The Guardian gods-Chapter 520

Silence hung for a beat, thick and watchful.

"I don’t mind lady Keles keeping the souls," Zarvok continued, "as long as they remain inert—unfed to your former pawn or anyone else. But if I see movement, I will act... and not with words."

Ikenga leaned in now, elbows on the table, fingers steepled beneath his chin.

"You speak as though you have leverage. I suggest caution, Zarvok. I tolerate many things, but threats—however veiled—are not among them."

Zarvok’s impish face remained composed, but his eyes shimmered with the cold cunning that had made him a force in the abyss.

"Not a threat," he said, voice low. "A reality. You and Keles—gods or not—have shaken this layer more than the invasion ever could. If I sense the balance tipping, I will act to correct it. Just as you would."

Ikenga exhaled slowly, his stare unwavering.

"I’ll speak to Keles," he said at last. "She will decide what is done with the souls."

"That’s all I ask," Zarvok replied, reaching for his cup once more.

Ikenga stood slowly, eyes still on Zarvok "And should those souls remain with her... untouched?"

"Then we remain at peace," Zarvok said, raising his cup in mock salute.

Ikenga nodded once and turned, the matter settled—at least for now.

"I hope things never get to that level between us, I would like for our friendship to continue even after we both get what we want from this invasion"

"I am sure you won’t mind befriending a future demon lord, my power in the future can be yours to use when needed"

Ikenga paused mid-step, glancing back over his shoulder with a faint, unreadable smile.

"You speak as though the title of Demon Lord is already etched into the abyss."

Zarvok grinned, sipping from his cup. "I wouldn’t say etched—but the stone has been chosen, and the chisel is in hand."

Ikenga turned fully now, his expression composed but edged with quiet sharpness. "You’re ambitious, Zarvok. That ambition is what made me take interest in you from the beginning"

Ikenga nodded slowly, stepping back toward the table. He picked up his own cup, raising it in return. "If you reach that throne with yourself intact... then perhaps we’ll drink again, not as allies of convenience—but equals."

Zarvok raised his glass as well, something darker passing in his eyes—neither fear nor submission, but a flash of resolve sharpened by respect.

"To the invasion," he said.

"To what comes after," Ikenga replied, finishing his wine in one smooth motion.

Before Ikenga left the dining hall, Zarvok spoke up once again. His tone was filled with amusement "If you think how this invasion is weird, I wonder what you would think when your world carries out it’s first invasion"

Ikenga said nothing as he walked out with the door closing behind him. Once again he was met with Zarvok long hall, this time around he was alone with thoughts running through his mind.

Ikenga went back to the room given to him and Keles, opening the door, he was met with a sight he hasn’t seen for month. Keles was no longer preoccupied.

In her hand were the souls now turned into a ball of light revolving around her open palm like planets, with each spin a wave of energy that brought deep comfort to the soul will be released.

Ikenga smiled as he closed the door, behind him and sat down "It seems you have found what you are looking for"

Keles glanced at the souls in her hand "Indeed, i couldn’t have asked for a better gift"

Ikenga smirked "I know a few ways, you could thank me"

Keles appeared beside Ikenga sitting on his laps with her pale hand tracing all over his chest "You do?"

"Mhmm but we could take that up later, I am curious on what you found from these souls" Ikenga said while sliding his hands under keles gown and feeling the heat emanating from her thighs.

"My divinity was drawn to souls of this level," Keles stated, her gaze lingering on the captive god-level beings, "because they are the missing ingredient, the catalyst my realm needed for true growth and profound change." She turned, her expression thoughtful. "My realm... it is the most vast, the most singular of all our domains. A boundless expanse dedicated solely to the echoes of existence. And its growth," a subtle hint of pride touched her voice, "is intrinsically tied to the influx of new souls. The more that arrive, the faster it evolves."

She gestured vaguely. "But the mortal souls... they are like grains of sand, numerous but individually weak. Even those who possessed strength in life, upon shedding their mortal coil, arrive here diminished, their awareness flickering like a dying flame."

Her attention sharpened slightly. "It is these few, the stronger among the newly arrived, those who retain a sliver of their former selves, who unknowingly shape my realm. Their subconscious yearnings, their ingrained expectations of what an afterlife should be, they ripple through the nascent consciousness of my domain, like whispers carried on the wind. They desire peace, and pockets of tranquility bloom. They fear judgment, and shadowy echoes of consequence begin to form."

A pause, a hint of the vast timescales she perceives. "But these changes are glacial, drawn out by the inherent weakness and limited energy of these fledgling souls. The shifts they bring are subtle, requiring the slow accumulation of countless mortal lives and their faint impressions."

Then, her gaze returned to the god-level souls, a spark of intense curiosity in her eyes. "But these," she emphasized, gesturing with a deliberate motion, "these are different. They are not mere grains of sand; they are boulders, imbued with power that still resonates even in their disembodied state."

She leaned forward slightly, her voice gaining a note of scientific fascination. "They have brushed against the abstract laws that govern existence, danced on the edges of creation and destruction. Their very being is interwoven with the fundamental energies of the cosmos. And here," she tilted her head, a hint of wonder in her tone, "is the truly intriguing aspect. Even now, stripped of their physical forms, they are not truly... dead. Their souls possess a tenacity, a profound connection to life that mere mortals lack."

Her gaze intensified. "They do not simply fade. They lie dormant, requiring only a vessel, an anchor to the living world, to reignite their power. Their potent souls, once tethered to a suitable body, would not merely inhabit it; they would assert themselves, overwhelming the existing consciousness. And as they re-establish their connection to the physical realm, their memories, the vast tapestry of their experiences and knowledge, would slowly resurface, bringing with them the weight of their path."

Ikenga gave a closer to the souls, his head tilted in contemplation. "You seek growth and change, Keles. The mortal souls provide the volume, the raw potential. But what you truly need, I believe, are not just strong souls, but souls imbued with the knowledge and experience of structure, of governance, of the very principles that underpin a complex reality."

"By understanding how their inherent structure can interact with your realm’s consciousness, you can guide its growth with intention, rather than relying on the slow, undirected influence of the masses." Ikenga said to which keles nodded.

"I now wish we were in our original world and I had access to my realm," Keles said with a wistful sigh, her eyes fixed on the horizon. "I looked forward to the changes these souls would bring to the others in my domain. The ripples they would cause... the evolution they might inspire."

Ikenga gave her a sideways glance, his expression unreadable. "So I am to take it, you’re done with these souls? You’ve found what you needed?"

Keles leaned in, her voice dropping to a whisper, brushing against his ear like silk. "Yes. And their memories... they’ve shown me the hidden truths of the empire—secrets buried so deep even its architects likely feared them."

Ikenga’s brow furrowed slightly, but before he could respond, a shimmering field of silence bloomed around them, isolating their conversation from any eavesdropping ears—mundane or divine. Keles continued whispering, the cadence of her words slow and deliberate. With each sentence, Ikenga’s eyes widened, and then, gradually, a slow, knowing grin curved his lips.

When the field dissipated, the atmosphere around them seemed changed, heavier with implication.

Ikenga exhaled softly and murmured, "Zarvok may already suspect what you just told me. But until now, he wasn’t certain."

Keles gave a small, thoughtful nod, her eyes gleaming with curiosity. "These beings they call Mages... they truly are a fascinating kind. There’s a poetry to how they’ve structured their power, a lineage of thought we haven’t seen in centuries. The way they bind theory with intuition, control with chaos—it’s almost... elegant." She let her gaze drift momentarily, as if seeing echoes of their magic in the air itself.

"We have humans who claim the same title," she continued, her tone sharpening. "But most merely imitate what they don’t yet fully understand. Still, I wonder—do you think they would follow the same path, if given the same conditions? Or would our presence —our very interference—limit the natural arc of their evolution?"