It had taken so many months, but they'd finally managed to rebuild their school group chat!

"Arty!" Ganesha immediately rushed to embrace Artemis the moment their spirit projections joined together in the heavens above. "Group hug!"

"Group hug!" Artemis replied before pulling Wepwawet in, her arms tightening around his and Ganesha's necks. "I told you I could make it work! I told you!"

"Yes, yes you did," Wepwawet confirmed. It had been literally the longest possible route to his civilization, but he couldn't complain with the result. "Did you have that kraken swimming my way for three weeks straight?"

"You bet I did!" Artemis smirked in pride. "Karen claimed so many Altars and converted so many island communities on her way, I'm finally on my way to fill up my mana reserve and complete the Magic Hoarder quest!"

"Magic Hoarder? You still haven't completed it?" Wepwawet recalled that it was the quest right before Magic Collector, and involved entirely filling up one's mana reserve. "Whoa, you must be facing some serious faith drought."

"Agh, don't remind me." Artemis sighed. "My civilization is full of super strong Champions, but they're spread all over the place. Their largest settlement was a tribal village when I first arrived."

"Well, I'm glad you're alright," Wepwawet replied. "Your kraken can establish a permanent embassy in my land anytime."

"The same goes for you, now that we know where everybody is!" Artemis put her arms behind her head. "So how have things been going on you guys' end? Now that I'm six Altars in, Dad said I could attend that cram study session the Storm Gods Alliance is organizing."

"Neat," Ganesha replied with a happy smile. "I'm glad I can take a short break from my civ."

"Things haven't gone so well on my end," Wepwawet confessed. "It's been a lot…"

He proceeded to recount the events of the last few days to his friends, from his own aunt's betrayal to Insupportable's princess-napping raid and Pele's disastrous handling of the Lavaland crisis.

"I can't believe an elder goddess would sabotage the System like that…" Ganesha muttered. "On the plus side, that means you bested one of your pantheon's best players in a fair fight. That should improve your student score tremendously."

"I'm more impressed that you've claimed a dragon as your Champion," Artemis replied with a whistle. "Now that takes a lot of guts! Even I never dared to do that, and I love all critters!"

"His religious conversion was done against my will," Wepwawet protested. "That flying lizard dumps one mess after another at my feet."

"The audacity of Pele, though!" Artemis crossed her arms. "There's no way you'll accept her offer, right?"

"Hell no!" Wepwawet protested. "I'm the god of scouts, not rebounds! She started this whole mess, and she'll deal with it!"

"Plus, saying I friendzoned you is super mean!" Artemis frowned at Wepwawet. "Unless… Did you try to make a move on me and I didn't notice?"

"Of course not!" Wepwawet replied. Romance was the last thing on his mind right now, so he had no idea where that rumor came from! "You're like the sister I never had."

"Oh good, 'cause that would have been super awkward otherwise!" Artemis nodded happily. "You're like the brother I never had too!"

"You do have a brother, Arty," Ganesha reminded her.

"Apollo's an ass, so he doesn't count!" Artemis smashed her fist against her palm. "Anyway, I know how to stick it up to Miss Volcano! Just lend me one of your Altars so I can teleport my people in, and we'll walk all over her Lavaland!"

"Oh right, your kraken is a Commander…" Wepwawet stroked his chin. "I could let her claim one of my Altars and create a teleportation pathway between our nations…"

"Don't you dare lend me the dragon's den though," Artemis warned him. "I'll never forgive you if you do."

"But one of the quests requires us to claim all of our civilization's Altars," Ganesha pointed out. "Wouldn't that interfere with it?"

"I could lend it back to him afterwards to complete the quest," Artemis replied. "Easy peasy."

Ganesha remained skeptical. "We already tried that with Miracles and encountered an issue."

A System notification immediately popped up in front of them as if on cue.

From now on, every time an Altar is traded between deities, its mana production will be permanently reduced by one as a penalty (the reductions are cumulative).

"What?!" Artemis protested. "Why?!"

Because you don't game the System; the System games you!

"Ugh, self-patching spellcrafted godly AI models are the worst!" Wepwawet complained. "So much for that plan."

"I'm not giving up yet," Artemis said. "Karen claimed an Altar on an empty lighthouse island on her way to your place. It's a few miles away from your coast on the northwest, but you'll just need a few sturdy boats to get to it."

"A lighthouse?" That took Wepwawet aback. Victoire told him that the northern sea was almost inhospitable and only explored by small-boat fishermen. "Who would build a lighthouse so far north?"

"I dunno, it was a ruin when Karen found it, all creepy black stone and–" Artemis marked a short pause as both Ganesha and Wepwawet stared at her in silence. "Oooooh… I see the issue."

"I'll send people to check for signs of lunarian activity as soon as we build the boats," Wepwawet grumbled. "But I don't think we'll have time to bring in troops from there before Lavaland's military mobili–"

Thump.

Time seemed to slow down to a crawl as a droning noise echoed across the mana leylines. Wepwawet stopped to focus on his Influence, as did his friends.

Thump.

A pulse echoed in the ether, faraway and yet powerful.

"Did you hear that?" Wepwawet asked his friends.

"I felt that," Artemis replied.

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"I sense it through my Altars too," Ganesha said as he focused to better meditate. "It's… everywhere..."

Wepwawet quickly confirmed it too. A pulse now traveled across all of Elphion's leylines, coursing through his Altars and those beyond.

The entire planet shuddered.

Hosting a giant squid in Narc proved easier than expected.

"Are these accommodations to your liking?" Victoire asked Karen. The giant squid had taken residence in Narc's hot springs near Alpine's inn, but their deepest spring barely allowed her to dwell halfway underwater. "We can empty the other baths if you need more space."

"We'll have miners deepen the pool in a day's time," Alpine promised.

"You are too kind, Madam Victoire, Madam Alpine," the kraken replied while using a towel to clean her head. "I do not wish to be a strain on your home. I am already blessed to be welcomed by such kind hearts. May Lady Artemis bless you!"

Lord Wepwawet informed them that the goddess Artemis and him were close allies and that her representative ought to be treated like a foreign ambassador. She had even been allowed to preach in favor of her god in Narc and her cult would be tolerated here, much like the andvari were allowed to pray to their goddess in Roynimalia.

It pleased Victoire to know that not all deities in this world looked dead-set on attacking Verglane on all fronts. Considering her god's so-called 'class project,' she wondered how his allies behaved behind closed doors and the strength of their bonds. With luck, these foreign deities would be invested enough in their friendship to assist Verglane in its hour of need.

I wish the likes of the magmorians were as polite and accommodating as Karen. Her scouts near Citadel Sapphire had already reported a sudden increase in troops near the frontier not even a day and a half after their princess' capture. It seemed the Fire Sultan was teleporting soldiers to their base in mass. I hope Lord Wepwawet can settle this peacefully, or we'll be in for a tough fight.

"So what does this Lady Artemis do?" Alpine asked. "What is she the goddess of?"

"Artemism is a religion of love, love of the hunt, and nature!" Karen happily preached. The kraken sounded a lot more confident all of a sudden when talking about her deity. "Lady Artemis blesses us with moonlight so that we may see in the dark, and with clear guidelines to live a holy and balanced life."

"Such as?"

"Commandment Seven: You shall respect the hunt. Hunt to feed or to thin the herd, but never for profit or pleasure, and never to extinction. Except demons and undead. Demons and undead can be hunted for pleasure, for profit, and to be made extinct." Karen kindly offered a stone tablet to Alpine. "Everything is detailed on these easily understood pamphlets. I have a simplified, child-friendly version available too."

We should probably keep her away from Wintresse, Victoire thought, only for her spine to stiffen all of a sudden. The air feels… heavier.

Victoire's divinely-enhanced senses felt a faint vibration course through the ground. The hot spring's waters rippled a little on their own, startling Karen.

"Are tremors common here?" she asked softly.

"No," Victoire replied. Her instinct told her danger was afoot, and she only had to take a look at the sky to see her fears confirmed. While the sun had set and night had fallen upon Narc, a faint red light appeared to stretch across the horizon. This isn't good…

Filou quickly rushed into the hot spring. "Milady!" he called out, his voice wavering. "W-West!"

Victoire clenched her teeth. "Are the magmorians on the move?"

"No, it's… the sky! The sky is opening up!"

Victoire's jaw clenched on its own, and she immediately stormed out of the hot spring. She heard Filou bolting after her and Alpine hurrying soon after.

Many werelings and Narc locals had gathered in the plaza to observe the phenomenon. True to Filou's warning, the source of the light came from the far west; and most specifically the large stretch of plains separating Narc from Citadel Sapphire. The red glow briefly caused Victoire to think the magmorians had used some form of fire magic until she took a closer look at the sky.

Lightning coursed through the clouds in the far distance with more violence than the strongest thunderstorm. A diamond-shaped wound in the very fabric of space expanded until it became about as large as Narc, then stabilized. All Victoire could see inside it was the swirling chaos of darkness and shades of crimson energies.

It looked like a breach; a ravenous maw waiting to devour them all.

"W-what's going on, milady?" Filou asked, his hand instinctively reaching for his scimitar.

"This is it, Filou." Victoire could feel it within her bones. "The darkness we've been preparing for."

The enemy was finally here.

The long-dreaded System notification flashed in front of Wepwawet. A map of the planet appeared with a red dot glowing on the western part of Verglane, followed by an ominous declaration of war.

First Titan Incursion coming in 48:00:00 hours.

Invading Titan: Whiro the Corpse-Eater.

Maximum number of divine challengers: Set to 2. Should no gods take up the challenge, the System will automatically select the contestants based on geographic proximity to the breach.

Reward: Whiro the Corpse-Eater will be permanently expelled from Elphion, and surviving gods may pick any one card from his deck.

Losing Penalty: Losing gods will be permanently expelled from Elphion, and new challengers must immediately replace them. Should all gods be defeated, then Titan Whiro will destroy the world.

…

Damn it!

"This is bad, Wepy!" Ganesha warned. "The breach is opening up in your territory!"

"It can't be a coincidence," Wepwawet said with a grunt of annoyance. "Beelzebub must have attacked Verglane knowing the first Incursion would take place close to its borders."

While he could technically sit this one out, he more or less would have to volunteer since the battle would take place on his lands and the effects of Miracles cast there would likely linger beyond the conflict.

At least this Incursion would be a two-on-one affair. While a Titan invader usually received a mana bonus based on the number of opponents, Wepwawet would be relieved to fight with a partner.

"We've got your back, Wepy," Artemis promised him. "Just give the word, and we'll partner up!"

"Wait, let's take a step back to breathe!" Ganesha advised. "We need to create a battle strategy!"

Wepwawet sensed Pele trying to make contact through Princess Topaz, so he quickly linked up their Influences. Whatever differences they might have would fall by the wayside considering the danger ahead.

Pele's spirit immediately materialized among the group in a burst of flames. "Guys, guys! You've received the notification too?!"

"Yes, we did!" Wepwawet confirmed. "This is terrible!"

"Are you kidding? This is wonderful!" Pele sounded incredibly enthusiastic about an otherworldly invading deity threatening to destroy Elphion. "This is exactly what we need!"

A short silence followed, quickly broken by Artemis. "Did you hit your face with a volcano or something?"

"We have a goddamn Titan knocking at our doorstep!" Wepwawet snapped. "How is that good news for us?!"

"Think, now we can blame the Titan Incursion for our conflict!" Pele replied. "We can say that all our issues were an evil plot to trick us into a pointless fight so Whiro could attack us at our weakest! It's the perfect team-up scenario!"

Wepwawet squinted at her in disbelief. "Our followers are never going to buy that."

"Wait, Wepy, I think she's onto something," Ganesha said, proving much less skeptical. "Both of our countries were building up their forces to attack each other and you know the terrain, so you're both the best equipped to deal with the Titan."

"Plus, Whiro is one of my pantheon's worst enemies, so I can give intel on him too!" Pele nodded enthusiastically. "It'll be a walk in the park!"

"I doubt that," Wepwawet replied sternly. His fight with Beelzebub had underlined the fact that the Titans were relentless foes with absolutely no concern for collateral damage or mortal life.

"Yeah, that's a stupid plan!" Artemis argued. "Wepy should be fighting with someone who knows how he plays and synergizes with, like us!"

"But then our followers will stay at each other's throats!" Pele countered. "There's no better way for mortals to bury the hatchet than allying against a common enemy! It creates camaraderie!"

"That…" Wepwawet closed his mouth. "That's a fair point…"

Having Verglane and Lavaland cooperating against an existential threat would likely calm down the latter's most warlike elements, and force its leaders to see that they had more to gain by working together.

Besides, if Wepwawet fought with another partner and won, then his military forces would be depleted while the magmorian army remained intact and thus capable of threatening his border unimpeded afterwards. Having them fight could bleed them enough to calm their ardor for battle.

"Whoever volunteers for this, we still have time to attend the cram school session and prepare a strategy," Ganesha said. "We can also do a last-minute Miracle exchange to buff up both of your decks."

Wepwawet scowled. "If we do that and we fail to stop Whiro, then you'll be in a worse position to fight him next. Axomamma and you are the closest to the breach after us."

"I'm the Lord of Fortune, remember." Ganesha raised all of his four thumbs at his friend. "I feel good about this bet!"

Wepwawet wasn't so confident, but he appreciated the sentiment nonetheless. Two days, he thought as he checked the frightful countdown. Two days to battle.

He better make them count.

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