As the night ended and the levels went off in his head he was immediately aware of his realm expanding and it left the part of him that was still up there to start redesigning the layout he had while his physical body got up to start the day, making way first to the kitchen to prepare breakfast and feeling a change in how he’d even do that, with the growth to his mind letting him see what were normally common ingredients he’d use in vastly different ways and decided to let himself push both his knowledge and skill, filling the room with dishes, bowls, and pans that all stirred themselves while creating a process that would appear more akin to alchemy than cooking in the way he’d do it.

After all, what was an ingredient if not a material to be used and measured out, combined with others to get different effects? Sure, those effects would be limited to flavour, mouthfeel, and scent but they were effects nonetheless, designed specifically to stimulate what taste receptors a person held and light up their brains from the experience of eating, an alchemy of satiation and happiness for any who’d partake.

With the effort not going unnoticed. As the smells alone filled the house, he heard others start to stir, Thera and Sonya both being drawn out despite any longings they still had for their beds, with one looking like she was still trying to do her best to be mad despite the drool leaking from her lips.

“Morning morning, take your seats and I’ll have this out in a second.”

“Mmh, smells divine,” Sonya muttered, her eyes still closed as she rested her head against the table. “How was your little party last night? Sorry I missed it but you know how work can be.”

“Oh, you know, fine,” Ben said off-hand as he plated up, wanting to be sure it would be as visually pleasant as it would be tasty and feeling Thera’s eyes on his back as he said it.

“You are not seriously leaving things at that.”

“Well, no but I don’t want her to be so shocked she can’t taste the food. Not to exaggerate but I think this is going to end up as the best thing I’ve ever made,” He said, taking a bite from his own plate before nodding. “Oh yeah, definitely the best thing I’ve ever made and it’s not even close.”

“Um, what exactly happened?” Sonya asked, perking up as she detected her niece’s mood beside her and leaving Thera to groan.

“Ben thought it would be a good idea to try and kill himself while he was lying on my lap.”

“And I am genuinely so very, very sorry and it won’t happen again so maybe try this meal I just poured all of my love into and forgive me?” He asked her with big, innocent eyes as he put out the plates, watching as her own narrowed at him before she had a taste and softened despite her will, the flavour of the food competing against what lingering anger she felt and, at least while she was eating it, winning in the end.

Leaving Sonya to only look more concerned as she glanced between the two of them, looking like she was about to speak up before Ben stopped her.

“There's no rush so have a few bites first, I can explain when you’re done.”

“I think you can at least explain while I eat,” She sighed as she had her first taste, her tone instantly changing as her full attention was brought to the meal before her, leaving Ben the leeway to enjoy his own before he’d lose the chance once the other two finished, left deeply content from the experience his food had created, even if there was a question in one of their eyes.

“Alright, yes, that was incredible,” Sonya admitted. “Now, what did you manage to do to leave my sweet niece so unhappy with you?”

“Ahem, well, I did almost die,” He admitted. “Though I wasn’t intending to-”

“Except for the part where you tricked a room full of healers into being on standby,” Thera chimed in.

“Which actually adds to my point about not intending to die but let's not focus on that too much. Okay, so Sonya, don’t freak out.”

“...Why?”

“Because as of last night, you’re officially housing one of the world’s third tiers.”

She didn’t respond, instead being left with her mouth agape as she looked to her niece for confirmation and getting a nod before her eyes turned back to Ben, getting to see his face be painted with a grin despite some of the opinions present.

“I’m being serious but do me a favour and don’t tell anyone, I don’t really want to deal with the consequences of word getting out yet, although I’m sure some of it might be spreading already given the others who saw and the gods reacting.”

“Um, what? No, I mean, congratulations but how?” Sonya asked. “And for what?”

“Okay, so again, don’t freak out.”

“You’re giving me the feeling that’s going to be hard.”

“And you’d be right,” Thera muttered. “Since he’s just given the gods even more reason to hate him.”

“They’re just jerks, it’s fine to ignore them. Anyway, as for how, I connected to Myriad to try and awaken connect but I failed. What I did instead was awaken my mind and my sacrilege. You’re looking at the holder of two third-tier skills.”

Again, Sonya’s eyes turned to Thera and again her niece nodded, the food she’d been given the only thing helping to sate her lingering anger.

“And it almost killed him,” She still added. “Bled everywhere from it and all over me too, I might add, and somehow doing it broke the majority of his bones. Why would that even happen, because I sure didn’t understand it when I was feeling them all crack on top of me.”

“And I am so, so sorry about that and had zero expectations that connecting to a god would be anywhere near that bad for me and I deeply appreciate you saving my life and I love you,” He said, leaning in and again trying to look as sweet and innocent as possible while she sighed.

“And I love you too and I’m less mad than yesterday, you’ll just be hearing about this for a while.”

“Okay, honestly fair, I deserve that.”

“Um, but what now then?” Sonya asked. “You’re going to be a god, do you have work you need to be doing because of this? Falk’s kept constantly busy still, I know there’s a lot of expectations for the role currently.”

“Not that I’ve been told,” He shrugged. “Frankly, I don’t think the gods really want me doing anything. I’m sure my mind could be put to the war in some way but a lot of them are too hung up on the whole ‘evil god of sacrilege thing’ so there’s probably an attempt to keep me away from anything too important. Since we don’t need to pick Mora up till tonight, I was going to focus on experimenting with and examining some of the changes awakening brought to me.”

“Wait, what was that about being an evil god?”

“The system’s naming sense, I wouldn’t mind it.”

“You really should though,” Thera sighed, wondering just how much of whatever issues had come with awakening that skill were due specifically to how it was named.

“Evil’s subjective but even then, how could I possibly qualify? I’m such a sweet little guy.”

“That’s not even your only evil skill.”

“Okay, but is evil affinity even actually evil in and of itself? All it’s gonna do is help me gain and level more evil skills and how’s anyone to judge which of any new ones I would get are going to qualify, excluding my sacrilege.”

“I don’t think you can just exclude your most blatantly evil skill.”

“Calling it my most evil one doesn’t seem fair when it doesn’t even do anything to other mortals, only gods.”

“As far as you know.”

“...Okay, yeah, as far as I know.”

----------------------------------------

“Hey Writ, is Ogilt around by any chance?” Ben asked as he arrived at Thera’s family home, the first person he’d found in his search with the satyr shaking his head.

“Off hunting, I don’t know when he’ll be back either.”

“Hmm, that’s inconvenient.”

“Trying to go somewhere without a gate, young godling?” He asked with a smile, Writ at least having no qualms about what he’d seen Ben put himself through for power given his own past attempts to reach the second tier but getting a shake of the head for the question.

“No, I’m looking to do some experimenting and need some fresh demons to use, he just makes finding them easy. In that case, maybe Abrus?”

“He’s off patrolling, I wouldn’t expect him back for at least a few hours. I take it you just need someone to help you track them then?”

“Powerful too, preferably. I’m hoping to have some brought to me while I run my tests. Why, is there another great spirit around you have in mind?”

“Ha, there’s always a great spirit around nowadays. Come on, I’ll take you to her.”

Her, huh?

When he’d left to take on the tower, more than a few of the great spirits Mora had helped create had still been figuring out how they wanted to face the world, whether they’d take on a mortal form to interact with the people or remain in a shape that came more naturally to them, meaning Ben wasn’t aware of how all of the spirits would present themselves, nor which ones chose to appear female. With the way their race as a whole had exploded, he was sure it was something they and the world would need plenty of time to adapt to anyway but as he was led through different halls and brought to a new room he was given his answer.

Two beings were in there, only one of them a great spirit, with the air crackling lightly for her presence, Ben laying eyes on the world’s great lighting spirit the first time since she’d been created and left just a bit of surprise for the shape she’d taken, a question wandering through his thoughts for the sight.

I wonder if this is how Thera felt seeing Ogilt, Bloom, and Grace.

The new spirit had taken her princess’s shape, looking like Thera in form but with a body made of blue lightning, crackling against the air and in conversation with another he hadn’t expected to find when he arrived, with one of his fellow prisoners by her side.

“Taya, Asher, sorry to interrupt but Ben was looking for some help,” Writ said as he entered, with the great lightning spirit who seemed to have taken the name Taya looking at him curiously while the one by her side, the only example of a non-affinitied mana-based species, Asher the wraith nodded his way, remembering well the one who’d saved him.

“Hmm? The princess’s consort?” Taya asked as she appraised him while leaving Ben to wonder if all of the new great spirits only viewed him through the lens of his relationship to Thera. “What do I owe the pleasure?”

“Ah, sorry to ask but I was looking for some help. There’s some things I need to test and the only really ethical way to do it would be to experiment on some demons but if you’re busy-”

“Nonsense, to help you is to help the princess, we can make the time,” She said, making it clear that she’d be bringing Asher along with her as well as where that cooperation came from. “Shall we go now?”

“Yeah, if you don’t mind then now would be perfect.”