Nameless King

"Wain... You're really back from the dead, right?" Elegan asked in disbelief as he stared intently at Wain, afraid of missing something.

"Something like that. I don't think there's any exact name for it, but I'm alive again, or rather I've been alive for a long time, but I just got my memories back now." Wain said calmly with a slight nod, "I still have to get my power back, but that's okay. I won't have to go all the way to the Transcendence Stage all over again. It's almost done."

Reto took a sip and asked, "So the Second Great War is about to begin, right?"

Wain nodded silently.

"In that case, I want to ask you something." Reto muttered slowly swinging his frozen glass from side to side, "How many of us can reach the God Stage before then?"

Wain looked them over, pondering something for a while before answering, "That's a complicated question, as it depends on many factors, but most likely we can all reach the God Stage if we put in enough effort. Except, for Lui Bu and Edena, you have a different field, so you will need a lot more time and a completely different path."

Hearing this everyone smiled as the God Stage was their main goal from the moment they realized that this was the pinnacle of power. Lui Bu and Edena were a little upset, but they quickly came to their senses as they realized that this was no surprise. They couldn't be successful alchemists and great fighters at the same time, this world didn't work that way.

"Wain, you do realize that we will fight with you, right?" Elegan asked with a serious look as he put his fingers together. At the same moment, the others fell silent, realizing how important this was.

"Sure. It's your choice, I'm not going to stop you, however, you must choose your opponent according to your strength. You can count that as an order, I don't want any of you to die attacking an enemy who can kill you with a simple wave of his hand." Wain said calmly, but his cold voice gave everyone goosebumps as his aura gradually intensified.

"Do you know when the Great War will begin?" Elegan asked as he waved his hand.

"No, also I do not yet know who will be our enemies and who our allies are. About some I'm sure, but about most I know nothing. Moreover, I have no idea what the second ruler of the Arkan World does. I'll talk to someone after our meeting, and hopefully, I'll learn more about it." Wain spoke as he crossed his arms over his chest, "However, the Angels, Vampires, and Ashens will definitely be on our side, at least their Progenitors."

Sarras turned to Wain and asked, "Wait... Does that mean Alucard will be on our side? I mean, he's the only real immortal!"

The others' eyes went wide as they only now realized how powerful an ally they had.

"Yes, Alucard can't be killed, however, that doesn't mean he's the strongest. All in all, it's complicated, but I think the situation will gradually begin to clear up. I'm sure that this time it won't be like the first, so before the Great War begins, everyone will know who's an ally and who's an enemy." Wain said as he shrugged like he didn't care.

"Your main goal is to kill the second ruler of the Arkan World, right?" Reto asked with a confused expression.

"Exactly. After that, it doesn't matter what happens anymore since he's the only one with a real chance to take over the entire world." Wain nodded.

"But... How? How is it possible to take over the whole world? How can you control all the strongest races and thousands of different spaces?" Elegan spoke in disbelief.

"Well... If he takes my energy, he can control everyone else. Not completely, but it will be enough that no one will ever be able to resist him. I don't know what it would be, tyranny or utopia, but such a world makes no sense. Though obviously, some will disagree with me since a few races will definitely want some of that power for themselves." Wain said slowly, but his aura slowly increased with each word, showing how important this was to him.

"Pfff, even though I'm a Lich, I don't understand the point of having total control over the world? What's the point? I mean, won't it get too boring with time?" Sarras frowned.

Wain shrugged, "I don't understand that either. Even if it's utopia rather than tyranny, it's like living in a golden cage. Everything will be fine, but when there's only good in the world then over time some of it becomes a necessary evil and that only leads to disaster."

Wain's story explained a lot, but the great war also raised many questions for Elegan and the others, so for the next few hours Wain quietly answered questions and guessed about possible futures.

"Well... Looks like we're done, right?" Wain sighed with relief as the last five minutes were silent as everyone reminisced on what they had heard.

"At the end, I'd like to clear something up." Frigus asked as he looked intently at Wain, "What does it take to reach the Transcendence Stage? Do any of us stand a chance?"

Wain remained silent until he answered, "I was just about to say that. Frigus, of everyone here, you have a chance of reaching that stage. That doesn't mean the rest of us will never make it, but I see a special aura only around you, yet. I almost feel that if given the opportunity you will reach this level."

"The Transcendence Stage is different from anything you know. You have to give up the energy of the world and replace it with your own, but for your own energy to be real, it has to be something grounded, something that only you can do, if you want you can call it a philosophy, like Alucard, did. He was able to become immortal and that's why he reached the Transcendence Stage, not the other way around." Wain said calmly, trying to explain to them what he himself did not yet understand very well since each case was unique.