NOVEL NEXT chapter 158
158. The Evil God (1)
Yuma was able to get some deep rest for the first time in a while.
It was a very sweet break.
And it was the same for the rest of the group.
Two whole weeks of free time!
Belle was lying on the ground under the shade of a large tree on the promenade.
“Huhhh….”
For the first time in a long time, I just looked at the blue sky without any other thoughts in my head. Someone approached Belle.
Rustle…
The black-haired, golden-eyed magical girl, Cloone, sat next to Belle.
“I hope you are resting comfortably.”
Belle appeared above his head and smiled faintly as she looked down at Clone, who was looking down at her.
“Clone, lie down too, this sweet freedom will end soon anyway.”
Cloone also smiled bitterly and lay down next to Belle. The autumn breeze was blowing gently.
Flash-!
A light flashed in the air. Someone had suddenly appeared. It was the elf demigod, Seiabern. Her silver hair was fluttering.
“Bell, we start training in exactly three days.”
The tone was very kind, but the content of the words did not allow for any negativity.
Belle’s face became thoughtful, the exact opposite of when she had faced Clone.
“…Yes, Master.”
After Yuma, I got a second teacher. And if I had to rate him as scary, this second teacher was scarier.
“It is clear that the God of War has taught me very well in many ways, but I still lack the experience of fighting against those stronger than Belle.”
In short, he meant that he, who was stronger than Bell, would do whatever he wanted to do. Someone appeared behind Seiabern, who had declared a limited rest period. It was Kiriev of the Join tribe. Unlike Seiabern, Kiriev did not actively approach Clone. He just stood there awkwardly.
Seiabern’s head turned back.
“You too, declare to Clone. When will you start classes?”
Kiriev’s beak opened.
“Tsk tsk!”
I coughed in vain at Seiabern’s sudden words.
“Well… I think Clone is pretty good at taking care of things on his own. Big.”
Seiabern showed no intention of backing down.
“If they didn’t know how to do it on their own, there’s no way they could have gotten to that level. With a human body. Even if they did it on their own, someone had to help them out.”
There was nothing but the right answer. Kirev was eventually suppressed by Seiabern’s stubbornness.
“Okay, I’ll start teaching in three days.”
After Seiabern and Kirev declared the opening of the lecture, they disappeared in a flash of light just as they had appeared.
After a storm passed, Clone and Belle stared blankly at the blue sky.
It was Clone who broke the calm silence.
“Do you know what Sister Hestia is doing?”
“Yeah, yeah, I heard that more people are flocking to the Mushin Church. And not just on a continental scale. It seems that groups of dozens are coming from other continents… Well, it’s not like Yuma has saved people from other continents once or twice. Anyway, he must be busy managing the people coming, right?”
At those words, Clone slowly got up.
“I guess I should go out and play.”
“I gritted my teeth and ignored it for fear that I would go out to play and end up working like a slave….”
It was a very plausible hypothesis.
“Uhhh, if you look from afar and there are too many people, you can just run away.”
Belle’s pink eyes sparkled at the realistic alternative to Clone.
“Clone, you’re very smart.”
So the two of them went through the portal towards the atheist religion.
Pot!
The sight of the atheist temple spread out before Cloone and Belle’s eyes.
The Temple of the Martial Gods, which was included in the Wilbeserk Territory and was bestowed upon Yuma upon receiving the title of Grand Duke.
“…and.”
Bell let out a blank gasp. There were people standing in several rows. It was literally a sea of people. There were a few people who were not human, too many to be defined as a sea of people.
Belle looked at Clone next to her.
“Shall we go back?”
Clone sighed.
“Well, I just wander around a bit, sneaking around.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
Clone and Belle slowly moved their bodies while looking at the long line.
I was watching countless people from a distance entering the temple.
“I came to see the god Yuma in person.”
The man was striking, wearing old-fashioned clothes that covered his entire body and a gold ornament on his back.
“We must meet somehow and talk about the future of the continent of Silmaria.”
Hestia, a Miao inspector and high priestess of the gods, tilted her head at the man who had suddenly approached her.
“Where are you from?”
“It’s the Ballet Empire.”
“Uh… I’ve never heard of it.”
“Yes, you haven’t heard of it. Lord Yuma has never been to the Valetor Empire. I also want to trust Lord Yuma. That’s why I really want to see the face of the Lord. That’s why the Crown Prince of Valetor, Cursio, came to this distant land.”
Hestia sighed.
“hey.”
This time, Curcio tilted his head at the very short words that came out of her mouth.
“hmm?”
Hestia’s voice had become cold.
“Just go when they say nice things to you.”
“What nonsense…!”
Curcio furrowed his brow.
“If you meet someone right away because you want to meet them, are you a god?”
Ermel, who appeared next to Hestia, shook his head at her words.
“You can meet me.”
For a moment, a smile appeared on Curcio’s face.
“That’s right! There’s no way we wouldn’t meet!”
Cursio was now treating Hestia like she didn’t exist. Ermel raised his right hand and pointed politely to a certain place.
“Hey, aren’t you inside the temple?”
Curcio’s face, who had been following Ermel’s gestures with his eyes while smiling brightly, hardened again.
“Surely… you’re not talking about something like a giant statue inside a temple?”
At Cursio’s words, the face of Saint Ermel, who had been smiling affectionately, hardened.
“A statue? That too is clearly Yuma’s incarnation.”
At Ermel’s words, Curcio said with his black hair fluttering.
“Hey, these guys are toying with me.”
A voice full of anger.
The moment Curcio was about to say one more word.
Bam!
“Ahhh!”
Something hit him hard on the back of the head.
“When you gently tell me no, I know that I should give up. Where are you going with your thrusts! Huh?!”
Bell, who had been watching the standoff closely, barged in.
Of course, I didn’t use my aura. I just hit it with a moderate amount of force. But that was just Bell’s thoughts.
Curcio was kneeling on the floor, holding his head with both hands.
To others, it might have seemed like just a strong blow to the back of the head, but to Curcio, it felt like the world had spun around a dozen times.
Swish! Swish!
The knights lined up next to Cursio moved their hands to their waists in confusion. That was where their swords were positioned. Bell burst into laughter.
“You’re not going to pull that out, are you?”
The faint murderous aura flowing out of Belle’s body gently strangled the necks of the knights of the Balet Empire. It was a warning.
“It would be crazy to pull it out. This isn’t your Valetor’s land. It’s a temple in a foreign country.”
Only then did Curcio come to his senses and slowly sit up.
“Okay, I’ll go back.”
Curcio said, sweating profusely.
Bell put a hand on Curcio’s shoulder.
“Yeah, don’t come back again.”
Curcio literally swallowed up his fear. His fear completely overwhelmed his anger. So he just waved his hands at his subordinates without saying a word.
“Go back. To the Empire.”
Belle and Cloone approached Hestia.
“are you okay?”
Hestia shrugged at Belle’s question.
“What… This isn’t the first or second time that this has happened! People come to see Yuma Yuma in person.”
Ermel nodded as if to say that he was right.
“That’s right. Last time, a princess from a kingdom on the continent of Yeigel came to visit and wanted to see you, Lord Yuma.”
Clone answered subtly.
“…You sent it back safely.”
Ermel smiled brightly.
“It was quite pretty. I sent it back without hesitation.”
Bell let out a sound without even realizing it.
“Was it pretty? Then I should send it back… I can’t let it approach.”
Belle and Clone, who had been planning to just hide and watch, had to reveal themselves because of the unexpected intruder, and while they were out there, they decided to do some work.
It was just a matter of organizing people who were standing off the designated route.
Fortunately, Cursio’s case was an unusual one, as most of the pilgrims to the temple listened well.
Time passed quickly.
A whole year and a half has passed.
The empire was peaceful. No one invaded it. No one dared to invade the Astes Empire in the name of the god of war.
Peace was not only in the Empire. All the continents of Middle-earth were in a state of relative peace. Of course, there were places where each country would inevitably plunder the other country in order to survive. Yuma and his men did not care about that. It was just a fight for survival.
***
Figuero.
A religious sect created by the evil god Malphas, the ＜god of evil consecration＞.
Saint Julian of Figueres stood at the oracle’s seat, her hands clasped together.
An oracle was ringing in Yulicia’s head.
[There are only three offerings this month.]
Yulycia, with her silver hair neatly tied back, bowed her head deeply as if she felt ashamed.
[Are you ignoring me too?]
Malpas’s terribly ominous voice rang in my ears.
“No, my God.”
Yulysia bowed her head so deeply that it almost touched the podium.
[Don’t forget that I am watching you all.]
Yulya bowed her head again and went outside.
Ki-ki-ki-ki…
Yulya’s eyes, looking up at the sky, were calm and settled.