Utilizing the powers of the divine as a mere mortal was no easy feat.
It was easy to be overwhelmed by the divinity, which could either cause the mortal to die a rather painful death or cause them to lose their minds.
This was one of the few reasons Ulysses had made his way to Scholastica.
In a bid to better understand how to utilize the divinity within him, he needed to study and where else could he find the necessary information than Scholastica, the land of knowledge?
Naturally, it was not the first time that a mortal harbored the essence of a god, and with their experiences documented by the TruthSeekers, it was easy as could be to learn about those experiences to help him in his craft.
Hence, the reason he had gotten better at Traveling.
This time, his destination was the Unending Carnival, the once divine kingdom of the Jester and the current resting place of not one, but two divine beings.
The journey was quick, when compared to the last time he’d come here, a result of the growth he’d experienced between them and now.
Few felt nauseous but most were fine.
Before anyone could say anything, the Abilities of the Mystics that had come along began to fade away, shocking them into silence.
They watched it all evaporate, at which point, their attention was finally drawn to the landscape they were in which was mostly blanketed in darkness.
Once, there was a light source above but with the Jester dead, that source was dead.
The same should have happened to the Unending Carnival, but for some unknown reason, the land remained.
An eerie silence lingered, leaving everyone unnerved as they quickly took out oil lamps and lit them up in a bid to drive back the darkness, allowing them to breathe a sigh of relief.
There was something about absolute darkness that scared those unaccustomed to it.
"Ah, I forgot to tell you, the Unending Carnival is completely covered in Quillion, so there’s no use attempting to utilize mystical abilities." Ulysses suddenly said, breaking the silence.
Being able to modify his body as he pleased, it was not difficult to give himself eyes capable of seeing in the dark as his irises took on a slit-like appearance.
With oil lamps, the scholars, Mystics, and armed men were able to make out that true to Ulysses’ words, all around them persisted a black rock quite similar to Quillion.
"Where to now?" Megara asked, not bothering to hide her discomfort with the environment.
Just as she was, most others were in a similar state, with only Ulysses and Kallias regarding the area around them with more curiosity than wariness.
This was perhaps one of the reasons the Nester family was so well respected.
Their ability to travel to the most dangerous regions as normal humans all for the development of not just geography but history as well.
That was something that few others were capable of, a fact that even someone like Agamedes was forced to accept.
"Our goal for today is simple," Kallias spoke up, taking charge of the operation.
It had been a while since he explored, hence the reason he was eager to get back into it.
"Considering we’ll be coming back here often for study, it would be best to map out safe paths as well as safe zones. If there are danger areas, then we map those out as well."
"Are we mapping out the whole area?" One of the Mystics asked to which Kallias responded.
"That’s impossible. Though it might look small, a deity’s divine kingdom is equivalent in size to Eventide, which basically means mapping out everything in a few days is not possible."
"I suggest we split up," Ulysses remarked. "That way we cover more ground."
"You said the entire area is covered in Quillion." Agamedes pointed out. "Doesn’t that mean we are basically leaving ourselves vulnerable to whatever dangers might be out there?"
The others seemed to have the same thought and so waited for Ulysses to respond.
Save for the mercenaries who were still somewhat useful in a fight, both the scholars and the Mystics were completely useless.
"You don’t have to worry." Ulysses calmly said. "As long as you say my name, I’ll hear you and come to your rescue."
"But you said no mystical powers would work here?" A Mystic calmly pointed out.
"Exactly, mystical powers. I never said anything about divine powers though."
As realization dawned on everyone, Kallias intoned. "Now then, if we are done, I believe we should set out. The earlier we get started, the better."
Then, turning to Ulysses, he inquired. "Is there a need for a gathering point?"
Ulysses shook his head in response.
Satisfied with this, Kallias intoned. "Well then, I believe that’s all for now."
Then, making his way to stand on a rock, further elevating his height, Kallias intoned. "Everyone, I need you all to understand the importance of this mission. This serves as humanity’s first attempt to explore a divine kingdom. So I hope you all keep your heads high and do what needs to be done. I wish you all good luck."
Though it could hardly be considered a pep talk, it managed to help most push aside the fear in their heart and focus on the task ahead.
With that, they quickly went on their way, splitting into groups of five.
By the time they were all gone, Ulysses was left alone and in truth, he preferred it this way.
Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and felt for the connection between him and his mother.
Once he felt it, he did not hesitate to travel, disappearing in a flash of golden light.
When he reappeared, he found himself in a cave completely covered in obsidian.
Slowly, he made his way inward, quickly coming across what appeared to be metal cages though the metal had been subsumed by the Quillion-like substance.
Inside those cages, the remains of living beings similarly engulfed in obsidian could be seen, their expressions frozen in fear.