The Innkeeper

Lex really wished that the diet-soda version of the night sky had tried to punch him instead of laughing at him. At least then, Mango would have defended Lex instead of chuckling along at Lex's misfortune.

"I do not need a job…" Lex tried to defend himself, but the guy had fallen to his knees from laughter, and was doing his best to keep himself from falling to the ground completely, all the while still holding one hand out to point at Lex.

If there weren't such a stark difference in their power limit, Lex would have kicked him, though for some odd reason, he could not feel even the slightest hint of malicious energy from him. It was as if he genuinely meant Lex no harm in real, and was just laughing at him because he genuinely found the situation to be hilarious.

Lex heard an odd chuckle behind him and quickly turned his head to find a completely serious looking Fenrir - as if he had not laughed at all, and did not find the situation even remotely funny. Yet the more serious he appeared, the more suspicious Lex became.

"Alright, ha ha, very funny," Lex said lamely as he walked up to him. "You're acting awfully casually for someone who sent an entire Realm tribulation my way. Are you so sure that you can get away scotfree after messing with me like that?"

Lex tried to look as menacing as possible while he spoke, but it seemed to have no effect whatsoever.

"Oh yeah, I'm sure," the being said, as he eventually picked himself up off the floor. Having a grown man stand above you pouting could either make the situation much funnier, or completely ruin the mood. In this case, since he felt like Lex might genuinely get irritated if he continued like this, he had to force himself to stop.

Lex did not speak, and instead just stood there glaring, as if expecting some kind of explanation.

"Fine, fine, come in and have a seat. I'll explain everything, and I won't bother asking how you got in - since you have someone nearing 40% of their power, it's quite obvious. Lord Mango, it is an honor to make your acquaintance," he said.

"A great honor, I'm sure," Mango stated while nodding. "Well, I'm also quite pleased to meet new people who recognize my brilliance."

Lex raised an eyebrow, curious as to why the being knew Mango. Then again, it was entirely possible that they had met before but the fish didn't remember at all.

He followed the being towards a seat in the other end of the office and sat down opposite to him. Honestly, this was not how he expected this meeting to go, but so far he was actually pleased that it hadn't led to a fight. That would make things complicated. After all, Lex didn't actually care so much about getting even with this guy since as he did about finding Heavens Puppets.

"My name is Vox," the being mimicking the night sky said, turning towards Lex. "I'm assuming you're here because you want me to answer for sending the extra tribulation your way. Or did you perhaps have another goal as well?"

"Starting with an explanation would be best," said Lex. "Although I am not a vindictive person, and I don't mind your prank too much since I wasn't hurt, that doesn't mean I am the kind of person who will ignore a blatant threat to my future tribulations. As for my goal, it's quite simple. I'm looking for a Heavens Puppet - preferably the one who appeared during my own tribulation, but if there's one nearby at a convenient location, that will work too."

"Yes, of course, I got it," Vox said, nodding. "I've already introduced myself to you, so now let me introduce my official position in Arch-Heaven as well. I am a Minister of Arch-Heaven, and I will refrain from specifying my exact position. Official positions in Arch-Heaven, in case you did not know, allow the person to get various benefits, such as increased available power, some rights and perks in Arch-Heaven and more.

"Through my position, I am privy to a few secrets of the universe, so when I sensed that you were undergoing your tribulation, I intervened. Of course, I am not so petty to go after you just because you refused a perfectly good job offer, making my life slightly harder, but more importantly, losing out on great benefits yourself.

"No, the reason I did that was because for one, I could see that the chances of you benefiting from the tribulation were actually far greater than of you suffering from the tribulation.

"Secondly, it was because I wanted to further my relationship with you, and doing that by offering you some nice benefits seemed like a good way to do that. In case you're wondering why I want to develop a relationship with you, it's because I believe that you can provide me with a lot of help in fulfilling my duties. Even if you chose not to become an Augur, the fact that you were offered in the first place marks you as someone special, and I'd be a fool to miss out an opportunity to build a connection."

Lex pursed his lips. He was unable to tell if Vox was telling the truth, or if this was just a convenient excuse. Having his power limited was a real handicap in such situations.

"What's the deal with these official positions anyway?" he asked, diverting the subject a little. "Do they offer any real benefit besides raising the power percentage? And how do they help Arch-Heaven?"

Vox chuckled.

"Now isn't that the million Blessing Stone question. No one knows, but I have my own speculation. I believe that these positions exist because the Arch-Heaven, or perhaps the universe itself, treats these jobs as pathways to streamline its existing functions, allowing them to be performed more efficiently and utilizing less energy than it would if things occurred ordinarily. But this is merely my own speculation, and it can be wrong.

"In fact, I believe these positions are just a test. The real positions will show up after the universe matures. By then, anyone with a position in Arch-Heaven might actually wield tremendous power and influence over the actual universe in the same way that I can, to a small extent, influence tribulations."

Lex's expression became solemn as he heard something entirely new, and something that almost made him regret giving up the Augur position. This… this speculation could possibly affect the whole universe if it proved to be true. That was not a small matter, and definitely not something Lex could ignore.