The Stonehearted Knight
Chapter 329: The Black Cat (1)

Chapter 329: The Black Cat (1)

"Project Godking?"

Staring back into the green eyes of the black cat before him, Hex let those words sink in.

He knew the Hex created him. He also knew that he was supposed to be a shell, a vessel for the Divine Lord to descend into. And...he only sprang to life due to the baroness injecting life into him. That, and if he inferred correctly from the Knight Scroll, the Witch got lucky in applying the unique Method, resulting in his body being one of a kind.

Was all that correct? Wasn’t it a convergence of luck and coincidences that he existed? So far, everything seemed to point in that direction.

But according to the cat, if it was speaking the truth, the Witch had been working on some sort of project. By the name of it, it sounded like she was trying to create the Godking. It could be that she thought the combination of him as vessel and the Divine Lord as soul would reach the level of the Godking. Perhaps the cat would know.

"I know she created me but I am not sure for what purpose."

He didn’t look away as the green eyes locked onto him.

She should have told you herself.

"She is dead."

The cat closed its eyes and then pulled away from him. After a few seconds, it slowly opened its eyes.

I know.

Every time I am summoned, I try to sense her. But I keep trying.

It looked at Hex again.

Until today. Until I sensed her on you. That’s when I realized I would never be able to meet her again.

The cat lowered its ears and head and resumed licking her paw. This time slower than previously.

"If you are trying to sense her, why let others kill and offer you humans?"

Hex asked the question that bothered him the most. The cat seemed attached to the Witch. But no matter how heart broken it looked, Hex couldn’t see it as an innocent beast.

It required sacrifices of lives to bestow Blessings. That wasn’t something he could let go, even from a beast. If it even was a beast. Few beasts, if any, would be able to shape itself as memories.

Let others kill each other? Whatever do you mean? I never did such a thing. They did so on their own.

It looked peeved at Hex’s insinuation as if such things were below its status. Although its reply was along the lines of what he hoped to hear, its carefree attitude towards others killing each other irritated him.

"And you never stopped them?" He confronted it.

Why would I? Have you ever stopped two insects from killing each other?

Seeing her bemused look, Hex fell silent. It was right in a sense. He never stopped beasts from killing each other. In fact, there had been a time when he even hoped for beasts to fight each other so he could scavenge whatever was left behind.

And if he was honest with himself, which he realized was sometimes hard to do, he too never bothered with other peoples’ fights. If they wished to kill each other, without bothering him or those he cared for, he would stay out of it.

"Is there a way you could tell me more about her?"

After some pondering in silence, during which the cat only focussed on cleaning itself, Hex decided to forego skirting around his intentions and asked directly.

The cat stopped licking itself and looked at him with a studying glance.

You learn quickly. Good.

What do you wish to know? Be specific. Soon we will run out of time and it will be a while before I awake from my slumber to answer more of the questions you might have.

Everything. That was what Hex wished to scream but knowing that the time was limited, he prioritized a few.

"According to her diary she seemed innocent and weak. How did she turn into such a terrifying being whose name terrorized the world. Still does, actually."

Have you read her diary?

"Only a few pages."

There was nothing to hide. Plus, he wished to prevent it assuming he knew a few things. He rather had a good and detailed explanation.

In order to answer your question I will need to brief you on a few things that happened a few Ages ago.

It looked pleased as he noticed her ears twitch and her tail swaying from left to right and then back.

During the start of the Fourth Age, when the remaining gods battled each other for supremacy, Wrixia became the final battleground. Quite a few of those gods lost their divinity in that period.

All those divinities threatened to fuse with the air, land, and water of the world. You might think that that wouldn’t be bad, for divinities are considered pure and holy. But it was for that reason it couldn’t be allowed to fuse with the world. It would make worldly creatures die out. The land, water, and air would be inhospitable to them.

Hex listened with utmost focus. He didn’t know where the story was leading up to but it helped him fill in the gaps in history. He couldn’t imagine what divinities looked like but was sure that several of them would indeed destroy life.

At that time, most life, much like everything else in the world, centered on Wrixia. Much life was lost and much was about to be lost when the Goddess of Life implored Wrixia to absorb all those divinities.

Wrixia, as the Old One, knew the dangers of doing so. It refused. My theory was that He was too much of a coward to do so. Medina thought differently. She discovered a few old passages that spoke about remnant Wills that could corrode the Will of Wrixia itself and catapult the world into greater danger.

In the end the Old One agreed, but only because the Goddess sacrificed her Will and fused it with the tree, empowering it. That helped save the world and the life within but it also started an event that caused the sisters to end up like they did.

"What do you mean? How did saving the world result in a girl turning into a Witch?"

Well, because Medina was right. All divinities had their Will, even after the Gods disappeared. Those Wills couldn’t corrode Wrixia thanks to Verdantia’s Blessing of Life. But they influenced the life in and around Wrixia, seeping into the very fabric of this world.

"So my mo– The Witch was influenced?"

Yes.

"By the gods?"

No.

"Huh. What do you mean? Who influenced her then?"

Wrixia did.