The Innkeeper

"Fenrir, his body is just a diversion!" Lex stated through his spirit sense. "Instead of attacking him, look for the item!"

No matter what, Ra would definitely interfere with their search. After all, if the deity had gone through so much pain and effort just to distract them, he was either plotting something sinister or was incredibly weak at the moment.

Regardless of whichever one it was, they could not afford to wait. The only thing in their favor at the moment was the fact that the item itself was probably not so far from them. After all, it had to maintain its control over the body made from energy, as well as its numerous techniques.

Between the two of them, Fenrir was more likely to succeed because he could somehow make Ra forget about him. Lex's plan was to search for the item, but most attract Ra's attention while he searched, so Fenrir could investigate freely.

"COME BACK HERE!" Ra roared, having realized that his ploy had been seen through. While Lex looked severely injured, Ra was not any better, either. His body could continuously heal using the corrupted divine energy, but the more of it he used, the less he had in reserve. That meant Ra's body was continuously decreasing in size! By now, after its previous vicious beating, its body was barely larger than Lex's!

Lex, of course, had no interest in obeying Ra, so the miniature deity chased after him. But a game of tag with someone who could use Blink was bound to yield no results. Using his left eye and spirit sense, Lex scanned his surroundings before teleporting away. The first thing he investigated was the strange metal pipe Ra had been holding.

He had appeared to be siphoning energy away from it, but Lex dared not overlook anything. But it was too obvious, and there was no sign of any ceremonial item nearby.

He teleported again and again, overturning even random rubble on the floor lest the item be hidden underneath.

As soon as Ra realized that he couldn't catch up to Lex, he stopped his chase, a dangerous look gleaming in his eyes. He began gathering divine energy and prepared for a powerful technique. This was an opportunity for him as well. It was a race between whether Lex would find the item first, or would his technique–

Without warning, Lex Blinked behind him and stabbed him with the butter knife, inciting a pain and rage filled scream.

"Why are you getting so comfortable while I'm doing all the work?" Lex asked, before Blinking away again. He had no intentions of fighting Ra anymore, but that was no reason to allow him to be so comfortable.

Under normal circumstances, Lex might have enjoyed teasing and annoying Ra, but currently he was in immense pain. His body literally had numerous holes in it, and although he had a high pain tolerance, and although it would not kill him, that did not mean Lex was okay with it. If anything, he had to make a conscious effort not to lose control of his emotions.

In such a situation, watching Ra casually do his own thing while his body recovered so easily just… just drove Lex insane. So, to vent his feelings, Lex stabbed him a few times. Conveniently, since the blade would cut through divine energy, it would interfere with his techniques.

After succeeding a few times without any meaningful retaliation, Lex made a mental note to employ more hit-and-run tactics in the future. This was so much easier and more interesting than fighting up front.

Of course, the only reason he could do this now was also because his objective had changed.

After repeating the process a few times, Lex heard a familiar growl. Fenrir, who could not speak even now, still managed to communicate with him through their bond. Finally he smiled. With Fenrir's assurance, he decided to keep Ra occupied.

"You know, I've been wondering. Since you were a big shot and everything, why don't you just silently try to recover? Why are you going around and picking fights with the Inn? You even went and became a Fallen deity. Isn't it just a waste?"

"WHAT DO YOU KNOW?" Ra roared in absolute frustration. Why was this stupid human so resilient to his techniques? It was ruining his plan. His body had already shrunk further, and was now even smaller than Lex.

"I don't know, so why don't you tell me," Lex said, stabbing Ra again in his puny back.

"IT'S A KARMIC LAW! DO YOU UNDERSTAND? A LAW! THE INNKEEPERS ATTACK HAS BECOME A PART OF THE ORIGIN REALMS LAW, AND WILL TARGET ME FOR ALL ETERNITY!"

Ra reached a point where he could no longer take it. Earlier or, he had been somewhat pretending to lose his anger to keep Lex occupied, but now he really was losing his anger. Ever since he fell, he lost control of his emotions more and more easily. It made it difficult to get anything done.

But right now, Ra no longer even cared. In his eyes, all that mattered right now was killing Lex! He even discarded his original plan, just to kill him!

Ra clenched his fists, summoning forth a massive amount of corrupted divine energy, nearly destabilizing his body's structure.

He was waiting… waiting for Lex to stab him, and then his body would explode. It would be a waste, but it was impossible to survive a divinity explosion and remain uninjured.

Ra did not let on he was waiting, and made it seem like he was casting a technique. Just as he expected, the sensation of sharpness finally arrived.

But the baby Ra's expression changed. He was all too familiar with this feeling. It wasn't the knife, but the teeth of an accursed wolf! Moreover, he wasn't biting his neck this time but…

Ra opened his mouth to scream, but his already destabilized body dispersed.

Lex Blinked over to Fenrir and found him biting an eagle feather. Fortunately, he had not crushed it yet.