Chapter 208: Apostle (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 208: Apostle (3)
It had been about three weeks since they left the Luxible Grand Duchy.
Just as Calliban finally came into view—
"It’s been a while."
Once again, Alon’s vision shifted abruptly.
He found himself in a now-familiar world, one where the Milky Way bloomed across the sky.
Kalanon stood in the center of it.
"I see you're finally able to hold a conversation again."
"That's right. Though I still can't keep it up for very long."
"Is this conversation being maintained by the Divinity we gathered?"
"Well, I suppose so? At first, I relied purely on my remaining strength, but now you and I are essentially bound together by our Divinity."
Kalanon let out a strangely regretful sigh, adding, "Of course, I can't exactly wield that Divinity on my own, though."
"I actually had something I wanted to ask you."
Alon was glad to see her.
"About what?"
"Do you happen to know anything about the Ghost King?"
"Hmm—it's not like I don't know of them."
"Does that mean you aren't personally acquainted?"
"Naturally. In the first place, ever since that snake-head attached to you appeared, I’ve struggled just to gather enough strength to manifest, you know?"
"Ah."
Alon let out an involuntary exclamation.
Thinking back, she was right.
Before I sealed Basiliora in the Covenant Ring, he was constantly devouring Faith.
Considering the nature of Faith, it made sense that Kalanon hadn't been able to manifest as long as Basiliora was present.
"I see."
"But why the sudden question?"
When Alon explained the reason, she simply shrugged.
"I don't think that has anything to do with me."
"Is that so?"
"Is there anything else you want to ask?"
Of course there was.
"Come to think of it, didn't you say something before? That while you need Faith, I shouldn't go out of my way to gather it."
"I did, didn't I?"
"Why was that? Don't you need it?"
Kalanon nodded briefly, as if she understood the core of his question.
"Well, hmm—it's a bit difficult to explain, but while Faith is incredibly useful in many ways, it's also a very delicate power."
"And?"
"Faith fundamentally stems from belief in a god. If you try to obtain it artificially, problems are bound to arise one way or another."
"...Problems?"
"To put it bluntly, it looks a bit cheap."
"I think I understand, yet I don't."
Kalanon hummed, tapping her temple with a small index finger as she searched for a metaphor.
Then, she clapped her hands. "Ah! That's it. You know that Faith is essentially sincere belief in a god, right?"
"I do."
"But Faith fundamentally doesn't accumulate unless humans believe sincerely."
"...Meaning there must be no room for doubt?"
"No, they can have doubts, but the act of believing itself must be genuine. However, if you try to make them believe in exchange for something, or if you try to manipulate them into believing—"
"Then Faith won't accumulate easily."
"Exactly. In fact, it might even trigger a sense of repulsion, making it even harder to gather Faith."
Artificiality breeds repulsion, does it?
"...Then what should I do?"
"There's only one way. Just let it happen naturally. As you continue your activities and exert influence here and there, people who revere you will naturally emerge."
"So that's why you told me not to force it."
"Right."
"We can't have it looking tacky," Kalanon muttered, before her eyes widened as if she had just remembered something.
"Still, there is a way to gather pure Faith quickly."
"What is it?"
"Massacre."
"...What?"
Alon asked again, wondering if he had heard correctly.
"If you massacre humans and instill terror in them, Faith will be generated. Quite a lot of it, actually."
Kalanon nodded without a shred of hesitation.
"Of course, I don't recommend it. There are plenty of cases where people just end up dying while trying to gain Faith that way. Besides—you wouldn't be able to handle the fallout anyway."
"...Is there no other way?"
Alon hurried to change the subject.
"Aside from that... maybe granting miracles?"
"...Granting miracles?"
Again, the meaning wasn't immediately clear.
Kalanon pondered for a moment before asking Alon, "Are there any gods currently worshipped on the continent?"
"Hmm—the United Kingdoms probably worship Sironia, and in the east, there's Alte...mia?"
When Alon mentioned the eastern god he barely remembered, Kalanon made a thoughtful sound.
"I don't know them well, but anyway—don't the believers of this Sironia perform miracles?"
"They do."
"That is one of the ways to gather Faith quickly."
Alon nodded as he recalled the miracles performed by Sironia's followers.
"I see. So by witnessing miracles, Faith naturally grows?"
"Exactly. Divinity is ultimately the power of miracles. If you show people that you can wield that power, belief follows naturally. It's actually more stable than a god using their power directly."
"Hmm."
"Furthermore, once you have enough followers that way, it enters a sort of self-propagation mode."
"Self-propagation?"
"Yes. Someone who has received the god's power demonstrates it to increase the number of followers. Then, they share a bit of that power with those followers, who then go elsewhere and show it to other humans to gain even more followers, sharing a bit of power again—well, something like that."
"I see."
It was a principle where the cycle continued, naturally increasing the scale.
It sounded quite plausible.
Then, Alon’s expression turned strange.
As he listened, it sounded remarkably similar to a method from his original world.
...Isn't this just a pyramid scheme?
But his thought was brief.
"Anyway, that god named Sironia is probably drawing in a massive amount of Faith without even having to move, right?"
At Kalanon's explanation, Alon fell into a fresh sense of appreciation as he thought of Rosario.
He had always known that Rosario wasn't a place that performed good deeds without strings attached.
But hearing it put this way, it felt even more business-like than he had imagined.
Is that why they let Rosario stay corrupt in the original story...?
Alon followed up with another question.
"Then should I increase my Faith in that manner as well?"
"Well, it would be great if you could, but with the Faith you currently have—it might be a bit difficult."
"Is that so?"
"Yes. Well—maybe two people would be possible. You only need to directly draw out and transfer the power the first time you bestow it. After that, the power will naturally sustain itself through their belief."
"How do I bestow the power?"
"It's simple. Just pull out your Divinity and hand over a small amount. You only need to leave a trace. How they use that ability afterward is up to them."
A new plan began to form in Alon’s mind.
* * *
Immediately after finishing his conversation with Kalanon.
"Sigh—"
"Marquis, why the sudden sigh?"
"It's nothing."
When Evan asked, Alon shook his head lightly.
He calmly reviewed his conversation with her.
There are about three things to summarize.
First, Kalanon and the Ghost King had nothing to do with each other.
Second, the method of gathering Faith, including the fact that he could share his power with others.
And finally, how to use Divinity.
"Hmm—"
Alon recalled Kalanon's voice.
‘As I said before, the first thing you need to do to use Divinity is to understand its "properties." For instance, we can "turn all types of mana we touch into lightning" and "summon lightning."’
‘Once you understand those properties, using it is both difficult and easy. First, you shroud your entire body in Divinity, and then you press the "trigger" like I mentioned. Of course, once you get used to it, you won't need a trigger, but you'll need one for now.’
‘Oh, and I might be making it sound easy, but shrouding yourself in Divinity is incredibly difficult, so you'll need to practice. I helped you last time, and I'll keep helping you whenever you use your power, but you should still learn how to do it on your own.’
‘I was going to explain more about how to handle the power when you manifest, but seeing you use it last time, I don't think I really need to.’
After recalling that much, Alon thought:
I've learned everything I wanted to know.
In addition, he had gained one more piece of information as a bonus.
It was about the scale of the Divinity Alon possessed.
‘I don't know how it happened, but you've gathered a huge amount. ...Does this even make sense?’
Kalanon had let out a hollow laugh, sounding more dumbfounded than surprised.
"Marquis, we've arrived."
"Is that so?"
The carriage had arrived at Calliban just in time.
"Will you be heading straight to the North?"
Evan asked, glancing at him tentatively.
After a moment of thought, Alon stood up.
"I'll rest for about two days."
"Understood!"
Evan hopped out of the carriage with newfound energy.
Alon followed him, thinking:
Sharing power to increase Faith—I wonder who would be best to give it to.
Kalanon's power was clearly formidable, even in his eyes.
He debated who should receive it.
Then.
"Marquis! Are you feeling alright? Is anything bothering you?"
As soon as he stepped out of the carriage, Silli ran up to him as if she had been waiting, asking after his well-being.
"……? Marquis?"
Alon stared at her silently for a moment.
"Silli."
"Yes!"
"Did you say you were mainly learning lightning and ice magic?"
"Ah—yes, that's right!"
"...Do you have any interest in using divine power?"
"Divine power?"
As if a good idea had struck him, the corners of his mouth curled up ever so slightly.
* * *
Atop a massive statue carved into a great cliff.
It was around dusk, and the sky was beginning to darken.
"Boss."
"What?"
"Can I ask you something?"
"What is it?"
The blue-skinned man, the Blue Ghost, asked the black-haired girl.
"Why on earth are you helping that human, 'Legitimacy'?"
"You're curious about that?"
The Blue Ghost frowned slightly and nodded.
"I mean, yeah. It's one thing for you to look after him like that, but he's just strange in so many ways. He's got an elf with him, he uses the power of a god, and above all, it's like you're a puppy meeting its ow—"
BOOM—!
Before he could finish, the Blue Ghost was struck by the Ghost King's fist and sent flying, carving a path through the cliffside.
However, a moment later.
"Geez, couldn't you at least let me finish before hitting me?"
As the Blue Ghost crawled back up, covered in dust, she snorted and barked at him.
"If you don't want to get hit, watch your mouth, you idiot."
"...Can I keep talking?"
"Go ahead."
"Anyway, aside from him being weird, it didn't seem like he even recognized you, did it?"
The girl remained silent, but the Blue Ghost continued to chatter.
"That's what I was curious about. You seem to feel so close to him, but that 'Legitimacy' guy didn't show any sign of that at all. That's why I asked."
"……."
Before long, the girl's cheeks puffed out slightly.
To anyone watching, she looked quite sulky.
Something had clearly displeased her.
At that sight—
"Whoa..."
The Blue Ghost blinked in pure amazement.
In the hundreds of years he had spent by the Ghost King's side, he had never seen her make such a face.
That grumpy expression, like a child who had been slighted.
But that wasn't all.
"Next time."
"Next time?"
"Next time, he'll recognize me."
"?"
The Ghost King's voice rang out, carrying a hint of bitterness.
While the Blue Ghost's eyes grew even wider, she looked up at the blue moon rising in the night sky.
"...He'll definitely recognize me."
She whispered once more, her voice low and soft.