The Labyrinth of Heaven (7)

Bais gathered all the essences of life force that the sect had painstakingly collected until now. Star Silver, phoenix feathers, the essence of the moon, the heart of the earth, fruits of the World Tree, and more—all of them gleamed brilliantly beneath the gloomy light.

To obtain these, he had even requested cooperation from the priests of Arrogance. Now was the time to see the results of that effort. After taking a small, steadying breath, Bais raised his hand and pointed a finger at the essences of life force.

In the next instant, black divine power enveloped the essences and fused them into one. The pile of life essences, which had reached the height of a person, transformed into a massive vessel. A vessel existed to contain something. Therefore, creating a vessel meant it desired to hold something within.

———. A connection formed between Bais and a colossal entity dwelling in a place far from here. Power flowed into the vessel.

One of the seven aspects of the God of Samsara. Bais filled the vessel with as much greed as he desired, then carefully lifted the Holy Grail.

This Holy Grail was a fake. A fake, and completely empty. Of course, as an artifact created through a miracle by an 8th-circle archmage, the fake Holy Grail’s performance was exceptional. But a demigod was still a demigod. Compared to the real Holy Grail forged by a true god, it inevitably fell short in many ways.

To use this fake Holy Grail to its full potential, countless preparations were required. After all, only the vessel was magnificent while its interior remained hollow. One had to fill it with contents before it could be of any use.

Thus, a great deal of preparation was needed to wield the fake Holy Grail as desired. Yet in that moment, Bais had a thought: If so much effort was required anyway, why not redirect that effort in a different direction?

Greed wrapped around the fake Holy Grail.

Crack.

The fake Holy Grail split apart. Like images reflected in a kaleidoscope, the fake Holy Grail multiplied into countless versions. The process repeated endlessly.

The worlds reflected in the kaleidoscope were truly diverse. In one world, Bais stood at the altar offering the fake Holy Grail just as he did now. In another, a priest of Greed whom he had killed long ago offered it instead. In yet another, an unfamiliar woman placed the fake Holy Grail upon the altar.

This world changes according to choice. A person’s life shifts depending on the choices they make, and the same holds true for the world itself. Countless worlds that branch from every decision. Parallel worlds.

Just now, Bais had activated a holy technique that allowed him to explore those parallel worlds.

Different people in different ways offered the fake Holy Grail at the altar. Bais continued to watch them all. None of them had yet shown him what he wanted.

The world Bais sought was simple. He didn’t know what repeated choices or what repeated miracles had led to its ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠existence, but within infinite possibility, such a parallel world must surely exist.

A parallel world where the ‘real’ Holy Grail still remained.

Rather than expending effort to make use of a fake Holy Grail, it would be better to use that same effort to obtain the real one. That was the conclusion Bais had reached after devising this plan and devising the methodology to achieve it.

Once he discovered a parallel world where the real Holy Grail existed, the rest would be easy. Because all things in ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠every world belonged to Greed. Items from parallel worlds were no exception.

The amount of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠life essence Bais had gathered for this exploration was enormous. He could have used those gathered essences to fill the fake Holy Grail with power, but he chose not to. That was only natural. This was to be the vessel where his god would descend. Preparing the finest offering possible was the duty of a believer.

It would be soon. Soon, the avatar of Greed would descend upon this land. Those who had experienced it firsthand knew better than anyone what that meant.

Bais’s face twisted into an expression of ecstasy before he slowly turned his body.

Kwaaaaang—!

An explosion echoed from afar. Someone was launching an assault.

“The Genesis Sect, I presume,” Bais murmured quietly, returning his body to its original position. He licked his lips as he watched the kaleidoscope that had already split into dozens of reflections.

It was a joyous day. So please, he hoped they wouldn’t ruin the mood.

The abandoned fortress occupied by the priests of Greed possessed walls far thicker than the word “abandoned” would suggest. It had not been deserted due to any flaw in its defensive capabilities.

The reason for its abandonment was simply its location deep in the mountains, which made transportation difficult, and the fact that over time such a remote fortress had become unnecessary. Its defensive strength, however, remained supreme. Conquering a fortress like this through normal means was extremely difficult.

Under ordinary circumstances, they would have resorted to tricks or a prolonged siege. But Leon had no time for such things now. Therefore, this would be a frontal assault.

Gugugung.

A massive stone spear floated in the air. The rock spear, summoned from the magic circle that Muran had prepared by pouring in a fortune, locked onto its target and tore through the sky at blinding speed.

Kwaaaaak!

The castle gate shattered into pieces. Leon charged through the broken gate and entered the fortress.

Holy techniques poured down like rain. The priests of the Evil God, who filled the fortress, each reproduced sacred relics in their own way and hurled them forward. Facing them, Leon calmly raised his sword.

Every holy technique that touched the sword Leon swung veered from its original trajectory. With fluid grace, Leon suppressed their flow and dashed straight ahead.

At the same time, a flaming bullet shot from Jerry’s hand. The magic bullet, created through his unique magic Consistency, embedded itself in the air and instantly distorted the surrounding space. The holy techniques blocked by the distortion field exploded in midair.

Beneath the brilliant explosions, Leon ran alongside Hible and shouted.

“Over there!”

“You’ve always had sharp senses, Leon.”

Following the source of the energy that pricked at his sixth sense like a needle, Leon raced deeper inside. Knights of the Evil God blocked his path. Without slowing his speed, Leon moved his sword at imperceptible velocity, striking their openings.

The Evil God’s knights collapsed with holes punched through their throats. Leaping over their bodies, Leon wrapped his blade in divine power.

Gugugugung!

The stone golem’s fist collided with Leon’s sword. A golem—clearly a product of magic. Yet Leon showed no surprise. The reason the priests of Greed used magic was obvious.

‘Magic also belongs to us.’ That was surely their logic.

Leon twisted his sword, shifting the golem’s center of gravity. Using the principle of four ounces deflecting a thousand pounds, the golem toppled over. Leon ran up its arm and shattered the core located in its head.

The golem’s glowing red eyes turned black. Leon stepped on the now-motionless golem and leaped into the air, then sliced an enemy in half—shield and all—using the momentum of his descent.

“Everyone, worship the Great One!”

At someone’s shout among the Evil God’s priests, pillars of black light slammed down in several places. Descent. A holy technique that went beyond merely reproducing sacred relics with divine power and instead borrowed them directly. It was a realm Leon had not yet reached.

The priests of the Evil God, each wielding their own sacred relics, launched even more powerful attacks.

“Descent.”

Beside him, Hible also received a sacred relic from the God of Creation. Though it was merely a replica and not the genuine article, Hible’s power was amplified several times over.

Raising a shield embossed with beautiful patterns, Hible roared.

“Break through!”

Following Hible’s command, the paladins—including Leon—charged forward. The priests of the Evil God naturally refused to let them pass and unleashed powerful attacks, but every single one was sucked into Hible’s shield.

A gap had opened. Leon aimed for that fleeting opening and tried to rush into the inner citadel, which he presumed to be the enemy’s main base.

However, his attempt was blocked by the flaming fist of a giant.

To think they would even command corrupted elementals. It was truly a combat style befitting those who served Greed.

The corrupted elemental spewed flames from its mouth. Faced with such a menacing sight, Leon narrowed his eyes. The corrupted elemental was dangerous, but what worried him more was the swarm of Evil God priests closing in.

This was bad. If things continued this way, the subjugation of the Evil God’s sect would end in failure. And that would mean he could not save Ruina.

Leon fell into brief thought.

Ruina. A human who loved magic more than anything, a human obsessed with it. The human who had saved him. A human who desired fairness, practiced fairness, and demanded a fair price. The human who had carried a lantern and guided him this far like a goddess from myth. Now, his closest friend.

To think he might fail to save such a person. For someone like that to claim he upheld justice would be a contradiction in itself.

Leon dropped the sword he was holding to the ground. Then he extended his now-empty hand forward and prayed with desperate sincerity.

I don’t need anything else. Didn’t I tell you? Please grant me the strength to protect what is precious to me.

A holy sword forged by gathering starlight descended upon the world. Though it was a replica diluted from the original that could evaporate mountains, it didn’t matter. This was enough to protect what was precious.

Following the trajectory Leon drew, a pure white line swept across the world. The corrupted elemental, split cleanly in half, collapsed at an angle. The priests of the Evil God standing behind it suffered the same fate. They, too, collapsed at an angle.

With the path now wide open, Leon stomped hard on the ground. Entering the inner citadel, he lightly cut down the enemies blocking his way and advanced deeper, ever deeper. Following the needle that pricked at his sixth sense. Until he met the face he both welcomed and wanted to crush.

Before the kaleidoscope that filled the air with thousands of fractured reflections, Bais turned his body. Bais smiled.

“You managed to escape after all. Did the Labyrinth of Greed affect you more weakly than I expected?”

Leon did not answer. Instead, he raised his holy sword.

He would kill Bais. Then he would save Ruina.

From the very beginning, Leon had thought of nothing else.