Chapter 308
Chapter 308 – I Will Walk Trusting You. (2)
Bang!
The closed eyes of Piote opened. Endless divine light flowed from his eyes.
His shimmering hair sparkled with a radiant silver, and his lips turned a deeper shade of red. His skin had transformed to an exceptionally clean and white hue.
It was as if a goddess had descended upon Piote’s body, stripping away all impurities.
While he used to be merely pretty, he now exuded a seductive beauty.
Alfoy saw this and thought.
‘Is it possible…? No! Damn it! Get a grip!’
Alfoy bit down hard and summoned his mana. It was almost unbearable to withstand the storm of divine power.
The people around him gradually stepped back, dazed as they gazed at Piote.
They couldn’t comprehend how they ended up in such a situation while engaging in a trivial gamble.
Gwooooh!
Piote felt an indescribable, immense will connected to him. Along with an exhilarating spiritual high, he felt an extraordinary power surging within him.
It was a power granted solely through a pure prayer fueled by desire. The immense will seemed to pause as it sensed Piote’s longing but ultimately delivered a “revelation.”
A grand and sacred voice echoed in Piote’s mind. It wasn’t a language of this world, but linked to that great will, he certainly understood its meaning.
– Snap.
Following that guidance, Piote spoke in a voice filled with sacredness.
“Snap.”
“Ugh.”
Alfoy groaned. It matched. But he had no intention of just accepting it.
What is a wizard?
If the gods create the order and laws of the world, wizards mock and manipulate those rules.
He cast a spell to discreetly pull a coin from his sleeve.
“W-what! My mana isn’t moving!”
The magic didn’t activate. It remained completely still, as if his mana had frozen.
The same was true for those around him. Cain couldn’t raise his mana either, nor could the other wizards move their power at all.
Everyone near Piote found themselves unable to properly utilize their abilities.
“Are you insane! What is this!”
“This is just power?”
“Is this even a logical phenomenon?”
People stepped back in fear. It felt as if their bodies would give way in that powerful storm of divine energy.
“Ggrrrrr!”
But Alfoy didn’t flee. He was, after all, a man with grit.
He struggled to summon power, but it was futile. Now his body wouldn’t respond to his commands.
Piote gazed at Alfoy with serious eyes and issued an irresistible command.
“Open your hand.”
It was a luminous and beautiful voice, yet the authority behind it was overwhelming.
Alfoy’s wrist, tightly gripping the coin, began to move on its own.
“Ugh, do you think I would give up? Is being a god all that matters? I am Alfoy, the Flame Man! I am that man who will never be broken!”
He absolutely didn’t want to lose any money.
Dududududud.
But it was impossible for Alfoy’s power to contend against a god. His wrist was turning against his will.
“Gaaah!”
Alfoy’s eyes turned red, and blood seeped from his tightly clenched lips.
“N-no!”
His wrist had almost fully twisted. Now his fingers slowly began to open.
If they fully opened, he would lose his money. Even after creating the strongest magic in history.
He couldn’t accept it. Perhaps a lord could, but he couldn’t lose to a dull, naïve guy like Piote.
“Grrr!”
Just then, as Alfoy grimaced in endurance, blood suddenly began to flow from Piote’s nose.
The connection with the goddess was a powerful ability only the saint could wield. There was no way Piote could handle that immense power.
The divine energy rapidly drained away, and the heavenly light that descended diminished.
“N-no…”
Piote, too, was flustered but tried to hold on. He just needed to endure a little longer. Alfoy’s fingers were opening little by little.
“Ughhh…”
“Gaaaah!”
The two desperately gathered all their mental strength to withstand.
And just when Alfoy’s hand almost had fully opened…
“Ah… Oh goddess…”
Thud.
Piote closed his eyes and collapsed. The storm of divine power vanished in the blink of an eye, and in that moment, Alfoy successfully cast his spell.
Swoosh.
One coin openly slid into his sleeve. Piote, already fallen, could not witness the scam.
“Gah, hahahaha! I did it! I won! Look! I won!”
Alfoy laughed with a mad gleam in his eyes. Ultimately, he had won. He had triumphed even over the power of the goddess.
This was a feat invisible to most others. Even a great sorcerer or dragon couldn’t achieve this.
Alfoy roared at the sky.
“I am Alfoy! The man who defeated a god!”
Claude, who had been watching the whole process, stood with his mouth agape.
It wasn’t just Claude who was astonished. Ghislaine, sensing an indescribable power, and the territory residents nearby hurried to witness the spectacle.
With dark clouds suddenly gathering in an otherwise clear sky and light pouring down, it was only natural.
Ghislaine looked back and forth between Alfoy, who was laughing madly at the sky, and Piote.
‘W-what is this? Why is such power activating here and now?’
The connection with the goddess was a miracle not even a saint could easily reveal. It wasn’t something that could be used whenever one desired.
That power could only be utilized once faith and yearning reached an extreme.
Typically, it was said that such extraordinary powers could only manifest when one faced tremendous trials, in agony and hardship.
The previous saint supposedly showed such capabilities when people were slaughtered before her eyes.
Channeling was meant to be invoked in situations of dire crisis.
Certainly not for some petty gamble like this!
Ghislaine again looked at Alfoy with a dazed expression.
‘What is that guy? What exactly did he do?’
What kind of repulsive display of humanity must have led Piote to feel unbearable pain and hardship, prompting him to connect with the goddess?
She could hardly even watch Piote trot through that much agony.
“I am—! The man who defeated a god—!”
That madman continued to shout and laugh maniacally at the sky.
Ghislaine shook her head and turned her gaze to the now-collapsed Piote. He had returned to his usual appearance.
‘I knew it was unusual, but… he actually awakened.’
A saint is chosen by the goddess. When the chosen one briefly communicates with the god, they are said to have “awakened.”
This is referred to as divine favoritism. Those who are favored exhibit divine power far exceeding that of other priests.
That was the essence of the saint’s ability and qualification. Though it was unknown why the man Piote had been chosen.
‘Well, favoritism usually doesn’t require a reason.’
An awakened saint can act on behalf of the power of the god they serve. If the saint serves the goddess of war, they would unleash incredible power in battle.
Since Juana is the goddess of beauty, Piote’s appearance had transformed into something more beautiful than ever.
To Ghislaine, it seemed a rather useless ability.
‘But he will surely become more impressive from now on. It will be a significant help in the Age of Turmoil.’
Unless exceptional circumstances arise, there would not be another chance to connect with the goddess. However, having awakened once, his body would likely have changed to one suitable for wielding divine power.
Without a doubt, his divine energy would grow faster than before, and as he delved deeper into the realm, he could wield unfathomable power at will.
Even if he were to abandon his faith and lose the object of devotion.
‘Later… if needed, I might have to keep Alfoy around. Just in case, Claude too.’
If a truly dangerous situation arose to the extent of needing channeling… she would have to impose extreme mental stress on Piote to forcibly connect him with the goddess.
Somehow, it felt like pairing Alfoy and Claude would work perfectly.
‘Perhaps this incident was merely a catalyst.’
In truth, Piote’s divine power was growing suspiciously fast. All he may have needed to awaken could have merely been a little trigger.
‘I have no idea why I felt despair over someone like Alfoy.’
Anyway, that guy was certainly impressive in various ways.
The servants of the castle hurriedly came over and carefully placed Piote on a stretcher. Alfoy, still laughing, was ignored by all.
As Piote was carried past, the people all bowed down, clearing the way.
“It’s incredible that a true saint has appeared in our territory…”
“To witness such a miracle…”
“Oh goddess, grant us your blessing.”
The territory residents didn’t realize that Piote was a man. They assumed he was a woman just based on his appearance.
Piote was well-liked because he had always stepped up to help those in need. News of his selection as a saint spread rapidly.
The place where Piote and Alfoy had been gambling was now cordoned off for construction. Having become a holy ground where the residents kneel and pray.
“Ugh… it can’t be helped. Leave that space empty,”
Ghislaine reluctantly built a small temple there.
Since the lord had built a temple, people’s faith grew even further. They pooled their money together to buy extremely large and beautiful marble.
Alongside the temple, they erected a monument, carefully engraving words.
[The place where Saint Piote received the goddess’s revelation. For gambling.]
Though the latter part of the inscription got a little messy due to some graffiti, it nonetheless became a sacred place and an important site for the residents of Penris Territory.
And from that point onward, the followers of the Juana Sect began to explosively increase in the Territory of Penris.
*
“Okay, what business does the man who defeated a god have with me?”
Alfoy spoke with an incredibly arrogant demeanor. Claude found himself at a loss for words for quite some time.
‘What the hell is this guy?’
At first, he had seemed like an easy mark, but now he had solidly adapted to life in the territory.
He couldn’t believe that such a ridiculous person could hold out against such a miracle and ultimately emerge victorious.
‘Could he be an incredible guy after all…?’
It seemed he hadn’t become the successor to the Mage Tower for nothing. Even a worm has its skills when it rolls about.
Although it was an absurd incident, it had, in fact, turned out well. By prodding that arrogance, it seemed he could draw Alfoy into a wager with the lord.
“Impressive indeed. Defeating the goddess’s power. You’ll surely gain fame as the greatest sorcerer.”
“Ha, of course! I never expected to reach this level myself. Hah, what can I say about my talent… it seems unavoidable?”
“Wow, now that you’ve gained fame, you’ll soon take off. You won’t be playing in the kiddie pool anymore.”
At Claude’s words, Alfoy pouted.
“Because of you, I got caught up in a gamble with the lord and have to spend decades here as a slave. Why would I think about leaving?”
“Huh? Haven’t you heard the news yet?”
“What news?”
“The lord’s testing out something strange this time.”
“And?”
“This time, it’s bound to succeed too, so if you ever want to wager, he said to come anytime. That’s why I thought it would involve you.”
At those words, Alfoy quickly lost interest. He’d seen all too well how Ghislaine had created weird things and succeeded each time.
“Forget it. It’s clear that even if I gamble again, I’ll lose. The lord’s a genius when it comes to those things.”
“Tsk tsk… so the ‘man who defeated a god’ can’t win against some mere human lord?”
“What? Are you picking a fight with me?”
“No, just hear me out. Of course, if we’re clueless about something, we’d lose the bet. We were fooled by the lord’s cunning. But this time, it’s different, right? I just thought you were incredible enough to win and leave.”
“I might be great, but… what do you mean?”
Claude adopted a serious expression as he continued.
“Do you think a person can live for a month just on water and powdered food?”
“They might die, but… some could survive, right?”
“Then do you think that person could maintain enough strength to use mana and fight a month later?”
“Eh, that’s impossible. Even if they survive, they would likely just barely cling onto life. Their stamina would be completely depleted, and they couldn’t possibly manage. Well, unless they were a great master like me, but for the average person, it’s impractical.”
“But the lord claims that he has created something like that. He insists that even soldiers could survive a month on it.”
“Maybe if it’s made from very rare and expensive herbs, that might be possible.”
“It’s nothing like that. It’s just made by grinding general grains and herbs. It’s supposed to be mass-produced cheaply.”
“Eating that for a month? Pfft, ridiculous. Absolutely impossible. How can you fight when you’re hungry?”
Alfoy didn’t believe Ghislaine’s words either.
Humanity had fought ceaselessly to stave off hunger for ages.
When you’re hungry, your strength wanes. When your strength wanes, all productivity drops and ultimately, society collapses.
It’s no exaggeration to say that most people live to eat. Hunger is an enemy as terrifying as any other.
Yet now, they were saying they could endure a month in this state and even fight? For an average person, that was utterly impossible.
Claude quietly said to the scoffing Alfoy.
“So, how about this? Now that you’re famous, why not end things with the territory? If you want to, I’ll help.”
“Hm… but what if it really works?”
Alfoy fell into thought. He had little time left to wager his life. If things stayed as they were, he could live freely for his remaining years.
But if he lost this time, he’d become a perpetual slave. The likelihood of dying trapped as a laborer, doing construction till his old age, was high.
Claude raised his voice, clearly exasperated.
“Why are you worrying about that? Do you really believe the lord’s endeavors always succeed? Is he a god? No, even if he were a god, you, the man who defeated one, shouldn’t worry!”
“Hmmm…”
“Just think logically! Does that make any sense? We’re intellectuals! We’re intellectuals! We always judge with cold rationality and wisdom! How long until you stop being swayed by some ignorant, absurd human?”
“Hmmm…”
Alfoy nodded slightly. No matter how he thought about it, this time did seem like the lord might indeed be wrong. Maintaining vitality and stamina without proper sustenance is no easy thing.
Isn’t that why every military values supply so highly?
As a wizard, he actually understood the human body better. Just feeding on dried food would drain one’s strength, not to mention some tasteless powder? It would only sap even more energy.
After pondering a bit longer, he soon declared with a resolute look.
“Fine, this time I’ll genuinely walk trusting you.”
“Don’t trust me; trust yourself. Believe in the knowledge and experiences you’ve built up until now. You’re the successor of the Mage Tower, the greatest sorcerer of this territory, and the man who defeated a god. You’re always the best, bro.”
Claude playfully tapped Alfoy’s chest. A warmth filled him, and with a determined look, Alfoy nodded solemnly.
“Alright, I’m Alfoy. The man who defeated a god.”
Alfoy again held his head high with arrogance. Thinking about it, a person as remarkable as him shouldn’t be living as a slave.
This time, he would win this bet and surely reclaim his freedom.
Upon seeing Alfoy’s solemn expression, Wendy sighed and turned her gaze to the sky.
