Endless Horde: Through the Eyes of a Godking

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Cedric still ended up infiltrating the 'castle' of the Void Prince...

The place was filled with his Royal Guards—smaller but definitely mightier and far more terrifying void creatures who obey direct orders from the Void Prince himself.

As confident as he is, Cedric still thought that it'd be wiser to be more cautious as he roamed inside this place. It was already hinted that the Void Prince can somehow sense him but only subconsciously. If he slips up even for a bit, he'd be caught right here, in the heart of everything.

So, he made sure to avoid line of sight as much as he could. He also ensured that he's not making any noise at all when he moves. He kept his body low, and he moved slowly. He's not in a rush to see everything this place has to offer; it's better to go explore slowly but safely instead of rushing in recklessly. The void cannot be underestimated.

Compared to the intelligence and discipline of the void creatures outside, the Royal Guards were definitely better. Don't get it wrong, it's still inferior to even the most basic security protocols living beings had, but at least it's getting there, unlike the mess outside.

Being the 'headquarters' of the void, everything related to the operation of the void creatures was here.

Cedric's first stop was actually the nursery; it was the very first thing he saw from where he entered.

The Nursery was a large underground cave network that ran all over the void. Its origin was a gigantic pulsating womb hanging on the wall. The womb has tubes and veins running in every direction, covered with small pustules and zits. Each time the womb pulses, it will release a pulse of embryo through the tubes, pushing out eggs. And since this cave network was connected throughout the entirety of the void, the eggs are sent everywhere.

Once the eggs are pushed out, they stay buried underground, absorbing nutrients from the void similar to seeds. Once sufficient nutrients and time had passed, they'd break out of their shells and climb to the surface to continue their lives. This is how Void Creatures reproduced, and from how frequently this womb pulsed, it's no wonder their numbers never suffered no matter how many of them were killed.

'Ooh, I could so end this right here and now...' Cedric pursed his lips in hesitation.

All it'd take was a few strong swings of his sword, and he could totally cut this tomb into pieces. Doing so will cut off their source of population. After doing so, he could declare a war and lead troops to the void to kill as many void creatures as they could. Without this womb, the void creatures will become an endangered species. They'd be hunted down to extinction eventually, and the realm will no longer have to worry about them ever again.

However, that is a very idealistic outcome, assuming that everything will work out in his favor. And that's just not how this works.

'But the Void itself is the problem.' Cedric sighed to himself, 'If we can't discover a way to completely eliminate it, cutting up this womb will never be a solution because it would just make another one.'

And this is what's behind his hesitation. Eliminating the void sounds easy when you say it, but it's extremely difficult to actually do. Cedric himself doesn't have a clue where to start.

So, as tempting as it is to cut this womb into pieces right here and now, Cedric decided to walk away instead.

'I'd tell them first. I already know where it is, so I can definitely return if necessary.'

Leaving the nursery, Cedric roamed the 'castle' some more and discovered yet another location within the castle that held some level of importance.

Treasury'? 'Cedric raised a brow. 'They have treasures? Huh..'.

Cedric casually passed through the guards and slipped into the gaps to enter this so-called treasury, as its label said.

'Well...there are items here at least.'

Cedric wasn't all that impressed, really. Because most of the items here looked like a bunch of sharpened stones at most.

Of course, he wouldn't see them as 'treasures' since he's not a void creature himself. But from what he saw from the 'instruction manuals'—because' yes, every item here has one—it would make sense why they'd think that these are treasures.

One treasure here could apparently bestow the ability to change sizes at will by stabbing themselves with it. Another gives them the ability to be faster than most. There's one that gives them the ability to grow fangs, one that could make them release poison, etc.

'Treasury? This is more like a skill book store instead'.

But of course, void creatures wouldn't understand that concept and could only make do with what they have.

These 'treasures' are usable only to the Royal Guards and the stronger void creatures near the Heart of the Void. The rules said that everyone can only choose one of these treasures and use it once in their entire lives, because apparently, they have limited usage, and it would take a long time before they're replenished.

Where they got these things remains a mystery to Cedric, but he's not really worried. At most, these treasures would only make stronger void creatures more troublesome to deal with. The 'skills' they receive from these treasures give them an edge, but nothing more than that.

Seeing all he had to see here, Cedric moved on, still being careful not to be discovered.

He roamed every single place the castle has to offer. He had seen the 'training grounds' for the Royal Guards, their resurrection pool, their so-called weapons and armor hall, and many more.

It's simplistic enough to call this a small base of operations. And if Cedric truly wanted to, he could oh-so easily blow this entire place up high and flee without them noticing. But he refrained from doing so because now is not the time yet.

And right now, he found himself standing at the last important place in this 'castle.' The prince's personal chambers.

As anybody would expect, the Void Prince could be found here.

He's currently sleeping. Which was weird because Cedric never thought the concept of sleep applied to him, yet here he was, dozing off. He's even lying on a bed made of fancy rocks, one that is as 'royal' as it could get in a place like this.

Cedric took note of this behavior, and being here also confirmed that indeed, so long as the void prince doesn't enter his line of sight, the void prince can't see or sense him at all. After all, if he could, then he shouldn't be sleeping soundly still as Cedric stood mere meters away from him.

The Prince's Royal Chambers was special because in here, there is something that is considered holy by every void creature.

Inside this chamber was the same womb where the Void Prince was born. Not the same one that he saw from the nursery. It's a completely separate womb that only ever made him.

But even though it only produced him, somehow, this womb is still alive. It doesn't pulsate, doesn't move, or show any signs of activity, but there is a frightening breath there that made Cedric's skin feel like it was being pricked by tons of needles at the same time.

As curiosity got the better of him, Cedric manipulated his sensory field to study and penetrate the unique womb to learn everything he could about it. And what he discovered made his skin crawl.

'That's it...the source of the void! Who knew it'd be here!? '

Cedric made it a point to not show any signs or sounds of alarm because he's in a really precarious location. He didn't want to alert the Void Prince or the consciousness of the Void itself by gasping out loud now.

But really, this was a surprising find.

The source of the void, its origins...

When Cedric took a look at it, he could've sworn it tried to look back at him. Fortunately, he hurriedly withdrew his sensory field; otherwise, things would've escalated real quick if he got caught.

Even he didn't expect that he'd find the source of the void in this thing of all things. No wonder why the Void Creatures revered the Void Prince's chambers as a holy land that they can't enter. This was the reason behind it.

Obviously, finding it doesn't make it simple.

There is a space on the other side of that womb where the will of the void resided. Cedric knew that if they wanted to deal with it once and for all, they'd have to go to that place.

Cedric could already tell how difficult the fight would be against it. The will of the void was an entity older than the Primordial Chaos itself. It's not so easy to eliminate it. Moreover, they have to come to it and fight it in a place where its powers were the strongest.

'Yeah, fortunately I haven't made a move. Otherwise, I would've provoked this monster earlier than I'd want'.