< 12 : Apostle, Eutenia Hyrost (2) >
Eutenia Hyrost, the First Apostle.
That was the new name given to her.
“So that’s how it is. I, for you…”
Eutenia closed her eyes and smiled as she accepted her new destiny.
A tremendous amount of magic flowed into Eutenia from the transcendent being.
It was incomparable to the tiny amount of magic that an individual could possess.
An overwhelming power that surpassed cognition.
Eutenia felt awe as she faced it.
She felt an immense sense of omnipotence just by receiving this power.
Then how great was the being who bestowed this power to her?
“If I have this power, I can surely be of help to you.”
Nevertheless, she hoped to be useful for the plan of her lord.
That was the only guidepost left for her now.
Thud.
A book fell in front of Eutenia, who was cherishing her faith in her chest.
She looked down at her feet at the sound that came from right in front of her.
“A book…?”
Eutenia picked up the book with a black cover that was placed in front of her.
The book in Eutenia’s hand was tied with a thin chain along with a fancy decoration.
The book was surprisingly light despite its thick appearance.
Clank.
Eutenia unlocked the chain and turned the cover.
The first page revealed unfamiliar letters that she had never seen before.
She couldn’t read them, but she could understand them.
The book that Eutenia had contained contradictory contents.
“Grimoire. Is this the name of this book?”
Mystery, Grimoire.
It was a book that contained the will of the great being she served.
Eutenia realized the true name of this book and at the same time, she sensed that this was an item made for her.
The size.
The touch.
The texture when it touched her hand.
All of them were for Eutenia.
Even the ability inside it.
“Shadow Touch. You have such an ability.”
If one was the true owner, they would recognize its value by touching it.
Eutenia, who held the Grimoire, was no exception.
Eutenia stroked the Grimoire and drew out the power that was sleeping inside it.
Shadow Touch.
The ability of the Grimoire to convert the poured magic into physical force was activated.
Numerous hands stretched out from her shadow and began to tear apart everything around them.
“…”
Crack.
One of the trees nearby snapped in half in an instant.
Bang!
The place where the shadow’s touch passed was torn apart.
Every time Eutenia lowered her hand toward the air, the hands that stretched out from her shadow exerted physical force.
The terrain changed according to Eutenia’s command.
The enormous power that she merely borrowed made this possible for her.
Eutenia’s eyes sparkled with intoxication from the overwhelming power.
“Ah, really…”
It was truly a beautiful grace.
She thought so as a voice rang in her ears again.
A majestic voice that echoed heavily in her ears.
It was the same voice that had called her to be an apostle just before.
-“Apostle. Offer a sacrifice.”
“A sacrifice…?”
Eutenia looked up at the sky again at the voice calling her.
A sacrifice.
The only thing she had now was her flesh that barely survived on baguettes.
There was nothing valuable enough to offer as a sacrifice for Eutenia, who was stuck in the mountains.
As she looked at the sky with curiosity, another message flowed into her ears this time.
-“I will take back the magic I gave you before.”
“Oh… You want me to return the magic book.”
-“Offer a sacrifice. Give me a proof of your oath.”
Nodding
She nodded and put down the Grimoire on the ground.
Then she reached out for the magic book nearby.
The magic book with barrier magic written on it.
It was something she had received from the great being not long ago.
“I owe you a lot for this.”
Eutenia’s hand brushed over the cover of the magic book.
It was just something she had borrowed from her lord.
She had to return it to him someday.
As she tried to return the magic book, Eutenia’s gaze turned to the Grimoire.
She faced another problem as she tried to return it.
“How do I offer this as a sacrifice?”
She knew what offering meant.
But she didn’t know how to perform a sacrificial ritual for her lord.
The one who helped her with this curiosity was the Grimoire given to her.
A hand rose from Eutenia’s shadow and grabbed the Grimoire, then turned a page and opened it.
What was spread out in front of her was the content of the sacrificial ritual.
The necessary preparations and the suitable place.
And the spell needed for the ritual.
Eutenia’s eyes scanned the content of the Grimoire in front of her.
“This is really a helpful item.”
It gave her great power when she needed it.
It gave her knowledge when she needed it.
It was truly an item worthy of an apostle who followed the great being.
Eutenia skimmed through the content of the Grimoire and got up from her seat.
Then she moved the hands of her shadow to draw a picture on the ground.
“——Life. Build a staircase.”
The ground was torn apart and various geometric patterns were drawn on the ground.
Circle.
Triangle.
Circle.
Square.
Around the shapes drawn in sequence, there were letters that could not be read by mouth.
They were words of endless praise for the great lord.
They were the only connection for those who longed for the unreachable sky.
“——One path leads to glory.”
Eutenia placed the magic book in the middle of the shapes drawn on the ground.
The magic book that was placed as a sacrifice absorbed light.
Eutenia continued to mutter spells as she placed the magic book.
The altar and the sacrifice.
And the spell.
Only when they became one, the sacrificial ritual was completed.
“——One path leads to death.”
Thump. Thump.
Eutenia stepped back after placing the sacrifice.
The Grimoire that was floating around her also retreated.
A powerful magic swept over the huge altar where Eutenia and the Grimoire were.
“——Revere. Adore. Sacrifice.”
——Sing the hymn of life.
When Eutenia’s spell ended.
The light that rose from the center of the altar subsided.
The magic book that she had placed in the middle of the altar also disappeared completely.
Eutenia scanned the altar where the magic book had disappeared.
The magic book that had occupied the place was really offered to the god, as if it had vanished without a trace.
“Is this what sacrifice means?”
She gave something to the great being with her own hands.
Even though it wasn’t originally hers, it was a strange feeling.
Her cheeks flushed as she looked at the altar where the sacrifice was over.
She felt a little excited after the sacrifice was over.
Eutenia smiled and hugged the Grimoire to her chest.
“I feel good.”
*****
Holy Land, Crossbridge.
This place, which was overflowing with all kinds of pilgrims every day, was full of priests who served six temples.
The priests of Crossbridge recognized the existence of other gods, but they did not acknowledge their worship.
Serving any god other than the six gods was heresy to them.
Other than the great six gods, there were only evil gods and false gods.
That was the only way and truth allowed for the priests of Crossbridge.
And moving to investigate those who denied that simple truth were the elite forces of the Holy Land, called heresy inquisitors.
“A letter from Hus.”
Evan Allemier.
He was a heresy inquisitor who muttered as he looked at the letter sent to him.
The sender of the letter was Hus Allemier of the Empire.
Evan’s brother and at the same time a second-class investigator of Cloud.
Evan tore open the seal and began to check the contents of the letter he received from his brother.
“Hmm…”
The content he received from his brother was not a simple greeting or something like that.
The disappearance of an investigator who was chasing an evil god’s existence.
The villagers who suddenly hid their faces.
Evan’s face hardened as his eyes went down to the letter.
When his gaze reached the last line of the letter.
Evan had no choice but to sigh as he put down the letter.
“…An evil god. You’re thinking dangerously.”
Evil god.
Among other gods than the six gods, it was a term that referred to those who deceived people and caused chaos.
The acts of evil gods were mostly harmful to humans.
Indiscriminate destruction.
Human sacrifice.
Sorcery that made people into sacrifices.
None of them fit with order and justice.
Yet they couldn’t be easily stopped because they were inherently beyond human beings.
“There’s no hero yet.”
Where there is darkness, there is light.
The existence of evil gods that threatened the peace of the continent inevitably brought forth the emergence of heroes.
But no temple had received a divine providence for the appearance of a hero yet.
Either the existence of evil gods itself was false, or it wasn’t at a level that threatened the continent.
Any decent heresy inquisitor would have sneered and passed by this content.
Evan would have ignored the content of the letter if it wasn’t for Hus who sent it.
‘But I guess I should go and see for myself. There’s a possibility that it’s heresy.’
But he couldn’t ignore a letter from his brother so easily.
The fact that Hus asked him for help meant that something needed help had happened.
Evan opened a drawer and took out a sheet of paper.
He then began to write down his documents for going out diligently.
It was preparation to go to his brother in the empire.
