The Touch of the Evil God (2)

Yeomyeong clutched his right arm, which had been pierced by a bullet. The warhead was embedded deep in his forearm. Having consumed a fair share of recovery-type magic stones, the wound would heal before long, but a temporary drop in his combat effectiveness was unavoidable.

'I cannot win like this.'

Yeomyeong looked up at the blindfolded girl. A blonde girl wearing a set of black priestess robes that looked like they had been scavenged from some saintess cosplay shop. Judging by her appearance alone, she seemed fragile enough to be subdued with bare hands. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Yet, she was inexplicably strong. No, "strong" might not even be the right word. The sensation of having his every move read, dismantled, and analyzed could not be measured by mere combat power. Yeomyeong felt a fundamental difference in their "status." Whether it was the girl's own ability or something else entirely, he was certain of one thing: he could never win in his current state.

'But... it's not like I'm completely out of options.'

The warrior still had a trump card up his sleeve. With a trembling right hand, Yeomyeong fumbled through his pocket. Soon, his fingers brushed against a small stone. It was a dark red crystal, about the size of a single finger joint. A magic stone—an anomaly occasionally found where an Awakened or a mutated beast had died. It was a crystallized fragment, born when the unidentified energy from beyond the Gate, accumulated in the body at the moment of Awakening, reacted with the radiation built up inside the host.

'With this...'

To an ordinary person, a magic stone was nothing more than a curiously colored pebble, used at best as a small, radioactive battery. But for Yeomyeong, it was different. His Awakened ability gave meaning to these mere remnants of the dead. His ability, which he had arbitrarily named Acquisition, was both an innate talent and his Awakened power. It allowed him to instantly master any form of martial art, language, or skill. Furthermore, by orally ingesting a magic stone, he could absorb and stack the abilities of the deceased Awakened within his own body.

Of course, it was not without its limitations. An acquired ability was most potent upon initial absorption and would gradually dissipate over time. Ultimately, only about ten percent of the original power would permanently integrate into his body. Moreover, if he overused an acquired ability before fully assimilating it, it would place an immense strain on his entire system. The magic stone currently in Yeomyeong's hand belonged to a physical enhancement Awakened who had ruled Seoul before the establishment of the Haninhae. While it would grant him overwhelming physical capabilities for a short duration, the backlash would inevitably begin within ten minutes at most.

'Once those ten minutes are up, it's a guaranteed defeat. But doing nothing will lead to the same result. In that case, I might as well—'

Yeomyeong stared at the girl who had been shooting at him. Her physical capabilities themselves were not particularly outstanding. While superior to an ordinary girl her age, a quantitative comparison showed she was actually slower than the cultists he had fought earlier. Her ability to dodge every attack and even counter was solely due to a mind-boggling foresight that read his moves three steps ahead. The body executing those movements was still that of a fragile girl. Her stamina was not infinite. Though she put on a calm front, the warrior's eyes did not miss the cold sweat drenching her body. If he could hold out for just ten minutes. If heaven favored him and allowed him to land even a single blow. However narrow and precarious the margin, he might actually win.

'Ha. How long has it been since I've felt this uncertain of victory?'

Letting out a silent, self-deprecating chuckle, Yeomyeong moved his hand. He raised his right hand, bringing the dark red magic stone pinched between his fingers toward his mouth like a small snack. But just as the warrior was about to crush and swallow the stone—

"Captain! The kids you mentioned! We've rescued them all!"

A familiar voice echoed from a short distance away from the battlefield. Both Yeomyeong and the girl turned their heads simultaneously. The voice belonged to a subordinate from the Special Suppression Team under Yeomyeong's command. Seeing the figure slung over the man's back, Yeomyeong instantly understood what had happened. While the cult's main forces were entirely focused on him, his team had stealthily infiltrated the cult's ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠underground bunker and secured their target.

"This is the one you talked about, right?!"

The subordinate hoisted up the figure on his back. It was a small, unconscious girl who seemed to have fainted. Yeomyeong recognized her face instantly. The poor young girl who had been kidnapped and brainwashed by the cult, introducing herself as "The Tested One." She was the very child Yeomyeong had briefly spoken with during his reconnaissance mission a few days ago.

"I knew it! We'll head back to base immediately, then!"

Sensing Yeomyeong's silent approval, the subordinate spun around. He sprinted, quickly making his escape from the cult's grounds. The Saintess reacted instantly, pivoting on her heel to give chase. Yeomyeong did not miss that split second.

*Tap!* The moment Yeomyeong took a single step forward, the Saintess froze in her tracks. Had she kept moving, his moon blade would have cleaved her. Even in a split-second transition, she refused to leave an opening. It was as admirable as it was fortunate. For even as the two of them locked eyes in this tense standoff, Yeomyeong's team members were drawing further and further away.

"We will be taking the individuals ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠illegally kidnapped by your cult. I advise you not to resist," Yeomyeong said.

The same dance repeated several more times. If the girl took a step, the warrior took a step. The Saintess absolutely refused to enter his line of fire. That caution kept her feet bound to the spot. After a few minutes had passed, confident that she could no longer catch up to his team, Yeomyeong slowly began to back away. Naturally, she raised her rifle. The muzzle aligned perfectly with his heart. By all indications, this would be the final blow. He only needed to deal with this last shot.

'...Focus.'

Sensing the end was near, Yeomyeong steadied his breathing. He focused his mind and gripped the hilt of his sword resting in its scabbard. It was impossible to react to a bullet after it was fired. But if he predicted the trajectory based on the muzzle's direction, he could react to the finger pulling the trigger.

'Now!'

*Bang!* Yeomyeong drew his sword even before the sound of the gunshot could register. He unleashed a technique he had practiced for years. It was one of the secret martial arts often spoken of by Shin Noin, the old man who had raised him in his youth. A technique that converted the friction of the blade sliding out of its scabbard directly into kinetic energy, achieving the absolute limit of speed.

*Clang!* The accelerated tip of his blade cleanly sliced the bullet in half. A sharp vibration rippled up to his fingertips as the split warhead fell harmlessly to the ground. Having successfully executed the technique, Yeomyeong looked up. Watching the girl calmly switch her rifle's selector lever to full-auto, he spoke rapidly.

"With that, I shall conclude our first eviction enforcement here."

With those words, Yeomyeong began to retreat backward. Even backing away was a technique. His highly mastered skill allowed him to move backward at an unbelievable speed. Weaving left and right to dodge the muzzle tracking him, Yeomyeong successfully escaped the cult's headquarters—carrying with him a completely unexpected outcome of half-success and half-failure.

Once Yeomyeong, who had fled in that bizarre posture while dodging the Evil God's gift, had completely vanished, Seraphina collapsed to the ground, overwhelmed by a sudden wave of exhaustion.

"Ow... Ugh... Ah...!"

Her entire body throbbed. She had somehow managed to endure through sheer willpower during the battle, but now her muscles ached so intensely that even standing was impossible. It was the price of recklessly channeling mana in a world where the ambient mana density was practically nonexistent.

Her opponent was a warrior who possessed martial prowess far superior to anyone she had ever encountered. Of course, the great Evil God had easily read his movements, telling her what attack was coming three or four steps in advance, as if peering into the future. Yet, Seraphina's fragile body could barely keep up with those divine instructions. She only had to follow the gaze of the Evil God, which felt far more intense and precise than usual, but even that proved to be an immense struggle.

Thus, the girl had resorted to using mana. She channeled the biological mana that any native of the Continent stored within their mana heart, distributing it throughout her body. Mana was the raw material that manifested will into reality. In accordance with Seraphina's intent, the mana reinforced her physical form. Although she had never received proper training as a warrior, limiting the extent of her physical enhancement, it had allowed her to barely react to her opponent's strikes.

Now, she was paying the price. Severe muscle aches from movements far more violent than her body was accustomed to. A crushing exhaustion that made her heart squeeze in protest of the depleted mana. A splitting headache. She had watched Nisyona get kidnapped right before her eyes, but she couldn't even give chase. She couldn't even lift a finger. Seraphina lay flat on the ground, her entire body trembling violently.

After she had lain there for a while, Merlin, who had relocated to avoid the crossfire of her battle with Yeomyeong, returned and spoke. "...Saintess. I have no excuse. I did my utmost to protect them, but those people possessed weapons similar to the God's gifts."

It seemed he had tried to protect the believers upon seeing the Iron Masks infiltrate the cult's underground. Bloodstains marred Merlin's clothes. He hadn't taken a direct hit, but he appeared to have been grazed by quite a few "thunders." Yet, what truly tormented Merlin was something far deeper than physical wounds.

"No, Merlin. I am just glad you are not gravely injured."

"Sigh... Saintess. Glad? I know what you mean, but... please do not say that. I do not deserve such kindness."

"Merlin."

"She was a child who was finally beginning to open up, yet I failed to protect her again. And despite that, I couldn't even properly incinerate those invading Iron Masks..."

"Cardinal Merlin."

"..."

Merlin blamed himself deeply. Having treated Nisyona like his own granddaughter, his grief was profound. Seeing this, Seraphina deliberately put on an air of tranquility. She offered a gentle smile to comfort the despondent old man, speaking with deliberate composure.

"Merlin. Did you not see? I received the protection of our God."

"...I saw. That was indeed a great mercy. Had you been taken, Saintess, this church would have collapsed entirely."

"And yet, you still worry?"

"But Nisyona was taken in the end. Even God could not prevent that... Ah."

Seraphina's subtle guidance had led him to a sudden realization. Seizing that brief moment of silence, the girl added:

"Yes. God opposed my capture. He intervened directly. Had He remained a mere bystander, it would be one thing, but from the moment He reached out His hand... is the future not already set in stone anyway?"

At the same time, Seraphina turned her head toward the hazy sky. She felt the gaze that painted the gloomy, sunless sky in shades of silver. The arrangements of the Evil God she had experienced so far were always vast yet meticulous. Had He not intervened from the start, it would be different, but now that His great hand had moved, the situation could only unfold according to the will of the one above.

Whether the entity in the heavens was painting this picture to pursue some grand design of His own, or out of pure amusement and pleasure, was something those on this earth could never hope to fathom. But once He began to move His hand, the story would undoubtedly end exactly as He intended. Bearing this absolute truth in mind, the Saintess commanded Merlin.

"Merlin. Now is not the time for self-reproach. Please gather the believers. If my intuition is correct, His guidance will surely resume before long."

"...I understand, Saintess. My thoughts were narrow."

Hearing Seraphina's words, Merlin began to rouse the believers. He organized the chaotic crowd and rallied their strength. Meanwhile, Seraphina looked up at the sky and prayed. Her words had been sincere. In the end, the story would conclude exactly as the Evil God desired. However, her master was an evil god from another world. Unlike the reassuring words she had spoken to comfort the old man, it was still uncertain whether Nisyona had a place in the completed picture.

Therefore, Seraphina did the only thing she could. She looked up at the sky and prayed with all her heart.

'Please, let that poor girl find her freedom once more.'

Overlapping her own past with Nisyona's plight, the Saintess began her prayer. The answer to her prayer arrived a few days later.

"Pant, pant, ugh... *Hurl*... *Bleeegh!*"

After saving the girl with a play that even I had to admit was absolutely legendary, I spent the next while violently throwing up. It was the price of using the Celestial Observatory in immersive mode.

Immersive observation made me feel as if I were standing right in the middle of Earth, much like a full-dive VR game. In terms of resolution and accuracy, it completely blew the monitor-style observation out of the water. However, its drawbacks were just as clear. Unlike the monitor style, I couldn't display multiple screens at once, and the sheer volume of data flooding in from the nano-cameras in all directions triggered severe motion sickness and a splitting headache. To make matters worse, I was running it alongside the Combat Pattern Analyzer. I wasn't just watching; I had to constantly adjust my field of view while calculating the paths the girl needed to take to dodge... The world was literally spinning. If the battle had dragged on any longer, I would have passed out first.

"Ugh... *Hurl*. Whew... Ha, but I saved her. I actually saved her..."

Yet, even as I writhed in agony, my heart was full. Had I not just saved the girl who was on the verge of being captured by the Haninhae, subjected to a sham trial, and executed? My sole spark of hope was still burning bright down there.

"Seriously, even I thought that was incredibly cool back th—*BLEEGH!*"

After riding the roller coaster between nausea and euphoria a dozen more times, I slumped into the observatory chair, exhausted, and began to move my fingers. I operated the Celestial Observatory, immediately switching it back to monitor mode. Although the immediate crisis had passed, the problem was far from solved. The Awakened whom the girl had brought along when retrieving the generator from the subway had been captured by the Haninhae. Most importantly, there was no telling what the President, who was completely under ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the spell of that priest from the other world, would order next. If they planned to deploy again, I needed to be prepared.

I allocated several monitors to keep a close eye on the movements of the Haninhae and Yeomyeong. I tracked every single detail of the Haninhae's internal situation. After a few days of continuous observation—

"...Huh? Wait a second. If I play this right—"

I realized things were starting to head in a completely different direction than I had anticipated. And not in a bad way, but a highly positive one.

"—Is this actually possible? Can we swallow the Haninhae whole?"

In that instant, an ancient proverb of the wise flashed through my mind: If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. If things went well, I might be able to hand over Yeomyeong and the entire Haninhae to the girl on a silver platter.