That night, Laia tossed and turned on her soft dorm bed, the half-eaten cheese sandwich in her hand going cold.
She'd agreed to the duel, but now that the excitement of the 10,000 gold prize wore off, panic set in.
Gareth Iron was a Greater God. She was just a newly promoted Intermediate God. She'd never even fought anyone before, except for the time she'd punched a drunk tavern customer who'd tried to grab her.
What was I thinking? I can't beat him. If I lose, I don't get the prize, and I can't pay the tuition.
She sat up, staring at her realm panel. Her twelve refugees… they looked pretty tough, right? All that battle-scarred armor. But they were just refugees, right? They'd been running from Corruption for a year. She couldn't ask them to fight for her. They'd already been through enough.
Wait, but if they helped, maybe we could win? Then I could pay the tuition, and they'd have a safe place to stay.
She bit her lip, staring at the panel. Maybe she'd ask them tomorrow, before the duel. Just to see if they were willing. She'd pay them extra, of course. Out of the prize money.
She had no idea, across the realm barrier, her twelve overlords were already in full emergency mobilization.
Kane stood in the center of the new command tent, a map of Gareth Iron's realm spread out on the table, his face grave.
"Our God accepted the duel to test us. That Iron brat dared to challenge her, so we need to eliminate this threat before she has to lift a finger."
Torin, the dragonborn, nodded, already forging a portable core cannon. "I'll finish the void penetration weapon in an hour. We can break his realm barrier before he even notices."
Borin the dwarf slammed his hammer on the table, grinning. "I'll lay the siege turrets along his border. We'll level his entire realm in ten minutes."
Mephis cracked his knuckles, flames flaring on his skin. "Let me go first! I'll tear down his palace before he wakes up!"
"Wait." Elara held up a hand, soft but firm. "Our God told us not to overwork the land. Don't destroy the forests in his realm. Just disable his defenses."
The others nodded immediately. Right. They couldn't go against the divine decree of protecting the land.
Kael, the shadow assassin, was already gone, slipping through the void into Gareth's realm. He'd disabled all the surveillance wards before anyone could blink. Wolfric followed, sneaking past the guards to take out the realm's core power generator.
By dawn, they were done.
Gareth Iron's entire realm defenses were gone. His army was tied up in shadow bindings. His power core was fried. The only thing left standing was his empty palace, and the forests, untouched, exactly as Elara had ordered.
The next morning, Laia dragged herself to the duel arena, still nervous. She'd brought her only weapon—a rusty iron dagger she'd bought for self-defense at the tavern. She'd even packed a extra cheese sandwich, just in case she got hungry mid-fight.
The whole academy was there, crowding the stands, cheering. They all thought it was the hidden Overgod teaching the arrogant noble a lesson.
Laia walked into the arena, her hands shaking. She was just about to call out to Gareth, to ask if they could maybe call it off, or just do a little sparring, when Gareth came sprinting toward her, his face white as a sheet.
He dropped to his knees in front of her, bowing so deep his forehead hit the dirt.
"I surrender! I surrender! I was wrong! I'm sorry! Please don't destroy my realm!"
Laia froze.
Wait. What?
She stared at him, blinking. Surrender? Before the duel even started?
Before she could say anything, her realm panel pinged, so loud it made her jump.
Realm expansion +5000 acres.Divine Rank: Intermediate God → Greater God.Academy tuition: Fully waived for all future ranks.
Laia stared at the screen, her mouth hanging open.
Wait. What just happened?
He surrendered, so I won? And I got another rank? And the tuition's waived again?
That was… way easier than she thought. She didn't even have to fight. She didn't even have to ask her refugees for help.
She blinked, then grinned, tucking her rusty dagger back into her belt. That was perfect! She got the 10,000 gold prize, she got the tuition waived, and she didn't even have to get hurt. Her sandwich shop was even closer now!
She didn't notice the crowd staring at her, awe-struck. They all thought she'd just destroyed Gareth's entire realm with a single thought, without even lifting a finger. That was the power of a hidden Overgod.
She didn't notice Valerius standing in the back of the stands, staring at her, his eyes wide. He'd seen what happened to Gareth's realm. He'd seen the twelve overlords move, silent and perfect, without Laia even saying a word.
That was no coincidence. That was a coordinated strike, executed perfectly, without her even giving an order. She'd planned this. She'd accepted the duel just to test her followers, to show off her power without revealing herself.
She really was a supreme Overgod.
Laia, meanwhile, was already walking back to the cafeteria, already thinking about what kind of cheese she'd buy for her new sandwich. She had no idea that the whole pantheon was already talking about her. And that the next thing coming her way, was an invitation to the Pantheon Realm Competition.
And that her overlords were already planning to turn her tiny pocket realm into an empire, just to win it for her.