Chapter 437 436: Recognition By The Gods.

"(Are you having so much fun living in hell, Jeanne?)" Mykel asked.

Jeanne was startled when she heard Mykel's voice, and it almost made her lose focus when she tried to dodge an attack. She barely dodged it and immediately slashed her sword for a counter-attack. She cut the giant ogre-like demon in half and watched as the body that was as tall as a four-story building fell next to her.

"(Mykel! Don't startle me like that!)" Jeanne replied as she sighed with relief that she didn't get hit by the demon.

"(Are you done? You have been leveling up without resting, and you're already level ninety-two at that. Are you really planning to leave everyone behind?)" Mykel asked.

Jeanne thought she would be able to reach max level if she was fast enough. She had traveled twenty percent of the Gehenna's surface, but she hadn't even met the Demon Lord since she had no idea where to look. She was nervous that if she wasn't strong enough, she wouldn't be able to withstand the power of Hanessi.

"(I know what you're thinking, but don't you think it's more dangerous if he decided to take over your body with your current skill levels? He will become a lot stronger if you have a stronger body)" Mykel said.

"(But if I'm too weak, isn't that makes me hard to fight him?)" Jeanne asked as she wiped off the sweat on her forehead. "(I don't want to lose myself)" Jeanne said and she was anxious about it.

"(That's something that you shouldn't be worried about because the ones who are going to save you are the demon princesses, and me)" Mykel said with a calm and soothing voice. "(It's time, Jeanne. Are you ready?)" Mykel asked.

Jeanne flinched as she held the Soul Catcher Sword. She looked at the sword and wondered if she could do it or not. She wanted to believe in Mykel, but knowing Mykel wasn't the one who would fight Hanessi made her anxious because she didn't trust anyone but Mykel.

"(I'm ready)" Jeanne answered as she clenched her sword so tightly and then sheathed the sword.

A notification appeared in front of her. It was Hel who invited her to Niflheim. She accepted the invitation and went to Niflheim, but she was surprised when she saw thousands of Gods enjoying the feast in front of her.

"Surprised? I made the same exact expression as yours when I came here earlier," Aurea said as she approached Jeanne.

Jeanne turned around and looked at Aurea. Jeanne didn't know who she was, but the voice of Aurea was similar to Agnez's.

"Agnez?" Jeanne asked as she looked at Aurea in disbelief and shock because of the wings, the horns, and the long dark green hair with gold highlights. "Is that really you?" Jeanne was still in disbelief even though Aurea nodded her head and smiled at her.

"It's a long story, but yes, it's me. Mykel made this new body for me, and I'm no longer Agnez Maurice or Mazikeen. My name is Aurea Mazier," Aurea answered as she showed off her body to Jeanne in her black long gown. "I can turn myself like this if it makes you more comfortable," Aurea changed her appearance into Agnez from hair to toes.

Jeanne was speechless and didn't know what to say, especially when she was surrounded by Gods. She then heard a crying baby from behind Aurea and saw Mykel standing next to Hera. They both were playing with the baby, and she was curious about whose baby was.

Mykel's eyes met with Jeanne's, and then he approached her with a smile.

"Look at you, spreading terror in Gehenna that Luciel heard about it from the Demon Kings," Mykel said as he looked at Jeanne's armor covered in dried demon's blood.

"I tried to clear it, but I couldn't find the Demon Lord whereabout. It feels like the Lucifer Tower is different because you can't clear it on your own no matter how strong you are," Jeanne answered as she looked at the Gods getting themselves drunk.

"You're looking for Samael? Your journey is still far away from meeting him," Luciel said as she walked toward her.

Zasalamel, the Demon Lord resided and ruled the land of Gehenna. The only Demon Lord that could be standing side by side in terms of power with Demon Kings. He was placed in Gehenna for one reason, and that was to prevent anyone from advancing into the Babel Tower and reaching the Empyrean World.

"I guess I ran out of time," Jeanne said as she looked at her sword.

"That's untrue," Mykel said. "You can still clear the towers even after this," Mykel continued.

Mykel and Lucifer had thought about it and used Edith's vision as their evidence that Jeanne stayed even after all the mess that had happened in the future. She wouldn't be there if the Rule of the World applied to her and would have been taken to her realm.

Jeanne looked confused, and when she was about to ask to Mykel, Mykel went to his throne. All the Gods paid their attention to Mykel and went quiet in an instant. They were told and knew why they were summoned in the first place.

Mykel didn't say a single word and pointed his left hand at Jeanne. They looked at her and raised their cup of wine at her with a smile on their faces. Jeanne who didn't know what was happening suddenly felt a warmth that lifted all her fatigue. A beam of light appeared above her, and she could feel a tremendous amount of power running through her veins.

"Recognition of the Gods," Mykel said as he looked at Jeanne. "The only requirement for becoming a God is to get recognition from the other Gods, and now, you're one of us," Mykel said as he raised his cup of wine at her.

A few notifications appeared in front of Jeanne and she was so overwhelmed by how easy it was to become a God. She couldn't read all of them one by one, and when she was about to tap on one of the notifications, Mykel stopped her.

"Be careful... Read it before you press anything. Make sure you don't join the Constellations or you will be bound with the Rule of the World that she made," Mykel said and stared at Jeanne with a serious expression.

Jeanne looked at the notification and almost accepted to join the Constellations. She immediately declined the offer and all the notifications suddenly disappeared. She almost made a huge mistake, but thankfully Mykel was there to prevent it.

"Since you're not a part of the Constellations, your skills should stay the same," Mykel said as he slowly removed his hand from Jeanne's wrist. "With that being said, you can continue on clearing the towers not as an Awakener, but as a Goddess since you're not bound with the Rule of the World," Mykel explained.

Jeanne looked at her [Status] and noticed she lost all her [Benefactors] and [Arcana Coins]. She couldn't use the shop anymore, and she couldn't gain any more [Arcana Coins] since she was forbidden to access the shop. It felt like she had been exiled and had lost all her privilege as an Awakener.

"It's better to not let her gain more power, Mykel. It will only make her stronger and make things difficult for us. You won't be there so we might not be able to handle more than it is now," Luciel said as she looked at Jeanne and her sword.

Jeanne was surprised when she heard that Mykel won't be there when the time comes.

"What's she talking about? You're not going to be there?" Jeanne asked.

"I need to put a precaution because that Goddess might interfere, and I'm going to distract her. I managed to survive from her grasp many times, so there's no reason for me to be afraid of her anymore since I already know with whom I'm dealing," Mykel answered.

"Mykel, I can't trust them enough," Jeanne said as she shook her head slowly.

Mykel looked at Luciel, Aurea, and all the Gods in the hall.

"Don't you want to stand equally with me, Jeanne? These people behind me, they're the people I trust. If you can't trust them, then what's the point of me taking you in?" Mykel asked, and it made Jeanne taken aback. "We aren't going to do this now. So, why don't you stay here with them and get to know them better? You have become a part of us, there's no need to feel inferior to them. Everyone in this hall knows who you are, and what are you to me. They wouldn't dare to do anything funny to you," Mykel explained.

Aurea reached out her hand to Jeanne with a smirk on her face.

"Don't you remember what I said, Jeanne? We are irreplaceable, and even if you can't trust them, at least you can trust me. We both are in the same boat," Aurea said. "Just so you know, I defeated the God of War earlier, and I don't think anyone else dares to fight me. So, even if there's anyone dares to do any harm to you, Mykel knew I can handle it for you," Aurea continued and tried to comfort Jeanne in her own way.

Jeanne scoffed and grabbed Aurea's hand. "I feel like I'm seeing someone else. You're really no longer Agnez that I know of," Jeanne said.

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" Aurea asked.

"Both," Jeanne chuckled.