Lumentia's Revival and the Holy Grail Miracle

After annihilating the archdemons with the Black Hole, he soared into the sky on the magic carpet.

'Meteor Fall.'

Gwooooooo────!

A staggering 55-meter-wide meteor hurtled toward the continent, dizzying just to behold.

Kwaaaaaang─────!

A deafening roar. Winds. Dust. Scorching heat.

Monsters vanishing in the shockwave.

And then.

"Meteor's the best────!"

"Ahh, such overwhelming divine power······!"

Carmina, eyes sparkling like a child's.

Yulia, cheeks flushed in ecstasy.

The blast radius was so vast that it wiped out monsters from three sectors at once.

With their archdemon owners gone, the "purifiable" status triggered immediately.

Purify? Why hesitate?

He'd done it before—it was easy.

He swiftly toured the three sectors' towers, performing the purification.

Paaaat───!

Beams of light shot from each tower's peak, settling across the sectors.

Ripples of light spreading in circles.

The barren landscape began to restore.

"Yulia! What did I tell you? See?!"

"I-I'm ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠witnessing a miracle right now."

Black earth? Turned to verdant meadows.

Barren trees? Lush forests.

Just like on Nosferatu, it transformed into a beautiful, bountiful vista.

But even more noteworthy was.

'The dark clouds over the purified sectors have completely cleared.'

Brilliant sunlight pouring from the clear sky.

Flora, fauna, and all life on the ground shimmered with a soft glow.

Whoa, he couldn't close his mouth.

No wonder they called it a planet of light.

Let's take a look from above.

"Master! Jackpot! We gotta take pics!"

"If we keep purifying like this···!"

It was like a black-and-white photo where one section had regained color and light.

And he could spot tiny dots too.

"People! They look totally bewildered!"

"Archbishop Khan! Even Cardinal Rommel!"

They could see that with the naked eye from here?

Anyway, just like on Nosferatu, these were Lumentia's revived inhabitants.

Maybe because the planet was larger?

At least a thousand per sector.

A drop in the bucket compared to the original population, but enough to rebuild civilization.

Yulia projected a message of light into the air, summoning everyone here.

The magic carpet descended over the gathering crowd.

"Y-Yulia, the Saintess?"

"What in the world is happening···."

Armor, priestly robes, mage robes, and more.

People in all sorts of attire.

Explaining the situation to them wasn't hard.

Why?

Because Carmina projected a hologram ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠replaying the Black Hole and Meteor Fall activations.

"The archdemons, so powerless······."

"A meteor···? How could human power summon that···."

They gathered like an audience before a giant screen, watching a movie.

The residents turned toward the craters in shock and awe.

What? Videos with magic?

Reading his expression, Carmina chimed in.

"Hehe. I can replay memories as videos! I'm a pretty awesome mage! I watch it like five times a day. I'll edit it into a mad movie later! Title: Our Master's Epic Lifetime Highlights!"

Lifetime? What the hell for someone with a bright future.

After the video ended, Yulia explained in a magically amplified voice.

"─Thus, all the archdemons have been annihilated, and three of the 72 sectors have been revived. The one who wrought all these miracles is─."

Whoosh!

Yulia turned to him.

Three thousand pairs of eyes locked on.

"─The Galaxy Traveler standing before you. He is our new god and pope."

Right, he was the Galaxy Traveler··· wait, what?

"Pardon?"

"Oh, Pope. Just wave to your followers, please."

"No, what the."

Yulia's signature beaming smile.

She fiddled with her status window, pulling up some text before him.

What? It wasn't this detailed when he checked.

She whispered.

"The biggest reason Lumentia's people fell to the demons was realizing their goddess had abandoned and fled from us."

Hmm, he got the gist.

"Even so, god or pope is a bit much."

Slide.

Sigh, shoulda said so sooner.

She came prepared with her pitch.

"I am Lumentia's new god! Believe in me and follow!"

Woooaaaaah────!

Screw it.

It'd work out somehow.

Back in his room, he checked the restoration status.

One Meteor Fall under buff gave 5%.

Normally, it'd be 2-3%?

Black Hole skill.

Good for wiping flying swarms that Meteor couldn't precisely hit.

Factoring in Heaven's Blessing cooldown and variables.

'Fastest case, about 4 weeks?'

Original estimate: 72 days.

He'd cut it more than in half, but he wasn't satisfied.

More, gotta shorten it further···!

For stronger dopamine···!

That's when he saw Carmina pulling up two status windows before Yulia.

And then.

"Hmph."

She snorted proudly.

Senior ally flex?

"Hmm, percentages, huh?"

Yulia murmured intriguingly, then.

Straighten.

She arched her back and shoulders.

Highlighting certain assets over her loose saintess robes.

Carmina glanced back and forth at her chest, face like the apocalypse.

Judge, I saw nothing.

"M-Master! The world! N-No! The universe is unfair!"

"The universe has always been unfair."

She was average height too.

In his eyes, Carmina couldn't compete with Yulia no matter what.

Changing the subject to lighten the mood.

"Dinner before the tower? Starved since dawn."

[PM 5:35]

Cha Minhyuk was probably in the meeting now.

Hungry, but he wanted to hear the US talks first before entering the tower.

"Yay! Chicken! Pizza! Mala tang! Sweet and sour pork!"

"Pope, app's ready."

Soon, a feast of delivery food arrived.

Yulia cracked the bottom of a soju bottle from the fridge with her elbow like a pro.

Click!

She popped the cap and flicked the bottleneck between her fingers.

"Korean···?"

"Saw it on the internet?"

Patch too perfect?

"Pope, your first follower toasts you."

"Non-alcoholic beer for me. Weak with booze."

"Yulia! Me! Lemme try!"

"No. The vamp—er, ally who went full drunk off one sip of wine."

He'd fed her the rest once.

Not for any reason, just blood-colored.

She got clingy and silly, so booze ban in effect.

"I don't remember a thing!"

"Headache either way."

Clink!

Non-alcoholic beer, cola, soju.

Three glasses met.

"Chicken and cola should be a universal cultural treasure!"

"These drinks have subtle flavor differences by brand—fun to compare."

Mid-cheerful meal.

He checked the rankings: US had overtaken Korea for 1st.

'Clearing 22F later will flip it back.'

But US would catch up again? How much firepower were they holding?

Yulia, eyeing the rankings too.

"Just hit me—probably an alchemist."

"Alchemist?"

"Yes, one of Lumentia's S-rank jobs. Doesn't climb towers but crafts consumables to aid others."

Earth had them too.

Crafters and producers.

All A-rank, low awakening odds, and kinda useless in the current tower meta.

"S-rank must've helped block tower rampages a lot?"

"Huge help. High-level alchemists could make score potions."

10k, 30k, 50k points.

Just drink for instant score boost.

If Earth had a Lumentia-style alchemist, it'd pump their nation's score.

"Knew it! Boss map cheat! ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠A country with that broken job awakener!"

"Not omnipotent. Potions cost a fortune to make, and cooldowns prevent spamming."

Hmm, score potions.

If Yulia was right?

US probably dumped stockpiled score potions this round.

Anyway, just theory.

He moved to the next task.

"Lumentia first purification celebration! Item transfer time!"

"Ooh! Clap clap clap!"

"Your first papal miracle!"

Rare item odds on Lumentia were still rock-bottom.

But happy day.

Once wouldn't hurt.

"Item Transfer!"

The light faded, revealing something.

"Holy Grail? Bronze cup?"

"Whoa! Looks like a chalice!"

"A lost sacred relic of the Holy Kingdom···!"

Jackpot pull.

S-rank items were rare even on Earth, and this had a star.

"O-Oh, it's coming!"

"Huh? Master? What's coming?"

"Dopamine! Dopamine flood!"

"Ooh! Just let it flow!"

Calming his excitement, he asked Yulia, who gaped.

"Yulia, you know what this is, right?"

"······! Yes. Our knights and priests sprinkled holy water on themselves against demons—to block curses and venom. Thought lost when the church branches fell."

Legendary artifact, like Bloodrose seed.

As a tower item now, key was holy water effects.

"Let's make some."

"Here, Master! Bottled water!"

Glug glug!

The water in the grail glowed softly.

It transformed.

"Cups! More cups!"

"Insane! Here!"

"Pope! Cabinet cups are gone!"

"Any container for water—bring 'em all!"

Pour holy water into cups.

Refill with water, make more.

After the frantic frenzy.

Cups and plates filled everywhere.

Like a leaky house in the rain.

His body tingled.

'Holy water duplicates?'

And tower item, so storable in inventory.

End? No.

All converted while keeping looks and taste.

Effects identical, of course.

"Buff from cola alone!"

"Booze tastes cleaner?"

They loved it.

Tests showed ~500ml for 1 day.

Basically infinite.

Water's a daily essential.

'All stats +100%.'

Huge even for his buff-stacked self.

Standard balance? Game-breaking.

Key: No "non-tradable" tag on produced holy water.

Meaning.

'Can give or sell to others.'

This··· worth a bit.

No, a ton of money?

Value beyond imagination depending on use.

Downside: Near-useless status immunity.

Meh.

Then Carmina's hair stood on end.

"Master! Message!"

Meeting over, huh.

After the meeting.

Cha Minhyuk agonized long.

How to tell Hitchhiker this?

'Wanted only good news.'

But grim, unexpected tidings.

Checked exchange stock immediately.

All sold out.

Agency stock low too.

Even giving all to Hitchhiker—how much help?

Deepening worry.

'Gotta report anyway.'

Resolved, Cha Minhyuk closed his eyes, focusing.

Mid-chat with the proxy, he felt dumbfounded.

No worries, prep to rake foreign currency via auction···? Calculate ratios properly···?

What did that even mean···?