The ants also noticed him. They ignored him. Their orders are to simply defend the colony until the queen finishes her evolution. If he doesn't come forward then they won't attack. Someone from the giant army flew up to him and from the looks of her attire, she is one of the precious resources being kept away from the fighting.
The priest is garbed in yellow attire with the insignia of the sun god that signifies her to be a bishop of the church of the sun, two ranks beneath a cardinal that wears white robes. It also means that this priest is a mana entity, but she can fly because of the use of divine spells. The beating wings made up of fire attached to her back constructed with the runes of a Stigmata indicate how she is managing to fly.
"Welcome demigod of the sun. It is an honor to meet you." The priest bowed to him.
"I am glad to be here. Are you the representative of the church in charge of the affairs of the church here?"
She nodded vigorously, "Yes I am. You can call me TaS8cpNGGFbkk16D0R."
Helios looked at her closely for the first time since they met.
He asked her, "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Huh?"
"Your name. What's it supposed to mean?"
"It's the code of priesthood I was given when I became a priest."
Helios sighed. Then he asked, "What is your name then? I want your real name, not some codename."
"I am nameless and exist to serve my god. The codename that I was given the day I was ordained as a priest marks the acceptance of my faith and the start of my eternal servitude which is the rest of my life so it is my name."
Helios chose to salvage what can be called a waste of time so he changed the subject.
"What do I need to know about this quest? I am in a race after all." He said to the female priest.
The priest replied, "Not that I doubt you but this heroic Quest will need prudence. The hoard has to dwindle in size before you can foray into the ant mound."
Helios tore his gaze away from the wings of the priest to answer. "Your advice is noted. Still, I want to know the situation so that I can make my decision."
The priest nodded, "Very well then. Follow me."
Then she led the way to the battle headquarters at the back of the army. Helios observed the wings in action one more time. They were so life-like and realistic like the wings of a bird. They even have distinct feathers.
'This is clearly the work of Stelios.'
He has only seen this kind of realism in Stigmata made by the sun god. The wings are large but their rhythmic beating isn't how the giant is flying. They are imbued with a levitation spell through divine power. The priest simply determines her flight speed and direction by beating the wings.
'The difference between Stigmata and runes is so large.' he thought to himself.
A normal rune can create something lifeless like a weapon or an object but a Stigmata can create more by using the Divine will of a god. A Rune needs knowledge and it needs understanding to create. A Stigmata on the other hand is brought to life through the divine will of a god and is capable of creating the divine.
'More realistic or not. Mine is better.'
The difference becomes obvious in the runes on his body. The runes he created take advantage of his sun core to enhance his body while the stigmata that Stelios created simulate the sun core itself. Even so, he believes that his rune is better. His flying is just a side effect of his wrestling control of the force of gravity on him. Other runes can't do that because of the lack of imagination and the right knowledge to make it work. But his rune can do so much more than allow him to fly.
They soon reached the battle headquarters. They dropped down in a seemingly random place teeming with activity. Helios deactivated his runes and his yellow skin turned orange. His pure white eyes returned to their normal color with yellow-golden pupils and his flaming hair became blond again.
She complimented him after seeing him transform. "Your rune is fantastic."
"Thanks. How do I get in?" He pointed forward and asked.
It is an open location where giants enter and leave hurriedly. The only indication that it is a special location and not another place in the desert is the dome barrier that has been placed on the spot. It is just like the ones used to protect the city, it is transparent and if not for the slight distortion of light that occurs around it, you wouldn't know that there's a barrier here.
The priest offered him a badge. "You need this if you want to enter. You will get access as long as you carry it on you. Please return it after the battle."
Helios made a joke, "That's if I survive the quest."
The priest's previously smiling face became stern. She said to him with seriousness. "Please don't joke about that. You won't die. Your team will make sure you survive and earn the heroic feat."
The children of God are sacred. They represent their god in the mortal realm. To joke about their death is not allowed. It is blasphemy. Killing a demigod without having the backing of another god is a crime punishable by death. Even then, the god that instructed you to kill the demigod can give you up which will lead to your death.
"Yes, my team. Hak told me I'll have one. Where are they and what can they do for me?" He asked her as they passed through the barrier.
She led the way while they talked. "I have notified them of your presence. They will be here soon. They are a group of very talented battle priests from the sun church. They will take care of your healing needs and your protection."
Helios nodded as he listened to her. He doesn't plan to work with a team. But he isn't going to tell her that. He came here to get information about the colony and only that. He needs to know where the ant mound is if he is to target the queen. Acquiring some liabilities is not on his agenda.
They entered the headquarters to find it bustling with numerous activities. The headquarters is filled with soldiers moving about quickly. There isn't any building, only posts for certain activities. The barrier around the headquarters blocks out wind and sand, it is all the protection they need. Helios sighted a large portal created by a soldier. Most of the law fragments on the body of the soldier are used to create the portal. Reinforcements and supplies are coming in from the portal.
He isn't the only demigod here. He saw several demigods. They could sense each other as demigods because of the divine power within each other. Most of them are older than him by several hundred years but they are all mana entities.
There are no transcendent participants in this quest. It is a restriction placed by the gods to make the quest fair and more entertaining. A transcendent will be able to solve the problem too quickly. That will rob the gods of their fun.
The demigods nodded at him in a show of respect. He nodded at them in return. No one spoke to him or tried to ingratiate themselves with him but they know he isn't an ordinary demigod because he already has a heroic feat by killing a much older demigod when he was a child.
There's only one demigod that is hostile to him. She saw him and was about to rush forward to fight him but was being held back by some priests.
He smirked when he saw the demigod. He waved at her and shouted, "Hey Tanya, you're here too. I almost didn't notice you. It's not your fault. I just have problems seeing weak little shits that I can beat up any time I want."
She was ready to duke it out here and now but that changed when she heard him. Now she wants to kill him. Her face morphed from an angry scowl to a savage scowl. Her thirst for his blood could be seen in her eyes. The number of priests holding her down increased from 5 to 8. The priests are from her team and instead of protecting her from external threats, they are protecting her from the consequences of her internal desire for violence.
He smiled and shook his head in wonder when he saw her reaction. "So easy. How can they survive in this world as hot-heads?"
Tyke was also like that. He had said something about Tyke's intelligence and it set him off. It seems anger problems run in the family.