Duke Yuma hadn’t really done much for a year and a half.
Of course, unlike Yuma, the rest of his party was training very diligently.
Belle was swinging her sword. In front of her stood Seiavern, a high elf and demi-god level elf.
‘Incredible growth rate.’
Seiavern admired the flickering flames on Belle’s sword.
Seiavern recalled Yuma’s sword strikes. The mighty power that seemed to erase the world.
‘A genius must have brought in another genius.’
Swish—
Seiavern quickly drew her sword. The red light of the blade intertwined around it.
“Let’s go.”
Seiavern stomped hard on the ground.
The golden and blue sword paths clashed. Like windows shattering, both sword lights broke apart into pieces.
The back-and-forth continued endlessly.
*
Princess Brigitte let out a sigh.
Surprisingly, it was a sigh born from boredom.
The world was very peaceful. So, there was nothing to do. Aside from the occasional monster appearances from those distant territories, there were no unusual happenings.
In contrast, Yuma at least had some tasks at hand.
Half a year ago, Cloney reached the 7th circle. Consequently, she earned the position of an apostle. Thus, Cloney became the second apostle.
For Yuma, an opportunity he hadn’t faced for a while had arisen.
Today was the day to determine whether elf Seiavern, Join Tribe demi-god Kiryev, and lycanthrope Kesylvia would become his apostles.
Seiavern, still with her eyes closed, bowed her head towards Yuma.
It wasn’t like it was the first time they met. Seiavern invested most of her time with Belle, who met with Yuma almost every day, so it was only natural for Seiavern and Yuma to cross paths frequently.
Seiavern took a step toward Yuma and spoke.
“I’ve thought long and hard about this.”
“It’s worth thinking about.”
Becoming an apostle of the God of War.
That meant drawing the ire of the gods in the Divine Realm.
Though they were part of the immortal race, facing the possibility of mortals waging war against the gods was something difficult to understand.
Kiryev also took a step toward Yuma.
“We’ve decided to become your apostles.”
Kesylvia shook her upper body roughly as if to warm up.
“Hehehe, another chance to go toe-to-toe with a god. My fighting spirit is overflowing!”
As expected, the martial arts Lycanthrope wasn’t exactly a normal character.
It didn’t seem like the Lycanthrope was the one to question the reasoning behind the decision. Yuma looked at Seiavern.
“And what’s the reason behind that decision?”
Seiavern answered without taking even a moment’s pause.
“Just like the god that tried to kill us last time. We don’t know when such a thing might happen again. I figured it would be better to strike first and take them down rather than tremble in fear of a terror that could strike at any moment.”
While it sounded reasonable at first glance, the reality was far different. The chances of dying by directly challenging a god were clearly lower than just staying put and surviving.
Kiryev chuckled.
“That’s just crazy talk. It’s just a bunch of kids grinding away at their training, and now they’re getting a little too ambitious.”
Cloney and Bell’s tremendous growth.
It was hard not to feel motivated by that.
Anyway, Seiavern, Kiryev, and Kesylvia, who had made the decision, all knelt down.
[You have become an Apostle of the God of War.]
Words from the divine realm appeared in front of the three in turn.
Kiryev’s golden eyes shone like a bird of prey.
“So, how are we going to kill the gods? Can we enter the divine realm now?”
Yuma slowly shook his head at the half-god speaking so seriously.
“No, we can’t enter the divine realm for a while. There’s no method to do that.”
Kiryev tilted his head.
“There’s… no method?”
“Right, I’m looking for a way, so focus on your training for now.”
Yuma bestowed divine power upon Kiryev. Kiryev’s eyes widened as the divine energy flowed through his entire body.
There was no next level beyond the 13th circle. After that, it depended on how one structured their unique domain called [Paradise Proclamation], which could show significant differences even among those in the same 13th circle.
Kiryev, along with Kesylvia and Seiavern, spent time adapting to the divine power enveloping their bodies.
*
The wicked sect of the Evil God, Malphas, created by the [Malicious Blessing God].
Of course, those in the sect had no idea that this place, [Piggero], was an evil god cult.
They didn’t realize that [Piggero] was a cult of the Evil God.
They had no inkling that their actions for Malphas were evil deeds.
Only one person, the Holy Maiden of the Order, Yulicia, knew that Piggero was a cult of the Evil God and that the deity she served was not truly a benevolent god.
Yulicia thought about death.
She recalled the face of the novice nun, Elfin, who had cheerfully smiled at her, thrilled to be recognized as a vessel for Malphas.
And that night, Elfin went missing.
Only she knew that Elfin had been chosen as a vessel, while the other thousand cult members believed she had simply disappeared.
Yulicia suspected how Elfin had become a sacrifice.
‘God of War.’
Looking at the bloodstains that signaled Elfin’s death, it seemed likely she had conducted the summoning to meet someone in the Astes Empire.
The information she obtained about ‘Yuma’ through the Information Guild was filled with unbelievable details.
Even before receiving a title from the Emperor of Astes, his deeds had shattered all common sense.
He was the one who killed the previous ten council members and the Sword God, Chronos.
A dragon slayer.
The conqueror who murdered the king of the barbarian nation Pineon and led a war with overwhelming victories.
And now, he was a deified God of War, Yuma.
Yulicia saw through Malphas’s inferiority complex regarding Yuma. It wasn’t because Malphas often spoke of Yuma when confronting a deity at the Seat of Prophecy.
Rather, he never hinted at his awareness of Yuma, which made it clear to her.
As a Holy Maiden endowed with divine power from Malphas, she could perceive the existence of the summoned entity he presented to reality.
Malphas had never given orders to the followers of [Piggero] to watch over Yuma. However, he had commanded the black ravens and other subordinates to monitor him.
Though, he hadn’t done so since Yuma became truly deified.
Instead, he hinted to Yulicia, the Holy Maiden, to be cautious of the God of War and the members of the God of War sect.
Yulicia suspected the reason was that Malphas was genuinely terrified of Yuma.
So, she decided to throw out bait.
She informed Malphas that she was tracking the Evil God’s cult through the pendant left behind by the novice nun Elfin, who had died as a vessel for Malphas.
She informed Malphas of the situation.
Malphas’s reaction was quite blunt.
“Restrict movement radius completely for the time being, we can’t let any information about Piggero reach his ears.”
Yulicia couldn’t help but feel shocked at Malphas’s behavior, acting like a herbivore terrified in front of a predator.
Yulicia was furious at Malphas.
She had to be angry. While hoping the Astes Empire wouldn’t catch wind of it, she couldn’t tolerate the number of human sacrifices dwindling to below ten for a whole month, prompting her to issue a warning.
Yulicia emerged from the temple of Piggero. She saw the acolytes in black robes moving purposefully.
Although their faces were grim, their actions were swift. They were tirelessly trying to spread their faith in Malphas.
They engaged in all sorts of filthy deeds, like kidnapping unsuspecting outsiders for human sacrifices. Yet they cherished the ones Malphas had saved.
Vincent, a middle-aged man already responsible for the deaths of over a hundred people due to the sacrifices, slaughtered like livestock yet remained steadfast in his faith.
He had completely cured his brother’s illness. In truth, he had merely forced a contract that would harvest his brother’s soul after death instead of healing his sickness, but Vincent had no way of knowing that.
“We must meet the sacrifice quota.”
Vincent, the sacrifice overseer, looked around at his one-eyed subordinates and said quietly.
“We must repay Malphas’s grace.”
All fifty subordinates were either saved by Malphas themselves or had families who were.
Vincent bowed his head as Yulicia approached him.
“Greetings, Holy Maiden.”
“Hello, Vincent.”
“Has Malphas spoken any words?”
Yulicia shook her head slowly.
“He had no special messages.”
“Understood. Everything is under the grace of Malphas.”
“Everything is under the grace of Malphas.”
Clap.
Watching Vincent walk past her, Yulicia resolved to act on her promise quickly.
The more they firmly believed and followed Malphas, the more tragic their souls’ ends would be.
Yulicia painted a picture in her mind.
A vision of completely escaping from Malphas’s grasp.
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