The Priest closed his eyes, activating his hidden skill, Peer (SSS).
Although the Priest’s skill was indeed SSS-rank, he had ticulously hidden its true rank from everyone, including the cult leader.
He had deliberately told everyone that his skill was rely S-rank. This deception was crucial because if the cult leader knew about the true, SSS-rank power of his skill,
the Priest would always be under the cult leader’s constant, suspicious watch, his every move scrutinized.
Detecting lies was just a passive and minor effect of the Peer (SSS) skill its true power lay in far grander divination and perception.
That was why there were these subtle loopholes in its lie-detection aspect when confronted with carefully constructed truths.
The Priest started his divination.
His consciousness floated inside a vast, silent void, a realm beyond physical space.
He looked around this boundless emptiness, a sense of profound insignificance washing over him.
His astral form felt so small, so utterly minuscule, in front of the sheer scale of the void.
He floated there, a solitary point of awareness. "Where am I?" he wondered, his ntal voice a whisper in the cosmic silence.
Soon, the answer to his question arrived.
He looked into the distance, and there, slowly opening, he saw colossal, bright golden eyes.
They were imnse, radiating an unimaginable power, and they were fixed directly upon him.
The sheer scale and intensity of these eyes made him sweat, even in his astral form it was as if the void itself was looking at him.
As soon as the eyes fully opened, a huge, indescribable pressure swept through the void, impacting the Priest’s consciousness with devastating force.
He was violently swept away, his astral form shattering.
He woke up abruptly in the real world, back on his red and black platform, imdiately puking out a torrent of dark, viscous blood.
The backlash had been unprecedented.
The sheer power of whatever he had glimpsed, whatever entity possessed those golden eyes, had overwheld his SSS-rank skill.
The Priest lay on the platform in agony, his body twitching uncontrollably, every nerve screaming with pain.
He felt as if he would die any second from the agonizing feedback. His consciousness flickered at the edge of oblivion.
Soon, the intense pain began to subside, slowly receding like a tide.
The Priest was left lying in a pool of his own dark blood, but his breathing gradually cald down, and his vitals stabilized.
He had survived.
He slowly, painfully, stood up and knelt on the platform, his body still trembling with residual shock.
"Thanks to the Demon God for your rcy," he rasped, his voice weak but filled with profound gratitude as if the demon god had saved him.
He had faced sothing far beyond his understanding, sothing that had nearly cost him his existence. The orb was even more powerful than he had imagined.
----------------------
The week given by the Adventurer’s Association to remain in the capital city had co to an end a few days ago.
Klaus, however, had decided to extend his stay for two more days, primarily to make himself aware of the recent happenings and gather any relevant information that might affect his future plans.
He had been staying in a modest inn, keeping a low profile, at least as much as his rapidly escalating power allowed.
As he browsed through various newsfeeds and overheard hushed conversations in the common areas, he learned of a major public announcent made by the Adventurer’s Association.
It concerned the recent gate disappearances. The official statent declared that these astonishing events were due to a mysterious person.
The na and the specific rank of this individual were unknown, the association admitted, unable to provide concrete details.
But the person was being famously, or perhaps infamously, called "The Gate-Eater."
There was a silent terror perating among the masses, a palpable sense of unease about such a person,
an entity, who could literally consu entire dungeons, erasing them out of existence as if they had never been.
The whole world had been shocked after hearing that such a person, with the unprecedented ability to erase dungeons out of existence, truly existed.
Various rumors had already started spreading like wildfire, evolving into chilling urban legends whispered in taverns and marketplaces.
So claid it was a new type of monster, others a vengeful spirit, and a few even suggested it was a forgotten deity.
Klaus looked at the news, a mild surprise flickering across his face.
He had ticulously used Phantom Veil and Apex Velocity to ensure no one saw him enter or exit the gates, and his System had always indicated full stealth.
"How did I get detected?" he mused aloud, directing the question to the System.
[Host, there were several divination attempts made towards you. Although all of them were blocked by the System’s anti-divination protocols,
soone might have found a loophole, or their ability might be fundantally different from standard divination.
It is possible their skill rely ’peered through’ generalized information, rather than directly scrying your identity.]
the System responded, its voice calm and analytical.
"I don’t think this is that simple, System. No human should be able to peer through the inheritance of a literal dragon god, even if it’s just general information," Klaus stated, his brow furrowing.
He knew the imnse power of his System and its origins. Normal divination should be utterly useless against him.
[The Host is right. The only entity that can do that in this world is the Heavenly Will itself.
, it cannot directly see through the Host’s true identity or specific actions.
It can only get so estimates or general directional influences.
The System speculates that soone within the human race has found a way to make direct, albeit limited, contact with the Heavenly Will, acting as a conduit for its vague directives.]
"Well, why do I think this is going towards sothing massively cliché?" Klaus thought, his expression becoming one of mild exasperation, almost fed up with the predictability.
He had read enough web novels to recognize the pattern.
[Yes, Host. There might be a ’Heaven’s Chosen’ among the human race.] the System confird, its tone unusually direct on this point.
Clap...
clap...
clap...
clap...
Klaus slowly clapped his hands, a strange, mirthless laughter escaping his lips. It was a dry, hollow sound, laced with a bitter cynicism.
"It would be absolutely crazy if you now told that the Heavenly Will was also secretly transferring all my good luck to this ’Heaven’s Chosen,’ right?? Hahahahaha!!!"
His laughter escalated, growing louder, tinged with a morbid amusent.
[The System thinks that the chance of that happening is very high, approximately 98%.]
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!" A truly loud, almost manic laughter escaped Klaus’s mouth, echoing strangely in the quiet inn room.
It was the laughter of a man utterly consud by the sheer, pathetic predictability of the cliché setting his life had beco.
The cosmic joke, the unfairness of it all, was so blatant it was almost comical.
"System, tell sothing seriously, okay?" Klaus managed between gasps of laughter, his eyes fixed on the glowing screen. "Am I stuck in a novel?"
[Ding!! The System does not know.] The System’s reply was maddeningly unhelpful, though delivered with its usual placid tone.
"Fucking so bitch has put in a story as a villain, and given the initial life I’ve lived, the chances might be that I was so third-rate villain or a fodder character. What the fuck?!" Klaus muttered, leaning back in his chair, running a hand through his hair. The thought was infuriating.
[The System thinks that the chance of that being the case is extrely low.
Fate is an extrely profound force, out of bounds of even gods and deities.
Its intricacies are far beyond a simple narrative structure created by lesser beings.] the System stated, its voice gaining a touch of unusual emphasis, as if trying to reassure him.
"Fucking every story has ’unfathomable fate’ which is then changed simply by so cliché-ass hero, bro!" Klaus retorted, his frustration bubbling over.
He had seen this trope play out too many tis.
[It may be the case, Host, but since we don’t know the exact nature of your current existence, it’s best for the Host to just follow his predetermined path.
Even if the Host is the villain, then in this story, I assure the Host that the villain is going to win.]
The System said, its voice a bit louder, almost a command. It was as close to a pep talk as Klaus had ever heard from it.
"System, you give a good pep talk," Klaus admitted, a grudging respect in his voice.
"But you are right, when my goals are to erase the Heavenly Will itself, why worry about the small ants it is sprouting? They are rely obstacles" His burgeoning Draconic Pride trait was influencing his perspective.
[The Host is right. He should just focus on growing strong. All other concerns are secondary.]
"Yes," Klaus affird, nodding slowly.
"Let’s see. Do you think I can get an SSS-rank rating if I gave a test at the Adventurer’s Association right now?"
He was considering a strategic move.
[Affirmative.] the System replied without hesitation.
"If everything goes according to the cliché," Klaus mused, a smirk playing on his lips, "there might be soone trying to recruit from the association or other powerfull families and guilds"
He wanted to sever any easy ties to his current location.
Earlier, when he had first arrived in the capital, he had put the inn’s address as his temporary residence during his initial awakening period.
He had also given his permanent address as that of his previous, dilapidated house in the slums of City 35, a place he had absolutely no intention of returning to.
He intended to change his current address to a completely different one from his docunts, a blank slate, so that he would not be easily trackable by anyone, be it the Adventurer’s Association or any other hidden organization.
Regarding a permanent residence, he had decided that he would not buy a house until he officially entered the Guardian Academy.
He was now even more certain that this "Heaven’s Chosen" would inevitably be at the Academy.
It was the quintessential setting for such archetypes to gather.
Therefore, he needed to be as strong as possible, not just for personal power, but to ensure his dominance.
Although he was absolutely sure that in his current generation, he would probably co out as the strongest,
his Draconic Pride demanded not just strength, but overwhelming, undisputed superiority.
He wanted the SSS-rank rating from the hunter’s Association not rely for prestige, but to be able to enter the Guardian Academy through the most elite channels and get into the best, most exclusive class.
This would put him in direct contact with the most talented individuals of his generation, including, presumably, this "Heaven’s Chosen."
If this was true then he would crush everyone who Dared to cross his path, and if this person was the heaven’s choosen, he will have to pay the price.
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