Now that the specific realm of the Keeper had been found, everyone began to make their way towards Earth. As the gods of the guild had already been identified by the ninjas, this development did not escape their notice. However, the ninjas had not identified the majority of the thousands of mortals following them.
This was because mortals were infinitely more common than gods in the world. Unless the mortals did something suspicious, they would not easily be identified by their presence alone. And given that Lana had provided them all with the ‘common sense’ of this world, very few had managed to do something that would draw the eyes of the ninjas.
Everyone that was brought with the guild was brought because they had some form of useful skill. For the gods, this skill was obviously their combat power. For others, it might be their skills with infiltration, or their skills in construction. Anything that might be necessary when taking over another world and removing the Keeper in power. There were even some mortals who had grasped special skills capable of threatening gods.
The invaders gathered on Earth, the gods using their own divine power to pay for the travel fees their members would need, sending the currency over their guild system. Once on Earth, they designated a meeting area far away from civilized land. Oddly, as they passed through the city streets, they seemed to decide to conduct their business as far away from the eyes of others as possible. As if they were worried that their actions might impact the citizens of this planet.
Well, it wouldn’t be good if we killed our future subjects ahead of time. Kruz couldn’t help but consider this the reason for his wariness of the eyes of others. The power of the void had not been explored within their world, so they were oblivious to the subtle manipulations that had been laid out in everyday media, simply waiting for the invaders to find it.
It took a grand total of one week for everyone to gather at the designated point, a plateau situated at the center of a mountain ring. Temporary lodgings had been established, letting those who arrived earlier rest and wait for those falling behind. Kruz gave a small nod of his head as he did a head count, pleased that none of his subordinates were absent. “Good, it seems that nobody has noticed our presence in this world yet.”
Now that they were certain to be alone, Kruz no longer restricted communication to private messaging. “As you all know by now, the Keeper resides within this realm. However, this world has achieved space travel, and it would seem that he is not on this planet. Thus, we will need our own ship to reach him. Klaus?”
A silver-haired man in a long robe nodded his head as he stepped forward. He was the God of Construction that had been brought by the guild in case something like this was necessary. “All craftsmen, come forward.” He called out, over a hundred individuals walking to stand in front of him.
Klaus closed his eyes, mentally choosing the blueprint that he wanted to create. It needed to be large enough to house all of them, while at the same time having the speed and defensive capabilities to withstand any monsters that they may find in space. There was even the chance that the Keeper could ambush them, making it necessary to have an emergency warp function.
As soon as he had selected the blueprint, he held one hand forward. A silver wire-frame outline of the ship appeared, over two kilometers long with a rough, almost blocky shape. Once the outline appeared, the craftsmen rushed forward, each placing their hands on various points of the design to dedicate their ‘labor’.
Ripples of light spread out from the hands of each craftsman, the materials of the ship seeming to simply appear out of nothing as they stood there. Klaus nodded his head as he watched this, turning to face Kruz. “In six hours, the construction will be complete.”
Kruz smiled at that, pleased that they would have their ship shortly. “In that case, everyone else can rest and get prepared for departure. We don’t know how far away the Keeper’s planet is, so this may be the last proper rest we get in a while.” He knew that as soon as they were on the move, they would need to be constantly prepared for battle. In the off chance that they were detected approaching, the Keeper could choose to attack them without any warning.
At his words, everyone nodded, making their way to their various shelters to relax. Seeing this all, Mara meekly walked into one of the more distant buildings, still thinking about the people that they had seen in the week since their arrival.
This was the first invasion that the guild had participated in since Mara joined. More importantly, it was registered as the most difficult invasion that the guild had conducted since its founding. Is it really necessary for us to kill people to claim other worlds?
There was no shortage of land in the realm they came from, and most of their crafting techniques did not consume physical resources, as was being displayed in the current project. Rather, it was the system itself that provided the resources for large projects, so long as sufficient labor was present.
It was simply considered a mark of status if guilds managed to control multiple worlds, allowing them to act as the kings of their own domains. Her inventory opened, and she glanced at the five golden apples residing within it. Was it really worth it to spill so much blood for something like that?
She reached into her pocket, clutching the golden coin that resided there. She knew that if she flipped that coin, she could become strong. All of her doubts would vanish, and she would be able to fight better than almost anyone in the guild. Still, she didn’t flip the coin for the very reason that she had warned Julia. Whenever she flipped the coin, she wasn’t entirely sure she would be able to go back to being herself afterward. As such, she would only use it in a dire circumstance.
As she thought about that, golden mist suddenly rose around her feet, much the same as when she went to the divine realm. Before she had the chance to even question what was going on, the scenery around her had changed. Now, she was within a stone castle, standing on a red carpet and surrounded by unfamiliar faces.
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At the end of the red carpet was a series of stairs, leading up to a gilded throne that a lone figure sat atop. Mara’s eyes went wide, confirming with her compass that the Keeper was seated directly before her. N-No, how did they find me? She asked herself, eyes darting around.
“It’s okay…” A girl spoke up in a gentle tone, walking over towards her. Mara recognized her small build and pink hair from the information that Lana had given them. “We just want to talk. After we’re done, we’ll send you right back to your camp.”
“L-Lady Aurivy.” Mara gulped, not wanting to cause a scene. Her hand gripped the coin in her pocket, ready to use it at a moment’s notice. “What… what do you want to talk about?”
“First, I wanted to thank you.” Aurivy said with a small smile. “Julia is someone very important to me. I saw how nice you were when you met her, and I appreciate that.”
Mara’s eyes went wider at that, realizing that they had been watching her for almost the entire time that they had been in the world. “If… if you’ve seen us that long… why haven’t you tried to stop us? You know that we’re here to kill him, right…?” She pointed at the Keeper, and an intense hostility pressed down on her, originating from a pair of twins standing in the room.
“Huh, I don’t know why, but I suddenly really hate her.” One of the twins spoke up, the other looking at her.
“I know, right? I mean, we already knew that was their purpose. Maybe it’s the influence that the big girl upstairs left on us?” After saying that, the two started taking deep breaths, the hostility gradually vanishing.
Aurivy offered a somewhat awkward smile, nodding her head. “We know why you’re here. This isn’t the first time we’ve been invaded.”
“Then… why are you so calm? I could… I could attack right now, you know?” Mara pointed out, though she gave a glance at the other gods and goddesses present. If she were to use her full power, there was the chance that she could kill the Keeper, but she’d have to give up her own life in exchange.
Aurivy lifted a hand, lightly chopping at the top of Mara’s head. The petite goddess crouched down, her hands on her head as she wore an aggrieved expression. “We are talking to you because we’re sure you won’t do that.” Aurivy said in that same, gentle tone. “We want to find another way around this.”
“That… that’s not possible.” Mara said in a quiet tone. “Either you kill us or we kill you… that’s how invasions work.”
“There is another way.” The Keeper spoke up from the throne, causing Mara to look up at him.
“Another way…?”
He gave a small nod. “If invaders choose to peacefully integrate in the world, they are no longer regarded as enemies. They will gain the ability to live among the world that they were invading, though they won’t be able to return to their original world.”
Mara’s eyes went wide, before a look of sorrow filled her face. “The others… they’ll never agree to that. They’ll just use me having been here to teleport over and fight you directly.”
The Keeper nodded his head again. “This offer isn’t for the rest of them. Just you.”
Mara blinked in confusion, Aurivy smiling and explaining to her. “You had the chance to do harm to Julia, and you instead showed her kindness. None of the others we’ve seen have done anything similar. Like you said, they’d take this chance to attack right now, while you’re willing to talk with us.”
Mara bit her lips at that. “You’ll… you’ll still have to kill them though, won’t you?”
Aurivy simply nodded her head at that. “That’s right. The only way for us to win an invasion is when all invaders have either been slain or peacefully converted. We can’t stop the bloodshed completely, but we can at least make sure that you won’t be part of it.”
Mara closed her eyes tight. The worst part was that she was really considering this. She didn’t have any positive emotions regarding her guild, aside from the fact that they gave her a home. She couldn’t even really remember who she was before joining them. “I… I can’t.”
Aurivy blinked at that, looking somewhat resigned. “May I ask why?”
“It’s… the kill switch. After joining a guild, the guild master has the right to execute anyone in the guild through the system. And we can’t leave the guild without the guild master’s permission…”
Aurivy’s eyes went wide, a mix of alarm and joy on her face. “You mean, if you could leave the guild safely, you’d be willing to join us?”
Mara looked up at her at that, eyes watering. She had wanted out of the guild for so long. She knew that her life would be at risk the moment she tried, as she was ‘too useful’ for them to let go of her. Whatever had happened in her past, they had given her a home, but also strung a noose around her neck.
“I-I told you, it’s not possible.”
“Ashley?” The Keeper spoke up, a red-skinned woman walking forward.
“I’m just going to take a look at your system, okay? Try not to fight back, since it might sting a little. I’ve never done this with an invader before.” The woman said kindly, before mobilizing her divine power and having it rush into Mara.
Mara could tell that the woman’s divine power usage was less sophisticated than the gods of their world. Something she found rather odd, given that this woman should have been one of the greatest gods to exist in this realm. Thankfully, the divine energy rushing into Mara carried no hostility, causing her to feel a gentle warmth rather than the stinging that she had been warned about.
“Okay, I’ve isolated your original system.” She said after a few moments, wiping her brow. “If you want, I can remove that system from you. I’ll have to remove the divine power that’s temporarily giving you our system as well, though. Otherwise, they might be able to use it as a link to put the system back on you.”
Mara hesitated briefly at that. “Doesn’t that mean that I will be systemless…?”
“Only for a moment.” Aurivy ensured her. “We have a device in this world that can grant the system to people that don’t have it. You’ll need to manually train your levels up, but it should be easy enough with the skills you have from your own world.”
Mara bit her lips gently, before nodding her head and closing her eyes. Taking that as a sign, Ashley immediately severed the bonds between Mara and both systems, stripping her of all of her classes and levels. Once that was done, Aurivy took Mara’s hand, placing a spherical stone inside of it. “Use this, and you’ll truly become a part of our world, Mara.”
Mara opened her eyes, looking at the stone. It was easy for her to figure out its usage, and soon the system that had been stripped away rushed back into her. Well, one of them, at least. As Mara looked at the various screens appearing before her again, her eyes went wide in sudden panic.
“What’s wrong?” Aurivy asked, her voice alarmed as if worried that they had failed to properly free her.
“The… the apples are gone.” Mara’s inventory had been wiped when the system was removed from her. This meant that she had lost all of her equipment, supplies, and the apples that she had gotten from Julia.
Aurivy paused briefly, before letting out a light laugh. “Don’t worry, I’ll take you to meet her again after this is all over.”