My SS-Rank Witcher System-Chapter 67: Lore

[You have raised a Lv7 Shadow Soldier]

[Do you wish to name it?]

Felix was silent for a moment, stunned at his very first summon which was classified as a Shadow Soldier and not undead, and looked just alike with Nemesis from when she was alive, except now she had a dark aura encompassing her being.

He was also pleasantly surprised she retained her previous level, unlike the undeads of Lady Morwen. This much made the difference clear between both Sekolah the Maw Crusher and Lady Morwen's undeads and his Shadow Soldiers. This wasn't necromancy. This was the power over death itself.

"…Nemesis," Felix's lips parted as he finally said.

[You have given a name to your Shadow Soldier 'Nemesis']

[+100% special bonus attributes have been added to all Nemesis's attributes]

[Your Shadow Soldier 'Nemesis' has leveled up | Lv7 >>> Lv8]

Felix was once again pleasantly surprised by the special bonus effect that boosted Nemesis's level, and made her aura even thicker and formidable—fitting for a shadow soldier of the Lord of Darkness.

Nemesis stood on her feet and looked down on herself like she was doing a fit check, before standing still and looking to Felix for any further instructions.

It was obvious now that as much as it seems like Nemesis retained her intelligence, she definitely didn't retain her memory. This made Felix wonder if she'd slowly regain them as her mental attributes increased. And if that happened, would she rebel against him?

But then again, the Crown's description had clearly stated he'd raise them as 'loyal, permanent shadow soldiers,' which ruled out the possibilities of any rebellion ever happening in the near future, which brought him back to the first question. Felix turned to face Lilith, "Do you think she'd ever regain her memories?"

"You're asking the wrong person. Even I don't know much about the crown, except the little our lord, the Witch Master, let on," Lilith replied promptly.

Felix nodded slowly as he turned back to Nemesis. "So, what now?" He asked in uncertainty.

"You can store them in your Shadow and use them whenever you wish. You can also receive a percentage of attributes they gain, just like your [Dominator] skill. Now imagine how much that is when you have an army of them actively hunting. Passive growth. That was how powerful our lord, the Witch Master, was with his shadow soldiers invading the worlds of the Primordials of the Light faction, just like the Dark Lord is doing now—except without the Crown of Judgment, he doesn't benefit anything from the dark creatures. Which gives you an edge on the conquest to destroy him," Lilith calmly explained.

Felix took a moment to absorb all she'd said, but picked up a few things that didn't just add up. "If the Witch Master had such power, how is it that he succumbed to injuries from the Great War and… died, while Goddess Zemira is still very much alive and kicking?" Felix asked in uncertainty.

Lilith fell silent with a complicated expression like she was debating letting him in on something he wasn't yet aware of. "That is because…" she paused for a moment. "Our lord and Zemira were once lovers."

"…"

"W—What? Could you repeat that again—I don't think I heard you right," Felix tilted his head in uncertainty and stuck a finger in his ear to wipe it. "I think my ears are failing me."

"You heard me right," Lilith said with a slight smile like Felix's reaction was valid. "This is classified information that only the old gods know, but I guess I have to let you know as you'd be meeting with Zemira soon." Her expression turned serious.

"W—what?" Felix was bewildered and short of words. If there was a long list of things that could cross one's mind, that wouldn't be on the list. And why did Felix have the gut feeling it was closely related to the initiation of the Great War.

"Over a millennium ago, our lord—Var'thrak—and Zemira were the lovers of the millennium. Then, there was no such thing as the Light faction or Dark faction. Just us, gods, and our creations. That was until Zemira began spending more time and resources on her creation, giving less attention to her partner, and our lord, Var'thrak. In case you don't know, Vastoria is but one world in the many created by Zemira. It became a sort of hobby for her: Creation. Life.

"But our lord, Var'thrak, was a jealous god and when it got to the point that he couldn't endure any longer, he sought to destroy her worlds—not just hers, but every other existing world in anger. But Zemira wasn't willing to watch him burn her worlds—even if it meant choosing her creation over him—and so it sparked the first grand conflict between both sides. That was when The Crown of Judgment first came into play and was created on demand by our lord who used its power to redirect the souls of the dead from all walks of life to end up in this place he chose to call, the Underworld, and using those souls as an army, he began breaching and destroying worlds with his dark creatures.

"This sparked the initiation of the Great War as other gods were angry at their worlds being destroyed. Zemira began mobilizing these angry gods to put an end to our lord's madness. But on getting a wind of this, our lord was even more enraged and began recruiting gods of his own to destroy anyone who stood against him. And that was how the Light faction and Dark faction came to be. The neutral faction were the gods who chose not to interfere—including gods who had their worlds destroyed but chose to remain silent.

"You asked why our lord, the Witch Master, had such power and ended up with grave injuries during the war? That was because he clashed with Goddess Zemira—who was powerful in her rights, but nowhere as powerful as our lord. But as he wasn't fighting to kill her, but to make her understand his feelings. Zemira on the other hand didn't share his sentiment and was engulfed in rage at having her worlds destroyed. And when our lord saw this, he decided to back down, but Zemira took that window of opportunity to push further with her army, decimating the army of the dark faction and gravely injuring our lord who refused to fight back any further, but fled the battle scene in fear of Zemira dying by his hand. It was only after he disappeared, that the truce was finally called."

"So tell me Felix, do you think Zemira is worthy of the title of holiness she holds? Do you think she deserves to live?" Felix slowly looked up from the floor and only now did he realize the rage laced in her voice, and for the first time, Lilith looked like the demoness—the Queen of Death—she was.