The Creation of Mortal Sin Erosion

Haa.

A sickly-sweet taste flooded my mouth.

Damn… that thing was disgustingly strong.

“Is it over?”

A warm voice drifted from behind my head. I tilted my neck back slightly, and there was Nyx, offering a gentle smile.

Hmm.

The angle is a bit… lethal.

I turned my head away.

“What about the battlefield?”

“I have already cleaned it up.”

She had taken the Team B players out long ago.

I’d somehow managed to win while dragging along those unreliable teammates.

“Who do you think I am?”

“The great Goddess of Night.”

“Hehe. You know your place well.”

But what does that have to do with winning?

I wanted to ask, yet I lacked the strength, so I simply stayed lying down.

“It was an even match.”

“A tough opponent.”

“It seemed to be adapting to your movements.”

“Yeah. Good thing I blew both arms off right at the start. Otherwise it would’ve been rough.”

The Outer Knight was a monster that adapted to its enemy the longer it fought. It was an opponent I had never faced before the regression. The summoning conditions were strict, too. Touching the imprint from our side would make it join as an ally, so I couldn’t call it freely.

If I hadn’t pressed the attack aggressively using the stories I’d heard in my previous life, I might have been the one who lost.

An anomaly?

Yeah, right. I’ll believe that when I see it.

“The One Standing at the End of the Great Cycle, was it? That constellation carries quite the presence.”

“Shiva. One of the three main gods leading the Devas.”

He was close to god-king rank, but not one of the ‘kings’ who represented the society of gods. Think of him as occupying a position similar to Thor. Another heavyweight had joined the audience.

“Do not forget. You are this goddess’s contractor.”

Shiva’s appearance was probably driven by curiosity toward me, but the greater likelihood was that he had sensed the presence of an outer god within the Tower. The anger he had shown in the last message proved it.

Ah. Yes. Thank you.

“Why is the embarrassment mine to bear?”

Let’s just pretend I didn’t hear that.

I had benefited greatly from the artifact Ares gave me as a reward during the tutorial.

Nyx suddenly leaned her upper body forward. The distance closed abruptly. Since she was no longer a spirit body, my neck instinctively tensed.

W-what is it now?

She brought her lips close to my ear and whispered softly.

“Do you truly believe it was a coincidence?”

Good grief. She suddenly draws close, makes me nervous, then says something so ordinary.

“Of course not.”

Even a child would know better.

“Yet that arrogant constellation apologized before the eyes of every living being.”

“You’re a constellation too, Goddess. Can you really say that?”

“Hehe. If there is any god as open-minded as I, let them step forward.”

She really is quite open-minded. When I see her lying on the sofa watching evening dramas…

“You are entertaining improper thoughts again, are you not?”

“I have no idea what you mean.”

“Your face gives everything away whenever you have those ridiculous ideas.”

Wow. Illegal surveillance of your contractor? That’s too much.

“There is a high chance the Old Gods are involved as well.”

No. It wasn’t just a chance. They were definitely connected.

The Outer Knight wasn’t some ordinary hidden piece. It was a so-called sniper build. Drop an item related to the void onto the imprint, and the Outer Knight would leap out, single out the strongest player on the opposing team, and force a one-on-one duel.

“If you lose, it steals your stats or skills.”

“How vicious.”

“That’s why it’s called a sniper build.”

In my previous life, this was around the time the term ‘sniping’ first became known.

“So that is why they reacted this way.”

“Yeah. I didn’t expect Loki to be involved, though.”

“Do you remember who the first child to be sniped was?”

“Ariel.”

“That strange angel you speak of.”

A transcendent-grade artifact?

An item that surpassed even Legend rank!

According to the system’s classification, the highest grade of ‘Myth’ was only ever granted to holy relics. In other words, a garment woven from feathers was an end-game artifact so rare you could search the entire Tower and still struggle to find it.

“For something so precious, the options feel rather plain.”

“You simply don’t understand.”

The Mana Boost option was an extremely rare ability. At first glance the name suggested it only strengthened magic, but in truth it interfered with the effects of every skill based on mana.

It was a shame that martial arts or Seon Magic from other systems wouldn’t benefit, but since most of my own abilities ran on mana, the effect was enormous.

“Drawing attention isn’t even a penalty.”

Both before and after the regression, I had always performed the roles of both tanker and dealer on the front lines. Holding the enemy’s gaze was the tanker’s job. Since there weren’t many provocation skills, I had drawn attention by pouring out firepower. With the Bewitching Feather Garment, that problem was solved.

“You’ll be able to focus entirely on the offensive as well, Goddess.”

“Hmm. Not bad at all.”

It would be a massive penalty for magic-type players, but not for me.

In ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠fact, it was perfect!

Absolute Stealth was also an internal skill worthy of the transcendent grade. The prefix ‘Absolute’ was not something easily obtained.

At the level of mortals, neither insight skills nor unique abilities would be able to see through Absolute Stealth. As long as I was careful of exploration-type blessings, I could move in complete secrecy.

“I’ll just have to be a little cautious while moving.”

“Well, yes.”

“Still, I cannot imagine you sneaking around.”

Hey now. She says such disheartening things so casually.

During the age of destruction, the Old Gods’ eyes had been everywhere. To hide my movement routes, mana control had been essential. Even without special stealth skills, I suppressed my energy so that mana waves could not leak out.

“When I was gathering time-related essences, I basically played an espionage character.”

If she had seen it, her mouth would have fallen open. Too bad I couldn’t show her.

And besides.

“I also snuck around a lot while collecting the Brazier of Extinguished Ashes.”

“Ah, yes. There was that time.”

“You’re acting like you didn’t know.”

Retrieving the fake holy relics that the Sinister group of evil constellations had created to throw lower dimensions into chaos had been quite the ordeal. If I had possessed a skill like Absolute Stealth back then, it would have been much easier.

A feather garment that granted Absolute Stealth. It was a truly magnificent artifact that made all the suffering feel worthwhile.

I draped it over my shoulders without putting my arms through the sleeves. The wings fluttered and swayed from side to side.

“Is it not cumbersome?”

Don’t worry. This artifact also has a shape-shifting option.

I placed my hand on the garment and pictured a design. The feathers instantly clung to the fabric and stretched out. The clothing—no, the coat—lengthened until it reached my ankles, turned pitch black, and took on a form almost identical to the coat I had recently created with Polar Night.

“By the way, does infinite durability mean it can be used as armor as well?”

“It means it doesn’t get damaged. It’s useless for defense, though.”

Well, most armor couldn’t compare to the True Dragon Armor anyway, so it didn’t matter.

“You have obtained a splendid reward.”

“There’s still one left.”

I reached toward the corpse of the Outer Knight, which lay there in hideous ruin. The essence of a monster I had never managed to connect with in my previous life. I was excited to see what it would give me.

Come on. What kind of ability will you grant me?

Contagion, huh.

I tested granting the ‘void’ property to the True Dragon Armor wrapped around my arm. The scales glistened with a violet hue.

As expected. I immediately understood how to apply the skill.

“It’s similar in type to the Blessing of Greed.”

The master of the Myriad Demon Palace. The one who reigned as the first among the seventy-two demons. It operated on a mechanism similar to Baal’s ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠blessing.

Tsk.

Still, though. The essence of a monster I had barely defeated after sweating blood was only three-star? The effect itself wasn’t bad. Although it was an active skill, once mana was applied the reinforcement option activated. And thanks to the Primordial Dragon Heart, I had mana to spare. As long as I stayed conscious of it, I could enjoy the reinforcement effect continuously.

The only problem was…

“As I thought, it doesn’t work.”

Crackle!

When I tried to grant both the blessing and the power of the void to the same spot, they repelled each other and split apart. So there were types of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠abilities that even the Blessing of Greed could not swallow.

“Is it not the same with the darkness this goddess bestowed upon you?”

“Darkness Domination is a blessing ability, so of course it doesn’t work.”

How could blessings interfere with each other?

Anyway, thinking that the essence I had earned through so much hardship was merely a lower-compatible version of my existing abilities left a bitter taste in my mouth.

“My, my. When did you say there is no such thing as an unnecessary essence?”

“I didn’t say anything?”

“It is written all over your face.”

Chet.

I had obtained more void-type abilities in this life. During the Bronze and Silver promotion matches, I had never encountered the ruler of the Ancient Canyon, Grand Duke Naeshan, in my previous life. That meant I had never had the chance to test which essences created good synergy with it.

Oh well. I had a mountain of abilities to train, but I didn’t want to miss out on void-type powers. With Black Wisdom available, I could minimize the risk. I had to find a way to make use of it.

“Wait a moment.”

Synergy.

It didn’t have to be a combination of essences. If there was a common denominator, I could fuse ‘skills’ instead.

Good. Let’s give it a try.

The attempt to mix a constellation’s blessing with the power of the void. A few constellations seemed to find it blasphemous and openly displayed their discomfort.

Well, if the one who gave the blessing says it’s fine, it should be okay, right?

I pushed the messages from the constellations aside and activated Fusion Qigong.