Chapter 70: Ch 70: Discovering a Half-Phoenix

"Don’t try to fool me just because you think I am a little girl! Give me a fair chance and I will show you that I am worthy of this power. Or, are you that much of a coward? The law of God Vaelor says everyone is free to participate."

The young girl declared her intentions, and her aura flared for a few seconds, even overcoming that of Caelion, who was being supported directly by his goddess.

But the aura Aiden felt did not seem to belong to any god, but to this kid herself.

[New potential found. Name: Sasha Beil]

[Race: Half-Phoenix]

[This child has the potential to evolve into a god because of her lineage, but due to internal conflict, had been cast out and is on a journey to gain more power]

’Oh! Since when did the system start providing me with people’s backstories? But if it is getting involved, then that must mean that there is something to be gained here.’

Aiden was an opportunist, and if a situation looked like he could take advantage of it, he was going to do it.

[New mission has been created: Gaining the trust of a potential god]

[Convince Sasha Beil to become a follower of either yourself or Goddess Apophis]

[Reward: A loyal companion who may one day save your life.]

[Failure: None]

The mission being proposed by this system this time was voluntary and did not seem as important. But Aiden did not mind convincing a kid to join his place.

Especially when this one was already abandoned.

Usually, snakes and birds were enemies, but what would happen if they became closer? Aiden had a feeling a strong friendship and kinship was about to be born.

But first, he needed to clear this situation because it was getting bothersome. This was disrupting his plans to gain more power in his goddess’s name.

"Well, looks like it’s time to go down and resolve this issue. Goddess Apophis, do you mind if we take in a bird?"

Aiden asked his goddess for her opinion after he made up his mind. Somehow, he was not worried about her saying no this time.

"I am not happy about it, but I won’t oppose you if you desire to grab and raise that child. I can feel divinity coming out of her. She might become a good force for us in the future."

See! Aiden knew his goddess would feel the same way as him.

Aiden headed down toward the arena where Sasha had been surrounded, and no one was helping her. But it was not as if she needed it either.

Her half-phoenix constitution made her much stronger than a normal human, and she easily took down three of the participants before the others realized she was just as dangerous as Caelion had been.

"Tsk, you pathetic child. I am going to finally show you how adults fight. You will only have yourself to blame after this."

One of the organizers rushed at Sasha with a hammer, intending to smash her on the head, and it made Sasha’s eyes widen in shock and horror.

No matter how good of a fighter she was, she was still half-human and a child. And this impact was going to hurt her a lot.

Or, it was supposed to, but Aiden decided to step in, and the pressure of his presence caused the adult attacker to drop his weapon.

[Resonance with Goddess Apophis has begun.]

[You can now use 0.5% of her power]

Aiden’s body felt heavy and light at the same time as he walked toward the fighting arena. He looked at Caelion first, making sure his fellow priest was fine.

Only once he had made sure of this did he turn to the organizers and the fighters.

"I came here to see God Vaelor’s tournament because I heard they were entertaining, but I ended up seeing an unexpected show instead. Now, would anyone like to tell me what is going on here?"

Aiden was not asking a question but telling others that he was not happy, so they had better stop and make an excuse for their actions.

He immediately noticed how nervous most of the fighters around him looked, and the adult who rushed out to attack started shaking due to the pressure of his presence.

"I-I was just trying to scare the kid away. You did not think I was actually going to bash her head in, right? I am not a savage..."

"I never called you a savage. I just wanted to know what you were planning. Honestly, I don’t care about your actions. I just want this tournament to continue as it was. Unless you have a reason to stop it."

Aiden did not keep his words vague. He was willing to tell everyone that he had heard what they were planning, and he did not appreciate this.

"O-Of course, sir! We were just going to continue. W-We just needed to check a few things...like age restriction laws and all. Ehhh-! But I am sure they are fine. God Vaelor would not have given his blessing to continue otherwise."

The organizer was wise and decided to quickly take his words back and change them once he realized the danger he was in.

"I see. That’s good. Then, let’s continue right now."

Aiden clapped his hands once and, with a happy grin, announced that they should continue. But the organizer looked even paler and quickly whipped his head around.

"Uhm, but most of our participants are knocked out. In fact, we only have these two still conscious."

The man pointed toward Caelion and Sasha, which made Aiden smile even wider.

"Yes, I can see that. But is that a problem? The others were simply too weak to withstand my presence. Do you think they would be able to fight against my proxy?"

Aiden asked, placing a hand on Caelion’s shoulder, and that made the organizers flinch.

"T-That person is your proxy? W-We apologize. We will start the match right away."

And just like that, it was time for the final match.