Bro, I'm not an Undead!

1430  Summoning The Houses

Aingor was the last Herald of the three governing Deities. He ranked second among the three, or rather, when there had still been three Heralds on Aigas (in the present time).

There had always been rumours about beings who ruled the Severed Union from the sidelines. They were only partly true. It wasn't multiple individuals, but only one: the Herald Aingor and his faceless Emissary.

He was far more active than Erlton, the Reader.

He implemented ideas that he thought would help Aigas in present and future.

He was the one who established the Severed Union, an organisation that – aside from harbouring some of the vilest living beings on Aigas – was also responsible of making sure the great continents of Feinheath and Opungale did not get assaulted by horrors, Cluster beasts for the most part, that went untended from the seas and regions unknown.

The Severed Union also made sure it never got too peaceful on the two great continents. south of Aigas. Bandits would constantly invade and kill, keeping up the vigilance.

Aingor thought a bit of death and suffering would keep experts active and wary. Sure, it worked for the first few centuries after the Ashing of Time, but as time barrelled on, he could only say the initiative had dwindling returns.

Aingor was also the one responsible for tempering with human history records around Feinheath and Opungale. He was the reason why humans and Sif thought the end of the First Grand War came about with the complete defeat of the Giants.

He was also the one who made Maqi believe that during Fulgardt's reign of terror in the Second Grand War, the Sif had sat still, choosing not to land a hand to the humans on Feinheath at all.

None of the aforementioned was not true, of course, but Aingor had believed that when the time was right, it would be beneficial to plunge Aigas into a great war again, stimulating growth, especially with the second falsehood he created. (The one about the Sif.)

Skullius had put a pause to that when he was possessed by Fulgardt's WILLS, and then Boron had forced the matter away entirely with the chaos he had created now.

But now Aingor had no more ideas to implement.

What he had sent Guissepo with was not his own mandate. It was one he was given directly by Suzamete.

Guissepo was to help quell the situation on Aigas.

One of the messages he was sent to Pherdanta with was playing a role at this very moment.

The five Houses of Pelian, fighting forces above the Families, had gathered and were conversing with Pherdanta and her group.

It was Agnees Kudobtu who was playing host to the meeting. She was the head of the Kudobtu House. It really helped that she knew Skullius. When the Great Trembling began, King Royan had called on the Six Houses – excluding the EverSwords, of course – and ordered Agnees Kudobtu and Braxten Shannazah to go to Opungale to help the Sif against the Maqian forces.

She and Braxten had ended up helping Maxim and Vali defend Skullius' Preeminent Attegoth while he was fighting the Ode.

The five heads of the Houses were seated upon their own prestigious chairs in the luxurious room. Opposite them were Pherdanta, Maxim, Vali, Guissepo, the old Priest from a past Aigas, and Ferex.

"So let me get this straight," Shura Desmonn said. He was a harsh-looking man with a face so heavy with hairs he might not have been 100% human, "all this information comes from Suzamete herself through a Herald, but even she isn't sure if that's how it will go?"

He was frowning. The identity of Guissepo hadn't been easy for him or anyone else to swallow. Suddenly, this man who had caused this whole mess was supposed to help them solve it?

How did that make any sense?

But at the very least, all five House heads could settle down and listen to the proposal.

There was no denying that some supernatural intervention had helped Guissepo and the rest find even one of the dwellings of a House. They were ancient households build during the Second Grand War. Nothing short of Supreme skills or Transcendent grade artefacts could find them. It was Aingor who had advised Guissepo where to have Pherdanta and the Stark Troops look.

"That's right," Pherdanta took the reins. Guissepo had done his part. "Because a Deity stronger than Suzamete is here, she isn't able to ascertain the future precisely. She can see a countless number of possibilities. In one of them, something goes terribly wrong if the Under is left unaddressed. Boron is planning something. There are crystals here on Aigas that serve a purpose we are yet to ascertain, and then there's something brewing down below."

"A sizable force is required to tend to what's happening in the Under. I and the Stark Troops may suffice, but we just don't know what might happen. To be safe, your combined powers are needed. You won't need to worry about the surface. My allies are here and there are more than enough to keep Pelian, Emeradis and Maqi from falling."

Shura gave Pherdanta a sharp look. He couldn't sense anything from her, but given how she was the supposed leader of the troupe he had seen outside, she couldn't have been weaker than him. The fact that she had managed to reign in Vali Kinn and Maxim Flatbed was also impressive in his eyes. Thus, Shura toned down his abrasive attitude.

A man dressed in a series of atrocious colours barked in laughter.

"Come now. If a Deity tells us to jump, we jump! This isn't like that order from Royan the Fool!" Braxten Shannazah said joyfully. He too had been in Opungale and was an acquaintance of Skullius.

"How can you decide something like that fickly? Even if the surface remains safe, we may just be walking to our deaths, right?" said a rough-skinned, gangly woman.

Illyinni was her name, and Wolverik was her House.

Her prestige was as great as that of the EverSwords who had turned traitor. She turned to Pherdanta with suspicious eyes. She might have hoped to intimidate her with her peak Incandescent Stage presence. "What guarantee do we have that we will survive at the very least? Suzamete is a Deity. Can she not bring us back to life after we die? I'd like a guarantee of that sort in writing, and then I'll follow you into the sun, if you want." @@novelbin@@

Vali and Maxim rolled their eyes.

Pherdanta expression didn't change.

"I'm all the guarantee that you need," she said sternly. "None of you need to take charge or split off into branches that will risk themselves in the possible danger we will find. That duty will be for me and my Stark Troops. As long as you allow me to perform that duty, you will not die."

"Hahahaha!" Illyinni chortled. "That's a tall, bold declaration, young woman! Hahahahaha!" Her laughter soared… and then it slowed. She found that she was laughing alone.

Agnees, Braxten, Shura and Morde were scanning Pherdanta seriously.

She didn't blink or dodge their piercing stares.

"You're serious?" Illyinni said, frowning. She couldn't believe everyone was taking this woman seriously.

"Well, if a Herald has confidence in you… I'll buy into your confidence for a while," said Shura. "But what of this he said"- he pointed at Guissepo – "about going into the Under. There is one entrance, right? Where this Formula thing used to be. How are we supposed to use it if that's where Boron likely is? We'd be obliterated in a breath, wouldn't we?"

"That is… extravagantly true," Guissepo confirmed and then he turned to Pherdanta. "We can't use that entrance into the Under. We have to make a new one. Rather, she has to."

For the first time, Pherdanta looked less confident in herself.

She knew. A mortal like her could create an entrance into the Under.

Or rather, the Infinite Sword God could.

The technique she needed was not simple, however, and she wasn't sure she'd master it quickly enough.

Pherdanta needed to learn the trick that allowed her master's possessed self – Festos – to match the near-Divine Warmoth's Progeny in the battle that shook Aigas hours ago!