World Keeper - Chapter 1251: Secret Deals
“What happened?!” The Master of Mysteries asked with a dark growl, looking at the Master of Travel. Their group had beat a sorry retreat after being sure of their victory. “Didn’t you say that you had killed their Administrator?”
“Y-Yes.” The Master of Travel nodded his head urgently. “That’s right. I saw his death with my own eyes! His palace even felt like it was collapsing after losing the source of its power!”
The other masters looked at the Master of Travel suspiciously. None of them felt any form of enhancement after the ‘death’ of the enemy Administrator. Many of them suspected that the Master of Travel himself had taken that power. However, while the Master of Travel was cunning, he did not have that level of ambition. He became a Master purely out of his fear of death, believing it to be the only way to truly exist eternally.
Everyone present knew of his cowardice. Even as a Master, he didn’t feel safe confronting the enemy Administrator, not without two Extreme Gods, both of which had all nine of their domains focused on combat. Just that alone showed how insecure he was. If he had truly inherited the power of the Administrator, even accidentally, he would have already run away to some barren corner of the world to hide.
“If the Master of Travel didn’t take the power, perhaps one of the assassins?” The Master of Gems asked, giving a meaningful smile as she looked at the robed figures standing next to the Master of Travel.
“Those are my personal Death Troops.” The Master of Death said, shaking his head. “They have practically no ego of their own. They don’t have the ability to keep secrets from their master during their missions.”
“Then, what do you suggest?” The Master of Gems questioned, her brows furrowing. “Is this just an ownerless realm now?”
“No.” Another voice spoke up, and the group turned to the side, where a childlike boy sat on a floating cushion, his eyes closed. This was the Master of Secrets, the top intelligence gatherer after the Master of Fate was announced dead.
“Did you learn something?” The Master of Gems asked, her eyes shining like sapphires.
The young Master nodded his head, slowly opening his eyes. “The Keeper… the Administrator isn’t dead.”
At these words, everyone turned to look at the Master of Travel, fury on their faces. However, before they could throw out their accusations, the Master of Secrets continued to speak. “The only thing that was slain was his mortal body. Administrators possess the power to exist in another realm when they are not in the midst of a battle between Administrators.”
“At the current moment, our own Administrator has already perished. Therefore, this no longer qualifies as a war between realms. Rather, it is merely an internal struggle, allowing the Administrator to come and go as he pleases.”
“I’ve never heard about anything like this.” The Master of Mysteries said suspiciously. “Where did you get this information?”
The Master of Secrets waved his hand lightly, projecting a circular screen near the group. On it, the Master of Beasts was speaking with the enemy, discussing this very fact. Afterwards, it showed the battle just now, when the blood-soaked maid froze her frenzy after slaughtering the Master of Light. It showed her staring at another universe, and zoomed in there to show a human man standing atop a tall building.
“That’s him!” The Master of Travel shouted. “That’s the Administrator! I swear, I saw him die!”
The Master of Secrets nodded his head. “After his mortal body perished, he briefly returned to this world, but only to reassure his servant that he was fine. Had he not done so, it is likely that you would have already met the same fate as the Master of Light.”
The Master of Travel froze, his eyes widening. It was almost unheard of for a Master to die. They were the pinnacle of existence, beings beyond the control of even the world’s systems. In all of history, a Master has only ever been slain by another Master, or by an Extreme God. However, he had sensed that fox woman, and he knew that she was no Extreme God. “Is she a Master Seed?” He questioned, and the Master of Secrets nodded his head.
In order to become a Master, there were a number of requirements. First, you must not have more than three prestige domains. Any more, and you would have locked the Master path permanently. Secondly, you must master a number of ‘Super Energies’ equal to the number of prestiges you possess. People who reach this point are referred to as ‘Master Seeds’.
To go from a Master Seed to a Master, one must create an artificial dungeon gate within their own body. In the process of doing so, divine prestige classes gain the essence of chaos, and chaotic prestige classes gain the essence of the divine. At this point, the only thing left is for the Master Seed to kill the Administrator of the artificial dungeon attached to their essence. If they do, the dungeon merges with their being, and they become the equivalent of its Administrator.
This was the essence of a Master from Hal Tua. For the fox woman to be a Master Seed, it meant that she had an equal number of prestige classes and super energies, and she was only a short step away from becoming a Master herself.
Thinking back to her power, and the rage she had demonstrated, the Master of Travel felt a chill down his spine. If the enemy Administrator hadn’t intervened, it was truly likely that he would have perished as well.
“So, what do we do now?” The Master of Death asked. “Those figures that appeared at the end… do you have any idea who they were?”
The Master of Secrets hesitated, before shaking his head. “This I do not know. They don’t fall within the realm of my power. I believe that their identities should be common knowledge among those worlds.”
The Master of Secrets could only gather information on things which were classified as secrets. Stories spoken in hushed whispers, or shared between a small number of people. Once billions, or even trillions of people knew a fact, it was no longer considered a secret. At that point, he could not use his power to discover it. Of course, at that point, you could just ask any random person on the street and get the answer anyways, so he never found this to be a problem.
The gathered Masters looked at each other, seeing the hesitance in their eyes. Some of them were clearly reluctant to continue fighting. The others… they were more reluctant to surrender. Given what Lyrica had said before her departure, there were some among the Masters who would surely not be spared.
This created an invisible divide between them. Those who wished to submit were thinking about how they could break away without alerting the others, while those who refused to do so were thinking about how to subdue those that wished to leave.
The Masters of Death and Mysteries, in particular, were nervous. Aside from the deceased Master of Darkness and the Master of Games, they were the ones with the worst reputations. The Master of Death delighted in finding new and interesting ways to kill, often experimenting on his own people to find inspiration. Meanwhile, the Master of Mysteries was a hedonist, indulging in carnal pleasure. His tendencies were so extreme that he often needed to find replacements for his concubines.
However, the others had already begun to silently distance themselves from these two in their minds. Sure, none of the Masters were strictly innocent. However, most of their crimes were considered normal within the range of pursuing power.
Only the Master of Travel was truly panicking. He did not actively commit any atrocities like the Masters of Death and Mysteries. In fact, he was perhaps the most well-behaved of all the Masters. However, he had personally tried to assassinate the Administrator. Would they truly be able to forgive that? Would that sin alone not outweigh any cruelty performed by the others?
Thinking back to the fox woman, he already knew what her answer would be to that. If it was left to her, he would be torn to shreds and fed to the uncaring void. I wouldn’t be so sure. A quiet voice spoke into the back of his mind, startling him. This was an unfamiliar voice, and he had no idea how they were contacting them. If you want to survive, keep this a secret.
Seeing how the Master of Travel nearly jumped out of his skin, the Master of Death looked at him with a raised brow. “Did you learn something?” He asked, but the Master of Travel quickly shook his head.
“N-No, nothing! I-I was just thinking to myself, that’s all.” He said, and the voice giggled lightly.
Good. My name is Aurivy. I’m the cute, little pink one that showed up near the end of that fight just now. I am the Goddess of Travel, Love, and Dungeons. She introduced herself, and the Master of Travel shuddered.
H-How are you talking to me like this? This world is protected by a privacy wall. The Master of Travel questioned in his mind urgently, noticing that not even the Master of Secrets seemed to notice their hidden conversation.
It’s simple. Your little barriers don’t mean anything to the Greater Pantheon. We’ve been able to see what you were doing from the start. The only reason I didn’t stop you from killing my big brother’s mortal body is because that body has been limiting him for quite a while. He never really got annoyed enough to do anything about it, but he’s always been waiting for someone to kill it.
Y-Your brother? The Master of Travel asked hesitantly, face pale.
That’s right. You call him the Administrator. I’m his cute little sister! Well, that’s the setting we came up with way back then, but don’t sweat the details. We are the Greater Pantheon, a group of gods that exist beyond the world, together with the Administrator. Your own Administrator never allowed such a group to exist, so you wouldn’t know about it.
The voice giggled once again, though the noise was utterly terrifying to the Master of Travel. Anyways, the point is that you don’t have to worry, as long as you don’t continue your sins. In fact, you might even be rewarded if you help us in a meaningful way.
W-What type of help do you need from me? Couldn’t you do it yourself? The Master of Travel questioned. If she was as powerful as she claimed, surely she didn’t need him.
We try to stay out of mortal affairs as much as we can. Besides, this is a chance for you to redeem yourself. Of course, it won’t come without a risk. However, this risk should be something that you are more than capable of overcoming.
The Master of Travel gulped slightly. W-What do you need me to do?
Aurivy’s grin could practically be felt within her tone as she gave her instructions. When the other Masters ask you to send them away, send the Masters of Death, Mysteries, and Frost to a certain location for us. That’s all. After that, you can consider yourself free.
The Master of Travel hesitated for a moment, confused. The Master of Frost was an icy woman, for sure, but she did not have a bad reputation. Those that knew her even claimed her to be quite benevolent to her people. He could understand why Mysteries and Death were being targeted, but Frost?
Sensing his confusion, Aurivy explained. The Master of Frost holds a terrifying side to herself. A secret planet within her realm where she takes special individuals, torturing them in a variety of ways. Men, women, children, her death count is likely higher than either of the other two. Even now, she is calming herself by imagining their screams.
The Master of Travel’s eyes widened briefly, looking over at the Master of Frost. She regarded him with a cold nod, unaware of the secret conversation that he was having. He couldn’t imagine Aurivy’s words being true. However, she was already proving her ability to bypass privacy barriers and see what should be impossible to see. Furthermore, she had no reason to lie about this. Whether it was two or three Masters wouldn’t change much in what he was asked to do.
I-I’ll do it… He thought to himself, clenching his fists to try to calm his mind.
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