"Justice" Audrey said to "The Hermit": "I will advance the 300 pounds each of 'The World' and 'The Magician' for joining the deal, for a total of 1600 pounds to you."
The Hermit Odis had no objection to this, only saying, "This kind of transaction should continue to happen frequently in the future."
"I suggest making some more regulations, such that those who invest more than one-third of the capital can ask questions freely during the transaction, and I will answer them with any knowledge or information related to the transaction."
Those who contribute one-third to one-sixth of the investment can ask two questions, while those who contribute less than one-sixth can only ask one question.
"If you want to ask more questions, you will have to pay an extra £300 per question."
Audrey approved of the proposal, and although the other members were reluctant, it was indeed fair. Otherwise, it would be unreasonable for those who contributed more and those who contributed less to hear the same information and enjoy the same rights.
Seeing that everyone agreed, Odis said, "Let's begin, starting with the 'Wind Angel'."
There are two versions of the origin of this "King of Angels". The first version is that during the Second Age, He was originally an angel who did not belong to any organization.
"Upon learning that the 'Ancient Sun God' intended to reclaim the authority of the 'Elf King,' He seized the opportunity, pledged allegiance to the 'Ancient Sun God,' and thus benefited, becoming the 'King of Angels' during the Third Age."
Emlyn, the "Moon," frowned as soon as he heard this. Two ancient deities, the "Elf King" and the "Ancient Sun God," had already appeared at the beginning, while the other members did not show any surprise.
This made him wonder: Did they trade such high-level intelligence at every gathering? Also, who exactly is the "Wind Angel," and why does Mr. "The Hanged Man" look so excited?
Apart from Alger the Hanged Man being somewhat excited, the other members didn't find the description surprising, since the Angel of Fate and the Red Angel, who were traded last week, had similar histories.
"The second version says that the 'Wind Angels' were once subordinates of the 'Elf King'," Odis continued. "After the 'Ancient Sun God' seized power from the 'Elf King,' the 'Wind Angels' turned to serve the 'Ancient Sun God.'"
"Or, when the 'Ancient Sun God' seized power from the 'Elf King', the 'Wind Angel' betrayed the 'Elf King' and pledged allegiance to the 'Ancient Sun God' in advance. As a result, He benefited and became the 'Wind Angel'."
When Alger heard the middle of the second version, he sat up straight, and as soon as the "hermit" finished speaking, he immediately said, "There's such a version? Isn't this slandering the gods?"
Klein, the "Fool" behind the gray fog, didn't think so. He believed that it was difficult for ordinary angels to get the chance to become the "King of Angels," especially when there was a true god in their path. To go further, they always had to pay a price; they couldn't get the benefits of this level for nothing.
"Justice" Audrey and "Magician" Fors both knew that "Wind Angel" was "Lord of the Storm." When they heard the second version from "The Hermit," they found it somewhat unbelievable and didn't have time to think too much about it.
Emlyn was stunned for a moment before he realized: "The Ancient Sun God" seized the power of the "Elf King," which is why this ancient god fell? Also, who exactly is the "Wind Angel"?
As a vampire, simply attending regular gatherings within the vampire clan allows one to learn a great deal about its extraordinary history.
He had only heard of the "Ancient Sun God" and the "Elf King," but he did not know that the fall of the "Elf King" was related to the "Ancient Sun God."
Odis glanced at Alger the Hanged Man and said, "Personally, I think the second version is closer to the truth."
Alger was stunned, unsure of what to say for a moment.
"The following are all my speculations, not accurate information I have received," Odis said. "I just think that if a path contains a true god, most of the extraordinary power of that path should be concentrated around that true god."
"Just like now, with seven true gods, there would be no secret organization whose main members are these seven paths."
"Firstly, there is the reason of the 'law of aggregation of extraordinary characteristics'. Secondly, in the eyes of the Church of the True God, an extraordinary organization that is based on its own path is a bunch of extraordinary characteristics. Of course, they will not let such resources fall into the hands of others."
"So in my opinion, either the 'Wind Angel' was too weak in the early Second Age, so weak that it did not attract the attention of the elves, or it was a subordinate of the 'Elf King'."
Taking advantage of the brief pause in the "Hermit's" speech, "The Magician" Fors couldn't help but ask, "So, the 'Wind Angel' was once an elf?"
This was a question that puzzled everyone. After the "magician" asked the question, everyone immediately looked at the "hermit".
Odis smiled and said, "I can't give you a definite answer, but I've heard that when some evil gods smear the 'Lord of Storms,' they say that He was once a sea monster."
Alger lowered his head slightly, feeling as if all his strength had been drained away, because he had also heard such rumors, but had never taken them seriously.
The one with the strongest reaction was "Moon" Emlyn: "What? 'Wind Angel' is 'Lord of the Storm'?"
This question abruptly interrupted the other members' train of thought, and they realized that the new member was unaware of this information, which explained his surprise.
Because everyone was just as surprised as he was when they first heard this information.
Odis replied, "Yes."
After receiving the accurate answer, Emlyn was even more surprised: "A lie... this can't be real! It's just information worth a little over two thousand pounds, and it involves gods?"
Just as Emlyn was falling into self-doubt, Odis continued the previous topic: "Another point is to put ourselves in others' shoes and speculate. I wonder if anyone has thought that the deity through which the 'Wind Angel' travels is a brutal ancient god."
"It is said that when the ancient gods were at their most brutal, they would even kill and devour their own children, let alone an angel like the 'Wind Angel,' which is clearly not an angel from the core of the Elven race."
"If he wants to change the status quo, he must be promoted, but the 'Elf King' is standing in his way."
"At that time, most people did not have the concept of adjacent paths; it seemed that there was only one path to take in front of them."
"Therefore, from a rational perspective, there is an irreconcilable conflict between the 'Wind Angel' and the 'Elf King'."
Finally, Odis added, "I reiterate, this is just my guess. I haven't found any accurate information that the 'Wind Angel' once served the 'Elf King'."
"I have not received any information that He ever betrayed the 'Elf King,' but what is certain is that He was very active and played a certain role when the 'Ancient Sun God' attacked the 'Elf King.'"
"That's why after the 'Elf King' fell, the 'Wind Angel' obtained some of the 'Elf King''s characteristics and had the opportunity to become the 'Angel King'."
Klein, behind the gray fog, thought: Such an opportunity likely stems from betrayal. If he were merely an ordinary angel, it would be difficult to gain the chance to become the "King of Angels" through direct combat in the war between gods. He must do something to make the "Ancient Sun God" feel it's worthwhile to invest in him.
Alger fell completely silent. He had always felt that his faith in the "Lord of the Storms" was purely a means to gain higher power.
But after hearing the "hermit's" words today, he realized that this deity held great weight in his heart.
Alger wanted to refute this several times, but he held back because he knew that the Hermit's guess made a lot of sense.
Although the "Hermit" repeatedly said that it was not accurate intelligence, deep down Alger had already come to believe such speculation.
Audrey breathed a sigh of relief. She hadn't expected the true god to have this side to him, but the "Hermit's" guess seemed quite reasonable.
Suddenly, the values she had cultivated since childhood regarding orthodox deities began to waver.
Fors still felt somewhat blasphemous. Although she did not believe in the "Lord of Storms," talking about this deity made her feel as if she had said something she shouldn't have, or heard a secret that would bring trouble. She felt a little guilty.
The most composed one was "Little Sun," after all, he only had "the all-knowing and all-powerful Lord" and "Mr. Fool" in his eyes, and no concept of orthodox gods, so he didn't take "The Hermit's" words too seriously.
Meanwhile, the new member Emlyn was completely out of touch with the "Hermit's" narration: "That's the 'Lord of Storms'! Weren't the current seven gods already present since creation? Did they also become gods step by step?"
Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!
He was still in shock that a transaction worth around two thousand pounds at the Tarot Club actually involved a deity.
Odis smiled and said, "This is your second question."
Emlyn opened his mouth, then realized he only had one chance to ask a question, and he had already wasted it.
"However, as a new member, I can answer your question," Odis said. "According to some information I have obtained, three of the current seven gods became gods during the Second Age, three became gods after the Great Cataclysm, and one became a god in the late Fourth Age."
Klein immediately began to make related connections: those who became gods in the late Fourth Age were the "God of Steam and Machinery," and those who became gods after the Great Cataclysm were obviously the "Lord of Storms," the "Eternal Sun," and the "God of Knowledge and Wisdom." So the remaining "Goddess of Night," "God of War," and "Mother Earth" all became gods in the Second Age?
Alger also realized what was happening, took a deep breath, and felt much better.
The hermit's answer made him suddenly realize that gods are not born... no, they are not gods from the moment they are born. They also used all sorts of means to become the gods they are now.
This made Alger feel that listening to the history of the gods wasn't such a blasphemous thing after all.
Fors nervously scratched his knee: Becoming a god! Even gods have a process of becoming gods… Heh, before joining the Tarot Club, my goal was always to become a Sequence 8. After learning that I needed to become stronger to break the "Blood Moon Curse," my goal became demigod… Godhood was a level I didn't even dare to dream of…
Emlyn paused for a few seconds before reacting: "Th...thank you."
He was somewhat shocked by the "Hermit's" intelligence reserves; he could rattle off information about the Seven Gods so easily.
This made Emlyn no longer hold the same prejudice against the "Hermits" as before.
Odis continued, "You can probably guess what happened next. There's not much to say about the 'King of Angels' during the Third Age, since there was only one orthodox god at that time."
"After the 'Great Cataclysm,' the 'Wind Angels' gained corresponding characteristics and became gods, which is the 'Lord of Storms' that we know."
Alger had calmed down by now, and he asked, "Master Hermit, where did He obtain the characteristics of godhood?"
"This issue is not in this transaction." Odiston paused and then said, "In the process of constantly gathering intelligence on the Third Epoch, I have gradually collected complete information about the 'Great Cataclysm'."
"Your question falls under the category of 'Cataclysm' transactions. You can ask another question later."
Alger nodded. "Okay."
Clearly, the "Great Cataclysm" is the event that continues to affect the modern era, while the deal concerning the "Angel King" is like information about the seven true gods that occurred in the future, after the Fifth Age had become history.
Odis continued, "In the late Fourth Age, after the 'Pale Age,' the concept of 'orthodox gods' emerged. The 'Lord of Storms' became one of the orthodox gods and, at the end of the Fourth Age, moved the divine kingdom to the 'Astral Plane' along with other gods."
Klein keenly realized that this was a crucial event, so he manipulated "The World" to ask: "Why did the Seven Gods move their divine kingdom to the Astral Plane?"
When asked this question by "the world," Audrey and Alger realized that something crucial must have happened to make the gods take such action.
Meanwhile, Fors and Emlyn were preoccupied with their own thoughts and didn't quite realize how crucial this was.
Odis glanced at "the world" before saying, "This question can be answered."
"There are many evil gods in the starry sky. In order to prevent those evil gods from invading the real world, the seven gods moved their divine kingdom to the starry sky, thus beginning the Fifth Era."
Audrey paused for a moment, then asked, "Is it because the divine kingdom of the gods left the real world that the Fifth Age began?"
Odis nodded: "This is one of the most important signs. Another important sign is the end of the War of the Four Emperors."
At this point, "the World" asked again: "Why the end of the Fourth Age? Didn't those before that age need to fight off evil gods?"
Odis said, "Is this your second question?"
Klein hesitated for a moment. The answer to this question was obviously more than 300 pounds, but he felt a sense of "extravagance" and "wastefulness" at spending a whole 300 pounds to satisfy his curiosity.