Chapter 16: Another Beginning (8)
A single assumption brushed past my mind.
‘No way….’
Could the reason my divine power had increased to a level incomparable to my previous life be because of that?
Because I had experienced the miracle of resurrection along with turning back time?
‘I only thought of it as a joke…’
…It seemed like there was yet another thing I needed to investigate.
Just then, Sister Roberta, who had been sitting on her knees, brushed the dust off and stood up.
“Then, shall we end here for today?”
“Already?”
“I have matters to attend to tomorrow. It’s the day for the volunteer work I always do with Lancia.”
“Ah.”
This was it.
I immediately spoke up.
“Would it be alright if I came along tomorrow?”
Roberta brightened and gave me a wide smile.
“If it’s you, Lian, you’re welcome anytime.”
“When and where should I meet you?”
“Just come to the front of the Cathedral by noon tomorrow.”
“Yes, understood. I’ll make sure not to be late.”
“Hehe… alright, I’ll be waiting.”
Brushing the dust from her clothes again, she said,
“Lian, I’ll be taking my leave now. I have a lot to prepare for tomorrow. You should wrap things up and rest well for today too.”
Then, a thought passed through my mind, and before I realized it, I stopped her.
“Um, Sister.”
“Yes?”
“There’s one more thing I’d like to ask.”
“What is it?”
I wetted my dry lips cautiously before speaking.
“Didn’t you say that one way to increase divine power was by offering tributes?”
“Yes? Ah, yes. I did say that.”
She nodded.
“But that’s a method practiced only in ancient times, and it varies greatly from person to person. The ritual process is complicated, and it requires a long time, so it naturally fell out of use.”
“Would such tributes… ever include people?”
Her answer came a beat late.
“…What?”
I let out a small sigh.
“I mean in plain terms, a living sacrifice. Human sacrifice.”
“……”
Roberta stayed silent for a while, just staring at me.
Just when I began to regret saying it—
“Lian.”
She finally spoke.
“Yes.”
“That… is what we call sorcery.”
Sister Roberta’s voice was sharp, as if spitting the words out.
“That, too, was something practiced only in the past… even demons themselves shun it. It’s an extremely cruel and vile ritual. Even among the cultists of the Evil God, only a minuscule number would ever perform such an act.”
She paused to take a breath before continuing.
“Lian, I don’t know why you’ve taken an interest in such a thing, but since this is a good opportunity, I’ll explain properly.”
From there, I could easily tell that she had encountered incidents related to human sacrifice in the past.
“One can never gain true power through human sacrifice. Neither divine power, which is proof of faith, nor demonic energy, the source of a demon’s strength, can be obtained this way. Moreover, human sacrifice places an enormous burden on the caster—more than they can bear—no matter how it’s done.”
However—
After a short pause, she continued her explanation.
“Human sacrifice, as I mentioned before, holds great meaning in the act of the ritual itself.”
“The ritual itself?”
“Yes, not just any ritual, but the ritual of human sacrifice.”
Sister Roberta nodded.
“Most records of it have been lost, but there are still some documents and records that remain. Even so, they are extremely limited, filled only with incomprehensible conditions and instructions.”
“Limited and incomprehensible….”
“In short, the ritual itself is extremely difficult and troublesome to carry out.”
She spoke with undisguised contempt and disgust, as if she were looking at something revolting.
“It might require being conducted during a winter solar eclipse, or needing 36 prisoners who have committed heinous crimes… and even then, only fragments of the method remain. We don’t know what else must be done, or the precise order and manner in which to perform it. Only a handful of inheritors are believed to know.”
When she finished, Sister Roberta cast me a sharp glance.
“Just so you know, the documents related to human sacrifice are sealed within the Papal Court, and access is extremely restricted. The identities of anyone who reads them are recorded as well. So…”
“You don’t need to worry, Sister.”
I waved my hand to reassure her.
“As you said, it was purely out of curiosity.”
“…I see. I might have overreacted a little. I’m sorry, Lian.”
She apologized and took a small breath, as if calming herself.
“In truth, I don’t know the details of human sacrifice either. I’ve only come across a few cases in the past. All of them were either failures or entirely meaningless…”
Sister Roberta shook her head.
“In any case, there are two things I can tell you with certainty.”
“What are they, Sister?”
“First, anyone caught committing the atrocity of human sacrifice will face execution by burning.”
Execution by burning was the heaviest punishment in the Holy Sun Church.
They firmly believed that a soul burned by fire would be destroyed and never reach paradise in the afterlife.
‘Well…’
From the perspective of someone who had already died once and returned, the afterlife didn’t exactly seem like a reliable story.
I nodded lightly.
“That’s horrific.”
“Yes, it is.”
“And what’s the other thing?”
“The other is…”
She glanced upward toward the cross—the symbol of the Holy Sun Church.
“Although it’s never been clearly revealed what one can gain from a human sacrifice ritual… at the very least, whatever it is, it’s certainly not something good.”
* * *
Maybe it was because I had finished my training far earlier than usual.
With a good amount of time left, I headed for the library.
It was because of what Sister Roberta had told me earlier.
By the time I reached the particularly deserted religious section—deserted even in the already quiet library of recent days—
“Oh? Isn’t that Gwendil?”
It was the green-haired young man I had seen before, greeting me as if we were acquaintances.
“Hello, Senior Mackenzie.”
“Wow, you remembered my name.”
He smiled brightly and fiddled with the handle of the cart he was holding.
“What book are you looking for? If you don’t mind, I can help you find it.”
“Aren’t you busy?”
“I’ve got some free time today. As you can see, there aren’t many people around anymore.”
He shrugged and added,
“And not to brag, but I’ve been working here as an apprentice since my first year, so I know this place inside and out. Helping people find books is part of my job, so you can just tell me without feeling burdened.”
“Then, I’ll shamelessly accept your help.”
After hearing my request, Mackenzie nodded and immediately wrote something down on a piece of paper before handing it to me.
“You can find it if you go this way. But that’s unexpected—hardly anyone visits that section unless it’s exam season.”
“I suddenly got curious. Thank you for helping me.”
“Well, if you don’t mind, should I help you search together?”
At his suggestion, I froze for a moment.
A vague, indescribable unpleasant feeling had washed over me.
And the source of that feeling was none other than Duval Mackenzie standing right in front of me.
My instincts were telling me to keep my distance from him.
And it came all of a sudden.
‘…What’s this?’
After a moment of thought, I decided to refuse him.
“No, it’s alright.”
“Huh? You really don’t need to turn me down.”
“No, the help you’ve already given is more than enough. I appreciate you taking the time when you must be busy, Senior.”
I bowed my head politely to him.
Mackenzie nodded in understanding.
“Hmm, well, you really didn’t have to be so formal… but alright, take care.”
“Yes, you too, Senior.”
He pushed his cart away and disappeared somewhere.
Once he was gone, the unpleasant feeling began to vanish as if it had been a lie, leaving me tilting my head.
‘I don’t know what that was…’
The same intuition that had saved me countless times in my previous life was telling me to avoid him.
And I had never regretted listening to my instincts before—so I decided to follow them again this time.
‘He didn’t seem like a bad person, but it can’t be helped.’
I headed straight to the location he had indicated.
Before long, I arrived at the place where the books I sought were stored.
“…Found it.”
Saint Anastasia Mayblin.
A member of the Wolpen Knights, and one of the most respected and admired figures among the faithful of the Holy Sun Church.
As I flipped through the many books containing records of her, I found the passage Sister Roberta had mentioned earlier.
[“The Black Water Army.”
The Half-Orc Kwakal ground his teeth as he muttered, and the sage Bojador Arpentia continued,
“Water that, once you sink into, you will never rise from again. Even if you sail across it, it’s just as dangerous. Make a mistake, and you might all die.”
“But if we turn back here, we’ll lose too much time. If that happens…”
With a sigh of frustration, Dragon Knight Siren Everglenn began to speak, prompting the knights to voice their own opinions.
They all agreed that they needed to cross as soon as possible, but none of them had a concrete solution.
“Talia Poas, can’t you do something with your magic?”
“It’s impossible.”
The Archmage shook her head.
“The sea is filled with the cursed blood of the Evil Dragon. There is a way, but waiting for the tide to change would be worse than turning back.”
Her reply drew frustrated sighs from everyone.
Even now, the demon army was advancing quickly….]
“What’s with this needlessly long introduction?”
I quickly flipped through the pages, skimming only the parts about the Saint.
[…It was at that moment.
“I will do it.”
Saint Mayblin Anastasia spoke.
“I will open the way.”]
[When she knelt devoutly and began to pray, everyone fell silent. This included not only the Holy Knights and priests but even the allied non-human races who could not understand human language….]
[It was a sight beyond belief.
The sea, dyed red with the blood flowing from the heart of the Evil Dragon Zadaka, split apart as if it possessed a will of its own, revealing a path.
The majesty of that sight was such that even Rikerka Valentin, who had always mocked and denied the gods, unconsciously murmured the name of God.]
[What was even more astounding was that the faith of the Holy Knights and priests who had witnessed the Saint’s miracle firsthand deepened even further. Their swords and maces grew sharper than ever, and their prayers resounded more clearly in the ears.]
“Hmm.”
Other accounts differed only in their wording; the content was essentially the same.
After poring over them for quite some time, I found myself frowning unconsciously.
‘So… wasn’t this just a case of her divine power naturally increasing from constant fighting?’
Above all, these were stories that had been revised and retold countless times over the ages, making them vague and lacking in clarity.
I might be able to learn more by looking at the original records…
“Hm.”
But of course, they would already be stored securely by the Papal Court.
To read them, one would need to hold at least the rank of archbishop.
“……”
At that thought, I absently rubbed my collarbone with my fingers.
Perhaps the documents related to the brand engraved on me were also kept in the Papal Court.
Even when I had attended the Academy in my previous life, I had never once come across anything about the brand.
At first, I simply assumed I had never come across it because I’d been lazy with my studies.
But when I calmly retraced my thoughts, there were more than a few strange points.
‘No, I’m certain.’
If the Papal Court was managing it directly, then figuring it out on my own would be nearly impossible.
There was no place more secure than there when it came to the management and storage of books and materials worthy of being designated as forbidden texts.
‘Hmm.’
The more I thought about it, the more my head hurt. I leaned slightly against the desk—
Flap flap.
I heard the faint sound of something flapping its wings.
“Hm?”
Turning my head, I saw a tiny bird beside me, fluttering energetically—its body hazy, almost like smoke.
Or perhaps it was better to say it was made of mist.
In any case, it was so small that it was barely the size of a palm.
When I instinctively reached out to it, wondering what it was, it darted away and began circling in the air, spinning round and round.
“What is it, why are you doing that?”
I waved my hand as if shooing a fly, but it persisted, stubbornly circling me.
It looked as if it wanted something from me.
“…Don’t tell me you want me to follow you?”
When I muttered in uncertainty, it flapped its wings furiously, bobbing up and down as if to confirm my guess.
With a strange sense of foreboding, I immediately stood up and followed where it led.
I judged that this was not something to be taken lightly.
And more than anything, unlike the feeling I had when I met Mackenzie earlier, something was telling me I had to follow this bird.
After walking for a while behind it—
Flap!
Flap flap!
“Hm?”
I heard the same wingbeats as before, but louder and more urgent this time.
Normally, it was the kind of sound I would have dismissed as just a wild bird or insect that had flown in.
I immediately moved toward the source of the sound, and before long, I saw an astonishing sight.
“……”
Cecilia Everglenn.
She was staring silently at a bird just like the one beside me—hazy, as if made of mist and smoke—hovering near her.
She wasn’t saying a word, but anyone could see she found it quite bothersome.
‘Wait, could it be…’
Cecilia Everglenn.
A small bird, clearly extraordinary, as if woven from mist and smoke.
One word suddenly flashed vividly in my mind.
Spirit.
It was a spirit.
‘Don’t tell me…!’
Whoosh!
In that instant, the air split apart as if torn open.
From that rift seeped a crimson light.
A snake.
A snake made of fire.
It slowly raised its head.
Kaaahhh!
And then, all of a sudden, flames spewed forth.
The bird was engulfed without any resistance, vanishing without a trace.
“Ugh…!?”
Cecilia staggered back in shock, letting out a trembling cry like a scream.
Flap flap flap!!!
The bird that had been with me flapped wildly, as if mad, having just witnessed its companion turned into a handful of ash before its eyes.
Perhaps hearing that, Cecilia snapped her head toward me.
“Ah.”
The moment she spotted me, her expression froze in an instant.