The Touch of God
“You know it too, don't you? That there is a colossal presence up in that sky,” Miraj whispered, her expression rapturous. “I... want to win His favor.”
Those words were more than enough to send a shockwave through Seraphina's chest. She wants the god's favor? She wants the evil god in the heavens to look upon her?
“...!” An anxiety unlike anything she had ever felt before washed over the young girl. Her emotions surged. A dark premonition forced her hand.
Instead of answering, Seraphina raised the evil god's gift. She fired off a burst of thunder, then gripped the weapon like a club and swung it. *Clack, thud!*
But the girl's attack failed to reach the Cardinal. Before she could even finish aiming, a fist flew toward her. The Thunder Staff shook, its trajectory thrown wildly off course. Seraphina tried swinging it as a blunt weapon in desperation, but Miraj deflected it with effortless grace.
“That won't work on me~ you silly junior.” Unlike Seraphina, who had grown frantic over a single sentence, Miraj remained completely at ease. Without losing her trademark playful smile, she whispered mockingly into the girl's ear.
“You know I'm a member of The Council, right, junior? Now, think about it logically. Why on earth did our elderly but cute Chairperson assign this mission to me of all people?”
“...!”
“Because my authority, Mercury, is the power of communication and connection? Yes, of course, that's part of it. Thanks to that, I was able to learn this other world's language so easily. But the other reason is—”
*Thud!* Moving like the wind, Miraj clenched her fist and drove a heavy blow straight into Seraphina's abdomen.
“—because I am strong even without my authority.”
The girl's body was instantly launched into the air. She was blown back helplessly, dropping even the evil god's gift she always kept close. In an instant, the world spun out of focus. She choked. The air felt as thick as liquid. Instinctively, she opened her mouth, but only the remaining oxygen in her lungs escaped.
“Cough...” Seraphina groaned. That was all she could manage. Pain—an agonizing sensation she had never experienced in her life—radiated from her lower abdomen. Her knees buckled beneath her. All strength drained from her body. Counterattacking, evading... she couldn't think of anything. Only the pain gnawed away at her consciousness. Through her fading awareness, only Miraj's voice echoed clearly.
“Believe it or not, I was once the top Heretic Inquisitor of the Order of Order. I was quite famous as a curse master, too. I suppose you could call it a tradition of the 13th Cardinal.”
“Ugh... ah...”
“So, junior, just give up now. You know there's no point in resisting any further. Instead, let me make you a wonderful offer.”
Miraj reached out and grabbed Seraphina by the chin, forcing her head up to lock eyes. Looking down at the kneeling Seraphina, she licked her lips.
“I'll help you get a full pardon for your sins. After all, only the Council knows that you killed old man Renatus. We've completely locked down all information. The same goes for the heresy you're committing right now.”
“Haa... haa...”
“In exchange, you only need to help me with one thing. Just hand over the church you've built, and even the god's attention... all of it, to me.”
The way Miraj looked down at Seraphina resembled a predator eyeing an innocent prey. She smacked her lips seductively and whispered. Slowly, she squeezed the chin she held, using the pain to press her persuasion.
“You don't need to worry about how. It's entirely possible with my authority. You just need to nod your head, just once.”
“Ugh! Just kill me instead!”
“Why would I do that? You need to be 'used' properly, junior. If we have the power of the god who watches over this world... it will be more than enough driving force to bring back the great Order.”
Seraphina did not yield to the Cardinal's whispers. Though her lower abdomen still burned from the blow, the pain in her chin helped clear her head slightly. She quickly scanned her surroundings, searching for a way to strike back.
A simple attack won't work...!
Her opponent's combat capability was overwhelming. Though her raw physical might might not match Yeomyeong's, the sheer variety of methods at her disposal was beyond imagination. To conduct a descent ritual entirely on her own meant her talent as a priestess was extraordinary. On top of that, she possessed the curse magic and close-quarters combat skills of a Heretic Inquisitor. What was worse, her countless arts were all forged with a sticky, deep-seated malice, always aiming directly for one's weaknesses.
This isn't an opponent we can defeat with firepower or numbers. Even if I had brought every single combatant in the church, we probably would have lost.
The only one who stood a chance of victory was Yeomyeong. She had to wake him up from the curse that had brought him down. Having finished her calculations, Seraphina stealthily reached out her hand. She aimed for the golden magic circles filling the laboratory—specifically, the one Miraj had used while fighting Yeomyeong.
Separate from the descent ritual circle, this golden circle served as a medium for the curse. She didn't understand its principles, but that didn't matter. Breaking something was always easier than making it.
I don't need to destroy it completely. Just a brief opening—if I can just buy enough time for him to recover!
Furthermore, Seraphina remembered the uniquely colored stone Yeomyeong had tried to use as a last resort when they had faced each other under the evil god's protection. Miraj's curse was undoubtedly powerful, but even in his exhausted state, Yeomyeong was barely holding on. If she could just create a brief opening for him to use that trump card—
“...Sigh. Junior. You really are foolish. Just how many times do I have to tell you before you understand?”
Just as Seraphina squeezed out every drop of mana in her body to interfere with the magic circle—*Crack!* Miraj stomped down without a moment's hesitation.
“Aaagh!”
She ground her heel into Seraphina's pitifully outstretched hand. The gathering mana violently backflowed. Miraj's high-heeled shoe dug deep into the delicate skin. Crimson blood splattered across the golden magic circle.
Her usual playful smile completely gone, Miraj continued to kick her. Starting from her hand, moving up to her arm and torso. Holding her by the chin to keep her body in place, she methodically battered her entire frame.
“Why, after I explained it, so nicely, can't you just accept it? Do you not have a brain?”
“Aaaagh! Ah, ugh, uuugh...!”
“I kindly explained everything to you. What my ability is. How I subdued you all. What I want. Once I've explained this much, shouldn't you have figured it out on your own? 'Ah, I can never win. I should just quietly accept her offer'?”
Frustrated, Miraj shouted.
“Ah, forget it. Forget it. I thought I'd make things easier since you seemed to have quite a bit of that god's attention, but persuading you is proving to be more of a chore. You have to actually be capable of communication for this to work.”
The Cardinal lifted Seraphina with one hand. She threw the battered girl's body directly into the center of the descent ritual circle.
“I'll just settle for using you as an ingredient. We have plenty of mana anyway.”
In the ritual circle for the descent, multi-colored stones were arranged according to magical-scientific principles. Countless stones glowed with a faint fluorescent light, boosting the output of the magic circle.
“Mana stones... This other world really has so many fascinating things. To think this much power flows from these tiny pebbles... I'm so glad I got them from the President.”
With those words, Miraj reached out her hand. Golden threads spun out from the Cardinal's fingertips. The threads, woven from divine power, moved as if they possessed a will of their own, spreading to every corner of the magic circle.
A ritual for a constellation's descent. Normally, this was a massive undertaking that required several priests working in unison for days and nights. But for Miraj, who possessed the authority of connection, such limitations did not apply. On her own, she began the ritual, weaving the golden threads of mana.
The threads connected to various points of the circle reacted instantly to her authority of connection, channeling mana through them. The massive consumption of divine power, which normally had to be shared among many, was replaced by the power of the mana stones. The raw mana pouring out was filtered through Miraj's body and converted into divine power. Of course, even with this, conducting such a grand ritual alone was pushing her limits, causing parts of the descent ritual to warp and distort.
“How... how can you do this alone—”
“Fufu... This is the difference in our class, junior!”
She patched up the shortcomings with her authority. The authority of Mercury, which she had pushed to its absolute limits through repeated research over the past few days. Using the messenger's power over connection and communication, she filled the gaps. And so, the ritual began. The countless lines forming the magic circle split into dozens of branches, raising their heads like plants reaching for the sun. They bloomed toward the sky—a lotus flower prepared to welcome the steps of a great existence.
To Seraphina, the process was vividly clear. Gold reached out toward the silver light that filled the world. In the woven space, non-existence manifested into existence. Like eyelids covering pupils, like silk draping over skin, like the breath inhaled and exhaled—that which went unnoticed unless consciously observed was finally rising to the surface.
“Ah... haaa...!” Miraj let out a rapturous moan. It was a tiny speck of dust. A particle. The smallest thing, drifting freely on the wind, enjoying its existence as it pleased. Yet, at the same time, it was a colossal nerve. Transcending the concept of a collective or a swarm, it was a terminal transmitting information solely to a massive 'something.' It was the fingertip of the largest living organism, composed of invisible tentacles.
From the earth, from the sky. Wherever steps fell and breath flowed, the omnipresent fragments gathered into a single point. In the very center of the descent ritual circle, right above Seraphina's head, black particles began to assemble, taking shape.
“This... this is wrong. No!” Seraphina screamed. The girl grabbed the ritual circle with her mangled hands, clutching the golden border as if begging.
“Ahahaha, junior. Just stay still. You know it already, don't you? That you can't do a single thing.” Miraj let out a mocking chuckle at the sight. She knew exactly why Seraphina was acting this way. Though the 13th Cardinal's authority was difficult to use in direct combat, it was exceptionally suited for gathering information, such as rumors or the inner thoughts of others.
Miraj had also heard the doctrines of the church Seraphina led. She had already guessed the background behind it from the moment she began her research.
“They say the god you serve is different from the constellations of the Continent, right? A peculiar entity who bestows rewards as long as you satisfy Him.”
“...”
“I don't know what kind of pathetic, coquettish acts you had to perform to receive such gifts, but I am willing to sacrifice my everything to satisfy the being in the heavens. If offering this body of mine can bring about the return of Order, I will do it anytime, anywhere.”
Seraphina couldn't find the words to refute the Cardinal. Miraj declared with an even more triumphant look on her face:
“Then naturally, the god will favor me far more than you. I can prove it at any time, as long as I can catch His eye. Look. Even right now... the gap between you and me is clear, isn't it?”
Every single word from the Cardinal pierced Seraphina's heart. It was true. It was an undeniable, absolute truth that left her without a single excuse. The girl was powerless. She had only managed to survive this far because she had accidentally caught the god's gaze when she crossed the gate. There was nothing Seraphina could do on her own. The current situation was proof of that.
The evil god's gifts. Merlin. The church's combatants. Yeomyeong. Everything she possessed had been granted through the god's providence. Now that she had lost all of it, she was being helplessly used as a mere ingredient for a ritual.
In comparison, what of Miraj? She was powerful and beautiful. She was cunning to the point of malice. The Cardinal had spent a long time meticulously preparing her plan. She had successfully lured the church and cornered them. Meanwhile, Seraphina had done nothing but wait for the evil god's guidance whenever a crisis arose.
Even her very presence here proved the gap between them. She had lost her mind the moment she heard a Cardinal of Order was here. Without a single worry that Miraj might have prepared a trap, she had blindly led her church into a charge. If only she had retreated after stopping by the food warehouse. If only she had noticed the anomaly immediately when the god's gaze vanished and commanded her forces properly.
It wouldn't have ended like this...!
Who was more competent? Who was more advantageous when it came to drawing the evil god's attention and winning His favor? In this other world, the profession of a priest did not exist. None of the Iron Masks or anyone else could perceive the god's gaze. Thanks to that, she had been able to monopolize the evil god's attention until now. But now, an alternative named Miraj had appeared. An alternative that was practically a perfect upgrade to Seraphina.
Then, who would the evil god of this other world choose? Self-loathing washed over the girl at a question that required no thought to answer.
It's going to disappear? The gaze from the heavens? The pillar that guides me?
When something taken for granted leaves, the void it leaves behind feels all the larger. The moment she became certain of the possibility that the evil god's favor might vanish, the anxiety Seraphina had been desperately suppressing finally erupted.
“No. It's not...” Seraphina cried out like a scream. It was a helpless plea. Once unleashed, her emotions rushed in like a tidal wave. She lamented her useless self, unable to do a single thing. No matter how much she had pretended to be mature while managing the church, Seraphina was still just a young girl who had barely reached adulthood.
The crimson emotion in her chest—the feeling that had once driven her with the voice of her late mentor—dyed itself in a different color. Her desire for vengeance melted into frustration, dependency, and regret.
The target of her revenge was right before her eyes, yet she could do nothing. From the moment she escaped the underground disciplinary chamber through her mentor's sacrifice until now, Seraphina had always been powerless. All she had left now was the god's meager attention, and even that was on the verge of being stolen away.
She didn't want to accept reality. The girl clawed at the gold with her fingernails, desperately trying to disrupt the ritual. Her crushed and broken nails smeared blood and dirt onto the glowing ritual circle. The perfect petals of the lotus were slightly soiled. But that was all. The ritual continued unabated.
Finally, tears welled in the girl's eyes. She closed them, refusing to acknowledge the clearly visible future. Tears dirtied by dust trickled down her cheeks. With her eyes shut, the girl knelt toward the condensing particles. She didn't want to look. She couldn't bear to witness the evil god's attention shifting to Miraj.
At this moment, Seraphina wished Miraj would just kill her instead. Dying while fighting for her mentor's revenge was a death she could accept, even if it was frustrating and infuriating. But to watch the evil god's grace be stolen away before her eyes and live on with that burden in her heart... for some reason, that felt unbearable.
It had surely been a mere tool chosen for Ods's revenge. Yet, had she grown some useless attachment after being constantly exposed to that gaze over the past few months? Had she felt some form of affection from the gaze that looked upon a girl who had lost everything? She didn't know the reason herself. Self-loathing, vengeance, hatred, resentment, and regret tangled together, paralyzing her judgment.
Even though she foresaw that the attention of the evil god—who valued only amusement and rewards, watching the world solely out of curiosity—would shift to Miraj, Seraphina could only bow her head helplessly.
“Ahahaha! You really are an idiot, junior! What, do you think He'll look at you just because you're kneeling in front of Him?” Miraj mocked the girl. Her laughter carved into Seraphina's flesh like a dagger.
Before long, the descent ritual reached completion. The black particles condensing in the air—the divine fragments gathered from the earth and sky—began to take form. Miraj looked upon it with a proud expression.
Mana is the manifestation of will. Magic always acts as a proxy for its master's intent. The core of the descent ritual was the same. By imbuing an object bearing the traces of a constellation with magic, it became a vessel to receive the god's will. Astoundingly, traces of the evil god were left everywhere in this world. By imbuing the particles present all around with magic, an avatar to represent the god's will manifested.
The physical manifestation of the god's will. Miraj intended to propose a contract to Him. She wanted to ask Him to grant her the power to recover the three main gods who had vanished during the Gate Incident. In exchange, she was prepared to declare that she would gladly offer her entire body.
However, the avatar's actions were faster than Miraj's words. The cluster of particles moved, performing an action that no one in the room could have predicted.
*Rustle—*
The hand of the evil god—no, the god—composed of black particles, began to stroke Seraphina's hair. Infinitely gentle, and filled with love.
The relaxed expression on Miraj's face froze ice-cold.