The battlefield descended into utter silence as the remains of the Rift Boss plummeted to the ground. Blood poured down from the sky, and intestines spilled everywhere. It was a disgusting sight, but something David had already gotten used to.

After fighting so many monsters, tearing through hundreds—if not thousands—of them, he had seen a lot. Sometimes more than he wanted, but it wasn’t like complaining would change anything.

The seconds of silence stretched on, and David didn’t bother dispelling it. He cast [Radian Expulsion] to clear Serpent Fang and stored the weapon back into the Beast Core before focusing on the warm sensation filling him. It swirled through his body but did not stop there. If anything, it started there, moved through his mind, and pushed through his soul, strengthening all of it.

The sensation was warm and comfortable. It reminded him of Vitae’s enhancement, yet it wasn’t the same.

I am growing stronger, but… how? Why?

He hadn’t gained any Attribute Points, let alone direct improvements to one of his three stats. Sure, he couldn’t see his status screen right now, but David was sure nothing had changed. Or should have.

Maybe I’m just getting used to all the changes I’ve gone through in the Naughtrealm, David thought, even though it didn’t feel quite right.

Something was going on, and he had no idea what it was.

He wasn’t given the luxury of reflecting on those changes as a lone roar replaced the silence across the battlefield. And the roar did not stay alone. A cacophony of roars and cheers erupted around him, flooding the still battlefield with noise.

David glanced at the melee fighters and double-checked the men and women stationed at the walls of the fortified town, wondering what he was supposed to do now, until he caught sight of a young woman approaching him. She appeared a few years older than David, but she wasn’t anything like him.

The woman slowed down and came to a halt when they were still separated by more than five meters. Her chestnut-brown eyes flicked to him, and they made eye contact for a moment. That moment was enough to push her into madness—or so it seemed—as her eyes began to quiver. She hurriedly looked away and lowered her upper body for a deep bow.

Am I in the eastern part of the Earthen Union? No, that shouldn’t be it. Their complexion is unlike that of the East, and the surrounding land looks nothing like it either.

David shook his head subtly and cleared his throat. That attracted the woman’s interest, and she straightened up a bit, though she remained tense.

“I don’t know what’s going on here, but I hope it was okay to kill them,” he said, studying the woman whose facial features were hidden beneath a wall of brunette hair. Thus, he used her life signal to tell how she and the nearby melee fighters were feeling.

“Of course, it was okay! You helped us protect our beloved!” The woman’s head jerked up, and their eyes met again—albeit only for a quarter of a second—before her head jerked back again. “N-No, you not only protected our beloved, but you also saved our lives as well! We all would have died if not for you. You saved us!!”

David grunted in response, unsure how to interpret the mixture of excitement and anxiety radiating from the woman.

“I see. That’s good then,” he muttered. “Are there any wounded in need of healing?”

For a moment, he considered asking the woman why they were all so damn weak. The question was still stuck in his throat, but he doubted it would help anyone right now.

The woman’s forced smile fell at his words, and she looked even more uncomfortable than before.

“Many were hurt in the past and are still suffering from the consequences of our failure,” she muttered, and David had to listen carefully to hear her. “And more were hurt today.”

Why did I even ask something like that? He could have used Bloodthrone Dominion with [True Sight] to examine everyone. A sigh escaped his lips, and he formed a dozen glowing spheres of healing energy to spread across the battlefield.

[Healing Sphere] did not possess any intelligence, but it was naturally drawn to the wounded at its current Tier. That made things easier—and it should have been one of the first things he did.

“I can heal everyone,” David offered, gesturing to the injured. “In exchange, I would like to have some information.”

He thought about something for a moment and added, “And a place to stay for a few days, if possible.”

The woman nodded instantaneously, but her eyes widened as she realized what he was saying.

“You can heal too… your Excellency?”

Your Excellency?

David had to summon every bit of willpower not to stare blankly at the woman. Was she on some drugs? Maybe something even infused with condensed Aether or Essence? That would explain a lot.

“I am a decent Healer. Restoring limbs won’t be a problem.”

Her eyes widened further, and it wouldn’t have surprised him if they popped out of their sockets.

“You… Your Excellency… A-are you… by chance…” she stammered. Hesitation, fear, and a trace of hope lit up her features. “Are you a god?”

She is definitely an addict. Or she fell too hard on her head during the integration.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

David could only bark a laugh in response. Her commentary was just too hilarious. There was no way she was serious.

“I am not a god. Believe me, I saw one of their kind, and they’re definitely stronger than I am. A lot stronger,” he added, just in case, his hand reaching for his chest, rubbing it as a warm sensation spread through him—powerful and rhythmical alongside his heartbeat.

Even though he was clearly not a god, the remnant of one was inside him now. And… David could not help but feel that those remnants were related to the boost of his power. What else could it be that strengthened him even after he’d annihilated the monster horde?

***

Healing everyone on the battlefield was as simple as eliminating the horde. David didn’t restore everyone to perfect health within minutes—he had gotten a little rusty since he hadn’t needed to heal anyone in the Naughtrealm—but nobody was bleeding to death on his watch.

Once he ensured no more Classers were in danger of dying, he and the others turned to the fortified town of Orhain.

David had never heard of Orhain, but that was hardly surprising. He had never aced geography and didn’t bother following up on the subject once he’d graduated. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t ask about Orhain’s origin, where it was located, and a lot more. David wanted to ask why everyone was so weak but decided against it, feeling like the answer would come to him sooner rather than later, as long as he listened to the people around him.

Lilia, as it turned out, was the name of the woman who’d greeted him. She was apparently not on drugs. A subtle cast of [Lifeweaver’s Bond] had verified that, though he was still uncertain if that was the truth. Somehow, his Intermediate Spark failing him sounded more reasonable than Lilia being clean and sober.

She wasn’t the only one acting strangely. More people—mostly fighters on the battlefield—approached him and Lilia with conflicted expressions. They inclined their heads toward Lilia and bowed deeply in David’s direction. Some thanked him for ‘gracing them with his might,’ while others were grateful for his timely arrival and healing.

What baffled him most wasn’t the crying men and women, the deep bows, or even the nut-jobs who threw themselves on the ground before him. The truly confusing part was that no one seemed suspicious of him. It felt more like the townspeople couldn’t be any happier that he had arrived—even though he was certain no one expected him to. The townspeople were just overjoyed that someone powerful had come to help them.

Despite the overly enthusiastic greetings, he couldn’t deny how good it felt to be among others again. No matter how many drugs these townspeople might have consumed, they were still living, breathing people. Weak and most definitely on the cusp of madness—walking a thin line that would eventually lead them to insanity—but they were a community of blabbering, social people. As awkward as some of them were around him, it was… nice.

Not as nice as the constant stream of power. It pumped through his body, mind, and soul, infusing into his very being, refining his power slowly but steadily—but nice nonetheless.

“Can you gather the injured?” David asked Lilia.

“The wounded fighters are already present, Your Exce—Sir!”

He tried hard not to roll his eyes. Forcing the young woman to call him sir had been a lot more difficult than expected. Even now, it seemed like they considered him some sort of demi-god. While that was nowhere near the truth, David could understand how they came to think of him like that.

Lilia appeared to be the strongest in Orhain. She radiated the most pressure, yet she was likely no stronger than one of the Mini Bosses he’d burned to cinder a few minutes prior. At most, she was somewhere in the middle of the Silver Rank with one Class. Maybe Primary and Secondary Class were at the Silver Rank, but only if both Classes were Uncommon at best.

Probably two Classes at the Bronze Rank. Two Rare Classes, though. Or one Rare and one Uncommon.

What mattered was that they had no one at the Peak of the Silver Rank—forget about Gold-ranked Classers. Therefore, having two Classes at the higher end of the Gold Rank, both Unique, alongside various powerful Skills, Sparks, Intents, and both pure Blood and Vitae empowering him, it did not sound too odd to mistake him for a demi-god.

“I meant everyone. Including those who were harmed before the integration or those who feel sick. I can see their suffering,” David said, meaning it—literally.

However, the stares he received from all sides told him that the townspeople misunderstood him—especially when he pointed toward a house as they stepped through the fortified gates of Orhain. “Like the old granny in there.”

Gasps and murmurs resounded, talking about a savior, a god’s descent to protect them at last, and a lot more nonsense. David tried one more time to feed them the truth, but nobody seemed to listen. It was like the townspeople of Orhain were caught in a world of dreams—a world in which they only believed what they wanted to believe.

Since everyone wants me to be a demi-god, I might as well play along… They don’t even want to hear the truth.

He couldn’t do anything about their stance toward the truth. Furthermore, it felt like accepting his role as Orhain’s savior and his descent as a demi-god who came to rescue Orhain’s devout believers empowered him. The warmth radiating from his heart intensified, and the pulse of pure might fused with him, joining the weave of his very being.

Lilia guided him through Orhain until they reached an open area in the center. Some people had already gathered, but Lilia didn’t seem satisfied. She ushered some of the fighters to her and ordered them to bring the rest.

David’s attention didn’t dwell on the young woman for long, but it was interesting to see how different she was when she talked to him versus when she ordered others around. With him, she was… restrained. Lilia tried very hard to please him and to avoid any unpleasant experiences befalling him.

Was she afraid he would hurt her and the town? He doubted that. However, he guessed that Lilia didn’t want to take any chances—that she would rather treat him like royalty to stay on his good side than risk the opposite. Or… there was more to it.

David shrugged and waited patiently as more people gathered. He looked around with [True Sight] unleashed at full power and studied the wounded until he finally found people looking at him suspiciously. At last, someone doubted him. Confused eyes landed on him, filling him with joy.

Who would have thought I’d be this happy about someone looking at me in suspicion? he thought, smiling faintly.

The doubt and confusion in the eyes of the newcomers were great. They… were normal people and definitely not on drugs or anything like that. These people hadn’t seen him fight and heal on the battlefield and must have been hiding in their houses, knowing nothing about him. Thus, he was no more than a stranger to them.

He watched fighters talk to the newcomers, easing their suspicion partially. The people gathering in Orhain’s center watched him, focused on him, and studied his every move, but David did not move from the spot until Bloodthrone Dominion couldn’t detect any more damaged life signals apart from those gathered in the center.

Some poor souls had to be carried to the center because they couldn’t walk. Some were maimed; others showed signs of severe disfigurements—whether they stemmed from car accidents, a Healer’s failure, or if they were born like that was not something David could tell. And then there were the sick. Dozens appeared too old and riddled by sickness to walk. Their lifeforce was constantly sapped, even though some of them had awakened their Basic Class. They should have been strong enough to endure and dispel most sicknesses, yet their bodies continued to deteriorate.

David hadn’t seen any cases like that, but he presumed some of the elders had cancer. There was no way to be certain until he examined them more thoroughly—but that was exactly what he was going to do.