Divine Luck: SSS-Rank Battle Maid Harem

The Apostle and the blue-clad woman frowned skeptically at Zach's words.

"Cease your blasphemy!" The Apostle said angrily. Zach, claiming to be a god, mocked the real gods.

"Sure." Zach chuckled.

"If you stop beating around the bush. Tell me why you wanted to invade my continent. Tell me why you invited us to talk. Tell me what the blessings of any gods have to do with it." Zach's demands were simple.

But the Apostle didn't like the fact that he was making demands. In his eyes, Zach was not in a position to be making demands. He should be waving a white flag, if not one of surrender, at least one asking for peace.

Instead, Zach seemed intent on provoking them.

"I have no reason to tell you anything," The Apostle said, crossing his arms.

"How about introductions?" The blue-clad woman offered.

"Sure," Zach answered before looking at her, waiting. It was her suggestion. She could go first.

The woman was unperturbed by Zach's gaze.

"I am the Priestess of Frost. My Name is Frida. Together with my Paladin of Ice here, I serve Vatar, the Goddess of Ice," She said, pointing at the armored knight behind her. Then, she turned to the side and gestured toward the Apostle.

"This is Bartuk, the fourth Apostle of the Goddess of Purification, Mistra."

Zach's eyes narrowed as he inspected the two with a renewed perspective.

They were servants and followers of beings similar to Isuls, the God of Nature, who sealed the Hydra in the Labyrinth. He wondered how strong they were and if their power came from their gods.

"I see. You're missionaries, then." Zach wasn't familiar with religions. There weren't any in the Empire. But he had read about cult-like institutions. They wanted to spread like diseases.

"Yes." Frida nodded. There was no need to hide it. There also wasn't anything wrong with being missionaries.

"I don't think you'll have much luck on the other side of the tunnel."

"Because your continent is unfamiliar with gods? There is no need to worry about us. Those who are fated to become our brothers and sisters will do so."

"No, I meant because you won't be reaching it." Zach's gaze sharpened.

"You and your gods are not welcome here." Zach could already imagine the chaos the appearance of gods would create in the Empire. The gods and their followers.

He was curious. There was no denying that. What were gods? How powerful were they? How did they work? What was the difference between them and deities? They were an unknown.

But there was also what the Hydra had said.

She wanted his help to kill a god. That most likely meant he would end up coming in contact with the southern continent sooner or later. It meant he would stand before a god, not as a believer, but as a challenger.

But now was too soon.

The Apostle glared at Zach, ready to resume the activities from before the ice wall went up.

Frida just smiled with cold eyes hiding behind almost-closed lids.

"And who are you to make such a decision? Do you speak for your continent, young man? If that is the case, your continent needs our guidance even more than we suspected."

Zach snorted.

"Not officially, no. But I doubt the ones with the authority to speak for the continent don't mind me sparing them the trouble of telling you all to fuck off or face the consequences." He crossed his arms and shrugged, leaning back in the chair. He waited for them to react.

"Are you picking a fight?" Bartuk asked bluntly.

"You weren't here the last time, so maybe you missed it, but your strongest fighter didn't even last a few rounds against me. If I'm honest, you don't look any stronger than her." Bartuk clenched his fist.

Zach could feel the sizzling of his energy fill the air. He could see it with his Eyes of Truth as well.

"If I remember correctly, you were the ones picking a fight first. You charged in here with an army. You attacked my friends and comrades."

"That winged freak was the one who flew into us first."

"Mhm. Jigak. He was pursuing an enemy, whom he couldn't get hold of because of your interference." Zach narrowed his eyes and met Bartuk's gaze without backing down.

"The fact that you think Zoe was stronger than me tells me everything I need to know. You aren't worth jack shit. That's why you're sitting here with a look like you haven't taken a shit in months. You're scared.

"You know that you can't take this continent by force. That's why you want to negotiate."

Zach leaned back in his chair again and rolled his eyes.

Bartuk gritted his teeth so hard Zach heard them crack.

Frida's hand on his upper arm was the only thing holding him back.

Frida was a priestess. Logically, she should be lower in rank than an Apostle. She had also introduced him with respect in her voice.

But it seemed like Frida was the one actually in charge.

Vatar was probably a more influential goddess than Mistra.

"I'll ask again," Zach said. "What do you want?"

Bartuk just stared at Zach like an angry bull, waiting to charge.

Frida smiled, hiding her emotions.

"I'll tell you what we don't want. We don't want this conflict to escalate. Clearly, you and your continent are stronger than we had expected.

"You're right. If you had been weak, we wouldn't have bothered talking to you. But while you are here on behalf of your continent, we are here on behalf of our gods. Our positions are not the same, and they do not equally reflect the situations of our respective continents.

"Your continent might have been stronger than we thought. That just means that we have failed. The next ones who discover this tunnel won't. Chasing us away will do you nothing but open up the path for the next person to make an attempt.

"It won't be someone like the God of Rainfall who sends his followers. It will be someone like the God of Warfare."