Chương 8: The Book of Death

"By now, all of you should understand that this is not a game. Whoever wishes to earn their place in Eryndea must be prepared to give their life for it," Zorovan declared from above.

"And for those who have lost faith in themselves, this is their last chance to withdraw." Nerez stepped forward.

"The Divine Order will see to it that they are returned to the place they came from." Nerez stepped back. After observing the crowd for a few moments, Zorovan nodded to himself.

"I wish you the best of luck... whether in this life or the next." At the candidates' feet, what looked like magic circles began to form. It was an image Nerez would have recognized if he had not been asleep the first time. Soon a glow engulfed them all.

It did not last long, maybe only a couple of seconds. By the time the light faded, Nerez, Aren, and Vilkie were already standing in the middle of a desolate green field. This was the chance Nerez had known would eventually present itself, one he had been waiting for so he could abandon this damned challenge. He truly wanted nothing to do with gods ever again. But his gaze lingered on Aren, who was reassuring Vilkie with a hand on her shoulder, and Odrian's rolling head surfaced in his memory once more.

Abandoning the two of them would leave a bad taste in his mouth.

"Only someone who knows where they're going can take a shortcut," Nerez muttered to himself.

"I always end up taking the long way around."

"Is something wrong?" Aren asked.

"It's nothing," Nerez replied, stretching.

"We should get moving. We're too exposed out here in this field."

"Good idea. I can see a forest in the distance. That should be a good place to regroup." With Aren leading the way, the three of them ran to take shelter in the shade of the trees.

Once they were sure there were no enemies nearby, Nerez began examining his book more closely.

"Looks like this book really only has one written page." [Book of Death]"A name like that on the Godscript, and this is all? What a letdown..."

"Zorovan said that too," Vilkie explained.

"Your Eidolon grows with you. Think of it as a skill you need to develop."

"More like a whole set of skills you need to develop," Aren added. Nerez looked back at the only page in the book that actually contained anything. It was covered in symbols and inscriptions he had no idea how to read, along with a drawing of a skeleton carrying a spear and shield. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. Fortunately, the Godscript filled in the gaps. Beneath the item 'Book of Death' was a section called 'Skills', which made it clear what the page was about.

[Skeletal Soldier] [Even in death, a stalwart defender and a fierce attacker. You can't break the morale of something that doesn't have any] [HP: 500] [ATK: 150] [DEF: 200]"So those numbers are, in other words, its health, attack, and defense..." There were other details he would have to examine carefully later, but what caught his attention most was a line that read [Proficiency: E]. If he was understanding it correctly, it would probably rise the more he used the skill.

"Skeletal Soldier... well, it does look like a skeleton in the image. But aren't those basically the kind of starter enemy you'd run into in an RPG? The stats do seem oddly high, though it's not like I have anything to compare them to."

"Rp-ji?" Vilkie asked, looking at Aren, who only shrugged.

"Don't worry, at this point we're all more or less in the same position. Oath's Edge also only has one skill available," Aren said.

"From the start, I wanted you on my side because I could tell you were unfathomable. Besides, having your experience would be invaluable."

"Unfathomable? I think you need to get that 'Gift of Light' of yours checked... But experience, you say?" The two young demigods nodded. Even if they look at me like that, it's not as if I have experience with divine conflicts or anything like that... I'm much more experienced at looking back and thinking I could have done better. Multiply that by a thousand.

"All right," Nerez finally said, crossing his arms.

"I'll teach you an ancient trick, literally, for this kind of situation... It's called camping."

"Camping?" they both asked at the same time.

"We'll hide really well and let our enemies eliminate each other."

"..."

"..."

"Did astonishment leave you speechless?"

"Take this seriously!" Vilkie exclaimed.

"Haha, it is a good strategy if our only goal is to survive," Aren admitted.

"But if we do that, we risk the Divine Order not taking notice of us."

"But camping is also about ambushing unsuspecting enemies..."

"Now that's at least a real strategy... but it sounds dishonorable," Vilkie protested.

"You just can't please today's youth..."

"It's true that we're young by demigod standards, but it still feels strange to be called 'young' after living for hundreds of years," Aren replied with a smile.

"Still, it's true that Nerez is already a grandfather even by a god's standards," Vilkie said with a laugh.

"You might even give Zorovan a run for his money!"

"That hurt my soul a little, I won't lie..."

"Sorry, sorry, it was just a joke," Vilkie said, trying to hold back her laughter.

"We gods don't think about age the same way mortals do," Aren said with a reassuring smile.

"We're immortal, after all."

"That's true, I was just pulling your leg," Vilkie said, calming down a little.

"Just a little revenge for everything you've put me through."

"I don't remember putting you through anything... In any case, it's true that I am a grandfather, so I can't really complai- Quiet!" Nerez finished in a low whisper, motioning with his hand for the other two to duck down. In the distance, a small group of four figures had appeared, walking across the field they had abandoned only moments ago.

"We're already at a disadvantage from the very start..." Nerez whispered.

"Relax. If there are only four of them, Aren can handle them by himself," Vilkie said, resting against Nerez's back.

"Then why did you want me on your team in the first place?... And don't get so close. I don't like girls with boyfriends pressing up against me. It makes me jealous."

"That's what I mean!" Vilkie exclaimed, though she kept her voice down.

"You're impossible!"

"In any case, I'd rather see what Aren can do before leaving him alone against four enemies... I don't think there are firearms here, but if we at least had another sword..."

"I can personally vouch for his abilities," Vilkie affirmed, pressing a fist to her chest.

"Girls tend to overestimate their boyfriends."

"This joke is getting repetitive already!"

"Nerez, it's true, you can trust me," Aren said, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"If it's only those four, I can handle it." Nerez looked at him from the corner of his eye, but shook his head.

"There is one thing I could try... though using it in an actual fight without really knowing what I'm doing doesn't seem like the best idea." Lifting his heavy book, Nerez opened the page that showed the armed skeleton.

"But at least it might serve as a distraction..."