<858 – Faith Meta (2)>
“I ripped it…”
I tore down the wall that had brought him despair for three weeks.
It was the fruit of my efforts on the very day I joined the Man-love Church.
[Some god is sniffing the scent of pure love.]
[Some god is drooling and bestowing powers.]
Even though the message might make the party feel uneasy about receiving such power, sometimes ignorance is bliss.
“Oknodie! Give me the next training assignment.”
“Wow. You broke through the wall, huh!”
Oknodie, delighted by the Mob’s growth, presented a new task.
With the help of Faith Meta, the Mob rapidly cleared several assignments.
The pure joy on Oknodie’s face gradually transformed into a vague joy that questioned if this was right.
“That’s strange. The Mob I know can’t move this fast. What did I miss?”
Oknodie’s mumbling, shrouded in blindness, made the Mob feel guilty.
To think that a child who lost their sight and was identifying the world using Mana Detection could utter such words.
I’m trash.
“It must be the result of hard work.”
“Hmm. Is that so? In any case, that’s great. Shall we progress further?”
The time spent training under Oknodie increased.
Although the faith I gained was not meant to waste this child’s time, it ironically led to even more time being taken away.
I know it’s a contradiction.
But the Mob was honestly happy.
Happy about having more time with Oknodie.
Happy about monopolizing her attention.
It didn’t matter if the feelings could not be realized.
For this moment’s joy was solely his.
“Mob. Challenge for the upper class next semester!”
“Me?!”
“With the current Mob, you could get strong enough to take off the training armor.”
“That, that’s only when the thing inside the armor isn’t there!”
“Oh. The +15 Bikini Armor?”
Thanks to the diligent exploitation of the copying ghost entrusted to Professor Sadako, the Mob’s armor had already reached +15.
Including the Bikini Armor attached to the armor.
I would have to spend another year before the wearing restriction period ends.
“I’m good.”
“Hmm… really? That’s too bad. I wanted to be in the same class before graduation.”
“Graduation…”
The Mob felt his heart drop.
He was even scared.
“O-Oknodie, what will you do after graduation?”
“As I told Isabel, I think I’ll be involved in restoration work. Some incredible things will happen in the world.”
“Hasn’t there been quite a bit going on until now?”
“That’s just tidying up the house before some incredible things happen!”
“Tidying up the house?!”
“The house needs to be clean to get fewer bugs, you know? Well, there are only two things left to clean up though.”
“Those would be… the Demon King and Man’s Representative, right?”
“Correct!”
There are only two major villains that Oknodie seems interested in.
Once those two are cleared…
If I don’t meet her standards then,
I won’t be able to stand by her side after graduation.
With a temporal restriction of one and a half years ahead.
With two opportunities to take down major foes.
The Mob made a resolution.
“Please grant me just a little more strength to get closer to Oknodie, oh love god!”
After finishing his prayer, the Mob suddenly realized he had forgotten something.
“How do I take off the armor?”
The curse of inability to undress.
He was deprived of his freedom to detach equipment by the god.
Of course, there was frustration.
But that’s something I’ve always dealt with.
The discomfort wasn’t as significant as one would think.
Just like weightlifters who enjoy lifting weights, he adopted the posture of enjoying his hardships.
“What did my mentor look like, who taught me the sword before entering the Academy?”
Old memories began to fade.
His memory was becoming restricted.
However, there was no regret.
The people he was spending time with now.
Their memories won’t change.
“What was joy again?”
Pleasure didn’t come to mind.
To be precise, it was the sense of achievement.
The Mob had been comforted by the joy of overcoming, even when it was tough.
He belatedly noticed that sense of achievement had disappeared.
Indeed, this was quite painful.
But even without that sense of achievement, there was another motivating force that drove him onward.
Gratitude and retribution.
An endless thankfulness towards Oknodie, who had extended kindness to a lower-class student on the verge of failing, and didn’t ask for anything in return.
[Some god is pleased, thinking that knights must serve quietly to taste it well.]
No matter how harsh the price paid, as long as one is satisfied, it’s all good.
“Today, explore the Mirror Dungeon!”
“Got it.”
A fight against a Doppelganger.
A duel against a clone that resembles him perfectly.
As Oknodie watched the process, she was convinced her suspicions were correct.
“Mob has activated Faith Meta!”
Even the Doppelganger couldn’t steal such power.
The divine power was a prime example.
To the Doppelganger, which only mimics appearance and functionality, the faith connected to internal constraints and bindings was an incomprehensible unknown realm.
A power that can’t be replicated no matter how hard it tries.
When engaging in a duel against the Doppelganger clone, the difference becomes stark.
“Mob. Was my training not satisfactory?”
“…How can it be satisfactory? You keep becoming precarious.”
“Where am I precarious?”
“You can’t see, can you.”
“I can see now!”
Oh, right.
He can see now.
“……What? Why did your eyes randomly heal?”
“The duration of the status effect has ended, you know?”
“Does that even make sense?!”
Oknodie clicked her tongue, thinking this was why newbies never do well, but the Mob felt inexplicably wronged.
What the heck have I done?
Why do I have faith?
My offering.
Oh, my blood pressure is rising.
In response to the shocking news that made him wobble, Oknodie gently patted the Mob’s shoulder.
“Sigh. You should have consulted an expert on builds before doing it. I worked hard, and this is what I get.”
“Am I done for…?”
“It’s not too late. If you messed up using Faith Meta, the god would go, ‘Eek! What is this?’ and just throw you away. Which god did you believe in?”
“The love god…”
“That’s simple! From now on, Mob should do things the love god would disapprove of.”
What would the love god disapprove of?
Mob couldn’t even imagine.
“Isn’t the love god like, okay with everything?”
“Of course not. Every god has their preferences, and if they don’t like something, they’d deliver divine punishment. The punishment exists for a reason, you know?”
“That’s true.”
“What kind of god do you think the love god is?”
“Generous. They have a broad capacity for acceptance. They supported me even when I acted like a fool.”
Even if it meant unnecessary sacrifice, the power granted by the love god was genuine.
He sincerely appreciated the powers bestowed upon him.
“Do you remember the conditions needed to receive that power? Or the name of the ability?”
“Oh, I remembered.”
Hyukmurin definitely said something like this.
“The blessing of pure love. It respects the relentless determination not to give up, granting the strength to stand back up even when one’s heart is crushed.”
“And?”
“The power of awakening in a crisis. It manifests the usual power of one’s determination to help a loved one during critical moments. It’s known for always revealing the power of determination when a beloved is in danger.”
“Wow. That’s pretty rare. Who do you really love like that?”
“Se-secret.”
“Hehe. I’ll respect your privacy!”
Still, thanks to Mob’s honest answers, Oknodie got a clearer picture.
“Summing it up, the blessing of pure love and the power of awakening in a crisis are powers granted because Mob loves only one person! The solution is very simple.”
“What is it?”
“Mob needs to create a harem that even the worst pure love addict would weep over and flee!”
The Mob’s brain stopped functioning.
A harem.
Who?
Me?
“Is that possible?!”
“Why not? Mob is dedicated and has been growing well, it’s guaranteed that he’s a diligent person!”
“But wouldn’t that sincerity fall apart if I meet multiple women…?”
Besides, that’s just too trashy.
“To shake off the love god, you need to be prepared to become that much trashy! If not, just let it be and later crash hard after riding the Faith Meta!”
“Even if I want to, how would I even go about making a harem?”
“I’ll set the stage for you!”
Thus, an unexpected harem matchmaking event initiated by Oknodie was held at the Academy.
“Is that guy? The one who’s going to openly have a harem matchmaking with multiple girls?”
“That takes guts. To actually do something everyone just imagines. I might find myself admiring him a bit.”
“How thick-skinned can you go to be wearing a helmet at this point.”
The reactions from the boys were a mix of intrigue, admiration, and anticipation for future embarrassment.
“Scum.”
“Enemy of women.”
“How could he think so little of women?”
“Just die.”
“Such a disappointment.”
The girls’ responses were full of harsh criticism.
He had become the world’s greatest villain.
“Thank you for gathering for Mob’s harem matchmaking! I’m Oknodie, Mob’s mentor and today’s host!”
“Oknodie. Did Mob step on your foot or something? Or is he your family or relative’s enemy? What in the world has that child done to force this horrible thing on him?”
The matchmaking participants were essentially a gathering of girls who just wanted to blatantly insult Mob.
It was certainly a challenging matchmaking event, but Oknodie had a lethal skill to create relationships that didn’t even exist.
“To the five who become Mob’s harem couples, we’ll provide one million points in harem support per person!”
A tremendous silence enveloped among the girls.
The first to step forward, who had been rudely insulting Mob, took off her glasses and put on contact lenses.
She boldly approached Mob, brushing down his armor with her hand as she spoke.
“I actually have an armor fetish…”
“Crazy…”
The already twisted temptation burst forth with someone exclaiming in wonder!
The matchmaking event wouldn’t cease until the childhood goddess screamed that’s not love and fled!
