“-So that’s what I learned about Oaun,” Ben told his god that night, sharing the realm with Myriad alone. “You’ve got my theories but it’s admittedly not a lot either. Going to be honest though, it’s not thrilling. How do you kill a god of survival? Feels like an oxymoron, doesn’t it?”

“It’s not exactly good news but I’ll pass it on to the others for whatever it’s worth. Good work Ben. Now tell me, after having come here without a single positive thing to say about what you’ve found about the demons, why the hell are you grinning so much?”

“Am I?” He asked, touching his cheeks and feeling them pulled back. “Well, I guess I just got a bit of pretty cool news is all. Oh Myriad, I take back my previous anger over the whole ‘flavour enhancement’ thing. I love the system and the skills it gives me with my whole heart. I’d make a statue in its honour if I knew what it looked like.”

“Spit it out already, what horrific skills did you end with this time?”

“I just learned a bit more about a few I’ve gained is all. Ill will, modifier compatibility, and defiler of ambrosia.”

“And? Stop being coy and just tell me so I can stop worrying already.”

“Fine. The first looks like it's a buffing type skill, enhancing my attributes when I, well, am feeling some ill will for something or someone which is pretty cool.”

“I personally wouldn’t describe it that way but go on.”

“Fine, the second, modifier compatibility, is even better than I’d originally thought! At first, I’d thought it might just strengthen job effects. Honestly, that would have been good enough as is and would explain why I got so many levels after getting that, but it’s even better. It strengthens all of my modifiers in general.”

“Meaning?”

“Meaning my jobs, titles, blessings, and even inclinations. Not my enhancement skills but that doesn’t matter, with everything else I’m getting from it, I really am going to be able to grow so much more. This is probably the single greatest thing to ever end up on my status and it’s not even close. The levels of power this is going to let me achieve if I live long enough is out of this world.”

He left a pause for his god to comment on that but got nothing, Myriad staying silent in a way that Ben took as a sign to explain the last one.

“Finally, we’ve got defiler of ambrosia. Not going to lie, I was actually able to guess its effect when I got it and am more than a little proud about that. It also looks like the system has a sense of humour buddy. I’m now able to get stronger by eating the food of the gods. Made of the gods to be specific.”

Myriad finally crashed down at that, breaking his silence with a weak question.

“Explain that.”

“I’ll know for sure when it’s time for my next strengthening potion but I suspect it would give me more points for drinking it than the three I was already getting. Looking forward to seeing how much. There is one thing I want to test too.”

“Don’t say it.”

“Obviously I need to take a bite out of a god.”

“I told you not to say it,” Myriad cried, knowing exactly where his apostle was going after explaining the skill. “Why Ben, why are you like this?”

“Don’t blame me, blame the system for giving me such incredible skills.”

“No, I’m blaming you. You know exactly how this works, the system doesn’t give you skills, it helps develop and give structure to what’s already forming in your soul. This is one hundred percent on you for the life you’ve led. Do you even know the acquisition conditions among everything else?”This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

“Ill will needs a high level of sacrilege, modifier compatibility I’m less sure of but requires a buttload of modifiers with one likely needing to be an advanced soul job, and defiler needs someone who’s consumed a lot of products associated with gods on top of having an awakened sacrilege. There may be more for all of them or some nuance I’m missing but you know how it is trying to pull information through Verbum’s skill, I’m honestly lucky I was able to get as much as I did today.”

“Hmm.”

“What’s up?”

“Aside from my overwhelming despair about the sheer existence of one of those skills? Unfortunately, if I’m going to be honest, the fact that all of that means you won’t be able to share either of them with Zandale to teach others,” His god sighed. “As much as I hate to admit it, both would be exceptionally useful to spread around a bit.”

“Welp, you win some, you lose some. Now about that little bit I wanted to test-”

“No, we’re not done. Ben, who have you told about this?”

“So far? Just you.”

With the other two gods he would have mentioned it too busy and Thera asleep by the time he’d gotten back, Myriad was the only one he’d had to share that news with, with his god looking deeply relieved to hear that at least.

“That makes things easy. Ben, I’m telling you now, don’t tell anyone about those skills if you can help it. Not Helori and Nare, not your girlfriend, don’t even talk to me about them if there’s a chance anyone else might come along.”

“Can I ask why? I can admittedly get why you might not want word about defiler of ambrosia spreading but modifier compatibility really is harmless both in function and acquisition, what’s the issue?”

“I can only imagine how much issue knowledge of those skills could cause down the line,” Myriad groaned just thinking about it. “Ben, enough gods either don’t like you or are cautious of you that information about modifier compatibility getting out could make any of them significantly more hesitant to help you in the future when combined with some of the jobs you’ve taken. Plenty are worried about you raising your sacrilege and you obviously keep trying to awaken it, that’s enough for some to want to actively stop you. Your defiler skill goes without saying. How many gods do you think want to be looked at like a fine meal? If anyone ever asks, just make something up or say you don’t know.”

“Okay, if you’re that worried then fine, but speaking of gods and fine meals…”

“I am not letting you try to eat me. You aren’t asking Helori or Nare to let you take a bite out of them either.”

“Not what I’m thinking. I happen to remember that a certain god managed to make a fortune of faith gambling on my survival while I was stuck in the dead god’s trial?”

“Much of which ended up spent trying to raise your job level with everyone else, yes. Why, what’s your point?”

“Please, I know how cheap gods are, there’s no way you lot would have spent enough to take a hit that would leave you impoverished so spend a little on me. Go ask Jagal if you can buy one of her fruits from her and we can see here and now how much defiler is going to affect what I get from it.”

“I really don’t want to.”

“Please? Pretty please? That way you’ll be able to see if I really will get a bit more from chowing down on the divine instead of just my potions? Just think of the sense of peace you’ll get if we test it and it turns out I’m wrong! Wouldn’t that feel good? Wouldn’t that make buying me five extra points of mana totally worth it?”

“I can tell you really don’t think you’re wrong.”

“Sure but if we don’t do it now then we’ll both have to wait a few days until I down my next potion. Do you really think you’ll be able to handle the suspense? The feeling of fear or anticipation over what the result will be, each day worse and worse as the agony of not knowing eats at you?”

<EVIL INCLINATION LEVEL INCREASED>

“You deserved that.”

“My point still stands. So?”

“Fine, give me a minute you greedy little jerk.”

His god vanished at that, leaving him alone in the realm for a few minutes to practice his actualizing before making his return with good news to be had.

“We’re in luck. It looks like despite your stunt grabbing so much experience from all of us and how you then forced everyone to level your lover, Jagal still manages to hold some gratitude to you for making her new statues for all of the communal churches along with the resources you’ve been sending to Delair’s village. She’s giving it to you for free.”

He lobbed the fruit over to Ben to catch and examine, looking at it through the lens of his sacrilege out of curiosity before biting into it and savouring the flavour for all it was worth, trying to experience any hidden depths it might offer so he might at least replicate the taste with the thanks of his actualization before finishing it with a satisfied look on his face, both for the snack and whatever growth would come from it.

“Okay, so in theory this should give me five extra points to my mana, now all to do is wait and see what I wake up with tomorrow.”

“I can only hope for a result that isn’t going to lead you to wanting to take a piece out of every god you see.”