I Became the Priest of Blasphemy of the Outer Gods

Chapter 74. Red Castle (2)

“I was caught off guard.”

Who would have thought I would be beaten so thoroughly? The confidence that had been building from previous battles plummeted in an instant.

“When compared to that time, it’s inevitable to be defeated.”

There were multiple reasons for this. First was the difference in power level due to rank. Considering how strong the race Mary belonged to, the gap in strength was inevitably vast.

“If it were just that, I could find a way to counter it.”

I had overcome differences in strength before. However, Mary was someone that approach wouldn’t work against.

As Mary had pointed out, many of my previous adversaries were often ignorant of the miracles I used.

This ignorance had been a major advantage for me, but Mary, who had already grasped the nature of these miracles, countered them easily.

“But how does she know all these miracles? Did Dowol teach her everything?”

I resolved to ask directly later. For now, it was essential not to dwell on it. The critical thing was that Mary easily countered my miracles, leaving me at a disadvantage.

To turn the tables, I needed to create a battlefield that favored me, yet Mary attacked relentlessly, leaving me completely defenseless.

Nevertheless, I decided to leverage this experience to try a different strategy.

“This time, I would forego defense, relying on recovery. Gluttony would be all offense!”

As soon as the sparring resumed, Mary once again burrowed into the earth and disappeared.

“Let all things be revealed by the thread of the Great One. 〈White Hunting Ground〉.”

This time, I extended threads for detection. Mary moved, subtly transforming herself to navigate through the tiny spaces between the sand grains. Her quiet yet swift movements were perceptible.

“This time, I won’t miss.”

Though the range of accessible miracles had expanded with my rank, it wasn’t just miracles that had developed.

“Carve eternal terror into those who challenge, and divine wrath into those who stand idle. 〈Seal of Malice〉.”

As I employed external laws, I closed my eyes. A lava-formed image etched itself onto the ground.

An external law creating symbols of an Outer God that did not interfere with this world.

Simply seeing this symbol would petrify ordinary humans with terror. The symbol would soon fade, but the petrification would never release its grip.

“If you don’t look, it’s fine.”

Did she know what kind of Outer Magic I used?

Avoiding the sight of the image scorched on the ground as much as possible, I opened my eyes to find Mary had created antenna-like structures all over her body.

Depending on those hypersensitive sensory organs, Mary, without any eyes, sent an attack my way.

Yet again, she swung a massive fist, but this move had already been perceived through 〈White Hunting Ground〉.

“And I already sensed it.”

I had evaded it with perfect timing, surely. However, Mary altered her trajectory, keenly sensing my evasive move, and ultimately, I was hit on the side.

“It doesn’t matter!”

Forsaking defense, I immediately launched an offensive. Although my side was crushed, ribs shattered, Gluttony’s tendrils embedded themselves into Mary’s fist.

Gluttony, as if exacting revenge, voraciously tore into Mary’s flesh, which she simply allowed to be devoured.

“Ah… she did it like this earlier too.”

Realizing that Mary’s retaliation was exploiting 〈Forbidden Transformation〉 in a similar manner.

As expected, when the darkened part of my body attempted to counterattack, Mary just shed some of her flesh, letting the attack hit it instead.

On two previous occasions, I mistakenly perceived the shed parts as Mary herself.

“If you are determined… even a human could employ this method.”

I accepted my defeat when Mary’s large hand clasped around me.

“Again?”

“No, let’s rest now.”

My mana was depleted, making any further progress impossible. Moreover, my body’s subtle transformation meant it was about time to stop.

“Thanks to you, I realized a lot. Thank you.”

Mary nodded and glanced at me briefly, saying, “Leave it. The clothes in a mess. On the table.”

Pointing at the blood-soaked clothes, Mary returned to the castle. I also went back inside, changed into fresh clothes, and sat in a suitable room.

“Phew…”

My mana recovered quickly. In this world, there were remarkably few ways to restore mana, and most of them were ones I couldn’t use due to their association with other faiths or magic. Therefore, the mana recovery effect provided by the sanctuary felt particularly valuable.

‘If I rest for about half a day, I should be able to spar again.’

I was already devising various strategies in my mind. Utilizing the fact that 〈Flame that Annihilates Species〉 did not burn anything else, I considered linking it with the spider’s web miracle. Another strategy involved using the 〈Forbidden Transformation〉 effect up to a critical point, turning the body, as it transforms into formless residues, into a weapon. It was a good opportunity to test several strategies I’d only ever contemplated in my head.

‘I couldn’t even make a move just now, though.’

If I disregarded methods and means, victory was not out of reach. However, continually fighting without considering the aftermath, like going down in a blaze together, wasn’t a feasible long-term plan. There was a need to improve my actual combat power.

‘In fact, if I could obtain that scripture in the Corpse Mountain (尸山), the problem would be solved…’

Extreme aggression, high combat capability, and formidable firepower. Miracles that would instantly fill what I lacked. The problem was that the initiation process was so perilous that one had to be prepared to face death.

Uniquely, the initiation ritual of the 【Eternal Blaze】 also served as an Awakening Ritual.

Thus, the act of initiation itself became enlightenment. No wonder Sevika mentioned that one should at least be at Level 2 to be safe.

‘You have to get stronger to become stronger.’

Unfortunately, this was reality. During my break, I decided to pick up a needle to solve some lingering doubts.

With parchment and a quill spread out on the desk, I slowly began inserting the needle into my head. The sensation remained horrifically disturbing.

‘First, I need to think about why the miracle of the 【Witch of Dreams】 isn’t working properly.’

If it were a case of the Gods being angry and not allowing the miracle, it shouldn’t activate at all. While there’s a possibility it was deliberately cut off to torment me, it seemed more like something happened, making it unstable.

‘I should probably start by investigating cases where, like me, others have been enlightened by different faiths.’

The data was vast. Every piece of information could be accessed as if it were organized into files through a mental ‘recall’ search. Having recalled it all…

‘…there’s nothing?’

There was no case where someone maintained enlightenment through multiple faiths.

Typically, committing such an act of apostasy results in the original God becoming angry, retracting the enlightenment, and inflicting curses or divine punishment.

In other words, I was a unique case. Furthermore, there were no instances of miracles being unstable in their operation.

‘My guess is that the problem arose because of enlightenment by a different faith… but I have no way to verify or solve it.’

Ultimately, I had to figure it out myself. Despite my efforts, nothing more emerged on this front, so I decided to let it go.

‘Is there anything that could aid me in combat? Like methods to utilize miracles?’

Instead, I began searching for elements that might bolster my combat power. So far, the elements that enhanced me were limited.

Aside from deepening my understanding of miracles through meditation and using sacred artifacts, there was little else effective.

The armor I purchased to combat Albeka had become tattered without serving well, and even if I armed myself with a sword or shield, my physical prowess was lacking, making it hard to utilize effectively.

‘Even giving it to Gluttony proved useless.’

Handling tools felt awkward, so fighting with its innate tentacles turned out to be the best option anyway.

“There were several ways… But.”

The pieces of information that came to mind were those used by priests of other Outer Gods. However, all of them were horrifyingly unusual.

Remove all the bones from the body, replace them with spider webs, and when the body was cut, use the spiderweb bones to retaliate.

Transform the body using formless residues and self-destruct like a bomb, spreading the residue to infiltrate and control the enemy bodies.

“This is why everyone cringes when they hear ‘Outer God priest’.”

They were closer to acts of terror than combat. While hoping to never resort to such extremes, I continued searching for ways to utilize them.

“Miracle of the ‘Slumberer of the Abyss’… A paladin conceals a weapon inside their body for a surprise attack… Hmm?”

I focused on a piece of information that next came to mind. It was about a follower of the ‘Slumberer of the Abyss.’ A 4th rank priest who transformed from human to formless residue. His name was…

“Elfert Lancers.”

He was the ancestor of Belido; considering the timeline, he seemed to be his father. Though unknown to the public, he was reportedly a highly esteemed hunter among the followers of the Outer Gods.

“So this is the kind of father he had? Belido… truly no ordinary being. To think such a person was discriminated against for being a half-blood.”

Yet, strangely enough, I, a mere human, was being treated well by the residues.

“By the way, Elfert Lancers started off quite weak too.”

Born with little mana, even at the fourth tier, he was relatively deficient in mana, so he rarely used miracles. Regardless, he had fought numerous powerful adversaries, utilizing his body as a residue to the fullest.

“If this method… I could use it too.”

To use this method, some preparations were necessary. However, for me, it would literally become a new weapon.

“But this… it’s indeed not something done with a sane mind.”

With a slight laugh, I realized it was worth attempting. I transcribed the information onto parchment and drew some saliva.

The preparations were not straightforward. Ultimately, it took a whole day, postponing the spar with Mary to the next day.

“Tired?”

“Kind of.”

Staying up all night was nothing, but the task was so physically draining that it could have left me in the worst condition possible.

“Even after all that effort, to remain in such good shape.”

The restorative effects of the sanctuary were indeed beneficial.

“Ready? Something?”

“You’ll be surprised.”

In a clearing where the nearby plant life had dwindled, Mary immediately began transforming her body. Again she formed a gigantic fist and swung it wildly.

Just as yesterday, she didn’t give me time to do anything and started her attack, but I was different this time. My body was already in the 〈Forbidden Transformation〉 state.

“I’ve met all the usage conditions.”

In retrospect, it seemed insane, but the benefits were tangible. I finally acquired the weapon I had so desired.

“Argh!”

I didn’t dodge Marty’s punch, took it head-on. My entire body felt like it had been in a severe car accident and was severely crushed. Even amidst that, my hand and Gluttony’s tentacles concentrated force for one purpose alone. I gripped my left arm tightly. And I pulled it right out.

“What?”

Mary let out a dumbfounded sound as she split in two. The left arm I had wrenched out, bone and all, had taken the shape of a dark cruciform spear.