In the territory of the [Circle of Ouroborous] faction, inside the grand dining hall, stood a large oval table made from high-quality wood, fit for royalty.It was spacious enough to comfortably accommodate more than two dozen people.At the head of the table sat Ray, in a finely crafted wooden chair lined with soft cushions that offered supreme comfort.He wasn't alone. To his right sat Maria and her seven sisters.On his left, closest to him, sat Elfie, followed by her younger brother Arlen, whom Ray had just saved about half an hour earlier.Gina and Sir Grant were also present, quietly observing their faction leader.Ray Palmer sipped his tea with the laziest expression imaginable, bored, almost as if he had nothing better to do.But everyone at the table knew better.They could see tiny wisps of blue energy occasionally flickering in his eyes, a subtle sign that something was happening internally."So... um... are you a High Demon or High Human... which is it?" Sir Grant asked ca

"My dear boy, it's in your best interest to choose us and not the others," said the god of creation, Brahma."They are anything but good...""And I suppose you guys are the good guys," Ray said with a snort. His earlier concern vanished as if it had never been there.After learning about the gods from the memories of the beings he had devoured, he now knew everything about most of them.He also understood that gods held no real authority within the Tower Realms.Even the charm they had tried using on him, an attempt to put him under their compulsion, was only permitted because gods were allowed to test mortals if they were considering offering discipleship.However, even during such tests, they weren't allowed to use excessive power or they would be punished by the system.That, along with the fact that this particular group of gods seemed rather outgoing, meant Ray no longer felt intimidated by them.There was also a feeling in the back of his mind, a certainty, that he never needed

"You are the first human to evolve, which means there is a way, a solution, a cure to finally stop the extinctions that now seem inevitable.""Yes, I evolved on my own, but that doesn't mean I have the cure you gods speak of. All of this happened because I have the ability to do so, that doesn't mean I can solve it.""I don't have the power to create higher ranked beings, or the ability to turn lower ranked beings into higher ones. I just have the power to turn into them, okay?" Ray stated, sighing.He was starting to get really annoyed."As far as the creation of higher ranked beings goes, that can only be done by progenitors and I'm not one. There aren't any in existence. All you gods are doing right now is coming to me and wasting my time, time I'd rather spend training or fooling around," Ray continued, standing up from the chair."If you gods are as great as your stories claim, then use your own authorities. I mean, you are literal gods, and I know you're some of the higher ranki

Ray looked at the gods and could see the expression on their faces.After a long minute of thinking, he sighed in resignation."Fine," Ray agreed."But my conditions still stand. I will help you find a solution to our problem, and in return, you will do everything stated in the contract conditions.""I accept," the goddess Freya agreed first."I accept," the goddess of victory agreed second."I would love to be your patron goddess," the goddess Hathor said, smiling and showing the most beautiful expression Ray had ever seen on a person before."Obviously, I have no problem with the conditions," Brahma, the Hindu God of Creation, nodded."Well, if you guys agreed to these ridiculous conditions, then I have no issue with this either," Hermes, the God of Travel, Trade, Communication, Thieves, and Trickery, said, rolling his eyes.Ray grinned mischievously. "By the way, I also want to add another line to the conditions: I can cancel the contract whenever I want. But to make it more fair,

"Let's talk, shall we? We have so much to discuss."The woman grinned.The gods and goddesses couldn't help but feel concerned as they watched her smile.In all their millions of years as divine beings, they had never been more intimidated by anyone.They were gods, fear was beneath them.And yet, right now, none of them could even think of themselves as anything more than slaves before the existence known as the System Administrator.She was the one in control of the entity called the System, and the System was absolute in the universe.No one, not even the God Kings, could resist its power.Even they had no choice but to submit.To think that an existence who controls the System came here in person...The gods almost peed their pants."Please, Your Eminence… if we did something wrong, we ask you to find it in your heart to forgive us," Brahma, the god of creation, said with a very concerned expression."Oh, stop it. I'm not here to erase your existence, if that's what you're worried