Mythical Fruit (2)
“Hmm, I thought this might happen, so I wanted to strike hard and eradicate the problem at once…”
The chairman of the Pantheon 12 Council, stroking his mustache roughly, let out a deep sigh.
Having survived countless challenges, he knew very well that when humans are cornered, they become reckless.
That’s why he intentionally delayed and prepared thoroughly to ensure the situation was settled without leaving any gaps…
“Chairman! The remnants of the evil god have begun to expand again!”
“The introductions for the nearby citizens are still not finished. If this keeps up…”
“Ah, who in the world would bring about such a dreadful disaster!”
Even he had not anticipated this situation.
Who would have thought that the shadow of a god existing in another world would be summoned here to Earth?
How could anyone foresee such a miracle?
‘Hoo, but there’s no time to just worry.’
As everyone fell into chaos due to the sudden situation, he couldn’t remain in the back giving orders when there weren’t enough hands on deck.
A chilly holy power flowed from the chairman’s half-opened eyes.
Saahhh—
The divine authority that freezes all things in the world.
Though it was diminished to less than half of its power compared to when used in another world, due to the higher nature of holy power compared to other energies, it was still a force that couldn’t be easily dismissed.
Jiggle jiggle—
Yet, it wasn’t nearly enough to contain the shape-shifting mass of the evil god’s shadow.
The amorphous mass that thrashed violently against the holy power suffocating it.
Tentacles stretching beyond it, large enough to rival a hill, swept up everything within reach, devouring it.
“Grrm.”
“Ugh, what on earth is this!”
Not only the chairman but also the members of the other operating committee and the most prominent priests from various churches were in the same predicament.
Even combining their efforts was just enough to momentarily stall the rapid expansion of that disaster.
‘… The compatibility is the worst.’
It wasn’t that the borrowed divine powers of the priests or their abilities were lacking.
The problem was that while they had to forcibly bring the power of a god from another dimension to manifest here on Earth, the evil god’s shadow possessed divine radiance itself.
‘This is what you call a difference in class. It’s ignoring most of the coercive force we’ve assembled. Thanks to the cooperation of many, we’re holding on, but…’
As long as it couldn’t reach the incomplete divinity that being held, it was merely a temporary measure.
For now, it was a matter of holding out until support arrived, minimizing sacrifices.
‘Even when that support arrives, getting rid of that thing will be tough. For now, there’s no other way. If I can just buy enough time, I should be able to think of a way to send it back.’
It wasn’t strange for the chairman to be thinking that way.
However, there was one thing he overlooked due to the sudden situation and focusing solely on his usual combat power.
“Eh! Wh-what is that…?”
“From the sky…!”
In that moment, there was another being present that exceeded even his understanding.
Whoosh—!
In an instant.
A fierce gale and dazzling flash occurred simultaneously.
With a sensation sharp enough to numb the body.
While most of the people unconsciously closed their eyes and turned their gaze away, those with ample battlefield experience witnessed the changes that took place in that moment.
———!
A colossal sword of light falling from the sky.
Pierced through the writhing purplish form on the ground in an instant.
“…!”
The chairman, who witnessed the clash of the two holy powers at that moment, opened his eyes wide.
And he wasn’t the only one to react so intensely.
“Unbelievable… What did I just see?”
“Equal? Even if it was brought here imperfectly, it is still the shadow of a god!”
While they were astonished, the platinum brilliance and the purplish smoke continued to clash and bite at each other.
Tentacles, as large as houses, that extended from within the smoke were severed by the luminous sword, and the fog that spewed out consumed anything hostile nearby.
Kaboom—!
Such clashes occurred dozens of times in a single second.
It was an otherworldly battle so transcendent that one would doubt whether it was truly happening in this world.
Thanks to the boundary established by the priests’ holy powers, the ramifications didn’t spread too far, but had it not been for that, the area would have long been turned to ashes.
‘Ah, crap!’
The chairman snapped back to reality after being momentarily dazed.
No matter how one looked at it, this situation was just the opportunity he’d been hoping for.
He couldn’t just stand by and watch.
“Everyone, focus!”
He encouraged the priests who managed to catch their breath as he reorganized their formation once again.
In the meantime, he couldn’t hide the admiration in his eyes as he glanced at the battlefield of myth.
It was only natural.
In this place, he wasn’t the only one with such awe.
*
Heinrich’s time accelerated to its limit.
As everything around him seemed to slow down infinitely.
With such pace, he cut off one of the tentacles that rushed toward him with mind-boggling speed using the holy sword.
———!
The angel’s heart beating relentlessly within him constantly supplied strength throughout his body.
Possessing his own energy-creating organ, he was different from other priests who needed to receive holy power from a deity in another dimension to wield their authority.
Faster, more efficiently, and stronger.
The endlessly multiplying light slashes dominated all around, slicing through the fog that aimed at him.
An overwhelmingly splendid spectacle.
However, internally, he wasn’t feeling that great.
‘This seems never-ending.’
How many times had he swung his sword since the transcendent strike that pierced the shadow of the evil god from the heavens?
Despite pouring everything he had right from the start to finish this quickly, it seemed greedy to expect to eliminate the shadow of the god in one blow.
He could only hope that he at least managed to disperse a good portion of the massive fog.
However, this fog was merely a manifestation of the phenomenon.
To securely wrap this up, he needed to deal with the core…
For some reason, even cranking up his senses to the max and wildly attacking, he was making no evident progress against the fog.
———!
At that moment, several strands of energy suddenly clung to his body like spider webs.
Before he could process it, they rapidly increased, enveloping him.
He had no means to resist the approaching force that bent his transcendental senses, and even the laws and principles of the world.
[“Hahaha! Foolish one! Daring to resist the power of a god within a mortal body! I shall make you a servant of the great Luzeni!”]
While they were targeting him with the holy raids and subsequent attacks, the Joker’s laughter echoed from somewhere as if he were unfazed by the fog obscuring his view.
The transcendent strike and the ensuing combo were all aimed at him, yet his voice still sounded lively, indicating it had little effect.
‘… God’s authority. I see. No wonder it feels like attacks aren’t landing properly. Is it all because of this?’
Heinrich’s eyes cooled.
He could certainly guess what kind of power this was.
After all, his mind had been swirling chaotically ever since coming in contact with this energy.
‘Power of perception alteration… Is it a trick or a deception? Truly a fitting power for an evil god.’
This had distorted the laws around him, allowing his attacks to slip through.
Considering that Heinrich bore the seed of divinity, the effects might not completely nullify him, but it provided limitless opportunities nonetheless.
Like right now, where he succeeded in reaching him.
‘The conclusion from wielding such a monumental power ends up being to capture and brainwash me, huh? His imagination seems a bit lacking than expected.’
Well, it might be more about capability than imagination.
Just as Heinrich began to gather his strength to shake off his restraints, he hesitated.
And pondering for a moment, he decided to completely surrender his body’s strength.
‘What if…’
At this point, that ‘shadow of a god’ bore no will of the deity Luzeni within it.
The power was entirely in the hands of the Joker who summoned it.
However, it was impossible for a human who hadn’t even sprouted the seed of divinity to fully control divine power.
[“It seems you’ve decided to give up. A wise choice. A being like you would definitely be cherished by the god. Return and bow to Lord Luzeni…”]
Voices echoing with futile attempts to persuade him rang in his ears, but he offered no reply.
There was no need to.
‘If I wanted, I could hold out forever. But that would only waste time without gaining anything.’
Continuing on this path would inevitably lead to an Earthly confrontation.
Ultimately he would win, but if that happened, the foundation for summoning that evil god’s shadow here would be exhausted.
Such a waste.
‘I can’t allow that. This being held the power to draw a shadow of a foreign god to Earth. This opportunity, prepared by the Buncheon Society for over twenty years, to swallow that whole should not be thrown away!’
To do that, he first needed to catch his opponent off guard.
Heinrich did not resist the force that meddled with his perception.
Even as his “greater mind” trembled and his understanding twisted due to divine authority, he focused solely on one thing.
‘It’s okay. If I just adjust it right so this does not backfire…’
After all, he was merely a terminal.
As long as the thing governing the whole was not affected, the essence beyond himself would remain untouched—
“Hahaha! It’s done! I can’t believe it actually worked! You are now the weapon of the Luzeni congregation…”
—Twisted perceptions didn’t matter at all.
With the strange discomfort, Heinrich opened his eyes slowly, taking in the surroundings.
He now saw a world twisted by the power of Luzeni that could only be perceived while possessing a warped perception.
‘As I thought. No wonder there’s been no progress.‘
A separate space that shared no laws or relations with the outer world.
The swords he had conjured were undoubtedly his.
However, even now, as wounds continuously healed and the space expanded, he couldn’t help but wonder just how much longer the fight would have dragged on.
‘I found it.’
And there it was.
With a triumphant expression, Jason approached, the small glowing sphere lodged in the Joker’s chest.
As Heinrich gazed at it and met Jason’s eyes, he smiled back.
“… So that’s what it was?”
“Hmm?”
“Looks nice.”
“… What?”
Jason’s footsteps halted at those words.
Feeling an unusual chill, his face stiffened as he hastily gathered energy to react—
Puh-woosh!
At this point, such a reaction was far too late; the gap had already closed beyond repair.
“Cough! H-how… ? I confirmed that the power was working properly… !”
“Who knows?”
With a cold gaze, Heinrich looked down at Jason, impaled in the chest, then slowly clenched his hand.
The bizarre warmth felt within his grip signaled the power’s crystal that slowly flowed out of it.
“Ah, no…! That’s…!”
He fell to the ground, desperately pouring divine power into the gaping hole in his chest, but his condition didn’t improve in the slightest.
No, it wasn’t just that; over time, his body began to wither and turn to dust starting from his extremities.
“Give it back! Cough! Quickly give me that ‘mythical fruit’…!”
The result of wielding the god’s power with an unworthy body.
Heinrich gazed at his decaying form and then shifted his focus back to the crystal in his hand.
This was something even Hans, the Undead King, could not handle.
To say he would return it was out of the question; he had no intention of doing so, not even a little.
‘Who would I give such a precious thing to?’
Was it called the mythical fruit?
Whatever the name, now that it was in his grasp, it was his.
After all, he had grown attached to the losses incurred from fighting thus far…
Crackle—
Perhaps the god was angered at his selfishness.
Suddenly, cracks began to form within the globe held tightly in Heinrich’s hand.
“Eh? What is this?”
He hadn’t even confirmed what this mythical fruit truly was yet!
Panicking, he looked back at where Jason was, only to see nothing but scattered remnants of the priest clothes and other odds and ends.
‘No, wait. Could it be that the death of the medium caused this effect?’
The moment that thought flashed through his mind.
Before he had a chance to do anything, the situation took a wild turn.
Crack-POP—!
With a sound of something breaking, the ‘mythical fruit’ shattered into pieces.
Dazzling light burst forth in all directions.
*
On the outskirts of the Pantheon.
“Hey! Look over there!”
One of the priests desperately trying to establish a barrier to stop the expanding purplish fog shouted loudly.
However, no one turned to look at where he was.
Everyone was already gazing at the place where the absurd phenomenon was taking place.
———!
A faint light streaming through the writhing smoke.
In the blink of an eye, it enlarged and spread like a spider’s web.
Fwooosh—!
At last, it erupted from within, scattering the smoke that had imprisoned it.
It was a conclusion so hollow it mocked the determination of those who gathered to buy at least some time.
“W-what is this…?”
“Wait, could that be…?”
In the center stood a figure.
Amidst shimmering motes of light swirling around, a man stood tall, eyes gently closed, gazing up at the sky.
An unexplainably heavy atmosphere lingered around him, emanating a strange intimidation to those watching.
“Heinrich Saint Landgard…”
Muttering unconsciously, the chairman of the Pantheon, who had been leading the priests, whispered.
The silver-haired angel standing beneath the glimmering particles of light and the pouring rays of the sun was truly like a messenger of god from a tale.
Especially if that being was the rescuer who single-handedly repelled disaster…
At that moment, the angel’s closed eyes opened.
Golden eyes, shining like the sun, turned to meet the gazes of those watching him.
*
Heinrich looked around in bewilderment.
Once he regained his bearings, he saw the crowd around him gaze at him with eyes full of awe.
“…”
However, he had no mental capacity left to concern himself with that.
The scene he had witnessed just after the mythical fruit shattered and the light erupted remained vivid in his memory.
《The dimensional inflection point has exceeded a certain level. Connecting to the Akasha system.》
The line of message along with what appeared next.
The vision of the future of this Earth.
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