Chapter 11. Gaon's Encouragement

My left hand had turned pure white.

The complete infiltration of Divine Power had altered the very nature of my hand—part of my body, yet no longer truly mine.

'100% infiltration, but with that amount, it could only change one hand.'

For an experience that agonizing, the result felt almost anticlimactic.

But securing this much ground against the infinite darkness actually demonstrated just how potent the Divine Power was.

An A-rank Holy Knight, huh... Not a bad pick for a cover class. I'd even ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠doubted if something like this reawakening was possible for me in the first place.

If the Divine Power reinfiltrated, that hellish pain would come crashing back—that much was obvious.

There was no reason to push for more infiltration, nor the stamina to endure it.

If mobs swarmed while I was reeling from it, the quest itself could fail.

Even I thought it was reckless, but...

I rejected the A-rank Holy Knight reawakening and chose the next stage.

If Chang-seok saw that, he'd probably call me a masochist who enjoys pain and say I was insane.

'Gotta match the levels somewhat.'

If dark side makes me the Demon King, then holy side should at least reach cardinal level, if not pope.

Some yin-yang harmony, you know.

A sudden urge to balance things out made the pain during infiltration feel bearable.

I thought it was a decent choice—until that belated message started grating on my nerves.

From watching me earlier to now "taking notice," these messages were already annoying. But hey, it was the one sharing its Divine Power with me, so I'd tolerate it... for now.

Next time, I'd flip it the bird.

Having slain nearly 100,000 monsters and leveled up, I'd acquired my third dark-affinity skill.

The third dark-affinity inheritable skill, Silence Out, was especially effective against Divine Power awakeners like holy knights and priests, who resisted dark energy. With a simple hand gesture releasing mana, it delivered a devastating mental attack.

At Lv. 15—acquirable relatively early—its effect was flipping the middle finger to silence the target.

Every time I used it, their faces twisted in rage and humiliation, mouths flapping uselessly without voice or ability to respond. It always brought me a twisted joy.

I didn't know if it'd work on the Tower's master, but it'd at least give them a taste of my current irritation.

Bwooooooo—

The holy knights' horns blared again.

The knights gathering around me had a different glint in their eyes from the previous battle, but it didn't matter. To me, they were just quest fodder—illusions at best.

'Left hand's just for show.'

I wouldn't use Divine Power in combat anyway. I poured the stored energy from my left hand into resurrecting the holy knights without restraint.

Kuoooo!

Kee-heeek!

Even stronger monsters than the first wave were summoned—mid-tier bosses and dungeon boss-class beasts howling in a cacophony as they charged.

'How dare they eye the holy knights I revived.'

They were revived with excess Divine Power, but the point was I did it. Whether they saw the monsters as comrades from past loops didn't matter either.

Just fodder to annihilate for the quest.

"Death Terraforming."

Once more, black mana spread from me like a net.

"Kwon Mu-hyuk? The bell in the bell tower rang right after he entered?"

First Knight Order Captain Jung Hyun-seop was double-checking the entry log with the bell tower entrance staff.

"Y-yes! About five minutes after he went in, suddenly! A message popped up."

"What did he look like? Age? What level did he seem?"

Knight Order Chief Kang Dae-jin growled his questions, making the staffer shrink despite innocence.

"Uh, well... He looked like a young student. Wearing the academy uniform."

"What?! Is that true?! An academy cadet?!"

"No way...!"

The unexpected intruder's identity ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠threw the room into chaos. Even the Iron-Blood Pope couldn't draw the holy sword—hard to believe some academy kid did.

"Th-then maybe the bell rang for another reason, not the sword?"

Kang Dae-jin grasped at straws, seeking the pope's nod, but Cheon Myeong-jin just clicked his tongue.

"Unlikely. Everyone knows the defensive array here links to the holy sword. No point denying it when the array activated and the bell tolled."

"Nngh... It can't be! It just can't!"

As Kang Dae-jin bellowed in agitation, a powerful wave from the bell tower shook the main temple again.

Ku-gu-gu-gu—

No one knew what was happening inside, but everyone with Divine Power witnessed massive dark energy roiling like clouds.

"Th-that massive dark energy...!"

"What's going on in there?!"

"Oh, God!"

No one had seen or heard of energy this vast. Pope and clergy, knights—all wore shocked expressions.

Ku-gu-gu-gu-guung—

Another quake hit, and survival warnings blared in everyone's minds.

"Aaaah, what do we do?! The building's gonna collapse!"

"H-help! Let us out!"

Trapped visitors pounded the barrier, chaos erupting. Screams, sobs, roars—order maintained by knights crumbled instantly.

The pope's telepathy, laced with mental stabilization and brainwashing effects, rang through the temple. Most folded hands and prayed, entranced.

Watching, the pope clasped his hands and telepathically prayed too.

"Grant him safe passage—"

"Grant him safe passage—"

Thousands echoed the pope's prayer.

'Drew a sword none could, stirring such upheaval. How far will his reawakening go? Holy knight? Priest? Cardinal?'

Pretending to pray with closed eyes, the pope's brow twitched.

'Or must I yield even the papal throne?'

His lips hardened as he glared sidelong at the bell tower.

Completing the quest while reviving 10,000 holy knights bumped the rewards up.

Makes sense—using Divine Power for combat or recovery, annihilating 10x enemies while reviving that many would've been impossible.

Unless you had infinite dark energy like me.

Accepting the rewards dropped a dazzling golden gem into my hand.

'This is insane.'

My left hand already held 10,000 Divine Power. Post-quest, it refilled automatically.

With this gem, total Divine Power hit 40,000. Plus +12 Divine Affinity—perfect for me.

It'd accelerate my contamination drop.

The +10% attack speed would shine with hunter skill Crimson Flame Tornado.

'But why the name?'

'Gaon's Encouragement'? If the Demon King shows up for reawakening, shouldn't they stop me or kick me out? Encouragement? Really?

Not that I'd say it, but these are end times, alright.

Shaking my head, I stowed the gem in my inventory. The second quest began.