1403 Void Palace [8]
For the next three weeks, Damien secluded himself in his estate.
It was the first thing he did openly after coming to Void Palace, which confused everyone.
The servants in his residence were disallowed from leaving. His wives came over after a day, and other than them, only his mother could enter and exit the area as she pleased.
Everyone else was barred at the gate. Whether it be Serena, his sisters, his aunt and uncle, or anyone else. It didn't matter what their position was nor did it matter how close they were to him.
For now, they couldn't see him.
It started many rumors around the palace.
What was the new Young Lord doing?
This disconnected stance made it seem like he didn't want to be a part of Void Palace. It looked like the only one he cared for was his own mother, while everyone else was insignificant in his eyes.
The negative rumors circulated and got blown out of context rapidly, and Damien's reputation began to fall.
But the positive rumors circulated as well. Some said he was being conscious of his position, while others believed he just needed time to adapt.
Since he'd only been around for a day before he secluded himself, nobody was able to make an accurate judgement on the "why" of the whole situation. They could only observe and try to figure it out for themselves.
Unfortunately, Damien was a cautious person. From the moment he arrived, heavy protections covered the entire estate. Perception of its internal situation by any means was impossible even to Gods, making it clear that Claire had helped him set it up.
People could only assume something was taking place in the estate that he didn't want people to see.
And that part was the only thing they got right about the whole situation.
For the last three weeks, Damien had been focusing on one task and one task alone.
He was bringing his armies into Void Palace.
"How's it going?"
"We're mostly done. The available force isn't extremely useful right now, but we can train them into a better position with this environment."
The one he spoke to was Elvira, not Lynn.
Lynn remained in the Sanctuary, taking care of the executive duties with Luciel.
Meanwhile, Elvira had a more flexible role. While she was also part of the main ruling force, she had a lot more influence in the military than the other two, and her experience as an Empress allowed her to lead them properly.
She was also one of the few Demigods who'd been raised in the Sanctuary.
Along with the rest of the Emperors Damien met in the 3000 Beast Mountain Range, she'd come to the Heavenly World to serve under Damien as one of his generals.
"Since we didn't really know the way forward, there are a lot of people waiting at the cusp of Divinity without trying to ascend. Your women are among them. Since we now have both knowledge and environment, we should be able to raise Demigods within a few months if we have the opportunity."
"Good," Damien responded.
He was looking out at the land he now owned.
It was filled with millions upon millions of troops, perhaps even billions. The weakest of them was at the entry-level of 4th class, while the strongest were Demigods.
There were other areas where those with weaker strength were training, but they weren't counted as part of the army that could be mobilized.
Rather, they were talents brought to the estate to make full use of the Heavenly World's environment to boost their talent and potential.
'With our guidance, most of these people should be able to breeze through the 4th class. Entering Divinity is a different matter, though.'
There were too many Demigods in the Heavenly World for them to even be mentioned, but that didn't mean the people here had managed to streamline the process.
Each and every one of those Demigods had to experience Cosmic Rebirth and define their Divinity personally. They couldn't use another person's experience for this purpose.
'Luckily, the armies are still mostly made up of 4th class soldiers.'
It was part of the information Damien received from Persia's Compendium.
In the Heavenly World, practitioners in the nine revolutions were used as common foot soldiers. Demigods would usually fight on a separate battlefield.
'Raising them to that level isn't a problem, but we still aren't ready for confrontation.'
It was a shame, but it was something that could be fixed.
To go against influences with an unreal number of Divinities supporting them, he needed to gain an unreal number of Demigods.
'Some of them can be raised from this group, but the majority will be taken from Void Palace itself.'
Damien was not forming a personal army right now. He was preparing his army to integrate with Void Palace and form a comprehensive group that surpassed any other.
'If there's one thing I'm confident in, it's their talent. I don't doubt that these people who were raised by the Void Library can reach Divinity as long as I give them the chance.'
So eventually, they would become what he wanted them to be.
"Keep taking care of organizing. Make sure to let me know when you see someone ready to ascend. I'll take care of it from there."
"Mm, I'll do as you say."
Elvira nodded and excused herself, returning to her duties.
Meanwhile, Damien returned to his mansion.
'The army situation can be sorted out with time, but the other things need to be handled concurrently.'
He couldn't rely on this army to help him with his current problems.
Instead, he would raise them while dealing with them.
'The first thing is the Elders.'
They weren't all Demigods, but the Gods among them were smarter than to try anything so stupid.
Those who'd switched sides were expendable. They knew they were expendable, so they decided to act on their greed.
'But that was the wrong choice.'
Void Palace was a family. They didn't treat people as tools or pawns even if that was the only thing they were useful for.
However, were other influences the same?
The Divine Order was especially cruel to its pawns.
Damien couldn't understand why they chose betrayal in the first place. The situation looked bad, but Void Palace was still a great clan that wouldn't easily fall.
Nevertheless, traitorous people were never meant to be understood or humanized. Not in a situation like this one.
So he didn't even bother trying to discern their intentions.
'Around this time, those Elders are probably getting desperate.'
Damien wasn't as kind as the rest of his family. He wouldn't have lived this long if he was a generous soul.
They let the problem fester because of old feelings, but he didn't have any of those feelings from the start.
'I'll get rid of the filth that was left to its own devices.'
And from there, he would make his agenda known to the entire palace, so they could understand the path they would be treading in the future.
'They should be coming soon.'
He already set up the stage.
He already gave them the justification.
Now, all he needed to do was wait for them to strike.
So he could exterminate them in one fell swoop.
