“A patron deity? What's that? How will that help us fight demons?” Rodrick asks with a raised eyebrow. He was much bigger than he used to be, and he was growing quick. Grandpa Razlin wasn't wrong when he said that the men of his family were warriors.

“Relationships with the old gods is a dying religion. And personally, I try to stay away from them as much as possible. But luckily for you two, those old bastards love pure-hearted kids, and they would be glad to help you out.” Arias says.

“Are they people, big brother?” Alice asks, curious.

“Hmm. I wouldn’t call them people. They more like… ideals. But if you serve their purposes, they’ll be of much greater help than people can be. They’re the sort of thing that can… Do you know what a miracle is?” Arias explains.

“What’s that?” Alice asks.

“It’s like… When things are impossible to overcome, and you think you’ll die; but suddenly, a way opens up. It doesn’t matter how difficult it is, or even if it defies reality, it still happens somehow. Something like that.” Arias says.

Rodrick scoffs. “So you’re saying we’ll be invincible if we bow our heads? Never!” He exclaims.

Arias lets out a chuckle. He had somehow been given the task of raising these two cousins. The ever-excited girl that Alice was, when she first learned magic, she had to tell someone, so she told Rodrick. But Arias was able to shrug it off. No, to Arias it was sort of understandable. He could feel it, fate was pushing for this…

“No, no, no. Not bow your head. You’ll never get their respect that way. The only way to receive their favor is by embodying their ideals. After that, all the power in the world could be at your fingertips.” Arias says. “Here, maybe you’ll find something you have a connection to.” He says as he takes out a large piece of paper. Drawn in colored ink, were various symbols, designed to evoke an emotion; an emotion under the domain of a god.

“Pick one. Any one you like.” Arias says.

Rodrick turns away, but he immediately felt something calling to him. Unable to stop himself, he takes a look; it was a white tower, surrounded by a spiral staircase, and above were the stars. “What’s that one?” Rodrick asks, trying to sound disinterested.

Arias lets out a laugh. “Of course you pick that one. You’re no fun, Rodrick.” He says, amused.

Rodrick’s face flushes a little red. “And what’s that supposed to mean!?” He exclaims angrily.

Arias lets out a laugh. “That’s the god of order. He always plays by the rules, and he’s a prissy bitch about always being right. I suspect he’s a virgin at heart; apparently he’s had various affairs, but I think he’s just hiding it.” Arias says without a care for his disrespect.

Fury appears on Rodrick’s face. “That’s it! I’m not doing it! This is dumb, anyway.” He says as he stands up.

Arias lets out a chuckle and grabs Rodrick’s arm. “Easy, buddy. Relax. There’s really nothing wrong with this guy. If you’re with him, you’ll always be on the side of righteousness, and by divine right, your decisions will embody law. I don’t think you understand how scary it is to be on the wrong side of righteousness; demons and monsters will cower before you.” He explains, hoping to coax the kid.

Unable to control himself, a big grin appears on Rodrick’s face. “Hmph! That's right! Demons should cower before me! Fine, I’ll take this one!” He confirms, satisfied.

Arias smiles, then looked to Alice. Her gaze was clearly drawn to a specific symbol on the paper. Arias looks and his eyes widen in fear. No, no, no! Not that one! I deliberately made this one vague just to hide it! Arias exclaims in his mind.

Of course, he could have just removed the symbol altogether, but he couldn’t do that because that would be cheating; and he really, really, didn’t dare to cheat the gods. That might be even worse than Alice choosing that symbol.

Arias lets out a bitter smile, and immediately, he decides to trick the child. “What about this one, Alice?” Arias asks, directing her attention.

“Hmm? What’s that one?” Alice asks.

“This one is the god of life; she is the mother of mankind and she is the earth that nurtures us. Pretty cool, right?” Arias says with a forced smile.

“Hmm. Maybe.” Alice says before her vision was drawn once more to a red sun hidden by a fog. “What’s this one?” She asks casually.

Arias immediately lets out a few coughs before clearing his throat. Damn. This isn’t looking too good. He thinks anxiously. Although Arias was equally helpless before all the gods, he felt he could manage if these two kids decided to fight alongside another deity. It was for the simple matter that people couldn't really embody those ideals completely, so Arias felt that he would always have some wiggle room. But for this one… For this one, the only thing that could save me is grace… Arias thinks as he gulps down his saliva. There’s that damn word again… He thinks with a groan.

“Hmm? Big brother?” Alice says as she looks at Arias.

Arias clears his throat again. “Ah-huhmm. This one… is ugh… This one is the…” He tries to say, but with hesitation at every step.

Rodrick frowns. “Spit it out, man!” He says impatiently.

“Fuck. Okay. Alright. Ah-humm. This one is ugh… The god of love. There, I said it!” Arias exclaims before turning his head away. He didn’t want to look at that symbol any longer. To Arias, although he viewed all the gods as bastards, they were still somewhat acceptable to him. But Arias thought the god of love was terrible. It was like a beast; unstoppable and unquenchable. And the worst part of this bastard, is that his love… His goddamn love is unconditional! Arias thinks with dread. If a hero receives this god’s support, that bastard could do whatever the hell they wanted! He thinks with frustration.

Alice’s eyes widen and a bright smile appears on her face. “The god of love? I want that one! I want that one!” She says as she jumps with excitement.

Arias covers his sweaty head with his hand. “Fuck.” Was all he could say.