Mantle of the Gods [LitRPG / Slow Burn / FTB Harem]

I had a really bad idea.

Actually, it was more like part of an idea, but it was something that I was going to have to wing and I had no idea if it was going to work or not.

I touched the back of my right hand to show the small blue seal that was there. It had been enough to fool any low-level scans about my identity at the beginning. It was something that Justia, ArchBishop Mavery, Trent, and I all shared. It was also based off of the seal on my chest, which was also the basis for the outline of the seal that I'd just spent the last twelve hours making.

At first I'd been under the impression that only a full seal would be able to overwrite the seal that the demons had put on Astrid. One that had all the stipulations and safeguards that bound her to me. Last night when we'd started using the outline, I'd begun to wonder just how much of a seal I needed to put on her in order to keep her and the prison within the seal intact and establish myself as the new owner of said prison.

I started going over the seal. I don't think that ArchBishop Mavery had intended for me to be able to access the seal like this, but I'd just spent over a week learning how to forge my own seal as well as what was needed for an outline of that seal.

I applied the same concept here.

I started stripping the seal down, removing the parts of it that I didn't need. This didn't have to be a fancy seal. I just needed it to have the basics.

"What are you doing?" Astrid had to yell as she walked over to me. The wind had started to blow as the heat grew more intense.

"I'm trying to save your life!" I didn't look away from what I was doing. I knew I was racing against the clock now. I should have just done this to begin with, but I hadn't been thinking about the huge flaw in our great plan, so I hadn't come up with a backup in case it didn't work. To be honest, if I hadn't just spent the last twelve hours creating a watered down version of the main seal, I wouldn't have been able to make what I was creating.

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"Here!" I twisted the few words in front of her as I shifted my focus to the seal around us. I pulled the seal in, reshaping the words within it to match what I'd written in the air between us. The walls moved in on us until instead of a building, it was like we were in a single room. I folded the excess over and under us, replacing everything with a blue barrier that had those words written on it, over and over again.

"You want me to agree to this?" Astrid sounded like she couldn't believe what I'd just asked of her.

"You keep the identities of Ether, Rix, Pixie, and myself a secret from anyone who doesn't have our seal and stay with us until school is over. In return, I promise to protect you as best as I can." I held out my hand. "The Cathedral has already added you to our roster, so you're already stuck with me. I mainly included that line so you wouldn't try to get yourself killed again."

Astrid held my gaze as blue threads of magic shot out of the contract over my outstretched hand and anchored themselves in the corners of the room that I'd reshaped.

"Please." I could feel it getting hotter. We didn't have much time left until Klix released her blast. "It's silence for protection. Three lines."

Astrid sighed and held my gaze as she grabbed my hand.

We both fell as the room dropped to anchor itself to Astrid.

"FREEZE!"

Frost shot out of my hands and started to cool the room. There was a clap of thunder, then Astrid was on her side screaming in pain.I felt my mana dropping fast so I stopped the channeling <Freeze> and slid next to her. I grabbed her hands and pulled her close as she writhed in pain. Her screams started to drown the banging and howling from outside.

She went silent before it did, trembling in my lap as I held onto her.

She lost consciousness shortly after she stopped screaming and I was grateful that she was at least not in pain anymore.

After a few more minutes, the noise outside stopped and the heat began to die down.

I also noticed something else. I could feel an extra part attached to my seal. A part that had someone else inside it.

I slowly put Astrid down, then turned my focus to the other room.

It was time to release Trent.