Way of the Knights

Chapter 870: Modifying The Grand Seal

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It's already given that the banquet ended in a very solemn note. 

As experts, they tried to minimize the tension surrounding them. Their efforts were commendable but it didn't really diminish the effect of the news to their psyche. Whether they admit it or not, they are greatly affected by this news. 

God knows how much they wanted to deny reality. They wanted to admonish Raven and call him an alarmist for doing this. But then again, he has proof of his claims. 

He showed them the sealed ship of the Abyssals as well as the sealed Abyssals as well. Hell, he even invited the Heavenly Law Order's consciousness to descend and talk to everyone. All of those proof were something they cannot deny no matter how much they wanted to. 

This is as real as it could get, and it filled them with so much dread that they don't really know what to do. Thankfully though, Raven was prepared for this. 

He already told him some of his plans. He told them that he'll do everything in his power to assure that they could defend their home. There's nothing they could do to avoid this anyway, sooner or later, the Abyssals will come so they better be prepared for it. 

The only piece of good news he brought with him is the fact that the Abyssals were still not aware of Divine Realm's presence. He did everything he could to erase his tracks so that they won't find this place. In addition to this, Raven has back-up plans in order to buy time as much as possible. 

Although it will take some time, Raven has plans on modifying the Eternal Division Wall even more, which should be easier if he used the throne room. He planned on adding a stealth function so that the whole realm will be hidden. 

Raven told them that he's nearly done with the preparations and once it's launched, this should be able to buy more time for everyone. 

Of course, Raven also revealed the real purpose of this banquet. Aside from informing the experts about the looming threat, he also wanted to implore their aid. 

The Dawn Council can't do this by themselves. The protection of the Divine Realm is something that concerns every single one of it's citizens. He wanted them to do their part since they are hailed as leaders of their own forces. 

This responsibility is shared by every single one of them here. The enemies are strong and only through unity will they be able to secure the safety of their home. 

Of course, those who attended the banquet understood the implications. They weren't born yesterday. They're not naive. They know what they have to do since just like Raven, they also wanted to protect their home. 

Raven didn't ask much from them. Only an effort that they will make sure to increase the quality of their soldiers. He wanted them to provide closer guidance to their subordinates in order to make them stronger. This was all Raven requested from them. 

Raven didn't dare to tell them what to do. He's sure that they have ideas on their own and frankly, he has too much on his plate already that even if he wanted to, he couldn't add anymore. Since these people are leaders on their own right, they might as well play their part, no? 

The guests understood this as well, and they were grateful for the chance to prove themselves. Of course, Raven's acknowledgement meant a lot to these people due to his reputation of course. 

But then again, the dreadful sensation pressed upon their chest didn't dissipate despite Raven's encouragement. Frankly, none of them felt confident about their chances but like what was established earlier, they've nowhere to run. All they could do, was fight. 

After the banquet ended, Raven and his team didn't waste time. 

They immediately moved-on to their plans and went on separate ways to cover more ground. 

Raven himself entered the Throne Room and began modifying the Grand Seal of the Eternal Division Wall. 

This should be relatively easy for him. Ever since he broke through the Divine Knight Stage and integrated with the inheritance of Chaos, his Sealing and Runic Arc climbed to outstanding heights. 

From simplicity to complexity. Then the other way around. It formed a progressive cycle which really elevated Raven knowledge about his chosen path. 

In addition to this, Raven was consistently gathering experience as he goes.

During his previous life, he became an Divine Knight through rough footing. His foundations weren't as stable and his breakthrough was bit forced since they were already in the middle of a long war with the Abyssals. 

He didn't get many chances to fully delve into the feeling of being a Divine Knight nor study about it's profundities since he was always out on a mission and was always fighting. He didn't even get to truly consolidate his realm. 

Now however, things are a lot different. 

He has time to spare and he reached this stage earlier than he anticipated. His foundations was as stable as it could get and he had enough time to not only consolidate his strength but also digest the inheritance he received. There's truly no comparison between the two.

Him being able to know what it's like to be a fully-fledged Divine Knight added more insights to his end goal. 

He compiled more information on his notes which will hopefully help him when time comes. 

Raven didn't plan on staying as a Divine Knight for the rest of his life. He was an immortal. He had all the time in world despite the threat of the Abyssals looming over him. He wanted to break the shackles of Divinity and see what's beyond it. 

It just so happens that he has the qualifications to do so. 

Speaking of qualifications, when Raven allowed everyone to witness his memories, he made sure to mute the part where he invoked the virtue of Chaos to repair the Broken Badlands. 

Only a handful of people knows that he condensed the Divinity of Chaos and became its representative and he wanted it to stay that way for as long as he could. 

This isn't him being selfish, just being careful. 

They are at a sensitive state right now, he didn't want to provoke anybody's greed since that would foil their unity and will eventually cause their downfall. He didn't want that to happen so he hid it. It just so happens that it was a common courtesy for Divine Knights to keep the nature of their Divinity a  secret, which helped him out a lot. 

He didn't hide the matter about Geezer though. He skipped their interactions within his Inner World and their discussion about Chaos but that's about it. The rest was displayed for everyone.  action

Frankly, Raven was expecting some violent reactions from the crowd since he technically broke the rules. Remember, he wasn't supposed to take advantage of his position as Humanity's Leader for his personal gains. He went after Geezer behind their backs and he was prepared to answer for his actions but it turns out that it wasn't needed. 

Nobody said a word. It's either they were too distracted about the looming threat or they just didn't care at all. Either way, this was the better outcome for Raven. 

And since nobody raised any commotion upon learning that Geezer was back in the Divine Realm, Raven didn't need to confront Geezer's enemies for it, which is the best outcome he could hope for. 

He really didn't want any conflicts with anybody right now. Divine Realm needs as many of its capable soldiers ready to confront the enemy and conflict wouldn't help with that, 

Geezer's enemies probably already called it quits after seeing what happened to him. Raven didn't hide Geezer's outcome to them in the first place. Seeing the old man nearly broken must've dissipated their previous disagreements so they're not after him anymore. 

Even at the instance that they still are, they'd have to go through Raven first and frankly, none of them should see that confrontation ending in their favor. So it would be in their best interest to just drop the matter altogether. 

After some deliberation, Raven finally completed the modifications he'll be doing for the Grand Seal. He already have all the materials ready with him so he started the modification right away. 

Raven sat upon the throne and it thrummed to existence. Raven summoned the Scepter of Wisdom and began inscribing the modifications he had on the seal while pouring out the materials he prepared. 

Threads of dark gold and pale silver coursed through the scepter and into the Grand Seal. The new intersection of lines appeared and a formidable fluctuation began leaking out of the seal. 

Raven concentrated on his task. He couldn't afford to be distracted since one wrong move and all his efforts will go down the drain. 

Still, the modification was simple. It only took a couple of weeks for Raven to finish and by the end of it, the Grand Seal was better than ever. 

Once he activated the Grand Seal again, Divine Realm suddenly disappeared from where it was, replaced by a phantom image that will hopefully buy them more time to prepare for the worst.