How to Cook Undead Deliciously
"Ah... Aah..."
A moment of reverent awe escaped their lips unbidden. Amid the kingdom's knightly ranks, not a soul remained unmoved by the sight before them. This was undoubtedly the hand of god, come to deliver them from the jaws of death.
"The rumors... they were true...?"
"The Absolute truly hasn't abandoned us...!"
Doubt turned to certainty, and certainty blossomed into worship. In the face of millions of undead hordes, a heavenly figure descended leisurely from the skies. Some knights, forgetting their duties entirely, clasped their hands in prayer.
"Father God, look upon us with mercy...!"
"Aah...!"
And amid it all, Lisia and Herien confronted the descent of the constellation.
"That is..."
"Aah, my Lord God...! My love, my everything...!"
It was the first time Lisia laid eyes on Ron's possessed body, but she couldn't have cared less. Right there, wasn't the source of that meltingly warm divine power that made her whole body tingle?
"Aah..."
She mustered strength into her trembling knees, but the goofy grin creeping across her face was impossible to suppress. Like a pet greeting its owner home from a long deployment, Lisia simply overflowed with joy, her worship unending.
The Absolute is using Possession.
Herien was just as stunned. For a constellation to lower itself to human level for mere mortals was exceedingly rare. And for the mightiest of them all, the Absolute, to do so? It was unprecedented, something no one had ever witnessed.
Backed by an absurd torrent of divine power pouring from the heavens, the Absolute finally touched down on earth in human form.
"...A child?"
As his figure came into sharp focus, Herien sensed something off. He'd arrived not alone, but with company. Emerging from his arms like a doting little sister was a girl whose innocent face clashed utterly with the battlefield—a cute, wide-eyed child.
Her sky-blue hair shimmered faintly with divine power, and her eyes burned with unyielding resolve. The moment Herien saw her, an irresistible pull gripped her—not mere human affection, but a primal compulsion woven by fate.
"...The Hero?"
The next-generation Hero, whom she should have sought out and protected, stood side by side with the constellation. Questions like how or why were pointless now. The girl was already with the Absolute, blocking the undead horde's path.
Even if Herien couldn't comprehend it, her heart dimly grasped the meaning of it all.
"I sense intense divine power from that girl too."
Lisia added credence to Herien's suspicions.
"What in the world—"
"For even the Hero to receive Father God's Blessing... how sacred and beautiful!"
It was absurd. Yet it was unfolding right before Herien's eyes.
"..."
For a fleeting moment, the Absolute's gaze shifted from the undead to the forces Herien belonged to. That gentle look carried a charm that instilled profound relief and awe in all who met it.
"....."
As Herien fell captive to an indescribable sensation, 'Ron'—who had suddenly appeared and seized control of the atmosphere—secretly savored his satisfaction with the scene. He turned his eyes back to Eldritch's horde.
The ferocious mob, charging with glee, now faltered in confusion at this 'unexpected development.' They'd lost their momentum, hesitating at a safe distance.
-Grrr...
-Kek...
Instinct over reason had awakened them to the truth: stepping into that divine domain meant annihilation without a trace.
"You who defy providence, rising to defile death itself."
Ron addressed the undead, his tone laced with arrogance and majesty utterly unlike how he spoke to little Elly—a gaze looking down on lesser beings.
"Know the weight of your sins and return whence you came."
Having returned from death, they must burn back into it. That was the fate undead deserved.
Ron peered beyond the horde with transcendent vision, fixing on their leader.
Did it not have a jawbone before?
The changed appearance felt off, but his debut target's goal remained there.
"....."
Nice to see you.
Hesitation radiated from those hollow eye sockets. Should I retreat with the horde? Or bolt? It was probably agonizing over that right now. No matter how badass the monster, at its core it was just XP fodder hunted by players.
Ron led the little Hero, still clinging tightly to his hand, forward one step.
Should I teach her how to draw the holy sword myself?
That was the Sword Saintess's role, but for fan service, he'd handle it this once.
"Elly."
"Y-Yeah?"
Calling the pumped-up little Hero—buffed by his pre-applied Blessing—he met her eyes briefly.
"Wanna try pulling that holy sword again?"
"Yeah... but I don't know how..."
"I'll help you."
With that, Ron pressed his forehead to hers. Divine power flowed through the contact, automatically analyzing Elly's mana circuits.
Some authorities over the believer 'Elion' have been unlocked!
Among them, Ron focused on the holy sword, naturally. All his preparations had been to celebrate the Hero's birth, so he'd see it through to the end.
"Whoa...!"
Normally, she'd learn to wield it gradually under the Sword Saintess's guidance. But given the circumstances, he'd fast-track it for a killer experience. Call it a meridian-clearing session.
-Wooong...!
A bit of her inner divine power and mana stirred at his nudge, and the holy sword's power began shaping itself. The little Hero's widening eyes fixed on the miracle unfolding from her fingertips.
-Shh.
Her mana fused with Ron's divine power, forging a stronger holy sword.
Not bad.
Not quite on par with what the Child of the Stars had given him, but still top-tier.
"Now, face forward."
Ron placed the formed holy sword in Elly's hand and guided her onto the stage. Target: the trembling undead mob.
".....!"
Eldritch sensed the shift first, raising its arm in desperate resolve. All-or-nothing body-slam incoming.
Now that's the spirit.
Ron appreciated the aggression. Chasing cowards would've been a hassle.
Truth be told, from the moment he'd arrived, Ron cared nothing for the grand justice or providence he'd spouted.
That's for chumps with time to waste.
To players racing to hunt, grow the cult, and expand forces, such rhetoric was pure roleplay.
My XP sacks.
Knowing full well what came next, he felt zero guilt toward the charging undead—ugly corpses or not.
"The whole world will sing your praises."
"....."
-Thump.
Thump.
Praise. A heavy, complicated word for a child's mind. But right now, with the one she trusted, Elly was game for anything. Her pounding heart, full of pleasant excitement, backed that up.
Her slender, pale, beautiful hand gripped the holy sword's hilt extending from her own.
And even facing the creepy, goosebump-inducing monsters swarming to crush her and those behind her—
-Kieeeek!!
-Grraaahhh!!!
"Wanna try whatever you want, Elly?"
Thanks to the kind man smiling leisurely, as if he knew everything, waiting patiently for her choice, the little girl brimmed with confidence.
Her small, childish grip tightened on the holy sword. What followed was nothing short of miraculous.
The unfamiliar sensation felt as natural as something she'd always carried in her pocket.
I can do this.
Cheered from deep within, the next Hero 'Elly' swung the blade with all her might.
"Yah...!"
-Whoosh!
The elegant holy sword arced with her frail arm. Then—
-Fwoosh!
A massive chain reaction erupted at her will. With the wielder's permission, mana surged from Elly's core into the sword.
The ravenous blade devoured her mana, then unleashed destructive might and absolute power.
"....Ah."
Eldritch, its jawbone already gone and speechless, faced it head-on: a colossal tsunami, a natural disaster no one could imagine from a mere child.
"My constellation."
Eldritch cried out its constellation's name. But no answer came.
Not even as that impossible force erased a third of its forces, reaching Eldritch itself.
-....
Eldritch's constellation maintained utter silence, desperately trying to flee.
Hidden Monster, 'Fleshless Prophet of Death' has been annihilated!
Sudden Quest Cleared!
Constellation, 'Fleshless Prophet of Death' invasion successfully repelled!
The flow of a colossal star turns its attention to you.
Rewards acquired!