughs.
"It's… only here for sex?" The guard raises an eyebrow
"He tends to be a bit off in the head."
"Jamie!" Adam protests.
"After a number of incidents in the past," the guard says. "Demihumans of any variety aren't allowed in the city."
"I'm sure that demihumans aren't the only ones who've caused problems," I put my hands behind my back. "And Adam's fairly well-behaved. He is a person who has discipline, after all."
"No exceptions allowed," the guard states.
"Not even for one night?" I ask. "We've been traveling for weeks and could use a good meal, a hot bath, and a warm bed."
"No. Exceptions."
"To be clear," I say. "Is only Adam being turned away? Or are all of us."
"Only demihmans."
"Alright," I look at Caleb. "Looks like this is where we part ways. Good luck with your investigation."
"Wait," Caleb says. "You're just giving up?"
"It's not like this is the only Holy City in Tielmar," I say. "And to deny entry to one member of my group is to deny entry to the whole group. Adam's whole reason for being here is to sleep with me and I'm not going to say he has to abandon that just because of some haters. We'll go wait for the Fairy King at the Fairy Gate with Leif. After he goes home, Adam and I will set off in search of a Holy City that will allow my full team in."
"So I'm not part of your group?"
"You're part of the traveling group," I say. "But we were parting ways here since you have your own business to attend to. They won't budge on Adam entering so I can't enter either. Besides, it's not like the gods are going to retaliate for refusing my entry by stripping the city of its protections or anything. We can leave without worry."
A shine akin to light running along glass flashes over the city's walls, then there's a sound like glass shattering. At the same time, the appearance of cracked glass forms all over the walls in sight, then that barrier burst. I think that's the barrier, anyway.
The fragments of the barrier clink together as they fall and dissolve in the air.
"Then again… the gods have been pretty clear on some things," I say. "Did you know that a minimum of eight people were smote in Ratton after we got kicked out? At least, there were eight lightning strikes."
"That…" Leif stares with wide eyes. "I could feel the divine power! You… you weren't kidding about the gods!"
"Of course not," I say. "The gods are very serious business. I'd never lie about them. I'm also sure they'd be willing to restore this city's barrier if they grant me entry."
The guards are currently staring at the walls, but my words prompt action from them. They talk for a minute before two of them run off into the city. I can see a clamor occurring within, residents freaking out over their city's great barrier suddenly breaking in a very clear way – and without any threats that they could see.
It takes half an hour before the guards who ran off return, this time with about twenty other people. Some of them are guards, some of them are probably city officials. The human man at the lead approaches us with a suspicious look.
"How did you break the barrier?" He asks.
"I'm sure you can sense how much Mana we have," I say. "And our capacities. You really think the four of us combined have enough power to break the barrier of a Holy City?"
"The gods abandoned us centuries ago," he states. "They no longer grant signs. The breaking was not by divine act, it was by mortal hands. Where is the part of your group that broke your barrier in an effort to force entry?"
"Did they leave out the part where I said I was leaving?" I ask. "I straight-up said that and was about to leave. If I wanted to force entry into this city, I would've done something much more extreme. Honestly, I wasn't even expecting the gods to do that. It was just me messing around."
"Demihumans are forbidden from entering the city," the man states. "There are no exceptions. As you have damaged our barrier, we will also be-"
I'm sure the very large message that appeared in my vision appeared in his and the reason he cut off was because he started reading it.
We the Gods view all enlightened species as people of equal value. Due to repeated failings by our Holy Cities to uphold this virtue, we have hereby bound the holy magics of all across the globe. Only those whose pray honest prayers at a Fountain of Eternities may find them unlocked once more until such a time as we believe sufficient people have repented. Once sufficient people have repented and ceased this act, we shall unbind said holy magics for all to use once more.
We have also broken the protective spells on all Holy Cities across the globe. The protections of any individual Holy City will remain inactive until such a time as said Holy City has repented for their acts of heresy.
Should acts of heresy which violate our Laws continue instead of lessen, then we will take further action.
Sincerely,
The Gods of Tielmar
Divine Law #2: When dealing with people, treat individuals by the individual and groups by the group. Judge not an individual for the actions of an unrelated group or a group for the actions of an unrelated individual.
"Y-you may enter," the city official nervously tells Adam.
"Thanks," Adam says, and we start walking through the gate. "Jamie?"
"Yes?"
"What makes you special?"
"What do you mean?" I ask.
"I mean," Adam says. "I get that you're a Summoned and all, but that's the second time the gods have reacted to you saying something. First, they smote a bunch of people in Ratton when you wished karma upon those kicking me out over breaking a law they told me didn't exist. Now they broke the barrier for Amadikols in response to you saying that it's not like they would do that just for kicking me out."
"Honestly?" I ask. "I think they're just tired of this treatment of demihumans when they view demihumans as people. If what Leif said about the pantheon is true, then I'm willing to bet they were unable to perform divine messages and stuff while the godking was gone. Now that he's back, they're able to do so again."
More specifically, I think he banned direct interactions with people due to the ancient heresy. Then he left, so they were never able to get permission to interact again. Now that he's back, however, they were able to get permission for it. The fact that a violation of their Laws occurred at a Holy City while he was here was probably what pushed them to asking for the ban to be revoked.
"Hey, Leif," I say. "The global notice mentioned that that was the second Divine Law. I take it you know the first?"
"Light ensures all fairies know the Divine Laws by heart," Leif answers. "He wants to ensure that we know what they are so that we do not break them. The first one is, in summary, that all enlightened species are people of equal value – like the message started with."
"Neat," I say. "Let's find a place to get lunch, then an inn to rent for the night. I want a hot bath to soak in and a warm bed to crash in."