Demon Lord's Reincarnation

Ren was stunned by Valdel's question he wasn't expecting Valdel of all people to ask such a question. He was speechless, he didn't know what to say at the moment. Ren's mind started working overtime as he tried to figure out what to say next. All of this was happening in a fraction of a second and when one second came Ren finally thought of something to say. 

"Why are you asking such a weird question?" 

"Ren, you might think I'm naive, but that doesn't mean I'm stupid. When I first heard the story of the Demon Lord Kretos from Rachel and Natasha, I found that the bits of how they explained, Demon Lord Kretos who could've been a saint or a sinner, was rather intriguing, it actually reminded me of you. So that's when I got a bit interested to learn more about this secret past that no one knows of."

"So when I was in the temple of the Goddess of Justice, I started reading their records. Since I was your friend the Goddess herself had allowed me access to records that not even the holy maiden can access and only the head priest has access to. I was able to read a lot of things. Also isn't it weird that the Goddess of Justice respects you so much? Even though you have always seemed to despise all deities... Well, that is just a side observation that I made so now back to what I read." 

"The secret war that no one remembers was a time when the human race had provoked the demon race over and over again, until finally the strongest demon lord of the time, the one who ruled over all the demons started fighting back. On this record another demon lord was mentioned aside from Kretos, it's Demonic Fox Tsukiko. Isn't that the new woman that acts as if she has known you for ages? She even introduced herself as she fought Nyarlom, she said verbatim she was the Demonic Fox Tsukiko." 

"..." Ren couldn't say anything and waited for Valdel to finish what he wanted to say. Still, he was rather impressed by how much information Valdel was able to gather. 

"The only difference of this Tsukiko from the Tsukiko on the records is that this one has eight tails instead of seven. Well, I guess if you have lived for more than ten thousand years, then you would probably grow another tail or two."

"Aside from her weird relationship with you, there's also the fact that the personality of Demon Lord Kretos matches yours perfectly. Well, there are a few minor differences but overall it would seem like you two would be a perfect match." 

"Demon Lord Kretos was not an evil entity but he was not a saint either. He saved those he wished to save and killed those that oppose him. Isn't that the same as what you said a while ago?... When my thoughts got this far, I had a sudden wild conclusion, Ren my childhood friend, my rival, and one of my final goals used to be the Demon Lord Kretos."

When Ren heard what Valdel said he continued to be surprised, the more Valdel said the more surprised Ren became. It would seem that he truly underestimated Valdel's abilities. As Ren was still in a state of stunned silence, Valdel continued on with what he was saying. 

"I didn't just have this thought now, I had it while I was reading the various records in the Temple's library. Yet at that time I had that thought I almost dismissed the ridiculous idea. That was when I read the most guarded secret of the Temple of the Goddess of Justice."

Valdel paused for a moment to calm himself down as he was getting too excited while he was explaining. After a few deep breaths, Valdel continued what he was saying. 

"It turns out the current Gods and Goddesses worshiped by the temples most of them used to be humans. They had gained the titles of deities as they had satisfied one of the three conditions. One, when the former owner of the title willingly passes it down to his or her successor. Second, when a person actually defeats a deity and takes the title by force. Third, and the hardest one is when one human is deified by the people. If a person is worshipped by a ton of people from their hearts, that person will ascend and turn into a deity." 

"The current Goddess of Justice, Tiditte was a former human that defeated the former God of Justice and took his title for herself. She did all this so that she can once again meet her beloved father." 

"There was a very detailed record of that father of hers but the name was obscured so I don't know it. That father of hers was a very legendary figure. He was summoned from another world to help the humans of that time. The humans of that time were in a crisis, as they were facing off against an evil God that wanted to enslave them all. On his journey to defeat the evil God, this heroic human had defeated monster after monster, Demi-Gods, and other powerful opponents, yet no matter how powerful an enemy he faced he always had a smile on his face. Doesn't that person sound familiar?" 

Ren was still impressed with how much Valdel was putting things together, but now more than that, he was also impressed that Valdel was able to remember all of these details from a record he only read once. 

"Well, it was written on the records that vicious smile on his face was fearsome it was as if he was trying to devour his enemies. That smile of his became a trauma for those that stood before him. Those that were lucky enough to survive a battle with this legendary figure were all extremely afraid of him. During this journey, he had met many people and saved many more, and then he met Tidditte an orphan child. Her parents had died at the hands of the evil God's minions. Feeling sorry for her plight and seeing her potential the legendary figure adopted her." 

"After adopting Tiditte her foster father trained her. She alongside the legendary figure fought side by side until the moment of the final battle. Her foster father left her and his companions and headed to battle on his own. The battle was won, but at a price, the legendary figure died alongside the evil God. It was said that he died with a satisfied expression on his face." 

"So why are you telling me this story?" Ren finally spoke. He could already guess why Valdel was doing all this, but he had nothing else to say at the moment. 

"It's just something I wanted to share, and also it's part of what I'm about to say next. If her father died then why is the Goddess of Justice trying to go beyond her human life span to once again meet her father? This is where it gets interesting." 

"After her father's death, Tidditte didn't want to admit that her overly powerful father could die in battle. He who had always smiled in the face of overwhelming odds would never fall on the battlefield. So Tidditte went to find the other Gods to see if there was a way to get her father back."

"The first God she went to was of course the one who governs death, the God of Death. She demanded the God of Death to release her father's soul, but the God of Death's answer was unexpected. The God of Death told her that her father's soul wasn't with him, he told her that he wasn't there. When Tidditte heard what the God of Death said the first thing that came to her mind was that her father faked his death somehow, but the God of Death denied this assumption. He then told her that her father's soul wasn't part of the normal cycle of death and reincarnation. His soul wasn't cleansed to be brought out anew, it was undergoing a different type of reincarnation that wasn't part of the workings of this world."

"When Tidditte heard this she remembered, that her father was not part of their world and was summoned from another. Yet the God of Death once again told her an unexpected answer. Her father wasn't part of any of the reincarnation cycles of any world, he was a special being. That was when he said that her father was an incarnation of the Strongest Mortal Soul." 

"The Strongest Mortal Soul was someone who possesses the soul of the first and greatest hero of humanity. The one who broke free from the shackles of the creator himself. His original incarnation was the strongest being that no one but the creator could defeat. After explaining that the God of Death gave her hope, he told her that her father would reincarnate in the future, and since his reincarnation cycle was different and he wasn't cleansed, his memories of his past lives should be stored somewhere in his soul. That was when Tidditte tried to find a way to extend her life to once again meet her beloved father."

"You know the rest she fought the weakest deity at the time which was the God of Justice. Well, overall what I wanted to tell you with this story is about the strongest mortal soul. The one who can defy destiny itself. So now that you know how much I know, I will ask you again Ren, what's your connection to Demon lord Kretos?"