Freddie

Nikolayevich had been driven into a corner. He had hoped to crush his enemies with Divine Power and wipe them all out in one stroke.

But he had never expected the Divine Power to ravage his body so badly. His plan had backfired: he had exposed his secret, guaranteeing trouble in the future, and now it seemed to have stirred his enemies' greed.

"Divine Power! So coming to the Main World hasn't been all bad luck. We've found a mage who possesses Divine Power. Is fate compensating us?"

The Gnoll Shaman licked his dry muzzle, his tongue hanging out greedily. Faced with the temptation of Divine Power, he no longer cared about anything else. If he could obtain it, he would gladly see his tribe destroyed.

Legendary Mage Murray felt much the same. Ancient texts he had read in his City-State contained many accounts of Divinity, Divine Cores, and Divine Power. The first two were the essence of Deities, beyond any human's reach. Divine Power alone could be used, though only in limited ways, such as infusing it into certain magical objects. The objects would bear the backlash in place of their users. That was the original principle behind Divine Artifacts. The method had once been widespread in ancient times, producing many such artifacts.

Back then, Deities belonged to rival factions, and Divine Wars broke out frequently. Whenever a Deity died, a number of Divine Power Crystals were left behind.

The abundance of obtainable Divine Power Crystals had laid the groundwork for Divine Artifacts. Later, however, the Deities withdrew into the Void and ceased walking among mortals. Without the crystals, Divine Artifacts naturally disappeared as well.

The Human City-State Murray came from had an ancient history. It still preserved a Divine Artifact from antiquity, but the Divine Power stored within