Overpowered Wizard-Chapter Ch56: The Cloak Returns

“So, let’s make a game of this,” Zarian said, once everybody gathered at one of the starting locations of the Gauntlet World, Dominadus. They weren’t alone. Hundreds of Champion Rankers stood on the platform that overlooked the maze-like world for pure Level 300 challenges. The platform was made of celestial stone, and most of the magic and items involved were celestial.

There were half a dozen suns in the sky. The aura was so thick it wavered in the air like ocean currents. For those who didn’t have the capacity for all of this aura, they were openly sweating or sparking, their profiles short-circuiting from the aura overload.

Not Zarian’s people. They were more than over-prepared. With everybody in his group rocking eternal powers and Infinite Skills, it wouldn’t be hard to cheese this if they went all out together. So, a game was in order.

“What do we win?” Hannah asked.

“I want an unbridled night with Zarian that nobody will judge me for,” Naomi demanded.

“What happened to staying professional?” Hannah asked.

“Deviant. Cultivator.” Naomi’s eye twitched. “I need my fix, or it’ll be bad for everybody.”

“Can I judge in my head?” Bianca flipped around a large two-hander sword that looked like it was made of glowing prisms. Her creation.

“As long as you keep quiet.”

“Take one for the team, champ,” Gilbert said in Zarian’s direction. “I just want a new fishing spot and a day away from all of you crazies.”

“Can I dissect your profiles? You and Foodie’s. For an extended period. That may or may not be painful,” Hannah requested.

“Hannah, no being a creeper!” Bianca complained.

“Damn, Hannah. Am I the deviant or are you?” Naomi quipped.

“A really long fishing trip. Really, really long. Very far away,” Gilbert stressed.

“What’s the game?” Foodie asked, bringing everybody back to the matter at hand.

“The disciples and gods split up. You guys versus us. But you can set one limitation on us and draw from our powers.” Zarian held up a finger to forestall questions. “Only one of you can draw from us at a time. And this includes Naomi. You’ll have to coordinate that. If you all can get to Level 250 before Foodie and I reach Level 300, your desires are ours to fulfill.”

The disciples liked the sound of that.

They hatched out the rest of the rules, loudly, with no concern about who was listening. More people arrived at the starting location. The Gauntlet World groaned and rumbled with activity. The sound of distant battles rode on the blood-scented wind. It was everywhere and all the time. At this point, they were dealing with people and creatures who could demolish smaller, weaker worlds time and time and time again, with some effort.

The world was huge. Far bigger than any Zarian had seen before. And the aura density was deliciously thick. It helped support his Level 247 System Wizard class. It was a new season, too, so Zarian’s rank had been updated. He was 2nd Ranked Mage of the Champion Ranks.

Fine by him. He was in a group where everybody was top ten of whatever they ranked as. It would be interesting to meet who was 1st Ranked Mage unless it was Ruvaria.

Maybe we should check on Corma before ascending to the High Realm. The Lesser World was now a Master World, a part of the Greater Realm.

“Where are the Paragons?” Gilbert muttered, glancing around after they finished speaking aloud the more obvious rules – the secret rules were only expressed via telepathy. He didn’t try to obscure his question about the Paragons, though. Speaking aloud about the Paragons was part of the plan. It should make the game more interesting.

“They’re here,” Bianca assured. “I’m looking at one right now.” She winked at the spot where a Paragon thought himself unnoticeable.

Zarian had pretended to go along with the delusion. Now that Bianca had mentioned it, the Paragons came out.

“Do we have problems?” asked a tall man in liquid chrome-like armor, a Level 316 Star Brawler. “Zarian Darkrun?”

“I got none if you don’t, friend. All the bounties and quests placed on my head can’t be worth that much.”

“It’s enough to have the Level 400s making it our problem,” the Star Brawler grumbled.

At this point, it wouldn’t surprise Zarian if there were Level 400 regressors hiding in the wings. But that was a stretch, and they might have bigger problems to deal with. Or problems more close to home with how God Land had been silent and dark for a while. If there was going to be a major issue, it would probably come from someone in the high Level 300s.

“Don’t worry. Once we’re Paragons, the Level 400s will have to learn to be on their best behavior.” Zarian flashed a big smile, as if none of the Level 300s were a threat when his own group was mostly in the low Level 200s.

The Paragons here didn’t have eternal classes, and they felt like stubborn jobbers, the ones that took centuries to grind up to their level. And they knew it.

Zarian’s side was too youthful and coherent. Zarian’s side had a tighter grip on their powers, higher quality profiles, the aura rolling off them thick, confident, and dangerous. No identify power could break through, not with both Zarian and Hannah excelling at bending the system to their will in unique ways.

Though Zarian’s new power had a non-combat application – System Cradle Wizardry – a trait that granted him the ability to learn supportive system spells and add it to a new grimoire of his, System Assistant Grimoire. It didn’t take Zarian long to learn how useful that was.

“Well, we’re off.” Zarian waved behind him before choosing a route that was marked for Levels 330-340. It was the upper limit of what the Gauntlet World could offer. Foodie went with him while their disciples went on the route marked for Levels 300-310. It was a wonder that Naomi didn’t push the others to bite for more.

“No Aura Ignition,” Foodie muttered.

“No sorcery,” Zarian said merrily.

Who had it harder? Probably Foodie.

***

The Gauntlet World acted like a colossal dungeon, which all worlds were down to their cores. But the Gauntlet World leaned on this more heavily with limitations that kept adventurers stuck in mazes or labyrinths with a large host of challenges, via celestial trap constructs or hyper aggressive and tricky monsters.

The moment Zarian and Foodie entered their lane, they walked down some stone steps from the top of the starting location that overlooked a tiny, tiny portion of the Gauntlet World.

Their steps descended miles down, leading them into the darkest and deepest depths of the variable paths an adventurer could take. After a while, Zarian switched from walking to flying, and Foodie dashed down like a hurtling meteorite.

They hit a patch of spatial magic, and the gap between their current location and their destination shortened, placing them in a near pitch-black area surrounded by immensely tall and thick walls with enough space to hold a few city blocks in between the walls.

The stone floor rumbled. Moving parts made groaning, grindy sounds in the walls and under their feet. Zarian smiled when he felt a pull of power, having predicted this. His disciples were going to leverage their biggest advantage from the start and rush their growth.

Not a bad thing. Especially after crossing over Level 200. They all had ways to self-sustain solo now, and together, the Darkrun Disciples could run the gauntlet like unstoppable devils. He was curious how they would fare against a Paragon, but that was it, only a curiosity.

Hannah was the one drawing power from him.

Hannah with his power in the Gauntlet World was hacking.

“I feel bad for the poor bastards who think our disciples are easy marks. Server Admin Hannah might have something to say about that.” Zarian waved forward. “Let’s go.”

“One of these days, I want to go somewhere that has these references you keep spewing. Three decades of dad jokes and comedy tyranny, and I still don’t get memes and Reddit humor.” Foodie muttered as she dashed forward.

Her Eldritch Chef class was Level 219. They’d already agreed for her to bum-rush her levels to catch up to Zarian, leaving her to solo while he focused on piercing the Gauntlet World’s obscurements and heavy-handed rules.

Once they crossed some distance forward, they saw signs of Champion Rankers having been crushed. Broken equipment. Splotches of blood. Strange magic radiation and esoteric effects that lingered even after the caster’s passing. It broke up the darkness this deep in the walls’ shadow, though neither Zarian nor Foodie minded the darkness. It was in their names for a reason.

When will Foodie’s bloodlines kick in? Zarian wondered while their first monster came out from the floor.

It was fifty feet tall, humanoid, and stony, like a simple golem. But when its gray body lit up with myriad runes that enhanced its abilities and filled the air with a variety of magic, Zarian understood the deeper meaning behind the world being a gauntlet.

Foodie’s position became the center of an overwhelming bombardment of fire, ice, lightning, and more.

Zarian had to cast a few spells to block the overspill of overt destruction and the hexes covering the air in accursed miasmas. It didn’t help that the golem was naturally hardy and enhanced its hardiness with magic.

Foodie, the Eldritch Chef, didn’t care.

She splashed the shoulder of the golem with a special sauce that sizzled and unraveled runes. Then she struck like a green-and-black cannonball before taking a bite and ripping away a chunk of the golem’s shoulder. She crunched through the celestial stone, smacked away a hand reaching for her, and took another bite before getting blasted by a powerful eye laser that actually stung. She hit the wall, triggering a trap, and suffered a bunch of spears to the back that had void magic.

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“Play it a bit more carefully or I’m stepping in,” Zarian warned, and Foodie immediately tightened up.

The rest of the fight saw Foodie use more tactics instead of bullying her way to victory. She unraveled the golem’s magic and cooked stone until the material melted like taffy. She used teleportation, temporal magic, and explosive speed boosts to blink in and out as she ate the golem piece by piece. Then the enemy was another meal as Foodie crunched down on the last piece.

“I leveled up!” Foodie cheered.

Zarian turned and pierced the obstructions in his way, casting spells from his System Assistant Grimoire: Grant Subdirectory Access. The info block parted out of his way.

His perception slid through like greased lightning, the automated feeling of it a pleasant surprise. Sorcery made him work for it usually, so becoming a System Wizard was paying off with its quick access magic.

“How are they doing?” Foodie asked. She couldn’t see as well as him.

“They’re fighting a group of high Champions after a failed ambush. Lowest is Level 280.” Zarian chuckled, happy to commentate. “Hannah’s trying not to smile as she bypasses their wards and protective magic to debuff their profiles directly. She even made half of their skills go faulty. Gilbert’s just standing in the middle and drawing aggro. And … Naomi and Bianca are taking their time to kill them. While dueling each other. Hand to sword.”

“Is Naomi using Aura Ignition?”

“Half Ignition for now. Bianca’s pushing her hard, though.”

“Good, good. Naomi’s on the verge of achieving Fourth Ignition sooner or later.” Foodie swayed her head from side to side, mulling something over before shrugging. “I think her Aura Ignition will be better than mine.”

“How so?”

“More pure. Willpower, Strength, and Agility make for a better stat distribution for Aura Ignition. She’d stayed faithful to that build despite all of its faults.” Foodie sighed. “If it weren’t for her soul being the most … mortal … she would’ve been a better rival for me.”

Zarian wondered if Naomi’s lack of divinity, or her subpar potential for godhood, wasn’t exactly a fault of hers. Maybe she just needed more time for her soul to become something better. Maybe that would get fixed in God Land.

I’m going to change when I reach God Land.

The further up they went, the more Zarian overheard tidbits and expectations of what happened when adventurers reached God Land. All the Feats of Adventure mattered more. The System would make support of ascension from mortal to divinity full. Understanding of the greater mechanics of the System and Infinita Universe at large would become easier, too.

To Zarian, it seemed like he had most of those things already. Or maybe it’ll expand what I have even further.

Some of this he’d already known because of Ruvaria. But the smaller, easier to dismiss details were starting to solidify.

His musings were worth concerning over, but they were quick and easy to process with a mind like his. He ensured that his disciples could handle themselves, and they very well could, especially with Hannah taking advantage of their one access point to the powers of the Darkrun.

Hannah’s overt powers became so bad for the higher leveled Champions, she found the opportunity to practice a dangerous move – she ripped away the stats from a target and applied them to herself temporarily. Then she ran over and slapped a man’s head off just for the hell of it. It was fun to see, but not her wisest decision – the backlash after his death had Hannah crumpling to the floor, her soul hurting.

I’ll let her suffer that one to teach a lesson.

Rapid stat changes from temporarily stolen stats could hurt.

Satisfied, Zarian encouraged Foodie to keep going. Hours became days. Days became weeks. And the Gauntlet World unloaded on them with its relentless tricks and monstrous challenges.

They had sections of the maze explode on them. Sophisticated gravity traps came slamming down to turn them into pancakes. Some places even dipped into alternate dimensions, bringing forth demons from the bowels of hell, and even a few Devil Lords.

The danger became real for Zarian. He couldn’t use sorcery to heal himself, and if Foodie was occupied, she didn’t have his finesse to both be aware of everything and apply magic outside of her direct concerns.

It’s good, though. Relying more on wizardry forces me to be more creative again.

He also had Overwhelming Darkness to rely on, though he was careful about that. He didn’t like it serving as a crutch unless it was absolutely necessary. At the very least, his summons helped. And he even had a few opportunities to use Gravity Devil Avatar.

“Dammit!” Foodie groaned when she failed to contain her side of the fight. “Not the Gravity Devil!”

Chuckling darkly, Zarian floated in the air, purple horns sticking up through the brim of his hat, his tail ending with a spade. With his mere whim, he smashed the enemy waves and crushed them. He forced them into their own traps that lurked in the walls or in concealed spots along the floor.

He might’ve sent Foodie tumbling here and there until she lost her patience and rushed him. She was Level 240 at this point, so Zarian was less concerned about the disparity and had some fun dodging his angry daughter and getting more into the fights. That became part of their training – grinding levels and achievements while fighting each other. It was a fun time.

***

When Slim hit Level 200, they went to celebrate for once. Para brought him to a simple luxury world with restaurants and store fronts that stretched from horizon to horizon. The air was clean, mystical, and filled with tantalizing scents. It was all bright, so it wasn’t very inclined to darken Para’s nature, but she didn’t care.

The look of amazement and nervousness on Slim’s fuzzy, raccoon boy face was fun to see.

“Are we here … to spread terror and destruction in your name, milady?” Slim asked, gawking about as they stood on a balcony.

It was white and shiny like marble with potted plants that added some verdant splashes of color. There were people sun-bathing or enjoying a pleasant afternoon without realizing the monster had reached them.

“No, actually,” Para said. “We’re going to take a week off.”

“What?” Slim gaped.

“I’ve made it so we’ve disappeared from all sensors. It’ll stick for a week before they find us again. This is our chance to enjoy ourselves.”

“Why?”

Para combed her claws through Slim’s hair, which was easy to reach with him being so short. “When I consume you, I want you to have some happy memories. That’s all. You deserve that much.”

He relaxed after hearing that. Her actions must’ve confused him, and that wasn’t his fault. Para had realized recently that she could be contradictory.

Often, they would avoid a village of innocents. But sometimes they would wait and goad adventurers into attacking before she would have them act as fuel for Slim’s growth and a meal for her.

Then there were the moments where she would casually help weaklings caught in her presence from whatever ill fortune that would normally kill weaklings – monster attacks, wild weather phenomena, dungeon breaks, so on and so forth. She made sure to take a tribute of some kind, and anyone who spoke rudely suffered an immediate retribution – adding to Para’s mass.

But other than that, most people largely survived Para’s passing.

The hunger and anger were dimming.

So many unaware and easy to reach meals, but Para’s focus landed on her little disciple. “Come along now. We will … bathe and relax. Yes, that’s what we must do first. Then we will go to a restaurant and have them cook for us. And then shopping!”

Slim made funny mouth noises like a fish out of water, so dumbstruck, Para had to pluck him up with her tail and carry him along. He wriggled, as if he wanted to run away, but that only made her squeeze him as she teleported into an empty residence and activated the enchantments with sorcery.

The manor came with automated magic simulacrums that served their every whim, drawing a bath in a large spa-like room. Para stopped mid-step into the water when she remembered relaxing moments like these with the Floridians.

Then she settled into the water and turned up the enchantments until it was boiling for someone far weaker than her. Only her part of the pool. Slim’s part was cooler in temperature, warm instead of boiling.

He was still gasping like a fish even though she had purposefully provided him water. He was also looking everywhere else but at her, confusing Para, since she purposefully shaped herself to be smoother and without the personal bits.

If he’s going to act like that, then there’s no point. She returned to looking more like a humanoid woman, but with more arms and tails, longer scaled hair and horns, and other sharp implements that made her form more fun.

The simulacrums reminded Para of Hannah’s Magi, but less personal and more ghost-like. They served decently and provided adequate massages, but they lacked the personal touch. Clicking her tongue, Para waved away the simulacrums when Slim couldn’t relax underneath the cool hands of a simple magic hologram person.

“Milady, no, you shouldn’t. I’m not worthy.”

“The more relaxed and happier you are, the tastier you’ll be. Now stop thrashing and let me rub you down.”

Having six or more hands worked out well for this reason. It took a while, but she finally rubbed out most of Slim’s tension, making him relax more than he’d ever relaxed in all of his life. After that, they rummaged around, stole clothes from the owner – Para could make her own, but stealing was more fun – and they set out to eat.

“Should I, um, offer my arm?” Slim asked, raising an elbow.

Para smiled as she walked in a nice dress that accentuated her form. No tail, no extra limbs, but she did keep her horns and scaliness. She decided to take Slim’s arm and lean on him in a way that was more natural despite his much shorter height.

They attracted attention, Para especially, though she had a darker and hungrier aura about her that made most interested parties wary of her. The more daring approachers looked at Slim as if he wasn’t much of a challenge, and when they made their approach, Slim’s aura rose.

The air became sharper, darker, abyssal. Nobody dared interrupt further, and Slim had his goddess to himself as they ate at a premier restaurant in the area before going around to shop. The longer the day went, the more Slim unwound.

“I never done this before,” he said.

“I know,” Para replied.

The young raccoon shifter from another universe looked down at the bags in his hands. Then he looked up when Para offered him an ice cream that she already chomped half of. He took a smaller bite.

“And we’re doing this for six more days?” Slim asked shakily.

“Yes.”

“You’re too kind.”

“I’m not. This will end in a tragedy. But it’ll be a beautiful tragedy.”

Slim smiled at that, and when the night came for them to rest, they acted as usual. But this time with an enchanted bed.

Para didn’t sleep. She would usually sit near Slim while he curled up and went through whatever nightmares that made him twitch and mumble fretfully in his sleep. She knew his past. She knew he had a dragon problem back in his old universe. She had cared little, but as they shared a bed, she saw him shake and whimper again.

She reached over and pulled him into her embrace.

Para didn’t feel sexual toward him. Nor was she romantic. She was a parasite, after all. But, as much as she loathed to admit it, she cared for the boy. She wasn’t sure what to make of that. It made her feel tender and softer, letting him rest closer to her than before.

Her embrace calmed him down, and he slept well for the first time she’d seen him.

The next morning, they went out to have breakfast and sail across a glittery sea and catch fish. On the third day, they went to an open forum that held an opera. Days passed, and they went out to have fun, with Slim by her side, acting like a little gentleman, looking up at her with more devotion and love that seemed to make him glow. On the seventh day, she had him finally choose his new class, becoming a Hero Assassin, a celestial class. Para advanced into God Devourer, also celestial.

“It’s time,” she said on the morning of their departure. They were having breakfast, her body draped in a breezy, sun dress.

Slim hesitated about what to say next. When he looked at her, it was as if he wanted something different. She felt it through their discipleship. Then he hardened himself, and all of their joy and good memories became a crystalized addition to the scrumptious meal he would become.

Smiling, Para looked up. “The angels are here. It’s time to enact my plan. Open yourself to me, dear.”

“Yes, milady.” Slim took one more bite of his breakfast and gulped down his coffee. Then he moved over and kneeled in front of her.

“Finally,” Para hissed before reaching forward with a finger.

She unraveled.

She became simple.

She became part of the flesh.

She held back from consuming her newest host. The desire was strong. It wouldn’t be hard. But it would be premature. Instead, she intertwined herself with his body, his magic, a portion of his soul, and sections of his profile, using the discipleship as its own combiner.

Then she became the form she’d missed for quite some time.

She became the God Devourer Cloak, even if temporarily. It was not as good as being attached to Zarian. Nothing could. Yet, it still felt right. Slim at the Champion Ranks made for a great host.

“Let’s not grow too fast. We want to stay behind Zarian and his group so we can have their backs,” Para said through the cloak, like old times.

“Yes, milady.” The young man stood, flexing his powerful body, feeling the raw and dangerous magic woven with his. It would feel like he was on the cusp of being consumed, but as long as his goddess held back, he had all the benefits of being her host with none of the drawbacks.

And the dark red cloak looked fetching on him. The tattered ends fluttered about loosely before shifting into teeth and claws that made sinister scraping sounds on the floor before going completely quiet.

Once he wore the hood, it felt complete, and they were off to eat angels and grow their levels. Never had it felt so easy. So right. Slim was going to become even stronger now that she could feed him even more directly, doubling up on the discipleship and growth rate.

Para’s hunger and anger dimmed further.