章 241: Reunion

Meld glanced around the forest clearing they were in as Aiko and princess Liliana found a place to sit, both exhausted from fleeing all night and the entire morning. He felt that they should be safe to take a quick break while also contacting Alex, something both girls appreciated dearly. Before he could however the princess asked,

"So where to now? Even after you contact this Alex we still need to figure out how to travel and meet up with him since they'll probably be looking for us, and we don't exactly blend in Meld." Liliana had a point as with the status cards it would be impossible for any of the three to hide their identities when entering a city, something that would make traveling a lot more difficult if they had to meet up with Alex. Meld sighed and said,

"I'll have to ask him about that when I talk to him, worst case scenario we may have to find someone willing to help us to smuggle us around." Though Meld had seen and experienced the teleportation magic Alex and his group were capable of using, he didn't believe for a second that such an advanced and powerful magic would be capable of allowing them to meet instantly. With that in mind he took out one of the sheets of paper Alex gave him and activated it after a few minutes of trying to figure out how to use it. They knew it was working when the magic circle on the paper lit up and hovered a couple inches off the paper in front of him, prompting Meld to hesitantly say,

"Hello?"

"..."

No one responded at first so Meld thought the paper was a dud and was about to scrap it to try another, when a voice suddenly came through.

"M-Meld? W-what is it?" Recognizing Alex's voice even if something seemed off about it, Meld sighed in relief and said,

"Alex, last night we escaped the castle like you told me to, they wanted to imprison and use Aiko to control the Kouki and everyone. If they couldn't do that, then they planned to kill her to remove her. The princess told me what they were planning so the three of us escaped like you said, right now we're in the forest between the Capitol and Horlad." After he finished talking there was silence again for a few seconds, before another reply came through,

"I-I see. Give me about an hour and I'll send someone to you, they'll take you someplace safe and we'll meet in a few hours as welllllllll!" Though Meld was stunned that Alex said they'd meet up so quickly, he sighed in relief once more since it meant they wouldn't have to worry about trying to travel without drawing attention. As for the hour long wait, he didn't mind since they should be far enough away that even after it was discovered that he left as well as Liliana, it should take the castle at least several hours to find them.

"Ok, see you then." Meld said with the relief and gratitude obvious in his voice.

"See you theeeeeeeeen!" Though Meld was suspicious at how Alex seemed to be distracted while they were talking he decided to just ask about it when they met up, but he got his answer immediately as he canceled the magic circle.

"YES! FUCK ME-" A female voice cried out before getting cut off right before the magic circle vanished, leaving Meld and the two girls speechless before both developed a decent blush as Aiko explained due to personal experience,

"He's a pervert..." Meld and Liliana both nodded silently in understanding as they tried to force another topic to discuss for the next hour. At almost an hour exactly from when the call cut off, another magic circle appeared on the ground and after a flash of light a silver haired maid was standing there looking at all of them. Since she hadn't met Aiko or Liliana before, Grayfia gave a light bow and introduced herself.

"Greetings, I am Alex's servant and maid, Grayfia. I am to escort the three of you to the main base of our operations until my lord has finished preparations to leave his current location and meet with you." Meld nodded and asked,

"If I may, where is this main base you spoke of?" He was curious where Alex and his group had seemingly set up camp since it had apparently gone unnoticed by anyone.

"We made our base at the bottom of the Orcus Great Labyrinth due to the large amount of strong monsters and natural materials available there to harvest." Meld paled as he realized the implications behind what Grayfia just said, not only did Alex and his group have he strength to casually walk around one of the most dangerous places he knew of, but they even made their base near the most dangerous area of it for the sake of convenience. It only took a moment before they were all standing around Grayfia and another magic circle spread under them until it grew large enough to encircle all of them. A brief flash of blinding light and when the trio opened their eyes they were dumbfounded by what they saw. Overhead and on all sides was the stone walls of a massive cave that housed a manor, several farms, a waterfall with a small lake, and even several other smaller buildings that were most likely the homes of the couple hundred people working the fields and inhabiting the cave. Their stupor was broken when Grayfia said,

"The giant stone doors behind us lead to the two hundredth floor of the Orcus Great Labyrinth. Directly behind them one would find a massive seven headed hydra with each head capable of using a unique type of magic, while one is even able to use healing magic. The manor in front of us is the home of Oscar Orcus, one of the Liberators that led the rebellion against Ehito before they were defeated by the same people they sought to liberate." Except for Aiko who heard the truth from Alex and Hajime, both Meld and Liliana were extremely confused as they were taught that the creators of the labyrinths were traitors that betrayed god's benevolence towards the people. As they thought about it however they reasoned that they didn't know the whole story and decided to ask Alex to explain it when he arrived to meet with them. Meld also didn't miss how Grayfia explained that what seemed to be the only way out would lead to their certain death as he knew for a fact he wouldn't be able to face a monster on the 80th floor, let alone the 200th. What he didn't know was that Grayfia was just letting them know so that they didn't get themselves killed by exploring. She then led them towards the manor and into one of the rooms that was set up for for meetings in order to wait until Alex arrived. She then left and came back a few minutes later with a small cart full of tea and several snacks.

"Would anyone like some refreshments?" She asked the still exhausted and famished group who looked at the cart like a pack of wolves. Though Meld had brought some rations to last until they could buy some more food, what was on the cart looked infinitely better than those. He quickly dug in along with both Aiko and Liliana, all of which nearly forgot their manners in their haste before correcting themselves. As she bit into one of the cakes and drank some of the tea Liliana let out a expression of amazement before turning to Grayfia and saying,

"These cakes and this tea are delicious! I don't suppose I could convince you to work for me in the palace instead, could I?" Grayfia immediately shook her head and answered,

"It's impossible, I intend to serve Alex for the rest of my life." Liliana nodded in acceptance at Grayfia's refusal, as she didn't actually expect her to accept the offer, but she figured she might as well try anyways. After everyone finished eating Grayfia took the cart away and made preparations for a proper meal to be made once Alex arrived later, and all the business was concluded. When she returned to the room however she found both girls asleep as Meld sat cross from them and watched over them. Seeing them she said,

"The couches are quite comfortable so if you wish to rest as well you can do so, I'll wake you before Alex arrives in a few hours." Meld politely refused her offer as he intended to do his duty to the end and watch over his princess. However within twenty minutes of Grayfia leaving him his eyelids grew increasingly heavy before he too was dreaming.

***

Meld awoke several hours later to find a blanket over him and Grayfia shaking them all awake, as Alex would arrive momentarily. They had just enough time to make themselves presentable, with Liliana especially worrying about her looks since she was trying to represent the Royal family, even if her father wasn't in his right mind. They had just barely finished preparing themselves when Alex came through the door escorted by Hajime, Kaori, Shizuku, and a trio that neither Meld nor Liliana could identify though Aiko could identify one of them at a glance. Alex sat on the couch along with Hajime, Kaori, and Gabriel, while Shizuku stood to the side and Grayfia stood behind them along with sister Griselda and Irina. Alex started the conversation by saying,

"Nice to see you again Meld and Aiko, and it's a pleasure to meet you your highness, princess Liliana." Liliana smiled charmingly at Alex and replied,

"The pleasure is all mine, I've heard quite a few stories about you and your exploits, though sadly they were from the point of view of your enemies." Alex smiled at Liliana but turned serious since the pleasantries were out of the way and said,

"So what exactly is happening at the castle?" His question caused Liliana and Meld to become serious as well, while Aiko looked more melancholic as she thought of the students she left behind. They then explained the general strangeness in which the majority of the castle had been acting, from the king to the pope and most of the higher up officials as well. Alex listened silently until they got to how it was decided to arrest Aiko before asking,

"Have any of you seen a person around the castle with silver hair and blue eyes?" They were all confused at the seemingly random question, before Liliana hesitantly said,

"I think I have, a woman who was talking to my father." Alex nodded and explained,

"These are apostles of the god Ehito, they brainwash those who won't listen to them in order to ensure their masters game isn't disturbed. Ehito is the god that both the demon race and humans worship though they do so through different names, he sees the mortal races as nothing more than pieces in a game to use and throw away as he pleases. There were several instances throughout history where there might have been peace, but they interfered and even turned allies against each other." As Alex continued explaining the truth about Ehito and his apostles, Liliana and Meld became dumbfounded while Aiko just listened silently, as she was already aware of most of the stuff Alex was talking about.

"So everything I ever thought... was a lie?" Liliana asked as she became dispirited, while Meld's reaction was a bit more extreme.

"All those battles we fought in the name of God, all those men and women I sent to die in his name, it was all for nothing?" Alex gave them a few moments to think while everything they ever believed came crashing down on them, until Meld seemed to think of something and asked,

"What about goddess Gabriel, where does she fit in?" Alex smirked slightly and pointed to the woman next to him before saying,

"On that note I'd like to introduce you to our own goddess, this is Gabriel." There was a momentary silence at his introduction, before both Meld and Liliana exclaimed,

"WHAT?!" This caused Alex to chuckle lightly once more while those with him also couldn't help but giggle at their reaction. Before either one could ask he explained,

"I plan to remove Ehito due to the fat that even if I ignored him while in this world, he most likely wouldn't leave us alone until we left, plus it would leave a bad taste in my mouth if I just ignored the unnecessary suffering he's causing. The problem was that to fix the suffering he's caused I would need to find a way to get everyone to get along, so I created a new goddess that loved everyone no matter the race. This was also to prevent anyone from creating new gods that are more convenient to their goals and to have an excuse to continue fighting the other factions." As Alex listed his reasons for creating goddess Gabriel Liliana couldn't help but exclaim,

"But she's not even a goddess though?!" Gabriel turned red at her exclamation and also shot a look at Alex, who answered,

"She's just like one of the apostles of this world, except in our world they're referred to as angels and they are mostly considered the physical embodiment of purity. I chose Gabriel since she was the most powerful among those who are with me, and because she hates being considered a goddess so the newfound status won't go to her head." This made Gabriel give him a different look as she never heard this reason before while when they thought about it everyone agreed with Alex's reasoning as they didn't want a second Ehito. Meld then asked however,

"You mentioned that you intend to leave this world, what will you do when that time comes? "Goddess Gabriel" has already made two appearances in public and if she suddenly stopped interfering with mortal affairs won't people question it?" Alex nodded and said,

"I already considered this so I was thinking that we have her make one last appearance before we leave stating that it's time for humanity to control their own future instead of bowing to the whims of the divine. If we spread the truth regarding Ehito then it'll be easier for people to accept, and we have until then to establish a more permanent following and organization to ensure that people still acknowledge her." Though they still had doubts both Liliana and Meld accepted that Alex's plan wasn't the most horrible, as he could've just fought Ehito and left the world's people to clean up afterwards. Their thoughts were interrupted when Alex said,

"Now onto the next topic. I'm planning to move against the apostle controlling the Heiligh kingdom, but not for another two days. Well use the time until then to train and prepare, the rest of the girls are already doing just this." This instantly caught everyone's attention, including Shizuku, Kaori, and Hajime's, who asked,

"Why do we need to prepare, aren't we strong enough to do something now?" Alex nodded his head in affirmation, but explained his reasoning,

"Since leaving Orcus we haven't taken a moment to actually get accustomed to the age of gods magic we've acquired so far, so I want everyone to train with them before we actually move against the apostles. Since we can extend these two days into two months, this would also give Kaori and Shizuku plenty of time to train and you time to complete any new inventions you're working on. I specifically have a new training regimen I want to try with my new abilities." As they thought about what Alex said the three of them couldn't really find a fault in his logic, as Kaori still needed to take the time to properly learn to control her new devil abilities and Shizuku also wanted to continue increasing her own strength. She in particular had a decisive glint in her eye after hearing what the gods plan was for Kouki and the others. Seeing their agreement on the plan Alex then almost shouted,

"CAM!" Which startled most of those gathered. Almost immediately a middle aged rabbit eared man appeared and saluted before saying,

"REPORTING FOR DUTY SIR!" Alex nodded and said,

"At ease, I have two new assignments for you and the Haulia. But first I want to ask, when we left Orcus originally there were only around a hundred Haulia here, how did your numbers seem to double?" Cam smiled proudly as his body visibly relaxed and explained,

"Well boss since we know that you intend to end slavery and make all of the races equal at some point, we started regularly patrolling the edge of the Haltina Sea of Trees. Our goal was to further our own training by taking on the trained soldiers of the empire when they came to capture more slaves, and to keep the number of slaves from increasing. We sent the members of the other tribes away after making them swear to keep their mouths shut about us, but to the other members of the rabbitman tribe we decided that it might be good to do some recruiting, and told them that if they wanted to gain strength then they should report to the entrance of the Raisen Great Canyon. Some followed us and others left, but then they returned with their families who wanted to know how to gain the strength to never risk being enslaved again. Don't worry boss, we made sure that those we've trained are completely loyal to you and you alone." Though he was curious of how the Haulia instilled loyalty towards him into the new recruits, Alex decided that with what he knew of them it was probably better not to ask. He instead praised Cam by saying,

"Excellent work Cam, I suppose I might be making the right decision making you my representative." This confused Cam for a second before Alex explained,

"I'm sending you and several other Haulia back to the Sea of Trees in order to protect the labyrinth, and prepare the citizens of Verbergen for their loved ones returning when I confront the empire regarding their slave policies. Though I haven't decided how I'll deal with them yet, worst case scenario I'll just beat the shit out of everyone there and call myself the new emperor since they believe in strength more than anything. You can tell them to expect the slaves of the empire to be returned within the month." Cam smiled as he was interested in meeting with the elders of Verbergen once more after being exiled due to them refusing to allow Shia's execution, though he wouldn't try to get revenge against the elders he still wanted to see their reactions towards the new Haulia. The best part was that the elders wouldn't be able to say anything about him returning as he was representing Alex before he arrived, someone they would hesitate to offend especially since he's promised to return their loved ones. He then recalled something else Alex said and asked,

"What is the second assignment boss?" Alex smiled and turned a look towards Aiko who had been silent until now. The person in question twitched like a small animal as if she felt Alex's look on her before looking at him cautiously. He then started explaining what he wanted the other group of Haulia to do during the next two days while they were training, as well as how he intended to face the apostles of Ehito.

***

"Alright, now let's get on our way and we can start our training!" Alex said enthusiastically as everyone started getting up from the couches they'd been sitting at for the last several hours. Some like Liliana and Meld looked thoughtful as they tried to digest everything they had learned in a mere couple hours, while Aiko looked terrified from what Alex requested she do and Cam looked excited. Gabriel led the way to the portal to return to Asora along with Irina and sister Griselda, thankful that Alex didn't expect her to make another appearance as 'goddess Gabriel' this time and she just mainly showed up to meet Meld and Liliana since they were in the know now. As Alex was about to follow Hajime, Kaori, and Grayfia out however, he felt someone grab his sleeve and turned to see who wanted him.

"Can we stay for a second, there something I need to talk about with you." Shizuku asked him with a resolute expression on her face.