Chapter 299: Followers Influx

"Well… whatever. Let's stop talking about this." Aria nudged Victoria and pointed her gaze at the bags in her hands.

"Ah… right…" Victoria showed the bags to Zach and said, "We brought some ingredients to cook your favorite dish."

"It may not taste the same as it does when Aurora makes them, but I assure you it would taste somewhat similar," she said with a smile on her face.

"Well…" Zach showed the bag in his hand to Victoria and said, "I bought ingredients for your favorite dish…"

Aria squinted her eyes and asked in a teasing manner: "What about ingredients for my favorite dish?"

"You eat anything served on the table, so I wasn't quite sure what to buy for you…" Zach replied.

Zach turned around to look at Ninia and said, "Ninia, is it okay if we cook food here?"

"Of course, it's okay." She pointed her finger at the room in the corner and said, "That's the kitchen. You will find everything you need to cook. And if there is something you don't find, we can go to a restaurant and cook there. I am sure your followers would be happy to be of your help."

"I bet they will, but let's not trouble them. I want them to be glad to be my followers, not afraid of me. The other god may rule by spreading terror. I won't do that. I want them to give them a reason to follow and worship me."

"I will do the honor and start making lunch then." After saying that, Victoria left for the kitchen.

"I will help—"

Aria walked after Victoria, but Zach stopped her by grabbing her hand.

Surprised, Aria turned to Zach and asked, "What?"

"Let her go."

"But she alone can't…" Aria stopped when she noticed a serious look on Zach's face. "Fine."

Zach turned to Noah and Elina and said, "You two can go play outside. I need to have a chat with Ninia and Aria."

Elina clenched her clothes tightly after hearing that, seemingly, she was still afraid to go out.

'Well, I would blame her for getting traumatized.'

"It's okay. You two can stay," Zach said calmly with a smile on his face and thought, ‘It's not like I am going to have some adult talk with Aria and Ninia.'

Noah and Elina sat on the floor, but they kept their distance from Zach and Aria.

'To be honest, I could just take Ninia and Aria into a room and talk with them, but I have a few questions to ask Noah, so I guess this place is good. I was planning to ask him while eating as the mood, and the atmosphere would be the best, but fuck it.'

Zach and Aria also sat down on the floor, and Ninia did the same, even though she didn't want to sit on the same level as Zach on the praying ground.

"So, what do you want to talk about?" Aria asked curiously.

After a brief silence, Zach said, "When I was in a slumber, you girls got me more followers, am I right?"

Ninia and Aria nodded in response.

"How many followers, exactly?"

"Umm… can't you see it in your stats?" Ninia asked.

"Unfortunately, no." Zach shook his head and continued, "This game doesn't have that function, so I am unable to see that. Gods weren't meant to play this game, after all."

"So, how did you know that you got more followers?" Aria asked. "Do you feel strong or something?"

"No. I mostly feel the same, but my SS (Soul Strength) and SD (Soul DEF) have increased, so it was easy to guess," Zach replied with a shrug.

"So can't you tell by the increase in followers by comparing the increase in your SS and SD?"

"It's possible but very difficult. And even then, I don't think I would get an accurate number. BUt my SD is 10% of my SS, so I know how that works," Zach responded in a calm voice.

"Hmm…"

After seeing Zach interact so calmly with Ninia and Aria, Noah and Elina felt relieved knowing Zach was as kind as they thought.

"Why did you want to know the numbers of your followers?" Ninia asked meekly.

"I wanted to calculate how much SS I get from one follower. That way, I can plan to use my blessings and SS. The only blessing I can control is Pheonix, and the demon sigil is still unstable, so I don't want to risk using it," he stated.

'I might go berserk in my demon mode since the only thing in my mind is annihilation when I activate it. At least, that's what had happened during the demon invasion. If Aria hadn't stopped me on time, I would have been consumed by rage.'

"Oh! You got your gloves back!" Aria exclaimed with a cheerful face after noticing Zach's gloves.

"Yeah, I went to the Magic Shop." Zach looked into Aria's eyes and said, "That also reminds me about… actually, nevermind. I will tell you later tonight."

Zach wanted to tell Aria about his relationship with Xie Lua, but he thought the best time would be when Victoria was with them too. And Zach considered it improper to talk about it in front of kids.

Aria placed her hand on Zach's thigh and asked, "What do you plan to do next?"

"I am looking for a way to open the crack to hell, but I don't think I can do that without using my demonic powers. Wait…" Zach held Aria's hand and looked at her with a resolute expression on his face as he uttered, "You can do that, right?!"

"If I am in my goddess form, yes," Aria nodded. "But that would take time."

"Why?" Zach asked with a curious and confused look on his face.

"Just like how you need soul powers to change your form, I also need soul powers to change my form. And unlike you, I don't have any followers to worship me."

***

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