45. The Raven Queen's Apotheosis Ritual

"Come in."

Following Elian's permission, Gut, the Chief of the Evocation School, pushed open the door and entered.

Although ten years had passed, Gut, as a ninth-ring grand mage capable of delaying aging, showed no signs of aging.

He remained a handsome man with a gaze as sharp as an eagle's.

"Is there something you need from me, our Evocation Chief?" Elian smiled.

Although Gut still held the title of "Chief of the Evocation School," with the passage of time, the concept of school chiefs had faded considerably, becoming more of an honorary title inherited from a bygone era.

The Imperial Council, previously composed of the eight chiefs, had also undergone massive expansion under Elian's initiative, transforming into the [Eldorun New Magic Council] consisting of dozens of high-level spellcasters, absorbing quite a few spellcasters from the surface world.

Even Elian's disciple, the young sorcerer Gray, held a seat in the council!

"Nothing too urgent, just wanted to have a casual chat..."

Gut paused midway, as if brewing something in his mind.

He looked straight at Elian before the dark wood desk, and as if mustering his courage, he spoke the words he had held back for many years with a sense of relief:

"Your Majesty Elian, I must admit..."

"Your reforms were right."

Gut turned his head slightly, his gaze passing through the wide glass to look at the mages coming and going on the streets below the palace.

He particularly noticed those surface mages who looked young and dressed in an unconventional manner.

"These mages from the surface are indeed exceptional, beyond my imagination."

"Almost every single one of them is talented. It's hard to imagine how much potential they hold for the future."

"Though I am somewhat reluctant to admit it, just as Your Majesty told me before: we mages high above in the heavens are not actually special."

"Once ordinary surface humans receive an education, they can also give birth to equally brilliant, or even more brilliant talents!"

Elian smiled and said:

"This is the result brought about by the widespread popularization of education and the examination-and-selection system."

"The mages of today are geniuses selected from countless towns and villages on the surface through a process of picking the best among the best."

"Only the most outstanding graduates of elementary magic schools can take the entrance exams for intermediate magic schools. Only the most outstanding graduates of intermediate magic schools can take the entrance exams for advanced magic schools."

"Compared to the academic cliques and hereditary families of Eldorun's floating city in the past, this is a much more efficient talent selection model."

"And the human race is, by nature, the fastest-learning and growing among all races."

Gut nodded, smilingly acknowledging Elian's words.

He even found it somewhat hard to understand:

What kind of foolish thoughts had possessed him back then, making him want to rebel and join Helen and Cade in assassinating Elian.

How utterly foolish.

If, right after the assassination attempt failed years ago, Gut had merely submitted to Elian's power, mercy, and charm, willing to pledge loyalty to Elian personally...

Now, having witnessed the fruits of this great reform with his own eyes, he had completely endorsed Elian's reform itself!

"At this rate, one day, the great Eldorun, the kingdom of humanity, might surpass the Elven Court of the West!" Gut said.

As a human supremacist, just thinking about this possibility made his heart surge.

Yet in the next second, Gut shrugged with helpless resignation:

"Too bad, though. Above the Elven Court are the elven gods. Those damned pointy-eared deities."

At this, Gut thought of another matter.

"Right, Your Majesty, ever since you told me ten years ago that you hoped I could become the guardian deity of Eldorun, I have been exploring and researching methods for mortals to ascend to godhood all these years, but I haven't made any progress."

"I used to think gods were merely more powerful mages, but after these years of research, I've found it doesn't seem that simple."

"Gods appear to be a more special and peculiar kind of entity, filled with too many unsolved mysteries."

Elian smiled faintly:

"There's no need to put too much thought into this for now. Just focus on your own duties."

"I can assure you that it is indeed possible for mortals to ascend to godhood. But this is a project of extreme difficulty and risk, requiring the right timing, favorable geography, and harmony among people."

"Right now, it is still far too early to consider this."

Elian knew that even he himself lacked divinity; he was merely an early-stage legendary mage with bizarre methods, staggering spell reserves, and advanced tactical thinking.

As the former leader of the gods and the God of Time and Magic in his past life, when the time was ripe, he would certainly ascend to the divine throne once more!

The Elian of his past life had walked the path of deification through "building great achievements" and "mastering domains."

He had spent thousands of years exploring the limits of magic and spreading it, touching the origin of the concept of "magic" in the universe before successfully ascending as a god.

This process could indeed be replicated.

Yet it was far too slow.

As the monarch of Eldorun, walking the path of "divinity through faith" was also an option.

However, that path was far too unstable.

After all, throughout history, the vast majority of idols, leaders, and monarchs adored by millions had never become gods.

How could becoming a god be so simple?

That path was best used as an auxiliary.

That is, one should first become a deity through other means, and then use the empire's power of faith to further sustain and strengthen one's divinity, condensing the "humanity" divine rank.

In Elian's current memory, a third, much simpler shortcut to godhood existed:

Seize it directly!

After defeating a deity, use a lost ritual to directly plunder their divine power and usurp their divine throne.

—The ritual used by the Goddess of Death, later known as the [Raven Queen], when she usurped the divine throne of the Death God "Nerull," was right inside Elian's mind!

The only problem was:

Where could one find a relatively weak deity lacking allies, defeat them with assistance that might include their hostile deities, and plunder their divinity?

After all, quite a few deities had allies and were not entirely isolated.

If one eliminated one of them, it would inevitably provoke the other deities.

That was the troublesome aspect of divine sophistication. To kill one god meant wiping out their entire pantheon.

Regarding this, Elian was also considering the matter and had several preliminary divine targets in mind.

For instance, the "Worm God" Kaevors, who would appear in the future.

For instance, those mediocre, incompetent rookie deities located in the "City of Gods" district on the second layer of the Nine Hells, the iron city of Dis.

As for specific targets, Elian intended to take it one step at a time, currently focusing on national development.

The stronger Eldorun grew, the more options would become available.

Slaying a god was, after all, a very troublesome endeavor.

The right timing, favorable geography, and harmony among people were all indispensable.

Recalling his wandering thoughts, Elian was just about to discuss Eldorun's future development direction with Gut when he heard a knock on the door:

"Your Majesty Elian."

"A high-level mage from outside Eldorun wishes to pay you a visit."

"She claims to come from a human settlement beyond Eldorun!"

A high-level human mage from outside Eldorun?

Hearing this, Gut was visibly stunned.

"Are there other human settlements outside Eldorun?"

Gut was clearly surprised and instinctively looked toward Elian beside him—the mage he considered the most knowledgeable.

"Indeed there are," Elian explained.

"Centuries ago, humans appeared simultaneously in various places across the continent."

"However, apart from Eldorun, human settlements elsewhere are extremely small in scale. Some are merely primitive tribes."

"Moreover, as far as I know, human settlements outside Eldorun do not practice arcane magic."

Ah? They don't know magic?

The more Gut listened, the more confused he became.

Where on earth did this high-level human mage from outside Eldorun come from, then?

"There's no need to be so puzzled," Elian said.

"I will go and see this female mage who claims to be from beyond Eldorun right now."