Priscilla smiled. "I am glad you have chosen. You are being given a rare chance for a different outcome. Please do not waste it."
Haru noticed that although she smiled, she had an almost sad look behind her eyes. He took note of it and changed direction. "By the way, I keep hearing you mention celestial gate keepers…Who or what are they?"
Dimitri looked at him but figured he had a right to know. "If we are the gods, think of them as the ferrymen. They absorb life force. They operate outside of us and handle all death. In your world, they're likely known as grim reapers. Their instincts are solely law-driven. Sticklers for the rules, which makes them so annoying. It's also why we must get you going. We cannot directly interfere with them and vice versa. They know about all death, and without the help of Titan, you'd be absorbed already."
Haru slightly remembered a movie series he watched as a little kid about a wizard who went to a magic school. In the series, they had something similar that sucked people's faces. He shuddered at the thought of it. If they looked or were anything similar, he wanted nothing to do with them.
"Before you go," Dimitri appeared again in front of Haru. He stood, arms folded, finger on his chin in deep thought. "Make sure you keep those items hidden. Once you get there, you'll understand why. And on second thought..."
He abruptly flicked Haru on the head. But surprisingly, Haru felt no pain. Instead, he felt a refreshing wave surge into his body. Was this magic?
"Dimitri!" Priscilla shook her head, worried.
"What? I'm not breaking any rules of intervention, he's not part of any realm yet. Just a life force. Besides, I won't get another chance like this. It should make things interesting."
"What did you do just now?" Haru asked, seeing Priscilla's reaction.
Dimitri smiled. "I simply decided to have some fun with this. I only enhanced your physical abilities a bit. Increased stamina, strength, Made your bones a bit denser. You'll be able to see them in a system I set up so you will know when you're in trouble. But remember don't go biting off more than you can chew. You aren't invincible."
Haru was shocked as he felt incredibly light and he couldn't quite put his finger on it, but he felt almost as if he could fight a bear. Little did he know.
"As I said, it's a small enhancement. Whatever is going on there, it's not good. I need to make sure you're at least durable enough. This should simply assist you a bit and make sure you don't die by something like falling off a cliff. Hahaha."
Priscilla shook her head at Dimitri's attempt at a joke. Unknown to Haru, a small black mark appeared on the back of his neck. When Priscilla noticed, she pondered if she should address it but decided to let it be. She didn't know Haru personally, but sometimes letting one figure it out on their own can be the best course of action. For the blessing of a divine one can be a blessing or a curse. Haru already had his work cut out for him, and she did not want to add to it.
A wave of energy erupted through the room, making Dimitri immediately leave his aloof demeanor and turn quite serious. "Time's up, see ya."
Before Haru could utter a word, he was kicked into a portal that had suddenly opened. As it closed, the room quickly got colder.
Three figures appeared almost instantly and stood towering before Priscilla and Dimitri.
The celestial gatekeepers had arrived.