Chapter 22
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: The Cult (3)
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A beautiful dagger, wreathed in darkness.
To any who saw it, it was a clear blessing from a god.
Gulp.
Facing the dagger, Loan swallowed without realizing it.
Just as he was about to approach the dagger on the altar.
KRA-KOOM!
A bolt of lightning struck down from the sky.
"Aaaargh!"
"Wh-what was that! Lightning?"
The sudden bolt of lightning sent the spectating cultists screaming.
Crackle. Sizzle.
The lightning that struck the altar sparked for a moment before being sucked into the dagger.
The instantaneous event left everyone surrounding the altar in a state of solemn silence.
But the strange phenomena directed at the altar were not over.
No sooner had the reverberations of thunder faded from Loan's ears than spears of lightning began to fall from the sky in succession.
KABOOM! KRA-KOOOM!
Eardrum-shattering peals of thunder echoed several times.
This time, the cultists covered their ears against the violent thunder that shook their very heartbeats.
"O-O, God!"
"O, Great One!"
Powerful lightning strikes continued to descend upon the earth.
Each time a massive flash of light burst before their eyes, the roar of thunder rang in their ears.
It was a scene that only a transcendent being could create.
At the marvelous sight that followed the ritual, many cried out to their god.
KRAAANG!
Each time a spear of lightning collided with the dagger on the altar, a dark energy was unleashed, devouring the residual current.
Once. Twice.
The divine punishment of lightning struck several more times.
With a final, thunderous clap, like a celebratory cannonade marking the end of the ritual, the barrage of lightning falling upon the dagger concluded.
"H-How can this be...!"
A gasp of astonishment escaped Loan's lips as he watched the entire spectacle.
At the final moment of the rite.
Their god had given the cultists a definitive answer.
Crackle.
A faint current flowed from the dagger, having absorbed the lightning's magic.
It was a spectacle no mere mortal could ever hope to replicate.
As Loan stared at the dagger on the altar, a past conversation with Yutenia flashed through his mind.
'If you practice the offering ritual I taught you, the Great One will surely respond.'
That is what Yutenia had told him.
That the Great One would surely give Loan a response.
If so, that meant the dagger on the altar was meant for him.
Thud. Thud.
Loan approached the altar and looked at the dagger.
The dagger, which had been seeping darkness, was now tempting Loan with its beautiful form.
An elegantly shaped blade and a lavishly decorated hilt.
There was not a single part of it he did not find pleasing.
"O, Great One! If this is your will for me, then I shall humbly accept it."
With a trembling hand, Loan grasped the dagger.
Clench.
As he awkwardly gripped the dagger bestowed upon him by the god, an immense power flowed from his hand where it touched the blade.
The object Loan held was no simple thing.
A magic sword that devoured magic and returned it.
That was the identity of Ednos, the blade Loan now held.
Realizing the nature of the magic sword in his hand, Loan muttered as he looked at Ednos.
"Ednos I see. So that is this object's name."
A sense of omnipotence welled up within him, as if he could wield immense power just by holding it.
An object bestowed directly by the god who watched over them.
It was a treasure worthy of being called a Divine Artifact.
This Ednos would now become the symbol of Loan's authority.
Perhaps understanding the meaning of the dagger given to him, Yutenia, who had been watching, offered her congratulations to Loan as he held the bestowed Ednos.
"You've received something nice. Congratulations, Loan."
"It is all thanks to you, Apostle."
"Still so humble."
A hand extended from the shadows and lightly patted Loan's shoulder.
Pat. Pat.
It was a gesture of encouragement for Loan.
After patting his shoulder, Yutenia smiled and asked him.
"Doesn't the Archbishop still have work to do?"
"You're right. I have work to do."
"I'll be cheering for your success."
"Yes."
As the hand from the shadows withdrew, Loan stepped forward before the altar once more.
He then turned to face the kneeling cultists.
Each one was looking at him with a different expression.
Fear. Awe. Resignation.
Meeting each of those emotions one by one, Loan raised the Ednos in his hand.
"Here and now, I declare in the name of Archbishop Loan Hebriss."
Flash!
The Ednos in Loan's hand began to emit a brilliant light.
The cultists naturally bowed their heads before the blinding radiance.
"We shall build a temple on this spot! A temple to serve the Great One!"
A temple to serve their master.
That was the most important plan in the mind of Loan, the new Archbishop.
To build a temple to serve the god.
And to gather followers who would obey the god.
That was the only way Loan could even begin to repay the authority that had been bestowed upon him.
"Everyone, acclaim! For the Great One!"
The light that flashed from the tip of Loan's sword shot out as a spear of lightning.
KRA-KOOOM!
The magic unleashed by Ednos flew straight toward the adjacent mountain and collided with it.
A massive impact sound was followed by a thick cloud of smoke.
The cultists, who had witnessed all these miracles, began to applaud spontaneously.
Cheers and acclaim.
A roar of applause, loud enough to echo throughout the entire mountain, erupted.
Loan watched the scene with a satisfied smile.
Archbishop, Loan Hebriss.
This was the moment of the cult's birth, with him at its head.
The Holy Land, Crossbridge.
Within the Temple of Abundance, the most influential of the six temples, there resided a Saintess revered by all in the Holy Land.
The name of the girl who folded her hands and offered a pious prayer to the heavens was Serena Etherunt.
She was the Saintess who led the Temple of Abundance, and she was also the one closest to the gods in the Holy Land.
In the silence, the sound of Serena's prayer, her eyes closed, echoed softly.
Her body seemed to emanate a gentle light as she prayed.
"O, Goddess of Abundance, who watches over all"
Beside Serena stood a Holy Knight, a sword at his hip.
The most important figure in the Holy Land, the Saintess, was naturally accompanied by a fitting guardian.
Holy Knight, Lian Crost.
He was the Holy Knight chosen by the white Holy Sword and the Vice-Commander of the Holy Knights.
Lian kept watch over their surroundings while observing the piously praying Serena.
How much time had passed since Serena began her prayer?
As the light enveloping Serena's body faded, Lian, who had been guarding her with his Holy Sword, moved.
"Phew. The prayer is finally over."
Having finished her prayer, Serena rose to her feet and looked at Lian.
Perhaps because she had held the position for so long, her legs gave way, and her body swayed for a moment.
Lian did not miss that small opening; he approached the stumbling Serena and supported her.
Thud.
Caught by Lian's hand, Serena looked at him for a moment before righting herself and smiling at him.
"I guess I have a clumsy side, too."
"Please be careful. If you get hurt, Saintess, everyone in the Holy Land will worry."
"Thank you, Lian."
"It is nothing. By the way, did the Goddess of Abundance say anything?"
Although it was a regularly scheduled prayer time, Serena, as the Saintess, would sometimes receive divine revelations.
A divine revelation. Also known as an oracle, its contents could only be heard by her, the Saintess.
Lian's question to Serena was about an oracle from the Goddess of Abundance.
Nod.
Hearing Lian's question, Serena nodded and said.
"Yes. An oracle has descended."
"An oracle... I see."
"Are you curious about what it said?"
"Of course, I am. What kind of oracle was it?"
As a rule, the contents of an oracle were not disclosed to anyone except the key officials of the Holy Land.
However, Lian was not only the Saintess's guard but also the Vice-Commander of the Holy Knights.
He was also the person who spent the most time by Serena's side.
He was more than qualified for Serena to share the contents of the oracle with him.
Thus, Lian did not hesitate to ask Serena about it.
"She said that a new Hero will soon appear at the temple."
"A new Hero? Don't tell me has the Evil God begun to intervene in the mortal world?"
Lian's eyebrows twitched upon hearing the word "Hero" from Serena's lips.
Hero.
It was the name given to the wielders of the six Divine Artifacts who appeared alongside an oracle.
There was only one condition for a Hero to appear.
An Evil God must have emerged to throw the world into chaos.
The gods who watched over the six temples of the Holy Land did not exert their influence on the mortal plane, with certain exceptions.
And the appearance of an Evil God was precisely one of those exceptional situations that prompted the six gods to act decisively.
To a startled Lian, who was surprised to hear the name of the Hero, Serena replied with a calm expression.
"The Evil God has started to move. No, actually, it seems it began moving long before we expected."
The stirrings of the Evil God.
That alone was enough to put the entire Holy Land on high alert.
But to hear that the Evil God had been active for much longer than Lian had anticipated...
Faced with one piece of bad news after another, Lian asked again.
"What do you mean by that?"
"For some reason, causality has been reset. That's why the oracle came later than usual."
"..."
"The Scales of Karma are fair to all, so until they're sufficiently tipped, the Divine Artifacts won't be released either."
Lian's expression darkened as he recalled the descriptions of the Divine Artifacts from the records.
Without the power of a Divine Artifact, most Heroes were merely talented humans.
No matter how chosen they were, a Hero without their Divine Artifact would struggle to even parry Lian's sword.
To a Hero, a Divine Artifact held many meanings.
And what Serena had just said was tantamount to saying that for the time being, the Heroes' Divine Artifacts would not be able to display their full power.
"A difficult situation, then. The elders will have quite the headache for a while."
"Indeed. Just bringing the Heroes here safely will be a troublesome task."
"What are your plans, Saintess?"
"I suppose I'll have to enjoy my freedom from now on."
"Freedom...?"
"The Inquisitors and Holy Knights will be in charge of finding the Heroes anyway, so won't I have some free time for a while?"
Paradoxically, when the temple became busy with preparations to welcome the Heroes, the Saintess's schedule would lighten.
This was because most of the personnel would be dispatched outside, leading to the suspension of official events.
Heh.
Lian let out a faint laugh upon hearing Serena's words.
At the smile from Lian, who rarely showed such an expression, Serena smiled back at him.
"I won't stand by if you slack off."
"Oh, come now, slacking off? Rest is also a form of preparation for dealing with the Evil God."
"Of course, I didn't think you'd be without an excuse."
"I guess I'm no match for you, Lian."
Beyond each other's smiles, the two gazed at the shadow of the Evil God that had fallen over the continent.