In the skies above Angaria, the sovereigns were all flying in silence to their next destination.
It was as if the image they had just seen in the sect had been burned into their minds, and even though something similar had happened just before in the Fortress, this one was even more magnificent, and no matter how much they tried to snap out of it, they continued to be tongue-tied as they kept thinking back to it.
It was finally Aran who broke the silence, by speaking in an almost fan girly high-pitched voice.
"That…was f*cking awesome! Hell, if I hadn't seen you get till here, I would be convinced you really were a God!"
This summed up the feelings of almost all of the sovereigns quite perfectly, and they all couldn't help but nod.
Robert spoke up next, but his eyes were out of focus, as if he was still back in the air above the Sect of Hedon.
"To think my wife gave birth to a God… What will she be, then? Okay, I'm overthinking it…but I'm going to send the recording to her, now!"
Daneel broke out into laughter as he heard this, and finally, he allowed the pride smile that he had been holding back to come onto his face.
Seeing it, Elanev slapped his shoulder and said, "There it is! I knew you were proud! If I just did that, I would be bragging about it to everyone I could find!"
This made Daneel laugh even more, before he said, "I considered making those things have no face, but then, I thought- wouldn't a God be able to manifest himself in that way, to send despair into the hearts of those who might believe that numbers could give them victory? I must say that it was a pretty good decision…"
Luther replied to this by saying, "Very true, my king. In war, victory can also be achieved by overwhelming the hearts and minds of an opposing army with fear, and I believe that you have just done that to anyone outside of the Order in the continent who might wish to foolishly go up against you. I must say that it was a pretty excellent display of psychological warfare, and its benefits should be manifold."
The other commanders also nodded to this, which led to Daneel once again recalling the thought process that had led to his decision to create that module and deploy such an attack.
His forte had always been his Champion path, which allowed him to practically be the darling of the World, which would tell him exactly what Path was being deployed by anyone whom he was going up against, and one of the best ways in which he could use this was by defeating a large group of people by using their own Paths against them in a perfect manner by exploiting the weaknesses that would all be pointed out to him.
Indeed, there was no better way to bring despair, and that had exactly been his objective, as the Sect of Hedon had reveled in its limitless self-confidence for far too long.
This could be said for the rest of the Big Four, too, but it was most applicable to the sect, and he was confident that he had accomplished his objective.
He had seen the faces of those who were still conscious after being kicked onto the ground, and they had been filled with unwillingness and the urge to do anything that was needed to get rid of the feeling that had been born in their hearts- that they were useless, and that they had all been defeated by a single person who was even from the Central Continent, which they had always looked down on in disdain.
Everything wasn't perfect, though, as Daneel remembered the dangers of his plan, which led to him saying, "I believe that I was successful in crushing the egos, but now, we should be really careful to ensure that they don't go over to the Church because of this. Resentment, when created, should be directed correctly, lest it leads its possessor astray. I'll be sending a message to the Head to deploy Heroes who have proven their loyalty to the continent so that they can help these sect members pick themselves up and see a way in which they can put all of the emotions that have been born due to this experience to good use. Eloise, did the crew capture everything perfectly?"
With a nod, Eloise said, "Yes, but as you asked, I didn't broadcast it live. After we're done here, I'll doctor the recording so that we hide the location and the identities of those defeated. After all, the Big Four is still secret. And as for the method of dispersal, I have an idea…"
All of the sovereigns turned to Eloise as she said this, which led her to sort her thoughts out before continuing.
"I think it should be 'leaked' by a fanatic of yours, and initially, maybe we can even try to suppress it. That's because I've seen the power of gossip- the more people try to keep something secret, the more it spreads. Maybe we can say that we wanted to keep it secret so that the secret organizations on the continent are not undermined. Or we can find some other reason. But basically…instead of directly airing it for the continent to watch, I believe that this method will be more effective."
Daneel's eyebrows rose as he heard this, and he almost blurted out the words 'Streisand Effect'.
It was the phenomenon where something that might seem as if it was being suppressed would end up spreading even more among the general population, mainly because of the psychological pushback that would be caused when one found out that something was being kept from them.
Controlling himself at the last second and praising his sovereign in his mind, Daneel beamed and said, "Sounds excellent! Carry on with it. Soon, what you said about the Big Four being secret might not be the truth…but until then, it should be suppressed. Keep giving me updates regarding how it goes."
All of the 8 present glanced at Daneel with surprise as he said this, as he hadn't told them that he had such a lofty goal.
Perhaps, earlier, they would have said that it would be difficult with his main body still recovering, but after what they had just seen…there was no doubt whatsoever that in Angaria, if he put his mind to something, it would be done.
"So…how did you do it, My King? I saw the formation, but I couldn't make sense of it…if you were capable of something like that, why not deploy it directly against anyone who dares to attack? Why not rout the Church as soon as they arrive? It just seems so overpowered!"
Cassandra spoke up to ask the question that had come in the minds of all of the mages present, and seeing that they were close to their destination, Daneel decided to give a short answer.
"It's simple: I only won because I chose the place to fight, and I had the element of surprise. Also…I was only up against Champions, which is a realm I do not need to fear, at all, with my current power. If I wanted to do the same against Heroes…suffice it to say that I might need to empty Angaria, itself, of Energy resources, as I would need to create sufficiently strong clones, and also…Heroes should have no trouble switching it up and using one of their many skills to overwhelm my clones, in return. Also, they can directly target the formation and my main body as they would have the means to ignore the clones for a second, so even if I try such a stunt, it would be suicide. The World is always balanced, Cassandra. The only reason it seems overpowered…is that I am capable of understanding so many Paths at once, and working against them. However, if a sufficiently advanced Hero stood in my place, they would be able to do the same thing. In fact, such a Hero wouldn't even opt to use my method, as they would be able to defeat that force by themselves! That way, they wouldn't even need to expend so many resources! Basically, I only did it for the 'awe' factor, and in the process, I even had to use up a large chunk of the Ker Gems I found in Elysium…still, it was worth it!"
"Indeed. I saw the Ker Gems you used up. Perhaps the best way to put it is that the amount of Energy resources you used up to defeat each of those 3800 individuals is perhaps what they would have absorbed to train for more than a year! Given a choice, would you rather increase the power of your forces, or expend so many resources for the shock factor? In this case, it was justified, but anyone would choose more sustainable ways, especially when they are available to them. I reckon that even now, our King could have won in a prolonged fight. Right?"
Kellor had once again hit the nail on the head, and as Daneel nodded in response, he saw that they had arrived at their destination.
And of course…it was the Goddess's Sanctum.
As Daneel and the rest descended into the large fissure in the ground to arrive in front of the gigantic statue of the Goddess that he had seen so long ago, when he had come here with Xuan, sweet memories rose up from the deepest corners of his heart, which made him order the system to shift him to the apparition that was at her side.
She was still sleeping peacefully in his chambers, and seeing that she seemed becoming better and better with each day, Daneel couldn't help but smile and lovingly tuck a tuft of hair that had fallen in front of her face back behind her ear.
As he shifted back to the apparition that was with the sovereigns, a tender look could be seen in his eyes, and noticing it, Eloise asked, "Is she doing well?"
Seeing that she had read his heart, Daneel nodded and said, "Yes, her injuries are responding well, and it seems that you accompanying her helped, too. But I wonder how she'll feel when she finds out that we stomped her home into the ground while she was sleeping…"
Right as Daneel said these words, they reached the grassy plain that was present at the feet of the 200 m tall(626 feet) statue, and there, it seemed that a welcoming party was already waiting for them.
The Matron was standing with a delegation of women all dressed in shiny armor, and all of them had somber expressions on their faces, as if they were ready to go to war.
As soon as he landed, she said, "We have gotten word that you're going around relieving the Big Four of an epidemic you claim it is suffering from, while also conquering each of the forces that have stood supreme for centuries. True, that might be the case for the others, but here, there is no ego, no disdain, and no discord. We are the most united among the Big Four, and I see no reason for you to challenge us. You can step in for a nice spot of tea, but if you want this holy sect…today, you will have to leave with disappointment."
Daneel's reply was given in a cheerful tone.
"Oh, great! So I won't have to explain myself! My dear Matron, I'm afraid that you're quite wrong. Yes, I did set out to cure that disease, and as for the conquests, they just…happened to happen. As for the Sanctum, I have many reports that state otherwise. So…"
"So you have chosen to go against us, the Goddesses. Well, in that case…"
Interrupting Daneel, the Matron spoke, and as the last word came out of her mouth…the entire landscape suddenly changed.
The field that had been empty became instantly filled with exquisite women in all directions, and of course, each of them deserved to be called a 'Goddess' in their own right.
At the same time, an unseen force came into being that was targeted at Daneel, and as soon as it struck him, his eyes lost focus. Accompanied by a completely captivated expression, drool appeared at the corner of his lips, and it looked like he would only continue to stare even if he was being slaughtered.
However, as soon as this happened, the system spoke in his mind, and in that instant, another event that would be recorded in history began, but this one…was definitely not the sort that would be proudly sung of for generations, as instead, it would invoke a different sensation.
[Large-scale Captivation Spell detected. Automatic counter-protocol initiated. Protocol name: Reverse Harem Jutsu. Deploying.]