World Keeper

Chapter 105: The Demigod’s Tale

From a young age, Leowynn always knew that she was different. Not just because of how everyone else treated her, but because of something much more concrete. The world itself told her she was special, that her blood was not that of a mortal.

It was impossible for her to tell when she first saw that she had that title, as it had been with her from before she could remember. According to her mother, she was born with it. And because of that title, people had distanced themselves from her. Not out of fear, but reverence.

“She is the daughter of the Goddess Ryone…”

“The Goddess’s child walks among us…”

Many such comments could be heard as she was a child, people bowing respectfully to her as she passed. The church of the Golden Goddess had even visited on her fiftieth birthday, asking her mother for permission to raise the child as a holy figure. Anyone could tell that they wanted nothing more than to use her for their own purpose, though, so her mother outright refused them.

When the church threatened to take the child through force, Leowynn’s mother reminded them of her name. Rinon, the Mad Enchanter, the woman whose magic knows no equal among the elves. She drove the priests away with her magic, letting them know that anyone who tried to steal away her daughter would find out what a true wrath was like.

While she might be cold in front of others, she was the only one who truly embraced Leowynn. While she was growing up, she never wanted for anything, except for friends. Yes, her mother showered her with all of the love she could handle, but everyone her own age was afraid to approach her. The child of the Goddess, how could a mere mortal elf be worthy of associating with her? When some tried, their parents harshly pulled them back, apologizing profusely for any offense their children may have caused.

But there was one thing that nobody seemed to understand. Nobody but Leowynn herself… Her blood and might did not come from Ryone, as people seemed to assume. In the depths of her heart, there lurked another nameless existence. One she felt had been there forever yet she had never seen. Her connection to this fellow seemed every bit as strong as her innate bond with Ryone, so she knew that there must be a reason.

When she questioned her mother about who her father was, her mother seemed to become nervous at first, saying that he was just a traveling scholar. But, Leowynn knew that couldn’t be the case. Yes, there was someone who had visited her mother a decade before her birth, but she knew there was more to the story.

Leowynn consulted every bard and historian she could find, using the pretext of ‘testing them in Ryone’s name’ as a means to question them. She felt bad doing this, but it was not without its merit. She learned of a legend from generations past. A voice that spoke to all creation, telling of the world changing. At first it brought with it fear as men became bound to even the most absurd remarks, but then it came again. According to what she heard, this was the birth of the questing scrolls, an object that anyone could create, even without materials.

With this discovery, Leowynn was certain. Her blood’s power was not from Ryone, but from this nameless god. The one who stood above all others, yet remained hidden from everyone. After she became determined that this was the case, she became devoted to understanding anything she could about her father, her real father.

Every night, starting from her seventieth birthday, she prayed without an answer. For twenty years, she did not skip a single night, knowing that he would answer her one day. He had given her life, he would not truly abandon her.

As the title promised, her body had quickly become stronger than anyone else with the same levels as her, to the point where it had become hard for her to move properly when she was younger. In order to counter this, it was her mother that helped her train, making her practice classes that would raise her Stamina and Dexterity so that her body was able to move naturally. Without her mother’s guidance in this matter, Leowynn knew that her body would not have developed as well as it was today.

And now, after twenty years, an answer finally came to her after praying one night, on her ninetieth birthday.. Her faith had been rewarded, and her thoughts had been verified in the truest sense.

“Okay, what?” I asked myself, no longer bothering to just go look for Terra the hard way. Something far more urgent had happened if I was suddenly getting a prayer! Terra… I focused inwardly, trying to contact the felyn goddess. We need to talk, now.

“Alright, alright. What’s going on?” She asked, suddenly appearing behind me. When I turned around to face her, her relaxed expression suddenly became more serious. “What is it?”

“Why did I just get a prayer? I’m not even a real god.” I told her about the prayer I had just received, which had no doubt come from the child of Rinon and myself. I knew that would have something to do with it, but still! I’m not a god in the system, so there should be no way for me to actually have someone pray to me… at least not successfully!

Terra’s eyes opened briefly in surprise, before a small smile surfaced on her lips. “Oh, it happened? Well, this is interesting…” I was about to get onto her to tell me when she began explaining. “Don’t worry, I’ll talk. I told you that it was fairly rare for a coupling of the ‘divine’ and ‘mortal’ to produce a legitimate demigod. But, when it happens, naturally the child of a god will have a connection with their holy parent. This is the same kind of connection that the races naturally have with their patron deity. So, it’s no real surprise that she can pray to you.”

“Okay… but what do I do? I mean, I can’t even reliably use the mental communication in the Admin Room, let alone knowing how to answer a prayer.” I spoke out, somewhat nervous. I felt like I had just been thrust quite rapidly into fatherhood. Yes, I knew that Rinon was pregnant, and that I’d be a dad eventually. But at the time, I really felt more like a sperm donor than a prospective parent. I had expected to not even hear about the child until Ryone told me about her later.

“You’re… really wanting to do this, huh?” Terra asked in surprise, carefully examining my features. “Well, I don’t plan to stop you, of course. It’s kinda nice seeing you taking this seriously.”

“So? How do I answer a prayer?” I asked more directly, looking straight at her. If I was going to do this… I’d do it right, at least… right?

My child… The voice rang softly in Leowynn’s ears, long after she had fallen asleep after her nightly prayer. However, the voice was enough to cause her to jolt awake, the furred blanket falling from her bed. Did she really just hear that, or was it a dream?

Holy Father..? She cupped her hands together and closed her eyes, trying to catch that echo of a voice that had reached out to her. Is that you?

It’s me, Leowynn. It was a gentle voice, the same loving tone that her mother had always spoken to her with when she was upset. But this time, she could hear it from a man’s voice. Soft, barely above a whisper, yet at the same time reaching deep inside of her. She knew, she knew this was real. This was her father.

F-father… She responded with a small smile, feeling tears forming at the edges of her eyes. How long had she waited to hear this voice? How many times had she forced herself to remember that he had to exist, that the feeling she had since being born was real?

Don’t cry, my daughter. She could almost feel herself being wrapped up in a warm presence as the voice came to her again. I am sorry for neglecting you for so long.

She shook her head rapidly, letting her tears fall. They were not out of sadness, but joy. She had yet to become an adult by elven standards, but this was still the happiest she had ever been. No… don’t apologize to me. I’m just glad to hear your voice. I have so many questions I want to ask you! Can you… can you answer them for me?

Of course… Anything that I can tell you. Now that the two of them were talking, it seemed so easy for her to communicate with him, as if his voice had always been there, just waiting for her.

She did not even consider asking where he had been her whole life, because that question just seemed so small, so unimportant. Who are you? Although hesitantly, she mustered up the courage to ask what she felt to be the most important question.

It took a while for a response to come through, long enough that Leowynn began to believe she may have offended him. However, just before she was about to withdraw her question, the answer came. I have… many names and titles. I ask you not to mention me to others if you can help it, because they would not understand. There was some hesitation in his tone, yet she couldn’t help but agree with him. Everyone had long since known of Ryone, even a child knew of her. Yet him… aside from some historians, very few knew that there once existed a voice that surpassed that of Ryone’s.

I… understand, Father. Then, can I ask why you gave me this power?

This time, his answer came much more quickly. That power is yours and yours alone. You are my one and only daughter in all the world. I did not expect that it would cause you such trouble, though…

No, no! It’s fine, Father! She hurriedly retorted in her mind, almost opening her mouth to speak verbally. She was worried that she had disappointed him, that she wasn’t putting her gift to proper usage. I will cherish it always.

The father and daughter spoke in this way for a while longer, Leowynn telling of her life so far, happy to finally have a father that she could talk to. As for that mysterious, unnamed god, he seemed all too happy to talk to his daughter as well. Their conversation lasted well into the night, until Leowynn could feel sleep starting to overtake her once again. Before she fell asleep though, she asked one final question.

Father… will I be able to talk to you again? She had waited twenty years to hear his voice. Now that she knew he was real, she didn’t want to lose him. She knew it would be asking too much to be able to speak with a god as powerful as he on a regular basis, but still she had to ask.

Hmm… I cannot do this every night, Leowynn. He answered, and although his tone was slightly playful, it sent a feeling of sadness through her. There is much for me to do. However, once every year, on the anniversary of your birth, pray to me and I will be here. You need not pray every night as you have in the past, but if you call out to me on that one night, I will answer.

Although she had been saddened by the knowledge that she would not be able to talk to him like this all the time, this last piece of information made her smile happily. What was one year to an elf like her? She had already waited faithfully for twenty without ever hearing his voice. If she could speak to him once every year, she would happily accept it. Yes, Father. Thank you…

As she closed her eyes to sleep, she heard a soft melody singing in her ears. The words were unknown to her, something she had never heard before, yet it was so soft and sweet. Her smile grew as her father sang her to sleep, letting her once more return to her dreams.