Chapter 1299: The Promise of Corruption (3)

“They’re trying to resurrect the Pontiff using the Grand General’s body as an Incarnation Body…?”

It was an absurd claim, but as soon as Lennok heard it, he couldn’t help but retort to the Cardinal.

He had surmised that the Cult desperately wanted something from the Four Archangel Demonic Mirrors, but he hadn’t even imagined that the ritual the Priestess was preparing would directly summon the Pontiff himself into the present world.

The sole master of the Guido Cult, serving myriad gods. The guide of doctrines, beloved by all the Outer Gods of that sea.

Was it truly saying that the failed savior, to whom even the corrupted Apostles pledged absolute obedience without exception, was attempting to descend once again into these Four Archangel Demonic Mirrors?

A chilling message, preposterous and unreal to an absurd degree, yet precisely because of that, it instinctively felt like the Cult’s method.

Arthur and Aileen, who had been listening nearby, seemed to feel the same, showing sharp reactions.

“Old man, don’t spout such ridiculous nonsense.”

Clack!

Arthur loaded his shotgun, raised the muzzle, and scoffed.

“How long has it been since Ars Nova was destroyed, and you think you can resurrect the Pontiff with the Grand General’s corpse? There’s a limit to bullshit, you f-cker.”

“…”

“Your Pontiff went missing even before the holy war ended, and no one knows his location. You lost the war because of that, and now what…? Are you actually insane?”

What Arthur Mason knew was probably the extent of what was generally known about the Pontiff on this continent.

Even a werewolf working as a mercenary in the Central Front didn’t know much about the Ascendants of the First World.

This was partly because the Cult treated information about the Pontiff with extreme secrecy, but also proof that the Pontiff himself had kept himself hidden within coincidence for a long time.

Among all the ‘answerers’ Lennok knew, he was by far the most mysterious, bizarre, and unreadable being.

How he now thought of his other self. Whether he had left any shred of feeling about his own humanity.

It was impossible to easily guess if he would consider Lennok an ally or an enemy when they met again.

For the one known as the Pontiff, it was even unknowable whether such criteria remained in the first place.

“That’s an unreliable statement. Especially for me, knowing what kind of Transcendent the Grand General enshrined in this Mausoleum was.”

Aileen also glared at the Cardinal with a cold expression.

“You have no idea what kind of beings the Imperial Three Grand Dukes and the Emperor were. Do you think they would allow the Empire’s Transcendent to be used in such a way?”

“The Four Archangel Demonic Mirrors are a corrupted hell, centered around the Imperial Palace’s national cemetery, so here, death itself functions as power and a source.”

The Cardinal slowly stroked his chin and spoke.

“That is possible because the [Quasi-Authority] stored within the Mausoleum literally possesses the power to read causality. As the authority corrupted and reversed, and reads causality in reverse, the laws of the Demonic Realm exist in the opposite way to the outside world.”

“…”

“The Priestess intends to use that authority to read the causality He bestowed in reverse, unravel it, reconstitute it into the same form as Him, and overlay it onto the Grand General’s body.”

That was one of the methods Lennok had also heard about or seen many times.

Unraveling one’s origin from its very foundation, entirely reconstituting it, and building it up anew.

Hadn’t Level 9 Ascendants, including Pyeonram and Silver Star, recreated themselves in such a way to gain their qualifications?

The Priestess intended to use the Quasi-Authority existing in the Four Archangel Demonic Mirrors to obtain even greater results than them, in the same manner.

“If, by any chance, the ritual succeeds and He permits descent into the Grand General’s body, the Priestess would finally be able to receive the authority she had long wished for.”

“…”

The Cardinal said, as if spitting out the words.

“The authority of a High Priest, able to freely communicate with the gods of that sea and preside over rituals – that very ability lost with the death of the 10th Priestess.”

“She’s out of her mind.”

Lennok said calmly.

Because with that one word, he could clearly understand how broken and insane Ureka Naydree truly was.

“So, to regain the lost High Priest’s authority, she would directly summon the Pontiff himself into the present world?”

“The Priestess became obsessed with her own inadequacy and inferiority complex, and went mad. To fill that, she’s even trying to defy the Cult’s order.”

With a frighteningly firm face, the Cardinal repeated the words he had spoken earlier, precisely.

“In this Cult, His status is absolute, inviolable by anyone… Yet the Priestess dares to directly decide His actions for her own advancement.”

“…”

“It is unforgivable. Only divine punishment should be given to a heretic who has forgotten whose grace she received to be in that position…!!”

The Cardinal, who had devoted himself to the Cult for a long time, was unable to control himself as his emotions surged.

Only the Cardinal’s trembling hand implied how enraged he was.

But Lennok vaguely surmised why he was showing such a sensitive reaction.

‘Judging by what he knows about the Pontiff’s disposition, he must be a very senior Cardinal within the Cult.’

The Pontiff was a Transcendent who infinitely contemplated causality as it flowed, a madman who hid even his own existence within coincidence.

The Cardinal must have thought that if the Pontiff existed by chance, he would try to accept any causality, and thus might readily accept even the Priestess’s plan.

Could it be that, as a Cult follower, he couldn’t tolerate the situation of the Pontiff descending to the present world against his will, driven by the Priestess’s desires, rather than by His own will or plan?

While the Cult’s fanaticism, worshiping the Pontiff to such an extent, was still equally incomprehensible—

At least he could clearly understand why the Cardinal had come to find Lennok.

“…I trust you understood what I’m trying to say.”

The Cardinal caught his breath with difficulty, adjusted his attire, and turned to leave.

“By now, you would have realized what this Cult wants from the Four Archangel Demonic Mirrors. You would also know why this follower sought you out.”

“The Cult is truly an interesting place.”

Lennok sneered.

“For the sake of the Pontiff, they can even offer a fellow worshipper to an apostate like me?”

“Everything is merely a process for the salvation He leads… Therefore, as an apostate, you should fulfill your proper role.”

Looking down at Lennok, the Cardinal gave him a stern gaze.

“That wicked murder, this time, will be a devotion that upholds the order of the great Cult.”

Whoosh!

The sound of the Cardinal, having roughly adjusted his ceremonial robes, walking away, breathing raggedly, was heard.

To those unaware of the inside story, it would undoubtedly seem as if Lennok and the Cardinal had a huge argument.

And there was a good chance that neither the Order Alliance nor the Cult would find that strange at all.

“I felt it since he suddenly came to find us alone, but he was a thoroughly mad old geezer…”

Arthur said indifferently, his arms crossed.

“He’s going to borrow outside help to deal with internal problems? Revealing that so openly, and believing we’d cooperate, I don’t like any of it.”

“Rather than that… he must know that if it’s a problem concerning the Pontiff, we can’t help but care.”

Lennok replied calmly.

“Because he is such a being.”

“…”

Ultimately, what was most to be wary of was the situation itself: the Pontiff accepting the Priestess’s will, allowing his descent into the Grand General’s body, and arriving in the Demonic Realm.

Because the Pontiff was such a transcendent yet broken ‘answerer,’ it was true that Lennok, too, was wary of a situation that might, by some chance, occur.

Therefore, perhaps it was better to have learned of the Cult’s purpose and the omen of schism at this point, but…

“Most of the highest-ranking archbishops affiliated with the Cult’s headquarters are like that, though.”

Aileen said, disassembling the parts of her gunblade and setting them down.

“Rather, seeing that he even thinks of borrowing the hand of an Apostle-Slayer, he’s probably one of the more flexible-minded Cardinals among them. That’s probably why he’s out here working in a Demonic Realm like this.”

“Hah, not driven out after being pushed aside in the headquarters’ power game?”

Arthur snorted.

“Rumors are rife that the political struggles in the pantheon are so sordid that even an ordinary big city council couldn’t interfere. Don’t you know all the old men who survive there are cunning old foxes?”

“I’m sorry, but I don’t even know what kind of metaphor ‘raccoon’ is. If you want to express something, do it properly.”

Aileen shook her head.

“Regarding the Cult’s circumstances, I know as much as I need to. There are members of The Agency who came from the Cult, after all.”

“Now that you mention it, there was a mention that we’d cooperate with other Agency members during the Demonic Realm exploration.”

Lennok glanced at her.

“Did our paths get tangled with theirs because we arrived at the Mausoleum faster than expected?”

“The members are currently scattered throughout various other Demonic Realms. Since the great upheaval occurred in the Four Archangel Demonic Mirrors, nearly half of the existing exploration data became useless.”

Aileen replied.

“Now that we can’t know what’s happening in the Mausoleum, the judgment was made that it was better to prioritize exploring other Demonic Realms. That was until we met your side.”

“…”

“I sent a message at the same time I contacted you, but it would take at least a week for the members who received the news to arrive…”

“So, you intended to set the initial Demonic Realm exploration schedule for about a week.”

As Aileen nodded with an awkward expression, Lennok fell into thought.

He wasn’t particularly interested in the other Agency members, but regardless, her answer gave him food for thought.

“The fact that they’re scattered throughout other Demonic Realms… does that mean we can still find a path to the center even without conquering the Four Archangel Demonic Mirrors first?”

“Currently, the Demonic Realms blocking the path to Ars Nova are the result of each central institution of the Imperial Palace being corrupted and created.”

Aileen explained.

“For example, the Sixfold Demonic Mirror of Return is a corrupted hell centered around the Imperial Palace’s hangar, where demonized tactical weapons of The Empire roam, slaughtering all living things.”

“…”

“Because they were created based on the Imperial Palace’s central institutions, the distances and territories between the Demonic Realms are irregular, and there are also areas where boundaries overlap or powers collide. So…”

“So, even if we don’t conquer the Four Archangel Demonic Mirrors to the end, it means there are paths or routes within this Demonic Realm that lead to other Demonic Realms.”

Lennok, cutting her off to summarize her explanation, his eyes gleamed.

“And reconnaissance organizations, like those focused on conquest, would know those paths and entry methods.”

“…That’s the reason why Demonic Realm exploration and conquest are carried out by a select few elites.”

Aileen, who had nodded with a slightly stiff expression, turned her gaze.

“We call that a ‘shortcut,’ but it’s too easy to get lost without a Pathfinder, so we don’t try it often. In a situation like now, where the Sixfold Demonic Mirror of Return’s situation is excessively unique—”

Bwooooom—!

At that moment, Aileen’s words were abruptly cut off by the faint sound of a trumpet from afar.

An echo of the start of war, seemingly announcing deployment, slowly reverberating throughout this vast Demonic Realm.

Realizing it was a kind of signal coming from not far away, Aileen abruptly lifted her gaze.

“…Surely not, already?”

“It seems it’s time to depart.”

Lennok, taking his hand from the Dead Fire’s flame, slowly clenched his fist and stood up.

On Lennok’s fingertips, as he rose from the bonfire, grayish flames faintly remained, glowing.

“This time, I think I can make it just in time.”

“Grand Spell Master.”

Whoosh…!

The Order Alliance’s aerial battleship, residing within thick clouds.

In front of the cockpit, which oversaw the entire scenery of the Demonic Realm at a glance, the Dancheon Spell Master bowed his head.

“Cheonbeon has finished his Demonic Realm exploration and is returning to the rendezvous point. A Ranger from a reconnaissance organization is accompanying him.”

“…”

“He appears to have made contact with the Cult’s Cardinal. Will you take action?”

“Leave them be.”

From within the thick mist, the Yeonri Spell Master, with an insertion tube in his neck, spoke in a flat voice.

A bizarre sight, with a hole pierced in his neck, several tubes inserted into his veins and esophagus, letting out smoke.

But within the clouds, the Grand Spell Master’s flashing eyes held a clearer light than ever before.

Towards the bowed Dancheon Spell Master, the Grand Spell Master spoke in an indifferent tone.

“From long experience, when those fanatics cling on so tenaciously, they’re usually more interested in ulterior motives.”

“…”

“They’ll be targeting the Grand General’s corpse that protects the Quasi-Authority stored in the Mausoleum, not the Quasi-Authority itself. That unpleasant griminess is, after all, the true nature of the Cult.”

Even without ever speaking of their respective goals, the Yeonri Spell Master was already vaguely grasping the Cult’s direction.

That was possible because the Grand Spell Master had, from the start, seen through the reason this agreement could even be established, using his own intuition.

While killing and being killed within the Demonic Realm, both the Cult and the Order Alliance implicitly knew that their respective goals subtly did not overlap.

As their ideologies and beliefs had differed, leading them to wage war for a long time, what they saw even when facing the same hell was different.

What they ultimately had to pay attention to was the variable itself that sustained this agreement.

“How is Cheonbeon’s condition?”

“He appears to have almost entirely recovered his main magic power. To adjust his condition in just half a day, he’s undoubtedly a monster, as Yaksha advised.”

The Dancheon Spell Master said quietly.

“Despite possessing a maximum mana capacity that surpasses the Seventh Apostle, he has astonishing recovery speed. Even to wear him down in an ordinary war of attrition would be difficult.”

“He’s a wizard who defeated Chapman. He killed a Trait-type and even seized their spellcraft, so it’s only natural that he possesses a talent that surpasses even a Grand Spell Master.”

Hiss—

Inhaling the smoke rising inside the insertion tube, the Yeonri Spell Master slowly rose from his seat and muttered.

“However, the success or failure of a task is not ultimately decided by heaven-bestowed talent alone.”

“…Grand Spell Master.”

“The preparations for Soul Smoke and Soundless are complete. Of course, that vampire must have finished her preparations by now, too…”

The Spell Master walked across the cockpit and looked down at the ground.

The Spell Master’s eyes flashed coldly as he looked at the vast army of the Order Alliance and the Cult gathered below the battleship.

“Let’s depart. Either way, the result will be different from last time.”

Whoosh…!

Piercing through the thick flower mist of the Demonic Realm’s sky, dozens of airships simultaneously swept across the ground.

A magnificent sight: the main fleets of the Order Alliance and the Cult divided left and right, advancing towards the deepest part of the Four Archangel Demonic Mirrors.

Shhhhrrraaaak!!

Hiiisssst!!!

The heavy rumble of engines from battleships and airships, tens of meters long, reverberated, stimulating and awakening the living creatures of the Demonic Realm.

Man-eating flowers with teeth howled fiercely at the sky, and trees adorned with corpses shook their leaves in rage.

A sense of déjà vu, as if the entire inner environment of the Demonic Realm had awakened as if alive, opening its mouth and flicking out its tongue.

The army of superhumans trampled and erased all the hellish flora and fauna that devoured humans.

KABOOOM!!! THUD-THUD-THUD!! CRACK-CRACK!!

Thousands of Cult priests and Rectification Knights advanced, while Order Alliance spellcasters deployed their spellcraft on the opposite side.

Bishops from the headquarters and Order Alliance Spell Masters drew up mana, killing the rushing demonic beasts and tearing apart the plants.

Bombardments falling from above the Order Alliance and Cult battleships landed in front of the sweeping army, smashing the jungle.

KWOOOOOM!!!!!

A bizarre sight, grinding away the hell of chaos created by corrupted nature with human power alone.

At this moment, the combined forces of the Order Alliance and the Cult, spread throughout the Four Archangel Demonic Mirrors, simultaneously trampled the Demonic Realm’s environment, carving a path.

“Seeing it directly, it truly is a force of immense scale…”

Arthur, watching the slaughter unfolding below the battleship, muttered as if disgusted.

He had assumed they would ride on the forces of the Order Alliance and the Cult for the Mausoleum conquest, but he hadn’t imagined he’d be able to simply watch without even lifting a finger.

“Seriously, we might not even get a chance to step in. At this rate, couldn’t they conquer the Mausoleum even without our assistance?”

“Among the many Demonic Realms surrounding the Central Front, there isn’t a single hell that easily opens a sky path.”

Yaksha, standing at the front of the metal battleship, spoke.

“The Four Archangel Demonic Mirrors are the same. Forces that have attempted to approach in this manner have all been annihilated, whether they operated individual floating constructs plastered with the Order Alliance’s Prayer-Concealment Spellcraft or the Cult’s blessings.”

“…”

“And it goes without saying that the primary reason for that is the Garden of Death, which is now beginning to appear over there.”

Aaaaaaaah!!!!!

From the edge of the horizon, densely bloomed black flowers swayed in unison.

A vast plain where Dead Flowers, tens of meters in diameter, bloomed so densely there was no room to step.

Each and every one of the gigantic petals, comparable to the battleships of the Order Alliance and the Cult, bloomed in thousands of bundles stretching to the edge of the horizon.

The black petals, turned sideways, overlapped to a sickening degree of density, undulating like jet-black waves covering heaven and earth.

“Ugh…”

“Cough, cough!!”

The bizarre yet beautiful movement of the petals, transcending human common sense.

Just by looking at it, superhumans whose minds were contaminated and consciousness muddled emerged rapidly everywhere.

People collapsing and retching, or trying to pull something out from stomachs that had eaten nothing.

Scratching their cheeks with one hand, they dug out flesh and muscle, self-harming to the point where their teeth were visible.

“Damn it, what kind of pollen is this…?”

“It’s itchy, so itchy…”

Scratch, scratch…!

Just by approaching the Dead Flowers, superhumans from both factions fell into delirium one after another.

Even those possessing excellent skill and mental strength, enough to survive in the Central Front, couldn’t endure for long.

It was a scene that made it immediately understandable why they hadn’t been able to directly approach the deepest part of the Demonic Realm until now, slowly expanding their exploration range instead.

“It seems neither side will be able to endure for long.”

Yaksha, who had been watching the spellcasters breaking down everywhere, turned his gaze.

“It’s a little earlier than planned, but I’m about to start. That’s fine, right?”

“Yes.”

Lennok clasped his hands together, lifted his gaze, and spoke.

“We are ready.”

KUOOOOOOOH!!!!

Above the murky sky, thick with flower mist, a gigantic shadow was cast.

An overwhelming size, reaching hundreds of meters in length, flickering like burning flames.

The Sun Ship Megiddo, in a league of its own compared to any battleship or aircraft in this place, once again descended into reality.

Burning away all the Demonic Realm’s pollen, it illuminated the ground brightly like a dazzlingly shining sun.

[Pioneer Landing Assault Battleship form activated]

KABOOOM!!!!!!!!!

Intense heat and light output, enough to make even the Transcendent beings from both the Cult and the Order Alliance momentarily avert their gaze.

Sssshhhhiiiiizzzzzz…!

The radiance of Megiddo, imbued with sunlight, shone down upon the vast field of Dead Flowers, instantly paralyzing all the flora and fauna in the area.

The moment a non-existent ‘day’ was forcibly introduced into the Demonic Realm, the black flowers that had been simultaneously emitting demonic energy towards the sky stopped dead in their tracks.

Immediately after the ceaselessly undulating black waves on the ground became calm, spellcasters and priests everywhere began to regain consciousness.

“Ah, aaah…!!”

“Damn it, what on earth just happened…?”

“Unshakeable faith and courage—”

Screams burst out everywhere, along with the exclamations of those who belatedly regained consciousness.

But all other superhumans’ gazes were, as if by promise, directed towards Lennok, who was on the battleship.

The overwhelming majesty of the Sun Ship Megiddo, which had rampaged fiercely in the early parts of the Demonic Realm, killing and burning them.

Because just by facing it on the same side, even for a moment, they could keenly realize what an absurd artifact that thing was.

“I’ve summoned it as your plan dictated for now, but it won’t rampage, pouring out bombardments like last time.”

Whoooosh!!!

Lennok, confirming the rapidly approaching scenery of the Mausoleum from afar, spoke.

“This time, the goal is to maintain the Sun Ship Megiddo’s summoning for as long as possible and suppress the Demonic Realm’s activity. You know that, right?”

“Rather, if you had said you’d rampage using the Sun Ship Megiddo, that would have been troublesome.”

Yaksha nodded, smiled, and gestured lightly.

“Come closer. From now on, I’ll tell you several operating methods you must know.”

“Operating methods?”

“I told you once that I could help you as a being who was previously the Sun Ship Megiddo’s navigator.”

KUOOOOOH!!!

Yaksha quietly looked up at the gigantic burning ship in the sky above.

Yaksha, watching the burning pioneer ship with a gaze filled with complex regret, shook his head.

“But that ship is no longer of our kin, so I cannot pilot the flagship directly. You must do it.”

“…”

“For the one who holds the Sun Ship Megiddo’s helm, several methods exist to draw out the ship’s functions to their limit.”

Yaksha said.

“From now on, I will tell you the Form Transformation Activation Words you, as captain of the Sun Ship Megiddo, must know.”

Whoooosh!!!

At that moment, gigantic wings of flame unfolded on both sides of the Sun Ship Megiddo floating in the sky, and its form began to change.