James was hard at work, wholeheartedly continuing a project he had been working on. He wanted to make the storage items more efficient, without the risk of items inside damaging one another. Currently, it was dangerous to store potions inside of such a storage space with anything even remotely heavy, as it could cause that item to land on top of the potions when it was inserted into the storage space.

Maybe I can create a smart shelf that filters items based on size and durability, while leaving a large entry point open for new items to be deposited. He thought to himself, approaching the problem from a technological aspect rather than a magical one.

As he thought about that, he felt a rush of energy sweeping over his lab, causing him to pause briefly. As an expert on different energy types, he’d be a fool not to recognize the power of a divine soul. However, for that power to be released so haphazardly, the owner must have used an ability without any care. That, or…

James felt a small disturbance within his own body, furrowing his brow. He reached inside of his chest with one hand, the hand passing through his skin with a ripple as he pulled out a familiar card. On the surface of the card was a simple circle, but there was now an additional figure standing inside of it.

“So that’s how you planned to use these.” He said with a small smirk towards the world spirit whose image was present within the card. “Decided to cash in one of the favors, now?”

The Queen is dead. The spirit’s voice entered James’ mind immediately, causing the man to freeze up.

“That wave just now… she tried to ascend.” James let out a sad sigh as he pieced it together. Naturally, Bria wouldn’t have attempted something so dangerous without first consulting him on whether there were techniques or devices that could make the process occur more smoothly. Unfortunately, even James did not know of anything that could help her out there.

Divinity was always a path that one had to pave themselves. Perhaps at higher tiers than he had achieved in his last life, there would be ways to mass produce gods. However, those were beyond his knowledge. The best advice he could give her was to attach herself to one of the ‘Greater Pantheon’ to ensure her success, but such an option did not seem favorable to her.

“So… what’s the favor, then? You’re not calling it in to tell me to take the throne myself, are you?” That would be a bit ridiculous in James’ mind. A man who was not even recognized by the world’s system assuming the throne and governing an entire world? Nobody in the world of politics would be able to accept such an idea.

Not take the throne… but protect it. The spirit told him. In the coming days, there will be people claiming to be the new rightful successor. If they were to claim the throne in such a manner, Udona would be… displeased. The Queen was a good friend of hers.

James had a somewhat peculiar look on his face as he heard that. “So you want me to act as a guard? Do you have some kind of token that will let others know I’m doing this on your behalf, and not just on my own?”

Thankfully, his lab was currently empty apart from himself. He had sent his assistants to Fyor, with the goal of retrieving a living Crystal Salamander. That was the reason why he could so happily work on another project in the first place.

The world spirit, however, simply smiled at his question. If I had such a thing, would I need to call in this favor of mine? There are two among those who would seek to claim the throne that I have granted a favor to. By the rules I have set, they may call that favor in through the use of a special card, similar to those that I gave you. If they call for me to help them obtain the throne, it is only natural that I require a strong force to protect it. One that I cannot best myself.

James looked at the image in the card, his eye twitching. “There’s no such thing. A binding that loose would never be able to compel a complete world spirit like you. Can’t you just ignore them if they ask for something you don’t like?”

Now, where would be the fun in that? She countered with a laugh. You need only to protect the throne until such time that the Goddess has appointed a new ruler. Someone appointed by the Goddess herself… nobody would have the grounds to refute their claim. But bear in mind, after this conversation is over, you must not accept anyone else’s request to terminate this favor early, unless it comes from the Keeper or one of his own. Those that hold my favors may ask me to use that as a means of stopping you.

“Yeah, yeah, I got it.” James said with a grumble, agreeing to the request. As soon as he did so, the card wrapped itself in a blue light before vanishing from his hand. Sighing, he stretched out his arm, closing his eyes.

“Activate emergency protocol. Extract reserve energy.” He muttered, releasing a lock he had placed inside of himself long ago, when he first began exploring the various dimensions of Fyor. It would be unreasonable to assume that someone from a floor a hundred thousand times larger than anything that the residents had explored would only be the same size as a normal human, unless he had already condensed his divinity.

Naturally, James had done no such thing. Rather, he took this form because it was one that was familiar to him and he was comfortable with it. As for the rest of his energy, that which didn’t fit in his body, he stored it within the void. He placed a lock within himself using a special energy that would automatically siphon off his power to prevent him from growing any larger.

Now, that lock was coming undone, and James could fill himself swelling with power. With a thought, he shifted his location to be atop the ceiling of his research station, stretching his hand forward. Instead of channeling all of that power into himself, he used it to create an avatar. One that truly contained his full power.

Across the world of Deckan, there was a shock spread among the citizens. Every citizen of Deckan received a message from the system, without exception.

Queen Bria has died. Appointing a new ruler.

No heir to the throne found. Primary method of inheritance has failed.

Secondary method of inheritance automatically activating. The first person to reach the seat of power and obtain the majority approval of the people shall become the new ruler.

The system was rather ‘fair’ at times like this. It did not randomly assign people based on political agendas. Rather, anyone could claim the throne, whether they were a noble or not. Of course, a noble would find it a far less difficult challenge to rally the people to their cause.

However, at its core, this was a democracy of sorts, without the people needing to cast any sort of true vote. The system would read their approval from their minds and determine if an individual approved of one or multiple candidates to rule. The first challenge was to reach the seat of power… meaning the castle within the capital.

Normally, that would cause this event to turn into a free-for-all race, if not for the precautions set in advance. While the rest of the world was still processing the message that had been sent to them, the ground beneath the castle began to shake. Those servants still inside stumbled, grabbing onto furnishings as the castle began to directly rise into the air.

Standing in the courtyard was a man a hundred meters tall, casting a cold look towards the ground below. Those who knew of him immediately recognized the famed researcher, but were unclear why he seemed to be ‘stealing’ the castle at a time like this.

When he opened his mouth, his voice seemed to echo out across the sky, spreading for dozens of miles. “The spirit of this world has entrusted me with a task. Until the Goddess of Life appoints a new ruler, the throne shall remain empty.”

A fist slammed against a wooden desk, causing cracks to spread out in a spiderweb pattern. “Of all the things…” A kitsune man groaned in frustration, his black hair flaring up. He had just been preparing to advance on the capital and claim what he thought to be rightfully his. After all, he was the closest noble to the capital that governed his own territory.

However, as he was preparing to leave, the message came in to inform him that a giant had absconded with the castle. Worst yet, he claimed to be on a mission from the spirit of the world, and would only relinquish the castle to one chosen by the Goddess?!

The man felt nothing at the loss of the previous queen, even though it had been only minutes since her death was announced. All he thought of was to secure his own place as the new king of Deckan. And now, that plan was foiled. At least, the initial attempt was.

I stood in front of Udona’s door, together with Terra, Accalia, and Keliope. The four of us were the first to notice what had happened. Me, because I had watched the scene directly, whereas the others all keep tabs on each other’s territory. Those down below only knew that a queen had died, and that it would trigger a fight to claim the throne.

However, we knew that it was more. She wasn’t just a queen, but was also a friend to Udona. So, we all came to check on her. Lifting my hand, I lightly knocked on the door, not wanting to disturb her if she would rather be left alone. “Udona?”

The kitsune’s voice came out in a more calm tone than I was expecting. “You guys can come in…”

I had been in Udona’s room a number of times. Each one was different from the last. At one point, the entire room had been constructed of pillows, and even had a pillow fort that contained a functioning theater. This time, however, the room appeared dimly lit, with only a single bed tucked away in the corner.

Sitting on the bed was Udona, wiping her eyes. Though she was doing her best to appear normal, her red eyes and wet cheeks betrayed her emotions. Without waiting for an invitation, Accalia rushed over to the bed, jumping next to Udona and wrapping her in a tight hug. “I’m sorry, sis…”

“It’s fine…” Udona said, but it was clear that she was still fighting back the tears. “Which of us hasn’t dealt with the death of mortals?”

“It’s not fine and you know it.” Keliope spoke in a firm tone, stepping into the room and approaching the bed. “If it were fine, that would mean you didn’t care. We all have people we care about… and we all hurt when they die. Especially when it happens so suddenly. We’re here for you, Udona… it’s okay to cry.”

“You… you sound like Aurivy.” The kitsune sniffled, bringing her hands up to her face as her tears began to fall anew. “Did… did you know she’d fail, Terra?” She asked, unwilling to look the felyn goddess in the eyes.

To my surprise, Terra shook her head. “I can make predictions when it comes to someone trying to get the Perfect Self. But divinity is out of my hands. It’s a matter of the individual’s willpower and situation more than anything that I can use for my predictions.”

“I don’t mean to belittle Bria’s will. We all know that she was a strong individual.” As Terra said that, she placed a hand on Udona’s shoulder, speaking in a soft tone. “I believe that the thoughts of what would happen if she failed crept up on her at a crucial moment, and caused her to falter for just a moment.”

“And… and that was all it took, right?” Udona, asked, wiping her face again. “Just one moment with all that pain, and everything is over.”

I moved over to stand next to Terra. As someone that had personally gone through that pain myself, I knew just how dangerous it was to get distracted during the process. “Everything’s been taken care of down below.” I assured her as gently as I could, having seen the preparations that the world spirit took. “You can take the time you need, and nobody will rush you.”

After I said that, Udona looked up at me. Her eyes were still wet and red, and she gave a choked nod. “Thank you. I’ll be alright soon…”