All twenty thousand Divines of Richinaria gathered inside the primary training arena of the Palace. The arena is designed to withstand extreme training. Veneri's parents used to train here too.
Normally, even a Divine would struggle to step inside the Palace. Security thresholds were absurd. Identity recognition wasn't biometric either. If your Soul Energy wasn't authorized, the Palace simply refused you.
Rows upon rows of Divines stood aligned across the arena floor. On a raised platform at the front stood the House leadership.
Landle Viaca, Sylveira Levenees, Vaskein Obligatio, Alexis Sarphie, who is technically under Sylveira and Damius Maximilian are the House leaders. Among them was Leones.
Holographic projections magnified their faces across the arena so even those in the furthest rows could see clearly. Sylveira stepped forward first. Her voice was enhanced by an Amplification Rune.
"From this point onward, three major implementations will occur within Richinaria."
She curled one finger slightly. In that instant, a small black box materialized before every Divine present. Twenty thousand identical cases hovered at chest height.
"This is called a Nanorune Suit. It consists of nanobots forged from Divine and Demonic Metal. Upon vocal binding, it will synchronize to your body and cannot be activated by anyone else. All you need to do is speak the designated binding word. It will recognize you and respond only to you. It requires no charging either."
Restrained astonishment could be felt through the crowd.
"It provides near-total defensive coverage. Version allocation has been pre-assigned according to combat specialization."
Weapon users had already been designated for 2.0 variants but there was no need to elaborate on that.
"The second matter is Divinity loss."
Everyone was silent. Most Divines across all Dynasties lost their Divinity unless they were directly connected to the origin of their Divinity. Without it, they relied heavily on physical enhancement, raw combat skill and their Enlightenment Powers. For most Dynasties, that loss was catastrophic.
For Richinaria, it was less so because of me.
They are linked to my Omniscient System. Even without individual Divinity, their operational efficiency remained high. But even then, something was missing.
Leones continued.
"When we were transferred to the Hidden Citadel, every Dynasty Monarch and Monarchess received a holographic directive."
A projection appeared above her. On it was only one word.
Unification.
"It is a restoration method. Think of it as a reward granted upon entering this realm."
Unification was simple in theory. Instead of restoring individual Divinity, it offered something else.
A shared Divinity.
"Four Divinities will be distributed among all of you. Unification allows every Divine in Richinaria to regain Divinity. However, it will not be individualized. You will not possess separate ones. You will share one of the four that we have chosen. This will increase survivability. Participation is voluntary. We will not force Unification upon anyone. You may choose to retain your current state. Or, you may choose to re-enter Divinity through shared structure."
Her gaze swept across twenty thousand beings of different races and origins.
"This strengthens us collectively. It ensures no Divine stands alone when the pantheon's war begins. Now then, the Divinity granted through Unification will not be random. It will be bestowed by His Esteemed Highness, Vastarael Richinaria. The Divinities available for selection are not newly forged. They are fragments of what he already possesses. There will be two."
My projection manifested behind her. It revealed the Energy Divinity and the Barrier Divinity.
"The Energy Divinity allows its bearer to generate and sustain massive quantities of internalized energy output. Those who choose it will experience heightened energy production capacity, faster replenishment rates and expanded output. It is ideal for offensive specialists, long-range combatants and high-consumption techniques."
In other words, if your fighting style burns through power rapidly, this is your answer.
"The Barrier Divinity enables the manifestation of layered defensive constructs. You will be able to generate barriers on your body, on objects or on other individuals. It is optimal for defensive specialists and tactical supports. You cannot choose both. Your compatibility and adaptability will determine which you can fully integrate. You are also not required to choose immediately."
She paused.
"Until the Dynasty Monarch returns, you have time to decide. If you have already determined your choice, you will be granted access to restricted Palace training sectors in preparation for integration."
To them, training inside the Palace itself was rare. Even Divines normally trained within sectional domains.
"This is the only window we have. Currently, we are not under direct threat and the Ascension Curse does not function here. Which means this is the only period in which you may push your Enlightenment thresholds without being held back by the world."
Honestly, Leones resembles Darling in a way. Maybe learning about managing tasks from her mother made her like this? Eh, who knows?
"The third declaration concerns our current operational state. No one is permitted to leave the Palace. We are in an unfamiliar realm. We lack sufficient intelligence regarding its ecosystems and entities."
That was the reality of the Hidden Citadel. Even to me, I barely know everything about this place. The only areas where I'm confident in is the Sucking Void. The rest are completely mysterious.
"To prevent unnecessary casualties, departure beyond Palace boundaries is prohibited. Anyone who leaves without authorization will not be retrieved. If you exit the Palace and fail to return, you will be considered lost."
"That is all. You are dismissed."
°°°°°°°
Twenty thousand Divines began dispersing. The black Nanorune boxes hovered obediently beside their respective owners. Some Divines examined them curiously Others kept their thoughts on Energy or Barrier Divinity. From my vantage point—every vantage point, really—I watched them go.
Leones remained on the raised platform longer than the others. Her posture stayed straight until the arena became a manageable fraction of its previous density. Only then did her shoulders drop.
"This is moving too slowly," she muttered, mostly to herself, though the House leaders were still present behind her. "Vastarael needs to come back soon. Unification can only be performed by him."
And that was the inconvenient truth. No matter how prepared the Divines became, no matter how thoroughly they trained, the actual restoration of Divinity required the Monarch himself and he was not here. He was in another realm. Which, frankly, was inconvenient on a large scale.
Landle Viaca stepped forward first.
"Then we focus on what we can control," he said evenly. "We grow stronger."
Leones turned her head slightly.
"Stronger, huh..."
All four of them—the ruling heads present—were sitting at the Sixth Enlightenment. Leones exhaled sharply through her nose as she turned to Adelasta's father.
"When my father was here, he blessed you to become a Minor Deity. And now that he's gone, you dropped back to the Sixth Enlightenment. Sylveira, Vaskein, Damius, "you were elevated to Sixth Enlightenment by Lady Lysameria before she departed."
She dragged a hand lightly down her face, then let it fall.
"I also need to break through. Getting to the Fifth Enlightenment won't be easy."
Leones stepped down from the platform and began walking toward the inner corridors of the Palace. I followed her.
"Phaenora."
"Yes?"
"Is Vastarael safe?"
"Yes. He's okay. Nothing currently is affecting him."
"Good. Inform him that the Nanorune Suits have been distributed to all Divines and that Unification has been formally announced."
I delivered the message to him.
"It will be delivered."
"Phaenora," she said again.
I knew that tone.
"Yes?"
"Can you help me with something?"
I chose to materialize to a physical form.
She glanced at me briefly, then forward again.
"What is it?"
She stopped walking.
"I want you to train with me. I need to... test something."
"Testing parameters?"
"My limits. And maybe yours."
"Very well. I accept."