Free Web NovelChapter 488: A Calling
Somewhere within the vast reaches of the void lay Sulla. Hailed as the greatest magician in history, he hovered weightlessly in space, gazing down upon a colossal chain. It was made of an unknown material, and was at that very moment shuddering and rattling arrhythmically.
From afar, its scale was difficult to grasp. Only by comparison would one realize how impossibly massive it truly was, so massive that the material world could never sustain such a structure. Construct a chain of this size and attempt to stand it upright, and every substance known to mortals would collapse under its own nightmarish weight.
And to set such a monstrosity in motion required forces beyond compare. Yet this chain, plunging straight into the deepest strata of the void, was now quivering under the struggle of something far below—something pulling on it, wrenching it, trying to ascend.
"Do not be impatient. Once you are fully bound by the third node, we'll haul you up. As for the abyssal creatures that followed in your wake, they've already been dealt with. Their intrusion has even given us a convenient justification to reshape the material realm."
Sulla spoke into the air, his voice calm, his gaze carrying an emotion far too tangled to be summarized as mere hatred or fondness for the being imprisoned beneath the void.
"Barsaka, have you contacted them? They'll be a critical part of this coming clash against the continent's resistance, and also the key to eliminating that Archbishop of the Church of Nightfall, the one called Wang Yu."
He turned toward the interwoven spires floating beside him, addressing the orc that had long served as the Utopia's strategic commander.
"His consciousness collapsed running counter-interference against the God of Light. Command has passed to my control, Sulla."
The voice that answered him was not the orc's, but a calm, solemn woman's.
"Barsaka has perished? ...Understood. Then the task falls to you, Domino. You're already aware of the truth, I assume?"
Sulla showed no surprise even at the news of his companion's death. His emotional response was almost nonexistent—perhaps because he had long foreseen it. When one piece of the Utopia fell, another naturally rose to take its place.
"I've received the information. I will see the mission through. And the battlefield is confirmed to be the Ashen Wastes?"
Following Domino's confirmation, the surrounding spires shifted formation, streaking through the void toward their designated positions for the coming war.
"Yes. In the Ashen Wastes. The continental Alliance will inevitably deduce the location of the third node, and they will undoubtedly attempt to prevent us from forging it. That is precisely what I want: a trap that is not a trap. The final confrontation."
Sulla spread his hands slightly. The white-haired youth knew well that the Alliance could pinpoint the site at which they were preparing to forge a third node, though he doubted they could figure out how.
"This entire battle is, in essence, prepared for that particular being. After all these years of laying foundations across the continent, every move, every decision of every faction is a fixed variable. The only remaining unknown is that unusual existence."
Sulla's voice was wary as he spoke.
"The power he displays is far weaker than that which is sealed in the depths of the void, but in a sense, the two are the same sort of creature. Intruders from beyond our world, beings that should never have existed here.
"I estimate that three nodes is the minimum power needed to ensure his death. Compared to that which lies beneath us, he has one overwhelming weakness: he is far too much like a human.
"Every account we have gathered of his deeds, every probing skirmish during the last conflict, proves it. He is logical and predictable, like the final form of an abyssal creature, like the so-called Dragon God that dwelled upon that island of dragons we should have erased long ago. freewebnovel.cσ๓
"Luring him out will be simple. The information he receives is fragmented, and he has things—people—he cares about. He will inevitably involve himself in this war."
Sulla laid out the reasoning for his vigilance toward Wang Yu, and the means by which that troublesome man had to be dealt with.
"...Forgive me. My thoughts became... disordered for a moment. I will re-examine what you just said."
Domino spoke again only after a long silence. The void itself seemed to still. She admitted she had not fully absorbed Sulla's explanation—her mind had spiraled into doubt and self-reproach.
"It's fine. The fact that you can understand it is enough. Apart from me, the executor, every member of the Utopia must operate under deception and cognitive restrictions. Only then can they wield or influence divine power, you included.
"Now that you've glimpsed the truth, you should understand whether the ideal world we seek is something we can ever truly grasp."
Sulla's tone remained calm. Domino's doubts were natural. Every member of the Utopia save for Sulla lived in carefully maintained ignorance. Only when it was necessary to awaken certain powers were individuals allowed to know the truth behind their mission.
Those members chosen to receive the truth were predetermined: Barsaka, for instance, and now Domino. Yet there was always a chance that upon learning it, upon realizing they had been deceived for so long, their minds would unravel. And if that were to happen...
Silently, Sulla summoned the will housed within the surrounding spires, condensing it into a tool of execution: something akin to the daggers crafted for slaying gods, though far weaker. He felt no hesitation at the thought of killing his own colleagues.
"Even our organization, which strives for the creation of a utopia, still relies on lies and obfuscation to survive... But perhaps it is because of this that we must work all the harder for that goal. In that sense, we might even owe thanks to the thing beneath the void, the thing that forced us to discard our powers."
But Domino's sigh, and the words that followed, made Sulla dispel his gathered power. Words could deceive, but the power born of understanding could not.
He could sense Domino's power reaching toward him, shaped by the same conviction of forging a utopia for one and all.
It was a belief held by every member of the Utopia. It was what allowed these "kindred spirits" Sulla had gathered across long centuries to wield a power not unlike that of devotees.
Even so, the truth imparted to the chosen few—those trusted with the power gathered from Utopia's adherents and from the spires, those miraculous feats of technological might—remained limited. In this way, they were prevented from straying or betraying the organization's path.
"I'll leave the preparations here to you. I need to notify the others."
Sulla waved a hand. A spatial rift formed, coordinates settling in the blink of an eye. He stepped into it and was transported across a vast distance.
"Maintained by lies and deception... yes, that is what we are. Weak, selfish, and forever unable to truly understand one another. We cling to this shackled earth beneath our feet, waiting for disaster to fall upon us, as from the creature that lies at the depths of the void.
"The intelligent races are but a lone skiff adrift on a vast sea. They have no lighthouse, no direction. And even on this tiny skiff, conflict and discord run rampant. So much tragedy, so much suffering, is born of our inability to understand each other. Unchecked, the future would be nothing but desolate, suffocating darkness.
"To forge a utopia is to carve out a path for all of us. Deception would no longer be needed then. With the united strength of all, even the strongest of invasions could be faced without fear."
His words lingered on his lips, but his audience was unclear. Perhaps they were words meant only for himself.
Meanwhile, elsewhere in the material realm, a caravan master was shouting into the small wooden hut Damian shared with two companions. The wagons were already laden with goods; only the last few members of the Church of Nightfall's trading company had yet to board.
"Damian! Come on! Time to head for Aleisterre. Even if we take the main road, it'll be a four, five-day journey. Hurry up and pack your things. Join the next wagon and move out!"
"Just a moment! I'm almost done, but I still need to deal with a few things!"
Damian called back, pushing a heavy sealed chest beneath his wooden bed. He tapped a point along the bedframe; a muted glimmer passed through the wood, sealing the items below with magic.
Rising, he grabbed the luggage on his bedside cabinet, stepped out, and climbed onto the wagon where the other members of the Church's trading company were already seated.
"You don't have much luggage. Why'd you take so long packing?"
A dwarven coworker beside him grinned. As a former member of the Lightless Depths who was now an employee in a trading company associated with the Church of Nightfall, Damian carried only three small bags, each light enough to lift with one hand. It was hardly the sort of packing that would take any time at all.
"I had to bring along the belongings of two friends who went ahead to Aleisterre. They left in quite a hurry and weren't sure how long they'd be staying, so they left a lot behind. It took me a while to sort it all out."
Damian chuckled, explaining the delay.
"Ah, that makes sense. Your two companions have good instincts. They knew ahead of time that Aleisterre was the place to be. We're only just heading there now. They must have sharp sources."
The dwarf nodded in sudden understanding, then launched into chatter about Aleisterre. They'd only received orders from the trade company a few days ago to head there themselves.
"Yeah, they update me through the Prayer Network all the time about what's happening there. It's a great place—good resources, good governance. Well... our archbishop is from there, after all."
Damian rubbed his arm as he answered.
"Oh? Then I'm really looking forward to it. Sounds exactly like the kingdom I've always imagined. Think you'll settle there afterward?"
"Probably... but it depends on the outcome of the war."
Damian could feel the mark Sulla had left upon his arm growing more active the closer they drew to Aleisterre. It was a reminder of the mission he had been tasked with.
