Srrk—
Duke Yuma walked into the tent.
“….”
And he sat down on the chair in front of him.
The reason he sat quietly without making a sound was that Hestia was sprawled across the desk, fast asleep.
A bit of drool leaked from her slightly open mouth.
Numerous documents were scattered across the desk.
A tragic overtime work scene.
Yuma thought that as he picked up one of the papers.
He carefully glanced at the text written at the top of the page.
A clear line read:
– How to maximize devotion.
Yuma couldn’t help but feel a chill running down his spine. Fortunately, that chill didn’t last long.
– Those who witness Yuma using his powers as a god quickly awaken their faith.
– Those who see Ermel’s radiance also swiftly awaken their faith in Yuma.
– The fact that devotees recite prayers every morning helps in boosting devotion and increasing divine power.
The content was surprisingly decent.
Yuma relaxed his furrowed brow and set the paper back down.
Then he looked at Hestia, still slumped over and fast asleep at the desk.
If you’re going to sleep, you should lie down properly.
Her scarlet cat ears looked quite peculiar. Usually, when she fell asleep, her ears would droop, but this time they stood upright.
Without realizing it, Yuma moved his hand.
His right hand was now gently stroking Hestia’s scarlet ears.
As he tentatively caressed them, he subconsciously tugged slightly.
“Yikes─!”
Hestia perked up her scarlet cat ears and let out a faint squeak.
Huh!
Startled, she shot her head up.
“Uh… eh?”
Hestia blinked her round green eyes at the suddenly appearing God of War.
“Lie down and sleep. Just lie down.”
After blinking a few more times, Hestia looked into Yuma’s azure eyes and broke into a sweet smile.
“Got it… Yuma Yuma.”
Once she gathered her wits, Hestia sat up.
“Yawn.”
Stretching her arms wide, Hestia softly spoke.
“But, do you feel like there are more devotees? I preached about why I have to exalt the God of War non-stop since yesterday morning, you know?”
Yuma nodded. He had checked the [List of Devotees] before entering this high priestess’s tent, and three new names had popped up under countless others.
“Well done.”
Yuma’s gaze shifted to Hestia’s sword, leaned against the tent wall.
Hestia was still using the legendary sword, [Lunar Kisetelia], that Yuma had taken out from Chronos’s spatial pocket not long after they had met.
He was still using the [Moonlight Kisetelia].
As Duke Yuma touched the hilt of Kisetelia, a lively voice flowed into his mind.
– “You wielded a sword, huh? Even hours ago. No matter how legendary, I can still see the traces.”
It was the voice of the Ego Sword Balmung.
Yuma looked at Hestia.
“Did you just have a spar?”
At Yuma’s words, Hestia’s eyes widened once again.
“As expected, God of War… Kisetelia doesn’t leave marks easily, yet you spot them in an instant.”
Hestia continued.
“Yeah, I sparred with the newbies you recruited. Argyle and Ragnak were with me.”
She grinned.
“I keep getting stomped by Bell every day! Bam! So, I can see Master’s sword path clearly now. I might become a Master soon!”
Yuma chuckled.
“Yeah, you’ll get there soon.”
[Lv.91] Hestia
Maybe not super soon, but it won’t take too long.
“Of course! I’m Hestia. My side gig is certainly as the Saintess of the God of War, but my main job is being a swordswoman!”
Hestia declared boldly.
*
Ejegel Continent.
At the front lines of the Zepharos Kingdom.
Boom─
The hefty Join Tribe member, Samer, lifted his enormous frame.
Using an axe even larger than his body as a makeshift staff.
Samer’s gaze turned towards the knights of the Zepharos Kingdom at the front. He murmured softly.
“Why on earth have you come leading your army all of a sudden?”
In response to Samer’s question, Arwin, the commander of the 2nd Knight Division of Zepharos, stepped forward, drawing his sword.
“We have something to ask you, members of the Join Tribe, which is why we’ve sought you out on this deep night.”
His tone carried a sense of caution.
Yet, the mere act of approaching armed at such a late hour rendered those formalities meaningless.
Step step
Kregel, the leader of the Eger Tribe, suddenly approached the unwelcome visitors.
“Stop with the nonsense and tell me clearly why you barged in here.”
A fierce aura began to emanate from Kregel’s body.
Even a master like Commander Arwin felt a moment of fear from that overwhelming presence.
“If you don’t speak plainly, I will take it as a declaration of war.”
At Kregel’s words, Arwin’s brow furrowed deeply.
They had come to intimidate, not to be cowed. The knights beside him were already shrinking back.
‘I didn’t expect him to bring up war with just that few people… He definitely possesses that kind of power.’
Arwin muttered, “I don’t think our forces will lose, despite the circumstances.”
If they gather all their troops, the Join Tribe can’t turn the tide because they have an overwhelming numerical advantage.
“I guess I should try talking first.”
Arwin decided to have a chat with Kregel.
His lord, King Markus of Zepharos, wanted to hunt down the Join Tribe, thinking they were the reason the gods invaded the continent, but Arwin knew that this kind of conflict wouldn’t lead to anything good.
“Our king, Markus, believes you Join Tribe are the reason why the transcendent gods suddenly invaded this land.”
Arwin took a document from a subordinate standing to his left.
“The kingdom has investigated numerous archives. It turns out a millennium ago, there was a kingdom called Pyrmara on the Gehergen continent. They incurred the wrath of the gods and ended up getting wiped out.”
Arwin continued.
“I’d like to ask you, Kregel, and the Join Tribe about this. Is it not because you all are survivors of Pyrmara that this crisis is now upon the continent?”
His tone was polite enough, but the underlying message was clear: “Isn’t it because of you damn folks that the gods invaded the Yaeigel continent, dragging even the Zepharos Kingdom into this mess?”
Kregel slowly opened his mouth.
“Our tribe, the Eger Tribe, indeed carries the bloodline of Pyrmara.”
He went on.
“And I’m not just a descendant; I can say I’m literally one of the parties involved. I was just a kid when it happened.”
The chill that had been hanging in the air deepened.
From the knights’ perspective, this only added to their bewilderment.
Kregel’s words sounded almost like a confession.
“But I can say with all certainty that the gods—no, those bastards invading the Yaeigel continent—are not here because of our tribe. They didn’t come for us; they just descended to invade the continent, and we all became their sacrifices equally.”
Kregel gestured with his chin toward the barrier his tribe had erected.
“The barrier we are maintaining isn’t just for our own survival; it’s to help ensure that the Yaeigel continent survives too.”
The blonde knight, Arwin, frowned deeply.
“You expect me to believe that right now?”
Kregel nodded.
“Believe it, and since I don’t want any pointless conflict, withdraw your troops.”
“I don’t want to engage in a conflict that doesn’t exist, so pull back the troops.”
Whoa!
Even at this moment, attacks were crashing down towards the barrier.
The waves of flame spread wide before the colorless barrier.
The barrier should have perfectly blocked the towering pillar of fire. However, that attack had a variable.
Whoosh!
A variable greater than what Kregel and the other Join Tribe members had anticipated.
A gigantic voice echoed.
“Just as I thought, you can’t block every attack pattern.”
It was a chilling voice.
The one who broke the barrier and invaded Zepharos’s territory was the lord of flames.
“It’s good you managed to maintain such a consistent attack pattern for the last few days.”
Fwoosh!
[Flames of Destruction], Agneth condensed the flames into a massive sun-like form and stepped further inside.
Omertha, whose body and even face were ablaze, slowly scanned the humans and Join Tribe.
“…….”
Kregel stared at the fallen barrier formation with a grim face.
He could see a member of the Join Tribe who had been pouring magical energy towards the barrier collapse now lying on the ground.
As Agneth had said, the sudden increase in attack overwhelmed him, causing him to lose focus and break away from the barrier formation.
With the Join Tribe magician falling into a powerless state, it was only natural for the barrier to start collapsing.
Though powerful enough to shut down divine energy, the conditions that needed to be upheld were essential.
Among those, the requirement of five hundred personnel was crucial.
The Join Tribe and the kingdom’s knights could feel their bodies hardening like stone.
An overwhelming power had appeared among the weak.
A predator.
No matter how strong the Join Tribe was compared to humans, they were utterly weak against a god.
Humans and even the Join Tribe stood frozen as if they were turned to ice.
[Flames of Destruction], Agneth and [The God of the Raging Mace], Morg, stepped into the area where the barrier had been erected.
Red flames extended from Omertha’s hands.
Boom—
The flames erupted forward like a red flash.
Kregel, the leader of the Eger Tribe, raised his staff high.
A colorless transparent barrier appeared simultaneously layered in dozens before Kregel.
Morg, appearing as a Yeti with white fur, whispered softly.
“Your flames have weakened significantly… Agneth.”
Agneth let out a furious yell.
“Shut up, Morg!”
Morg’s sneer sent anger boiling to the top of Agneth’s head.
Ignoring the comment, Morg slammed the ground firmly.
“Divine Proclamation.”
