[You are in the presence of the Goddess of Night, Nox.]
That sentence alone brought shivers to Adrian as he did not expect a goddess to find him in the land of the lost. His health was almost at 1% and his health bar was already flashing red. He was prepared to accept his loss this time and try again with the other energies in his body.
Adrian was about to be logged out of the game but he felt a cleansing light course through his body and enveloped him and he could see his health bar stay stagnant at one per cent. He closed his eyes because he was prepared for the inevitable but he was not logged out.
Adrian touched his body to check if he really did not log out and it was true. He jumped for joy and danced on the spot. He completely forgot of the goddess that was in front of him and when he snapped back to reality, he became so embarrassed and acted shy.
The Goddess of Night, Nox, did not mind the sudden outburst of joy from this traveler because she knew what this realm does to lost souls who venture out into the edge of the death realms. She even chuckled because it has truly been long since she saw a mortal soul. After the war with the Dark Gods, she was force to rest because she used a lot of her powers. The Nether Realm was the realm that Abaddon himself found just for her as it was peaceful and could restore her primordial energy.
The Nether realm was different compared to the rest of the death realms because the Nether Realm was claimed instead of created. This death realm was an anomaly realm because it just suddenly popped out of nowhere when Abaddon was creating the death realms. It was a realm that enveloped all of the other death realms. In terms of layers, it could be said to be equivalent to earth’s atmosphere.
The death realms are not limited to the other realms that Adrian has visited. With so many types of worlds in the Pandemonium universe and also other types of intelligent inhabitants, it makes sense that they would have different views on what is the place after life. Adrian only visited the death realms that Abaddon has recently went through and if he got 100% comprehension rate then he might have been transported to the twin gods’ divine realm, Paraiso.
Adrian did not know what to do but he was sure that his health was neither falling nor his comprehension rate rising which is why he was dumbfounded. He was not sure what the Goddess Nox casted on him but it saved him from his current predicament and that is dying. He checked his system logs since he wanted to know what happened to his comprehension rate. It is not that he was greedy in getting 100% comprehension rate but if he could why not do it is what Adrian thought.
[You have been affected by Light in Darkness.]
[Due to the effect of the skill, you can no longer absorb energy from this world thus ending the effects of Forever Lost.] .𝘤𝘰𝑚
[Current Comprehension rate: 99.8%. You must have to comprehend at least 70% in order to succeed and evolve.]
[You have exceeded the needed comprehension rate in order to evolve.]
Adrian relaxed his mind and took a closer look at the goddess that saved him. Her eyes was covered by her fascinator but Adrian could feel that she did not even need eyes to see. It was if the goddess was staring at his soul even though he is all soul at this point. He could feel that she could tell if he was about to lie before even speaking so he did what any person would do to their savior. Adrian got down on both knees and spoke his sincerest thank you.
“Thank you benevolent Goddess for helping this feeble person. If not for you I would have been done for.” Adrian said while he kowtowed. Adrian did that because he read a very dangerous message that nobody in Pandemonium would want to see.
[If you die in the Nether Realm, you will die forever.]
This was the most stressful system message that Adrian has ever read because even other games dared not to do this. If he really did die then that means it is an existence wipe or in gaming terms, the character will be deleted. Adrian did not know if the developers have it out for him but he does not know that this was the ploy of the game’s super AI, Deus.
Deus, the super AI that controlled Pandemonium from behind the scenes, ensures both balance and rewards. If the player tries hard enough then it would guarantee that player the necessary compensation. In Adrian’s case, the AI was not able to predict Adrian’s unyielding focus and determination as it only calculated that Adrian would end up at exactly 70% comprehension rate. Adrian should have been sent back by Father Time, Cronus.
Adrian produced a variable and that was him uttering Koronn’s name to Cronus because according to lore, Koronn was Cronus’ direct descendant. This produce an effect which delayed Cronus’ spell to return Adrian to his body. Still, Adrian was still transported to the Nether Realm because it was Abaddon’s previous coordinates. The AI Deus did not stop the teleportation because it was not game breaking and in the acceptable parameters as the creator of Pandemonium told him to give free reign to all players. The AI Deus just decided to observe.
Adrian was now looking at the Goddess Nox clearly and he could see the features that he previously were not aware of. The dress she wore was not made of dark fabric but shadows themselves or something like the dark starry night itself was her dress. Adrian was so curious that he held his hand out without even thinking but it was flicked by the goddess.
“I think that is a bit rude to do that to your savior, Equinox.” The Goddess Nox said while she smiled lightly.
Adrian was shocked because he did not even tell her his name but she actually knew of his name in Pandemonium. Adrian was wondering if he actually blurted out his name out of panic but he did not. Adrian was about to ask but the goddess spoke first.
“Do not worry as though I do not know what is happening outside of this realm, I at least have acquaintances that do know. The God of Death speaks fondly of you because he says you are unpredictable but kind and does what is right even without compensation. Only he and I could traverse this realm freely because even malignant gods fear this realm.” The Goddess Nox said to Adrian as if it was already set in stone.
“So why are you here, young one? I am very sure that you were not told to visit me because if you did the God of Death would have gave you an enchantment that protected you from visiting this place.” The Goddess Nox inquired.
“Are all gods this talkative or are they just bored?” this was the thought in Adrian’s mind. Adrian finally mustered the courage to speak once again, “This humble demon thank the benevolent Goddess in saving this poor one’s soul. As for why I am here, even I do not know why because I was just suddenly transported here when I was absorbing the remnant power of the God of Death Abaddon.”
When Adrian told the Goddess Nox the truth, she was surprised because this was the first time a demon and not even an arch demon tried to absorb the power of a god even though it was only remnants of it. The Goddess Nox was smiling because the demon in front of him was an anomaly just like the Nether Realm. She even thought of something even more fun and that was helping the little demon in front of her power.
Adrian did not know what the goddess was thinking as the goddess only smiled back at him. Adrian was about to ask for the goddess’ help to leave the Nether Realm when he was given a proposal.
“Well, I did not know you were such a fun existence. As you know, I do not have much entertainment here and I am still recuperating as I am not in full capacity to return back. In exchange for helping you, I want you to transport a certain individual here at the Nether Realm. Is that acceptable, Abaddon?” The Goddess Nox said as she looked behind Adrian and there stood a man.
Adrian looked behind him and he saw an incredibly handsome man that looked like he was in his mi- twenties. He wore the same armor that Abaddon had but he was not wearing a helmet. Adrian could clearly see the face of the God of Death. Unlike his title, his face was healthy with it akin to be sculpted by the finest sculptor. He had black hair that had a shine to them and gray colored eyes that was enamoring to look at. No woman will be able to resist this man’s charm.
.