NOVGO.NET Chapter 499: A calm before the storm.
Chapter 499: A calm before the storm.
“In the believers’ eyes, the tree is Divine or different simply because you said so. There is no other reason needed.
That is the power you currently hold over these people.”
Lavinia spoke as her purple eyes stared into Kael’s.
“The power I hold…”
Kael repeated those words, and the Mage nodded, holding his sleeve even more tightly.
“Yes, the power to alter the very reality they perceive just with your words alone. The power that lets you decide what’s correct and what is not.
The power befitting a… God.”
Kael remained silent for a while, imagining the significance of what Lavinia was saying and how it is and will affect the reality around him in the future, and the more he thought about it, the more he realized it—
“So this is what you wanted from the very beginning, huh…
The power that makes my words absolute.”
“Something like that.”
Lavinia answered with a light smile on her face.
“Your power just works on your believers, and the total number of believers here are far less than what I will be satisfied with.
So while we are still on track, we still have a long way to go.
There are still a lot of non-believers amongst the Velmourns.”
“The non-believers…”
Kael muttered in a low voice as he lowered his gaze and began thinking.
“What about the non-believers? Why are they affected by the Tree? Why do they feel the ’closeness’ the believers feel?”
He asked.
After all, according to Imperia, most people who visited the tree felt the same closeness Vandra and other strong believers did.
If they went by Lavinia’s explanation, this did not make sense.
Lavinia, however, shook her head.
“They do not.”
“What…?”
“Those people do not feel anything. None of the Velmourns do, because there is nothing to feel. It is all in their minds.”
“But why would the non-believers feel that way?”
Kael asked.
“They may not believe that you are a God, Kael, but these are the same people who have eaten and fed their families the rations that you ’magically produced.’ These are the same people who wake up early to stand in line; they are the same people who pray every single day, not because they believe, but because they want food.
They are already a part of what’s being created.
They are humans—more distrustful or hard to fool than the others, sure—but deep inside, they too want the same thing.
They too, wish to believe in you.
Because if you are real—if you truly are what ’others’ say you are—then their suffering might finally end.
Their lives… might actually mean something.”
She looked toward the window where faint light seeped through the stone frame.
“The moment they heard about the Divine Tree, it gave them an excuse to believe.
People need that.
Something visible.
Something that feels close enough to touch.
That’s why the moment they sit under it, even though they themselves do not feel anything, when they see others around them calming down, when they see others closing their eyes and ’feeling’ you, they too feel their hearts getting lighter.
Their minds convince them that there is ’something’ here, and when that thought is reinforced by others around them, what they feel becomes more… real.”
“So they… create their own miracle,”
Kael muttered after thinking for a moment.
“Exactly.”
Lavinia turned her gaze back to him and nodded gently.
“The Divine Tree exists only because they believe it does. The tree itself isn’t special—they are the ones who made it special, who… want it to be special.
The ’Faith Energy’ they all feel, it isn’t the Faith Energy itself—
It is an emotion.
Hope.
The collective belief of hundreds of people focused in one place. It’s raw willpower.
And if enough people believe in something, even the world starts to respond, and that particular response is what these people feel—the divinity.”
“So it’s all in their minds, huh…”
Kael muttered with a thoughtful expression.
“Mhm.”
Lavinia nodded.
“But that doesn’t make it any less powerful.
In fact, it’s quite the contrary.”
Kael stared at her, and the Mage continued in a low, softer voice.
“Belief moves armies. It creates kings and destroys them. It can’t be touched or measured, but it’s strong enough to shape how people think, fight, and survive.
What’s happening here is much more valuable than any strategy or power.
You’ve given people something to believe in, and once this belief spreads, the power this will give you in return would be…
Absolute.”
“So even a simple tree helped you move forward your plan, huh?”
Kael smiled lightly.
Lavinia chuckled at those words.
“It would have happened eventually, but yes, the Tree’s existence did streamline the process and made it faster.”
“So first the Ants and now the tree…”
Kael muttered, and Lavinia nodded.
“Mhm, everything’s going so well that I fear something out of expectation is about to happen.”
“A calm before the storm…”
Kael commented, and—
“And the storm might be brewing right under our eyes.”
The Mage commented in a grim voice, thinking about the only thing here that was outside of her plans.
The Sky Kingdom Soldiers.
The Mage then turned towards the Ants and—
“Have they done anything out of the expectation?”
She asked directly.
Imperia too, directly knew who Lavinia was talking about without thinking, and for now, the Ant shook her head—
“I’ve told the Ants keeping an eye on them to report even the slightest of matters. All their movements are being deeply studied, and for now, it doesn’t look like they seem to have any plans of causing trouble.
There are some who are dissatisfied, but they do not hold much power, especially since that General is still keeping an eye on everyone.
She is constantly reminding them that she doesn’t wish to repeat what happened before, else she won’t be responsible for their lives any longer, and from the looks of it, most soldiers are on her side.”
She explained.
“If they plan on doing something, they will not talk about it openly. They are not that foolish.”
Lavinia warned, making sure Imperia and her Ants weren’t being fooled. The Mage, however, had no need to worry about it—
“I know.”
The Ant nodded.
“As I said, my Ants are keeping track of even the simplest of movements—not just their words, but their actions. Even a simple eye movement is being tracked. They cannot access their Sanctuaries, so using Artifacts is out of the question. The only other way would be to communicate using gestures or a language I do not understand.
If any of this happens, I will receive the reports, so unless they act without any plan at all—
We will not be taken by surprise.”
Imperia answered confidently, and Lavinia nodded, satisfied. Kael too felt much better after hearing those words.
Then—
“Now the two of you should get some sleep.”
Imperia spoke up, staring at Kael and Lavinia. The two nodded.
“Where are Igni and others?”
Lavinia asked. She had already gotten used to sleeping with the children, but the next moment—
“Igni is… recovering.”
Kael answered in a low voice, his fists trembling as he thought about the deep wounds he saw on his body.
“What…?”
Lavinia’s expression changed. Imperia too looked away; she saw her brother’s condition back in the Sanctuary, and she… did not wish to talk about it.
“What happened to Igni?”
Lavinia asked.
“He was hurt.”
Kael answered, clenching his fists even more tightly.
“Hurt…?”
Lavinia frowned. She wanted to ask more, but when she saw the look in Kael’s eyes, she held herself back.
She could tell now wasn’t the right moment to talk about this. Instead—
“Why didn’t you use the healers to heal his injuries?”
She asked.
“He refused.”
Kael shook his head.
“Huh…?”
“He said he would not allow Human Healing Magic to be used on him. His resistance was quite fierce; I had no choice but to give in.”
“…”
Lavinia did not know how to react.
“Do not think too much about it. Brother will be fine in a few days; he is already much better now.
Now sleep, the two of you need proper rest since we do not know what might happen at any moment.”
Imperia spoke. Both Kael and Lavinia nodded. The Ant returned to the Sanctuary to check on her brother, while Kael and Lavinia stayed together and closed their eyes, drifting to the dream world within seconds.
The last few hours had put a great deal of mental strain on Lavinia’s mind since she was constantly worrying about Kael, and Kael—he had pushed his body beyond limits in the previous battle. Both of them were beyond exhausted, and how quickly they passed out showed that.
Lavinia’s spirits watched them sleep in silence before they too, slept on top of them, and just like that, the entire day passed, and at night—
Imperia walked out of the Sanctuary on her own—
“Father, something happened.”
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