Darius Supreme

Darius watched the rocket reach the apex and discharge its payload before falling back towards the base in order to be recollected. He noticed that the satellite itself seemed to be functioning well.

He gazed at his HoloBrace and waited for Miranda's report. His AI daughter soon appeared and seemed excited.

"All system go, Daddy! There are no problems with coverage or power. Everything is perfect and I am now connected to all HoloBraces in Faust!"

Darius smiled, yet his usual soft smile was a bit darker this time. This A-okay didn't just mean that he was connected to all his devices in Faust, it meant that his first step in taking over Faust had just been completed.

Now, the next step should be obvious. He would pump HoloBraces out like crazy, making sure that even those who felt they didn't need them would have them.

However, that would be done after he returned to Safemoon. Right now, he had to make his final preparations for the War with Elysium that would soon drag the entire world into it, forming Faust's first World War!

The Insect Invasion did not count, as it was one side versus all others in a desperate bid for survival. This was going to put three sides versus all others at first, and the stake would be limited to leadership and power, not survival.

Right now, Darius could be said to rule over Ludo, Pokterr, and tentatively, Fallon. When he raised his Safemoon army to take over Fallon, there was no way he could lose, which was why he had counted the continent he had spawned on as part of his force already.

As for Ludo, after he conquered Fallon, he would announce his ownership and begin rapidly developing the continent as well. Ludo would then war with either Gravitas or Kiel.

Both were good targets for the sandy continent, one that relied on tech and would find no ground on the land of sand and one that survived on ice, which also was terrible for a sandy domain.

All these thoughts ran through his head, though outwardly all Darius said was: "Well done."

He then left the observation room with his two Branded Servants, heading for the captive area where Medea and Achilles were kept.

Darius sent Xela to check on Pyrrha, as the two were similar in nature and were relatively fond of each other. Pyrrha never opened up in Darius' presence the same way she did with the Elven Princess.

Once down, they entered Achilles' room first to see that he was locked in a crucial chamber, his eyes delirious and his formerly refined body extremely dull and flaccid.

When he saw Darius, his body shook as he mustered the energy to speak.

"Please, let me go... I will... Do anything you want...!!"

Darius remained silent and walked around him, observing him like some lab rat. This made Achilles even more desperate as he did not want to undergo another experiment at all costs.

"I-I know... those Gods... ptui! They are fake... false... whatever... I renounce my belief in them!! J-Just let me go..!!" Achilles begged, his eyes wide with desperation and pleasing as he smiled awkwardly.

"Oh?" Darius murmured.

He then turned to Miranda. "Just what has he been through in this time that made him break?"

It was Solena who pooped up, wearing a cute lab coat along with black, square-rimmed glasses.

"Greetings, Father. As per your instruction, we've used this Demi-God as a lab rat and injected a total of 109,754 different substances that were rated to be the most painful in Faust in order to derive an objective pain measurement system as the target could not die."

Solena manifested a checklist as he continued reading and flipping through it.

"We have also used 914,743 different types of substances that were rumored to be the most destructive, 271,929 substances that were stipulated to be the most fatal, and 961,134 substances that were the most poisonous."

"We also..."

Solena went on and on, listing the various things they had done and used on Achilles. The faces of Darius and Gunner both changed, the former frowning with surprise and the latter gazing at Achilles with some hints of respect.

"Over a long period of testing, we've found that while the target is extremely resistant to all forms of substances and bodily harm, he is not impervious as we suspected. His current rundown state is proof that there are many ways to harm the target."

"Starvation, dehydration, torture, poisoning, and more should be able to take away the life of the target if kept up long enough." Solena concluded coldly.

"There is some good news. Due to the repeated attack on the cells by the various substances, we have been able to analyze and extract some of the damaged ones for experimentation and analysis."

"We have come to the conclusion that whatever substance exists in the waters of the River Styx did not actually change his fundamental makeup, but rather induced a new component to every cell in his body that generates a special golden substance that coats the outer layer of the cell."

"Each and every cell has this coating, and it doesn't interfere in daily activities like splitting or assimilation, allowing the body to function as-is. However, if kinetic force or dangerous substances of any kind approach these special types of cells, they will be blocked by these golden barriers with ease."

"The component that produces this golden substance has been termed the Stylian by us, subject to a better name at your discretion. It lies beside the nucleus upon assimilation and does nothing but convert the most common proteins into this golden substance when the barrier is damaged."

"Our conclusion is that if we can replicate the Stylian gene, it should be possible to create an army of nearly invincible warriors who only need to eat the same food they do every day to maintain their invulnerability." Solena finished while gazing up at Darius.

The room got deathly silent.

Darius was frowning with furrowed eyebrows, Gunner was rubbing his forehead as if he didn't even want to think about the implications of this, and Achilles was simply dazed, hearing his beloved power and secret dissected so professionally for the first time.

"First things first, release Achilles for now. Also, present him with a HoloBrace, it's time to let him know a bit more." Darius instructed Solena.

"At once." She replied with a bow.

The Demi-God was soon released by two Guard Androids while a third snapped a HoloBrace on his arm. Seeing the device that had filled him with knowledge previously, Achilles' expression turned complex.

If only he hadn't been a stubborn fool and had considered the information a bit more, he would not have needed to suffer this much. He wasn't an idiot, he had merely had believed in the supremacy of the Gods for so long that his brain had refused to immediately accept any type of proof that they might be fake.

As he had been forced to endure all the torture, the Demi-God had time to think about everything as he needed something to focus on to be able to not go crazy from all the pain. The more he thought about it, the more sense it had started to make until he finally gave up his belief and accepted the truth, especially if it would result in salvation from this suffering.

He waited for Darius's next action. His usual valor and will were not gone, but he knew who to show them before. He could sense now that Darius was of the same level of power as he, which was shocking since it had been less than a month since he had last seen the fellow.

"Let Achilles know the basics of science, as well as the information about reality I learned from Vena." Darius commanded with his arms folded behind his back, his eyes flashing with curiosity.

How would the beaten and weathered Demi-God respond this time?

Miranda immediately, extracted the information from his mind without even bothering Darius in the slightest before fulfilling his task. Achilles closed his eyes to digest all this information, and this time, he opened his eyes 15 minutes later.

"Wow, even the True Lords had difficulty accepting that they were born from the shit of a Godlike being from another universe! Damn!" Achilles exclaimed as he slapped his forehead.

Darius and Gunner shared a look before bursting into laughter. They couldn't help it, they had never expected such a response from Achilles upon digesting this information.

Achilles saw them laugh and scratched his head, before a light bulb went off.

"Right, since you're the only 'real' and 'important' person on this godforsaken planet, mind if I swear myself into your services?" Achilles requested as he got to his knees weakly.

Darius paused his laughter slowly and nodded. "That is why I still kept you alive. I didn't honestly think you'd come around, but I guess sapient beings are unpredictable."

"Could you make me into one of your Branded Servants, Lord?" Achilles requested while praying in his heart.

"No, that is reserved for special existences. You are certainly unique, but I don't need you as a Branded Servant to maintain you. Once you swore allegiance to me, your fate was already sealed." Darius informed Achilles calmly.

After all, with the Affiliates tab of the True Supreme System, Darius could now see everything about Achilles, even grant him AP, SP, the chance to earn titles, his own Quests, and more.

This made Darius feel like a Game Dev and Achilles was his player, or Darius was a coder and Achilles was an NPC.