308 – Trust and Walk (2)
308: Trust and Walk (2)
Flash!
Piote’s closed eyes opened. An endless divine light flowed from them.
His shimmering hair glistened with a brilliant silver hue, and his lips turned even redder. His skin had transformed, becoming exceptionally clean and white.
It was as if a goddess had descended upon Piote, stripping away all his impurities.
What used to be just a pretty face now radiated a sultry beauty.
Alfoy, witnessing this, thought to himself.
‘C-could it be? No! Damn it! Get a grip!’
Alfoy bit his teeth together and tried to draw up his magic once more. The storm of divine power was becoming difficult to withstand.
The people around them, dazed, gradually stepped back as they gazed at Piote.
They couldn’t understand how they ended up in such a situation while gambling.
Gwooo!
Piote felt an indescribable immense will connected to him. It was like a euphoric mental exhilaration, giving him a sense of power as if he could achieve anything.
The strength bestowed upon him was pure desire manifested through prayer. The immense will seemed to sense Piote’s yearning and hesitated for a moment, but nevertheless bestowed a ‘revelation’ upon him.
A majestic and sacred voice echoed in Piote’s mind. It wasn’t in any language of this world, but connected to that supreme will, he understood it clearly.
– Pair.
Following that guidance, Piote spoke with a voice full of sanctity.
“Pair.”
“Ugh.”
Alfoy groaned. It was indeed a match. But he had no intention of going down easily.
What’s a mage?
If a god creates the order and laws of the world, a mage mocks and plays with those laws.
He attempted to cast a spell to discreetly pull out a coin from his sleeve.
“What, what the heck! My magic isn’t moving!”
The spell didn’t activate. It was like his magic had turned to stone, completely still.
It was the same for those around him. Cain couldn’t draw up his mana, and the mages couldn’t move their magic at all.
Everyone within Piote’s vicinity found themselves unable to exert their abilities properly.
“W-what the heck! What is this!”
“This is the extent of his power?”
“Is this even a phenomenon that makes sense?”
Everyone backed away in panic. It seemed like being caught in that powerful storm of divine energy would leave them incapacitated.
“Ugh!”
But Alfoy didn’t flee. He was a man full of guts, after all.
He tried with all his might to summon power, but it was useless. His body no longer obeyed his commands.
Piote gazed at Alfoy with a serene expression, issuing an irresistible command.
“Open your hand.”
It was a resplendent and beautiful voice, but the authority behind it was overwhelming.
Alfoy’s wrist, which clutched the coin tightly, began to turn on its own.
“Ugh, do you think I’ll give up! Just because you’re a god? I am Alfoy, the man of flames! I am a man who will never be bent!”
He absolutely did not want to lose the money.
Thud, thud, thud.
But against the strength of the god, Alfoy’s efforts were futile. His wrist continued to twist involuntarily.
“Ugh!”
Alfoy’s eyes bulged red, and blood oozed from his tightly sealed lips.
“No, no!”
His wrist was almost completely turned. His fingers were slowly starting to straighten out.
If it opened fully, he would lose his money. Even after creating the strongest magic.
He couldn’t accept it. Maybe he could lose to a lord, but not to a clueless, naive guy like Piote.
“Urgh!”
Just when Alfoy was desperately trying to hold on through the pain.
Drip, drip.
Blood suddenly began to flow from Piote’s nose as well.
The connection with the goddess was a powerful authority reserved for saints. There was no way the current Piote could handle such an overwhelming power.
The divine energy rapidly drained away, and the brilliant light pouring down from the heavens began to dim.
The light that was descending gradually diminished.
“Ah, no….”
Piote, flustered, was trying to hold on somehow. Just a little longer, and they’d manage. Alfoy’s fingers were slowly opening.
“Uuuuuu.”
“Gaaah!”
The two tried to muster all their mental strength to endure.
And just when Alfoy’s hand was almost fully spread out…
“Ahh… Oh Goddess….”
Thud.
Piote collapsed with his eyes closed. The storm of divine power vanished in the blink of an eye, and taking advantage of the opening, Alfoy successfully cast his spell.
Whoosh.
A silver coin boldly slipped into his sleeve. The fallen Piote was unable to witness the scam in action.
“Ugh, khahaha! It’s a win! A win! Look! I did it! I won!”
Alfoy laughed, his face filled with madness. In the end, he had triumphed. He had even overcome the power of the goddess.
This was a feat not visible to just anyone. Even a great mage or dragon couldn’t pull it off.
Alfoy roared at the sky.
“I am Alfoy, the man who defeated a god!”
Claude, who had been watching the process, was wide-mouthed in shock.
Claude wasn’t the only one surprised. Giselle, feeling an indescribable enormous power, and the other territory residents all rushed over to watch.
It was only natural, as dark clouds suddenly loomed over the clear sky and light poured down.
Giselle alternated her gaze between the crazed Alfoy laughing at the sky and the collapsed Piote.
‘W-What is going on? Why is such a power activating here right now?’
The connection with the goddess was a miracle that even a saint couldn’t easily display. It wasn’t something one could just use whenever they wanted.
That ability could only be exercised when faith and desire reached their peak.
It was generally known that such overwhelming power could be unleashed during immense trials, in the midst of pain and tribulation.
In her past life, the saint displayed that ability when many people were slaughtered in front of her.
Channeling was meant to be used in situations that dire.
Not for something as trivial as this!
Giselle stared blankly at Alfoy again.
‘What’s this guy? What did he do?’
Just how much of humanity’s ugliness had he shown that Piote felt unbearable pain and tribulation, leading him to connect with the goddess?
She herself had manipulated Piote like that but had never even gotten the chance to observe.
“I am—! The man who defeated a god—!”
That crazy guy was still wildly laughing and shouting at the sky.
Giselle shook her head, then looked at the collapsed Piote. He had returned to his usual state.
‘I knew he was unique, but… I didn’t expect him to awaken.’
Saints are chosen by the goddess. If the chosen ones succeed in communication with a god, it is expressed as awakening.
That is called divine favoritism. And those who receive favoritism possess divine power far beyond that of ordinary priests.
That was the power and qualification of a saint. Why a man like Piote was chosen remains a mystery.
‘Well, there’s usually no reason for favoritism.’
An awakened saint can act as a proxy for the powers of the deity they serve. If it were a saint of the goddess of war, they could wield tremendous strength in combat.
Juana, being the goddess of beauty, had made Piote appear even more beautiful than usual.
To Giselle, it seemed like a wholly useless power.
‘Still, he’ll definitely become more impressive. It’ll be a great help during this age of turmoil.’
Unless a special situation arises again, he wouldn’t reconnect with the goddess. But now that he has awakened, he’s surely transformed into a body fit for using divine power.
His divine power would increase faster than before, and as his realm deepens, he would be able to use an incredibly powerful strength at will.
Even if he were to forsake his faith and lose the target of his worship.
‘Later… I should keep Alfoy close, just in case. You never know with Claude, either.’
“Lord too.”
If a situation arises that is dangerous enough to require channeling… we must forcefully connect Piote with the goddess by putting him under extreme mental stress.
For some reason, I felt like pairing Alfoy with Claude would work out just fine.
“Perhaps this was merely a trigger.”
In fact, Piote’s divine power was increasing at an alarming rate. All he needed was a small trigger to awaken his true potential.
“I have no idea why he was so despairing over someone like Alfoy.”
Still, that guy was quite impressive in many ways.
The castle’s servants ran over and carefully placed Piote on a stretcher. Alfoy, still laughing, was ignored by everyone.
As the stretcher carrying Piote passed by, the people all bowed down and made way.
“I can’t believe the Saintess actually showed up in our territory…”
“To witness such a miracle…”
“O Goddess, bestow your blessings upon us.”
The territory residents didn’t even realize Piote was a man. They simply assumed he was a woman based on his appearance.
Piote was well-liked because he always helped those in need. The rumor that he had been chosen as a Saintess spread like wildfire.
The place where Piote and Alfoy had been drinking was now a construction site. It had turned into a holy place where the territory residents rushed in to kneel and pray.
“Ugh… it can’t be helped. Leave that space empty.”
As it turned out, Ghislaine had no choice but to build a small temple there too.
With the lord even building a temple, the people’s faith grew even stronger. They pooled their money together and bought a large, beautiful marble.
Next to the temple, they erected a monument and carefully etched the words.
[The place where Saintess Piote received the goddess’s revelation. Drinking here.]
Though someone had scribbled on the end, this place had become a holy site and an important location for the residents of Penris Territory.
And from that event, the followers of the Juana Church began to exponentially increase in the Penris Territory.
*
“Yeah, what business does the man who defeated the god have?”
Alfoy spoke with an exceedingly arrogant tone. Claude struggled to find his words for a long while.
“What’s this guy’s deal?”
When I first saw him, he was the biggest pushover you could imagine, but now he had splendidly adapted to the territory.
It was hard to believe that such a pathetic guy had managed to endure and ultimately prevail in front of such a miracle.
“This guy might be something else…”
It seems he didn’t become the heir of the Mage Tower for nothing. Even a slug can roll, and he was doing just that.
It was a ridiculous situation, but it was a good outcome. If I encouraged his arrogance a bit more, I could draw him into a wager with the lord.
“Really impressive. To have overcome the goddess’s power, you’re sure to become known as the strongest mage.”
“Heh, isn’t that obvious? Even I didn’t expect to be that strong. Hah, is this guy’s talent… just unavoidable?”
“Wow, now that you’ve gained some fame, you must be leaving soon. You’ll be fishing in much bigger waters, right?”
At Claude’s words, Alfoy pouted his lips.
“Because of you, I’m caught up in a wager with the lord and have to live here as a slave for decades, so what kind of leaving are you talking about? Are you mocking me?”
“Huh? Haven’t you heard the news yet?”
“What news?”
“The lord is working on something weird for a new experiment this time.”
“And?”
“They said it’s going to succeed again, so if you ever want to wager, feel free to come by. That’s why I thought you would.”
At those words, Alfoy quickly lost interest. He had seen Ghislaine create strange things and succeed too many times already.
“Forget it, it’s obvious I’d lose again anyway. The lord may not be good at everything, but he succeeds in those kinds of things every time.”
“Tsk tsk… does the ‘man who defeated a god’ really think he can’t beat a mere human lord?”
“What? Are you picking a fight with me right now?”
“No, just listen. Of course, we’d lose a wager on something we don’t fully understand. We were tricked by the lord’s devious schemes. But this time will be different, right? I just thought you were amazing enough to win and leave.”
“It’s that we didn’t know, so we were bound to lose the bet. We fell for the lord’s sinister act. But this time will be different, right? I just thought you would be amazing enough to win the bet and walk away.”
“I may be amazing, but… what do you mean?”
Claude continued with a serious expression.
“Do you really think a person can survive for a month on just water and food powder?”
“They might die… but some must survive, right?”
“Do you think that person will be able to maintain their stamina to the point of using mana and fighting a month later?”
“Eh, that’s impossible. Even if they survive, they would just be hanging on to life. Their stamina would be completely wrecked; how could they manage that? Well, maybe someone as incredible as me could, but for the average person, it’s tough.”
“But the lord claims he made something like that. The soldiers insist they can survive a month on it.”
“Well, maybe if you grind very rare and expensive herbs, it might be possible.”
“That’s not it. It’s made from ordinary grains and herbs, making it cheap and easily mass-produced.”
“You’re saying someone can eat that for an entire month? Pfft, that’s nonsense. Absolutely impossible. How can you fight when you’re hungry?”
Alfoy didn’t believe Ghislaine either.
Humanity had fought endlessly to overcome hunger.
When you’re hungry, your energy drops. When energy drops, productivity falls, and society crumbles.
It’s no exaggeration to say that most people live to eat. Hunger is a fearsome enemy.
But to survive for a month without proper food and still be able to fight? That was utterly impossible for an ordinary person.
Claude, noticing Alfoy’s scoffing expression, spoke softly.
“How about this? Now that you’ve gained some fame, why not just end your relationship with this territory with this bet? If you want, I can help.”
“Hmm… But what if it really works?”
Alfoy fell into deep thought. His life was running out of options. In his current state, he could still enjoy some freedom in his old age.
But if he lost this time, he’d become a lifetime slave. There was a high chance he’d die working until old age.
Claude raised his voice, frustrated.
“Why worry like that? Do you really think the lord always succeeds? Is the lord a god? No, even if he were, so what? You’re the man who defeated the gods!”
“Hmm…”
“Just think logically! Does that even make sense? We are intellectuals, intellectuals! People who always judge with cold reasoning and intelligence! How long will we let ourselves be swayed by such ignorant and unreasonable humans!”
“Hmm…”
Alfoy slightly nodded. No matter how he thought about it, it seemed like the lord was truly mistaken this time. It’s not that easy to maintain vitality and stamina without proper food.
That’s why every army values supply.
Being a mage, he knew even more about the human body. Just eating dried food drains your strength; surviving on powder alone? There would be no taste to chew on, making it even harder.
After pondering a bit longer, he spoke with resolve.
“Okay, this time I’ll really trust you.”
“Don’t just trust me; trust yourself. Trust in the knowledge and experience you’ve built up until now. You’re the heir of the Mage Tower, the strongest mage in this territory, the man who defeated the gods. You’re always the best, bro.”
Claude punched Alfoy lightly in the chest. Feeling a surge of warmth in his heart, Alfoy nodded with a determined expression.
“Yeah, I’m Alfoy. The man who defeated the gods.”
Alfoy raised his chin, feeling proud. It didn’t make sense for someone as incredible as him to live as a slave.
This time, he would win the bet and surely regain his freedom.
Seeing Alfoy’s serious expression, Wendy sighed and looked up at the sky.
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