The Judgment Path

Daphne learned a harsh truth from her painful predicament: artifacts were, without exception, treacherous items.

Nothing Oseriel left behind was ever proper. They delighted in tormenting a girl’s most vulnerable parts; truly wicked. Yet, Daphne found herself utterly dependent on these devices. Their functions were crucial for her current situation; abandoning them would be akin to severing her own limbs. Moreover, she truly had no way to discard them. If she removed the clamps, they would simply reattach themselves moments later. The overall experience was worse than just keeping them on, as at least she could endure them once accustomed.

From then on, Daphne lost the right to wear a brassiere. Since she was constantly subjected to harm, the concept of protection became meaningless. Once the self-examination concluded, she tossed the now-useless tight lace brassiere onto the bedside table. She then redonned her white Gothic-style dress and approached the dressing mirror.

The soft tinkling no longer emanated solely from beneath her skirt; now, the pearl chain connecting the two small clamps could also produce a similarly crisp melody. Daphne was incensed. Not only did she have an additional pain to endure, but also another potential point of social mortification. To maintain an untainted, pure mindset under such circumstances was simply too much to ask.

Daphne breathed a sigh of relief only after confirming in the mirror that nothing looked amiss. Fortunately, the pair of white ribbon bows served as a cover. The light-colored, slightly thinner fabric of the dress also made it difficult to notice, and with a darker dress, it would be entirely undetectable. She dreaded imagining the expression Edith would wear if she discovered it later that evening. Daphne’s cheeks were already flushing.

****

With some time remaining before the evening’s cremation ceremony, Daphne decided to open the ritual materials box Gwynevere had given her. She knew she would eventually have to fight in public as Ellenore, and at that point, she could no longer use spells and skills from the Path of Night.

The Death Lineage was among the beliefs strictly forbidden within the Empire. Carelessly displaying its powers could lead to being dragged to the Inquisition and burned at the stake, so caution was paramount. Therefore, mastering the faith of the Blazing Sun Lineage was extremely important for Daphne at present.

The Blazing Sun Lineage had two well-known paths: one called Blazeflame and the other Radiance. Ellenore had been an extraordinary believer of the Radiance Path in life, yet Gwynevere had sent ritual materials for the Blazeflame Path. Although converting between the two paths was inherently the least costly, it was hardly surprising to switch paths after being resurrected from the dead.

However, Daphne had no intention of following either the traditional Blazeflame or Radiance paths. She decided to embark on a lesser-known third path within the Blazing Sun Lineage, named Judgment.

Vatitaya, the Blazing Sun Goddess, was not only a symbol of the Blazing Crown and divine light, but also represented justice and adjudication. The longsword, bathed in the sun’s halo, wielded by the Blazing Sun Church was precisely the Sun Goddess’s Sword of Judgment.

The term “lesser-known” referred to the locals of this world, not to transmigrated players of COG like Daphne. Any player who hadn’t quit the game too early would have some knowledge of the new path the developers added to the Blazing Sun Lineage in later versions: the Judgment Path.

As a new path introduced six years after the game’s launch, its numerical values were naturally much higher than those of the Blazeflame and Radiance paths from the launch period, and its mechanics were relatively more complete. After its official implementation, almost all Blazing Sun Lineage players chose to convert, as it was their only way to keep up with the new version’s power creep.

Since there was a way to directly embark on the Judgment Path, Daphne certainly wouldn’t take the old routes. After a brief moment of thought, she sat back at the table and opened the lid of the metal box. Arranged inside were a gilded candlestick, a white candle, a small pinch of a mixture of black herbs and beige powder, various colored and shaped gemstone fragments, and a pair of candlewick stones.

For an introductory ritual, the Blazeflame Path was not much more complex than the Path of Night; their procedures were roughly the same length. Gwynevere had not included specific instructions, presumably assuming Ellenore was already very familiar with the ritual. Fortunately, Daphne was indeed familiar; she could recite the procedure almost backward.

[The sword of Vatitaya, the Blazing Sun, burns with an ever-present, scorching golden flame—the Sun’s Corona Flame, which shall incinerate all darkness and wickedness.]

[Ashes Ritual]
[Ritual – Faith Initiation]
[Blazing Sun Lineage – Blazeflame Path]
[No prerequisites required; complete the ritual to gain Blazeflame Path faith.]

Scorching flames ignite upon the kindling of hope; those ashes are proof that hope once existed.

[Step One: Grind Black Embergrass and Daren’s Corona Flower, mix thoroughly, and pile in the center of the ritual area to form kindling.]
[Step Two: Arrange gemstone fragments clockwise at equal distances around the kindling in the order of red, green, blue, purple, and white.]
[Step Three: Light the candle, drip melted wax onto the kindling until flames ignite from it.]
[Step Four: Bathe in the light and flames.]

As her memories resurfaced, the ritual steps began to appear in her vision. Daphne proceeded to arrange the necessary items and light the candle in sequence. She continuously dripped the burning, molten wax onto the embergrass and flower powder. The wax dripped with a sizzling sound, and smoke continuously rose from the kindling. She smelled a strange, burnt odor.

Soon, golden flames ignited from the pile of kindling. Daphne carefully placed the candlestick back on the table, sat upright, and stared intently at the heart of the flame without averting her gaze. The flickering flames in her vision began to twist, deform, and expand. The increasingly strong burnt smell made her feel dizzy. Her body also gradually became lighter, like a wisp of smoke, as if a gust of wind could scatter her.

Within the blazing, dazzling golden light, Daphne reopened her eyes. Spread before her was a celestial stairway leading to a cloud kingdom. Golden-winged, silver-armored angels, bearing sun-corona longswords, awaited by the palace gates at the stairway’s end.

She ascended the steps little by little, following the surging songs, until she reached the angels. The sword swung down, severing the shadows and gloom in her heart, allowing her to gain the power to glimpse light. Through the palace gates, she saw the realm of the cloud kingdom. A scorching sun corona floated in mid-air.

Angels symbolizing judgment circled and sang high above the sun corona. Streams of fire scattered across the clouds, creating a golden inferno everywhere. Daphne could not control her body. She pursued the light involuntarily, disregarding the heat and scorching, stepping into this golden sea of fire until she finally reached the sun corona.

She looked up and saw, higher still, a woman covered entirely in dazzling light and golden flames. Her colossal body was awe-inspiring, and fierce firelight gleamed from her slightly raised eyelids. She gripped a massive longsword, capable of cleaving a continent in two, and plunged it deeply into the clouds, flames cascading down its blade like a waterfall.

With a fleeting glance from Vatitaya, Daphne was acknowledged. At this moment, she should have spread her arms to welcome the sacred radiance from the sun corona. Doing so would conclude the ritual and return her to reality. Even as the Eternal Black Flame turned her skin to charcoal, it did not fade. Under the radiant imprint of the Feathered Flame, it shone brightly. That was the welcoming ceremony. A brave soul who dared to challenge the searing heat of the sun corona’s sacred flame deserved respect.

This was the difference between the Judgment Path and the other two: she was not passively receiving power, but actively seeking it. When Daphne pulled her hands from the sun corona once more, the half of her arm that had merged with the sacred flame had turned to charcoal. Her skin and blood vessels were utterly vaporized, and flames even flowed through the cracks in her bones.

Yet, a longsword now rested in her hand. Golden flames flowed incessantly from its blade, and a crown of fire silently formed atop the maiden’s head. The angels chanted in unison. Their song was sacred and magnificent, every syllable filled with power. In that chant, she raised the flaming longsword and resolutely plunged it into her chest, burning herself into a pile of ashes.

Upon awakening from the hallucination, Daphne felt a fiery pain all over her body, as if she had truly been scorched by the sacred flame of the Sword of Judgment. She rose from the table, noticing that the solidified wax from the kindling had merged into a gelatinous substance, its surface coated with black charcoal, and the surrounding gemstones had all shattered into powder. In ritual symbology, shattered solid transparent crystals signified that the material’s soul had been sacrificed.

The ritual had succeeded. Daphne’s thoughts stirred, and a screen immediately unfolded in her vision.

[Faith]

• Blazing Sun Lineage – Judgment Path (Sequence 9) – Executioner

• Death Lineage – Path of Night (Sequence 9) – Shadow Walker (Temporary Faith via Arsuga’s Death Sigil)

It was indeed the Judgment Path. Without a doubt, she had succeeded.

With Arsuga’s Death Sigil, Daphne could simultaneously possess spells, skills, and traits from both paths. At the same level and sequence, almost no one could be her opponent. She had a premonition that a battle would occur soon, so it was essential to prepare in advance.

The experience pool had accumulated 980 experience. Daphne invested it all into her class level, raising her Priest level to 4 and gaining three skill points. The pool still had 380 experience remaining (400 needed for level 5). In COG, a character’s class level receives a significant boost every 5 levels.

Of the three skill points, Daphne allocated two to Pain Lash, and the remaining one to Holy Judgment Prayer, which had evolved from Prayer.

[Daphne – Female – Half-Blood (Succubus Physique)]
[Priest (Base Class) – Level 4]
[Experience Pool – 380 (400 needed for next level)]
[Faith: Blazing Sun (Judgment Path – Executioner) / Death Lineage (Path of Night – Shadow Walker)]
[Health: 100%]
[Mana: 13/13]
[Skills: Shadow Sprint (Shadow Walker)]
[Spells: Lightfire, Blood Disguise, Mage Hand, Pain Lash, Flame Enchantment, Holy Judgment Prayer]
[Traits: Light and Dark Vision, Night Conservation, Unholy Focus, Blessing Aura]

The new spell obtained through the Judgment Path was Flame Enchantment. It could apply a “Holy Flame” enchantment to a weapon, providing additional damage against undead or cursed creatures. As for the trait Unholy Focus, it provided additional damage against undead and recognized evil individuals.

With everything done, Daphne felt a sense of relief. Her strength wasn’t formidable yet, but it was sufficient. coupled with her equipment, it was far superior to her initial escape. Unconsciously, dusk began to settle. Daphne had just finished tidying the table when she heard a knock at the door.

Her heart tightened. She quickly swept the remaining crumbs into the box and hid it, then hurried to the door with a soft tinkling sound.

“My little darling, did you behave yourself while I was gone?” Edith asked, her smile radiant. She had been busy all afternoon, suggesting some unexpected situation in the town.

“N-No, of course not…” Daphne’s cheeks flushed slightly as she shook her head.

“Hmm? I certainly don’t smell anything strange,” Edith sniffed. “You’re so patient! Then tonight, I’ll have to reward you handsomely.”

“Ugh!?” Daphne involuntarily recoiled. That wasn’t a reward; it was clearly Edith enjoying herself!

“Hehe, just teasing you. I probably don’t have the energy tonight anyway.” Edith lightly kissed Daphne’s cheek. “Is there anything else you need to prepare? If not, come down with me. The cremation ceremony is about to begin.”

Daphne caught a hint of fatigue in Edith’s eyes; even her smile was quite strained. ‘Several days of intense work, plus not sleeping well at night—she deserves to be exhausted!’ Daphne’s heart softened.

“Sister Edith, please bend down a little,” she whispered.

“Hmm?” Edith complied.

Pop.

Soft lips lightly touched her cheek. Edith’s mind instantly went into disarray. She covered the side of her face and retreated. “W-What’s wrong? Why so sudden?”

“Because you seem to be working so hard, so I wanted to… encourage you a little…” Daphne’s face was nearly as red as Edith’s. “Anyway, keep up the good work.”

“Hahaha, you’re too cute!” Edith laughed, wiping away tears. “Thank you, I feel much better.”

Daphne joined in with a relieved smile. She had recovered some of her former feelings, even if only a little. This was good, too. At least she could still be by their side. or untranslated text were found.