Night Ranger
chapter-542

'That person?'

Marvin was intrigued by Faniya's words.

When she said [that person], she had paused.

"Great Moon Goddess, I don't understand what you mean."

"[That person]?"

His expression was full of doubt.

Marvin never met Faniya in his previous life, but according to a player who had managed to become the Priestess of the Moon Goddess, Faniya was very good-tempered. She took pity on the mortals, but for some reason, she couldn't seem to interfere too much with Feinan.

Her reputation was also excellent among the Ancient Gods, so Marvin wasn't worried about her causing him harm.

"A great existence once spoke of some events that would one day take place," the Moon Goddess calmly explained. "[That person] is the main character of those events. And that is you, Marvin Cridland."

Marvin was suddenly startled, his mind in chaos.

What was this?

Even a fool could guess the identity of the great existence that the Moon Goddess was talking about.

Wizard God Lance!

So his transmigration really was related to the mysterious supreme God?

Marvin couldn't take his eyes off the Moon Goddess as he eagerly awaited the rest of her words.

Hathaway and Minsk were looking at Marvin somewhat differently.

But Faniya didn't linger on that topic for too long. She only indifferently murmured, "That was a long time ago. You can think of it as a prophecy. And since it is a prophecy, the matters that it describes are not definite."

"Even a major prophecy is unable to discern all futures, because the future is something created through people's choices."

"Whether we speak of mankind or Gods, their futures were fashioned by their own decisions, and no one else can interfere."

At this point, her words took an abrupt turn. "You must be surprised as to why I am here."

"It has been many a moon since I last left the God Realms. It will take some time for this ritual to finish, so I shall tell you a story in the meantime."

Everyone looked at each other in dismay.

The Moon Goddess was going to personally tell them a story?

If they told that to anyone else, no one would believe them.

Marvin and the others naturally didn't dare to speak.

In fact, Faniya didn't give them the chance to decline as she directly started talking, slowly narrating what had happened.

As he listened, Marvin gradually understood the whole picture.

His gaze remained on Miss Silvermoon's statue, because she was at the center of everything.

...

In the distant 3rd Era, the most chaotic period.

The Fate Tablet descended, leaving unprecedented chaos in its wake.

Many people used it to become heroes, overlords, kings, and even Gods!

But for every person that was successful, many more would die tragically.

At the same time, the recently established Crimson Wasteland saw bitter struggles every day!

Divine Servants, Descendants, and Angels fought with Demons, Devils, and Evil Spirits.

At that time, mankind was still relatively weak and was unable to carve out their own place in the world. They were still relying on the power of the heavens to survive in this land.

But the Wizard culture from ancient times was still slowly spreading.

Among them, the brightest was the Regis Wizard School!

This was a group of talented Wizards who gathered ancient knowledge and loved researching all kinds of magical things.

And their leader was a talented Wizard named Bandel!

That group of Wizards was especially interested in biological transformation, and one day, they discovered a very special vine.

When they found it, it appeared to be on the verge of death. Due to their curiosity toward everything exotic and unexplained, they transplanted the vine into their base.

At that time, unbeknownst to the Wizards, the disaster was already incubating.

They never tired of studying this special vine. It had incredible regenerative ability and an aggressive nature. If they could extract its power and convert it into magic, it would certainly be a huge leap forward.

The one in charge of this study was their leader, Bandel.

They quickly achieved some results, making the vine a lot more active. But although it had absorbed a large amount of arcane energy, it still looked very weak.

Even when a few older Wizards warned about the dangers of that vine, after the higher-ups considered the risks, the study was allowed to proceed.

Bandel was in contact with the vine day and night. He couldn't make progress on the study of the vine on his own, but he accidentally discovered that the vine was self-aware.

They began communicating.

Bandel was seriously guarded at first, but after the vine provided him many new spells and rituals, that hesitation gradually disappeared.

He began studying this new specimen like it was his most precious treasure.

His actions became rather eccentric, and he began to drift apart from his peers, frequently studying by himself.

He also always kept that vine close to his side.

With the vine's help, he learnt many spells that he had never even conceived of before, and his power progressed rapidly. Even the strongest Divine Servants in the Crimson Wasteland weren't his match anymore.

The young Wizard was very proud of himself.

He felt like one of the heroes in those novels that the commoners read, with his strength rising without bounds due to the help of a secret treasure.

Bandel regarded that vine as his teacher, and it certainly acted like his teacher, answering all of his questions.

It just gave him one condition.

He couldn't let any others know of its existence.

Bandel agreed, very happy to cooperate.

But good things don't last forever.

A girl reappeared, setting the disaster in motion.

That girl was Miss Silvermoon.

...

Miss Silvermoon had once toured the Crimson Wasteland as a mortal. In the process, she got to know the young Bandel. The two hit it off and fell in love with each other.

They became partners.

But due to her stature, she knew that she couldn't stay in the Crimson Wasteland.

She ultimately made a decision. She wanted to confess everything to her mother, Great Moon Goddess Faniya.

Bandel was very calm about this and agreed with her decision. He sent Miss Silvermoon back to the God Realms.

Because there was a difference in the time flow between the Crimson Wasteland and the God Realms, Miss Silvermoon didn't appear for over a decade.

It was during that period that the depressed Bandel began researching the vine obsessively, becoming rather eccentric.

And when Miss Silvermoon happily returned from the God Realms, telling Bandel that her mother had agreed to meet with him, the vine suddenly revealed its sinister fangs!

In the ancient era, the Wilderness God had fought against the other Gods and was finally defeated by the Wizard God. Only parts of his body remained.

That vine was among those.

Relying on the resources of the Regis Wizards, he had started recovering, but he wasn't satisfied with just that.

Only by absorbing far more power could he regain the strength that he once had as an Ancient Evil God.

He helped Bandel only to gain the naive Wizard's trust and better implement his own plan.

The Wilderness God was overjoyed when Miss Silvermoon finally returned.

Taking advantage of the time when the two were meeting intimately, the Wilderness God changed back to the form of his main body and fully exerted the power of his Domain!

The entire base of the Regis Wizards sank into turmoil!

As the Ancient Evil God's power overflowed through the Wizards' minds, they began to cast spells crazily all around them.

As for the surrounding creatures, they also started transforming.

A few Wizards had high enough Willpower to resist, but it was hard for them to escape all the unpredictable attacks of their peers.

This all happened too suddenly, leaving Bandel utterly bewildered.

He was about to ask around and try to figure out what exactly was going on, but the Wilderness God didn't give him the opportunity. He used a skill to control Bandel before using a [Dark Spear] that had been passed down since ancient times to pierce Miss Silvermoon through the heart.

Miss Silvermoon instantly turned into a statue. All her power had been removed by the Wilderness God.

Bandel filled with unbearable anguish, but he was powerless to act!

He forcibly endured the pain and continued treating the Wilderness God as his teacher.

The Wilderness God apparently approved of Bandel's flattery and decided not to kill him, taking him along.

He started causing slaughter everywhere, and Bandel became his accomplice. Soon, the Wilderness God had recovered some 40% to 50% of his strength.

At that point, Faniya, who had been shocked by the death of her daughter, finally found and confronted them!

After an intense fight, Faniya defeated the Wilderness God, but she didn't manage to kill him!

Wizard God Lance was busy fighting some terrifying beings in the Astral Sea, and thus, Faniya could only rely on herself.

After the Wilderness God fled, Bandel revealed his identity and told Faniya everything he knew about the Wilderness God.

The Moon Goddess didn't vent on Bandel, but the latter sank into endless agony and self-loathing. He swore that he would resurrect his lover and condemn the Wilderness God to eternal damnation.

Faniya knew that resurrecting a God was almost impossible, but faced with Bandel's piteous begging, she agreed to some of his requests.

The two temporarily parted ways to deal with their own matters.

Bandel began looking for a way to resurrect a God, and Faniya began searching for a way to restrain the Wilderness God.

Time was a fantastic thing. Sometimes, a hundred years would pass in a blink, while sometimes they would feel endless.

Feinan's 3rd Era was coming to its end.

Around that time, fellow who came to be known as the Winter Assassin began to dazzle everyone.

Soon after his rise, Faniya found something that would be able to restrain the Wilderness God.

That was the Anzed Witches' [Night Flower]!

Thus, she personally visited the Anzeds, who were already in hiding, and reached a secret agreement with the Witch Queen.

At the same time, in order to seal the Wilderness God, Faniya needed an Artifact that had gone through the baptism of the Wizard God.

Thus, the unlucky Winter Assassin ended up becoming the Witch Queen's target.