Within Arcadia, the Gods celebrated Elayne's victory, although they all felt slightly exhausted themselves. After having shared their power with her through a long connection to another world, it was obvious they would feel tired. Especially due to their current circumstances.
"It seems everything ended alright." Sighed the God of Creator, resting over his seat and drinking a big cup of cold water. "Hahhh… Oh man, I need summer vacations, I can't take this job anymore."
"G-God of Creation, you can't say such a thing!" Gaia sighed. "Though, yes, it is very tiring…"
"Did you see Rita right there?! She was so strong! I am so proud of her! Tehee!" Giggled the Goddess of Darkness and Night, Nyx.
"Mark was alright too. Though he needs more strength, I can't believe he almost got killed by his damn pet." The God of Flames angrily said.
"It must be nice to have Sponsors… I have yet to pick someone." Sighed the Goddess of Earth. "Ah, though Lily seems available, right?"
"Ahem. Before we begin speaking such things, how about we discuss what just happened? Thanatos was somehow able to rip apart space and attempt to get to Elayne…" Sighed the Goddess of Space said. "I don't remember him having these powers…"
"It must have been something he was able to do because the Dungeon was created by his Death General. After all, Phantasmos was able to disrupt and distort the cracks using his phantom soul." Said the God of Creation. "However, now that we've closed that big crack, it shouldn't be possible for him to manifest himself so easily… I hope."
"The system is working really hard to try to close things up, but we've spent a considerable amount of Divine Power after that, so I believe we won't be able to hasten our process." Sighed Gaia. "If only… we could gain more Divine Power faster."
"Well, we're only husks at the end, what we can achieve is not a ten percent of what the former rulers could." The God of Creation sighed. "Without the System to support this, it would already be a lost cause…"
"Perhaps if we wouldn't had designed the Game and brought the Players and the energy within their actions and souls that affected the Fate of Arcadia… Earth might had fallen for an even worse fate than it already has." Nyx sighed. "Ah, talking about Players, is the next update ready?"
"I am finishing it off~" Said the Goddess of Water, clicking a system hologram and doing tons of high speed programing. "We've gathered a lot of Information within the Fate Nexus, so it should be easy to implement… Hopefully with this, we could incentivize Players to grow stronger as well. The best-case scenario would be if they could somehow ally Elayne… Though, at the end of the day, it will depend in her own charisma and leadership abilities."
"I trust her." Gaia nodded. "I know she'll manage, as long as we can support her like we've done so far."
"She better do." The God of Fire sighed. "We're betting too much on her and her friends at this point…"
Meanwhile, within the depths of the Underworld, over a throne of bones, a damaged Demon King of Death groaned in fury and frustration. His scream quickly started making the entire Underworld tremble.
"GRAAAAAAHHH! I ALMOST… I ALMOST GOT HER! SO FRUSTRATING!"
TRUUUUUUMMMM…!
The floor started shattering and the ceiling began falling apart. However, if he continued like this, the entire Underworld may end up getting destroyed… Therefore, his Generals quickly came to his side.
"Milord, it would be recommended if you stopped trying to destroy the Underworld, it is our home."
"I know you're furious, Lord Thanatos, but be patient, please! I'll make sure to show them all… what true suffering is!"
"If we all die because of you then what's the point…"
"Ah…" Thanatos muttered, quickly regaining his sanity. "Hmmm… That's right."
He quickly sat down, cooling off. The flames covering his body quickly dissipated as he became as cold as a corpse. He was hungry, so he began devouring souls and slowly regenerating his body.
"I saw her with my eyes. She is strong. She reflected my attack." He sighed. "We cannot take her for granted like Gustaf and Phantasmos did… We must take a more aggressive approach, and also a more cunning one…"
"I have a suggestion, milord~" Giggled one of his Death Generals, resembling a shadow in the shape of a little girl with long gray hair and a single red eye.
She flew towards his ear and explained to him her plan secretly.
"Hoh?" Thanatos found it amusing. "Interesting… Very well, Dorothea, I shall entrust you this task. If it really comes to fruition, then crushing her will no longer be a challenge."
"Fufufu~ Of course, my lord." Dorothea giggled viciously.
The other Death Generals glanced at each other, feeling curious about what Dorothea had suggested.
"My lord, I also have my own suggestion!"
"Me too."
"I would also be glad if you could trust my idea."
Thanatos, however, raised his hand and stopped them.
"For now, help Dorothea in her own tasks." Said Thanatos. "While the last gift that Phantasmos left is slowly preparing, we shall prepare yet another one for them. Unlike my savage predecessor, we must take different approaches… Let us be several steps ahead, my generals."
"Yes, milord."
.
.
.
After the Dungeon Break, Elayne and company were all brought to a tent set up by the military in the middle of the area of catastrophe, where they were greeted by more members of SWORD, the Agency that seems to have been made to protect the country from Supernatural Threats.
"I am sure my companions here have already told you a bit about our organization, after all they often cannot keep their mouths shut." Sighed Reagan. "But our organization is funded by the government and with the sole purpose of protecting our country from Supernatural Threats."
Elayne nodded timidly while hearing the tall and intimidating man.
"Lady, am I scaring you? I'm sorry, was I a bit too rough?" However, Reagan suddenly realized Elayne and her friends were so scared they were paralyzed.
"A-Ah… A-A bit." Elayne said.
"My god, have I really lost touch?" Sighed Reagan. "Anyways. We have no vile intentions with you all. We've been told to actually congratulate you and thank you in the name of the country for protecting this humble town from the menace of these otherworldly monsters. …And of course, to give you all an offer."
Reagan quickly got slightly more serious once more, so much that a dark aura began emanating from his body without him realizing. Josuke and Rose sighed, smacking the man's head.
"You're scaring them again, Reagan."
"Boss please stop letting your aura out."
"Again?! Dammit… But they're so pretty, do you want me to be calm in front of two gorgeous ladies?" Reagan sighed. "Ahem, anyways… Ah, what was I talking about?" Reagan wondered. "Right, that…"
"Huh?" Rita felt slightly surprised. "Isn't this guy kind of a goof or is it my idea?"
"Hahah…" Elayne giggled a bit.
"T-That's not a personality I expected from someone on his career…" Mark said.
"Hey! I am a responsible man! I just… I often forget things." He sighed. "Anyways! Let's go to the point. What do you intend to do from now on? The future where people with powers will become commonplace is already approaching, and as monsters grow in numbers… The only thing we can do to protect each other is to fight together."
The man quickly handled some documents.
"Therefore, I am offering you all a chance of your lives to become this country's first ever Hunters, and represent Canada." He said. "Ah, well, the other two options are joining SWORD… But you'll have to keep your identities a secret, and its hard being a secret agent, I don't recommend it for civilians."
Elayne, Mark, and Rita were thrown from one challenge to another! Right after defeating Phantasmos, they were offered… a chance of their lives.
"Hunters…?" Elayne wondered. "Ugh, w-we just dealt with so many things, is it okay if we can rest for now?"
"Oh! My bad." Reagan said. "I was so excited to meet people so strong that I kind of jumped the shark there… You're free to consider it for now."
Elayne sighed in relief, as she quickly walked away with her friends after saying goodbyes to Josuke and Rose and getting their phone numbers.
