Chapter 253: Walpurgis Night (11)

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“……”

Carl and Darius, who had been leading the charge, came to a halt.

The cadets following behind also stopped in their tracks, staring wide-eyed at the Teleport Gate.

Step.

Several robed figures walked out from the upper part of the Teleport Gate, revealing themselves.

Their appearance was far too out of place to be cadets from another academy.

However, the aura they emitted was not the demonic energy of monsters.

“…Divine power. Are they priests?”

Darius seemed to sense it as well and took a step forward with a brightened expression.

But Carl grabbed his shoulder and shook his head.

“They’re not priests of the Holy Church. Look more closely.”

“What?”

At Carl’s words, Darius frowned and examined the priests.

…But just as Carl said, there was nothing that seemed off about them.

Just as he was about to ask what Carl meant, the priests stepped down from the gate and stood before them.

“So it is you. I didn’t expect we’d meet so soon.”

“You know me?”

“I’ve heard all about you. There’s probably no one who hasn’t.”

Clink.

The priest at the front brought his hands together as if in prayer, and a vivid blue emblem of sacred flame swayed below his wrist.

His face was obscured by the hood of his robe, but from the tone of his voice, it was clear he was smiling.

“But how curious. You’re not affiliated with the Church, yet you carry divinity. Do you fancy yourself a god?”

“……”

Carl narrowed his eyes.

Was that something one could discern just by looking?

There was no point in denying it—he’d already been found out. Carl, too, summoned the divinity he had been suppressing.

His eyes gleamed with radiant light as he gazed at the priests, and above his head, a faint halo shimmered.

“…The Primordial Flame, bearer of Original Sin.”

Though it was knowledge he had never learned, a powerful intuition struck his mind.

His senses lifted, and he felt someone merging with his own divine essence.

It wasn’t possession, but a sensation of becoming one.

The divinity of Kylos, which had always floated aimlessly within him, was finally beginning to merge.

And so, Carl was able to speak his name.

“Prometheus.”

“……”

At that soft utterance, the priest froze in place.

So did everyone else nearby.

Darius, standing right next to Carl, staggered backward, shielding himself with his arms as if he couldn’t withstand Carl’s voice. Some of the cadets turned pale and collapsed to the ground, while others simply fainted.

But Carl’s eyes remained fixed solely on the priest before him.

“Ah, ahh, aaah, ahhh!”

The priest let out an unintelligible cry, pulled down his hood, and raised both hands with a face filled with ecstasy.

“He has answered!”

A stream of light fell from the sky.

It was a light only Carl, imbued with divinity, could see.

The priest trembled for a moment, then regained composure and raised his head.

“Bearer of the broken throne, oh foolish shepherd.”

“……”

Just as Carl bore the divine essence of Kylos, the priest was imbued with the intent thought of the demigod Prometheus.

The difference was that Prometheus and the priest were two separate beings.

“How pathetic. To be bound by a mere human and unable to persist on your own.”

“That’s not quite accurate.”

Carl replied with a smirk.

“There’s no point in distinguishing us. His divinity has been absorbed by me.”

“……”

Prometheus, who had been speaking through the priest, fell silent.

Strictly speaking, Carl had borrowed Kylos’ memories and divinity, but he was not bound by him.

‘Devoured’ would be the more accurate term.

“……Hahahahaha!”

A beat later, a burst of laughter exploded.

Whatever amused him so much, he doubled over, clutching his stomach, wiping away tears as he raised his head.

“Should I rejoice, or offer condolences? How pitiful! The hero who once debated the world with me is gone, and only his fallen divinity remains!”

The air trembled, resonating with the demigod’s emotions.

Prometheus, still smiling, continued speaking to Carl.

“To accept a demigod’s fate in a human body is impossible. Come to me. I shall grant you a seat just beneath my throne.”

“I refuse.”

Shiiing.

Carl slowly drew the Divine Sword Cheonroe and stared at him.

“I’m not the type to serve under someone.”

“Of course. I expected no less. But you cannot defy the flow. The stage is set, the actors are gathered. I’m very curious to see what you’ll do at the final scene where the ruler of the world is decided.”

Carl opened his eyes.

Every word was filled with heavy implications.

‘As I thought.’

Walpurgis Night was a ritual for Ragnarok.

The actors must be the powers of the Demon Realm, the heretics serving the demigods, and the other demigod—himself.

‘For them to go out of their way to stage such a cumbersome event…’

There must be a reason.

Perhaps, just as he had suspected, it required the bloodlines of noble houses, high-ranking aristocrats, or promising talents.

Framing it as an inter-academy event would make it easy to gather the required individuals.

“…The ruler of the world, huh.”

Carl tightened his grip on his sword and murmured briefly.

“Not bad. To make all of you kneel beneath me.”

“Haha! How befitting of Kylos’ successor. But remember this—he was always the one crawling beneath others’ feet. I hope you’ll keep that in mind as well.”

Flash—!

A brilliant flash erupted.

Carl had swung the Divine Sword Cheonroe, intending to cut down the priests in an instant.

As if waiting for it, a protective barrier etched with a shimmering emblem unfurled to shield them.

Crack!

The falling slash tore into the barrier mercilessly, scattering its shockwaves in all directions.

The priest grinned as he bid farewell to Carl.

“It was a short encounter, but amusing nonetheless. Not long now until the curtain rises—let’s meet again then.”

Pop!

Then, turning into a beam of light, the priests vanished without a trace.

“……”

Carl stood still, quietly gazing in the direction they had departed.

He could easily pursue them if he wanted to, but the cadets lying sprawled around were the problem.

“Ugh……”

Not just Darius—most of the cadets were staggering on their feet.

Carl hadn’t anticipated such a backlash, so he let out a short breath and lightly waved his hand.

Fwaaash!

The way divine power was used was generally similar across users.

Especially now, after his synchronization rate with Kylos had increased, he had grown more accustomed to its usage.

Divinity was originally a power specialized more for healing, protection, and blessings than combat.

Of course, that didn’t mean it lacked offensive power.

“…Huh? Why am I…”

“Ugh, my head…”

“What just happened…?”

Most of the cadets who had fainted slowly rose, clutching their heads.

Only three had managed to remain conscious—Darius, Laysis, and Yuria.

Though all of them looked like they had plenty to say, they tactfully acted in line with the situation.

“There shouldn’t be any serious injuries.”

Glancing briefly at them, Carl turned to Darius and spoke.

“It looks like most won’t be able to move right away, so we should rest here for a while.”

“What about you?”

“I’ll scout the area briefly. It seems more efficient to search alone.”

“…Alright.”

Darius nodded.

He couldn’t quite follow the conversation involving demigods and heroes.

He, too, needed some time to quietly process and sort things out.

“I’ll go with you.”

“Good. Yuria, I’ll leave the barrier here to you.”

“…Understood.”

Yuria slammed her staff to the ground, creating a powerful barrier that enveloped the entire area.

While the other cadets stared in awe at her skill, Carl and Laysis dashed beyond the forest.

“Carl, are you trying to become a demigod?”

“At first, I didn’t plan to. I absorbed it merely out of curiosity.”

He hadn’t expected it to become such an important factor.

Since Laysis had once accompanied him into the ruins of Kylos, there was no need to hide it from her.

The issue was with Yuria.

‘I haven’t told her that I’ve absorbed Kylos’ divinity yet.’

Considering Yuria possessed knowledge of this world in the form of a game, she would have quickly realized that he had been hiding something.

‘This is a bit troublesome.’

Carl wore an awkward expression.

Knowing her personality, she probably wouldn’t scold him harshly.

Still, it couldn’t be good for a cooperative relationship to have secrets exposed.

“…Yuria didn’t know, did she?”

“That’s right. No one knew. At least until just now.”

It wasn’t something worth publicizing either.

It sounded far too absurd to explain to others.

“For now, let’s focus on the objective. Save the chatting for later.”

“Understood.”

The two sprinted toward the edge of the forest.

Their objective here was to escape from under this crimson sky enclosing the area.

If they could at least get the cadets out, it would give them much more room to maneuver.

‘Crown Prince Yulian, NOX—they must have started moving. And yet, the silence means…’

They hadn’t yet found a way to break in from the outside.

Which meant someone inside needed to open the entrance.

Tap.

At that moment, Carl, who was ahead, stopped in his tracks.

They had reached the edge of the forest and found the end of a massive curtain-like barrier blocking the way.

Shiiing!

With a fierce gale of blue sword energy, the Divine Sword Cheonroe struck the barrier violently.

A shockwave strong enough to make the forest tremble surged outward—but the barrier remained unscathed.

“Hm.”

Carl narrowed his eyes.

With just one strike, he had discerned the nature of the barrier.

Clang! Clang!

Laysis also swung her sword vigorously, but couldn’t leave a single scratch.

Just as she furrowed her brow, about to unleash the final form of the Boundless Azure Sword Technique, Carl raised his hand to stop her.

“That’s enough. This isn’t something that can be broken through physical force. If we carelessly attack with overwhelming power, there’s a risk of rebound.”

“Should I go get Yuria?”

“I didn’t say there was no way. It just means we shouldn’t use physical methods.”

Tap.

Carl reached out and placed his hand on the barrier.

A sensation of something cold and solid blocking his path.

Closing his eyes, he slowly channeled his internal energy into it.

“……”

Just as he had disabled the barrier at Kylos’ ruins, he was now trying to forcefully twist the internal structure.

‘This is a high-level spell formation that’s hard to interpret.’

He had never seen this form before.

Not magic from the Middle Realm—likely something from the Demon Realm.

If so, then there was a more efficient method.

“…If interpretation is impossible, then just shake the entire system.”

Clench.

As Carl clenched his fist, intending to pour divine power inward, the barrier began to shift.

Shhhrrk!

As if it had understood Carl’s intent, the area where his hand touched began to unravel and slowly open.

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