The days that followed were relentless. Raiga and Zapero, knowing that stronger foes lay ahead, pushed their bodies and minds to the absolute limit.
Each sunrise brought new trials. Zapero, though without any powers, honed his physical strength and combat instincts with terrifying efficiency. His fists struck like iron, his reflexes sharpened until he could predict and react to attacks almost before they were thrown.
Raiga, meanwhile, sought to refine his control, to master the willpower that had driven him this far. The air around him would hum with energy during his training, as if the world itself recognized his presence.
By the seventh day, their bodies were covered in sweat and bruises, but their spirits remained unbroken.
By the thirteenth, they stood like warriors reborn.
It was on this final day, as they sat beneath a vast, starlit sky, that their conversation drifted toward legend.
"The world still has so many mysteries," Zapero mused, leaning against a boulder. "But the Gods… those guys? I don't get them. The stories don't even make sense."
Raiga, gazing into the flames of their campfire, smirked. "Which one are you talking about this time?"
Zapero chuckled. "Salvadoz."
Raiga raised an eyebrow. "The one with… what was it? Five thousand wives?"
"And over eighty-seven thousand children," Zapero added, shaking his head. "Who even has time for that?"
They both laughed, but there was an undeniable weight behind the tale. Salvadoz wasn't just a legend—his name carried power.
"He was one of the 17 Divine Gods, right?" Raiga asked, stirring the embers with a stick.
Zapero nodded. "Yeah. But he was different from the rest. The others were warriors, rulers, or creators. Salvadoz? He was the expansionist. Wherever he went, he conquered. People feared him because his will to dominate never faded. And his bloodline? It spread like wildfire."
Raiga let out a low whistle. "So that's why they say his descendants still walk the earth."
"Exactly," Zapero said. "Some say if you find one, they'll have a fraction of his power. Others say he left something behind—some kind of relic or hidden legacy."
A silence fell between them, the fire crackling in the background.
Then, Raiga's golden eyes flickered with curiosity. "You ever think… one of us might be connected to something greater?"
Zapero smirked, looking up at the stars. "Who knows? But if we are, we'll find out soon enough."
The night stretched on, and somewhere, far beyond their reach, the echoes of Salvadoz's legend still whispered across the world.