I unfuck myself over the course of the night. I swallow my sadness, knowing the only way to move forward right now is to work over my emotions...or use them to fuel me. At the moment I don't know which one will be better to do, but at the current moment just ignoring my sadness and swallowing my emotions is the best. Right now it is all business and getting things ready.

My first course of action is to bring the plans for the dreadnaught to Markus and the other airship engineers. I of course give them the orders to do what they can, the plans do not have to be followed to the letter, but just to get the general idea. If their wicked smiles are anything to go by, I think it will be done better than I even asked for.

I leave the engineers and metalworkers with only vague direction, no rules, and absolutely no moral shackles. From my past life's experience of dealing with engineers, if you ask them to imagine something horrifying yet beautiful, you will find they can imagine a lot. Also, there is the thing I understand best, the dumb monkey brain part of a man, the rule of cool, loud, and dangerous. For some reason, we want bigger and better than before, and a faster, tougher, and far better-armed airship is not difficult to build excitement over, even if it is work.

After dealing with the shipyards I mosey on over to the smith shop where I know the old man who runs the place. He's of the Stella Coyote, his trade was making farming and gardening tools, and he still keeps it up to this day. He isn't some hidden swordmaster or anything, the situation is I need a forge to work in and the old fart will let me use his for cheap or free. I mean I grew up on the same street as he lived back in Yotesden.

He's an old crotchety fuck, even back in the day he was too, but he allows me to use his forge for free, not only that, he has all the tools I need to work. With permission gained, I go and gather the needed materials to repair my armor. Hopefully, it won't be needed anytime soon, but it's always better to keep it ready.

The damage done is largely just to the metal parts, which is easy to repair. Simply either hammer bent plates back into shape or just recreate the broken part. The joint reinforcements are all busted so I have to remake them, and some of the runes have been broken, both of these are easy enough to fix with my empowered tool. The only issue is the Silus leather. I have very few scraps left to repair the broken leather. Mostly this is done by utilizing the scraps as threads to patch cuts and punctures in the material.

It takes me a few days to get the armor repaired back to a usable level. With that done I pay the old man anyway and head back to my apartment. I put on my armor and do some exercises to get a feel for it. Overall it feels about the same, some of the interior leather is a little lumpy now, but nothing hinders my movement. When I get done with that I start writing.

The letter I write is a declaration. It is my bid to become the High King of the Frontiersmen. It declares my intentions, justifications, and qualifications for the position, and it is an open invitation to challenge me. As much of a warrior culture, as we Frontiersmen are, debate is welcome, and wanted more instead of trials by combat. Combat is really only the solution when discussions completely fail and no consensus can be reached. This letter also is an open invitation for a combat trial as well.

This letter and declaration are based on some old stories the last Voivode of the Stella Coyote had explained to me while I was still under him. From what I remember the rule is, when I make my bid to be the high king or whatever I invite challenge. Both against my capabilities as a leader and a person, my entire life thus far will be scrutinized to the best of every challenger's ability, and for some against my prowess in combat. This does not have to be to the death, it simply has to be a fight, without any coverings aside from the private locations if one wishes, and a single weapon of each combatant's choice. After that, there are a few rules, general rules of conduct like no nut shots and stuff. The main one is that either the challenger or defender must accept the other's surrender, the one who surrenders will face death if they falsely do so. This is overall the same process as the Stella Coyote challenge to become the next Voivode. Something I am familiar with.

I want there to be as many challengers as possible. I am fairly confident in my ability to handle people on even footing. No magic or divine powers, just flesh and steel. I want lots of challengers now because it guarantees more loyalty from the Frontiersmen, and as part of my bid I must have all surviving Voivodes pledge feilty to me. For many, this will be easy once I explain my plan. It will be awful dealing with others, but in the end, I will have a far more unified populace. My rule will be absolute, not just a suggestion due to respect.

I finish my letter and call Mekare inside. I hand it to her and order,

"Can you please fly this out to Henna? She has the largest workforce of scribes and a large network of merchants. I want her to spread this as far as she can. In fact, I want this message to be spread everywhere in the world where a Frontiersman could be. I want my location and bid known.

Thank you."

Mekare seems taken aback by my polite use of language with her but with a nod she dutifully leaves my apartment. I lean back in my chair and stretch against the backrest, popping my back. I let out a long exhale as I stare at the ceiling. My thoughts race as I think about the immediate challenges I will face, and prepare answers for any scrutinies made against me. A few hours pass like this as I get up and start to pace in front of my desk. I have quiet conversations with ghosts, answering questions asked by nobody... yet.

Mekare returns after a while. Some kebabs in her hands. She hands one to me and I thank her. I don't have to ask, I know she got the job done. I remember the whole thing over the night before. I plan to dance along for a while unless the Demon King turns out to be a cool dude and allows me to do as I wish, then I will take his head and crown. An unfortunate circumstance, but anyone really the king of demons isn't someone who is good or willing to allow me to fuck off and do my own thing.

I mull over some more short-term actions I can take, those messages will take a good while to circulate in any meaningful manner. I then remember I have two fucking dragons in my head somewhere that I haven't heard from in a while. I don't know how to exactly go to that headspace, but last time I wanted to talk I just thought about it really hard and then went to bed.

I spend the rest of the afternoon doing general paperwork, but as night falls and my eyes grow heavy thanks to my issues last night, and general fatigue and lack of sleep that comes from recent events, I head to bed. I think about that lounge in my headspace where Silus and the Green Dragon reside. It takes only a moment for sleep to leap onto me like a waiting predator...

I find myself once more in that fine hearth room, but there is no warm glow of a fire. The room is dark but still cozy enough. The only notable change aside from the lack of a fire is that Sakura's helmet sits on the hearth. I assume this room is a manifestation or something of the inner sanctum of my mind. I saw her as a major victory, and I am not in a good headspace right now, this can explain the dark room. What is concerning though is the lack of either dragon in their chairs. I scan the entire room and find a door, one that may have been there before, but I can't say.

Stolen story; please report.

I open the heavy wooden door, turning the stiff brass of the handle. It feels strangely cold as if the other side is in the middle of a terrible blizzard. I take a breath and swing it open. I am not hit by wind or any air for that matter. Just cold emitting from the seemingly endless void ahead of me. A pit of terrible black. I testingly touch it with my foot and find a floor of the same impossible black that seemingly eats all light. I can't see anything but somehow in my mind, I can sense dark things moving within the darkness, and they are looking right at me. An overwhelming sense of malice overwhelms me, not toward me, just the pure embodiment of malice, primal in my mind... no not malice... wickedness, evil, unnaturalness...

Wrongness...

Then a familiar voice speaks,

"Oh, would you look at that. You came to visit us! Wonderful to see you... Earl Yotesden."

Silus roars with laughter and somewhere in the dark a cruel-sounding female echos in the laughter as well. At least that means they both are still here. I respond,

"What's so funny about that?"

He stops laughing immediately and responds,

"Oh, it was sorta an inside joke between us. Good job for you though, anyway what can we... the "dragons" do for you?"

His tone when he emphasizes dragons really doesn't inspire confidence. Regardless I continue,

"Oh, I came here for a little chat. Since you appear to have information about how this world works I do not. I wish to pick your brains."

He remains silent for a moment before responding,

"Alright, but I can't say we can answer anything. There have recently been some... rules implemented onto us."

I raise an eyebrow and ask,

"Who could give you rules now?"

He quickly answers,

"I cannot tell you. That's one of the rules. What I can say is that whoever they are, they have only your best interest in mind."

I ask,

"Is it a god?"

His response is quick and harsh,

"No. They are not a god. They are much like we are... but do not ask further as I cannot answer further."

I can't say this is too much of a revelation, there absolutely had to be someone watching over me, I just never had a chance to talk to them. I sorta remember that situation during my teleportation, but that could've been anything. I change my direction of questioning,

"Well, I'm gonna be here a while so tell me, why are you in this dark place?"

The female voice shouts angrily,

"BECAUSE OF YOU SHITASS!"

There is a quick murmur conversation out in the dark before Silus actually answers,

"Not you persay, instead the one watching you. As a... part of the rules placed onto us, our current forms are... not as we wish them to be. Your fault in this is entirely in your slaying of our corporeal forms. I wouldn't worry about it, we simply do not care for our actual forms, so we shroud ourselves in darkness."

I nod along, not satisfied, in fact, more curious about what they look like than ever. Instead, I decide to start looking for information applicable to my real-world situation,

"So, I'm sure you know I have declared war against the church of Serena. You know the story, so I won't explain it further. My question is how would I go about killing this goddess? I mean I defeated that Bullhard prick, but that was a close one and I'm not sure I can do it again. I don't think I can recreate my spear attack or anything like that. You guys are old enough to maybe know."

I hear Silus chuckle and he answers,

"Oh... that question... you are talking to the right beings for that! Unfortunately, I can't explain why this is but I can give you a lesson on how to beat the gods.

First, that spear trick was only needed for Bullhard. His bestowed power to his "hero" was that armor that had the rule of not being able to be pierced by anything in the world. Only other "divine" weapons and powers would've been able to punch through it. You won that fight because you perfectly timed your attack on top of breaking reality for a second. So be happy to know that power should be out of the game now... I think... if the rules are what they are...

Second, to kill the god, just kill their hero. Because of the current situation, and the process of bringing people from other worlds, the hero is their biggest weakness. They become tied to their hero and that hero works as their only real way to directly affect the world below them. Well, any more that is. I can't explain more than that, but that is the gist. All you have to do is kill a man or woman, and you win. The only problem is, because of the tie they are able to entirely possess their hero in the event of too much danger, but that has consequences so that is the final nuclear option. You saw how powerful that was. It is possible to kill a hero before their god can intervene, these gods have a wide knowledge of all things but are not omniscient in their knowledge of things. A dagger in the night, when properly planned is just as good as any combat, no matter how pitched.

Third, there is a god for each nation. Unlike your old world, which I cannot explain how I know about in this manner, religion is not able to be spilled across borders. A god chooses one people and protects their kingdom or whatever they call themselves. None of them wish to work with one another as is their pride, in fact, their goal is the conquest of one another, not the goal of the defeat of the Demon King, who himself is a hero for another deity. He is simply the most powerful hero as of now.

Last is the nature of heroic power, if a hero bests another in combat, it is as if the gods had battled and defeated one another. This results in the loser giving up their "divinity" to the other. Simply put, the victorious hero gains the power of the other. Since you killed Bullhards hero I believe his power is gone... probably... so utilizing Serena's hero as a weapon against others will result in... issues later, but you already plan to end him."

I nod noting all the stressed words. It's clear some of these terms are either lies or some sort of joke to the dragon. I almost laughed at the divinity one, as it sort of proves my growing theory that these gods are not divine in one manner or another, and lack of omniscience not only proves this but is a relief. With this information gained I then ask,

"Do you think the loss of a god will result in a power vacuum? Like in the Lusthardia Kingdom?"

Silus bellows with laughter and responds,

"Abso-fucking-lutely! Right now I am sure that kingdom is falling to civil war not only from your causes but from the neighboring kingdoms looking for easy prey!"

I rub my chin as a thought comes to mind,

"Let's just say... if I beat Serena... during that lack of a deity...the neighboring kingdoms do not have heroes or churches to challenge me?"

Silus goes quiet and asks carefully,

"And how will this happen? Are you going to deploy assassins?"

I shake my head and explain,

"What if I convince Blake to set up an actual party of heroes? Since the gods can't really directly influence anything without consequence like you said the heroes could be convinced to join with Blake. Considering how the two heroes I've met have been, I think they are the kinds of people who could get along if things go right. I could even stage more Demon King shenanigans in places to justify a sort of defensive alliance. Then I get all the heroes into a single place, and depending on things leading up I probably have a good shot at getting em all in one fell swoop. Probably with a bomb or poison or something..."

Silus and the green dragon roar with laughter, the sound is terrible and inhuman but when Silus calms down he answers,

"If that works I'll be beyond impressed. That is truly devious because the gods lied to their heroes! They told them the only enemy is the Demon King, completely ignoring their own plans as to seem innocent and virtuous!

Now that is a great scheme. I will be watching with interest.

Anything else?"

I shake my head and respond,

"Nah... I don't have anything for now."

I feel the malevolent presence just in front of me as what feels like cold breath blows over my body. Silus from the near darkness tells me lowly,

"Please seek more of my brethren... we have been given... a chance thanks to us helping you... we may not offer any more boons like before... but you can gain the dragons' curse. That I promise. I am an exile of my kind so I do not know the location of them all, but trust me on this, it is important for your future successes... and is their...and my only hope... that is all I may say...

I go to ask for more anyway but I feel my consciousness fade as I am pulled from my dreamscape...

Then I am back in my bed as sunlight streams through my window and as my eyes adjust I barely comprehend the visage of Zeyra and she does not look happy with me...