Chapter 752

Chapter 752

“You want to try and negotiate now?”

“Is there any reason not to?”

A good reason for Ben was that he comfortably felt like he already had a foot out the door when it came to life on that planet. Agreeing would mean staying and committing to helping instead of just taking whoever he felt like and running off to the first safe planet he could find. It would mean taking the hit and slowing down his growth where plenty of gods still didn’t like him and it would mean ultimately putting his life on the line. Wouldn’t it be better and easier on him to just turn it all down and run off with the people he cared about?

His minds flashed to people he didn’t know. Faces of those he’d never shared a word with but passed on the street each day and he sighed. “Fine, let’s negotiate. What are the odds I can get some more blessings for my work then? You said the ones you gave me were to show that I am at least somewhat appreciated and sorry but I fully intend to take them as such, not partial payment.”

“I’d expect no less, but as for other blessings... it’s unlikely.”

“Not enough remaining gods like me enough to wanna give in, huh?”

“Partially but not exactly. The mind gods seemed willing to an extent when I spoke to them but not many of the ones that qualify as such are particularly powerful, they’d feel the hit more than most. As for the crafting gods, well, they seem like they’d be happy to but they’d prefer you acquire it a different way.”

“What, how?”

“I’m sure you’re clever enough to take a guess.”

“...I’ll think about it.”

It wasn’t like he didn’t have an idea, Nare had been pretty motivated he do something that would land him their collective blessing before the first wave but he pushed that thought to the side for the moment. He hadn’t actually expected the request to be accepted and it seemed the Phixth was used to him enough by that point to understand that as he waited for a real offer while Ben put his thoughts together, trying to figure out what would be best for him.

If he was staying on the planet then he still needed to awaken his two skills and he still needed to grow further, meaning he needed to think about how to compensate for how slowed he was about to be trying to help the third tiers and how to ensure that whatever he got would still help him in the long run as he mind flashed through his current job options before he spoke again.

“Alright, first off and non-negotiable, I need the guy currently in charge of the adventurers’ guild fired,” He began, holding up a hand before Phixth could say anything. “I’m not going to deny I’m being a bit petty but there’s a far bigger reason here for that. A person in charge of one of the largest organizations on the planet cannot be being swayed by the random whims of any god, especially not a multinational organization like that. He’s proven he’s not fit for the role and that needs to be rectified.”

“I understand and I don’t disagree. That at least I can confirm will be done. I assume there’s more though?”

“Yes. Second and also non-negotiable, despite what you’ve already said, I want Duna’s blessing. This one is entirely me being petty.”

“...Can I ask why?”

“Because as a rule, I intend to get a blessing from any god that tries to screw me over. While I’m personally hoping it will one day act as a nice little deterrence factor, for now, it really is just to make a point and if my help really is as important as you think then a single blessing from one god shouldn’t be too much to ask.”

“Is there a reason for that? Most would jump just to have the chance to finish some of their jobs early.”

“The reason is that I intended to pay them and even if they don’t know that, they should be compensated fully in the way they would have if you all didn’t step in. It doesn’t matter if they won’t be aware and it doesn’t matter if they’ll be getting the benefit of finishing some of their jobs sooner than expected, these people should not be getting a worse deal because the gods of this world decided to intervene.”

“Alright, I understand. And then what?”

And then what?

Ben wasn’t sure what else there really was to ask for, nor why Phixth thought there should be until he really considered his requests so far. Firing the head of the adventurers’ guild he viewed as something that just genuinely needed to happen and the way they’d agreed to organize how he’d go through jobs was infinitely worse still than if the gods hadn’t interfered. Ensuring the people he’d need to even make it possible were paid was out of principle but did nothing for him, meaning the only thing he’d really asked for himself until that point was Duna’s blessing. Something he absolutely insisted on getting but was still altogether small compared to the loss in time he could expect.

Thinking of it that way, it made sense that Phixth expected him to want more. Now that he’d lined up what he’d asked for so far, he couldn’t help but want more too, with the only question being what? He had so many goals, what could he reasonably ask for to help with any of them?

More mana, a level, a skill, a blessing... Okay, yeah, it has to be that last one, doesn’t it? It would be the most useful all around.

“A new blessing,” He finally said. “I don’t care from who, I don’t care how inconvenient it is for all of you, and I don’t care that I’m already asking for Duna’s. One more blessing from any of the countless gods of this world for the time and pain and effort I’m going to have to spend to help these people finish their jobs.”

Thinking for a second, eventually Phixth nodded. “Alright, the request seems reasonable enough to me, I’ll talk it over with the others and we’ll let you know.”

“I really don't think I can get more agreeable than this. If the rest are against it then that’s it.”

“I will make that clear.”

“Thank you. In that case, hope you guys don’t keep me waiting too long and if we have a deal then I hope we can start as soon as possible.”

“The second I have agreement from the rest I’ll be setting things up to begin as soon as possible. With this done though I’ll be borrowing Myriad, we can expect a few long hours of discussions to follow.”

“Good luck.”

With one more nod, Phixth left, taking Myriad with him and leaving Ben alone in the realm as he laid down, lost in his thoughts.

As much as it annoyed him, he’d committed to staying and now that he’d been slowed down, that just meant he was going to have to work all the harder.

So ends my break. Looks like I’ve got some busy months ahead.