I Became the Priest of Blasphemy of the Outer Gods

Chapter 91. New Chapter (1)

“But where’s that cute Tako—”

BOOM!

Two pairs of spider legs, intending to crush Sharl, were blocked by the headless knights.

“I was startled. Scaring a lady like that.”

The two undead possessed great strength. The headless knights were crushed under the spider legs. Sharl’s eyes sparkled with interest.

“You are indeed endlessly fascinating.”

“For the great era, purify and leave nothing but ash. ‘Black Flame of Annihilation’.”

Simultaneously using Outer Magic, I created another mouth in the palm of my hand and recited a prayer through it.

『To the one who weaves the greatest threads, grant me the noble thread that binds all things. ‘Binding Net’.』

Charlotte dodged the black flames through the wind but got caught in the spider’s web.

“Die.”

I mercilessly pierced Charlotte’s body with my tentacles, feeling a satisfying sensation of tearing guts and breaking bones, engulfing the body in intense flames.

SWISH!

A sudden gust of wind tore my tentacles apart. The image of Charlotte, which the tentacles should have pierced, had vanished.

Instead, another corpse was sacrificed. Riding the wind, Charlotte reappeared behind me.

“This curiosity is making my mind dizzy!”

I swung Gluttony at Charlotte’s head. But it was merely another puppet crafted by her.

“You’ve intricately overlaid it on the corpse. I can’t tell the difference. This shouldn’t be possible, right?”

The senses harmonized with Gluttony were keen.

Temperature, heartbeat, breathing—these should have been lacking or awkwardly reproduced in a puppet corpse. Yet, they were indistinguishable.

“It’s difficult, but not impossible.”

Appearing elsewhere, Charlotte summoned a fresh headless knight from the ground, but I smashed it effortlessly.

“… Scary. I would die instantly if you so much as scratch me.”

As I prepared to recite another prayer, Charlotte snapped her fingers first.

Dozens of hands emerged from beneath the ground, trying to grasp me, but I transformed my body into liquid, slipping from their grip effortlessly.

“My, my?”

Charlotte widened her eyes with interest, while I raised Gluttony’s tentacles to target her neck.

A swift melee attack, rather than uttering miracles, would be tricky for Charlotte to counter.

“Why are you so angry? What’s the reason behind that abnormal rage? Your other emotions are strangely barren, yet your anger is strong. Have your emotions been twisted?”

“Don’t know.”

Even I couldn’t fully understand it.

Was it because I had lost my status as Professor Magus? Even though retrieving the mask led to a massive reward from Sevika, it was more of a gain than a loss.

“I just don’t like you.”

I couldn’t understand why, but seeing Charlotte’s face made my anger flare up. It was similar to the hatred I felt when I encountered characters like Bishop Eloya.

“That’s harsh. I thought we agreed not to hate each other. Answering so offhandedly doesn’t solve my curiosity…”

Charlotte used wind magic to deliver slashes while constantly evading.

“I dressed up to meet the Saint, could you not see me in a more favorable light?”

Charlotte lifted her skirt with a mischievous smile.

“Not just thunder descends from heaven; the flames of that one are a falling calamity, awe-inspiring. ‘Falling Flame of the Red Sky’.”

A fire pillar engulfed the surrounding forest. As the flames receded, the smoke was scattered by the wind. Something akin to large skeletal hands layered over and protected Charlotte.

“… Indeed, it’s dressed up.”

Of course, the adornment was not about clothing or appearance.

“Six artifacts and three relics.”

“You noticed all of them? Not just the relics, but the artifacts too. I suppose you know what items they are?”

I didn’t respond, but it was true. Each one was powerful.

“Did you think you could kill me just because you were armed with such things?”

“I told you, I…”

SWOOSH!

I fired a cross-shaped spear.

Even though it’s slower than a counterattack, it’s no trouble for me to take out the spear from within my body and launch it, thanks to my ability to freely reshape my appearance.

Charlotte was skewered through the abdomen, pinned to a tree with the spear. But another Charlotte appeared, hanging upside down.

“I’m not here to fight, saint.”

I tried to rip her face apart, but Charlotte quickly slipped away. Being adept with wind magic, her movements were incredibly swift.

“It’s heartless. Aren’t you too cold to a girl showing such affection towards you?”

Charlotte playfully swung her dress hem, giggling.

“You’re deliberately holding back and sizing up the situation, but I’m not easy enough to reveal everything either.”

… Did she notice? As I showed no signs of attack, Charlotte spoke with a grin.

“What I want is simple—”

“No. Get lost.”

Charlotte bit her lip, briefly.

“… Simple. Hand over the Necronomicon.”

It was a somewhat perplexing request.

“I doubt you haven’t mastered all the Outer Magic written there? What value does the Necronomicon hold for you?”

“It’s a keepsake of my mentor. Isn’t it natural I’d want to have it? Besides, that book holds no worth for you now, does it?”

Desiring it just because it belonged to a deceased mentor seemed implausible… But certainly, the Necronomicon was no longer useful to me.

I had already learned all the Outer Magic within it, and there were no more applications for the book.

“So, what’s the condition?”

“To show you there’s no need to antagonize me, I’ll give you three valuable pieces of information.”

Valuable information, she said. Charlotte definitely seemed to possess such secrets. But a mage never incurs a loss.

“Well… after witnessing you break the contract at will, why should I trust you?”

“That foolish baron essentially broke the contract first, didn’t he? I was actually quite willing to adhere.”

“Get to the point. Can you earn my trust?”

“I’ll give you the information first. If you find it valuable, then pass my mentor’s book to me.”

It wasn’t a bad proposal. At least, I would hear her out and nodded slightly.

“First, recently in the Empire, aside from yourself, saint, the rampant increase of monsters in the wilderness has become the most significant issue, hasn’t it? To the point where they have to deploy Luminaries everywhere.”

A gang of 100 bandits was commanded by an escapee from the wilderness. From the recent intel, Cernun was also dispatched to the wilderness.

“But there’s not only monsters but also the forces of Outer God tangled with it. Do you know about the ‘Black Willow Cult’?”

“Of course, I do. Surely, you aren’t offering that as the information?”

Strictly speaking, the cult’s name isn’t Black Willow Cult. It was merely called thus because others mistook its emblem for a tree. The truth is…

“The ‘Prenatal Offspring of Darkness’, that’s their cult. The genuine name is the ‘Cult of the God of Darkness’.”

They worship the 【Black Goat Who Spawns All Things】.

“Indeed… But what’s critical is why the Black Willow Cult is running rampant there.”

“Why?”

“The wilderness isn’t particularly ideal for the ‘Offspring of Darkness’. They appear there because they are searching for a forgotten kingdom.”

Looking as if she found it fascinating, Charlotte showed a triumphant expression.

“Though none knows if the Forgotten Kingdom truly exists. It’s merely a legend of the Sun Tribe that vanished during the Holy War…”

I thought of Tuatem. From his memories, the high priest and a few of his people sought refuge somewhere. But nothing was known about their whereabouts thereafter.

“How do you know this?”

“I heard it directly from the Black Willow Cult. Honestly… it wasn’t quite to my taste. Especially the high priest of the cult…”

Charlotte, for once, appeared visibly unsettled. However, my knowledge of the Black Willow Cult was shallow, thus I remained unaware of her discomposure. In ‘Orders’, the Prenatal Offspring of Darkness was excessively overpowering; hence, they were often encountered as event enemies requiring evasion rather than confrontation.

“The second piece of information?”

“You know of the Ancient Gods renowned for wielding lightning, yes? But after the Holy War, all of them vanished.”

Charlotte looked up at the sky as she spoke.

“Recently, there have been sightings. Toward Dwellers of the Abyss who attacked a ship, someone struck them with lightning.”

“An absurd claim.”

Zeus, Thor, Indra—all associated with thunder and lightning—are absent in this world. Indra never appeared here, Thor retreated after being defeated during the Holy War, and Zeus, the victor and last remaining God from the war, departed this world despite his triumph. Is it the aftereffect of that, or something else entirely?

“In this world now, lightning does not exist. It cannot be observed as a natural phenomenon, nor can it be conjured through magic.”

“But reports are growing, and there are even cases where traces of lightning strikes were found… Wouldn’t that suggest something interesting is happening?”

For centuries, lightning had been known only as a written record in this world.

‘It’s impossible. They probably mistook it for something else.’

I pressed Charlotte further.

“These unverified claims need to be credible. The last piece of information?”

“The final tidbit is news that attacks by Dwellers of the Abyss have intensified. Sailing has become difficult, causing chaos in the Empire.”

“I witnessed this during the Academy party. I already know they’re increasingly active.”

“But do you know why their activities suddenly surged?”

I narrowed my eyes.

“Go on.”

“It’s hard-won information. Deep within the ocean, a temple has been discovered. Being a temple of a powerful Ancient God, even the Dwellers of the Abyss couldn’t enter it carelessly.”

“A temple of an Ancient God?”

“Yes, this temple is said to contain….”

Charlotte smiled with satisfaction.

“The ‘Blue Dragon Crown’ that was lost after the Holy War.”

I took out the Necronomicon and tossed it to Charlotte.

“Take it. Stay out of my sight if possible.”

“Even after providing such insider information, you’re still so cold.”

Charlotte patted the book as if it were precious.

“Charlotte.”

Upon my call, Charlotte raised her head and looked at me.

“What is your goal?”

It’s the question I had wondered ever since confronting Charlotte.

“My goal? If I had to say… it’s an exploration for mankind.”

Charlotte grinned with a hint of madness.

“To unravel the unsolvable mysteries. To analyze, comprehend, and systemize the miracles of Outer God.”

Wrapped in wind, Charlotte began to blur.

“Just as the miracles of old demons have become the skill we now call magic…”

As Charlotte vanished, her voice, filled with excitement, reverberated.

“I’ll turn the miracles of Outer God into something for humanity!”