The Mock Battles were swiftly brought to a close with Enoch swooping in and stealing the final pendant from Judas' neck.
The event brought a great amount of chatter to the nobles in the game and would surely spread beyond Stratagem Forest, and into the rest of the Rose Kingdom.
The Prince had demonstrated a great display of ability, however, it brought many questions.
What class had the Prince awakened that had allowed him to transform into a shadow that could phase through physical bodies, yet still snatch physical items?
Not to mention the fact that the Prince had also wielded black flames in order to burn Nero Servus' arm to a crisp.
Word was surely to spread, and questions were sure to be asked.
But in the meantime, Enoch accepted the praise given to him and his team, who held off the attacks from the other teams whilst he did what needed to be done.
He was given praise by all of them, especially Jane, as she returned the Angelbird back to him.
He sensed adoration in her eyes. The man had set out on a mission and completed it with ease. A feat that anyone could admire.
Enoch thanked the god of nightmares who rested digested in his stomach.
---
After the conclusion of the Mock Battles, the nobles returned to their homes.
The battle had been witnessed by powerful military figures, such as the likes of General Vohan, and they had decided that roughly 80% of the nobles were war-ready if the time came. The others would have to give up on their dreams of fighting for their kingdom for the time being.
Of course, one of such men who had succeeded was Enoch. And to everyone's surprise, a man who had been deemed unworthy was Nero Servus, for putting up such a weak fight against Enoch, as well as attacking him after being disqualified from the battle.
Despite using a lot of mana during the battle, Enoch didn't find himself tired, due to his passive effect "Dreamborne Will", which allowed him to recover without rest.
Nero was sure to need a lot of rest.
Enoch sat on his bed that night as he wondered what state the man's arm had been left in.
He assumed it had been amputated.
I've made an enemy of the theocracy. This could cause me— No... The entire monarchy trouble.
For centuries, the True Theocracy and Rose Monarchy had coexisted within the continent of Gavania. It was the theocracy's job to handle matters of faith & education, ruled through popes, whilst the monarchy's job was to handle politics, war and succession.
However, in recent years, Pope Nero had grown disappointed in the wars that King Jacob had chosen to take and avoid. He had ever since pushed for complete Theocratic control over the kingdom, which would grant them the power to choose which wars and alliances were formed.
King Jacob fought heavily against this, creating a strong rivalry between him and the pope. Now Enoch had continued that rivalry down their bloodlines.
I'll need to devour another god as soon as possible. I need to become stronger... But to do that, I need to figure out a way to summon them.
The God of Nightmares was an easy god to summon, as it actively haunted those who read the book it had been sealed inside of.
However, most other gods known to man were much harder to find. The most common method of finding them was either to become a devout worshipper and gain their attention, or do the opposite, becoming an enemy and earning their wrath.
Enoch felt like doing neither at the moment. There was another option that stood out to him, though it too was dangerous.
He ran his fingers through his snow-white hair and looked at himself in the mirror.
I look pure, but the memories of an evil god are still locked inside my mind.
If I access them, could I gain information on other gods?
His logic was simple. In the same way that humans were acquainted with humans, it would make perfect sense for a god to be acquainted with other gods.
After making his decision, Enoch locked the door to his room and sat back down.
The memories of Hvadis were trapped in his mind, always ready to be accessed whenever he was ready. He had only put it off because of the dark premonition he received whenever approaching them.
But he had waited long enough.
[Accessing Hvadis, God of Nightmares' Memories]
...
"Agh!"
The pain came instantly. Enoch felt the most excruciating headache claw into his head, sending him reeling to the ground.
All sorts of information flooded into him, such as the deeds the god had committed during its time haunting the world. Most of the information was spoken in an ancient language, which Enoch first struggled to understand.
But after a while, the ancient language started to make sense to him, as part of the memories of Hvadis assimilated with his mind.
The pain in his head still surged, but slowly Enoch began to filter through the memories. He tried his best to dispel evil memories, and instead focus on information regarding the connections that Hvadis had formed with others.
Most of the evil god's connections were formed between himself and the physical beings that he had tormented. However, as he dove deeper, Enoch found something.
There was a recent memory belonging to Hvadis. One where he had arranged to meet something or someone at a certain location.
He focused his mind on the name of the location. It resembled nothing that he had ever heard.
The Iudaha.
Enoch stopped focusing on the god's memories, allowing them to return to their hidden state, though some still lingered.
The Iudaha. Could this be a location in the spiritual realm, or even the dream world? Was Hvadis planning to meet another god?
Enoch rubbed at his temples, trying his best to soothe the lingering headache. Afterwards, he looked up at himself in the mirror once again.
Something was wrong.
His appearance had... changed?
Brushing aside his white hair, Enoch felt something hard pressing out of his skull. Two small, sharp points roughly two inches in length, seemingly made from bone.
Enoch cursed to himself.
"Horns!"
Enoch swiftly focused on his status, paying close attention to his morality path.
---
[Morality: The Hellbound Path]
You walk an evil path.
————————90%-
---
A gasp almost escaped his lips.
Accessing the god of nightmares' memories had sent his morality spiralling.
Spiralling to a point where he could no longer hide it.
Enoch pushed his fingers into the points of the two horns protruding from his skull, attempting to foolishly flatten them, but all they did was draw blood from his fingertips.
"No, no no!" He roared angrily, clutching at his hair.
And then, he heard the sound of his bedroom door opening, making his heart freeze.
---
If you're enjoying the novel, please remember to leave a review and some Power Stones! It really helps keep me motivated