Novaris. Sax. 905. AGC.

  Nodel. Last Quarter ??. Day 23.

  After the tour, everyone split up to explore their rooms or the tree house on their own time. During normal circumstances, this was the time when defenses would be placed, and talks of night watch usually began. It was also the time for relaxation and figuring out what they would eat. Of course, with the tree house, most of those things were taken out of the equation, and almost everyone had to readjust their routine instead. The only two individuals who weren’t affected by the change in routine were Alyx and Drex.

  Alyx had pretty much always had his spatial room, so he just went into it and was as safe as could be. His weird microwave summoned whatever food he wanted, and he had access to a shower, fresh clothes, and all his study material. Meanwhile, Drex had just been born not long ago and had yet to experience enough camping for any routine to actually matter.

  Tesilim, Lili, Rose, and Jasmine were left slightly floundering. It wasn’t too bad, since they weren’t always camping and exploring, but after years of apocalyptic survival, general life in a fantasy world, training, and travel, they had a sense of routine ingrained. However, eventually, they all switch to the light clothing they wore under their armor or to new clothing entirely, in Lili's case, since she always had backup clothes. Either way, the entire party found themselves in the living room, engaging in general chatter about the tree house, the fact that Alyx could place his door in it without breaking reality, and how happy they were that Tesilim had taken the deal.

  They also took time to watch the TV, which shifted through various shots of the dark forest. The party spent time watching shadows, birds, and various beasts or monsters as they traveled or fought, believing themselves unseen. For Tesilim, it had been the first time seeing an actual shadow moving, and it had unnerved him.

  Other points of talk involved the fact that Tesilim’s notification had changed. His boots had reverted to the die at some point, and he was finally able to identify it again.

  ?? Crystal Notice ??

  Name: Die of Chaotic Weaponry.

  Item Rank: Divine.

  Rarity: Divine.

  Description: A yellow six-sided die created by the Gods of Magic, Knowledge, and Chaos for Tesilim Telsy. The die can be rolled, and depending on the result, it will equip Tesilim with different magical weaponry. The weapons will automatically be equipped by Tesilim regardless of where the die is rolled or Tesilim’s location. Once equipped, the weapons can be set aside. However, if equipped, Tesilim gains moderate skill with the equipped weapon.

  Additionally, each transformation will have magical abilities of its own.

  When not in use, the die will innately absorb mana and store it within its own Soul, which is equal in strength to Tesilim’s. Finally, this item will gain more options as Tesilim Ranks Up.

  Tesilim is always aware of the die’s location.

  Weapon Transformations Available.

  1 - Pair of Daggers. 2 - Boxing Gloves. 3 - Ray Gun.

  4 - Boots. 5 - Katana. 6 - Shield.

  ??

  “Well, it does make sense. The original item is divine in nature, but if the gods handed you an actual divine weapon, you would kill everything rather easily,” Alyx agreed after seeing the die’s rank and rarity and hearing Tesilim’s thoughts on the issue.

  “So, you don’t think I can kill things with the die? Or that it will get destroyed if someone somehow destroys it when it's transformed?”

  “It's not a matter of you being able to kill things with the die, but more like the magic of the die won’t let you harm something else with it. Also, it will not get destroyed. The item is divine in nature, and so is its ability to transform. So, it will transform its exterior appearance into something else, which also partially changes its nature, but at its core, it remains a divine magical item. More than likely, the outer and lowered rarity layer of the item will be shattered, causing it to revert back to its original form,” Alyx explained to the entire room.

  “I see. Well, that’s good to know,” Tesilim replied. He knew the gnome had access to two of the gods who made the item, and his answer was probably spot on.

  “Hey, Tesilim, now that I think about it, has the God of Chaos reached out to you?” The party’s redhead asked the question coming out of nowhere and changing the entire conversation while still keeping everyone’s attention.

  “Uh, no, I don’t think so. I have yet to be contacted by another godly entity, and honestly, one is already more than enough.”

  “Huh, that is unexpected,” The gnome said, getting a questioning look from Tesilim, causing him to expand on his statement, “He did help make your dice, and I imagine you are right up his alley, considering what your powers do.”

  “Really? Honestly, I never thought about it. Though I don’t understand what the point would be, he already gave me the dice, which already shows he favors me. Also, I am not so sure how I would feel about a god permanently living in my soul.”

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  “There is also the fact that Alyx, you yourself, said that there is some sort of deal stopping things from helping him too much. I mean, they already sent you, which seems plenty,” Lili stated from her spot next to Tesilim, finally joining the conversation.

  “Seriously?” Jasmine asked, giving Tesilim a look of sad understanding, which confused him a bit.

  “Apparently, at least that’s what Alyx said, and he has access to gods,” Lili stated.

  “It's true; I am not sure about the details, but that’s what was implied when I was told to go find him,” The gnome confirmed.

  “I don’t know, sounds like a bunch of nonsense. I get coming from another world and the World Crystal thing, Rose began seriously before pointing at Tesilim and letting the sarcasm out, “But you are going to tell me that this guy has really got gods making deals for some mysterious reason? That seems like a stretch.”

  “You do know that I have a quest to help kill the Eldritch God, right?” Tesilim responded smugly.

  “What!?” Jasmine and Rose yelled and quickly looked to Alyx and Lili for confirmation.

  Understanding the surprise and with defeated sighs like they couldn’t believe it themselves, both the gnome and, sadly, his girlfriend nodded in confirmation like they couldn’t believe it either.

  “Are you serious? This idiot is somehow supposed to help fight a god! An actual Eldritch God!? Our Eldritch God!?” Rose yelled, getting up from her seat as she began pacing around the living room, clearly flustered, annoyed, and trying to come to terms with everything.

  “Arelion doesn’t believe it, by the way,” Were Jasmine’s only words as she broke the silence she had been under after her initial outburst before she went quiet again, her face troubled but not at the fact that she couldn’t believe what she had heard.

  It took some time, but eventually, the two ladies calmed down.

  For her part, Jasmine came to terms with the fact that there was no way the World Crystal intervention in Tesilim’s affairs was as simple as they were made out to be. It was clear there was truly a bigger game going on, and in a way, the Eldritch God was part of the reason why she was in her current position. So, not only was Tesilim’s connection a good way to reach out to the godly entity with ease, but it also truly put her on a direct path to fight the god on the moon. Well, only if she stayed with the elf, which wasn’t much of a choice since the gnome wasn’t going anywhere.

  Meanwhile, Rose had had a completely different experience. Her god had descended into her soul, ignoring any isolating magic the S Rank item had. The presence of her deity had calmed her enough, and she had sat down pretending to be in thought as she spoke with Sol.

  “Lord Sol, is what they speak true? Is this elf truly on a path to confront the creature on our moon?”

  “Yes, child, if he does not die an early death, it is likely that is where his path will take him.” Like always, her god's voice was deep and powerful, yet it also gave the feeling of talking to a friendly old man.

  “Is that why you sent me to Wildwood? Or was it to meet Jasmine? Did you know she would be here?”

  “No, had I intervened in such a matter, it would have brought unwanted attention. However, child, do not forget that I am but one of many and that Luck and Chance are always in play, and it is hard to tell when something truly happens with or without rhyme or reason.”

  As she thought about the words, her god waited patiently. Rose tried to decipher the words of her deity, believing she knew what was being said. However, she still had a burning question.

  “Is helping him part of my destiny? Or am I truly at the whims of the winds of chance?”

  “Child, your only Destiny is to serve me. How you serve is entirely a different matter.”

  After those words, Rose felt the pressure ease, and she returned to reality. She spent some time in silence with everyone else, thinking about the conversation she had just been part of. However, eventually, a new matter came to light, and her focus shifted to it.

  “Guys, it is getting late, and before we go to bed, I think we need to talk about tomorrow,” Lili said, looking around the room and meeting their eyes.

  Tesilim also looked around the room, trying to gauge Jasmine’s and Rose’s moods. Both ladies met his gaze, and they both had glints of curiosity and certainty in them. It was an odd experience to see that, at least in Rose, but he didn’t want to bring anything up after the moment they just had, so he instead turned to Lili.

  “What is it?”

  “Well, mainly, just setting down a plan. You all saw the map; there are a few spots of note. Mainly, and I think we agree that we should scout each one first before engaging, correct?” Seeing nods of agreement, Lili continued, “Alright, and just to make sure that everyone is aware, there is a good chance we are dealing with something intelligent, powerful, or both. Her brother's transformation elevated him to C Rank, even though he is normally of common rank. It is an odd thing, but that’s curse magic for you. So, this means either something strong enough to put down a Low C Ranker is prowling nearby, or something intelligent has made a plan to take one down. Either way, it is not great news.”

  “Do you think we might have to retreat?” Rose asked.

  “Likely,” Lili answered.

  “Any plans for that?” Jasmine questioned.

  “Not yet, at least out of the obvious. We try to reach the tree or enter Alyx’s room.”

  “Honestly, it all depends on what it is we are dealing with. Also, and I don’t want to come off as uncaring, but there is a good chance whatever it is has left or has already been put down by other adventurers,” Alyx stated, bringing up some good points.

  Sighing, Lili agreed, “Yeah, I would feel bad for Juniper, but we also have to be realistic. Any other questions?”

  Seeing everyone shake their heads, and without much else to talk about, the party split, and everyone headed to their rooms. Tesilim was especially demoralized because Lili hadn’t said anything else about her earlier whisper and had just gone into her room. So, he had done the same, Drex quickly heading into his own mini room.

  Lying in his bed, his hopes six feet under, Tesilim thought about life while staring into the pitch-black of his darkened room. He didn’t like light much, at least when he slept, but was thankful for it when the door to Lili’s room opened by the barest of margins, letting in a slice of light into his life.

  With the light came tension. Tesilim was waiting for whatever would happen next. He had left the door unlocked, hoping for Lili to come through at any point. Still, after it opened, he waited, his heart beating faster and faster with every passing second, yet nothing happened. Finally, he reached a breakpoint and quietly got up from his bed, and silently began making his way to the door, like a kid sneaking around past their bedtime.

  Reaching the door, he wasn’t sure why he was so nervous, but he was. Still, it wasn’t going to stop him from peeking. There was no way the door had opened by itself; it had been locked from Lili’s end. Plus, she was his girlfriend!

  Looking through the slight crack, his breath held, Tesilim froze as he stared.

  Lili was a few feet from the door, wearing lingerie. It was an incredibly short, beautiful white dress, designed to be mostly see-through, like most sexy-time lingerie on Earth.

  She stood there facing him with a wide smile plastered on, her skin glimmering as if oiled, her form beautiful. Watching her, Tesilim’s jaw dropped open, and when she turned around and bent over, giving him a full view as she slowly caressed her body up to a standing position, Tesilim lost it, opened the door, and rushed the beautiful elf.