CH945

“Okay, first things first, who’s in charge of managing things here?” he asked, getting a pointed look from everyone when he did, with Amy being the one to answer.

“You.”

“Please tell me that I’m not planning things out with zero notice.”

“You aren’t,” Steph told him. “I and a few others have your flight path. I’ll join you for the first stretch if Thera can carry the rest of us around for it.”

“I’m sorry, flight path?”

“What do you think is going to be faster, everyone walking by you or directly going over everyone’s heads?”

“Okay, fair.”

“The other space mages are going to work to help evacuate the people you finish with as best they can while all of this is happening, with different ones here to switch out with me and others to try and handle any emergencies that might pop up given the sheer number of bodies here.”

“Okay, and Yuzu?”

“Currently trying to keep my extreme reaction to your soul private,” she told him, unable to take her eyes away from what she was seeing.

“I more meant your reason to be here, but the fact that you didn’t suppress your soul sight as promised is being noted.”

“I’m going to be taken around with you to try and reduce the effects so many millions of people are going to be feeling for your work, and you caught me off guard, it just happened!”

“Okay, and Amy?”

“Everyone else here is focused on you and what you’re doing, my job is to make sure our soul mage is safe.”

“Alright, and everyone knows how they’re swapping out and schedules for it happening?”

“Yes.”

The rest around him nodded too, all of them getting in their last moments of rest while they could before days of work began, leaving him with one more question.

“So why did you say I was in charge?”

“Because if we see anything go wrong, we’re turning to you to decide what to do. Anything else?”

“Nope, think that’s everything. In that case, let’s get started.”

They forced open the door, feeling it push against people already pressed against its other side but didn’t have much choice as Ben instantly got to work on them, doing everything he could for whatever benefits it would bring.

He modified their souls, looked at their skills to fill their heads with any relevant bits of knowledge, and put his newest abilities to work by giving them all the benefits of his evil and destruction authorities, hearing levels go off in a few of their heads already as their thresholds were lowered to a point under the weight of those third tier skills to let them instantly go beyond where they’d been, all while the other space mages got sorted, opening portals and yelling out as they did.

“If you need to get back to the gate, go through here!”

“For anyone going north out of the city, you’re this way!”

“West is this one, make it snappy!”

A few more space mages called out their directions but for what convenience it held, most of them took the shortcut to the gate, filtering out to that broader space until there was finally enough room for Thera to raise Ben and the other four up above the crowd, letting them really get to work.

Seeing the scale of what they’d need to do, he instantly materialized circlets on their head, getting groans for it even if he only split their minds thrice, two of them getting their perception of time significantly boosted while the third stayed at what was normal for baseline reality for the convenience of conversation, all to speed the process up the best he could for everyone. He’d been expecting a few days of work, but if every city was going to be like that, odds seemed better it would be a month if he didn’t empower the people around him and left him to speak out as he did.

“You all have buff or mana bracelets on, right?”

“We do,” Yuzu said, tapping hers while Jake spoke up.

“But wouldn’t it be easier to just get us done first?”

“Maybe, but, not to put too fine of a point on it, I’m still going to be growing over however long we’re going to be doing this. Your attributes will be better if I save you all for last. Or at least as late as I can get away with, depending on how many days you’re with me.”

“Are you kidding?” Jake asked him. “Other than whenever we get to swap out for the night crew, we’re booked up till you’re done. This is going to be a nightmare.”

“Huh, and did your teachers manage to get out of it? I didn’t see them.”

“They’re on the night shift,” Amy explained. “Uliel is going to be working with the space mages then, and Vasta is swapping out to carry you.”

“And can we now talk about what’s happening in your soul?” Yuzu sounded like she was trying not to scream at him, looking all the more frustrated as he put her off.

“In a minute, a couple of other things to do first. One, any chance you could apply some of that soul healing you’re spreading out to me?”

“I’m already doing it.”

“Wonderful, that only leaves number two. Advertising.”

As the person making all of the results anyone would get that day possible and more importantly, as the apostle of Myriad, what Ben saw was the perfect opportunity to fill that role and fill it well.

Whispering into every mind he touched was already a given, letting them know directly who was responsible for every attribute, level, and skill they might acquire, even if that last one was going to be played by ear. Considering the domains he ruled over, he was going to be in no hurry to claim responsibility for any skill that was viewed in a negative light although he would be making sure to also tell people which of their skills to train while under his effects for best results, but that still wasn’t enough. Whether he’d been prepared for it or not, it didn’t change the fact that what was happening was a big event and he wanted something big to go with it and given his mana was going to be in constant use to modify the many souls who’d come for his work, that left a different route. Actualizing.

All at once, he filled the sky above him with signs and cubes, floating up there under his mental power, and with the current strength of his mind being well over two hundred thousand, didn’t strain him at all to keep up. It was all simple after all, just plain constructs, coloured as needed to give Myriad’s proper appearance as well as to boldly write on the signage that the entire event was specifically brought forth by the church of Myriad, blotting out the sky and moving with him as they went, drawing many eyes from both those he’d already helped and those still waiting and left Amy looking between his constructs and himself.

“You know, the more I see you slap your god’s name on, the more I think that you’re missing out on your actual calling working in marketing.”

“What can I say? Brand recognition is important for a smaller god, and I’ve gotta get the converts I can for him. By this point, nobody on this planet should not know who he is, but just in case there’s anyone who still hasn’t heard the good word, this is me changing that.”

“Are the other gods okay with this?”

“I’m not exactly giving them a choice here.”

“That reminds me,” Thera spoke up while carrying them all just over the crowd's heads. “Are any of them going to try and kill you when you’re done being useful?”

“Well, with my power, I’m never going to be done being useful, but probably not. We even had a nice, calm, friendly discussion to clear the air last night, plus I’ve still got a few jobs left that I oh-so-generously offered to use to help anyone else they wanted me to. Who could possibly want to kill me before the war is done?”

“I don’t like that last bit you ended with.”

“Don’t worry. In life, in general, I just find it to be handy to be too useful to kill and I am absolutely nailing it.”

“I don’t know,” Yuzu said, not even pretending she wasn’t staring into his soul. “I feel like you’re trying to make a compelling case for not being worth the risk.”

“Why?” Steph asked. “What has he done this time?”

“Become a god,” Ben added unhelpfully, getting her to roll her eyes when he said it.

“Yeah, we were all there.”

“Sure, except I did it again.”

Knowing there were sure to be questions and seeing that they’d have nothing but time while he worked, Ben began to explain the details of the newest changes within him, the reasons behind them and what he’d gained as well while they went, making their way through the first city he had to help.