Willem had accomplished what he had set out to do, and finally his busy day had come to an end.

Though there was a small void in Willem's soul that the demoness had previously occupied, her absence gave Willem great pleasure. As long as he filled the void with magic it would eventually heal, and should another demon find its way to him, it would be indescribably hard to invade him once more.

Willem headed toward the bedroom in the Private Sanctum, and found Kinsey, Anna, and now the demoness lying in the bed together. Willem could feel the magic power of the demoness coalescing and then expanding, as if going through a cycle. The power stretched and pulled, revealing surprising elasticity, and then hardened to an incredible amount of resilience.

The White Tiger Cub yawned lazily but still came to greet the Grand Mage, licking Willem's toes in obedience.

Willem picked the tiger cub by the scruff of her neck and placed her at the foot of the bed. He continued watching the demoness until his eyes eventually got very heavy.

He permitted himself, for the first time in a very long time, to sleep without vigilance.

In the Royal Castle.

Just an hour ago, the King and Queen had been dancing the night away. Now, the Queen greeted her Husband coquettishly, ruffling her frilled white dress to show some skin. The One True King had not seen such behavior from her since she fell sick all those years ago, and was beginning to remember the woman she used to be.

Unfortunately for him, much of it was a facade. When the Queen had originally taken the vitality potion, the magic inside the vial drew from the life force of the imbiber, emboldening her body at the cost of her soul.

The potion had its intended effects to be sure, granting her strength that she had not felt in a long time. After the initial effects of the potion waned, however, her soul became sickly and vulnerable.

A lost soul that had attached to the One True King when he traveled through the void was seeking a host body and came across the sickly Queen, to then take root in her splintered soul.

While she was under the effects of the potion, she was herself before the sickness.

When the potion wanes, the soul takes over, corroding the Queen from the inside out.

The only one to notice this change was Willem, as he was the only one who looked at the Queen not as a human but as a test subject.

The potions effects typically lasted for eight to ten hours, but the backlash would affect the Queen for many more. The only reprieve was to take the potion once more. Thus it became the Queen's addiction to feel whole by using the vitality potion.

The One True King knew there was something wrong, but seeing his wife the way she used to be silenced all the questions.

Now the One True King embraced his Wife again, which he had not done in what seemed like a long time. Though to his woefully long life, coitus was not a high priority. Naturally, he had fathered many children during his long lifespan as the alpha male of the mages.

The Queen laughed in pleasure as the King dived into the soft flesh of his wife.

Willem's Private Sanctum.

Due to the fact that Willem did not return to bed until near sunrise, Kinsey deemed it unnecessary to wake him. Especially because he finally looked at peace while he slept.

Both Kinsey and Anna saw the strangely beautiful woman sharing their bed, and as Anna probed she felt the connection of the life-binding technique that they shared.

While being slightly jealous, Kinsey went on to prepare a bath, wash the tiger cub and begin some experiments.

Anna began to read out loud the "Book of Fallen Gods".

"The World Tree gave birth to the sun and the stars, and shaped the earth and sea how it wished. After shaping the earth, it saw how barren the lands and sea were and wished for inhabitants to admire what it had created. Thus it created the first magical beings, the Solum, born from the dirt and earth. The Solum worshiped the World Tree as the creator of all things, and would make offerings and effigies in its name."

Anna was interrupted by the faint sound of hellish screams from the tortured elf.

"The Solum had a deep connection to the earth, and would create vast and complex structures underground, each with a shrine to the World Tree. Their progeny worshiped the World Tree as their forefathers had, and the World Tree gave them many gifts. The World Tree made many different races, but her favorite would always be the Solum. Due to this known fact, the other races became jealous of the Solum and tried many ways to sever the connection the Solum had to the World Tree."

Kinsey interrupted Anna to bring her some early morning tea. Anna thanked Kinsey and continued to read out loud.

"The Solum was not just the favorite of the World Tree, they were also the most powerful. Capable of summoning great storms to cover the world, they suppressed the other races for trying to break the connection to the World Tree. The World Tree saw what the Solum were fully capable of and created a sanctuary for them to live, far away from the earth it had created. A sanctuary was built among the stars for the Solum to live, and the other races living on earth were left to their own devices. The World Tree was saddened by the events of the Solum, and erected a barrier to seclude itself from everything, including severing the connection to the earth it created, as penance for its mistake."

The White Tiger Cub came over and nestled itself on Anna's lap. Unfortunately it was far too big now and it's head covered most of her chest.

"Missing their connection to the earth, the Solum began to quickly change; becoming more aggressive and combative. The World Tree could not sense the change as it had already sealed itself away, and the Solum blamed the other races for their exile. The council of Solum that had previously been in charge of creating the most breathtaking architecture were now in charge of finding a way back to earth to kill the other races."

The White Tiger Cub looked up from Anna's lap when he noticed a tear forming on her cheek. For some reason, the story struck a chord within Anna, and she involuntarily began to cry softly.

"The bodies of the Solum began to fundamentally change according to their desire. The power they manifested combined with the lost connection warped their minds, turning them savage and war-like. Before the council could even find a way back to earth, they began to fight among themselves. Thus, an all out war broke out among the strongest of the Solum."

Anna looked up from the book to see Willem standing over her, looking at her questioningly. He could feel the strong emotions from her but since she did not know where it was coming from, he did not either. Willem sat beside her and she began to read again.

"Among the Solum were three who stood above the rest. Karesh, the god of death; Vitra, the goddess of wisdom and Khali, the goddess of beauty. These three high Solum were considered gods among their kin for their absolute power. Karesh and Vitra saw Khali changed by the missing connection of the earth and decided that for the sake of their race, she could not become the leader. Their decision became the impetus for the first war that could be felt throughout all the known worlds."

Anna stopped in confusion for a moment until Willem urged her to continue.

"Khali, now the self proclaimed goddess of hunger, led her bloodthirsty kin against Karesh, the god of death and his soldiers. The war lasted hundreds of years, with neither side gaining an advantage. Where the army of Karesh was organized and disciplined, Khali's men would devour and fight on even after being critically wounded. Vitra, who owned no army or followers save for twelve disciples, joined the fray in her own unique way. Vitra used her power of foresight to lead the armies of Karesh into victories that she knew to already be won, thus minimizing the deaths of Karesh's army."

Anna looked thoughtful for a moment, then turned to Willem.

"Master, are there more worlds than this one?"

Willem looked at the book, then back at Anna.

"It would be rather small-minded of us to believe we are the only world, would it not? I do not know for a fact if it is true, but I would like to find out. Perhaps one day we will all go travelling together."

Anna returned to the book, a small smile forming on her face.

"Khali, increasingly maddened by both the betrayal of her fellow high Solum and the losses she incurred, used a forbidden magic to sunder the sanctuary, splintering it into thousands of adrift lands. Khali did not know, however, that the forbidden magic came at the price of her own life. Her body fell from the sanctuary and drifted through the void, where the souls of the damned she had devoured were finally released from their captivity. Her body fell through the void onto the earth, where the lesser races consumed her flesh and drank her blood to unlock the powers within. Through her memories, the lesser races found out what truly happened to the Solum and now endeavor to not share the same fate. Through her blood they found power they had never felt before, and they used that power to establish the laws of this world."

Willem studied for a brief moment the small claw marks on the book, the spine of the book barely holding the pages together. Dirt and mud hanging from one of the corners. It was painfully obvious that the book suffered a lot of misfortunes, but the leather used and the binding technique of the book was something Willem had never seen nor heard of. If the book was forged a long time ago, to document the consuming of blood of an old god, then Willem might unlock some good secrets while it is in his possession.

"An excerpt from a philosopher's diary on the day of Khali's descent. - On the eve of the twenty seventh day, month of the jackalope, one hundred and second year, a star descended from the sky. This star was the goddess of hunger, Khali, whom had a thousand mouths all along her body. I know this because I have drunk from her blood, as have my kin and others who happened upon her first. We feast on her flesh, and our mind feasts on her memories. Such fear, and pain, would surely be enough to drive simpler creatures mad. She is Solum, a word I have not heard spoken in a long time. Her body is covered in mouths and scars, making her seem almost demon-born. We see her life as she saw herself, a savior of the people and a martyr for a just cause. We do not feel the contempt for the weak as she does, but her blood is intoxicating. I, whom has lived for a thousand years, have regressed in age as if I was a teenager on the cusp of adulthood. Those who arrive late are envious, but do not dare strike out in fear of the power we have obtained. Even I shudder to think what powers are now locked inside my body to be found. - The philosopher's diary was found beside a desiccated husk inside a cave on the northern continent in the year five hundred twelve. How long it had been there, no one could know for sure."

For Willem, reading time was over. The howls from the elf had been a constant annoyance since he awoke, and his preparations for the fight ahead were almost complete. He commanded the demoness to go torture the elf while he attended to some business.

The demoness clicked her tongue in a spider-like manner and made her way down the stairs, albeit unwillingly.

Willem dropped Kinsey and Anna off at the Magic Academy and headed for the Royal Palace to give the One True King the information he was waiting for.