Chapter 463
Chapter 463
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 463
Chapter Title: Fruit of Myth (1)
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Pantheon outskirts, an old mansion.
"Come on, what kind of sudden nonsense is this? Showing up out of nowhere like this."
The priest Jason grumbled as he shook his head.
"No matter how you say it with that expression, it's not convincing at all."
"Is that so?"
But his emotionless face saying so only felt eerie.
The corner of his doll-like, rigid face twisted unnaturally at Heinz's calm remark.
"If I could help it, I'd keep denying it to the end. But what can I do when you even know that name? I have no idea where you heard it from, though."
"I confirmed it through records left by a certain kind soul. You're the one who took over the Pantheon's duties in place of the scribe, right?"
"That person's awfully careless. It's common sense not to leave any traces of an agent on a secret mission, no matter what."
The two exchanged words peacefully, as if in casual conversation.
But the increasingly fierce gusts swirling between them starkly revealed that things were far from peaceful.
'Joker.'
In the midst of that turbulent energy.
Heinz, who had been silently gazing at his opponent with sunken eyes, let out a small sigh.
He had first confirmed that name in the spoils of war, Dr. someone's database.
'Truth be told, even discovering that was sheer luck.'
Unlike his confident words, the information he had on 'Joker' wasn't all that extensive.
He'd only learned the name purely by coincidence.
If the electronic spirit Habis hadn't spotted that word—not fully erased due to a single alphabet typo—he probably never would have found out.
'Its true identity wasn't clearly stated either, so I had to trace back clues from tiny hints.'
It wasn't an exaggeration to say he'd mobilized every resource he and his forces had.
And the result of that reckless effort nearly exposed him to the Pantheon.
The outline that emerged was so unbelievable he had to double- and triple-check it.
'From the Tamaria dimension. Priest of the Laessus Church—Jason.'
He could hardly believe the target pointed to someone he'd already crossed paths with multiple times.
From the first time Jason had flown to Korea to meet him, and even after coming to the Pantheon together, he'd sensed no suspicion at all, making the shock hit even harder.
"...Did you approach me on purpose? All the way from Korea?"
"Hm? Oh, sort of. It was a chance to poke around Korea openly without raising suspicion—what a waste to pass up, right?"
Besides, if Heinz was set on visiting the Pantheon anyway, he'd have made it happen somehow. Better to stick right by his side from the start for easy surveillance.
Finishing his words, Jason shook his head with a deep sigh.
"I never imagined things would turn out like this, though. Shouldn't have entrusted it to that idiot Walter. I delayed scrapping him because I hated wasting the effort I'd put in, and now look at the mess."
"It did seem shortsighted. But that's not entirely your fault, is it? If we trace the cause, it's your own doing from the start."
"...Oh? You figured that much out?"
Something he'd confirmed with Walter before coming here.
It was a kind of suggestion.
Not as potent as brainwashing or hypnosis, but a cunning restraint so subtle that even he—a master-level holy warrior—and the Pantheon's many priests could barely detect it.
'And he even used himself as bait to control the opponent's thought patterns. No wonder something felt off back then.'
The result was Walter's sudden outburst on the first day.
The entire commotion from start to finish had been Jason's orchestration.
In the end, he hadn't achieved his goal, though.
"...Hoo, whatever. Jason... no, Joker. We'll talk details later. Surrender quietly, and I won't treat you harshly."
"Hard to swallow that. I've still got a lot left to do. Getting caught now would be a problem."
"...I see."
Regardless, the fact that he'd manipulated people at will for his ends hadn't changed.
Who knew how many had fallen for it like Walter.
Heinz no longer saw the need for polite conversation.
Whoooong—!
No sooner had he spoken than a pair of golden eyes flashed, unleashing a gale around them.
A vivid platinum glow, vivid enough to dye everything around, swirled amid the winds.
'Wasted too much time. Better take him down before he pulls any tricks.'
He'd briefly postponed due to the strangely cooperative attitude and honest answers, but his opponent was a heinous criminal who'd deceived and used everyone up to now.
Interrogation could wait.
For now, neutralize any potential variables.
"...Tch, you're more hot-headed than you look."
Joker clicked his tongue, frowning.
The sudden encounter left him poorly prepared; he'd wanted to buy time somehow, but it seemed that was at its limit.
He reached into his pocket and gripped something tightly.
But with his battle switch already flipped, Heinz didn't hesitate no matter the reaction.
'Quick and clean!'
Platinum suns blazed fiercely in his fists.
Stamping the ground hard, he closed in instantly, his fist launching with full force.
Kwaaaang!
The punch pressure could obliterate a small hill in one go, sweeping the front.
Yet his opponent was a master-level holy knight too; he wouldn't be crushed by a bare fist without drawing his sword.
It'd hurt a lot, sure, but that was daily life for a holy knight—no big deal.
Thus, he swung with no holding back...
Woooong—!
'What? This is?'
The situation veered into uncharted territory.
[“Ugh! To think I'd have to use this so soon. But I can't just collapse here—no choice! I'll make sure to erase you right here!”]
An unknown flow from all directions converged on this single point.
Heinz frowned at the barrier trembling faintly against his fist.
Pajijik!
Unfamiliar divine power glowed deep purple, dripping like lava.
Sparks erupted nonstop at the boundary with the energy pouring from his fist and Joker's body.
An ominous presence emanated from the aura enveloping and absorbing the shock around the person inside.
[“Behold! And tremble! This is the true power of Luseni-sama, descended beyond dimensions!”]
With that, Joker—who'd been so composed moments ago—burst into mad laughter, arms spread toward the sky.
Heinz, whom he'd been bickering with, was already out of mind.
The unfinished power, used to douse the fire at his feet, had surged to his brain, eroding his sanity in an instant.
Googogo—!
The deep purple mist expanded explosively, swelling wildly and spreading outward.
Substantialized energy inside writhed in an amorphous form.
Heinz retreated while swiftly analyzing.
'Luseni? Luseni?'
Luseni.
Wasn't that the evil god forming one of the two pillars of basic faith in the Tamaria dimension alongside Laessus?
Their relations were so bad, constant religious wars raged daily.
'What nonsense. Pretending to be a Laessus holy knight on the surface, but a follower of the evil god Luseni behind the scenes.'
Divine power was the recompense of offered faith.
Faith formed from absolute belief, making coexistence of multiple divine powers nearly impossible.
Maybe possible with gods of the same lineage, but Laessus and Luseni were polar opposites.
'Must have some special ability enabling it. ...Not that I couldn't do the same if I wanted.'
Nothing was 100% impossible in this world now.
He himself was the prime proof!
No rule said no one else could be like him.
'Thoughts later. Deal with that first.'
Kururung—!
The power of an outer god forcibly summoned, ignoring dimensional barriers via some method, had ballooned and was devouring the surroundings, closing in on him.
Heinz dodged the tentacles of substantialized energy with agile moves, scanning intently with calm eyes.
As the ritual raged, things previously invisible now came into view one by one.
'Hah, he set up an altar right here. And this ritual formula...'
How long had this been prepared?
The land where the Pantheon stood was Earth's thickest concentration of mystery.
Defenses were accordingly tight; tapping its accumulated power privately was near impossible.
Priests serving gods wouldn't tolerate abusing their remnants.
'Since when?'
Yet in this old mansion on the Pantheon's outskirts, it was happening.
Extracting mystery accumulated in the earth like drilling oil, processing it into usable form, and storing it—all undetected.
Innocuous on the surface, but a massive powder keg ready to ignite at someone's will.
'The Pantheon settled this forest and built the city about twenty years ago.'
Heinz's eyes narrowed as he scanned.
The mansion looked older than the Pantheon's history, and the formulas seemed long fused with nature.
Only one implication.
'Even before the Pantheon properly settled here... the plan was already underway. They knew this would be their spot.'
Impossible to prepare this secretly from the Pantheon.
If later, some anomaly would have been spotted.
But if the formulas had long assimilated with the land...
'Like a latent pathogen slowly corroding the body without notice. Accumulating mystery from ley lines, biding time for the future.'
Blood, sacrifice, conflict in the process—all fine fertilizer.
Using Pandemonium, the evil god followers' group, to constantly provoke the Pantheon was likely part of it.
'Anyway, can't leave that alone.'
A shadow fragment of a god temporarily manifested via miracle wasn't ideal on Earth, even if minor.
Especially an evil god—what havoc might it wreak?
'Full power from the start.'
Three pairs of massive light wings unfurled behind Heinz as he soared high.
A beautiful, elegant holy sword gleamed gripped firmly in his hand.
"Prioritize evacuating the elderly and children!"
"Move faster! We have to help with the barrier!"
"Damn it! Evil god worshippers! Cornered and pulling this crap right in the heart of the Pantheon. I'll wipe their seed out for sure!"
Voices of busy priests on the ground reached him.
The expanded outer god's shadow had already swallowed most of the Pantheon's outer forest.
Those slow to evacuate were swept up, but for now, that was a relief.
'Good thing this is in the middle of the forest...'
In a normal city, it'd be a massacre by now.
Anyone not at a high realm would die from mere contact with the deep purple mist encircling it, let alone the entity itself.
"Block it from expanding further somehow!"
"Ugh, divine power isn't working well!"
"The energy density gap is too big. We're barely holding together now, but if we don't solve this soon, the moment some exhaust themselves..."
"Support requested from the Guardians, at least..."
The priests below struggled desperately for a solution but could only stamp their feet in frustration.
Then, suddenly.
Some looked up and shouted.
"Huh? Up in the sky! Isn't that an angel?"
"Hey! Not the time for jokes... Wait, it's real...?"
"Hold on. An angel? No way...!"
Ignoring the ground chatter, Heinz gripped his holy sword and quietly deep-breathed.
It was part of a miracle triggered by Joker from the land's accumulated mystery.
Incomplete, sure, but a projection of a god ruling a world.
'Wait, thinking about it, that's not so special.'
The foes he'd faced weren't inferior.
Demon King, sealed gods, dimension-destroying calamities.
One more god's shadow? Nothing much.
Heinz chuckled.
Wonder when my guts got this big.
"Alright then. Let's go."
Right after.
His platinum-radiant body turned into a massive sword, plunging toward the ground.