Just a few hours ago, they had only hoped to be summoned by Ilse, never daring to dream of setting foot inside the Golden Palace. Now, they were being offered a place to live there.
It felt like a dream co true, as though everything they had ever wanted was falling into place effortlessly.
Although they had beco goddesses, their respect for their creator remained unwavering. Even if they were to surpass her in strength, which seed unlikely, they saw it as an opportunity to care for her just as she had cared for them.
"Alright then," Orion responded with a nod. He turned to the won and said, "Inform everyone to pack their things and get ready. We'll be moving to the Golden Palace imdiately."
Fifi, Tala, and the others nodded in agreent and swiftly went into the manor to share the news with the rest of the won.
"After this, I will begin preparing to forge my new body," Aerialia said.
She had decided to wait until they reached the Golden Palace, knowing it was a safer place for such a dangerous undertaking. With the Divine Mandate she had received from the new Mysteries, she was confident in forging her new body and eager to put her divine mandate to use.
"Okay. When you begin, I'll be there to keep watch over you," Orion said, nodding.
Aerialia shook her head and responded, "You don't need to. I know you have many tasks to handle. Aurora and the others can watch over until I'm done."
"Alright," Orion nodded, acknowledging that he had much to care for.
He had already sent a ssage to the other Key Leaders to prepare for a eting in which he would inform them about the latest developnts in Paradise.
After an hour and a half of preparation, the entire family was ready to leave Orion's manor. All their belongings had been stored on a ship—one of the divine mandates Ursa had received from the Divine Mysteries.
anwhile, the children were being carried by multiple versions of Greta. Thanks to her gift, which had evolved into a divine gift, Greta could split herself into countless forms. The limit was still unknown, each as powerful as the original.
Orion had heard that so of these forms could be slightly stronger than she was. Greta could also act as a complete healing force on her own. Orion was curious to learn more about her divine gift. Fortunately, each of them carried a fragnt of his Divine dallion of Sovereign Accord, which allowed them to record their abilities and divine mandates for him to review later.
He could assign them roles in Paradise that best suited their capabilities.
Brane, Zara, Seth, and Zogar stayed behind to escort them to the Golden Palace. Though it wasn't necessary, it was a gesture of respect for the first divine family in Paradise.
Once everyone was ready, Ilse tore open a rift in space and flew through it, with the others following close behind.
After erging on the other side, Ilse led the won into the Golden Palace to show them around. Grace and Sylvalis imdiately soared off into the distance, continuing their playful activities.
Orion called Anara, Saria, Malaia, and Dariya over and asked them to follow him as they went to et the Nymphs. Aurora followed him as the Crimson Greatsword floating beside him.
Brane and the others accompanied them to observe how they would attempt to cure the transford tree nymphs who had succumbed to the death plague and were already at death's door.
They swiftly exited the massive city and arrived at one of the lakes outside it, which spanned hundreds of kilotres. There, the demigoddess water nymph resided.
As though sensing their presence, the demigoddess water nymph swiftly erged. She bowed respectfully toward Orion, then curiously eyed the four tree nymphs.
"We're waiting for soone else. She will be here soon," Orion said.
He had already sent word through one of his bound servants—whom he had acquired from spies infiltrating the Runaway Cities—to summon Nadia. She should arrive at any mont. He intended to enhance their strength to provide Paradise with more capable hands.
Anara and the others were already aware that Nadia would be appearing, as she had been the previous Sovereign of the Bastion of the Wailing Gnarled, taking care of them before they arrived here.
The demigoddess water nymph nodded, though she remained curious about who they were waiting for.
Within minutes, a flying magical beast, a Quradactyl, appeared on the horizon and swiftly landed before them. Nadia leapt down from its back, landing gracefully, and bowed in greeting.
"I've heard everything. Congratulations on your ascensions!" Nadia said, bowing toward Anara, Saria, Malaia, and Dariya.
She was overjoyed by the existence of the demigoddess water nymph, and now that several of her sisters had beco goddesses, it felt as though a heavy burden had been lifted from her shoulders.
It had been a long ti since any nymph had ascended to such a divine stage, and she couldn't help but wonder about the capabilities of a goddess-level tree nymph.
"Even with this, don't treat us any differently than before. Always rember that you are our sister," Anara said.
The others nodded in agreent, smiling warmly.
Nadia sighed softly and responded with a bright smile, nodding.
"Let's begin. Take us to the tree nymphs," Orion said, turning to the demigoddess water nymph.
The water nymph nodded and faced the lake. In an instant, the waters parted, revealing a path from their position in the centre to the other end of the lake, stretching hundreds of kilotres away.
A staircase made of water materialized at the lake's edge, leading down into its depths. She gestured for them to follow and stepped onto the stairs.
Orion led the way with Aerialia following beside him, followed by Anara, Saria, Malaia, Dariya, and Nadia. Brane, Zara, Seth, and Zogar trailed behind.
The stairs began to move, taking them down into the deep. Within monts, they reached the lake's bottom.
One by one, they stepped off the stairs.
At the bottom of the lake lay hundreds of thousands of petrified tree nymphs, all victims of the dreadful death plague. Countless blue rings of water held them in place, preventing them from attacking when approached.
"Do you all want to do this together?" Orion asked, turning to Anara and his other tree nymph partners.
Truthfully, he had no idea how they could cure the petrified tree nymphs. However, since General Reynold had assured him they could handle it, he trusted their abilities and looked forward to seeing how they would solve this dilemma.
They glanced at each other, communicating their thoughts, and nodded as though they had made a decision.
"I will handle everything myself," Anara said.
"Go ahead," Orion said, gesturing for her to proceed.
Anara moved closer to the petrified trees, examining the blue rings of water holding them in place. She summoned one of her divine mandates. In an instant, a golden crown with antlers stretching outward, pulsating with a soft divine light, appeared before her.
Anara held it and placed the crown on her head. This was the divine mandate she had received from the new Mysteries. The new Mysteries had allowed them to na their Divine Mandates.
Anara didn't know if it was because they were in competition to outdo the Divine Mysteries, but she didn't care. In honour of receiving such a peerless Divine Mandate and being one of the few to be granted such a privilege, she nad her Divine Mandate, 'The Root of All Creation.'
One function of this Divine Mandate was that it allowed her to manifest a pocket dinsion, an entire realm, on a smaller scale, like the universes that had erged from the seed of the crystallized tree of the new Mysteries. She could recreate, reshape, and redefine reality within—changing air to water, water to earth, or even erasing it entirely.
In a sense, it was similar to Ilse's Golden Palace. In this impregnable fortress, Ilse could transform the landscape, redefine it, or create an endless domain capable of housing Paradise's population.
According to Ilse, she had used it to care for her children during the Great War for countless years before releasing them after realizing they had taken her security for granted.
But for Anara, it was an endlessly growing universe. With such a powerful Divine Mandate, Anara was thankful that the new Mysteries powered it. Otherwise, she doubted she could utilize even a fraction of its full potential at her current level.
Anara activated The Root of All Creation. Instantly, the divine light on the golden antlers intensified. A transparent, square veil erged from the crown, surrounding the petrified tree nymphs, Orion, and the others.
The veil soon began to solidify, and their surroundings transford into a wide, lush garden with a vast plain where all the petrified tree nymphs remained rooted to the ground.
The blue rings of water sealing them in place shattered, allowing the petrified tree to move. The branches stretched wispy from side to side, but they were still stuck in place, unable to move.
Anaa had cast another one of her Divine Mandate's abilities.
....
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