Greed: All For What? - Chapter 1745: Multiple Divine Plans.

Her second request was a little out of place, but it wasn’t strange. The tribe usually congregates at her encampment during festivals and during the new year, so it is not strange that she is asking them to worship at her place. But none of those events is taking place today, so it is odd that she is asking them.

Even so, some of them decided to come around. The gods might not be real, but they were once real, and it is said that they will return one day. It is the Shaman’s that say the gods will return, and they have said it for so long that it is still part of the orcs tradition to worship gods, so the people of the tribes decided to worship.

They also brought something that will be sacrificed to the gods. It was small and inconsequential to them, but they all brought something, and that’s good enough for Legion.

Their little offerings served as the hook of belief that snared their souls for the 9 Crowns. They witnessed their gifts being received and turned into believers immediately.

It didn’t matter if Warshaw was faking it with magic. If she could, it meant that magic exists again and that the gods must have returned. After all, the gods are the source of all power. In their absence, all forms of extraordinary power disappeared with them. So fake or not, the sight of their offerings being received rekindled the faith in the gods.

The clones watched all of this happening with slight anticipation. They couldn’t help it because of all the notifications they were receiving of offerings, divine energy, and new believers.

As the day dragged on, their confidence increased in tandem with the increase in their divine energy. They felt more confident about the challenge and even decided to use the faith of the people as their third plan that will be needed in case Axec somehow loses the challenge even with their help.

It is not smart to put all of one’s eggs in one basket, and only those that are prepared for failure will never truly fail. That is something they have heard from others, seen in the Supreme Law of a particular world god, and experienced themselves, so they are always planning for every possibility.

Anything can happen on the morning of the challenge. If Axec fails, that means they can’t rely on the chief. Things would be worse for them because they would lose the respect of the people, and Warshaw would be verified as crazy.

They can’t let that happen, but if it happens despite their best efforts, then they must have the people on their side. If the people already believe in them by the time of the challenge, not only will they have more divine energy to assist Axec, they will have more sway in the tribe to affect any orc that becomes the new chief.

The evening ceremony and the whole of tomorrow will give them the opportunity to convert a lot of the tribe members into believers.

These believers will be shallow believers because the only miracle that will be shown is the acceptance of their sacrifice. But their faith will cemented on the morning of the challenge when Axec wins or with further miracles when they interfere to make Axec win.

Their fourth plan is to overcome their hesitation and spend the divine energy needed to heal Hoggings. That way they will also have physical might on their side.

So while a lot hinges on Axec winning the challenge and becoming the new chief, they are already making sure that she will win, and if she does not, they won’t need her anymore. It is the preparation for failure that ensures success regardless of the outcome.

The evening ceremony went well. Many orcs rushed back to acquire better offerings and sacrifices. They wept and cried as their offerings were all accepted. Even living animals turned into motes of light on the altar.

Legion gained a lot of believers that night and the following day. They gained a lot of Divine Energy and their Authority increased rapidly until it reached 101. That is just about 20% of the population of the tribe, so they are optimistic about their future.

They received another notification for their efforts.

-You have acquired more than 100 Authority.

-You have unlocked Divine spells.

-Ascend to the Divine Realm to gain access to Divine spells.

This notification formed their resolve to ascend as soon as possible. They were confident of ascension thanks to the success of their two days of evangelism. It is the sort of confidence that 53 Divine Energy each can grant a god.

Morning came very soon. It came with excitement and anticipation that filled the entire tribe. It is because word had spread to everyone in the tribe that today would be the day for the selection of a new chief. This is the kind of thing that only happens every 50 years.

It is not a once in a lifetime event since orcs can leave to be 200 years old, but it comes close. The anticipation was further increased by the talks of the advent of the gods.

The divine ordainment and the religious events that took place in the Shaman’s enclosure have also spread. A lot of the tribe members wanted to know if the gods had truly appeared and if they would show their might today.

So it was with eagerness that everyone in the tribe assembled at the square at the center of the tribe. Even the old and the young were present. The only person absent was the previous chief. Many guessed that he had either died or he was too weak to move.

Soon the challengers for the seat of chief appeared. All of them were old council members, while only one was a young warrior. This young warrior was the one to take the stage first.

Axec appeared to be full of confidence and high in spirit. Her eyes were bright, and her steps were steady. They were not the steps of one who suspects that she is in a situation way out of her league.