The Gatekeeper Chapter 14- The Unexpected Truth.

As we were flying through the sky, I turn to Nirvana and initiate a much needed conversation.

"Nirvana, is there any information that you have to keep to yourself, or are you willing to tell me everything…?"

"Everything I have is at Master's disposal. I don't have any cla.s.sified information. Master, please feel free to ask me anything."

While we move towards the capital, I use the light magic to make us invisible. I asked Kuromi to fly slowly as I wanted to enjoy the experience of being able to ride on an actual dragon.

"Then tell me everything about your and your sisters' powers, hide nothing, it is very important that I know your abilities."

"As you command Master. As you already know, all of us are sisters. We were born into a very prestigious and powerful dragon house, what you would call 'n.o.bility'. I am the oldest child. I am 10457 years old, making me an adult in Draconic years. Freya is the second oldest, she is 8114 years old. s.h.i.+rone is 8011 years old and Kuromi is the youngest of us, she is 5744 years old, and can be considered a teenager. We were very powerful since birth, and were raised in a very good environment. Each one of us can use 7 elements, but all of us have only one element which we are proficient in, and are able to wield with overwhelming power. Around 1500 years ago, a huge war broke out, beasts were slain by other beasts all over the beast world. It was then that all four of us used our strength to repress all the war and bloodshed. Now, we rule the beast realm and let it prosper under our rule. We have acquired knowledge and power overtime, and now we are unbeatable. Umm, allow me to apologize, we were unbeatable. Master, we are very grateful that you indulged in our selfish request and fought us. We used every bit of our strength in order to defeat you, but you remained unscathed. We would like to spend our whole lives serving you but you will not survive, I will always cherish the name you have given me Master *sob*"

Wait, She's 10000 years old!! And Kuromi is a 'teenager'? So, they are children of n.o.bility, was that why they had such an att.i.tude before? Or was that because they are dragons? 7 elements… that's crazy. And why do I suddenly feel that I am already long gone. And she's actually crying!! Well, they are my servants, guess I'll tell them.

"Umm, Nirvana, can you stop crying?"

"B-But M-Master *sob*"

What is this? A drama?

"About me dying… I am basically immortal."

Everybody gasps, Kuromi loses her balance and we all have to grab her so that we're not blown away. Nirvana stops crying and looks at me while clasping her hands in front of her chest.

Woah! Those are huge.

"What do you mean Master!?"

Freya interjects. She actually has fiery stars hovering on top of her head,

How happy are they?

"Well, as you know, I can wield Time element. Not only that, I can manipulate it at will."

"So that means that Master has conquered the time element?"

"Yes, that is correct s.h.i.+rone."

I can't tell them that I have perfect control over all elements. They'll seriously freak out. And what is with those puppy-dog eyes? Have they changed species?

"Master is amazing! No beast has ever been able to use time element, let alone manipulate it. But what does time element have anything to do with being immortal?"

Freya asks me, her eyes sparkling. The rest of them also have their eyes on me. Even Kuromi has turned her neck and is looking at me.

"Well, being able to wield time element at will allows me to stop my aging. I can even send my body back in time and make it that of a child's at will. Unless and until I am killed in an instant without having a chance to use time element, I will not die."

I opened my eyes after my explanation and all three of the ladies have closed their distance and are standing right in front of me.

Wait, What!? Their eyes are actually sparkling? And all three of them have huge jugs.

"Master, we'll never let any harm befall you."

"We'll be your s.h.i.+elds, and never let even a scratch be inflicted upon you."

"That means we can serve Master forever, right?"

Hey, I just defeated all four of you. Show some respect.

"Umm-hmm. Now then, Nirvana, are there any other beings more powerful than you?"

"Well, if we talk about the beings which actually 'exist', then there are none."

"What do you mean…?"

"I refer to the beings which exist in solely in physical form."

"Then what type of beings are more powerful than you?"

"Umm… They would be... Spiritual beings."

Freya mentioned something about that. Kuromi rules over Spiritual beings, doesn't she?

"Explain…"

"Yes Master! Spiritual beings, as the name implies, only exist in spirit form. Kindred to beasts, they can be summoned to the human world via magic and given a physical form. But unlike beasts, they do not need constant supply of mana to exist in the physical form. They siphon off large amounts of energy at the summon itself, and if the master is deemed worthy after that, they pledge their undying loyalty to them. Spiritual beings can enter and exit the physical world as they please, but for multiple reasons, they refrain from doing so. But if a pact is formed between a human and a spiritual being, then they can commute between the spiritual realm and the human realm without any reservations. The spiritual beings are divided into 2 major factions - Demons and Angels, unlike beasts, every member of Angel and Demon races are highly intellectual, even more so than humans."

"Why do they refrain from entering and exiting the human world without a pact?"

"That would be because of the tremendous amount of energy and resources needed for them to successfully materialize in this world. And also, their lifespans are basically eternal. An Angel or Demon of high calibre can live for more than a million years at minimum."

"What do you mean by 'high enough calibre'?"

"Oh yes. Like any other race, Angels and Demons also have an established hierarchy. On Angel's side, it goes: Saint -> Angel -> Archangel -> Seraph -> G.o.d. And on the Demon's side: Familiar -> Demon -> Archdemon -> Demon Duke -> Demon Lord. Each of these have been sub-categorized into low, mid and high tiers."

It's a lot to take in… So, angels and demons exist. And not just that, they have hierarchies as well!!

"Can I get an explanation on all these different rank of angels and demons. And tell me their power level as well."

"Yes Master!!"

Nirvana starts to explain excitedly while Freya and s.h.i.+rone remain on standby behind her and intervene in between to provide additional information which Nirvana missed.

They all look very happy, and in their melodious and womanly voices, go through details concerning each of their ranks and powers.

After talking in super speed, we return to our normal speech pattern. Nirvana takes a deep breath as she was oxygen deprived after talking for more than 1 hour. Well, in real time, it's only been about 5 minutes.

While gasping for air, Nirvana voiced her opinion.

"Master is incredible, you kept up with everything I said and yet, you don't show any signs of fatigue."

Well, this level of processing is nothing for me. I sped myself up just enough to keep up with her. But the information she gave me is still being processed as it was too heavy for me.

So, Angels and Demons are fundamentally similar in hierarchical structure. According to Nirvana, she is comparable in power to a high cla.s.s Archangel/Archdemon while the rest of the sisters strength vary between that of low and mid cla.s.s Archangel/Archdemon.

Familiars and Saints have the least authority among Demons and Angels respectively, they are basically the slaves and servants of those in high rankings. But even a high-tier Familiar or Saint is more powerful than an intelligent beast. I asked Nirvana about the Demons because in my world, they were the embodiment of evil. But according to her, Demons are far more friendlier and accommodating than Angels. Many Angels, because of their pride, remain arrogant and egoistic towards the rest.

"Nirvana, what about these 'G.o.ds' and 'Demon Lords'?"

"Master, how much do you know about the holy war which occurred on this planet 500 years ago?"

"Not much. I just know that the nations fought with each other, resulting in extensive loss of population, and the aftermath led to near human extinction."

I didn't know what happened, but I speculated that this 'holy war' may have been something else entirely, because even if a war were to erupt in a magic-based environment with spells powerful enough to destroy a city, it would be impossible for the war to lead to the dire state of affairs depicted in the history books.

"Yes, that is correct. But the war 500 years ago wasn't fought between humans. It was a war between Angels and Demons."

What!!!! Don't say such things so nonchalantly Nirvana!! The war was fought between Angels and Demons?? But how can that be? Nirvana said that if they enter this world without being summoned then their energy consumption leaves them really weak.

"Master, I know what you are thinking. Let me explain. As I mentioned before, the Demons are surprisingly nice and friendly, the higher-ups on the Angel's side are the same as well. So, in a regular interval of 50,000 years or so, they have a battle between Angels and Demons, which is fought solely for entertainment purposes, none fighting from either side are killed, and there is no malice between them either"

"So, what I can understand is that, because of their long lives, they get bored and fight it out just for fun. And because it is just for fun, they fight on this side so as to weaken themselves in order to not cause much damage, right?"

Well, I can kind of understand how they feel. Sitting around for millions and millions of years, doing nothing but gathering strength and knowledge is no fun. So they just fight once in 50,000 years to quench their thirst for entertainment.

"Yes Master, that's how it is. But in the previous battle, the humans as a civilisation had advanced quite a lot, so they interfered as well. They interpreted the Demons to be the attacking forces, sent to cause havoc and destroy their world, and Angels to be the defending forces, which would return them their peace. Once the battle was over, and both sides were satisfied, the G.o.ds which partic.i.p.ated in the battle greeted the surviving humans, resulting in them believing that the battle 500 years ago was a 'holy war' between Angels and Demons. The names of the 5 nations that currently exist in this world are also based on the names of some of the G.o.ds that partic.i.p.ated in the battle."

Oh, Okay.

"Fufufufufu."

I can't help but laugh.

So, the image I had of the G.o.ds, Demons etc was completely delusional. The G.o.ds and Demons were so bored that they just battle each other for fun while making sure that none die. But this does sound really fun. Now, I am immortal as well, once I've completely mastered my abilities, I'd like to have a go at this fighting a G.o.d thing as well.

"Nirvana, were there demons named Beezelbub, Lucifer, Leviathan?"

"Yes Master!!! They are high-cla.s.s Demon Lords. They are the most powerful of the Demons. They stand on equal footing with the high-cla.s.s G.o.ds from the Angels side. In fact, in the previous battle, Zeus-sama and Beezelbub-sama had a pretty spectacular showdown. And after they both were exhausted, they drank beer from the human world together while chatting away like old friends."

So, the human race was sent to the brink of extinction because some strong beings were bored?

Fufufufu this really is interesting. But I still have one doubt in my mind.

"Freya, ear-"

"YES MAS- AAAH!!!"

Freya was standing there, recalling scenes from the battle with a delightful smile on her face. After I called out to her, she snapped out of it while panicking, she stumbled over nothing and fell b.u.t.t down on the l.u.s.trous black-purple scales.

"Oww, it hurts."

She started sulking, she reminded me of Haruki, she too would puff up her cheeks and sulk when she fell over.

"Hahahaha."

"Kukuku Freya, what are you doing -fufufu- in front of Master?"

I just couldn't control my laughter, looks like Nirvana wasn't able to control herself either, she started laughing loudly while maintaining her womanly charm.

"Uuuu. Don't say it like that Big Sister. And Master, please divert your eyes, it's really embarra.s.sing."

I extend my hand towards Freya with a gentle smile on my face. She grabbed my hand with her face flushed red.

Guess this works on Dragons as well.

"U-Umm, thank you Master."

"Fufufufu. Ahem! It's fine. Earlier, you mentioned something about Kuromi ruling over the spiritual world? And how did you even view the battle which occurred in the human realm?"

"Ah, I apologize Master. I got carried away earlier and said that Kuromi 'ruled' over the spiritual world, Kuromi is more of a 'caretaker' than a 'ruler'. She is the only one of us who is proficient in using Dark magic and thus, only one of us who can communicate with the spiritual world. Kuromi has good connections with both the Angel's side and Demon's side. Kuromi is friends with a lot of higher ups and that is why, she looks over the spiritual world and helps in communications with the other side. And the answer to you second question, because of Kuromi's good connections, we were summoned on the battlefield by a G.o.d who wasn't interested in battle and was just spectating. Because of G.o.d's immense amount of Mana, we were able to watch the entire battle without any problems."

"Wait, I thought that Wind was Kuromi's major element, she was able to cast the Divine cla.s.s Wind spell, wasn't she?."

I asked Freya this question because I witnessed Kuromi casting a powerful Divine cla.s.s spell from the Wind element. I have a few more doubts regarding the spiritual realm, I'll ask them before we reach the city.

"No Master. Kuromi has perfected the Dark element. But, because the lack of a divine cla.s.s spell within the Dark element, she had to advance in Wind Magic and master the Divine cla.s.s spell of the Wind element."

Ohhh I get it now.

"So how does this work? I mean, communicating with the Spiritual world and looking over them?"

I ask Freya my only remaining doubt. I also have control over the Dark element, so I may be able to contact the G.o.ds and such as well.

"Once you have mastered the Dark element, you can directly enter the Spirit world via a Dark Magic circle. The Dark Magic circle can only be conjured when the caster has complete control over Dark element and even the slightest bit of access to s.p.a.ce element. Once the Dark magic circle is created, it is to be supplied with s.p.a.ce magic in order to open the gate which leads to Spiritual realm."

"Wait, Kuromi can use s.p.a.ce element?"

"Yes, as big sister said before, all of us can use 7 elements. In Kuromi's case, she can't use light and time elements. And for the rest of us, it is the s.p.a.ce and Time element which are inaccessible, this makes Kuromi a special child. And about looking over them, Kuromi has significant authority among the residents of Spiritual realm, so she keeps the Angels and Demons from entering our realms and causing destruction because of their boredom."

So, this is how it is. I kind of understand now. I would like to visit the Spirit world as well. Meeting G.o.ds and Demons. Wait a second…

"Hey, Kuromi? Can this Spiritual World only be accessed by the beings of this world? And also, can the Spiritual beings only come to this world?"

"N-No Master. Unlike the realm in which we reside, and this human realm, the Spiritual Realm exists beyond s.p.a.ce and Time, and thus, can be accessed by any existing world, the same goes for the residents of the Spirit World, they can go to any realm they so desire. I only prevent them from coming to this world and our world. And if a being enters the Spiritual Realm, then that individual would only be able to return to their original world and wouldn't be able to enter other worlds."

Aaaahhhhh.What the h.e.l.l!!?? I kind of understand my world's culture and religion now. It must be the same sequence of events which happened in this world. The Angels and Demons might've had a fun little bout in my world, and the humans which were living at that time must have misinterpreted the events and it ended up creating the whole mythological system which my world follows now… And looks like I can't return to my own reality via Spiritual realm. I had my hopes way too high. Either way, fighting G.o.ds and Demon Lords may be a lot of fun.

I was mentally sighing at the realization that what my world's culture depicted as 'evil' and 'pure' was just a fun little battle for the concerned parties. I noticed that we're already above the city and nearing the Guild.

I can see the Royal Palace in the distance, the only thing I can say after looking at the Royal Palace from this height is 'heavenly'.

"Kuromi, we're above the guild. Change back to your human form and we'll descend by using wind magic."

"Okay."

With my invisibility spell still intact, Kuromi changes back to her human form in mid air, we land in an isolated alley a few blocks away from the guild.