225 Reality Conflict
However, amidst the festivities, an abrupt change in Poseidon's demeanor sent shockwaves through the divine assembly. A brilliant blue spark manifested on Poseidon's divine form, followed by a guttural roar of unimaginable agony that echoed through the pocket dimension.
"Arrrrrrgggghhh!" Poseidon bellowed in sheer torment. The mortal attendants, sensing the impending wrath of a god known for his cruelty and unpredictability, hastily retreated and knelt in submission, their fear palpable in the presence of the divine suffering.
The space surrounding Poseidon's divine form began to fracture, akin to a shattered mirror, as Poseidon fiercely struggled against this unprecedented phenomenon. His divine essence was rapidly depleting, draining away at an alarming rate.
Witnessing his brother's dire predicament, Zeus swiftly moved to assist. Without hesitation, he transferred a portion of his divine power to Poseidon in an attempt to counter the draining force, but this newfound energy was swiftly devoured by the relentless phenomenon.
A brief but seemingly eternal moment passed for Poseidon as his soul and very existence were torn asunder and then reassembled, akin to someone attempting to disassemble a complex model and replace its parts, only to find that the new components didn't quite match the core of the old ones. During this surreal experience, long-forgotten memories flooded back into Poseidon's consciousness, memories of the ancient war between the Olympian Gods and humans.
Gradually, the relentless force that had threatened to tear Poseidon's existence apart subsided, and he collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath.
"What... what happened?" Poseidon weakly uttered, his divinity nearly depleted in the struggle against the phenomenon. Zeus's timely intervention had saved him from being torn apart by the inexplicable force.
"I don't know, but we need to investigate what occurred and determine whether it will happen again," Zeus stated firmly, addressing Poseidon, who lay in silence on the floor. Zeus then turned his attention to a lesser god present.
"You there, summon all the remaining Olympian gods to Olympus. We need to convene an emergency meeting," Zeus commanded.
"Yes, Lord," the lesser god acknowledged before swiftly disappearing into the distance, his incredible speed making him vanish from sight, leaving Zeus to check up on Poseidon.
— The Shop —
At the shop, Daniel was bewildered by the sight before him. All the light particles that were about to gather suddenly vanished, and both his Poseidon's card and the Merit points he used to actualize it were lost in the process.
Seeing this, Daniel stopped and thought for a moment before returning to the shop. As he passed through the summoning room to the shop, he called out.
"Mr. Keeper, I think the summoning room is broken," said Daniel, his voice tinged with annoyance. Losing a full 20,000 Merit points to what seemed like a malfunction was understandably frustrating.
"Hm? I beg your pardon?" The Keeper tilted his head in confusion. He was certain that the room he had prepared was a product of magic, and it should not be broken. Even on the off chance that it was, Daniel had used the room only a few times; it should not have broken. Did Daniel think this magical room was made from garbage?
"The summoning room is broken," Daniel repeated.
"It shouldn't be possible," The Keeper said in confusion as he walked toward Daniel. "Let me see," he said before entering the room, with Daniel following him.
Inside the room, The Keeper looked at the panel that displayed Daniel's Merit points. He noticed that they had been deducted. The Keeper extended his hand, and a soft light emanated as a mysterious magic circle began to form. As the circle fully materialized, The Keeper's eyes shone brightly with white light as he stared ahead, as if gazing upon a distant horizon, despite being within a room.
The Keeper remained in this trance for a few more moments before the magic circle slowly dissipated, and the light in his eyes dimmed. He then turned to Daniel.
"You tried to actualize the Poseidon's Card, correct?" The Keeper asked.
"That's right," Daniel confirmed, then inquired, "Is there a problem?"
"Yes," The Keeper nodded and proceeded to explain the situation.
"In fact, there are a lot of problems. When you attempt to actualize a card for a powerful being that already exists in this world, the power that bends reality will inevitably clash with the being. Anyone would resist this, and such resistance against the reality-bending power creates a rift in the fabric of reality.
This rift tears the very existence of the being apart and reassembles it anew. If the being loses to the reality-bending power, their existence will be rewritten, and they will appear in this room, creating a hole in the fabric of reality in the process. If the being wins, they will retain their existence as it was, with no change, and the hole in the fabric of reality will not appear." The Keeper concluded with a solemn expression, underlining the gravity of the situation.
"Fortunately, this time, Poseidon was able to resist it. Otherwise, there would have been a significant risk to our reality," The Keeper said, audibly relieved.
"What kind of risk are we talking about?" Daniel inquired, his expression clouded by a sense of foreboding.
"The risk we're talking about is the potential invasion of unknown beings from another dimension. You see, every time there's a rift in the fabric of reality, it becomes a beacon for powerful beings from other dimensions. If such rifts occur only a few times, it's not a problem. But if a very powerful being with malicious intent were to detect numerous rifts, there's a significant risk they could pinpoint the exact coordinates of our dimension," explained The Keeper.
"So, does this mean I can't actualize beings that already exist in this world?" Daniel asked, his plans for countering the Hightower thrown into disarray.
"No, you can," The Keeper responded, offering some hope. "But there's a condition: the being you wish to actualize must already be deceased or not exist in the current timeline any longer," The Keeper clarified.
"So, how do I know if the being I'm going to actualize is safe to do so?" Daniel asked, puzzled by The Keeper's answer.
"That's the problem, Mr. Emberweave. You don't, unless you learn an ancient prophecy magic from the old Delphi Prophets," The Keeper explained. He then continued, "But I have a proposal that might pique your interest. Would you like to hear it?"
"Please, go ahead," Daniel replied.
"Since the shop, its cards, and the power to actualize belong to you, and I can't interfere with it more than managing it and preventing them from excessively disrupting the fabric of reality, what if you make a contract with me to grant me 5% of your power? In return, I'll manipulate the outcomes of the cards and all the rewards from the vending machine to ensure they are safe to actualize. I'll also use this authority to offer you a God card from 'The War of Gods and Heroes' set of your choice as compensation. What do you think, Mr. Emberweave?" The Keeper explained his offer to Daniel.
"What about the 20,000 merit points I lost? Can you compensate me for that?" Daniel inquired.
"Are you aware of the true nature of your merit points, Mr. Emberweave?" The Keeper responded with a question, prompting Daniel to shake his head.
"The nature of your merit points is the wild power of fate and destiny that has been altered by your actions. In this world, there is a power of fate and destiny that loosely guides the paths of all beings. Only those who have died once are temporarily free from it, but over time, this power returns to loosely guide their paths once again.
Your actions, such as owning Sector Alpha City and causing the deaths of powerful beings who shouldn't have died, have liberated the power of destiny that once guided them. These unown power will accumulated within the core of your own power, Mr. Emberweave," The Keeper explained, concluding with a smile.
"So, you mean, once it's lost, you can't compensate for it, because you didn't own it," Daniel deduced.
"That's correct, Mr. Emberweave," The Keeper affirmed with a smile.
After hearing the offer and The Keeper's explanation, Daniel fell into deep thought. He pondered it for a few minutes, casting a suspicious glance at The Keeper. He still didn't fully understand the Keeper's nature, but it was clear he possessed significant knowledge. Could he be one of the powerful gods overseeing the fabric of reality? It seemed likely.
As Daniel scrutinized The Keeper with suspicion, the Keeper appeared to notice but simply let out a sigh, remaining silent and patiently awaiting Daniel's response.
After a moment, Daniel decided to let go of his suspicions and placed his trust in the Keeper with his power.
"Alright, Mr. Keeper. I trust you. What should I do next?" asked Daniel.
Hearing this, The Keeper smiled warmly and materialized a contract paper, handing it to Daniel.
"This is the contract. After you read it and are satisfied with the terms, please put a drop of your blood below your name here," The Keeper said, indicating the spot where Daniel needed to place a drop of his blood.
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