Lich for Hire

Chapter 280: Stripping Away Divine Domains

Curious, Ambrose tried to probe Akilov for more information about the tifling kingdom.

Unfortunately, the bartender lived up to his profession. To people like him, information was a bargaining chip. No matter how Ambrose circled around the topic, he only let slip a single crucial detail.

Something seemed to have happened to the sage who had been holding the kingdom together.

Whether old age, illness, or even an assassination attempt had struck him, no one knew. He hadn't made an appearance in years. In his absence, the kingdom had begun to slide into decline.

As for how exactly that decline manifested, Ambrose couldn't pry that information out of the bartender.

He'd spent nearly ten gold for that single scrap of intelligence.

He shook his head, impressed. This tifling might well be the tavern's top earner.

With the gossip exhausted, Ambrose refocused on his sales pitch. Thanks to the earlier commotion with the two unfortunate adventurers, his "voyeur device" had already gained some notoriety.

Before long, people began approaching him to ask about the drone.

This was exactly what he wanted. After all, stirring things up was part of the advertisement.

As he demonstrated the drone's capabilities, the adventurers clicked their tongues in amazement.

Most assumed that a recent alchemical breakthrough had allowed Ambrose to shrink a magitech reactor down to the size of a fingernail.

As for the faint dark magic the device emitted, Ambrose made a point of warning them that it had to be stored in a specially designed box when not in use. The drone cost ten gold. Anyone who was willing to say, "Praise the God of Alchemy," on purchase would receive a twenty percent discount.

The storage box, however, cost an extra gold coin. It was insurance. Ambrose had no intention to be held responsible for any contamination from dark magic otherwise.

It wasn't cheap, at least not for ordinary adventurers, but it was undeniably useful and simple to operate.

The "controller" Ambrose designed actually emitted special sound waves when pressed. The soul embedded within the drone would detect these signals and execute commands accordingly. It even had a surprisingly intelligent auto-navigation system.

No matter how complex the terrain, it could reliably find its way.

Naturally, many adventurers were tempted.

Not every party had a suitable scout. Not every ranger was willing to risk their animal companion to trigger traps.

Ten gold could buy a nimble drone. It was far cheaper than what a life was worth.

Quite a few adventurers gritted their teeth and bought one on the spot, then immediately went off to recruit teammates. Others were more than happy to join such "wealthy" parties—at least they wouldn't have to risk their own lives scouting anymore.

This was the true value of alchemical equipment. Like potions, it significantly increased an adventuring squad's survival rate.

Ambrose sold seven drones and even received custom orders from several adventuring parties who wanted more advanced models.

There were smart people everywhere. Many had already realized that the drone's potential extended beyond scouting: equip it with weapons, and it could become something far more dangerous.

Ambrose had anticipated requests for armed drones. Though he had already prepared such designs, he pretended to hesitate, saying he'd need to "look into it" and successfully whetting their appetites. "If you're interested, find the ‘God of Alchemy'-branded storefronts."

Given his current production limits, drones wouldn't bring in a huge profit. What Ambrose needed at the moment was reputation, so he had priced the drones cheaply. As long as adventurers used his products, word would spread.

And with that, the great revival of alchemy would begin.

He had already sold plenty of sunscreen and vitality potions. If all those customers had uttered even a single "Praise the God of Alchemy," his master should have felt it by now.

What was that old man up to, anyway? Had he managed to extract the Spider Queen's divine domains yet?

Ambrose silently muttered, "Master, please don't screw me over... or I won't be able to stay in the Elegiac Society."

That thought traversed endless space and arrived in a strange realm.

It came to a world filled with humming boilers and roaring machinery, like something out of a dream of pure industry.

At its center stood a towering spire of metal: the divine kingdom of the God of Alchemy.

Here, the god could obtain any material he desired and craft any known alchemical creation with a mere thought.

The tens of thousands of magical automata in Alkhemia, he could mass-produce in minutes.

Such was the power of a god.

Or rather... such was the power he once had. Having fallen from a mid-tier deity to a lesser one, the God of Alchemy had been severely weakened. His divine realm had shrunk, and his strength had diminished greatly.

The body Ambrose had given him, that of the Spider Queen Loss, was no blessing, either. It was a burden.

Even Shara could trace Ambrose through her mark. How could the Spider Queen fail to sense her four lost domains?

The moment the body entered his divine realm, the God of Alchemy's first action was to flee.

He used every method at his disposal to conceal its presence, moving his divine realm deep into the chaos of the void and erecting hundreds of layered, labyrinthine defenses to fend off the Spider Queen's pursuit.

She found him in the end, but he had bought enough time for his divine power to begin to recover.

"Praise the God of Alchemy." It was but a simple phrase, yet any words tied to gods carried power.

Even for those who parroted the words casually for a discount, such praise would subtly elevate alchemy in the minds of the people.

The God of Alchemy was not a faith-based deity, but a conceptual one. He did not require worship—only recognition. As long as alchemy regained prominence, his power would naturally return.

Ambrose was restoring alchemy's reputation. Gustavo Flynn was rebuilding the Alchemists' Council, reviving Alkhemia's research and production.

Working in tandem, their efforts bore fruit. So when the Spider Queen finally found the God of Alchemy, she walked straight into a trap.

He had prepared a toxin potent enough to harm even a god. One simple snare, and the furious Spider Queen fell right into it.

The poison corroded her divine body, leaving behind an ugly scar.

It wasn't fatal, but was certainly deeply humiliating.

And that was enough. The Spider Queen was not alone. She led a pantheon, and the gods beneath her were hardly benevolent.

With her power diminished, she had sought to reclaim her lost domains before anyone noticed.

Now wounded, she dared not leave her divine realm.

If her ambitious subordinates discovered her in her weakened state, they would tear her apart.

Temporarily safe, the God of Alchemy finally turned to his true task: extracting the Spider Queen's four domains.

These domains bore mastery over the drow, spiders, corruption, and darkness.

Among these, the domain of the drow was the most crucial. Without it, she could no longer draw power from her primary worshipers.

"This is the one Shara covets most," the God of Alchemy murmured. "She lacks followers. With this, she could impersonate the Spider Queen and claim the entirety of the drow. A clever plan... but my student beat her to it."

The Dark Goddess had always suffered from a paucity of followers. She often resorted to stealing them, especially from her sister Selene. Kidnapping, brainwashing—nothing was off the table.

It was no wonder she hated Ambrose.

The Spider Queen's body was cast into a massive furnace. Divine flesh charred and was stripped away layer by layer. This was pure divine power, fuel the God of Alchemy could consume to restore himself.

As the body disintegrated, the four domains emerged within the furnace: incomprehensible constructs of shifting patterns, impossible to define in shape or size.

A mortal needed only a glance to gain insight into their power.

A drow who gazed upon the drow domain would instantly gain all drow-related racial abilities and become a drow matriarch.

Such was the nature of divinity. When fused with mortals, it could elevate them to godhood.

Still, compatibility mattered.

After separating the domains, the God of Alchemy placed each into a specially crafted container.

Though Ambrose had promised him one as payment, he intended to keep none for himself.

"Consider it a small gift for my student."

He smiled, storing the four boxes away, already wondering what Ambrose would do with them.

Surely he wouldn't do something as reckless as becoming a god outright? In his current state, the God of Alchemy wouldn't be able to protect him.