Marinus P.O.V
Looking at the shocked and somewhat disbelieving faces of Rias and her peerage I couldn't help but laugh just a little. I was currently sitting on one of the couches in the rather large living room having just finished explaining my plan for Rias to win her rating game. As for the aforementioned peerage they could only stare dumbly as if trying to comprehend everything I had just said, while their king was staring with stars in her eyes.
The plan was rather simple, I would supply the peerage with tempest jewelry enchanted with fire resistance...among other things. I would also take Rias to other worlds to recruit more members to fill in her last three pieces of her peerage. Thankfully I had bought Honkai: Star Rail from Gregory where there would be a plethora of characters for capture.
Truthfully I was somewhat torn on what world to visit with Rias. On one hand Honkai: Star Rail had a plethora of named characters that would suit both of our needs. On the other I've finally filled the progress bar for exit stage left to one hundred percent and chosen my next world to add to the jump chain.
My options I could choose from had been Warhammer: Age of Sigmar, Titanfall, Alien (Prometheus), Nasuverse (First Singularity), Honkai Impact 3rd, Mass Effect, or Taimanin (Dark Future Timeline). Now almost immediately several of these options were no's. The only three I even considered were Nasuverse, Honkai Impact 3rd, and Taimanin.
After a little thought I decided against Taimanin since I only knew a little bit about the setting. Certainly not enough to dive into an alternate timeline version, Honkai was the next to be crossed off. While it was a setting I'm pretty familiar with it doesn't specifically state when I would be inserted into the world. While I'm feeling more powerful everyday I don't know if I could take on a herrscher if I was unlucky enough to meet one. I did however save the world to insure that it would appear in a later selection.
With my other options either non-feasible or eliminated I chose Nasuverse. Admittedly this universe would normally extremely dangerous depending on the singularity. However the first singularity wasn't the most dangerous, not to mention I would be picking up a few things before visiting.
Theres also the irresistible allure of several servants that would be easy pickings if I timed things right. Saint Martha, Marie Antoinette, Kiyohime, both variants of Jeanne d'Arc, and more would all be up for grabs. That's not even mentioning the sweet, sweet catalogue perks that become available once I have just one Nasuverse servant.
Having already handed over the jewelry I watched as the Gremory peerage admired their new bracelets. To keep it simple every bracelet was enchanted with fire resistance and minor regeneration. Afterwards I added a specific spell for the benefit of specific members.
Issei's has physical resistance, since he lacks any useful magic or ranged abilities outside of eventually dragon shot. Kiba has an enchantment called mirage that adds afterimages to where he was standing before a burst of movement. Akeno and Rias both have rather simple mana regeneration enchantments. Koneko's on the other hand has the most unique enchantment.
Considering her refusal to actively use senjutsu or anything related to her nekoshou heritage, therefore weakening them, I did something about it. The final enchantment on her bracelet is a passive absorption enchantment specifically for nature energy. Now it wouldn't absorb a lot of energy, certainly nothing that could actively be used in combat, but it would expose Koneko to something she's actively avoided for years.
"So when do we leave?" Rias asked practically salivating at the idea of interdimensional travel.
"We can leave right now." I answered taking out the company device. "Hold my hand and we can leave."
Rias did as I instructed, already having been told of what this form of travel encompassed. We would be heading to the universe of Honkai: Star Rail, considering its size it would be the most optimal for finding new pieces quickly. Especially since I already had a few in mind for Rias.
Without further delay I set our destination and we were soon engulfed in a blinding light. When the light died down we were in an alleyway hidden away from prying eyes.
"Where are we?" Rias asked as she took in our surroundings.
"Not sure." I replied before following the alley until we came to an opening. Upon stepping out we were greeted with the sight of a sprawling city reminiscent of Chinese architecture, the sky overhead looked as if the stars visible only during the night had been deftly woven into the daytime, and then there were the ships that would quickly sail overhead.
It took me only a half-second to realize exactly where we were and I couldn't help but smile widely. We had been dropped right in the middle of the Xianzhou Luofu, near the Central Starskiff Haven it seemed. Making a motion for Rias to follow me the first order of business is to figure out when exactly when ended up here.
It didn't take long to figure out we had arrived just in time for when the Luminary Wardance was set to take place. This was rather evident by not only the papers and ads, but also the excited discussions between the citizens of the Luofu. Unfortunately though, it seems we just barely missed out on the events of Hoolay and the borsin escape.
A pity, they would have provided a nice distraction to capture Feixiao. Oh well, it's not like there won't be other opportunities coming up. In the meantime Rias and I have gotten a room at a rather comfy inn before we set out to search for members for her peerage.
Thankfully the establishments of the Luofu have no problems accepting treasure in lieu of currency. Truthfully it worked in favor of the cover story we had come up with anyway in order for Rias to make a convincing sales pitch. Our cover, as insisted upon by Rias, was simple and pretty close to the truth.
Rias is a member of nobility from a long-life species with incredibly diminished birthrates that has been placed in an arranged marriage she objects too. She has been promised her freedom if she can defeat her fiancé in a game that involves combat between two peerages. This was basically the truth with a few omissions, but I decided not to argue against Rias' chuuni habits this time.
As I came back from inspecting our room I couldn't help but notice a group of familiar faces. Standing at the check in desk was a rather large purple robot wearing an open black fur coat. Svarog, an important and powerful member of Belobog's underworld and the guardian of Clara.
Clara herself stood behind the robot speaking happily with another companion. Instead of a small young girl however, Clara was now a young woman sixteen years old and with an appearance to match. She still had her usual outfit of a white-cream dress under a red coat, but she was also notably fuller in some areas. Specifically her chest, which was now easily a b-cup possibly bordering c-cup, and her perfectly apple shaped ass that was perfectly visible through her tight shorts that she wore under her dress.
As for the difference between her present self and her canon self, well that was my doing or more specifically universal calibrations doing. I wasn't exactly sure where we would end up and I had altered her age in case we ended up in Belobog. Svarog counts as her familiar and the fastest way to control him would have been to control Clara.
Her companion was just slightly shorter than Clara herself wearing a thick winter coat, deep blue scarf, and cat eared fur hat. With short blonde hair and bright blue eyes Lynx was talking animatedly with her friend even as she kept a hand on a young Hook, who was looking around the room excitedly.
Turning towards where Rias was waiting patiently I walked over so that we could walk around. The Belobogians would be here for a while considering they were here to support both Svarog and Luka in the wardance and with them in such close proximity it wouldn't be difficult to get my hands on one of them.
"Ready to go?" I asked the redhead who was happily taking in the sights.
"Are you kidding? This place is amazing, I feel like I'm in an isekai!" She cheered happily. "Of course I'm ready!" She replied before practically skipping out of the inn.
With a small smile and shake of the head I quickly caught up to Rias as she took in everything. I couldn't really blame her, I felt the same way about DxD, then RWBY, and now I'm in one of my favorite gacha games. Deciding to let Rias have her fun I take out the company device to make some purchases.
Added potential is one of the greatest talents for a contractor like myself, one who's mission prevents multiple templates. This also allows me the ability to pick and choose exactly what powers or abilities I want as specifically or broadly as I want so long as I've previously visited the world they come from.
In this case I choose to give myself the ice element allowing me control over an element that is just out of my usual reach. You see 'Sea Serpent of the End' allows a leviathan unparalleled control over water in all things...except it's state. While I can make my water as cold as an arctic ocean or as scalding hot as lava I cannot control it as a solid nor gas. It's the singular advantage House Sitri's trait has over the Leviathan's, an advantage I've now voided.
The path of destruction is both complicated and simple. It's simple in the fact a path grants its followers certain abilities such as 'preservation' and its followers hardiness. However it is also complicated in the fact that paths are...obscure. People know how those that follow a certain path act and behave, usually, but they also don't understand how the path itself interacts with the universe in general.
As for why I chose destruction, well it's rather simple really. Those that follow the path of destruction are known for raw strength and power. Something that I need more of if I'm to eventually stand against super devils and literal gods.
Finally, for the last of my purchases I bought 'spirit whisper', the signature ability of Kafka the stellaron hunter. Now not much is known about 'spirit whisper' but what is known is that it's a hypnotic ability. It was mainly used by Kafka to take control of opposing forces and turn them against each other and to keep Balde's mara stricken state in check. With the possible application of such a powerful ability I just couldn't pass up the chance to take it for myself. Especially not when there's plenty of potential test subjects around.
{Added potential [you have Ice Element (HSR)] -5 [177]
Added potential [you have Path of Destruction (HSR)] -5 [172]
Added potential [you have Spirit Whisper (HSR)] -5 [167]}
Almost immediately I can feel a shift in my own body temperature. It's almost as if I had just stepped in front of an air conditioner, but throughout my whole body. The cool sensation was soon followed by a surge of raw power.
It felt almost like I had grown twice as powerful in the blink of an eye. I actually had to stop walking to get a handle on the surge of power, least I break my cover in the middle of a crowded street. After a few moments I was finally able to safely resume walking with Rias, though unsure about what just happened.
I had expected the path of destruction to make me stronger, but I wasn't expecting to gain that much power in only seconds. Soon however my confusion gave way to surprise as I received a notification from the company device.
{Contractor has reached Tier 8}
I couldn't keep the smile off of my face at reading that message. I had just functionally joined the same tier as some of the multiverse's strongest individuals. For reference tier eight was akin to the likes of Sirzechs, Ajuka, Ddraig, and Albion. It was akin taking my first steps into godhood.
Admittedly I would be on the lower end of that spectrum, especially considering it's likely I only increased in tier due to the esoteric nature of paths and spirit whisper. With most of this new power being untrained I would still be defeated by the older and more powerful members of this tier, but it was a start. This was akin to putting my foot in the door to becoming far, far more powerful.
"Marinus look!" Rias exclaimed shaking me from my thoughts.
When I look to where she's pointing I see a fiery redhead putting on a street performance. I immediately recognize her as Guinaifen, a personal favorite of mine. Just as we join the crowd she begins juggling several sticks of what looks like dynamite before throwing them into the air letting them explode to reveal fireworks.
"That's all folks! Thank you for watching!" She cheered waving excitedly at the crowd.
As the crowd began to disperse we walked towards Guinaifen to see her talking with a brown haired girl I recognized as Sushang. Drawing near we could hear that Sushang was actually admonishing Guinaifen.
"Gui! You know you aren't supposed to be setting off explosives, even less so near the Central Starskiff Haven!" The young cloud Knight lectured.
Guinaifen simply smiled and laughed. "Oh come on Sushang~ it's all in good fun. Besides it's only some small fireworks~"
"Pardon us." Rias interjected with a smile.
Sushang stuttered for a moment before replying. "Sorry about that ma'am, did you need help with something?" She asked politely.
"I was hoping to give a donation, but I didn't see a box or anything." Rias stated.
"Ah, thanks! Glad you enjoyed the show, but this was more of a welcome for the wardance and for my social." Guinaifen replied with an easy smile as she gestured to the sign nearby that had her social media account.
"Oh, my apologies I'm used to how performers from my home do things." Rias replied.
"Your home? See you here to see the wardance by chance?" Sushang asked.
"Something like that, but it's private business." I answered politely giving Rias a look.
"I'm afraid I'll have to ask your business regardless." Sushang stated with an apologetic, but firm tone. "As a member of the cloudknights it's my duty to ensure no one is here to interrupt the peace of the Luofu." She explained.
I went to say something before Rias held up a hand to stop me. "I apologize for my friend, truthfully we're here to recruit warriors or those that show potential." Rias explained.
"The reason being?" Guinaifen asked curiously.
"It's a bit complicated to explain, would you happen to know somewhere we could discuss it over tea?" Rias asked kindly.
The pair looked to each other for a moment before nodding and leading us towards a tea house.
Around an hour later I left Rias with the pair of Loufu natives as they continued to discuss Rias' options. Having learned of the heiresses situation the pair of friends had immediately agreed to help Rias in her search while they could. Unfortunately, they wouldn't be able to look for anyone to join her peerage today as the arena was closed for the evening. In lieu of recruitment they had decided to get Rias accustomed to the Loufu, especially seeing as we were in no great rush.
I had been offered the chance to tag along, but I had decided to venture off on my own. Admittedly it was cute to see Sushang fumble as I explicitly informed her she was now Rias' protector. Did I need to troll the poor girl? No, no I did not, but I definitely enjoyed playing up the possibility of a diplomatic incident.
Slowly I strolled into an open courtyard, taking in the beautiful sunset. Combined with the soft cool breeze and slowly dying noises this was one of the most pleasant experiences of my life. How did the Loufu have a day and night cycle again...wasn't it a literal gargantuan spaceship?
"It's quite beautiful isn't it?" A male voice asked walking up just a few feet away.
"I quite prefer the sights of the Yaoqing myself, but the Luofu does possess its own charm." A feminine voice replied near the man's. "What about yourself stranger, do you enjoy the sights of the Loufu?" She asked.
"I do, it's far more peaceful than my homeland as I remember it, though my home was once equally as beautiful." I replied calmly.
Internally however I was far less calm. Having been an avid player of HSR I easily recognized the two voices. Even if I hadn't their very aura was telling enough as to their identities.
Keeping an outward appearance of calm I turned to face the two. The first was a tall man with a light complexion. He has long white hair that's tied into a ponytail with a red ribbon, golden eyes, and a mole under his left eye.
His clothing consists of an oriental-styled blouse modified with plating and golden armor in the shape of a nian on his right arm. He also has two capes that drape over both shoulders, waist armor with multiple belts, leather vambraces, red trousers with thigh harnesses, and tall boots, with a scroll and tassel attached at his hip. , had I not known better I would have thought him to be in his mid to late thirties. Alas I knew him to be centuries old, one of the oldest generals of the Xianzhou Alliance, Jing Yuan.
The second was a tall foxian woman with fair skin and white teal-tipped hair tied in a high ponytail. Her eyes are teal with a white ring around her pupils, and prominent red eyeliner painted at the lower corners of her eyes. She has two teal orbs with a golden tassel hanging on the right side of her face, right beneath her hair, and a golden small ornament on her forehead. As a foxian, she has two large fox ears and she wears two golden earrings on her left ear. Though a foxian it appears she's lacking the fox tail they usually have as well.
Her outfit consists of a white trench coat, dark teal sleeveless turtleneck, and black shorts with a dark teal half-skirt. She wears calf-high dark heeled boots, a dark thigh garter on her left thigh, and a belt wrapped around her left leg right above the knee. The trench coat has black-and-white waves at the bottom, with its tips bending to dark gray. The lower half of the coat is cyan fading to dark teal and has a golden scale pattern on the inside. Her turtleneck has two open diamond-shaped windows at each side, each window lined in gold, the top smaller windows being at her ribcage and the bottom ones being above her hips. At the collar of her turtleneck is a circular-shaped blue ornament with a small red tassel tied into a bow. The half-skirt is decorated with light, dark, and normal teal-colored waves as well as golden lining. This is the 'Merlin's Claw' of the Xianzhou Yaoqing, the 'Vanquishing General' Feixiao.
While the two generals were polite and kept kind smiles I could see the way their eyes scrutinized every detail. Stretching out my senses I could feel that we were carefully watched by at least a dozen Cloud Knights, perhaps a few judges as well. It really wouldn't surprise me if they had more than this waiting in the wings as well.
"So...what have I done to garner the attention of not one, but two generals of the Xianzhou?" I asked while maintaining a smile.
"You've done nothing wrong in particular...except smuggle yourself and your compatriot onto the Luofu." Jing Yuan replied.
"Coupled with the rather powerful presence the master diviner felt it." Feixiao added helpfully.
I stayed smiling while I nodded. "Still seems quite lowly for two generals if you believed I was a simple stowaway." I stated to which the pair nodded in agreement.
"Perhaps, yet there's no evidence of you having stepped onto the Loufu at all." Jing Yuan started. "No security footage, abnormal manifests, or even missing passenger lists; it's almost as if you simply appeared out of thin air." He finished.
"Hmmm, well I'm glad you figured that out without my explanation." I stated affirming what the good general had insinuated. "I'm guessing you're here for the why's and how's?" I asked.
"That would be correct." He replied.
"Hmmm...where to begin?" I mused aloud before shrugging. "I suppose I could start with the fact we're from a different universe than your own." I stated.
Neither general looked shocked at the revelation, but then again their own universe had Aeons, Emanators, and countless species. Hell the generals themselves had their avatars granted to them by the Aeon of the hunt.
"How did you come to end up on the Loufu?" Feixiao asked.
"My ancestor made a deal of the extra-dimensional variety." I replied with a shrug. "This gave myself the ability to 'jump' to a choice of one of eight worlds every so often. I chose yours and we just happened to end up on the Loufu of all places." I answered.
"I see, and your purpose for being here?" Jing Yuan asked.
"As it's already been explained to one of your Cloud Knights, I'm aiding my friend in finding individuals for what her species calls a 'peerage'." I answered easily.
"Don't you mean 'our' species?" Feixiao questioned with a small grin.
"Huh, so the great diviner managed to catch that did she?" I asked slightly impressed. I had only lost control of my suppression for the briefest of moments. Fu Xuan must have been actively searching for something to have noticed that quickly.
"That and a small glimpse of your true power." Jing Yuan conceded. "Thus the necessity of myself and my colleague to be the ones to question you." He explained causing me to nod in understanding.
"I do apologize if I've offended anyone, I tend to grow whenever I visit somewhere new." I casually stated.
"Is that what you get in exchange for aiding your companion?" Feixiao suddenly asked. "A power up?"
I simply gave a slightly more mischievous smile to the foxian general before answering her previous question. "You're correct, we are the same species and she is unaware. As for why...well how would you like to learn a little history?"
The two generals shared a look that seemed to convey a silent conversation before nodding in agreement. With a nod I began with an explanation of our world, how it came to be and its separation between the supernatural and human. From there I explained the three factions and the war they had raged for centuries until an uneasy peace had been agreed upon. Finally I explained about my house and its involvement in the underworld before I was sealed away until lastly I talked about the civil war and its lasting consequences for the devil faction.
When it was done the pair silently thought over the information that had learned. Neither had a particularly strong response to my lecture, but that was to be expected. The story of our world was essentially the same as a hundred others in this universe. The main thing they had latched onto was the admittance that devils, fallen, and angels are all long life species, the same as themselves.
Of course this was intentional, the Xianzhou has several long life species, but their humans in particular are unstable. After a certain period of time these humans are afflicted with 'Mara' and become violently unstable lashing out at anyone, even those they considered family.
"Your species can live for over ten thousand years? Without your minds degrading or going mad?" Jing Yuan questioned.
"We can, some of the first devils of our pillars are still very much alive and well." I replied nonchalantly. "The only difficulty playing our race is our extremely low birthrates."
"These 'evil pieces' can also turn any other species into reincarnated devils as well? With the same benefits?" Feixiao asked in genuine curiosity.
"They can, the Satan that invented the evil pieces is a genius unlike any other." I affirmed with a slight smirk. "You know...he could probably figure out a cure for your 'mara-stricken'." I stated.
I'm sure if anyone could discover a cure it would be Ajuka. Even in the unlikely event he couldn't I could always slap a piece of jewelry on whoever they send and cure them with 'body tune-up'. Hell if that second one came to pass it would basically be an infinite credit glitch.
"What would such a thing cost us?" Feixiao questioned suspiciously while casting a discreet glance at her fellow general.
It seemed she was well aware of the Jing Yuan's vested interest in a cure. Considering his master and friend are both afflicted with it I can understand her concern. Though her question was certainly a good one, what would it cost?
The idea of dimensional travel is relatively unheard of outside the dimensional gap. I'm sure if I were to bring this ability up to the current satans they would be all over the idea of being able to safely relocate their faction in the event of another war. Hell we could easily relocate either here or Remnant to hole up for a few centuries until we've built up more than enough numbers to easily take on any other faction.
Then there's the simple fact that I'm the only person with this ability at the moment. Sure I've figured out a workaround thanks to the green orb market, but this would still be proprietary via house Leviathan. With a nod to myself I look to the generals who have been patiently awaiting my answer.
"I can give you a rough guess as to what this would entail to receive Satan Beelzebub's aid. First the thought of dimensional travel alone is near unheard of and provides an escape should our faction face a full scale war again. The very first thing we would want in return would be an alliance with your Xianzhou Alliance." I stated receiving nods of understanding.
"The idea of an alliance is feasible, but it's the details that we would need to understand before even bringing this to the attention of all the generals." Jing Yuan stated. A sentiment I understood and could agree with wholeheartedly.
"Terms would most likely include safe harbor rather than an agreement of collective defense. If we go to war they would more than likely want to ensure they would have a safe place to retreat to." I explained.
"If your population is close to several million we would likely have to split it between several Xianzhou ships to ensure it doesn't overwhelm one." Feixiao replied with a thoughtful look as if trying to calculate just how many people they could truly accommodate per ship.
"We would also request the privilege of being able to visit the Xianzhou to recruit peerage members." I listed.
"I'm assuming you state it like that because of how your peerage system works?" Jing Yuan stated. "I'm unsure if you're aware of this, but the Xianzhou Alliance frowns upon slavery."
"Which is why I stated it would be a privilege." I replied. "Devils would be allowed to come and make offers for natives to join their peerages. They will not be allowed to make demands and you retain the right to yank this privilege at any moment." I explained.
"Of course this is all hypothetical." Feixiao stated. "You don't pretend to speak for your Satans just as we don't pretend to speak for the entirety of the Xianzhou Alliance." She clarified further.
"That's correct, I'm simply explaining the most likely terms of an alliance between our people." I agreed.
"Then what do you receive from this agreement?" She pushed. "From my understanding your house would have sole custody of the 'bridge'." She stated using air quotes.
I simply smiled as the two generals stare me down in a questioning manner. It would seem they had understood my plan to leverage their world as a political resource in my own.
"As you've said my house will hold sole custody over this 'bridge'." I agreed. "Quite honestly I'll benefit greatly from this deal just in my home universe alone. With that in mind I'd like to keep it rather simple, unless the Xianzhou has another offer in mind I'll propose a political marriage."
The two generals shared another long look as if trying to decide if it was an acceptable option. On one hand they only had to offer me a single bride in return for my cooperation. On the other, the bride would need to be someone in good standing and from an acceptable social position in comparison to my own. Either way I would win in this situation.
"You needn't make a decision now obviously." I stated getting their attention. "I'll be here for a few days to gather peerage members with my friend. I'll give you until then to decide if my offer is worth it, though a suggestion if I may?"
"Of course." Jing Yuan stated, gesturing for me to continue.
"Why not a simple trial run to see if an evil piece itself can help alleviate a mara-struck individual?" I offered causing the pair to consider my words more carefully. "My friend, Rias, still has a knight piece available. I've heard the former Sword Master of the Loufu is currently in captivity due to her nature as a mara-stricken." I explained leaving my statement rather implicit.
Both generals once again held a silent conversation, though this one seemed far more intense. Before they could say anything I held up a hand to stop them.
"As I said we'll be around for a few days, take your time." I stated before I started to move on to continue my walk.
"You're aware we'll keep you under observation?" Feixiao stated causing me to stop.
"I am, but it doesn't matter." I replied as I turned back to them with a smirk.
"You believe you could overpower the defenses of the Loufu?" Jung Yuan questioned stoically.
"My dear generals..." I drawled as I formed the strongest barrier I could around us. "You couldn't stop me if you threw your entire combined armies at me. Allow me a demonstration." I stated summoning Kyōka Suigetsu. "Bankai."
Regular P.O.V
Fu Xuan bit her fingernail in annoyance, had she and the knights reacted faster perhaps they could have prevented this. No...no they could not have prevented this. Not when none of them knew this individual could isolate himself and others at a moment's notice.
What Aeon could grant their followers this type of power? Qlipoth? No that didn't make any sense the individuals power she had glimpsed was reminiscent of destruction rather than preservation.
"Lady Diviner, the barrier!" A knight brought to her attention.
Immediately her focus was on the barrier that was beginning to disappear. When it had finally done so she was not prepared for the sight that greeted her. General Feixiao was on her hands and knees dry heaving as if having just experienced the most traumatic moments of her life all over again. The generals eyes were wide with an emotion that seemed so foreign….fear.
Her own general, Jing Yuan, was on a single knee using his glave to hold himself steady. Even then he kept his eyes on the individual across from him as if he would disappear at any second. Even from her position she could see that he was sweating as if a great battle had just been fought.
Perhaps one had, but they had been concealed for only forty seconds. What could this individual have done in that time to elicit such reactions from two of the Xianzhou's leaders. The possibilities did not settle the Great Diviner's fraying nerves.
Speaking of the individual he himself seemed almost undisturbed. He looked exactly as he had before the barrier had been erected with the sole exception of the katana he held in his hand. What's more was the expression he wore…he was pleased.
"I thank you for allowing my demonstration." He stated politely, almost thankful in a way. "I'll leave you to talk amongst your peers what we've discussed." He stated before turning to leave.
"You there stop!" Fu Xuan ordered causing the gathered cloud knights to surround the man.
"Stand down." Jing Yuan ordered.
"General?" The diviner questioned.
"Marinus here is free to go, do not interfere." The general ordered.
"Hmm." Marinus made a pleased hum before continuing on his way. "Have a pleasant evening everyone."