Chaotic Craftsman Worships The Cube

He woke up as he always did, around the afternoon after a long night of drinks and entertainment, opening the window of his room to breathe in the salty sea air, staring down at the large statue of his father Eneth directly under his window sill and looking into the town.

I’ll have to get someone to clean it, He thought to himself. Really, every three days isn’t enough during this season, the birds make such a mess of it as they pass through.

It was with that thought in mind that he called out, alerting the waiting priests stationed outside to come in and giving the order to have it cleaned as they began silently dressing him, letting himself admire his form in the mirror as outfits were selected.

How could he not admire himself? Like the others that made up his settlement, he was a sobek, and one of the finer examples of his kind. The firm green scales of his face made his solid black eyes and sharp white teeth stand out beautifully, and they gave way to tanned flesh the lower one looked, showing off the powerful muscles that were his birthright as the son of a god.

Once dressed, the priests in charge of his care respectfully parted after singing his praise, showering him with compliments for his stunning visage, something he didn’t need. He knew he looked good, if anything having to deal with the sounds of their voices was a distraction from his thoughts.

The only thing he did for himself was put on a necklace, the pendant of it taking the shape of a spear and acting as a symbol of his faith, before going down for his first meal of the day.

In the past he’d savour such things, the food being expertly crafted by the best chefs that could be provided, but in the last two years that had changed after her arrival.

“‘Sup Ather, still nursing a hangover?” Dres said as she lounged along the side of the table the food was on, laughing as she did. When one of the summoned otherworlders had been selected for him he’d had high hopes, but while her strength wasn’t disappointing her personality left much to be desired.

“Only lesser people have to deal with such things,” He said as he sat down and began to eat, sampling a variety of dishes while trying to ignore her.

“Yeah yeah, whatever. Then if you’re fine, think you’ll actually practice with me a bit today?” She asked before switching to a more seductive look. “Maybe we could move our bodies even more after.”

“How many times must I say, unless there’s something worth fighting then why even bother? Practice is for those without talent, there are far more enjoyable ways to spend time.”

One of which she’d already hinted at. He wasn’t short on lovers but as annoying as the personality attached to it was, he couldn’t deny an interest in the otherworlder on a physical level. Though her blue scales completely covered her body unlike his own, her facial features were similar enough to those his kind possessed that he didn’t find himself off-put as he might for some species, and the fact that she was one of only two of her kind on the world made the overall experience more interesting.

Perhaps after I finish I’ll do just that, He thought as he ran his eyes over her while filling his stomach, at least until the apostle of his divine father and his mortal father in the world, Felth came in and spoke up.

“Of course, it’s up to your own discretion, but about half the adventurers have arrived in town by now. It might be advisable to start looking for a new teammate among them now rather than try to go through them all at once as the crowd grows.”

He hated it when the man or any others tried to dictate what he did, but he couldn’t deny the point he made. As one of the three demigods currently living in the world, he knew he would be central in the coming war, meaning he needed allies to use. As it stood now he only had Dres and Felth, the latter of which didn’t have a single awakened skill to his name to rely on.

Of course, as the son of the god Eneth, he technically had all believers of his father to use as he saw fit, but none met his standards. His race only numbered in the tens of thousands on the world, and as sad as it was to say, except for him, Felth was likely the strongest of his kind.

That made the current situation a blessing. He didn’t doubt for a minute that with his strength he’d be able to handle the situation alone if need be, but with all of the rank four adventurers coming, there was bound to be a few that might satisfy his search. As disappointing as it was that none of them would have the sort of awakened skills he was born to, as long as they were close then they could have their uses. Unlike him, they’d have to actually practice to show their value, but they’d be compensated enough to make it worth their while.

“Very well, I suppose there’s no harm in spending some of the day on that at least, I’ll go after I finish eating.”

Despite his desire to walk alone, the other two ended up following him, with various priests running to each group of adventurers ahead of time to tell of his arrival, giving them the chance to show the best they had.

So many towns had come to give their aid, and one by one as he went through them all he found them lacking. Nobody caught his eye, their skills and abilities were mediocre at best and he couldn’t help but find the entire outing to be a waste of time. He could have spent the last few hours relaxing, or at worst going out to hunt to pass the day, instead he was stuck wandering the streets, waiting for something to happen. It was only as he had given up and started heading home that something managed to catch his attention.

“What’s up?” Dres asked as he cocked his head to the side, but he ignored her, instead making confident, purposeful strides in the direction his mana sense was screaming at him. He didn’t know what it was, but he’d picked up on a level of mana unlike any from the weaklings he’d wasted his time on already. Since he was out he would at least go to see if it was worth his while.