Chapter 193 - Progenitors, Are ‘broken’!

"Like grandpa said, bloodline also matters. I believe I am just benefiting from that. From mom's side, we have a great grandpa who was a cosmic being, and then grandpa is a sub cosmic.

From dad's side, we have grandpa Kronos and dad who are both sub-cosmic. With that kind of ancestry, it's weirder if I didn't turn out as one."

Arthur gave a short explanation as to why he was a sub cosmic being. Although his logic had holes in it, it was still believable to an extent.

If one did not know about how being 'sub cosmic' truly worked, that is.

[Cut the crap.]

Hell's emotionless voice rang out after Arthur spoke causing Diablo to raise an eyebrow in surprise. 

'She seems...angry?'

As the consciousness of a universe, she was a being severely lacking in emotions, however, at the moment, she seemed to be displaying anger.

Arthur looked at Hell with a cold gaze, he still was not fully clear on who or what she was but judging by the absurd amounts of cosmic energy radiating from her body, he was sure she was no ordinary being.

The two stared at each other in silence for a while, Hell then opened her mouth to speak but then realized something was trying to prevent her from doing so. She then looked at Arthur and said with a curious tone.

[You still do not wish to disclose it? It is obvious to anyone here that you are far from normal. You know the reason too, it is the reason you became a sub cosmic being. 

Or should I say, the reason you were born as a sub cosmic being.]

The moment Diablo, Hades, and Cattleya heard her words, expressions of shock flashed across their faces. As for Arthur;

'She knows...'

Arthur did not spend two and a half months in a cocoon for nothing. He had been undergoing various changes. One of them was evident in the full awakening of his Progenitor Authority.

And with it, came everything he needed to know about being a progenitor.

He gained knowledge of the abilities of Race Creation and Race command, this let him understand why he was able to exert some sort of control over Esna.

He also became able to sense members of his race who were in the vicinity, he could even tell what breed they were!

There were other various pieces of knowledge that were imparted to him by his Progenitor Authority. Basics of Causality and how it worked, understanding of the term; Causality Index, understanding of things like universal influence, and many more.

One of the things he learned was that at birth, all progenitors were already sub cosmic beings!

This was one of the reasons that many felt the existence of progenitors was 'broken'. To be sub cosmic beings at birth, a type of being that many have strived to be for thousands, millions, possibly even billions of years and yet could not achieve.

Despite this, some certain beings were already at this stage from birth! It was simply unfair but that was the reality of things.

It was because of this knowledge, that he understood what Hell meant when she said he did not wish to 'disclose it'.

The law of causality was closely knitted with the existences known as progenitors, with them having high causality indexes from birth.

The higher a being's causality index, the more they could influence the law of causality to their favor. An example, would be the current situation.

The reason why Hell did not speak earlier was that she sensed the law of causality was trying to stop her from doing so!

A being with a high enough causality index, could prevent certain things about themselves from being known by certain individuals, to be more specific; beings with a lesser causality index than them.

As such, if Arthur did not want anyone to know he was a progenitor, he could actually prevent a great majority of beings from ever finding out.

However, there were drawbacks to this. If people did not know of his name or identity, it would reduce the amount of universal influence he could gain. This was why progenitors barely bothered to hide their identities.

The more people, who came to know them, adore them, respect them, hate them, or fear them, the more influence they would gain.

In addition to this, Arthur ended up seeing a lot of things and gleaning a lot of truths during the two-plus months he spent in the cocoon, things that made him scared, anxious, and even more resolved to his quest for power.

Coming back to the current situation, Hell was staring at Arthur in silence. Arthur finally sighed and spoke.

"I was gonna disclose everything at once when I returned from Varona, but telling you all sooner would not hurt."

He then relaxed on his chair and crossed his arms before calling out audibly.

[Authority of the Progenitor Godslayer.]

***HUMM!!!

Silver energy poured out from Arthur's body and knitted to together to form a network, which then spread out around them, creating a small boundary field.

Hades barely managed to prevent himself from reacting like he did earlier, still, he could not help but feel a sense of fear towards Arthur on behalf of all the gods who were to be his enemies in the future.

It was then that Arthur's words clicked in his head.

"Huh? Authority?!"

Diablo's eyes narrowed, seeing Hades' uncomfortable reaction and hearing the words Arthur said, it did not take long for him to arrive at a conclusion.

"Ha! The progenitor of a race meant to end the gods, the signs were all there from the start. The prophecy was the biggest hint yet somehow no one made the connection."

He laid back on his seat as he spoke, Cattleya also had an expression of surprise on her face too. She never expected her son to be a progenitor, she had not even considered that possibility. It was then Hades spoke up.

"It's not that no one made the connection, most of 'us' actually did, however, we all subconsciously ignored that possibility.

Progenitors are dangerous beings, the possibility of one more being added to their number was something that no one wanted to happen, as such we all ignored the obvious signs."

Hades created a small orb with his darkness divinity on his palm and studied it for a moment, he then looked at Arthur and asked.

"Your 'Authority of the progenitor godslayer' was it? The weakening effects, do they scale to the being in question or are they fixed?"

"They scale, at the moment it's a 5% weakening."

Hades nodded and dispersed the orb of divinity before sighing. Arthur, perhaps sensing how uncomfortable Hades was, deactivated the Authority.

He then turned to Hell and asked.

"How did you know?"

[Hmm...You do not know who I am huh?]

Hell realized that she never actually introduced herself, Hades calling her 'Hell' was also not enough for Arthur to connect the dots.

[I am the consciousness of the Hell Universe, or rather, I am the Hell Universe itself. As such, I know every and anything that goes on within myself.

That is why I know of your escapades on planet Phirex where you murdered the half-god Valkyrie with the power of your Authority.

That is why I know of your conversation with Alexia Vladi 5 years ago and how she informed you of your identity as a progenitor.

And most importantly, I already knew you were a sub cosmic being since your birth, 15 years ago. You just had not awakened to your ability to manipulate cosmic energy yet.]

Arthur's eyes widened upon hearing about Hell's identity. Even he did not know that universes possessed consciousnesses. He then slightly understood the reason for Hades' anger earlier and couldn't help but sigh in exasperation.

"Hearing you say that makes you sound like some sort of omniscient entity."

Cattleya spoke up after digesting the information she just received. She was more or less aware of the fact that universes possessed a will, however, she did not know that they had full self-awareness like Hell was displaying at the moment.

Upon hearing Cattleya's words, Hell shook her head in denial.

[There are certain situations where my ability may be impaired, although I have not experienced such, the future is uncertain.

Besides, even if I know everything that goes on, it does not mean that I can tell it to anyone.]

Turning to Arthur, she continued.

[On a side note, when Alexia Vladi said she knew you were a progenitor because she had met others, she lied.

If progenitors were that easy to discover then most of them would have long been murdered before they could become powerful.]

Arthur was surprised upon hearing her words but when he thought about it, what Hell said made a lot of sense.

'It should not be that easy to discover a progenitor.'

"If so, how did she know, can you tell me that?"

Arthur asked Hell, who replied with a shrug.

[I wish, unfortunately, another being with a higher causality index than you is involved so I fear even if I say it, the law of causality may prevent you from hearing their name and identity.]

It was at this point that Diablo who had been silent for a while, spoke up.

"When Vladi came here, the only person who came with her was the owner of the appearance you are currently using, her watcher."

"Huh? That's not her real appearance?"

Arthur asked with surprise upon hearing Diablo's words, however, Hell replied to him as nonchalantly as ever.

[My real body is this universe itself, I only take upon a humanoid form to make conversing with my 'Master's' easier.]