Hunter of the Evernight
Chapter 714: Marked

Chapter 714: Marked

Alex once again found himself within Excalibur, with the fearsome essence of the Artisan perched between two peaks, screaming profanities while glaring hatefully at him.

Of course, this time he was not alone as he was accompanied by the Broken Saintess, a deity that he shared a twofold connection with.

It made him wonder if that qualified him to be an Apostle but considering he couldn’t quite tell what domain the Saintess had authority over, he guessed not.

Which made him wonder, what domain did the Saintess represent?

If it happened to be one that was incompatible with the Artisan, then that might not be so bad.

But then if it turned out that it was compatible and it came out on the losing end, there would be problems.

Regardless, Alex chose to wait as he understood that he couldn’t force the Saintess to act.

The Artisan, letting out a deafening cry, raised its hand in a bid to crush those who dared to come before it.

The hand, forged of molten rocks, came down like the hammer of judgment, leaving Alex tense though he remained in place.

Just then the Saintess reacted, raising Her hand and unleashing her domain.

A blood-curdling scream echoed across the pseudo dimension they were in, eliciting a stunned look from Alex.

Shocked as he was, Alex glanced at the origin of the scream only to discover that the Artisan had lost an arm.

Alex struggled to understand how this happened but try as he may, he couldn’t figure it out.

But that wasn’t the end as the Saintess took wobbly steps forward, Her fingers twitching as She closed the distance.

The Artisan finally shifted its hate-filled eyes from Alex, deciding to focus on the entity that dared to encroach.

Suddenly, a red patch appeared underneath the Saintess’ feet after which a pillar of molten lava erupted, swallowing Her whole and causing Alex to freeze as he thought that was the end for the Saintess.

So then, imagine his surprise when the pillar of lava dissipated to reveal an unharmed Saintess.

Instead, it was the Artisan that received the damage he’d expected as a hole suddenly appeared in its torso, causing it to scream out in agony yet again.

The Saintess kept on moving, but Her steps had begun to stabilize, and with that stability, She picked up speed.

The essence of the Artisan, revealed a hint of terror in that moment as it swung everything it could at the Saintess.

The earth fractured, and molten lava erupted; the sky darkened as iron pillars descended, and the world boiled.

Alex didn’t dare to stay as he rushed to the edge of the pseudo-dimension, aware that the current battle was one beyond his capabilities.

Even surviving would be an uphill task given the fact that almost everywhere was under the control of the Artisan.

But even with all its spectacular acts that controlled the elements needed for blacksmithing, The Artisan was unable to destroy the Saintess.

For some reason, all the damage it was meant to receive would end up being transmitted back to the Artisan, which made it seem like the deceased deity was fighting with itself.

Only then did Alex seem to gain an inkling as to the domain the Saintess lords over.

Soon, the decimation entered a lull as the essence of the Artisan knelt between the two peaks, its head bowed in defeat as the Saintess stood before it.

There was a clear difference in size as the Artisan stood as a towering giant while the Saintess was a hunched being with the height of an average human.

Alex watched as the Saintess reached a hand out and the Artisan, tired as it was, reached a hand out as well.

Both touched and the Saintess began to grow at a rate like none other while the essence of the Artisan shrank.

It soon became clear that the Saintess was doing just what Alex had asked it to do.

She was absorbing the Artisan and in turn, growing Her strength.

Even though it was just the essence of the Artisan, this was still a deity that had reigned supreme at some point in Eventide’s history and it was one that still received worship indirectly.

The Saintess might not be able to replace Him considering their domains were different, but she could use his essence to correct her current state.

Soon, the Artisan was gone and in its place, the Saintess stood tall though her back remained hunched.

She was now the towering giant perched between two peaks, Her glass-like body glistening with an added metallic hue and the viscous liquid in Her mouth now colored with a bright yellow glow.

Crossing Her legs until She was correctly seated in a lotus position, She beckoned Alex to approach Her with the latter swiftly finding himself standing before Her.

She said nothing, merely reaching out with a finger to pierce Alex’s temple.

Alex let out an agonizing scream as a terrifying pain surged through him, causing him to black out yet again.

When he awoke, he found himself back in the valley with Victoria and the Fixer standing on his left and right side.

"Master." Victoria breathed out as Alex blinked a few times in a bid to get himself back.

Victoria helped him to sit up while the Fixer inquired.

"How did it go?"

Alex massaged his temples only for Victoria to gasp as she noticed something on his feet meters shy of his temple.

"Master..."

"What is it?"

The Fixer, noticing it as well, frowned as he intoned. "You’ve been marked."

"Marked?"

Alex furrowed his brows as he looked to the side to find Excalibur sitting silently beside him.

Looking down at the refractive surface of the blade, he quickly discovered the mark which appeared to have been burned onto his skin.

It appeared as a cross within a crown of thorns.

"The Saintess marked me." Alex breathed out evenly. "Is this good or bad?"

"It depends." The Fixer replied. "Some deities mark a person to bless them while others mark a person to curse them."

"So it’s fifty-fifty."

"Indeed."

Taking a deep breath, Alex slowly picked up Excalibur and the next moment, called out its name.

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