Chapter 45
Chapter 45
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 45
Chapter Title: Angel of the Night
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The continent is home to so many gods. During my adventures with Yurinel, I came to realize that gods aren't all that distant from us humans.
From guardian deities who protect a single village, to mountain spirits watching over peaks revered as holy mountains, to the myriad local deities worshipped by various regions and races. Wherever there is faith, there is divinity.
Of course, the most populous race on the continent is us humans, and the five chief gods—whom the majority of humans revere—serve as stewards ruling over all other divinities, holding the highest positions among the gods.
The three goddesses often referred to as the Triad, who are essentially the queen of the gods.
And then the evil god and celestial god, so powerful that even they cannot command them.
All five of these are anthropic gods who watch over humanity. They won't refuse faith from other races like beastkin, but they won't step forward first to bestow blessings upon them either.
‘Ancient Gods...’
That was why my mind grew more tangled the more Viscount Leighton and Her Highness explained.
The descriptions I heard sounded so much like my Lord.
I'd long harbored a vague sense that my Lord was somehow different from other gods. Though I'd never met grand figures like the Triad, I'd faced off against a few sinister deities like plague gods or death gods in remote areas.
Gods closer to malevolent spirits than true divinities, who gained their power through gruesome methods like human sacrifice. Calamity gods or pestilence gods—beings that must be exorcised.
Even if they were weaker than human powerhouses in raw strength, they demanded special caution precisely because they were gods. In some ways, they were trickier opponents than demon lords, and we'd only encountered one such entity ourselves.
In any case, they all shared a common trait: they craved faith and sustenance. They desired belief directed at them in whatever form it took. This was a stark contrast to my Lord's indifference toward faith.
If my Lord truly was an Ancient God—the very law of this universe incarnate—then it made sense that He wouldn't need human faith, and that He could bestow divinity upon me alone. After all, His power wouldn't stem from faith, but from Himself.
But was that really the case?
“As I mentioned earlier, we absolutely must inquire about this matter in earnest. If the one you serve is truly an Ancient God, then I would pay any price to make contact with the entity you serve.”
Viscount Leighton asked me again, unable to hide his impatience, but I couldn't help questioning myself either. Was my Lord the law of this universe?
A law exists without intent or will—simply by being. Was my Lord such a being? No matter how I thought about it, no.
He might seem to maintain absolute neutrality at a glance, but in truth, He helped many through me. Between this world and us humans, He took our side.
Of course, there's nothing more pointless than trying to pin down who He is.
I shook my head. My Lord might be an Ancient God, or He might not.
What mattered wasn't that, but whether I could help these people with His power. He would probably answer if I asked about something like that.
“Is that so...”
Viscount Leighton seemed to misinterpret my reaction, looking at me with eyes still heavy with doubt. I explained: I didn't know who my Lord was or why He helped us.
He hadn't told me, and I hadn't asked. If it were truly necessary, He would have informed me first. Or an angel would have delivered a message as His herald.
“I can at least convey your request to my Lord. If what you wish to ask Him is freedom from the curse of the sun, then I will pass it along.”
Viscount Leighton, who had shown no reaction as if he thought I was speaking idly, finally widened his eyes and stared at me when I clasped my hands together and began to pray.
“Um, if you're truly praying, could I ask one more favor?”
Right now? In the middle of prayer?
Ah... just tell me. Quickly, if possible.
Several angels were passing by right in front of me at the moment.
“Oh, of course, I have no complaints about the duke. Don't misunderstand? He's a good man. Even if I don't understand him sometimes, it's hard to find a superior like him.”
Stick to the point, please. Three sentences max, quickly.
“But sometimes, just very occasionally, when working, there are times I wish for autonomy in my duties. And times I wish for privacy too.”
“We're bound from birth by the power of dominion, so it's hard. Could I ask if the priestess's Lord might hear this workplace grievance of ours?”
Don't beat around the bush like that! I have no idea what you're saying.
I'll relay it word-for-word exactly as is, but if my Lord ignores it, that's not my fault. Just remember I did my part...
Clunk.
How long had it been since I began praying? The carriage's pace gradually slowed, then came to a complete stop. Viscount Leighton frowned and shouted toward the coachman.
“Why have we stopped suddenly? Is there an obstacle ahead?”
“Th-these damn horses suddenly won't listen! Hey, you brats. Go. Forward, I said. Hey, you, why are you staring at the sky for no reason? The sky... th-the sky...?! Aaaah?!”
We all burst out of the carriage door at the sudden scream, without any thought of who went first. Checking the pulse of the fainted coachman on his seat, I felt his heart beating steadily.
Fortunately, it seemed he had merely passed out. Meanwhile, the four horses pulling the carriage stood silently gazing at the sky, without a hint of disturbance.
“The sky? What's in the sky...”
I saw Viscount Leighton's face turn pale in an instant as he looked up.
He staggered as if beholding something beyond his capacity to endure. Even after barely steadying himself, his legs trembled uncontrollably. He seemed to try speaking, but no voice came—only his finger jabbing wildly at the sky.
That composed man, that leisurely man,
had lost all composure, gripped by terror at whatever loomed in the heavens.
“Wh-what is... this...”
Her Highness boldly gazed at the sky, then froze stiff.
Only after a moment could she continue speaking, but her words came out severely stuttered. She tried to draw her sword, but her trembling hand slipped off the hilt several times. Suddenly, something coiled around my leg and hugged it tightly.
Roca's tail wrapped around my leg, quivering.
Roca glared at the sky with the fierce scowl of a growling dog, but I could tell she was scared. Her ears shaking violently were proof enough.
“I-I'll... pr-pro... tect...”
Who was protecting whom?
The one up there was probably someone I knew.
Thinking that, I lifted my head. Sure enough, it was a familiar face.
The sky hadn't changed a bit. The vast night sky stretched from horizon to horizon.
But with just a slightly closer look,
one could see there was no moon, no clouds in that night sky. That heaven filled only with stars and the Milky Way wasn't our sky at all.
A colossal giant of night towered over us, blanketing the entire sky, gazing down upon us.
— Apostle. The Lord has received the prayer you offered.
Another of my Lord's kin who serves Him.
The Angel of the Night had come to deliver the Lord's missive to me.
The most powerful miracle I possessed, 'Night the Milky Way Blooms,' had been bestowed upon me by this angel once before—this was our second meeting. Long ago, this angel had startled me by appearing suddenly while I stood watch.
I hadn't expected to see this angel again like this.
The entrance was as dramatic as ever. Unlike other angels, this one manifested through the night sky itself.
— First, know that the Lord has rejected one of your two requests.
Yes. Even I thought the second request was rejectable.
I hadn't even grasped what was being asked during the prayer.
— The Lord's response to the first request is as follows.
But that was just my thought,
and my Lord's will proved beyond my small mind's comprehension.
— This matter is within your own power, so rely not upon Me. Such is the Lord's will. Apostle, the Lord judges that you already possess the capacity to resolve this issue.
In truth, the prayer He had granted was the second one—even I hadn't understood what it meant.
— The Lord's will regarding your second prayer is this: You who crave freedom. If you intend to respect others' freedom as much as your own, then I shall gladly grant you all freedom.
Viscount Leighton's expression changed dramatically. He wore a complicated look, then clamped his mouth shut.
— Apostle. The Lord has granted you a new miracle. Whether to use it or not is yours to decide.
Miracle, Bell of Commandments.
It rings once to open the light. Twice to enlighten the living.
Thrice to bring freedom. A miraculous bell that shatters any yoke of bondage.
The power of the new miracle settled within me.
...Though why it did, even I didn't know.
Shhh.
The giant's body, vast as the night sky, began crumbling like a mirage. It truly had no physical form—likely a mere illusion or projection to manifest presence briefly. With its task complete, it now vanished.
Before vanishing and after, the night sky remained black and dark.
As if nothing had changed. As if nothing had happened.
Yet it was no mere illusion—that much was certain. Not only we four, but the coachman and horses had seen it too.
— Apostle. At times, reflect upon yourself before beseeching the Lord. You are His appointed agent upon this land, capable of far more than you believe.
Having conveyed the angel's final words, I offered thanks, then finally looked around.
Everyone stared at me with dazed expressions. As I quietly offered a prayer of gratitude, Viscount Leighton hesitantly spoke.
“Priestess.”
His voice trembled for some reason.
“What in the world... are you serving...?”
Haha.
I don't know either.
*****
How joyful had that woman been in that brief moment when hope appeared?
But now, she regretted her past like mad. Guilt welled up, whispering as if alive. As light began to appear, shadows invisible in the darkness came into view.
You're hoping only your son recovers after shoving all those children into hell? It felt like someone was whispering right in her ear. No, it wasn't "like"—it was actually happening.
No hallucination, no illusion. It was truly whispering. All she could do was beg forgiveness for her wrongs.
“I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I'm truly sorry...”
Duke Schumira had ordered the culling of deformed offspring, and she and her husband had not refused.
When lesser vampires bore deformed children, who was it that snatched them from their parents' arms and abandoned them in the mountains? Who suppressed the wailing parents with the power of dominion?
Only after bearing her own deformed child did she glimpse their pain. She understood the anguish of parents forced to eternal parting from a newborn. Memories flooded back vividly: driving them into hell, burying the screaming infants in the mountains.
Selfishly, she didn't want her own son to suffer that fate.
Clutching her son, she wept silently. Careful not to let the sobs reach his ears.
Humans lean on gods in such times, but vampires have no such refuge. No god hears their prayers; they can rely only on themselves.
Knock knock.
The knocking neither grew louder nor softer—it persisted at the same steady rhythm.
No, now it came from right before her. Whatever had knocked at the front door earlier was now at her closed bedroom door, rapping politely. One thing was certain.
It was definitely no vampire. No blood resonance could be felt.
— Aren't you going to welcome us?
As Laila realized this and fell into near-panic,
the knocking stopped, and a voice came from beyond the door. One voice, yet not one.
— Back then too. And now?
It felt like countless infants cooed toward her. The voices continued endlessly. Only then did she understand what had come for her.
“It’s you...”
Karma had come for her, borrowing the guise of gods.
Knock knock. The sound now echoed inside her head. Something perched atop her, rapping on her skull. Tears of blood flowed against her will, her mind numbing with terror.
‘Death god...’
A sinister breed that brings calamity.
Another form of anthropic god, born not of faith but of malice consumed as sustenance.
A fundamental calamity of intelligent beings, more loathed and feared by all faiths—including the Triad Church—than even demons. How, when had such a thing been born?
No point in asking.
What will happen, will happen.
‘The god... we created.’
In her terror, clutching her child tightly, the woman finally noticed the infant's eyes open, gazing at her. Those eyes were no longer vacant. It was no longer a vampire.
“Mommy.”
Seeing it babble, Laila screamed and dropped the child.
But it landed lightly on two feet and toddled toward her. Whatever dwelled within the infant approached slowly.
“Why did you kill us?”
The lights went out, plunging the room into darkness.
In the blackness, only the death god's eyes glowed serenely.
* * *