Pantheon Online-Chapter 14 - Religion

[Congratulations! Your religion has been founded! Please select one benefit for your followers…]

[God of the Harvest: Followers have an easier time bringing crops to term in adverse conditions.]

[God of the Hearth: Followers are less affected by cold environments. Open fires will allow followers to heal and remove fatigue faster.]

[God of the Hunt: Followers will be able to produce less waste from their kills when hunting. Resulting in more meat and better quality furs/skins.]

Colt raised an eyebrow as he read over the list. They seemed to specifically target the area he was in. He could not help but wonder if other players would get different options based on where they were. 'They all seem pretty decent, but I think God of the Hearth is more flexible.' Colt made his choice and confirmed it with a smile on his face.

[Congratulations! Quest: Worship! has been completed. Awarding +1 Stat Point. Race: Wandering Deity has evolved to Local Deity. Title Unlocked! God of the Hearth: Permanent +1 to Endurance.]

'Oh? That's pretty sweet. A free Stat increase, I wonder if the other choices would have increased something else? Anyway, let's just throw my stat point from my reward into Authority again.' As Colt did so, he was pleased to see his max DP increase. He glanced over his Stats with a smile.

[Name: Exile] f𝘳𝚎𝐞we𝐛𝑛𝐨𝘃e𝘭.co𝘮

[Title: God of the Hearth]

[Race: Local Deity (Human)]

[Tier: 0]

[Level: 1]

[HP: 15/15]

[DP: 1/3]

[Strength: 1]

[Endurance: 2]

[Speed: 1]

[Authority: 3]

'It seems that the free Endurance point increased my max HP. That's pretty decent.' Colt's lips twitched, making his smile grow broader as he quit the interface.

[Authority increase detected… Please select one of the following Divine Spells…]

[(Divine) Minor Grace: Grants a divine protective barrier for 20% of target's health. Cost: 1 DP]

[(Divine) Minor Divine Arrow: Fast-moving golden arrow. Damage and cost equal to user's Authority up to 10 Maximum.]

[(Hearth) Campfire: Creates a Divine Campfire that radiates a healing aura over 10m. Heals followers/party members for 1 HP per second for 5 seconds. Cost: 2 DP]

'Hm? That's new.' Colt glanced at the new bracketed information before the spell names. He caressed his chin as he thought about it. 'It seems that those marked with Divine should be general spells that any player can learn. That means the one marked Hearth would be something like a speciality spell.'

Colt frowned deeply as he began to contemplate how things might turn out. After all, this meant that a person's abilities would most likely depend on what kind of God they chose to become. Much like how classes worked in other games. However, this gave him the feeling that there would potentially be an unlimited amount of combinations.

'I'm a Local Deity just now. That makes it seem like my race can be further upgraded, so that should mean that there's some kind of progression tree for what kind of God you are as well.' Colt sighed as he thought about it. There was just not enough solid evidence or information for him to say he was totally right. However, he felt like he had hit the nail on the head.

'I know I've already got Minor Blessing, but Campfire seems more cost-effective for groups. Technically it's the most valuable spell that's being offered.' Colt suddenly frowned as he had another thought. 'Why do I feel like I'm falling into the role of a healer?'

Even though being a healer was not what he wanted, he still ended up choosing Campfire because of its value compared to the other two. Colt grumbled to himself as he finished off everything that the system had currently thrown at him.

When his eyes fell on the Shrine that Ania had made, he felt a strange power emanating from it. Ania, who was standing beside him through all of this, was steadily growing concerned by the God's silence. Her expression became slightly curious as Colt suddenly reached out and touched the Shrine.

[This Simple Shrine currently holds 1/3 Prayers. Would you like to accept your Prayers?]

'What's this all about?' Colt was slightly shocked. 'It shouldn't be anything harmful, right? Yes.'

[Prayers absorbed. +1DP regenerated.]

[Quest: Ania's Prayer]

[Description: Ania has prayed that you will oversee her duel against Erik and help her come out victorious.]

[Rewards: +9 Followers, Random Offering] 𝘧𝓇𝗲𝑒we𝙗noѵ𝑒l.𝐜o𝘮

Colt was elated when he read the new prompts. He had finally discovered how to regenerate his DP! 'So that's how it works! When you think about it, it actually makes sense. My Divine Spells are actually powered by the prayers that the NPC's make to me! I wonder if anyone else has found this out yet?'

Ania, who stood beside him, suddenly gasped. Although Colt was still emanating golden light from his body, it had become slightly brighter. Somewhere in her mind, she sensed that Exile had gone through some kind of change that made him seem even more holy. If that was even possible for a God.

As she stared at him with wide eyes, Colt suddenly turned to look at her. He crossed his arms in front of his chest as he considered what he should say. "Ania Eraldsen, I have heard your prayer. Do not be afraid of your duel tomorrow. I shall ensure that you come out victorious."

Hot tears began to leak out from Ania's eyes as she gazed at Colt's featureless face in wonder. She could not help but sink down onto her knees due to Exile's show of mercy. In truth, she had wondered if she was asking too much of the God who had already helped her.

"Thank you, Lord Exile… You've already done so much…" Ania hiccuped as she spoke, but Colt ignored that and placed a hand on her head. Ania's expression rapidly changed to one of ecstasy under his touch.

Sarri, who was only pretending to be asleep, narrowed her eyes as she watched her daughter's strange performance. After all, she could not see this Lord Exile at all…