The Greatest Sin [Progression Fantasy][Kingdom Building]
Chapter 345 – It Has Already Begun

How many countless souls were lost? How many men gave their lives? How much damage has been done? Let us not look just to the immediate losses, let us ask about the setback we face now? When will we finally rebuild the nations that were devastated? Is it going to be decades or is it going to be centuries because it certainly won’t be mere years. How long until the populations return to what they once were? How long until we are able to say we have recovered what was lost and can finally focusing on building the future?

And, most importantly, how long will Arda stay under occupation for? How many tithes will we pay? How much gold will be sent off? Are they going to start demanding our lives? Certainly no human in living memory survive to see a world that isn’t dominated by Paradeisius and Tartarus. Arascus wanted to make those two worlds into an enemy, well, he succeeded. They did it for him in fact, and yet I cannot blame them. They sent off their men to die on Ardan fields, it is only natural that some compensation is needed. Would Arda not demand the same if it was Divines and mortals fighting over there?

But Arascus succeeded. It wasn’t during the Great War, when Tartarus and Paradeisius fought with us against him. He succeeded for every demon and every angel killed. Their worlds are already demanding their investments back. And it will be a long time before Arda can even think of chipping away at the debt they imposed on us.

Arascus put himself into a position where he could either win or he could be proven right. We could either lose or be proven wrong. Everyone knew what the situation was like from the very beginning. It is only the biggest idealists amongst who think that the world would ever return to a pre-Great War state.

Arascus, the moment he lost, was correct. Arda will either exploit or be exploited by Tartarus and Paradeisius. The White Pantheon did what no-one thought was imaginable: The God of Pride was defeated in battle. Now, one impossible mountain has been conquered. It is time for an even more impossible mountain to fall: The God of Pride must be proven wrong.

- Excerpt from “To Manage A Post-War World”, written by Goddess Allasaria, of Light.

“That’s not what I think it is?” Kavaa said as she pointed up at the twinkling lights in the ceiling. Iniri, her jaw dropped and her fingers tightened around the bag of clinking gold.

“That’s gold.” Kassandora said. A fairy appeared from next to Neneria, a small, pale thing that shone with a sickly ethereal green. Its bones were exposed and its skin was stretched tight. Kavaa couldn’t help but diagnosis it, even though it was the most open and shut case of dehydration she had ever witnessed. The ghostly fairy fluttered upwards like a butterfly, instead of going in a straight line, the thing jumped from side to side as it seemingly bounced up to the ceiling. “It’s gold Neneria.” Kassandora said again.

“Are you sure?” Neneria asked in that smooth voice of hers. Honestly, Kavaa liked the voice that Death spoke in. It was a low and gentle embrace, like stepping into cool water during a hot day.

“I’m not.” Kassandora replied in her deep growl. And that voice sent a chill down Kavaa’s spine. There was no other Goddess that sounded like that, not Allasaria, not Fortia or Maisara, not even Fer, that spoke in that way. Kassandora did not say words, she made even the tiny articles in her speech a declaration. “I hope it’s not.”

“It’s going to be.” Neneria said.

“It is gold.” Kavaa agreed. All four of them could see the obvious, there was gold there in the ceiling. They simply wanted it not to be true. The fairy stopped as it got to the top and then waved downwards. All three of them turned to Neneria. The Goddess of Death waved the little creature back down, then had it disappear when it didn’t listen. “What did it say?” Kavaa got the words out because she simply wanted the ordeal over with. Uncertain oscillation between hope and despair was far worse than uncertainty in hopelessness.

The Goddess of Death, in her black coat, took a moment to answer. Maybe she was just listening to the fairy in her own world. “It is gold up there. The gold has demons moving on it. They waved to her.” Neneria relayed the information and looked up. “Shine it about.”

Kassandora moved her torch from side to side. Even in this section above them, there was at least two dozens different points where gold glinted about. “That takes out my idea.” Iniri said.

“What was it?” Kassandora asked.

“For me to go ahead and take the gold out. But we’ve been seen by now.”

“That we have.” Kassandora said with a sigh. “What’s in the bag?”

“It’s gold coins.” Iniri answered. “I collected them from the men but they may have some more hidden away. I’m not… I mean, I didn’t want to go around scaring them.”

“I would have just taken them.” Neneria said flatly.

Kavaa supposed she could give her own opinion on this issue. She wanted to help out Kassandora whenever possible, but it was borderline impossible. It would be trying to be Elassa’s magical assistant. There were some things that simply were impossible. “I would explain it to them so they know the danger. They’re not children.”

“I’ll sort it.” Kassandora said, she held out her hand for Iniri to pass her the bag. The Goddess of War pulled out a gold coin and smiled down at it. Kavaa leaned in close, she put her cheek on Kassandora’s shoulder. That movement was done in order to send a message to Mammon. There was no more White Pantheon and the Clerics were working with Kassandora. The demon would know already because he watched them from above. But that wasn’t the same, Kavaa was doing it for herself. “Hello Mammon.” Kassandora spoke quickly as the Goddesses looked at the figure in the currency.

It was exactly how Kavaa remembered the Demon Prince of Avarice, the great spymaster of Tartarus who didn’t need a single spy in his employment to know everything about everyone. And in battle, he could manipulate the metal in the same way that Iniri manipulated wood. The man was a good fighter, Kavaa had to admit that, he was better than her, but was he one of the greats? Not compared to major Divines and definitely not when compared to the other Demon Princes. Mammon sat on a throne, his chest was adorned with chainmail of coinage. He had two great thick thorns and they turned downwards. The demon raised a taunting hand to Kassandora and waved. “So he still can’t speak.” Kassandora said and the demon sighed. The coin made no sound.

“I didn’t think so. Sometimes, he was used when Allasaria sent messages to Tartarus but that’s it. I didn’t know they were organizing anything together.”

“We keep on going then.” Kassandora squashed the coin in her hand and stuffed it back into the bag.

“We keep on going? Just like that?” Kavaa asked.

“Just like that.” Kassandora replied. The Goddess of Health didn’t even know why she had even asked. She trusted Kassandora entirely, they weren’t just acquaintances, they were something more than th- Kassandora interrupted her train of thought. “We meet Irinika. Worst comes to worst, we fight our way out through some Epan entrance. Neneria will clear a way for us.”

“Thanks.” Kavaa replied. And who did Kassandora explain things like this to? She kept morale up, but she never went the extra step in explanations. Soldiers needed to fight. Soldiers didn’t need to think or feel. But she made that Kavaa felt good, didn’t she?

“You don’t have to say thanks when I give an explanation.”

“But you did anyway.” Kavaa and Kassandora awkwardly stared at each other for a moment. If they were alone… Kavaa felt a spike of guilt suddenly erupt within her that she felt too stupid to give Kassandora the scarf. She could give gifts to everyone, but... Well, Kassandora wasn’t everyone, was she?

“I hate how sweet you two are.” Neneria said dryly from the side.

“I think it’s really sweet.”

“Well, there’s no time to waste, is there? We’re on a schedule.” They all took a step. No one liked it, but what choice did they have? Now that they were this deep in, they had to advance? Even if, just like Kassandora said, to rendezvous with Irinika and nothing else. It was the best to make of a bad situation. The Goddess of War stopped them all in their tracks. “Stop.” She practically spat the word out.

“Hmm?” Neneria cooed from the side. Kavaa turned and for a moment, she saw… The Goddess of Health took a step back. She liked Kassandora, the woman was incredible. But if there was thing she didn’t like about the Goddess of War, then it was that.

For the smallest moment, Kavaa saw the woman’s face appear be flooded with surprise. Those crimson eyes, the same colour as the hair that framed the pale face, went wide. Kavaa had seen the surprise of gifts being given, the surprise of her victorious Clerics arriving to save entire communities from disasters. She had seen the surprise her healing brought about when she slayed certain death. She knew that sort of surprise, and she knew this surprise. The surprise of being tricked, of seeing an opponent’s plans come together and realise you had waltzed into them. Kavaa knew that surprise very well, she had known it everyday when she fighting against Fer in Erdely after-all.

In anyone else, that surprise would be crushing. It would, it should turn into anger or rage or stoicism or some manner of controlling emotion that would suppress it. In Kassandora though, it turned to a terrible excitement. “We’ve crossed three junctions already.” Kassandora said. “And one crossroads.”

Kavaa got what the woman was saying immediately. She didn’t turn to the two Torchbearer tanks that illuminated the front of the convoy. Instead, she looked at the two Goddesses as the problem appeared immediately. Kassandora made an amused rumble as she watched the other Divines. “I am here.” She declared. “Kavaa is here. Neneria is here. Iniri is here.”

Why did the woman sound excited? Was this really the sort of time a person should be enjoying themselves. Kavaa saw Kassandora’s glee. The mad smile and the burning eyes. The Goddess of Health felt the smaller Goddess of Nature take a step back as Iniri shivered under that gaze. Kavaa herself was unsettled. People should not appreciate conflict that much. Anyone who did had some problem, there was no other way to pretend that people should reactions like that when they heard of danger approaching them. “We are.” Kavaa replied. Someone had to be here for the woman, because Iniri was scared of Kassandora and because Neneria was obviously beyond repair when it came to helping with emotions. “Are you thinking they’re going to attack us?”

“When was the last time a supply train has made it to us?” Kassandora asked. It was such a simple question, there was no threat in the words and no aggression in Kassandora’s tone, yet Kavaa was suddenly flooded with danger.

Kavaa suddenly noticed how overwhelming the darkness was. She realised that all she been looking at recently was just stone and metal and stone and metal. The only people she had interacted with where a few soldiers and these three Goddesses. She saw the twinkling from above and she knew she was being watched. She was certain at this point: There was no way that Mammon was not seeing them. When was the last time that a supply train had come? Worse than that, when was the last time she had seen the sky and star? When was the last time she felt the gentle coolness of breeze and the embracing warmth of the sun? “I thought it was train breakdowns.” Kavaa said.

“I thought they had to pull a train all the way back.” Iniri said. “And that’s why we’ve not had any… I thought the lines were made, you don’t think?”

“I don’t think anything.” Kassandora said. “I know.”

“And what do you know?” Kavaa asked.

“I know that whilst we’re talking about whether they know we’re here, they’ve already started raiding us.” Kassandora finished and Kavaa felt a chill go down her spine. It was…

How long had it been since she felt this feeling? It had been there with Iniri, but that was more worry rather than the overwhelming emotion she felt now. Right now, she wanted to sit down and hug someone. She regretted not giving that scarf to Kassandora yet. She wanted to run back and sprint until she was back in the safety of the sunlight. Kavaa was afraid. Kavaa was so afraid that she wanted to cry.

Kavaa took a deep breath and put her hand on the butt of her blade. That was calming.