Chapter 199: You Actually Want to Eat Me?
"The Night King's first appearance brought an entire generation of darkness and winter," the Drowned God said solemnly. "In the end, R'hllor had to exhaust every means at his disposal to destroy him. That alone should tell you how difficult the God of Cold is to deal with."
The moment he finished speaking, however, an awkward thought crossed his mind.
This latest Night King had just been killed by Drogon—and not with all that much difficulty.
The warning he'd just delivered suddenly felt far less convincing.
Drogon, who had been somewhat dismissive of the mysterious God of Cold, immediately recalled the writhing black mass that had remained after the Night King's body was burned away.
That grotesque thing alone was enough to convince him that whatever lurked behind the Night King was far from ordinary.
In his mind, he silently added a new description to the God of Cold:
Creepy. Extremely creepy.
A moment later, another question occurred to him.
"The Night King wasn't originally some ancient god, was he?" Drogon asked. "Wasn't he the very first White Walker created by the Children of the Forest to fight the First Men?"
"If that's true, how did things spiral so far out of control?"
"Why couldn't the Children of the Forest, his creators, stop him?"
"And why did even R'hllor have to go to such lengths to destroy him?"
The Drowned God slowly shook his massive head.
"I don't know."
"To be honest, even the Spirit God—the one the mortals call the Old Gods—probably doesn't know."
The answer left Drogon thoughtful.
If even the gods themselves couldn't explain the Night King's transformation, then whatever had happened back then was likely far more complicated than the stories mortals told.
After a brief silence, Drogon asked another question.
"When a god dies, what happens to their Divine Spark?"
"Does it simply disappear?"
"Or can the one who kills that god keep it and use it to strengthen themselves?"
The Drowned God froze.
His eyes widened dramatically.
For a few seconds, he simply stared at Drogon.
Then realization dawned.
Slowly.
Horrifyingly.
"You..."
His voice trembled.
"You can't be serious."
The giant squid-god looked at Drogon as if he had just discovered a monster.
"You..."
"You aren't asking out of curiosity, are you?"
A terrible suspicion formed in his mind.
The way Drogon had been looking at him all this time.
The way his gaze lingered.
The way he kept asking questions about Divine Sparks.
Suddenly, everything made sense.
The Drowned God's pale eyes nearly bulged out of his head.
"You..."
"You want to kill me and absorb my Divine Spark?!"
His voice rose in disbelief.
Only now did he finally understand why Drogon had been staring at him like a hungry predator.
That wasn't curiosity.
That wasn't caution.
That was the look of someone examining a meal.
The realization sent a chill through even a god's heart.
The black dragon hadn't been interested in negotiations at all.
From the very beginning...
He had been eyeing the Drowned God's Divine Spark.
The Drowned God felt it was absolutely necessary to clear up this misunderstanding for the sake of his own survival.
He hurriedly explained:
"Divine Sparks are the purest form of energy bestowed upon us by this world itself. Every Divine Spark is born with great difficulty."
"When the original owner dies, the Divine Spark eventually breaks apart and returns to the world's source, waiting until it can condense again and choose a new bearer."
"I once heard of an ancient god who attempted to possess multiple Divine Sparks. He even killed at least two elder gods in pursuit of that goal."
"But despite trying every method imaginable, he couldn't retain a single Divine Spark."
"He couldn't store them."
"He couldn't seal them."
"And he certainly couldn't stop them from returning to the world's origin."
To preserve his life, the Drowned God even provided an example from ancient history, hoping to convince Drogon that Divine Sparks couldn't be recycled or hoarded.
Unfortunately, after saying all that, he noticed that the predatory look in Drogon's eyes hadn't faded much at all.
A horrifying thought surfaced in his mind.
Surely he isn't like that ancient god... the kind who refuses to give up until he personally tests it several times?
Looking up at the black dragon looming above him, the Drowned God felt increasingly uneasy.
Drogon, however, didn't doubt the truth of what he'd been told.
If Divine Sparks could simply be absorbed after a god's death, then this world wouldn't still be filled with minor gods.
They would have devoured one another long ago.
The reason the gods fought, manipulated kingdoms, and even united to destroy the Valyrian Freehold wasn't to seize Divine Sparks.
It was to gain followers.
And through followers, obtain faith.
As for why he could absorb the light released by a dissolving Divine Spark...
That likely had something to do with his Devour ability.
Truthfully, Drogon had never studied that talent very carefully.
For the longest time, he'd assumed it merely allowed him to eat endlessly and grow larger.
Even when it secretly absorbed part of the Undying Ones' Divine Spark, he hadn't realized just how absurdly powerful the ability truly was.
Looks like I should spend more time developing that skill in the future.
With that thought, he turned his gaze back toward the Drowned God.
In the short time they'd been talking, fresh flesh had already begun sprouting from the charred bases of the god's severed tentacles.
The regeneration was astonishing.
Drogon couldn't help but admire it.
After a moment, he asked one final question.
"Can divine telepathy be used to communicate with ordinary people?"
If it could, it would make life considerably easier.
The Drowned God immediately shook his head.
"No."
"Both parties must possess a divine domain field. Otherwise, the connection cannot be established."
Drogon sighed internally.
That was disappointing.
Being unable to speak remained one of the most inconvenient aspects of his existence.
As for the Drowned God himself, Drogon no longer intended to kill him.
After all, the fellow had just taught him a tremendous amount about gods and the divine world.
Killing him afterward felt a little excessive.
Though admittedly...
It was a shame to let such a Divine Spark slip away.
If he devoured the Drowned God, he could probably undergo another small evolution.
Still, while he wouldn't kill him, neither was he willing to simply let him leave.
Having a veteran god around could be useful.
There would undoubtedly be countless mysteries worth asking about in the future.
And there was another matter.
Several gods had united to attack both him and Daenerys's army.
If they could simply show up whenever they pleased and leave whenever they wished, then wasn't he, the Dragon God, being treated a little too lightly?
Drogon's eyes narrowed.
"I can spare your life."
"But I'm not letting you leave so easily."
He studied the battered sea god beneath his claws.
"Would you willingly remain at my side?"
The Drowned God fell silent.
After a long hesitation, he lowered his head respectfully.
"I would."
"I am willing to become your subordinate god and never betray you."
Drogon blinked.
"Subordinate god?"
That was another unfamiliar term.
The Drowned God explained bitterly:
"A subordinate god is essentially a divine servant."
"We obey the commands of a higher god."
"If we violate the oath, half of our soul is severed as punishment."
Seeing Drogon's ignorance regarding divine matters, he continued:
"If you permit it, I can swear the oath immediately and ask the Will of the World to witness it."
Drogon frowned.
"The Will of the World?"
"Can it actually enforce such an oath?"
The Drowned God nodded.
"Every world possesses an invisible Will."
"It maintains order."
"As long as the god swearing the oath does not exceed the world's permitted power limit, the oath remains binding forever."
Drogon's thoughts drifted elsewhere.
"Other worlds?"
Could that have something to do with his own inexplicable arrival in this one?
The Drowned God shook his head.
"I know very little about them."
"I only know that the Will of the World exists."
That was enough for now.
"Fine."
"You may swear."
The Drowned God immediately complied.
Under the witness of the Great Will, I, Adins Yag..., willingly pledge myself to Lord Drogon. I shall follow him faithfully and obey his commands. Should I break this oath, may I suffer the harshest punishment imaginable.
Only then did Drogon learn the Drowned God's true name.
Adins.
The instant the oath was completed, something stirred in the far northern sky.
Drogon turned his head.
A vast shadow appeared among the clouds.
It slowly gathered together, forming a pair of colossal eyes that gazed down upon the world.
At the same moment, Drogon felt a new connection appear within his Divine Spark.
A faint bond linked him to Adins.
He could now vaguely sense the sea god's location.
"Look!"
"What is that?!"
A sailor suddenly shouted from one of the ships.
More and more soldiers looked upward.
Even warriors in the middle of battle lowered their weapons and stared at the extraordinary phenomenon unfolding across the heavens.
Bran and Melisandre, who had remained below deck, emerged onto the deck and looked toward the enormous eyes gradually fading into the clouds.
Neither fully understood what they were witnessing.
Yet both instinctively sensed that it had something to do with Drogon and the Drowned God.
Only beings of their caliber could trigger such a heavenly manifestation.
Watching the giant eyes disappear and feeling the new bond within his Divine Spark, Drogon finally became certain that Adins had not deceived him.
He loosened his claws.
And for the first time since their battle began, he released the Drowned God completely.
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