((Part 4 of the Collab between Scarifar, Letter Bee, CavnderOHeart, and RoflsMazoy.))

[b][i]Timeskip[/i][/b]

The Secret Temple of the God of Stories was maintained just underneath a Gunsmith's Workshop ran by Arthuria and Shiro Ascot, whom Alexander and William had greeted warmly before revealing the purpose of the summoning. And so the group now found themselves inside a hollow cavern where runes and script from the great epics of old were engraved on the walls. There was an altar at the end of the crude hall, a small altar that can be used to call forth the God of Stories, if needed. The summoning would be done by reading from the Grimorie of Correspondence, a book that was physically chained to the altar. And so, Ascot went to said Altar and read from the Grimorie, before loudly proclaiming his questions as per the ritual:

"God of Stories, we ask you these three questions: One, which God or Goddess was the most likely to have given Vernon Gire Jester his powers? Two, how many blessings did Humanity's presumed betrayer, Mephisto, have as his gifts? And three; we wish to know; who can be so powerful as to need the help of multiple Gods, Goddesses, and Champions to strike them down and only temporarily?" The boy paused, knowing that he was about to speak blashphemy, not quite against the Gods, but rather to his peers and friends.

"I know of only one such person, the most powerful and well-known Gifted ever to exist. But how can he have betrayed us? Or is there someone more powerful than [i]St. Laurel?[/i]" Ascot instinctively shuddered as his secret suspicions were finally voiced.

The God of Stories manifested within the temple from behind a pillar. One would think the entrance of a God would be more glorious, especially the God of Stories. At once it had been so, during humanity's fight against the ancient evil. There were more stories of heroism in those days than any other, and the God of Stories had been like a shining beacon of glory.

But now, the God of Stories represented the nature of history as it currently was. Long gone were the days of the Ancient Evil, and now the stories of true heroism were outweighed by the billions of stories of mundane life that humans lived. As the Gods withdrew influence from human life, the God of Stories' form changed to reflect his changing role. No longer a writer of history, but now a watcher.

He took the form of an hooded figure. Unassuming at a glance, his grey cloak blending right into the stone of the temple.

"The Blessing bestowed upon Vernon Gyre Jester is a blessing from the Goddess of Winter. It is not just a blessing of snow and ice, as you may have noticed. His soul is like winter itself, and he was given the ability to spread his influence to others in such a manner." The God said. "It is a very interesting blessing to be sure, but your next question is quite the interesting one itself, William."

([@CavnedrOHeart], last word's on you for your power thing by the way, tell me if you don't agree with it)

The God of Stories sat down on the temple's altar. It looked as if the next answer would be a long one.

"I know you speak of the being known as Mephisto. He struck down the one who had bestowed his blessing and everyone who had known him, before vanishing into the dimension the Ancient Evil resides in." The God of Stories explained. "He, and Laurel of Victory, were two different people. He enacted his betrayal some time after Laurel had vanished, but before that point he was just another human.

"To understand him, you must understand why we banded together against the Ancient Evil. The Ancient Evil are beings not from our dimension. They have the ability to enter into our dimension by anchoring themselves to it. Their full power is not unequal to us, but we would not truly lose if we Gods were to battle them.

"However, they do not belong here. To scrub their anchors from this dimension's soil, to cleanse their presence from the world entirely, the gods banded together to protect their creations.

"The man known as Mephisto from antiquity was blessed no more than any other human. He wanted more, and so gave up the blessings of the Gods in return for powers from the Ancient Evil.

"He betrayed his Demon Lords to retain his power, and then betrayed humanity and left to enter the other Dimension. Your investigation is concerned with whether the man named Mephisto now is that same man, and the answer is; perhaps.

"This man Mephisto has not received our blessings. However, from birth until now we have seen him, and he is after all a man. We have seen his mind and actions, there was no sudden or drastic change. No interference from the other Dimension. He was named Mephisto at birth, and he has walked with his own two feet to become the man he is now.

"But you must still remain cautious. The eyes of the Gods are not omnipotent, and though we drove the Evil from our plane, and they fought with all they had, we do not know the extent of their powers. Just as our ways are beyond them, their ways are beyond us in equal measure."