Chapter 152

Level Up Heresy Inquisitor – Episode 152 (152/227)

Episode 152: Sacred Artifact (2)

[A presence of sin, a blasphemer, has appeared!]

“This is….”

The birth of a monster through ritual.

The thing that emerged after swallowing Grand Bishop Melia was no ordinary monster they’d faced before.

[Bahamut’s upper-tier servant ‘Agria’ has appeared!]

[‘Secret Seeker’ warns of the servant’s interference!]

[‘Volcanic Ruler’ urges swift elimination!]

‘Could they have summoned a servant in this situation…?’

Eil frowned at the unexpected turn of events.

In Warode, “servants” are subordinates of divine beings—essentially the arms and legs of the seven deities. Though not as powerful as a deity itself, these upper-tier beings wielded strength far beyond any normal earthly creature.

And now, one such being stood directly before him.

‘Were they planning this from the start?’

It finally made sense why they kept fighting despite having the odds stacked against them. After the Blood Alliance guild joined and shifted the tide, the outside forces were merely a ruse to distract. They had secured the Saint’s Realm by capturing the Banan Fortress and were conducting a ritual to summon this servant all along.

Not just any servant, but an upper-tier one belonging to Bahamut—a force capable of completely reversing the situation with a single appearance.

‘But summoning an upper-tier servant requires massive influence… how?’

No matter how large the Church, summoning such a being wasn’t an easy feat. Especially since Bahamut wouldn’t likely follow up their world event activation with another immediate action.

BOOM!

The staggering monstrosity slammed into a wall, shaking the ground.

Agria, still unfamiliar with her newly acquired body, moved it experimentally, though it remained awkward and uncoordinated.

[The servant’s power hasn’t fully manifested due to the recent materialization!]

[The process of settling into a mortal form continues. Agria’s power will increase over time.]

‘At least that’s something fortunate…’

Though she appeared through an extended ritual, it would take more time for her to reach full power.

Given her inherent strength, she was still relatively weak now—this was the time to act before she grew much stronger.

“We need to finish this quickly.”

“I know!”

The two advanced together, closing the distance with the beast.

Normally, understanding an enemy’s patterns before starting a raid would be essential. But there was no time for that now.

KAGAKAGA!

Agria swung her long claws, scraping the floor fiercely.

However, the duo slipped past her guard and drove their swords deep into her flanks.

PUUUK!

Black blood spurted from both sides of her torso—an obvious effective hit.

Yet, Agria’s health bar showed not even a single percent deducted.

Her total HP pool was immense.

SUSHUSHU…

The black blood pooling on the floor began mixing with the red blood scattered earlier by Melia during the ritual.

Then, as Agria convulsed violently, shockwaves erupted outward.

Eil and Nesha were thrown in opposite directions.

KUUUUAAAAH!

The monster’s cry of pain echoed through the area.

To Eil, it didn’t sound like a simple monster roar—it resembled more of a human scream, an unsettling mix of Melia’s prayer chants and the beast’s voice.

Trickles of blood flowed from every inch of the giant creature—not from the wounds inflicted but from all over its skin.

The blood-soaked puddles turned pitch black.

Bright light flashed from Agria’s eyes.

‘Here it comes!’

KWADDOODOK!

Thorny vines of blood shot out in all directions.

The pools of blood coalesced into dense spikes covering the surroundings.

The attack spanned the entire underground space of the Saint’s Realm, including the corridors leading outside. The thorns pierced everything they touched.

‘What kind of pattern is this…!’

Eil barely managed to slip through a narrow gap between the thorns.

Dodging the attack entirely was impossible; avoiding fatal damage was all he could do.

[Remaining HP – 30.1%]

Despite his quick reflexes, 70% of his total HP vanished in one strike.

Even finding the best possible move to survive was a challenge.

Eil wasn’t the only one struggling—Nesha on the other side faced the same predicament.

‘This is what an upper-tier servant looks like…’

Eil wiped sweat from his brow.

The initial attack pattern unleashed by the creature was nearly unavoidable, combining rapid activation speed, devastating damage, and absurd range.

Survival would be nearly impossible without the reaction speed of a Ranker.

CHINGGLANG!

The sound of breaking bottles filled the air.

Fortunately, there was a brief delay as the thorns retracted, giving Eil and Nesha time to drink potions and recover.

There was no room to marvel at their opponent’s prowess.

Pushing off again, the duo weaved past the monster’s long arms and claws, delivering precise strikes.

Thanks to the unique properties of the Saint’s Realm, the terrain remained intact despite their fierce battle. Still, one direct hit from them could endanger their lives.

One mistake could end it all—but they couldn’t afford to lose their boldness either.

Their consecutive skill attacks gradually whittled down Agria’s health.

KWADDOODOK!

The thorn pattern activated again without warning, catching Eil closer this time in a denser cluster of thorns.

“GRRGH…!”

Eil stumbled back, gripping the ground.

Though he survived, his HP dropped dangerously low.

‘Shields are useless against this.’

He discarded his battered shield, which couldn’t withstand the thorns despite its rare-grade durability and damage reduction bonus.

After tossing away the potion bottle, Eil activated the Healing Light skill to restore his remaining HP.

But healing wasn’t limited to them alone.

The grotesque creature raised her arms in prayer-like fashion.

TSUTSUTSU!

Encased in white light, her wounds began to close—an Agria healing pattern.

‘Who says they’re not part of the Water Church…!’

Eil swiftly switched weapons.

The HP he’d painstakingly reduced was regenerating, so he needed to interrupt the pattern immediately.

SWISH!

His dagger struck true, embedding itself in the creature’s chest.

An expensive auxiliary weapon equipped with a healing-nullification option.

Though white light continued to emanate, the wounds stopped closing and HP regeneration ceased.

All those investments in supplementary weapons weren’t wasted—they allowed flexible responses in various situations like this.

“Nesha!”

Eil called out to his companion across the battlefield.

Nesha nodded upon meeting his gaze.

No elaborate explanation was needed in such a tense moment.

[Advanced Judgment Spear Scroll – Level 167]

[Advanced Silence Spear Scroll – Level 163]

WHOOSH!

Two glowing spears materialized simultaneously.

As a high-tier servant under Bahamut, even in her weakened state, Agria remained far above ordinary foes.

Such advanced scrolls wouldn’t inflict significant damage.

‘But they should provide a brief binding effect!’

ZEEEEENG!

The massive spears pierced through the monster’s body in an X-shape, momentarily halting her movements.

KWADDOOK!

Straining against the spears, cracks began forming, threatening imminent breakage.

Before the effects wore off,

Eil slammed his sword into the ground, activating a skill.

KWAHHHH!

A punishing blade descended from above, striking Agria.

With all kinds of bonuses against heresy applied, this became a potent divine magic of unique grade.

The monster’s health bar plummeted dramatically.

Her remaining HP:

[Remaining HP – 81.1%]

“Haa… does this thing ever die?” Eil muttered with a wry smile before pushing off again.

* * *

AAHHHH!

Thrown back by the shockwave, Eil barely maintained his balance, bracing himself against the floor.

But he had to leap aside almost immediately as another wave of thorns approached.

‘Phew, dodged that one nicely.’

Despite losing half his HP, Eil felt satisfied.

The irregular timing and unpredictable nature of the attacks made them extremely difficult to anticipate.

Still, they continued walking the tightrope of life and death, never knowing when they might perish next.

Gradually, the raid reached its climax.

The seemingly invincible creature’s HP had dwindled to just 30%.

KUUUUAAAHH!

The monster screamed again, clutching her head with her scarred arms, behaving erratically.

Completely different from her previous patterns.

“Well, I didn’t expect it to end easily.”

Anticipating some new phase as her HP decreased, Eil raised his longsword in readiness.

But what happened next caught him completely off guard.

TSUTSUTSUZ!

“Huh…”

The very space around where Nesha stood warped.

Attempting to jump back, Nesha found herself inexorably pulled into the distorted space.

POOF!

She vanished without a trace.

“What the…”

Checking the party window urgently, Eil saw Nesha’s HP bar still active with no death indicator.

Meaning the pattern had teleported her somewhere else.

Leaving Eil to face the monster alone.

However, instead of charging forward as expected, the monster froze, gagging violently before vomiting something from within.

BLORP!

A woman fell from the monster’s enormous mouth.

At the same time, the same spatial distortion that occurred near Nesha enveloped the monster, causing her to disappear as well.

‘Sent her to the same place as Nesha?’

CHOKE!

The woman staggered upright, steadying herself on the ground.

She regained the appearance of Grand Bishop Melia, but disturbingly, her eyes were pitch black, signaling she wasn’t the original.

“The first Apostle, the sixth Executioner, Lu’s rook piece.”

Tilting her head oddly, she fixed her gaze on Eil and spoke slowly, her voice unnervingly blending male and female tones.

“To stop your antics… I’ll sever your lifeline.”

Raising a frost-covered spear high,

Eil gripped his sword tightly after checking her status window.

[Bahamut’s upper-tier servant ‘Agria’]

[Remaining HP – 100.0%]