326 Turbulent Trials 2 (1/2)
Zero wanted to sigh when he saw the second trial's setup. Compared to that mind-boggling maze, he didn't think that he could shimmy his way through this one. The level of difficulty had suddenly spiked and if Zero was going to follow the same rules as before, he couldn't do anything against these guards.
\”What should we do?\” the strawcherry assistant asked. According to the map, there were at least two hundred servants and guards in the second trial all waiting for Zero to step out of what looked like a safe zone.
\”I'm assuming this trial is to test my combat abilities?\” Zero asked with a frown. \”How can I display my combat abilities without harming anyone? Something doesn't add up.\”
Needless to say, Poseidon was amused at how Zero refused to take a step out of the safe zone even after so long. He appeared to be holding a conversation with himself as well, not that the titan was going to judge him for that. The God of Oceans also had a peculiar habit of talking to himself, it helped to straighten out his thinking and was a process that most intelligent creatures go through. Carlsen always gave him judging looks when that happened during a game of chess but didn't comment on it out of respect for his master. Seeing someone else with a similar habit made Poseidon pleased. Maybe he would invite this young lad to a game of chess with him in the final round instead.
On the second level of the temple, Zero used appraisal on all the guards he could see. They weren't particularly strong but in numbers, they were frightened when it came to getting into formations. It was rather similar to the trial on the lower floor when Zero thought about it. Each group and formation had a similar species of sea creatures and Zero quickly understood what a party formation meant. He remembered reading about it before in the basic adventurer's guidebook that Truen introduced to him.
\”Let's see... there's a long ranger, a healer, a defender and a main damage dealer in every formation circle. They've been placed sporadically so that whichever tile I step in, a balanced party can be easily formed and the rest can rotate to cage me in. Very smart,\” Zero commended and Mii facepalmed.
\”This is not the time to be admiring your opponent,\” she reminded and Zero laughed.
\”Sorry, I'm just very impressed. They do say that adversity can make one grow stronger. Do you think I'll be able to face off with so many fighters and still be able to win them without breaking the rules?\”
Unfortunately for the banished titan, he didn't expect Zero to possess such a terrifying ability. Zero didn't break anything or harm anyone but he did use the power of his recreation magic to alter the properties of the seawater in the temple into something that will make everyone sleepy. Poseidon only realised that something was wrong when Carlsen dropped to the ground and snored without care about his duties.
Zero confidently waltzed through the second trial without Poseidon knowing until he triggered a trap by accident on the third level. Without caring about his calm and poised image, the titan hurried down to prevent more casualties to his servants. Whoever Zero was, it was the first time Poseidon felt such a threat.
The third trial was meant to be even trickier than the first because of decoys and traps, mixed with actual warriors lying in wait to ambush Zero along the way after he was cornered. Hades didn't know the situation without Carlsen around to describe them to him so he could only hurry over to the actual site and hope that Zero hasn't gone too far. Thankfully, Hades was able to create whirlpools to manipulate underwater currents with his trident. Even if he couldn't locate Zero easily, he would still be able to lead the boy to the guest room for his arrival.
Zero was secretly proud of his accomplishments. Putting the entire temple to sleep by altering the water's properties had to be the smartest idea he had ever come up with. Not only did it not go against the rules Poseidon set, but he was also able to clear the major threats for every level of the trials prepared for him. Surely the titan couldn't fault him for thinking out of the box now...
\”Stop!\” a voice thundered loudly, sending strong pulses of sonic waves through the water when Zero was climbing up to the fifth level. The young doctor didn't need to turn back to know who it was. Of all the creatures that lived here, only one was strong enough to not succumb to his sleeping medicine in the altered seawater.
Zero smiled and greeted the banished titan earnestly. He was getting a little lost in such a huge temple so having Poseidon greet him saved the teen a lot of trouble trying to map out the huge area each time he went up a level.
When Zero looked at the fallen god, he was stunned and shocked to see that Poseidon was very close to becoming a wisp. His energy levels were alarmingly low and Zero wondered what would happen to Poseidon if he had chosen to come a few years later. Would he have vanished completely and become just a legend like Athena? The young doctor subconsciously observed Poseidon's condition and started making plans to treat the dying titan, much to Mii's discontent.
\”You don't have any reserves to be treating a god,\” the strawcherry fairy hissed in a reminder that Zero chose to ignore. His main concern was to be able to successfully probe a discreet diagnosis about the titan's true condition to formulate a treatment plan. As a travelling doctor, one must always be prepared to step up to their duty. This was the first thing Hua Tuo told him when they started Hope Clinic. Zero has never forgotten his sense of duty even if he was currently on a different quest.
\”Come with me,\” Poseidon said and Zero complied without questions, much to the titan's relief. He didn't sense and malice coming from the unexpected guest. None of his servants seemed to be hurt either and his property was still intact. The boy really did have many blessings from various Gods including his brothers. This made him curious about Zero's identity.
Once they were seated in the guest room, Zero noticed that Poseidon didn't really use his eyes very well and relied mostly on echolocation to find where everything was. Normally, Poseidon would leave the menial tasks to his servants but due to circumstances, he had no choice but to display his disability.
Zero didn't offer to help because he had a feeling Poseidon wouldn't appreciate being offered help. Instead, Zero allowed the titan to do as he pleased and waited patiently for a cup of misty tea that didn't seem to mix with the seawater.
\”This is..?\”
Poseidon smirked. \”If I told you it was poison, would you drink it?\”
Zero paused. Was this also part of the trial?
Zero's hesitation made Poseidon smirk. The teen might be powerful but he was still very naive. To openly show his enemies such a vulnerability was like an invitation for an assassination. How did such a person survive for so long in such a dangerous world? Even if he had the blessing of all the gods, Poseidon doubted that Zero would be lucky enough to avoid mishaps forever. All it took was one mean and petty person to ruin everything and destroy the teen's fragile world. Zero's way too pampered and Poseidon didn't know if he liked that or not.