God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

Chapter 439: Conflict of the Trial.

"Young man..." An old man dressed in normal clothes stood behind him.

Cain felt his heart skip a beat. Why was the decrepit old man calling out to him? Had he been found out?!

A head full of white and a grey goatee mixed with just a hint of black. It was clear with a single glance that this man was very old.

Suddenly, the old man moved closer. Cain didn't even get to blink before he was before him. The old man smiled at him,

"Walking around like this is like smacking a sigh that says, 'Look! I'm right here!' on your forehead."

Cain was dumbstruck.

With a smile still on his face, the old man spoke again,

"Don't act out. Just follow me quietly. Don't worry. I'm on your side."

Cain was beyond baffled. However, he didn't let this series of events take his reasoning away.

His eyes narrowed, "You most definitely aren't a normal old man. What do you want?"

The old man chuckled, "This isn't about what I want. It's about what you want, no? I'm sure you must be very confused. Well, I have what you are looking for."

Cain was still suspicious, "And that would be?"

The old man grinned, making the wrinkles on his face stretch out,

"Answers..."

Cain was now even more suspicious. However, this lead that had literally fallen out of nowhere was something he was willing to take.

If he started looking around at random, the chances of him running into trouble would be greater than actually finding something substantial.

"Also, I can tell that you are hungry. Come..."

With that, the old man began walking away. Cain hesitated for a second before following behind.

'Let's see what he wants. With that speed, if he wanted me dead, he wouldn't need to go through all this.'

His heart felt cold, 'Looks like I was right. This kingdom is filled with powerhouses. I don't stand a chance against a monster like this old guy if I don't pull out all the stops.'

It irked him greatly that he wouldn't be able to use the system to identify what Tier and level the beings he was dealing with were. He could only base their strength on comparison and assumptions.

"Where are you taking me, Old man?" Cain called out.

"To a place where you can find your answers."

"How did you know who I am? How did you know who to look for?"

The old man shrugged, "In the entire capital, you are the only human oozing this much Devil Energy. Can't you reign it in a bit?"

Cain immediately understood what the old man was referring to.

Cain sighed, "I don't know how to regulate it."

The old man still wore the same calm smile. However, his words were anything but pleasant,

"Such an overconfident little shit. And here I thought you were going to be half decent."

Cain's face turned black. However, he didn't say anything.

"Relax. I've activated an aura-limiting spell on you. Just be on the lookout for any changes and be ready to respond accordingly."

The old man led Caun through a series of back alleys. According to him, their goal was to avoid sentries that were scouting for Cain and his companions.

Cain wanted to bash his head against a nearby wall. He should have been more careful. Thankfully, they hadn't noticed him, maybe thanks to the {Emblem of Darkness} spell keeping him hidden for so long.

"We are here." The old man called out.

Cain stopped walking. They had arrived at a modest-looking house. Nothing too crazy, but not run down as well.

"Don't just stand there. Come on in."

At the urgent urging of the old man, Cain walked into the building.

"Mariam! I'm home!" The kind-looking old man yelled out the moment he stepped into the house.

An old woman walked out of the back of the house. Cain's eyebrows shot up. The woman looked similar to her husband. She wore a very kind and peaceful smile, her eyes tranquil like the bottom of a lake.

"Honey, you're back so soon? Oh? Who's this handsome young man?"

The old man shot Cain a sideways glance,

"Just someone I'm doing business with."

A smile blossomed on her elderly face,

"Ah! You must be tired. Come. Come and sit. I'll go prepare something."

The old woman quickly disappeared, leaving only Cain and the old man.

Once they were seated, Cain opened his mouth,

"The answers I'm looking for..."

The old man brought up his hand, "Wait. Eat something first."

The old woman came back in a few moments later, bringing a tray of steaming hot food. Cain immediately began to salivate.

He had never smelt food this good before. He could also tell that the food was incredibly nutrient-dense, so they would be very effective in alleviating his hunger.

"Eat. We'll talk once you are done."

Cain paid the old man no more mind. He dove into the food like an angry wraith devouring the souls of the innocent.

The old man also ate, although not as ferociously as Cain.

Once they were done with their meal, the old man cleared his throat,

"I know you have a lot of questions but wait till you hear my story before you speak."

Cain silently nodded his head. Right now, he was in no position to make demands.

The old man's kind eyes suddenly took a dark undertone. He stared at empty space for a while before he began to speak,

"Thousands of years ago, this world had not seen the grace of the gods or the scourge of the Devils. That changed when the Ashen Clouds blocked out the sun, moon, and stars..."

Cain's brows twitched, 'Wait... He's talking about...'

True to his words, Cain didn't interject. Instead, he continued to listen.

The old man's eyes became blurry, "The Ashen Clouds stole warmth and conform from this world, bringing only a terrible cold, illness, terrible Devil Beasts, and worse of all, the Devils themselves."

"Amidst all this darkness, was the warmth and promise of the gods. 'Serve us, and we will give you power to fight off these evil beings'. That is what we were promised. At the time, they did deliver."

Cain watched as the kind smile on the old man's face melted away,

"Young man. These gods are just as evil as the Devils. During those times, we humans managed to fight off the Devils and Devil Beasts, creating several bastions of peace in a devastated world. The world finally knew prosperity once again. At least, that's how it was supposed to be..."

Cain could see all the conflicting emotions on the old man's face. Sadness, anger, hopelessness, hope, serenity, numbness...

Cain could only imagine. This world had progressed to what his world could look like in a few thousand years. It didn't look bad on the surface, but judging from the despair in the old man's voice, he was learning not to judge a book by its cover.

The old man sighed. He looked deep into Cain's eyes,

"We as mortal men cannot understand the minds of the gods. However, we can see the outcome of their intent."

"During the Devil wars, many smaller deities were eliminated from the game, leaving Xarzar, god of the Blood Moon, and Limmion, goddess of Tranquil Light."

"About a thousand years ago, a priestess of the Church of Tranquil Light received a revelation from a source outside the goddess for the first time in so many years. The moment word of this got out, her execution was ordered, and she was beheaded. The word that it out to the public, was that she had been in cahoots with the Devils. She was known as the first Heretic."

"The people were outraged by this. Many at the time knew this priestess, and they weren't buying the church's horseshit. However, every other person who dared to speak out was brutally cut down. In the blink of an eye, all opposing voices vanished, though not completely."

"This was around the time the invasive Devil hordes became more frequent. We also got to discover a terrible truth. Our world used to be resource-ridden. Now, it has been thoroughly destroyed by these gods and their agents. The Devils were soundly defeated and were forced to hide. With the Ashen Clouds gone, the World Expansion was complete.

They had lost their chance. Meaning they no longer need to be the enemy. They were only ever interested in what they came for. But those gods are after it all. Especially now that they had been resurrected. If something doesn't change, we will be at their mercy forever before we are finally snuffed out."

Cain let out a deep breath. He tried digesting the information he had just acquired, but it was just too much. Nothing he could handle in such a short amount of time.

"There's something I'm still curious about," Cain said.

The old man nodded.

Cain scratched his head, "You said the god Ash has been fully absorbed by your world?"

The old man nodded, "Indeed. This world was quite a large one even before the appearance of magic. The amount of dead god matter that arrived was also not very great compared to what would have befallen other worlds."

"Second question. You said the Devils no longer need to be enemies. What did you mean by that?"

The old man's face became dark, "The Devils no longer need or want to stay in this world. With what they came for having disappeared, and having lost every major war, they have no choice but to either get lost or coexist with the people of this world. Neither of these is possible due to the interference of the god and goddess."

"Are you saying the Devils last to leave, but the gods are stopping them?"

The old man clarified, "It's much worse. They've turned this world, my world, into a farm. Field Steel is a very precious material. Due to the special position this world is in, we have access to a ton of it as long as the Devils are not completely eradicated and are still allowed to procreate."

Cain rubbed his chin, "I see. Use the threat of Devils to keep the people in check, and use the people to mine the resources called Devils."

The dark look on the old man's face evaporated,

"You summarized that well."

Cain hummed as he fell silent. He couldn't be sure the old man was telling him the truth, or the whole truth in the very least. However, this was all the information he had to work with.

After a few minutes of silent pondering, Cain finally spoke,

"So we didn't waste any more time, I'll get right to the point. How do you know I'm not from this world?"

Cain would have to be a fool to not realize that the old man knew he wasn't an aboriginal of this world. Well, the old man didn't explicitly try to hide it, but still...

"That, I'm afraid, is something I have to keep a secret. I hope you understand."

Cain fixed the old man a stare, but he didn't budge even an inch.

'Nerves of steel, eh...' Cain could only click his tongue.

"In that case, I've gotten the gist of it. So... What do you want from me? I'm sorry to inform you of this, but I'm not as strong as you are, just so you know. Don't expect much from me."

The old man rolled his eyes, "We plan on destroying the alters of the gods in this world."

"Alters?"