Chapter 265: The Next Step (1/2)

I waved off his concerns, ”Come on now, I need some advice here.”

Helios let his hands flop against his sides,

”As strange as it may first appear, I have never created golems out of my own skin. Therefore, it's difficult for me to offer counsel in that regard.”

I tsked, ”Well...damn, here I was hoping for some solid advice.”

Helios glared from under his mask, ”I am so sorry that I am not of more use. Do excuse me.”

”You know I'm joking, right? Lighten up.”

Helios frowned, ”I understand the sentiment. I'd prefer we keep our relationship purely professional, however.”

I rolled my eyes, ”Of course you do.” I raised a hand, ”Seriously though, I do need some colonization advice.”

Helios lifted his chin,

”Ah, colonization. We refer to the task as 'conquering' in the Empire, though you may use a gentler word if you prefer. What do you need to know about it?”

”I'm planning on expanding my guild. I want to know what's the best way of doing it.”

”It is a simple thing. Enter someone's domain, restrict access to their dungeons, through force if necessary. Once control is established, clear the rifts for a time, and then establish a city on Schema's authority. Once established, you may control the populace's access to their rifts, creating an absolute dominance.”

Helios stared off in the distance,

”If you're efficient, cities can be established in days rather than weeks. Obolis expanded the Empire from the capital, Olstatia, in a matter of hours. He's a unique case, however. You can expect to create four to five cities a week. Given how effective you are at clearing dungeons, you might match his pace should you show the same ambition.”

I frowned, ”I don't imagine people would enjoy that method of taking over.”

Helios nodded, ”And what weaklings want is irrelevant. They are the subjugated. As such, they shall carry the burden of their weakness, in one way or the other.”

”So, you're recommending I become a tyrant?”

”Understand this, Harbinger. Your strength is just as much a curse as a commoner's weakness is. Perhaps you believe that I look down on commoners for their lack of potency. Your misunderstanding is understandable but misplaced. I do not look down upon them; In many respects, I envy them.”

Helios raised a hand, ”They never need to think of all that we worry of. They must simply execute their plain labors on a day to day basis without a thought in the world. We are given control of them, which is a privilege, but we are also tasked with their prosperity.”

Helios squeezed his hand into a fist, ”This is the mantle of those gifted with power in Schema's universe. Your success is measured by the success of those under you. As such, the weak reflect the competence of those over them. Their prosperity is your achievement in that respect.”

I narrowed my eyes, ”Why not just let people do what they want?”

Helios met my eye, his face hidden under his mask,

”Then they shall organize rebellions that result in the mass murder of millions. You shall understand when we arrive at Blegara. It shall demonstrate the failings of my brother, along with the consequences of freedom.”

I didn't agree with him, but I wasn't here to argue philosophy with the guy.

”Speaking of Blegara, when are we going there?”

Helios let his hand down under his cape, ”As soon as we are able. It is dependent upon you and your guild.”

I grinned, ”Alright then, let's get going.”

We walked through the guild, heading towards Torix's quarters. He made his new lair on the third floor, his haven found in the walls of his university. Helios and I met Torix leaning over in a room covered in monitors. Between them, tutorials on programming your own obelisk played in the background. Torix watched several of them while working on his own convoluted set of code.

He peered up at us as we walked in through a sliding doorway powered by personal mana. It was tech from Giess, though altered a bit. Torix raised his hand, and the programs stopped playing. He spread out his arms,

”It's good to see you, Daniel. Is your minion treating you well?”

I cupped my chin, ”Hm, you know, he's doing okay.” I turned to Helios, ”He could be doing better though. He was lecturing about philosophy earlier.”

Helios narrowed his eyes, ”It was counsel, nothing more.”

Torix waved a hand, ”Ah, wasn't he demoted from his previous position? Perhaps his advice is limited in its usefulness.”

Torix and I shared a cackle at Helios's expense. Torix let it drop,

”Teasing aside, are we here to organize our assault, perhaps?”

I nodded, ”Yup. Can you get a few gialgathens and our other main members together? I want to let them know what our plan is going forward.”

Torix leaned close, ”Perhaps you could share the inner machinations of our guild's future with me before the meeting, hmm?”

I raised a palm to the lich, ”I would, but I don't want to have to repeat myself over and over.”

Torix snapped his fingers, ”Bagh, I'd have hoped for an early insight. Such is life, I suppose...or death in my case. Hah, lich joke.” He opened his status, letting his obelisk send messages at a blistering pace,

”This obelisk is quite helpful, I must say. It's doubled my workload over the last few days, but it shall halve my workload forever thereafter.”

Helios chimed, ”Abuse them as much as you can. Obelisks are like assistants with no soul. They own no limit to the abuse they can handle.”

Torix raised a finger, his glance cross, ”Unlike the living.”

I pointed at the obelisk, ”When and where is the meeting?”

Helios read from his messages, ”In an hour, we'll gather with your guild's followers, along with five other gialgathens and mind mages.”

I frowned, ”What about the portalists?”

Torix scoffed, ”Those incompetents? They've been decommissioned from the guild.”

I raised my eyebrows, ”Why?”

”There were numerous reasons, but the most astute of them was their spying. They were sending data towards the Overseer and Schema about our guild's operations. Amara nearly devoured one of them when she found them taking notes on her eldritch experiments...for the second time, I might add.”

I sighed, ”Well, that's what we get for trusting Schema, I suppose.”

”Indeed.”

Helios turned between us, ”Why is that an issue? If you have nothing to hide, then there's no reason to be bothered with Schema's surveillance. If anything, it adds another layer of security.”

I leaned towards the albony, ”You've never been wanted, huh?”

Helios leaned back, ”No. I haven't.”

I shrugged, ”That makes sense. I came into this system as an unknown, and so have the majority of my guild's high ranking members. Hell, we have a literal eldritch on our team. Because of that status, Schema leveraged us for his own gain several times.”

Helios scoffed, ”And that is what you do with your resources, do you not?”

I frowned, ”It sets a standard where you end up just using one another. If our relationship with the Empire ends up that way, we'll break things off in an instant.”

Helios crossed his arms, ”Though we rise to a higher standard, you shouldn't expect anything more than the baseline politeness from other guilds.”

I shrugged, ”That's the thing. I do have higher expectations. Even if we don't have anything to hide, I don't want to give Schema information for blackmailing us in the future. That's because he took advantage before, trapping us on Earth to kill Yawm. He did it again, having us clean up Giess's mess.”

I glared up at the sky,

”Schema is a powerful ally, but he also prefers keeping his allies on a ball and chain. I understand it, but I don't like it.”

Helios raised his eyebrows, ”Hmmm, to me, it seems like an unnecessary precaution. That being said, you own your own reasons behind your actions. Do what you will.”

Torix walked past us, ”We shall. Come, let us meet with the others.”

We walked through the underbelly of Mt. Verner before reaching a sectioned off portion along the outskirts of the mountain. Here we warped in from Elderfire, a sort of settlement forming. Several gialgathens rested in the ravine's shadow, many of them exhausted.

Among these gialgathens, Chrona and Krog slept. They singed themselves spots in the grass, Krog preferring a clearing in the trees while Chrona rested in the shade of branches. They lifted their heads as I walked up, Helios and Torix trailing behind me. They rubbed the sleep from their eyes with the tips of their tails as Chrona mumbled,

”Excuse our late awakening. We've been tasked with much as of late, and we needed rest.”

I raised a palm to her, ”It's no problem. We're planning on fighting on Blegara today, and I was wondering if either of you are up to it?”

Krog and Chrona stared at each other before looking back at me. Krog grumbled,

”Why do we fight so soon and for a guild that has given us nothing?”

Helios stepped forward,

”We've given high-end obelisks, risked our position in the galaxy to establish trade routes, and contracted two high ranking commanders without payment as a show of support. This is merely the beginning of the Empire's generosity, yet it is already extraordinary.”

Helios turned a hand to Chrona and Krog,

”Look to yourselves before admonishing us. Your kind has given nothing but taken whatever the Harbinger has given. You both ask for rest on the first day that you actually work for your savior. Up till now, he has been working for you, and without rest, I might mention.”

Helios stared down at them, ”If this is the extent of the gialgathen's gratitude, then I shall make sure to make a note of it.”

I turned towards Helios, ”I'll let them know whether or not they're giving me gratitude. Also, give advice when I ask for it, not when you want to.”

Helios turned to me, ”Your command is noted.”

Krog and Chrona stared down, both of them filled with more than just a little shame. I sighed while thinking about what Helios said. In a way, Helios was right - this was technically their first day on their new job. Still, just like anyone, these giant salamanders had their limits regardless of what we needed from them.

They just arrived on a new planet while surviving a war and genocide. There's only so much someone can do. I raised a hand,

”Chrona, Krog, don't worry about joining us today. I didn't know the both of you were so tired, and that's something I should have noticed. Take a week off, both of you. During that time, you need to get settled in and meet a few of our guildsmen. I don't want the gialgathens to be a separate part of my guild. I want them to be interwoven like a...gialgathen, human scarf.”

I shook my head in disgust, ”Man, just forget about that example. Damn, that was awful.”

Chrona's eyes widened while she carried a light smile, ”Th-thank you, commander. Your generosity will not go unnoticed.”

I turned to Helios,