116. Give Me Back My Intelligence
116. Give Me Back My Intelligence
The goddess's advent
All manner of wickedness vanished, and all that remained in that place was pure 'holiness'.
The followers, having regained their freedom from the temptations of vain creatures, immediately worshipped and revered their great light.
"Athena....!"
"Athena is in this place...!"
They bowed their heads and worshipped
They lowered their bodies and revered
They upheld the being before their eyes with all their body and soul.
A being that, simply by existing, made you want to believe, made you want to give everything.
[Haa.....]
The very first words spoken by that being of 'holiness', that being of 'faith', were
[To think that those fish-fuckers are my followers....]
"""".............""""
It was a statement no one could deny.
****************
[I wished for you to be wise.]
The goddess spoke.
[But I wished for you to be wise not with 'human wisdom', but with 'my wisdom'.]
Not human wisdom, but divine wisdom.
She wanted them to receive 'my wisdom', not the wisdom you all squeezed out, and become wise.
But why was it that humans
Why was it like this
[You wanted to be wise on your own, you wished to be wise on your own, and you deluded yourselves into thinking you had become wise on your own, and so this mess occurred...]
"Ah...aaaaah....!"
"We're sorry! We're so sorryyyyy!!!"
"Oh, Goddess Athena-isiyeooooo!!!"
Her eyes were cold.
They were eyes that looked at her followers not as followers, but as bugs.
[Since when did my will become 'discrimination'?]
[Since when did my will become 'hatred'?]
[Since when did my will become 'selection'?]
[I have──not once, not ever, told you that 'worthless nonsense' was wisdom.]
Athena spoke.
She let out the words trapped inside.
[If someone who could be of strength to you all came, it would be proper to embrace them with all your might.]
[But to obstruct, discriminate, hate, and try to drive them out with all your best?]
[On top of that, to steal their achievements and use them in vain to raise my name high?]
[Receiving such a shoddy name, such shoddy honor, such holiness only brings feelings of displeasure.]
"Our lord.....!"
"Goddess Athena, oh my goodness...!"
"We... what have we done....!"
The followers shed tears and repented.
[Ha, now they're addicted to holiness...
...This is why I didn't want to do an advent.]
No, to be precise, they were followers 'pretending to repent'.
Athena let out a long sigh as she looked at those 'humans'.
[I'm sure it would have been the same if the one standing here was Ares and not me. Because for them, there isn't even a speck of 'faith' towards me.]
"That's not true... it's not true!"
"We believe, we believe in you, Athena!"
[Just, shut up.]
If even a grain of faith remained, such an incident would not have occurred.
That forming a guild and uniting people ended up in this mess, this state.
[I thought I had learned my lesson sufficiently from Athena....]
The name of the Goddess of Wisdom would weep.
Athena blocked the followers' mouths with holiness.
Her tone was as if she could no longer bother to listen.
Simultaneously, her gaze turned solely towards one person.
[In contrast, only one child prayed towards me... Sure enough, you are my child.]
"A...thena...."
Favor towards Minerva.
That was favor towards a human who thirsted for 'wisdom directed at the god', not just trying to believe in their own wisdom.
Originally, faith began with discarding oneself.
In that respect, Minerva prayed solely towards Athena in her final moment.
Not her own wisdom, not Chrono's wisdom, but a prayer merely wishing for the god's wisdom.
At the moment everyone was drowning in confusion, what was the look in Athena's eyes as she gazed at even a single one of her remaining followers?
[Do you wish for my wisdom?]
"....Yes. I wish for Athena's wisdom."
[Then ask. Ask towards the god, towards me.]
A privilege possessed only by humans who do not trust their own measly wisdom, but merely lean everything on the god.
At this, Minerva shouted with all her sincerity.
"I want victory... wisdom for victory!"
[Wisdom for victory, is it.]
Victory.
Wisdom for victory on the battlefield.
At the sight of the follower, at the action of the apostle, who asked for a wisdom she was 'inevitably compelled to answer',
Athena smiled gently and spoke.
[That, is already within you.]
"Pardon....?"
[To be precise──it depends on you, Chrono.]
"....Chrono...?"
Minerva turned her head towards Chrono.
Simultaneously, the gazes of all the guild members followed Minerva towards Chrono.
"....What?"
The one who was actually singled out was so dumbfounded it was absurd, but
[Are you pretending not to know while knowing, or is it that you really don't know? It seems you probably know but don't want to admit it.]
"............"
A sarcastic tone.
Then Athena asked Chrono.
[Is suffering perhaps your taste?]
"...What are you trying to say?"
[If it's your taste, I'll try to satisfy it by asking this child here, so let's go 'wisely' for now.]
"So what are you trying to say?!!"
"Athena?!!"
The two were appalled.
Athena continued as if she didn't care about that.
[Frankly, even sweet potatoes become frustrating and tiresome if you keep eating them.]
Athena pointed at Chrono.
[Chrono, I shall grant you the 'wisdom' to overcome this battlefield.]
"!......."
Wisdom, she said.
What could it be?
Would it be like in the original, 'Overcome it with love' or something?
If it was, there was no answer.
But since she was a goddess, I looked at Athena with a sliver of expectation.
[Do not obsess over 'intelligence'.]
"......?"
[You think too much.]
"............."
What was she saying.
As I stared blankly at Athena, she sighed as if she couldn't help it.
[Having many delusions and deep doubts is a human trait, and on top of that you were even betrayed by the main god you served, so it's not that I can't understand that feeling.]
".......Ah."
Could she be talking about 'that'?
'Well... that's true.'
If I just accepted it and used it, I could end things easily, smoothly.
'But....'
What if I got betrayed again doing that?
What if I was abandoned again at a critical juncture?
What if I ended up dying in the end?
The price for trust had been brutal.
The pain of betrayal was excruciatingly bitter.
And I didn't want to become a madman who stuck his hand into the tiger's mouth just to feel that pain again.
[However, you have become a body that can no longer trust even if you wanted to. The wound of being betrayed by trust is that deep.]
"...Is there no other method besides 'that'?"
[Even if there were, it would not be a wisdom applicable to 'you'.]
"Ha."
In short, it meant I couldn't use the same method as the original Protagonist.
That and the current situation were fundamentally different.
'Is there no choice.'
Did I really have to do it?
'....No.'
Not yet, not yet.
It would be a little tough,
No, a lot tough, impossibly tough but....
"I still have....a way left."
I still had a way to resist.
Coincidentally, the brainwashing on most of the guild members had been released.
So if I sent them all outside and stayed in this place alone...
...If I didn't need to worry about my surroundings, if only I remained, there was hopeful possibility.
[Do you think a miracle like the one with the troll will occur again?]
"....It's not impossible. On the contrary, it's more possible than back then."
My stats had doubled due to the title effect.
If I used [Time of Decisive Battle] on top of that, it would double again.
Enough skills and enough experience.
If combined with equipment of infinite durability via Agape, it wasn't a fight I couldn't try at all.
'Of course, the Queen's charm bothers me but...'
Still, couldn't I somehow manage that part with guts?
"Anyway.... I'm used to unfairness."
Just as I was about to stand up again, grabbing the pillar in my heart,
[So, didn't I tell you?]
"Huh...?"
Athena came right up before my eyes.
[Because sweet potatoes are tiresome now.]
"............."
She reached her hand out towards me.
Towards me?
No.
[Therefore, I shall bestow 'wisdom' upon you.]
"....Embarrassment. Mai, how did she find you?"
"Mai....?"
Towards Mai, who had been following silently holding her breath all this time.
[Did you think you could evade the eyes of a god?]
"Was hidden beyond time. Finding was nearly impossible."
[Even so, that too was an event caused by 'holiness'. If one can feel 'holiness', it is not impossible.]
"....Mai, she's still growing."
A look that said she would absolutely not be caught later.
At this, Athena spoke.
[Then allow me to help with that growth.]
"...Huh?"
A look asking what she meant.
Soon, holiness gathered fully upon Athena's hand and began to gradually be sucked into Mai's body.
"Ah, ah? Ah.... aaaaah??"
"Mai....?"
A yellow light enveloped Mai's entire body.
The 'holiness' began to gradually permeate into Mai's body.
That soon caused rapid growth in Mai's physical body.
[Holiness gathered in the tree and well-aged. I permit it, so receive it with your body.]
"Aaaaaaack....!!!"
[The trait of 'Summoned Creature: Pegasus' evolves.]
['Trait: Virtuous Mother' evolves into 'Trait: Country-Toppling Beauty'.]
Mai's body grew larger.
The body that was a young girl matured.
Longer,
Larger,
Her previously young form vanished somewhere.
".....Huh?"
The appearance of a beauty before my eyes made my mind go hazy.
".....???"
I was more or less dazed.
As an aside,
['Trait: Country-Toppling Beauty' activated.]
[The intelligence of 'Target: Chrono' is reduced by 1/2.]
"Ah shit."
What the hell.
Give me back my intelligence.