Gloominess +4: The Cradle of Gods. A LitRPG series: Book 4 Read online

  Contents

  Gloominess +4

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Gloominess +4

  The Cradle of Gods

  Elian Tars

  Copyright © 2020 Elian Tars

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the author

  Translated by Maria Menzorova

  Edited by Sanja Gajin

  Cover by Julia Zhdanova

  Prologue

  Noriduel and the Old Man, both battered and tired, propped me from both sides. The contact with the former brought me incredible pain and cost me a lot of HP, but I had no other choice. There was no other way for the two to stabilize the portal.

  In all honesty, I didn’t fully understand the technicalities. Noriduel would have to either temporarily stop being a patron to his Followers or accept the Old Man’s energy for a short period of time. Perhaps he’d do both — it didn’t really matter. What mattered was that we’d be able to teleport the mercenaries via Elusive Darkness. However, according to Noriduel, once that and the battle with the Mother of the Decayed have been done, he won’t be able to use his true form for a week at best.

  Elusive Darkness.

  Black smoke began to cover the main square of Al-Harum, where all of the survivors had gathered after the battle: my warriors, the mercenaries, and the Ishirians.

  The latter had decided to join us. Greiv and Hask caught up with the refugees when the Decayed attacked them. The God of Darkness appeared in front of the citizens of Al-Harum and offered them to pledge their loyalty to him in exchange for help and salvation. The scared refugees were ready to do just about anything to avoid dying a painful death. Therefore, they, together with Greiv’s fifty soldiers and Hask’s pack, rushed back to the city through the tunnel. The Old Man then blocked the exit. While I was out cold, the Ishirian warriors pledged their loyalty to him. The best among them had to cut themselves with a ritual knife due to the high-level bond with their former patron.

  Did I disapprove of his decision? It was hard to tell.

  I was glad that the Ishirians didn’t become food for the Decayed. But thanks to Horn’s order to make a living shield out of their comrades, it’ll be difficult to maintain a peaceful relationships in my army.

  Speaking of Horn… He died... He was the one who stood between the Mother’s attack and me. He was the one that saved me, sacrificing his life for mine. Unfortunately, this meant that the Old Man and Noriduel had to fight the enemies two-on-three. And I had already sucked a lot of strength out of my patron by using the Small Avatar of Darkness…

  But, in the end, the two Gods won. In the last moment, Rugus, who was also pretty beaten by the time he had appeared, came to their aid. We owed the success of our campaign to him. We had swallowed the bait of Viyon, the God of Cunning, Slyness and Guile and the patron of the ruler of Al-Harum — Anur-Sin. His plan didn’t seem to have been to defeat us with the gas; Viyon was sure that we’d be able to get out of his trap. Everything they had done was to mess with our heads. Through his Disciple, Viyon allowed us to taste victory and waited until we found the Part of Zurtarn as he couldn’t find it himself. Only after my diggers had found the legendary artifact did the God of Guile appear in flesh. He then set Anur-Sin and his minions free and ordered them to run away with the Part.

  But Rugus had foreseen this. Sitting on giant Crows, several of his Disciples watched everything that was happening from the sky.

  Rugus attacked Viyon, and their Followers attacked one another.

  My allies won. Viyon fled.

  And then the three Gods defeated the Mothers and won us enough time to regroup and leave Al-Harum. We couldn’t have stayed — the vengeful Decayed could’ve attacked us at any moment.

  So many things happened while I was unconscious after having used the Small Avatar and the Power of Light… Una even kissed me… It hadn’t been a dream. She said that she’d personally give the artifact to me and asked the others to step back and not embarrass her. The Old Man must’ve complied with her request. Like hell my people would’ve listened to a Disciple of Rugus otherwise.

  He had done well to comply with such a small, insignificant request.

  But Una was arrogant. Control was her element, after all. That’s probably why she had kissed me in front of hundreds of people. Did she want to make everyone believe that we had a special bond? Or did she want to get in the way of my marriage? Did she wanted to hint to me that my main allies should be Rugus’s Followers, and not those of other Gods?

  It was unlikely that Una’s kiss was just a woman’s whim. That would’ve been stupid. There were political reasons behind her actions, but I hadn’t the foggiest what those reasons were.

  The world around me was engulfed in Darkness.

  The Shard of Sherr’s Gravestone.

  Darkness swirled around me. A moment later, I, together with the united army and 10,000 Ishirians, was transferred to the outskirts of Dark.

  I stumbled, like a marionette whose strings had been cut, but the Old Man and Tael (Noriduel’s human form) supported me.

  “My Followers!” The voice of the God of Darkness sounded from everywhere. “Take the Senior Disciple to his house and go rest. Restore your strength! Tomorrow, under the command of Disciple Kazimir, you’ll set off to Longera! The Senior Disciple will go to fulfill a task that I’ll soon give him. He’ll join you after its completion!”

  Despite the fact that they had given me the Restoring Potion 1 a while ago to heal the burns left by the Power of Light, I was still in terrible pain. My vision was blurry — I couldn’t see who was carrying me to the house. I thought that it was Berg and Greiv. The voice of the new thegn, who had been appointed by Noriduel in Al-Harum in front of all the people, could be heard in the distance.

  “Brothers and sisters!” Tilda shouted. “We had a great battle today! A great victory! And great losses! We lost many…” She seemed to have stuttered. “But we had chosen this life ourselves. It was our choice! That’s our freedom! Led by it tomorrow, we’ll set off to Longera! We’ll help the Followers of the God of Darkness in their search for the damned artifact! We’ll have our revenge! And our money, of course!”

  Her speech was greeted with a roar of hundreds of throats. Oblivion was beckoning me, but I was still catching the tails of the thoughts roaming in my head:

  …I did well today. Yes, I made some mistakes, but I can learn from them…

  …We’ll have to learn to live differently... I’m a high level... That means new powers... The Ishirians have found a new home... The Old Man’s “Followers” have gotten new brot
hers in faith... The mercenaries have a new thegn... Kane… Kane got a new, second “Highest Wight…”

  Chapter 1

  The Start of the Journey

  The following morning was a bit chaotic. Berg had been feeling guilty for having wakened and disturbed his resting commander, but the Disciples and the new thegn thought they had no right to discuss the upcoming campaign without me.

  I had hardly had time to wash my face when the guests began to arrive at my house. Not taking Berg into the account, first to arrive was Kazimir, who gave me the riches found in Al-Harum’s treasury and asked what to do with the rest of the trophies.

  Maids had laid out the table for breakfast beforehand. Shawn had promoted the most attractive and, even more importantly, the most skillful village girls to this honorary position. The girls, who had climbed the career ladder, were now helping the most important persons of my barony with their household work on a full-time basis.

  “Well, let’s drink to the beginning of a new, wonderful day!” Horn toasted as soon as we took our places at the table.

  Horn, the Highest Wight

  Level 142

  HP: 1,002/13,110

  Horn didn’t seem to have changed at all. He was the same cheerful and loud man, who was ready to attack his enemy at any moment, get smashed, or hug a woman he fancied. The only difference was the blue skin and the bright blue eyes.

  As far as I knew, three persons immediately asked Kane to bring Horn back to life: Noriduel, Tilda, and the Old Man. Berg told me in secret that the necromancer didn’t want to do it at first, but then suddenly agreed. I wondered why he had a sudden change of heart. After some thinking, I came to the conclusion that the Old Man probably made him understand the importance of this task and that having one more Highest Wight would help Kane develop his skills further. Horn’s high level would only be a benefit. Where else would Kane be able to find a level 142 fresh corpse? I wasn’t an expert in necromancy, but I supposed that it was much easier to reanimate a fresh corpse than a half-decayed one.

  But why hadn’t Kane made a second Highest Wight already? I had two theories. The first one was that he simply wasn’t strong enough before. He was a much higher level now, and had apparently upgraded his Element — Death. I heard that during the battle he used every chance to “charge” his Altar, using it instead of the Finishing Strike. Also, before the battle had even began, first in the camp and later in Dark, he asked the people to call him whenever a hen or a swine was to be slaughtered. He’d also go to the woods with the hunters from time to time. At first, the villagers were creeped out by him and his requests, but they soon got accustomed to it. Though, they’d still glance at Kane cautiously, as if he was mentally ill.

  The second theory had to do with his psyche. First of all, Kane didn’t want one more person in his vicinity, he had enough people around as is. And secondly, he didn’t want to create a Highest Wight of anyone aside his beloved.

  But all that was now in the past. Kane had made a step forward.

  “Heh, glad to see you safe and sound, Horn!” Tael chuckled, lifting his mug.

  Horn frowned and Tilda kissed his cheek. He turned to her and kissed her passionately.

  “Ahem,” Kazimir coughed.

  “Oh, come on, let them snog a little,” Mara chuckled. “People die all the time, you can’t let death get in the way of fun. You’d go crazy.”

  “It’s a matter of politeness,” Berg grunted, agreeing with the former prince.

  “Stop grunting already! Let’s drink!” Tael said and clanked his and my mug as hard as he could. The others followed his example and drank.

  After that, there were no more distractions. We ate and talked only about the upcoming campaign. Honestly speaking, not much happened during the conversation. We discussed provisions, possible routes, the length of the trip, and so on.

  Tilda suddenly smacked her fist on the table. “What about money?” She turned in my direction and rose an eyebrow.

  “And here I thought that you wouldn’t get to that,” Tael laughed.

  “Me too,” Horn chuckled.

  In Al-Harum, we acquired a little under million gold coins as well as some valuables, armor, and weapons. Kazimir assured me that they hadn’t found any valuable artifacts in the city. That was understandable. The citizens of Al-Harum had been preparing themselves and the city for the attack of the Decayed and everything that could’ve been used for enhancing one’s skills had been given to the soldiers. I allowed the Ishirians who had joined us to keep their armor. Having ordered that, I asked the Old Man to watch after the people he had taken under his wing.

  “How much do you want?” I inquired calmly.

  As a bonus for the previous campaign and as an advance for the upcoming one, I paid Tilda 700,000 gold coins. Of course, all of the agreements were sealed with an Oath Keeper. In the presence of the new thegn and her patron, I gave 300,000 gold coins to Kazimir, who promised to pay the mercenaries either when they take Longera, or if we they manage to get the last Part without fighting. The agreement suggested giving bonuses after the business had been done: “no less than 100,000 gold coins.”

  Aside from that, I gave Kazimir 250,000 more gold coins to cover the military expenses such as potions, new artifacts (we weren’t content with what little we had), and salary for the soldiers.

  I planned to give the majordomos 50,000 each — we needed money to expand and cultivate the land after all. I turned to the Old Man for advice, and he answered.

  Don’t worry, boy. I’m looking after the congregation. You’re doing the right thing getting rid of some of the additional duties. You’ve got enough on your plate, boy. Hurry up, you’ll be leaving in an hour. You and Vella will go west.

  He made it clear that he wasn’t going to reveal everything at the moment. I thanked him and returned my attention to the discussion of the upcoming campaign, which was, in all honesty, a bit boring. And not only to me, but also to Mara and Kane, and even Berg. Kazimir, on the other hand, seemed to be in his element, just like Tilda, Horn, and Noriduel.

  I shooed away the sad thought that, minus the 100,000 gold coins that were a bonus for the mercenaries, I had hardly 200,000 left. And to think that I had taken almost three million from two different treasuries... War was a really expensive affair. I’d have to ask the majordomos to think of a tax system. If they can’t do it themselves, they can hire an expert, they had the authority to do that. But where would they find such an expert? Hell, Shawn’s witty and Olyest is experienced. I’m sure they’ll find someone.

  “Don’t worry, I’ll adjust the route,” Tael assured Kazimir. “Zheng Roundface, one of my Disciples, is in the duke of Oruel’s army. So I’m well informed about where our allies are and what they’re doing.”

  I took a closer look at Tael. He looked pretty much the same as when I had met him in the cave.

  Tael the Handsome

  Level 85

  Despite his human appearance and the absence of a divine aura, that was definitely Noriduel sitting with me at the table.

  He really could turn into an ordinary man and tweak his level. I wondered could other Gods do that, too. Did this mean that Tael’s body once belonged to someone else, just like my body was once Bon’s? Was Noriduel possessing someone or could he simply change his appearance, switching between being a God and being a human? I wanted to believe that the latter was the case. Otherwise, Ilsa would forever remain a part of Aerida. Not that I cared much about her, but becoming a body donor was an unenviable fate.

  I caught myself thinking that my speculations were rather hypocritical. Because that was exactly what had happened to Bon, my current “avatar.” Then again, Bon had managed to reclaim control of his body once… He hadn’t made his presence felt since then. I hoped it wouldn’t happen again.

  I also wanted to believe that the Old Man would never make an Avatar out of me. Yes, my strongest skill was called Small Avatar of Darkness, but that was different from being an actual Avatar. The
skill just let me borrow my patron’s powers. In Ilsa’s case, being an Avatar was a permanent thing.

  My thoughts returned to Noriduel. He was a very strange God. I mean, they were all strange, but the rebellious spirit of the God of Liberty was too strong and there was too much humanity in him. His “hero” wasn’t a high level, and he enjoyed all the joys of human life through him. He could’ve chosen a higher level person, but I supposed that that would’ve cost Noriduel more energy. Not to mention that he’d stand out, which would hinder his freedom of movement, among other things. Right now, he just lived and was satisfied with his life. Before the trip to Al-Harum, other mercenaries, except for some of the Disciples, didn’t have a clue that Tael was their patron. After the campaign, rumors started to spread and Tael had to admit that he was an Avatar. In other words, Noriduel had lied to his Followers.

  The Old Man glanced around. “I think there’s nothing else to discuss.”

  I nodded. “Looks like it.” The others kept silent.

  “Then you’ll excuse me,” Tael said with a slyly smile. “One of your village girls promised to show me something before we set off.” Chuckling smugly, he got up from the table and walked toward the door. “By the way, Ken, about that black Serpent. I’ve sent Gerta, one of the Disciples, to guard the island from that beast. Well, the Serpent has returned with a full belly. Seems that someone’s ship didn’t reach its destination. Anyway, it’ll remain on the island for a couple of weeks. You owe me 5,000 for the information… As a token of good will. Give it to Tilda together with the bonus for the campaign.” He chuckled and went out.

  “Look, Kane,” Tilda said when the door closed. “How long until Horn fully recovers? One can’t fight much with 1,000 HP.”

  “Yeah, how long until I’m good to go?” Horn inquired.

  Kane sighed heavily and answered with some reluctance.

  “I’ve told you already. About two weeks.”