139. Faith and delusion (4)
Estelle took Cain’s hand.
As time passed, her breathing and eyes calmed.
“Now I must pray to you, not the goddess.”
When I saw him joking, it seemed that he had completely returned to his normal state.
Cain pulled her clasped hands to help her get up.
“… … .”
And I saw her gaze on Yutath’s corpse.
It was her first murder.
It was also aimed at someone who was like a gift, not someone else.
‘She is out of the past.’
Religion and God.
Past life at the church.
‘Now there’s only one thing left to do is to become stronger.’
All supporting actors in this world have a fixed force value.
When you achieve mental growth by achieving certain conditions, you will be able to break through that limit.
It is a kind of ‘awakening’.
I don’t know how long it would take, but it was clear that it was helpful for the current situation.
“I would have known you for a long time. Do I need to ask for a way?”
“I do not need it. Go to hell.”
Estelle snorted and looked towards the mechanism.
Woo-
A pure white light flashed from her palm facing upwards. The mark of the denomination shone with him.
“It was said that the mana used in divine magic comes from the goddess statue.”
“okay. It’s kind of like a giant mana tank. It is a method of transferring mana to the coordinates of the place where holy magic is implemented.”
“I had no idea. I don’t feel any mana at all.”
“You can’t see or feel unless you’re a sensitive person.”
Cain’s gaze turned to the ceiling.
Seeing that, Estelle asked.
“Can you see anything in your eyes?”
Cain nodded.
Thin threads of mana continued through the ceiling.
The sight of the threads being connected over Estelle’s palm was clearly visible in Cain’s eyes.
Estelle licked her lips and said.
“… I will never use holy magic again.”
Staring at the mark on the back of his hand, he seemed to want to erase even that.
“You can delete it from the church headquarters. You will be branded as an apostate and chased, so it will be unreasonable for the time being.”
Cain’s black mana wrapped around the back of Estelle’s hand. Mana dwindled, and the mark disappeared.
“It’s just a trick, but this one will be better. Both mentally and in future activities.”
“… thanks.”
The atmosphere calmed down.
Cain headed to the mansion on one side of the basement, and Estelle followed.
Snuggle-
When I opened the door of the mansion, a huge hall appeared.
With a structure with a stairway leading to the upper floor in the center, large and small plants covering all parts of the space stood out.
“It is touching. They are all models.”
There were various kinds.
So much so that I thought it was a collection of all plant species known to have existed on the continent.
A question mark appeared above Estelle’s head.
“Why is Leica’s residence in such a place?”
“The Leica acted as a watchman. I don’t know exactly what he’s protecting, but in return he was promised the forest.”
“It’s a forest. The illusion that was out there?”
“okay. It takes a lot of mana to maintain an illusion of that size. Compared to the total amount of mana stored in the goddess statue, it is just the blood of a new foot.”
The beast pursued an unreachable dream for the rest of his life. And I tried to fill the void even with an illusion.
A forest that cannot be touched or felt.
Estelle, who was thinking about what the beast was making there, suddenly felt strange.
“Leica is an executive of Blue Serpent. This is a space created by the denomination.”
cringe-
Cain opened the door to the study.
The books on the bookshelf were all about vegetation.
Leica’s commitment to the forest was once again felt.
“Do you remember what I said? Holy magic is just one of the uses of the mana stored in the statue.”
Cain pushed all the books in one of the bookshelves into the air.
The books caught in the black mana were inserted in a different position than the first according to Cain’s gestures.
Dede-
The bookshelf was pushed sideways and a new space appeared.
Five seeds of life were floating in the air by a magical device.
Cain retrieved them and put them in his bosom.
When I went out and operated the button on the side of the bookshelf, the space disappeared.
Cain looked at Estelle who was waiting outside with a bewildered face and continued.
“The mana used in divine magic is only a small fraction.”
“The rest then… ?”
Cain’s finger pointed to one side of the wall.
“… … ?”
“It is northeast. What do you get if you go straight ahead in that direction from Area 33?”
“After Area 23, Area 13 will come out. And go further… .”
Estelle’s eyes widened in an instant.
“capital?”
“okay. More than 99% of the mana produced by the spirit of the soil is transferred to the capital. Precisely, it is transferred to the mana tank in the basement of the Imperial Palace.”
“Wait. The pace of the story is too fast. Time to organize your thoughts… .”
Cain continued the story without hesitation.
“Estelle. There are far more groups and people involved in this work than you think. The imperial family, the church, the police, and people from all walks of life are involved.”
“Then the blue serpent organization chart… ?”
“It’s just an organization that one of the stakeholders created to raise money.”
Estelle felt dizzy.
Without realizing it, my mouth opened and the next question came out.
“What is the imperial family going to use that vast amount of mana to collect?”
“Are you curious?”
Cain’s eyes stared at Estelle.
“You said you saw the Prophet entering the imperial palace. If I am right, we must fight the Empire in the future.”
Eyes like an abyss that seem to be sucked in just by looking at them.
Estelle was suddenly frightened.
The moment I heard the answer, it felt as if I could never return to the world before forever.
Cold sweat formed on her palms.
“Oh, no. The next story is done. I’ll listen to it later when I’m mentally ready.”
“Do that.”
The two found Leica’s safe and recovered precious metals and cash. It was an amount that would help a lot with finances.
Cain said to Estelle, who was about to leave the mansion and head for the stairs leading to the ground.
“Elder Utahs alone will not be enough to completely shake off the past.”
Cain glanced at the mechanism.
“If you destroy the device, the spirits gathered here will no longer be converted into mana. It will take at least a year for the enemy to restore the facility.”
Estelle, who understood the meaning, nodded and grabbed Mace’s handle.
Then he strode towards the mechanism and began wielding his mace.
bang! Kwajik! Quajiic!
The motion, which was hesitant at first, became less hesitant as the devices were crushed one by one.
“──!”
Seeing him even swearing with his angry face, he seemed to be deeply immersed in his emotions.
It was the first time he had seen Estelle like that, so Cain was a little surprised.
‘Even if we destroy this place, the cult’s servants will be able to use holy magic. At least for the time being.’
A goddess statue spread across the continent.
Even if the transfer of mana stopped, the amount of mana already stored in each statue would not be small.
‘It will take about a year for all of them to be exhausted. By then, the denomination will set up facilities elsewhere and start producing mana again.’
It was clear that he had to move non-stop for a while.
Quad Duck!
In the mace that Estelle wielded, the coffins connected to the mechanical devices were torn off.
Pushy-
Mana gushed out through the cut of the coffin connected to the statue of the goddess on the ground.
Mana in the atmosphere is usually low in concentration and has no color.
However, the mana that was emitted in a gaseous state now had a high concentration and had several colors at the same time.
‘It’s a pity that it’s impossible to improve the quality of the circuit itself as in the ruins. The technology of the present age cannot be compared with that of the magic kingdom yet.’
Seeing the colorful mana, Estelle said in a panic.
“Uh, huh? Can I continue with this?”
“Okay. do not worry.”
The mana concentration in the underground space rose sharply.
The amount of mana flowing into the body increased, and the mana consumed on the ground was rapidly recharged.
“If we fight in a place like this, we can do it all day.”
“Proximity would be like that. Be careful with magic. In a place with such a high concentration of mana, elements can randomly tangle and cause a chain explosion.”
After a considerable amount of time, mana did not pour out anymore.
Now, the statue of the goddess was nothing but a completely empty shell.
Estelle had also completely smashed the mechanical device and had a remorseful expression on her face.
Cain said to her.
“I think it’s time to slowly climb up.”
* * *
Hell was still unfolding on the ground.
Fire and scream, blood and flesh.
There were also mana users and wizards among the cults, but in the face of the overwhelming inaction of the interrogators, they could not be matched.
Whoops!
Kwajik!
There were only about 50 people, and they were harassing a dozen times that number.
Gugugugugu-
The foot of the giant goddess was split in half and began to open.
At that moment, the interrogators who were waiting around changed their posture.
Goo my
The entrance closed again and Cain and Estelle appeared.
The invisibility of Elder Utahs made the inquisitors even more tense.
“Estelle Priest! Why are you with the Warlock!”
Estelle had no intention of answering.
After realizing the truth, all the members of the church were just enemies that had to be defeated.
She stepped in front of Cain and pointed her shield forward. whispered quietly.
“You have to be careful. They specialize in dealing with wizards. Even you can be at risk with a number like this. First of all, I defend… .”
“It’s reliable.”
Cain chuckled and took a deep breath.
“Estelle Priest! Did you even kill Elder Utahs! If you don’t answer quickly—!”
And the moment the person who appears to be the commander spit out the next line.
Nettle! Nettle juice! Nettle juice!
From the tips of Cain’s five fingers facing forward, a stream of wind shot out like a bullet.
“Uh-huh!”
“Cuckoo!”
Magic that has completed 4 stages of refinement within the circuit.
There was no preparation or movement of mana, so the first inquisitors could not even respond and their hearts were pierced and collapsed.
Estelle, who did not know that Cain’s mana amount had increased dramatically by absorbing the Blue Spring, also had eyes in surprise.
Nettle!
The five winds that pierced the heart didn’t stop there, they turned and flew towards their other prey.
“Put down the apostates and the warlocks!”
Five wind stalks were added with the completion of the next magic, and a total of ten wind stalks flew across the battlefield.
“Uh-huh!”
Some were pierced through the head or heart without being able to escape, while others twisted their body to avoid it.
They quickly closed the distance and struck Cain with a mace.
bang!
And it was blocked by Estelle’s shield, which had changed direction, and bounced right off.
Above that, all kinds of spears flew in to deal with the wizard.
While Estelle dealt with an approaching foe, the ten wind streams reduced the number of enemies at Cain’s fine-tuning.
“Squad 2! 4 minutes! Prepare the circuit breakers!”
Clearly, the war is going backwards.
With the commander’s shout, the interrogators, who were relatively far away from Cain and Estelle, loosened the coffins on their backs and dropped them on the floor.
thud!
He quickly opened the lid of the coffin, pulled out a stake the size of a human, and plunged it into the ground.
Crazy!
Violet mana radiated from the end of the pile, connecting the piles to each other.
It looks like one huge fence.
Without stopping there, the mana flowing between the stakes moved toward a point in the air and formed a ‘film’.
Break up!
At the end, what was completed was a hemispherical barrier.
At the center were Cain and Estelle.
“Oh My God… .”
A moan escaped Estelle’s mouth.
circuit breaking barrier.
It was a technology that I had only heard of as a rumor and did not know that it existed.
“The mana in the circuit has stopped… !”
“No need to panic. Concentrate on the battle.”
Cain looked at the stakes in the distance with indifferent eyes.
The wind that swept the battlefield disappeared, and the enhancement magic was also lost.
‘Gyeolgyeol.’
It was never an easy skill to use.
It was a technique that could only be used when dozens of heretical inquisitors, the most elite of the denomination, gathered and matched.
The pile boasts an astronomical production cost and enormous mana consumption, and even that is a one-time thing.
A technique that is permitted to be used when dealing with a ‘great evil’ that is a threat to the denomination.
‘It must mean that the commander has made a decision.’
There is a limit to the level of the circuit that the barrier can break.
And he’s out of range.
At least not yet.
‘The law of breaking the barrier also exists, but it is inefficient to use now.’
Still, Cain was not upset.
Because this situation right now is just one of dozens of cases that I pictured in my head.
‘The same is true for enemies who cannot use circuits.’
visor!
Cain drew his sword and faced the enemy.
A clash of pure physical abilities.
Objectively, Cain and Estelle were at a disadvantage.
No matter how much she trained her body, Estelle had a female body.
Cain also trained his body to the limit and mastered all kinds of martial arts, but there were dozens of opponents.
In the same way, the body was trained close to the limit.
visor!
Estelle clenched her teeth and struck the mace. And looked at Cain.
A calm face without agitation.
It was just as usual.
She felt her excitement subside and her confidence rise. He soon regained his composure.
‘Also.’
there’s a plan for something.
‘Cause he’s always been like that
All he had to do was protect him with his life. Until he put his plan into action.
visor!
As Cain continued the battle, he reviewed the traits that could be acquired once again.
‘I don’t think that’s a bad number. If you learn it, it will be helpful in many situations in the future.’
[Body strengthening]
Category: Normal-Passive
Effect: Base physical abilities such as Strength, Endurance, Agility, and Flexibility are increased by 3 levels.
Required Attribute Points: 1
Residual Attribute Points: 2
[Are you sure you want to learn the trait?]
[Y/n]
It was a question that did not need to be asked.
[You have acquired the ‘Body Enhancement’ trait.]
“Drop more! The enemy is now unable to use the circuit!”
Simultaneously with the acquisition of the characteristic, Cain swung his sword sharply.
visor!
Multiple maces were deflected at once, and the body of the Inquisitors were pushed back by the heavy blow.
“The circuit cannot be used. What does that mean?”
The Inquisitors flinched at Cain’s changed momentum.
He rushed again, but before that, Cain’s sword moved first.
shhh!
The sword pierced one enemy’s neck.
A speed that is hard to keep up with.
As the sword fell, blood gushed out of a hole in his neck, and the Inquisitor’s body collapsed.
“… … !”
Seeing the enemies shaken, Cain casually brushed off the blood on his sword.
🥳!
And I thought as I looked at the dust rising in the distance. Slowly, it was time for them to join.
“Don’t back down! The use of second-level holy magic is permitted!”
The commander’s cry over evil.
Cain fixed his sword and glanced upwards.
Under the red sky, the goddess still had a benevolent smile.
The direction of that smile is northeast.
It was the direction of the capital and the imperial family.
‘I’m waiting. I’ll be back soon.’
Cain fixed his sword.
And he swung with all his might towards the enemy who was rushing.