Chapter 373: Divine Blood (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 373: Divine Blood (1)
“Whoa, a real Mermaid…?” Penia muttered, her eyes wide with surprise.
The Observer didn’t offer much of a reaction, as if she were used to such a response.
“It’s been a while,” Alon said.
At the sound of his voice, she turned her gaze back to him. “Yes, it has been.”
“Did you know I was coming?”
“I expected it.”
The Observer answered calmly, then glanced at Ladan, Penia, and Evan standing behind Alon. “I’m afraid the guests will have to wait here for a moment.”
“…Is that so?”
“Yes.”
Alon glanced back, and the three of them nodded simultaneously.
“Understood.”
Once Alon gave his nod of confirmation, the Observer reached out toward him.
Wuuuung—!
With a light resonant hum, a bubble-like sphere enveloped his body.
“Then we shall depart immediately.”
Without further explanation, the Observer dove beneath the surface, guiding Alon toward a space deep within the sea.
After some time had passed…
“We’ve arrived.”
They reached the Observer’s sanctum.
“Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it. I’ll be heading out now.”
“…? Wait, you’re leaving?”
When Alon asked in surprise, the Observer nodded.
“Yes. I am not the one you are meant to speak with this time. Besides, I have a message to deliver.”
“A message?”
“Yes. To those above.”
The Observer added nothing more and turned away before Alon could say another word. She cast herself into the entrance of the abyss where nothing could be seen.
“Don’t worry too much. I’ll come back down as soon as I finish the conversation.”
Leaving those words behind, she vanished instantly.
‘…What kind of conversation is she talking about?’
Flustered for a moment, Alon soon shrugged and turned around. It was just as she said—she wasn’t the one he had come to meet today.
Alon walked deeper into the naturally formed cave. Soon, a familiar hollow revealed itself. It was a place where the sky was clearly visible even amidst the darkness of the deep sea. The hollow itself was no different than before.
What had changed was the sky.
“…….”
Alon looked up at the sky of this world in silence. The place that had always been brilliant with stars no longer held the Milky Way. There was only the pitch-black night and the moon floating elegantly in the void.
The stars were gone. As if they had never existed in the first place.
“…….”
Of course, this wasn’t the first time he had seen a starless night sky. He had heard that the stars had vanished from the night sky since the moment he regained consciousness, and he had seen it with his own eyes once he was able to move.
And yet…
Alon stood dazed for a long while, staring at the silent sky where only the moon remained. Since it was the sky, there was no way to measure the level of commotion, yet for some reason, the sky felt profoundly quiet.
“…….”
Eventually, Alon moved his feet slowly, passing under the dark sky to head further inside. Upon finding the altar he had seen last time, he placed the Curved Jade he was carrying directly onto it.
Wuuuuuung—!
He felt the Magic of Sin along with a faint resonance. Unlike before, however, he did not panic and waited calmly.
“Predecessor…”
Soon, a soul in human form appeared before him—a soul formed from the condensation of the Magic of Sin.
[You’ve gathered them all.]
Before Alon could even react to her appearance, the Previous Observer spoke. Alon nodded, inwardly surprised.
“Yes. How did you know?”
[Because I was the one who told you to gather them?]
“…Hmph.”
[I’m joking.]
As Alon wore an embarrassed expression, the Previous Observer continued with a faint smile.
[Being in this state allows me to sense things a bit more closely.]
“You noticed from such a minute wavelength?”
[Indeed. First, could you give me those items?]
Without a word of complaint, Alon handed her the items he had been carrying.
The Mask of the Walker.
The Screaming Blessing.
And the Gem of the Blind One.
The Previous Observer accepted them silently and arranged the three artifacts in a triangle on the altar where the Curved Jade sat.
[First, we start with this.]
As she spoke, the Magic of Sin began to flow into the three artifacts, and a black sphere started to form above the triangle.
And then—
Zip—!
A black thorn shot toward Alon.
“!”
It happened in a flash.
Had he been betrayed? Was it possible to react? Even if he couldn’t, could he survive?
In that split second, ten thousand thoughts raced through Alon’s mind as he held his breath. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do. The thorn emerging from the sphere was faster than his thoughts.
Just as Alon was about to grit his teeth—
Crunch—!
The black thorn pierced something.
“……?”
It wasn't his body, but something behind his back.
And then…
“!”
Alon felt it. The black something that had been behind him was slowly vanishing.
“This… is?”
As Alon stared blankly at the black smoke and turned his gaze toward the Previous Observer, she answered calmly.
[A Watcher, you could call it.]
“…A Watcher?”
[Yes. A Watcher that has been observing you all this time.]
Alon looked behind him. Whatever had been maintaining a form there had completely disappeared.
“Could you… give me an explanation?”
[Of course… Hm?]
The Previous Observer, who had been nodding, suddenly stared intently at Alon.
“…Is there something else?”
Alon asked at her sudden strange behavior, but she simply stared at him for a long while.
[No, it’s nothing.]
She shook her head and looked away.
[It will take some time before you can meet that person, so let’s talk for a bit.]
She spoke as if nothing had happened.
* * *
Alon’s mind was filled with confusion.
The vanished divinity. The Divine Blood. The secrets of this world. And even the Watcher the Predecessor had mentioned. The list of things he had to think about had grown once again.
Regardless of Alon’s situation, the Previous Observer remained silent. Or rather, she seemed to be contemplating—deciding what she should tell him first.
After being lost in thought for a long time, she spoke.
[Let’s start from the very beginning.]
“…The very beginning?”
[Yes. I tried to think of a way to explain it simply, but it seems that will be difficult. Well, it won’t be a bad story for you. It’s not something you can hear from just anyone.]
When Alon looked at her, the Previous Observer nodded.
[This is a story of the past—even further back than the Forgotten Age of Gods.]
“……?”
Alon felt a momentary doubt, but he soon realized the meaning. He had heard something similar from the current Observer before.
‘…So, you’re saying there is a past that predates the Forgotten Age of Gods?’
‘To be honest, I haven’t seen it myself, but I am certain it exists.’
‘Why?’
‘Because the Previous Observer—my master—passed away after leaving a final testament based on what she saw of that past.’
Those were the words she had spoken when he first met the Observer and looked into the Bronze Mirror. Alon recalled that conversation and looked at the Predecessor before him, but her expression remained stoic.
[In the very distant past, there were two nations on this continent.]
[One was a nation so powerful it could reach the heavens, having achieved dazzling progress through magitech.]
[The other was a nation of those who had realized the method of carving laws into this world under the teachings of a Great God.]
[The names of those nations were the Illanef Empire and Babiloia, respectively.]
“!”
Alon’s eyes widened. He knew the name Illanef because he had heard it from Line, but he knew the name Babiloia even without being told.
“…Babil…loia…” Alon muttered unconsciously.
He couldn't possibly not know it. In Psychedelia, if one took the Mage path, Babiloia was a name they were bound to know. The words and Hand Seals used when performing a Mage’s Constraint were the Phrases and Hand Seals of ‘Babiloia.’
In fact, Alon himself had performed a Constraint using a ring several years ago.
Even as countless thoughts flashed through Alon’s mind, the Previous Observer continued her story.
[As you’ve likely guessed by now, the Hand Seals and Phrases you use—]
“They all belong to Babiloia.”
[Correct. More accurately, they belong to the ‘God’ who carved those laws into this world. Or rather—would it be more correct to say they belong to the Divine Blood?]
“…What?”
Alon looked shocked. But only for a moment; his mind began to race. Based on the story of the two nations she had explained, he naturally began to form an inference.
Babiloia’s Divine Blood… Magic… Magitech… Illanef… Sin…
Pluto.
“…No way.”
[…I see. It seems you’ve already caught on to the purpose of the Divine Blood from what the Sins told you. Since you’ve realized it, I won’t need to explain every little detail.]
The Previous Observer smiled when she saw Alon’s realization.
[Yes. It is exactly as you suspect. Babiloia was the Divine Blood’s personal cage, designed for it to be reborn as a true God.]
“And Illanef was—”
[The interloper that obstructed the Divine Blood’s future.]
Alon suddenly thought of a question. It was about what happened when he met Uultultus—no, the Brute God. As far as Alon knew, he was an Outer God from the forgotten era. Yet, he clearly knew of Babiloia. The very reason he had accepted Alon’s duel was because Alon had mentioned Babiloia.
However, Alon did not interrupt the Predecessor’s ongoing explanation.
[The two nations waged war. Both Babiloia and Illanef suffered immense damage. To the point where, if time continued as it was, both nations were destined for inevitable ruin.]
“…So the two nations eventually destroyed each other?”
[No.]
“No?”
[Yes. The two nations eventually stopped the war just before they could destroy one another. The Divine Blood did not want to see this field of gestation, which it had created by pushing others aside, turn to nothing. And Illanef had a plan that required time.]
[I don’t know the details of what that plan was, though,] the Predecessor added before continuing.
[Anyway, the two nations stopped the war just before total destruction. And they managed to survive somehow. But—]
She shrugged.
[Illanef and Babiloia were eventually destroyed.]
“…They couldn't hold out?”
[No. Even if ruin had approached, both nations were powerful enough to eventually rise again. The laws the Divine Blood carved into the world granted humans temporary omnipotence.]
The Previous Observer moved slowly and sat on the altar.
[The magitech, developed enough to reach the heavens, also granted humans power beyond what was necessary. Thus, both nations recovered with increasing speed as time passed. And then, they were destroyed.]
“A second war?”
[No. The two nations were not destroyed by war. I repeat—they were destroyed.]
“…By whom?”
At Alon’s question, the Previous Observer fell silent. After a brief pause, she answered.
[By the Aberrant Blood.]
“……!”
Alon’s eyes widened instantly.