An Imperfect Vessel
What is this?
Carbanog states that a departed god cannot be summoned back so easily.
Carbanog explains that to manifest a god on the continent, even for a brief moment, a vessel for their Avatar is required.
An Avatar...
Tae-hyun's class was the Avatar of Akisus. Did Sadiq's side have something similar? Perhaps the Holy Knight Commander had searched for and prepared one.
"Are you the Avatar by any chance?"
"W-What? How dare you even suggest..."
I guess not.
It seemed the Holy Knight Commander was just a Holy Knight Commander.
"Then is that egg the Avatar?"
"What absolute nonsense are you spouting! Do not dare let the word 'Avatar' pass your lips!"
"Then what is that?"
Tae-hyun pointed at the burning egg floating in the air. It squirmed, radiating a holy power that felt incredibly ominous.
"Even if Sadiq comes, he'll need a physical body. What is that thing?"
Carbanog had said that Sadiq needed a fitting vessel to manifest. However, the Holy Knight Commander didn't seem to have prepared an Avatar.
"Foolish bastard. Do you really think I wouldn't have thought of that? That is the body of a giant! The strongest, sturdiest body of the Giant Tribe! A body capable of enduring even if Lord Sadiq himself manifests!"
Carbanog scoffs and disagrees.
Carbanog says that won't be nearly enough.
"Hmm... I see. Your effort is commendable."
Regardless, it was true that the Sadiq Holy Knight Commander was working incredibly hard. Finding a place with high holy power, capturing giants, persuading the remaining giants...
Had there ever been an NPC who worked this hard? Compared to the Sadiq Holy Knight Commander, the NPCs of the Archisus Church were like fireflies in front of a full moon.
"Still bluffing, I see. Are you afraid?"
"To be honest, I was a bit scared, but I'm fine now."
Thanks to Carbanog's explanation, his fear had vanished. It was incredibly ominous, but if it wasn't a proper manifestation, he could stop it somehow.
"More importantly, how did you even get here? It shouldn't have been this easy..."
"Ah. Because of him."
Tae-hyun pointed at Heuk-heuk.
Seeing him, the Sadiq Holy Knight Commander gasped in shock.
"Lord Sadiq's demonic beast?!"
"H-Hello?"
Heuk-heuk waved his wing awkwardly. He also seemed a bit embarrassed to face the Sadiq Holy Knight Commander.
"Why is Lord Sadiq's demonic beast helping that Archisus bastard?! Have you lost your mind?!"
"T-This person can use Sadiq's Authority too!"
"You traitorous wretch! Typical of a Black Dragon! We should have never accepted a creature like you as a demonic beast!"
"W-What?! You insolent fool! Hey, the idiot who couldn't even guard his own god's Authority and let someone else steal it is the stupid one!"
Insulted as a Black Dragon, Heuk-heuk snapped and ground his teeth, firing back.
"My contract was to pledge loyalty to whoever summoned me using Sadiq's Authority! You guys were the ones who acted like idiots and got it stolen, so how dare you blame me!"
"I-Idiots? Are you insulting Lord Sadiq?!"
"What insult! It's the truth, you blockheads!"
"I'll kill you!"
Enraged, the Sadiq Holy Knight Commander swung his sword, unleashing Sadiq's Flame.
Whoosh!
"My thoughts exactly!"
Heuk-heuk immediately soared into the air, swallowed the flames in one gulp, and spat them right back at the Holy Knight Commander.
"!"
Boom!
The Sadiq Holy Knight Commander didn't dare face it head-on and dodged to the side.
"Y-You...! Lord Sadiq's power...!"
The Sadiq Holy Knight Commander also seemed to realize that Heuk-heuk had absorbed Sadiq's power and grown exponentially stronger.
"A traitor has no right to use Lord Sadiq's power!"
"Who's the traitor here?! I am Sadiq's demonic beast!"
"How dare a creature that rebels against me, the Holy Knight Commander of the Sadiq Order, say such a thing!"
"...M-My master is the true successor of Sadiq! You're the fake! A fake!"
Refusing to lose the argument, Heuk-heuk began to stubbornly insist. But once he said it, it actually sounded surprisingly plausible.
"My master has accepted the holy knights of the Sadiq Order and even knows how to use his Authority! You have nothing! You're the fake!"
"Y-You..."
Tae-hyun watched their bickering with great amusement.
"I think Heuk-heuk won that one."
"I agree. It looks like that clever black fellow won."
The Orc Ahjussis and the rest of the party nodded in agreement!
The Sadiq Holy Knight Commander fumed with rage, but there was no one to take his side.
"T-This..."
For a moment, the Holy Knight Commander looked at the giants. And he regretted it. What was he expecting?
"Hmm... We also think the black fellow won."
"...Kill them all!"
"Are you telling us to kill them just because you lost an argument? Great Warrior, that's a bit..."
"No! You brainless fools! They are intruders who came to disrupt the ritual!"
"Ah, is that so."
Listening from the side, Tae-hyun teased the Great Warrior.
"No, it's not. He's just doing this to cover up the fact that he lost the argument."
Supreme Eloquence
......
"As expected... of the Great Warrior..."
"Shut up and do as I say!"
"Understood. We are going."
The giants raised their clubs and began to approach Tae-hyun's party. Their arrogance showed they didn't think they could lose for even a second!
Indeed, the giants here looked much stronger than the ones outside.
Since the Sadiq Holy Knight Commander kept them here, they must be the elite of the elite.
It was difficult to fight in such a cramped space. Tae-hyun ordered his party to fall back.
"Let's pull back to lure them out, then attack in a wider area. If we fight here, some of us might die."
A giant spoke as he approached.
"We are sorry, little ones. The Great Warrior is angry, so we have no choice—Aaaaargh!"
Fwoooooosh!
"?"
Before Tae-hyun's party could even launch an attack, a massive torrent of fire engulfed the giants.
"Mwahahaha! Power! Power is overflowing!"
It was Heuk-heuk.
"Taste the power of a Black Dragon! You pathetic giants!"
Dozens of magic circles formed in the air, summoning dark, black spears.
"Continuous Dark Spear! Shadow Explosion! Black Dragon's Venom! Poison Amplification! Poison Tempest! Bone-Chilling Curse! Skin-Weakening Curse...!"
As if venting all the sorrow of being mistreated and pushed around, Heuk-heuk unleashed a terrifying barrage of consecutive spells. Magic circles kept appearing, multiplying, and stacking in the air.
Watching from behind, Jeong Su-hyeok gasped in admiration.
"T-That's amazing...!"
"Was he always that incredible?"
"He was bickering with that skeleton earlier, so I thought he was a bit of an idiot..."
The Orc Ahjussis were astonished. They had thought he was just a weird creature with a flashy appearance!
Thanks to their praise, Heuk-heuk's shoulders puffed up even higher with pride.
"Boil over! Sadiq's Lava Arrow! Sadiq's Lava Arrow! Sadiq's Blindness Curse! Sadiq's Heart-Burn!"
The surrounding power of Sadiq reacts.
Heuk-heuk's power grows even stronger!
The surrounding power of Sadiq grows stronger and stronger!
Is this really okay?
The egg, which already looked dangerous, was shaking even more violently. Every time Heuk-heuk used his power, the egg squirmed as if lending him strength.
The Sadiq Holy Knight Commander shrieked.
"Y-You traitor...! Stop this instant! How dare a mere beast like you!"
"Hmph! Shut up!"
With those words, Heuk-heuk finished off the giants. The cave wall collapsed, burying the staggering giants beneath the rubble.
"Aaaaaaargh!"
The giants fell into a deep, bottomless abyss!
Heuk-heuk puffed up his chest again and boasted.
"Behold! This is my power! Say another word if you dare!"
"When Lord Sadiq arrives, I will report exactly what you have done!"
"Huh?"
Heuk-heuk flinched. That sounded a bit dangerous.
Strictly speaking, the power he had used to sweep away the elite giant warriors belonged to Sadiq. He had borrowed that power to fire off high-level spells he normally couldn't use.
But if Sadiq actually manifested here...
Not only would his power be stripped away, but he would also have to answer for what he just did...
"M-Master. What do we do?"
Heuk-heuk lowered his puffed-up shoulders and looked at Tae-hyun.
"Heuk-heuk."
"Yes?"
"It's great that you defeated the giants, but you should have shared the experience points with us."
"Is this really the time to talk about that?!"
"Well, honestly, Sadiq's manifestation won't work. You don't need to worry."
"Really? Is that true?"
"Yeah."
"What absolute nonsense! He will manifest any second now!"
"Ah. Yes. I'm sure he will."
Thanks to Carbanog's reassurance, Tae-hyun was completely calm.
Squirm—
KABOOM!
Sadiq's power grows stronger and stronger.
With an ear-splitting roar, the egg of fire burst open, and a massive torrent of flames poured out.
The flames coalesced into the shape of a colossal giant. It was twice the size of a normal giant.
The Sadiq Holy Knight Commander shouted triumphantly.
"Behold! Count Kim Tae-hyun! Lord Sadiq has arrived!"
"?!"
Tae-hyun was dumbfounded. Didn't you say it wouldn't work?
Carbanog is flustered.
Hey...! Tae-hyun cursed Carbanog. What a useless god!
The giant of fire slowly opened its mouth.
"I am... Sadiq..."
"Oh! Lord Sadiq! That bastard insulted you, destroyed your order, and stole your Authority! Burn him to ashes with your flames of wrath!"
Damn it.
"I am... Sadiq..."
"?"
"I am... Sadiq..."
"...Is he broken?" Tae-hyun muttered.
The Holy Knight Commander reacted violently to his words.
"How dare you speak so insolently?!"
"No, seriously, he looks broken."
"I am... Sadiq..."
Carbanog suggests that this is likely because an unsuitable vessel received Sadiq's immense power.
I'm not trusting your word anymore.
Carbanog protests, claiming that anyone can make a mistake once in a while...
In the first place, the manifestation should have failed. Why did he appear like that?
Carbanog theorizes that the giant's body used as the vessel was exceptionally sturdy and strong, allowing it to barely hold together.
Can I even trust this?
Tae-hyun was skeptical, but he had no choice. There was no one—not even another god—who knew more about gods, holy power, and manifestation than Carbanog.
Then what should I do?
Carbanog feigns ignorance.
......
Tae-hyun felt a surge of irritation but held it back. What was the point of getting angry at a formless, intangible god?
At least it was a relief that the manifestation wasn't complete. If it had been perfect, Sadiq would have incinerated Tae-hyun's party immediately.
Still, even an imperfect Avatar was highly threatening.
Should I fight it? Can I even beat it?
Putting aside whether it was winnable, he hesitated to attack first when the entity clearly wasn't in its right mind.
"Please kill that bastard, Lord Sadiq!"
"I am... Sadiq..."
"Lord Sadiq! Please listen to me! To your faithful believer!"
Whoosh!
Sadiq's Flame erupted from the Holy Knight Commander's body.
"Flame... My believer... Worthy of trust..."
Moved by that desperate plea, Sadiq's Avatar turned its head and stared at Tae-hyun.
Its burning, eyeless gaze was chilling.
Tae-hyun didn't look away. Instead, he stared right back and shouted:
"Please kill that bastard, Lord Sadiq!"
"??????"
The Sadiq Holy Knight Commander stared at Tae-hyun as if he had lost his mind. Was this Count crazy? There was no way Sadiq's Avatar would listen to—
Whoosh!
Sadiq's Flame erupted from Tae-hyun's body as well.
Not only that, but Heuk-heuk also stood majestically beside Tae-hyun, spewing Sadiq's Flame.
Just looking at them, Tae-hyun's flames looked far more impressive!
"Y-You absolute lunatic..."
The Sadiq Holy Knight Commander's jaw dropped.
"Surely... Lord Sadiq... wouldn't fall for his trick..."
"Hmm... Flame... My believer... And that is definitely my demonic beast..."
"It's a trick! Please listen to me!"
But Sadiq's Avatar wasn't listening.
By this point, the Sadiq Holy Knight Commander realized. Something had gone horribly wrong!
This wasn't a perfect Avatar, but an imperfect one.
"What on earth did you do?!"
"Heh. Master saw right through your pathetic scheme from the start! You absolute fool!"
Seizing the opportunity, Heuk-heuk gleefully mocked the Holy Knight Commander.