Adel of the Center. Undergo the Ritual.
"Adel of the Center. Undergo the ritual."
The word "ritual" sounded grandiose, but the inside of the tent held only Nazan and Adel in sparse simplicity. No one paid any mind to the outsider from the center. Not yet, at least.
"You were taken in by Lord Hien through a bond forged in the desert. You could live as one of the tribe, yet you chose to challenge the path of the hunter yourself."
"Hold on."
There was one more person interested in the outsider. Muel.
Nazan shrugged lightly at her arrival and gestured with his chin toward a spot.
Two of the Ulan tribe's captains... Not a bad start.
Adel figured just catching their attention was enough.
"Continue."
"If you survive the ritual, the word 'center' will vanish from before your name. More than that, you'll be reborn not just as a tribe member, but as a son of the White Ghost."
Nazan eyed Adel.
"They share the name of brothers, but no blood binds them. Lord Hien took in talented children. It's just another competition. Remember that well."
"Thank you. For looking out for me in so many ways."
"Hoo... Lord Hien cares nothing for birth, status, or bloodlines. But that can turn into poison in reverse."
Nazan let out a quiet sigh.
"Even among those born and trained here, there are those greedy for more. They too challenged the ritual to catch Lord Hien's eye."
"But most never returned. That's how dangerous the ritual is. Fighting and hunting are different. For one who knows nothing of the hunt, the ritual is merciless."
"Yet some did return, didn't they?"
"How do you know?"
"From what you said earlier. About no blood being shared. That means some of the children Lord Hien took in did pass the ritual, right?"
Adel shrugged.
"Ah... I did say that. You're right. But not every child undergoes the ritual. They live according to the measure of their own vessel."
Adel looked at him.
"What of my vessel?"
"It's been less than half a day since I met you in the desert. Strange. Yet your actions seem just like one of our tribe. No—deeper, as if you know us better than we know ourselves."
Nazan said.
"Honestly, it feels like I've been bewitched."
He handed Adel the repaired bow.
"But it's also true I want to see more. You pique my interest, kid. If you come back alive, don't go under Muel. Come to me. I'll take you as a disciple."
Adel chuckled at his words. If Nazan knew he'd taught him in his previous life, how shocked would he be?
"A single jutting stone eventually gets worn down. Your actions stir curiosity, but they can make enemies just as easily. Be careful."
"You already think I'll return, huh?"
"Saying I can't gauge your vessel doesn't mean it's small. I felt it when you took down that desert wolf."
He pointed to the bow and quiver he'd given him.
"New string's on it. Practice a few shots before you go."
"Thank you. Didn't you say it was a gift from Lord Hien? Can I use it?"
"It was hanging abandoned in the tent. Now that it's in your hands and seeing light, it's forged a bond with you."
He said it casually. But in the Ulan tribe, a gift from the White Ghost was a lifelong heirloom overflowing with value. Even for Nazan, who enjoyed Hien's trust, it wasn't an easy choice.
Not just because they were both outsiders. As he'd said, Adel's actions oddly piqued his curiosity, stirring a greed to see more of his path.
This is a first for me...
Nazan felt amazed himself. It was like he'd known him forever. No child in the tribe had ever pleased him like this.
"Go on, then."
Nazan lightly patted Adel's shoulder.
* * *
Adel had first learned the bow from Nazan.
By chance, when he first picked one up, Nazan realized he had far more talent than an ordinary tribesman.
But that realization came five years after entering the Ulan tribe, when Adel was eighteen. Not an old age by any means, but regrettably late to become a hunter, so he underwent the ritual belatedly.
—"Do you want to undergo the ritual?"
Hien had asked even then.
Becoming a Ulan hunter wasn't hard. But for some reason, he'd insisted on the ritual.
Looking back now, it certainly wasn't because he wanted to become Hien's son.
The ritual was brutal. After five years in the tribe, he'd accumulated knowledge from watching and listening, but knowing and doing were worlds apart.
His only regret was not reaching Maia Pass, the ritual site, sooner because he hadn't done it earlier.
A way to grow even stronger...? You're already the human who hunted a divine demon.
Just before regression. The ancient god Kalderet scoffed at Adel's question.
As he said, at Adel's feet lay the corpses of high god contractors called the continent's strongest.
Growing stronger still seems like greed.
The ancient god in black wolf form chewed on chunks of dragon flesh as he spoke.
Among all humans I've seen in over ten thousand years, you're the strongest.
—"It's not my power. Capturing gods and using their strength was only possible because of you."
Hmph. Taming even me—that's you. So my power is yours too. No need for shame.
The primordial god. Or the Lord of Dominion, as some called him. One of the two ancient gods above all others.
For any who walked the path of martial arts, he was the ultimate aspiration. Even his faint blessing elevated martial talent and bloomed gifts.
Contracting with him could lead to the greatest pinnacle in history, or so it was said.
Yet he'd never revealed himself. Kingdoms throughout continental history had scoured the world with their finest, but none found him.
Who could've known? Such a great god lurked deep in the desert.
Countless expeditions failed not just due to location. Ivory Tower mages, Spirit Formation shamans, the Kra family of alchemy, the three great sword guilds, mercenaries... The continent's elite had all mobilized for Kalderet.
Ironically, they failed because they were all too exceptional. Specialists in their fields. None could find the temple.
The god of creation, Kalderet. But that was merely humanity's name in their history. His true name meant the shocking opposite.
This world was made by two ancient gods. I did create it. But creation begins with destruction beforehand.
The god of the void, Kalderet. That was his true name.
Destruction is absence. Absence is the key to strength. Only the lacking crave it endlessly. Crave without end.
Lack of power. Craving for magic. Desire for knowledge.
That craving becomes desire, filling you. I am the void that devours my contractor's desires.
The ancient god devoured it all, and the contractor seized more to fulfill it.
That was the hunter named Adel.
With the void you've piled up, you can destroy everything. Gods or the world itself.
A hunter who'd even bagged divine demons.
Meeting him was pure chance. Hunting a monstrous insect, he took a grave wound and tumbled down the ridge, stumbling into the temple.
—"Then why did you accept me? I came to the ridge for the ritual, learned I had bow talent, and challenged it. But reaching the temple doesn't mean anyone can knock on its door."
Kehehe... Why did I accept you? Hmm, you should know better than me.
Kalderet laughed. He was Adel's long-time companion, but not always friendly. A god, not fully comprehensible by human measures.
You're eternally void. Look well. One standing atop the corpses of trusted comrades—how could they be fulfilled?
Kalderet replied.
—...
Adel gave a wry smile at his words.
Hmph, not void—just empty-headed.
To think I contracted with this guy.
Right? Sigh, my fate.
—"Quiet."
Nagging voices echoed in his mind. Gods of conflagration, blades, earth... Countless gods hunted by him.
Annoyed by the racket in his head, Adel waved a hand in the air.
Well... anyway, to answer your question. Growing stronger beyond this won't be easy. Sorry, but it's too late now.
—"Why?"
If we're talking chances to grow, meeting me sooner... That'd be it. But don't fret. No one on the continent can beat you. Unless you kill yourself.
Kalderet said dismissively.
—"Meeting you sooner... That wouldn't be impossible. If I turned back time and met you even earlier..."
Adel asked without much thought, in response.
—"How much stronger could I get?"
Kalderet chuckled faintly.
Enough to change the world.