Bro, I'm not an Undead!

"Er, it's the severed, rotting head of a Deity circled by a Zwein Vortex," Pell said carefully, and Yuyui gaped in awe. "If you don't know, a Zwein Vortex is a—"

"I know what it is," said Elita coldly. "So, you and your group were pulled in by the vortex and 'stranded', is it?"

"That's right. The vortex spins from within the corpse as well, but it's much more manageable there. We actually used it to escape. Our leader is very knowledgeable about the convections of a vortex."

Kintar's brow was raised high. Admittedly, she didn't know what a Zwein Vortex was and would not ask (since it was clear Elita was trying to keep up their appearances), but she did deduce that it must have been a twister of some sort.

That didn't interest her as much as the fact that the corpse of a Deity was the territory Pell had been referring to all along, though.

"That's ridiculous," said Grim, but he was clearly as interested as Yuyui, whose eyes were shining. He was a shade more aware of the situation, though. "The bodies of Deities, even when dead, have special quirks, right? I mean, they can be used as raw materials for worlds."

"That's right," Pell confirmed. The spark of hope was back in his eyes. "It's another reason why our leader was hesitant to leave. There's…er… residual Amras traces all over the inner bone matter. It's kept many Fiends away – or so he said."

Elita hummed, musing. "I would have thought the opposite would be true."

Uyuniya frowned. She had imagined the same. If this story were even true, residual traces of a Deity's Amras were more likely to attract Fiends, with very, very few exceptions.

She turned to Kintar. The acting Commander seemed lost in thought. Uyuniya didn't like that. When she (Kintar) finally said something, the princess scowled.

"Must have been quite the find, assuming you're telling us the truth."

The other Unlimited Stars turned to her. Somehow, Kintar understood their individual opinions on this. All of them, without exception, were leaning in the opposite direction to what Uyuniya wanted.

She sighed and looked outside the Metgard, where the purple shimmer she'd noticed earlier was still blinking, as though signaling, calling…

"Last question, and you're free to go bite the dust," she said before scrolling back to Pell, who, like Kiek, jolted. "Who is Momem Thyrgga?"

***

Timemould Mirror Box…

With the help of Strawlers, Pherdanta had made it work. She followed Skullius' instructions carefully and set the timer within the Timemould Mirror Box to no longer than the equivalent of two months in Aigas' time – the same length it took for the original Troops and Stars to complete the regiment Skullius had prepared.

It was about time to begin, but Pherdanta had a broader vision of what was to become of these recruits.

Sause, Remos, Aegir, Muezzi, Vali, Maxim, Ashema, Puiradt, Dradaht (the Ode of the First Horn), and many others…

She had a bigger vision of what the Stark-Soul Order could become, and since Skullius gave her creative freedom…

"This Order is already bigger than the initial vision my master had for it," she said sternly. "It's also slated to grow even larger and perhaps exceed what it was initially created for. Many great powers will join, attracted by my master's grace and power. And for that reason, I want order."

Kenno was standing next to the swordsmaster, watching. He'd insisted on helping or at least overseeing the entire process. Even he was invested in the idea of building a proper crop for the Order. It was surely going to grow. Skullius was planning something for all of his subordinates, after all, or so Pherdanta had told him. A few among the crowd of experts knew this better than him: Sause, Remos, and Puiradt.

"Skill and strength have been the benchmark of what this Order needed for a while, but we're naturally evolving from that point. Some of you excel in raw, unbridled might, some in supernatural innovations, and some, in wisdom," said Pherdanta, looking around at everyone. "For some of you, your selling point is that you're middling in every caste, and for others, your potential lies dormant, and will only awaken when ripe, regardless of how this Order prompts and probes you. Everyone will have a role."

Kenno chuckled inwardly.

Pherdanta was aggressively driven by this idea of roles. It was about the only thing she'd told him about what she intended.

There are enough Unlimited Stars. We need branches with different but significant purposes, she'd said. Our role has already been decided, but why should that mean there can't be others who can serve master in a different way? A Council, a vanguard, an Elite Guard…

'She and Kintar seem to be on different wavelengths, or perhaps it's the same. They are going about their own ways to serve the Order,' Kenno thought. 'I can't fall behind.'

"Most of you are already physically attuned, sharp, intuitive, greedy," Pherdanta said. "Unlike us, you have every opportunity to come out of the end of this much stronger than we did."

The Strawlers behind her began manipulating the state of the Timemould Mirror Box. Suddenly, it began diving itself into dozens of sealed rooms, within them suits of armour that were ready to shapeshift according to their opponent.

The Impossible Task.

"In case you've already decided which role you want to take on, let me warn you: you'd better have the qualifications necessary." Pherdanta eyed Vali and Maxim.

"The whole point behind the exercise you are about to undertake is to face and overcome yourself – to evolve – multiple times. The bare minimum limit master set for us was a hundred for a baseline, and a thousand as a higher, more respectable threshold. But for some of the new roles I have created, I expect five thousand evolutions as the baseline. Any less, and you'll be relegated to something inferior. So, fight like your future depends on it. It likely does."

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!