Quest Rewards granted:

, 3,100 XP

LEVEL UP!!

YOU RECEIVED 5 ATTRIBUTE POINTS!!

YOU RECEIVED 1 ABILITY POINT!!

That's the notification Gray saw before being vanished completely from Agnothar.

***

"Kah, is he going to be fine?"

"*Hiss!!*, I'm sure he will be if you don't keep asking the same question every minute."

"But his skin, its paling unnaturally!!!"

"It must be the hunger that's currently kicking in."

*Poke*, *Poke*, *Poke*.

"You know, your obsession with poking the young elf in his sleep for the past hours is certainly creepy, girl."

"Wait, wuh?"

The last statement came from Gray's disoriented voice upon slowly waking up from his state of soul-driven unconsciousness.

Opening his eyes, the first thing he witnesses is the Arcane Sentinel Selena poking him in the cheeks with her usual stoic look.

Next, he sees two individuals behind her, Isamu and Rarsu as both of them eyed the elf with concerned expressions on their faces.

"You're finally awake, good," Rarsu said as he instantly got a circular vial with a flat base that possesses some blue substance inside and positioned it at Gray's mouth. "Before getting out of the bed, here, have an Arcane inhalant that's filled with some Arcane Energy for the alleviation of your hunger."

"Hunger?" Gray asks the Lizardling Druid. His confusion was answered immediately though as he felt a strange feeling of discomfort and longing coming from within his body, starvation present in his very eyes.

His curiosity further piqued, Gray opens his Skill UI and clicks the skill, showing exactly hungry he is.

Hunger: 61 / 100

'c.r.a.p.' The elf widens his eyes with slight distress. 'Looks like I'm in Stage 2. Come to think of it, I haven't fed for some time. It's such a relief that Rarsu has a remedy for my condition.'

"Yes." Rarsu nods in response. "Now, consume that Arcane Energy inside the inhalant before we'll talk. You currently look like someone who can even make the dead look like among the living."

"R-right." Gray sweatdrops at his master's cheeky remarks as he complies the Druid's orders.

Opening the vial, Gray drains the Arcane energy inside the vial, resulting in his skin to return to its healthy colored state with each second pa.s.sing by.

Now back to his normal condition, the recovery immediately took effect as he felt his hunger satiated as a result.

Hunger: 92 / 100

With the elf finally rejuvenated, he now proceeded to question his situation of why he finds himself here again at Rarsu's room, the same place where he woke up after the Soul Transfusion process.

"So, what exactly happens to me and why am I here again?" Gray asks with puzzlement.

"Well." It was Isamu who spoke up. "While we were praying at the temple yesterday, you suddenly pa.s.sed out right beside me. Everyone inside including me was shocked by what happened to you. As we were about to call for some help, Rarsu suddenly came in and told us that you are his master and will be the one to aid you in your recovery. With him being a well-known and influential individual due to his status here in the city, we all agreed. But I was worried about your well-being, so I decided to accompany the Druid into the shop and also check up on you once in a while."

"I see," Gray said with realization and faces the two non-humans with appreciation. "You have my thanks then."

Isamu simply nods in acknowledgment with a toothy grin while Rarsu does the same with the absence of the smile.

But Gray's eyes also widen with wonder upon also hearing Isamu mentioning that the events at the temple all happened yesterday, meaning he was unconscious for a whole day."

"Wait, yesterday?!" Gray clarifies in surprise. "You mean I was asleep for a day?!"

"Yes." Rarsu was the one who stated in agreement. "It appears that whatever you have experienced has taken a considerable toll unto you."

Gray nods as he seemed to have understood his predicament more or less.

*Poke*

Gray felt the nudge as he looks at Selena and came to smile at the Sentinel's antics.

"Are you worried about me too?" Gray asks as Selena merely nods in a reserved manner. The elf then pats her head affectionately, causing the Sentinel to blink in slight bewilderment by her master's strange actions as she can't help but feel kind of warm inside. "I appreciate it."

"Now that you are recovered," Rarsu calls out for the elf's attention. "Will you narrate on what really transpired that caused you into this outlandish condition? Yesterday, when I examined your body, I've found some… things that are out of the norm."

"Things like what exactly?" Gray eyed the Lizardling with wary.

"One, it's your soul," Rarsu said with utmost interest. "I have felt that it was dubiously missing inside your body. Aside from Soul Transfusion, I also hold a spell to verify one's soul, checking for its integrity. Your condition definitely caught me off-guard and one of my decisions is to even declare you deceased, if not for the other things that I have discovered about you."

Gray opted to remain quiet, seriousness gracing on his face at what the Druid has to say.

"The s.h.i.+rt beneath your robes, I've inspected it while you are asleep," Rarsu said with intrigue. "It's a Divine artifact isn't it? More specifically, the ."

"A Divine artifact? What are you talking about?" Gray attempts to play dumb but only proves to be ineffective as Rarsu only smirks playfully.

"Please, you don't have to hide things anymore… Paragon." The Lizardling responds, causing the elf to flinch with astonishment as to how Rarsu was able to find out. The subsequent reaction was not gone unnoticed by Rarsu as he grins in triumphant at his spot-on deduction. "Together with cross-referencing multiple sources in history books and sacred sculptures, there's no doubt that what you wield is indeed the holy clothing that was hand-crafted by the G.o.ddess, Wynather herself. Out of all the places that you have unexpectedly lost your unconsciousness, it's inside a Divine's temple that you did so. Sounds a bit fishy, don't you think?"

"Paragon? Wait, a Divine artifact!?" Isamu was dumbfounded by this revelation. "I've heard stories about items that are granted solely by a G.o.d. Is it true, Gray?!"

The elf, for now, ignored the cat-folk's shock remarks as he opted to converse with the lizardling.

"I… uh… how? How did you know about this?" Gray was certainly taken aback by Rarsu's accurate statement.

"That my dear apprentice is what you get when you read books," Rarsu smirks as he proceeded to recite with every detail at what he had read during his self-study. "The Paragon is the advocate of the G.o.ds, a hero who came from another world through an unknown ritual which loremasters a.s.sumed to be called the Covenant of Souls, as stated in the Grimoire of Fate. It is said that your soul has a deep connection to the G.o.ds, both divine and demonic, allowing miraculous feats and wonders such as stepping foot in their plane or wielding one of their artifacts. A paragon's soul is known to be resilient, unyielding, and untainted."

Rarsu pauses for a moment and adds. "Such is the reason why your soul was able to recover rather quickly at an abnormal rate after the Soul Transfusion that I performed to you, yes? Now shall you regale us on what transpired that caused you in such a state?"

'Well, I can't think of any way in talking out of this. Denying it would only result in more suspicions and unwanted investigations which will prove troublesome later on. I suppose that my secrets are going to be revealed sooner or later. Thankfully, it's just these two.' The elf a.s.sumed a thoughtful look.

"Well, I supposed that the cat is out of the bag." Gray comments, resulting in Isamu reacting suddenly at the unfamiliar idiom by tilting his head in confusion. "It's an expression Isamu. Don't take it too literally. It means that the secret is finally revealed."

"Oh." The cat-folk responds with a funny expression.

"Yes, you are correct," Gray said in confirmation. "The reason why I fainted may sound something that came straight out of tales and myths, so I'll understand if you guys don't believe me. I was summoned to the Divine plane of Agnothar by the G.o.d of War, Agveyr himself."

Indeed, their perplexed reactions are to be expected, especially Isamu who could only stare at his elven friend with pure disbelief.

"I thought as much." Rarsu nods in understanding. "So that explains your soul being missing during your pa.s.sing out."

But Isamu though is having another reaction.

"Hahaha!!! I think the other night's hangover still has not completely left you. You're such a jester, my friend." Isamu responds with denial as he taps Gray's shoulder.

"It's true, Isamu." Gray sighs with an earnest expression, his eyes piercing without any sense of deception. "As a matter of fact, I have also been granted a skill from Agveyr, namely the . Said skill allows me to a.s.sume the strength of Warriors like you despite being a Mage."

"The , huh," Rarsu uttered the skill's name with absolute fascination as he may have read about some lore regarding it. "Hmm, can you demonstrate such skill, to see if what you're saying is true?"

"Alright, how shall I do it then?" Gray asks.

"How about an arm-wrestling with your friend here?" The Lizardling suggested. "You claim that you are capable of a.s.suming the strength that is on par with Warriors like him. First, let me see both of your stats before we proceed."

Gray and Isamu complied as they both show their respective Character UI.

Gray Allister

Strength: 10

Dexterity: 18

Endurance: 14

Intelligence: 50

Willpower: 30

Speech: 29

Luck: 18

__________

Isamu Meiyo

Strength: 37

Dexterity: 24

Endurance: 34

Intelligence: 10

Willpower: 17

Speech: 19

Luck: 9

After verifying their stats, Rarsu was satisfied and gestures both of them to close their UI.

"Based on context, the cat-folk obviously will win, having significantly higher strength by leaps and bounds. But we'll see." The Druid crossed his arms. "I can also sense no going on around here, and yes, I will know if you two are in any way altering your stats as I have something for that, so don't even bother."

With everything said and done, Rarsu instructed both of them to positioned themselves at a nearby table as they grip their hands with elbows touching the top of the said furniture.

"Heh, there's no way in h.e.l.las that my 37 Strength would lose against your 10 Strength. Add to the fact that these brawny arms of mine would be matching against that scrawny elven arms of yours." Isamu affirms arrogantly with a defiant smirk.

"I'm not so sure if you'll be speaking the same language after I beat your pompous furry a.s.s off, cat." Gray returns the friendly insult with the same level of teasing mock.

"Now on my mark," Rarsu said in a declaration. "One…two….three...begin!!"

Then the table has smashed into bits.