Karl used [Healing Splash] to heal the Demon and wash the sand off him at the same time.
"There, all better. It saves us the time of waiting for you to regenerate.
Now, Iâve got a question for you that will certainly seem odd if youâre not a fan of history. What do you know of the System?" Karl asked.
The big demon frowned as he ran his hand over his freshly healed chest.
"The System? The legend of the ancient divine power that would let anyone who gained its favour ascend beyond their species limits? It is said that even your Foxkin bride could ascend to Immortality if she had access to the System.
Well, she would have a chance.
The Gods are not so simple to please, and there would surely have been trials and tribulations to gain that much power, even with the System."
Karl nodded. "Well, at least it isnât completely forgotten. But the System has started to awaken again on the other continents, and we came here to determine why it wonât awaken here."
The Demon frowned. "Perhaps we have the favour of the Demon Gods? They know that prey is prey and scum are scum that belong beneath the powerful. What self-respecting Demon God would encourage a way for Succubi and Satyrs to get notions of rising above their station?"
Karl nodded. "That is a possibility. But we have heard that the Elves and the other species are having the same issue, and the other continents donât want to risk the chance that itâs a curse of some sort that might spread."
The Demon nodded in understanding. "We donât do any trade with the other continents, but some of the other clans have bigger and better boats, so they do. If they spread a curse that weakened their trade partners, it could mean a disaster for everyone.
Is there anything that we can do to help you with your research? Is there a reward for proving that itâs not contagious?"
Karl chuckled at the last part. "Yes, there is indeed a reward for the one who can gain access to the System and prove that itâs not a contagious disease. It may not be easy, but if there is an Inn where we can spend the night, I will run a few tests tomorrow morning, to see if anyone has the gift."
The Wrath Demon nodded. "Of course. This is a port town, weâve got not just one, but two inns here. Not all Clans welcome visitors, but we do. Itâs good for business."
Karl saw that the residents were trying to size him up as he entered, unable to effectively guess his power level, as most of them were only Ascended and Commander Rank.
He briefly considered letting his aura loose, but that would just be cruel to the people, even if the City Lord, or Clan Leader, whatever title the Wrath Demon preferred, wasnât trying to hide his own.
"Here is the Inn. Just ask the Innkeeper, and theyâll have one of the servants get you anything that you need."
The Innkeeper, a magic Demon whose feathers were the same blues and whites as the ocean near the shore, nodded eagerly.
"Yes, Lord Kapchor. I will take good care of your guests. Is there anything that you need right away?" He asked.
"A room with a desk for writing. Preferably enough room for us both to work. Then, you can have someone bring up food and drink in an hour. Youâre from the Magic Demon lineage, and fairly well respected in town, it seems. So, we may call on you to assist with our research later." Karl replied.
The Innkeeper was confused but nodded.
The best way to deal with powerful people was to nod, agree, and hope that they didnât get bored and kill you anyhow.
But these strangers were very flashy and clean, not even trying to hide their wealth and privilege. Could they be so powerful that they didnât need to? Even the Dragons dulled their scales when they walked on another clanâs territory.
Karl hadnât thought about the state of the local villages when he had arrived. He was still shirtless after the fight, and Dana had changed to simple layered martial artistâs robes, ones that were easy to fight in if she needed to. She had also transformed back into fox form once she realized that her human form was seen as a lesser species by the locals.
But compared to the locals, they were still incredibly overdressed.
Karl sent out a thought toward the beasts and found that the thoughts of Rae, Thor and Remi were so faint that he had trouble hearing them, but the link didnât feel any weaker, just muffled by distance.
He could still tell exactly where they were if he wanted to open a portal at their location.
Next was the function test. {Tessa, can you receive messages from us while we are on this continent?} He asked.
{The message is distorted. Letters keep flickering, like itâs trying to decrypt them.} Tessa replied, and Karl immediately saw what she meant.
The message was readable, but random letters kept changing.
{I will continue to send messages when we can. Thor can fill you in on the details, if he hasnât already.}
Karl couldnât see Thor keeping secrets from Tessa.
Or from anyone, really.
If they asked, he would get too excited about the chance to be helpful and just tell them.
"We should write a few skill books and see if the locals can use them. Thatâs the most surefire way to awaken the System, but if itâs being suppressed here, there is no telling what might happen." Karl explained.
"So, first we find out if it is possible for people from the continent to awaken the system, and then we work on finding out what is causing the delay? All in the next month?" Dana confirmed.
"In the next two weeks, preferably. Because I am looking forward to just taking you to bed for a week and not leaving. Then, Matilda is going to pick us up a few days before the wedding so that we can get ready." Karl agreed.