Late Evening - Late Fall : The Tree of Prayer

-Wait a minute... She couldn't be her, could she?- A series of dots suddenly connected the instant I thought about it. -Her voice is different, but her figure and way of speaking...-

Although there were definitely some discrepancies, too many dots connected for me to pass it off as a coincidence. -But.. even though my gut says not to trust her, I can't deny that she's has helped me quite a bit...- I knew she had an ulterior motive ever since she started suddenly being nicer to me, but it was also true that, so far, her advice hadn't been bad for me. -Maybe I should.. just take her advice with a grain of salt...-

Idly looking to the side as I thought to myself, I noticed the apostle from earlier still groveling with her forehead pressed against the floor. -She's still there, huh...- The other apostle had run away while I was talking to the suspicious goddess, but the one who paid respects to me stayed with her head lowered. -How loyal...-

Finally noticing that the beam of divinity had finally putzed out and I had finished absorbing everything I could, I carefully lifted Ilios onto my back and stored my slightly damaged sword under my wing. -Now, how would a god greet one of their subjects...-

As I finally walked over to the apostle, I noticed her body starting to shake, but it didn't seem to be from nervousness. -Is she shaking from excitement?-

Once I eventually got up moderately close to her, I laid down and relaxed some. "You may raise your head."

Her shaking stopped the instant I spoke. "C-congratulations on being reborn, Lord Nott! I cannot express my joy with words!" Her excitement was shockingly genuine.

"I'm glad to see that one of you could still recognize me." It felt a bit odd to respond to a different name, but it was nothing I couldn't get used to. "The others didn't seem to be so accepting of my new appearance." I glanced at the adjacent entrance where the fearful apostle was with an annoyed expression.

"Y-your new appearance is just as majestic and enchanting as the one described in ancient texts, my Lord! The others who rejected it simply didn't have eyes worthy of witnessing your beautiful and enchanting body anyways!" She lowered her head as she spoke, seemingly unable to speak while maintaining eye contact.

But I was too busy enjoying the praise to care. -She really knows how to make a good impression!- "Your name was Leif Vilulf, correct?" (Meaning Descendant of the Wolf's-Will)

"T-th-that is c-correct, my lord!" She became incredibly flustered the instant I said her name.

"Are you a descendant of a famous apostle or a family of apostles?" It was an odd question, but the meaning behind her name made me curious. -Did her family have a direct connection to Nott or Dagr at some point?-

"Yes, that is indeed the case, my Lord. For the entirety of our family's known history, the Vilulfs have served you as apostles." She spoke with pride and confidence, yet still sounded humble.

-So, her family produces an apostle every generation? Are they just born as high-demihumans?- Unable to hold back my curiosity, I carefully scanned her body with aura to see a large net of divinity spread throughout her body as well as a general lack of many organs. "Ah..." -Is what makes a race capable of absorbing divinity the position and volume organs occupy?-

It was a bit of an odd theory, but based on what I knew, it made sense. -Having fewer, smaller organs would give the divinity significantly more space to grow and spread through before it carved its way through any vitals... If a normal demihuman acquired even nearly as much divinity as she has, it would have probably bored through their heart or some other vital organ and killed them...-

It was truly fascinating to think about, but I quickly halted my curiosity before I got carried away. -Maybe I'll ask her how she acquired the divinity itself later...- *vwoom* "Sorry for the intrusiveness of my aura. There was something I was curious about."

"I do not mind in the slightest, my Lord!" She gave me an ecstatic look as I pulled my aura away.

-What an odd apostle she is...- "In any case, I should show some appreciation toward the loyalty and dedication of you and your family. Is there something you would like?" Although I knew it was probably unnecessary, I wanted to make a good impression as well. -As long as I have her loyalty, Siratha will be in the palm of my hand.-

But honestly, her response was about what I expected. "You acknowledging us is more than enough of a reward, my Lord!" Her joy and excitement were still overflowing like an endless waterfall.

-But if she doesn't want a reward, how should I...- "How could I help you then? Considering I just killed two other apostles, you might need someone to take their positions, right?"

She paused to think for a moment before speaking. "In the modern era, priests suitable to become apostles are hard to come by, so if you have someone in mind, I will happily take them under my wing!" She sounded a bit awkward, but that wasn't too surprising.

"In that case, there is a young woman named Liv Sigmond who should be able to fill a position. She is an ascended race already and even has experience in leading people. Should you deem her unfit though, you may use her how you wish."

"I-I would never deem someone acknowledged by your greatness as unfit, my Lord." She quickly got nervous.

-Haah.. I should have figured she'd respond like that...- "Don't give her any special treatment just because I recommended her. If you need to be hard on her, be hard on her. You should raise her to be an apostle you can be proud of, alright?"

Her nervous expression quickly turned determined. "U..understood! I will do my best to raise her into an apostle worthy of serving you!"

-Much better...- Casually glancing above us, I noticed the fog was starting to get a little close, and figured it would be smart to play it safe. "Since the fog is descending on us, I will end our discussion here." I continued talking as I stood up. "You may expect more frequent visits from me in the future, Miss Vilulf. I'm excited to see how you grow."

She looked paralyzed after I finished talking, but once I went to walk past her, she snapped out of it. "R-r-right! I will take my leave now. Thank you for everything, my Lord!" Hastily standing up, she gave me a deep bow and darted out of the tree before I could say anything else. *FWOOSH*

-Damn she's quick...- Although it was nothing compared to the god-possessed apostles earlier, her speed was nothing to scoff at. -Divinity really closes the strength gap between creatures quickly, doesn't it...-

*Thump* *Thump* *Thump* The thump of my footsteps echoed through the empty room as I made my way back to the opening in the side of the tree trunk. -Now, what should I do while I wait for Ilios to wake up...-

But that idle thought didn't last long. "Huh?" Confusion washed over my face instantly when I looked out into the exposed canopy and saw two elder dragon skeletons strewn across a couple large branches. -How'd those get there? Are they even real?-

Wanting a closer look, I quickly leapt into the air and flew out of the room.

But that only made things worse. "W..wh..what the f*ck..." Instead of only going to get a closer look at the two dragon skeletons, the moment I entered the canopy, I noticed they were far from alone. -Just.. how many...-

Lining each and every branch without exception was an appalling number of scattered bones and skeletons, and they had lain there for so long that the tree started to grow around them. -So the thing I caught myself on earlier wasn't a brittle branch.. was it...-

Looking down at the lower, larger branches, I saw the thousands upon thousands of monster, humanoid, and draconic corpses that had long since rotted away, with only brittle, stained bones and scattered armor, weapons, and artifacts being left behind as proof they ever existed.

But those countless long-lost skeletons and treasures weren't the ones that bothered me.

Drooped over innumerable branches above me were countless skeletons of massive elder and ancient dragons that completely dwarfed me.

The thousands of skeletons were all indiscriminately eaten away by the passage of time, no matter how large or strong they may have been when they were alive.

Some of the skeletons even belonged to dragons that would have been nearly 100-meters-tall, but regardless of the endless strength and wisdom that would come from living nearly 2000 years, they were still dead and hanging over the branches of the Tree of Prayer. -But for so many old dragons to have come and died here... Why?-