Netherworld Forest, a quiet village, nestled around a church, before the statue of the Goddess.
“Is that so… she actually possesses such formidable power…?”
Ingmar’s brow furrowed tightly, an undeniable unease clouding his features as he paced restlessly before the divine effigy.
“The ability to gain power by altering one’s appearance…? No, no, no, I’ve never heard of such an ability!”
Not even in the Church’s ancient magical tomes, nor in the voluminous historical records detailing the continent’s most peculiar events, had Ingmar ever encountered a phenomenon quite like this.
And if that weren’t enough, what was truly incomprehensible was this…
Leya, by all appearances, was merely an ordinary individual, her magical reserves undeniably weak. Yet… yet why, by all that was sacred, did divine energy emanate from her very being?!
It defied all scientific understanding, truly illogical. Even though the entity known as the Dark Serpent had offered Ingmar an explanation—that this was a form of ‘blessing,’ a direct bestowal from the gods.
But… but it still didn’t make sense! Seriously, didn’t such blessings vanish from history entirely with the collapse of the Fifth Era?
Along with the gods themselves…
Thus, a profound question arose: how could blessings, vanished for tens of millennia, or deities, dormant for countless ages, suddenly resurface? And, of all individuals, why had Leya been chosen?
Leya’s sudden manifestation had, quite frankly, delivered a shock of immense proportions to Ingmar. So great was this revelation that he found himself questioning the very rectitude of his life’s endeavors until this moment.
“Ah… Great Goddess! It’s just one more step, merely the final step… Could it be, could it be that what I’ve done is truly wrong? Then… then why didn’t you tell me sooner, instead of waiting until this very moment… to utterly shatter my life’s work, my lifelong dream…?”
‘Could it truly be, as the ancient myths proclaimed, that the gods themselves… were utterly devoid of compassion?’
‘Or perhaps, in the eyes of their absolute supremacy, was our existence… truly so utterly negligible?’
“Foolish!”
! ?
“If you truly think that, then you disappoint me greatly… Ingmar.”
Around the statue’s form, dense, profound black mist suddenly surged forth, creeping upwards to engulf its head. Then, the statue’s eyes ignited, casting an eerie, blood-red glow into the dim space.
“I told you long ago, didn’t I? Do not attempt to fathom the actions of deities using your human minds, your human values.”
“…………”
“Light and darkness, good and evil… you humans always insist on defining deities in such terms, unaware of how laughably foolish such behavior truly is…”
“For them, the absolutely supreme, do good and evil truly hold such importance?”
“Whether in benevolence, where they grant you faith, hope, and illumination, safeguarding your peaceful existence upon this land; or in malevolence, where they unleash torrents, spread pestilence, and even lay waste to worlds—what concern is that of you mortals? Ridiculous…”
‘Ridiculous? No… no… that’s not it at all!’
“You will never truly comprehend… No, in the end, I should not even harbor the expectation that you would grasp these concepts. For you and I are, after all, fundamentally distinct races… Just like those blasphemous elves, you will forever remain incapable of understanding our faith…”
“Hmph… That’s precisely why you are so utterly laughable and foolish…”
A tone filled with disdain and mockery emanated from within the black mist.
“So… shall our cooperation continue?”
“…………”
At these words, Ingmar’s brows furrowed so intensely they almost twisted into a single knot, as if he wrestled with a decision of monumental difficulty. His gaze held fleeting moments of bewilderment and doubt, but ultimately… it hardened into a resolute determination, and he spoke:
“Yes, we must do it, we absolutely must! This is the first time we humans have come so close to the truth… No matter what, we cannot give up!”
“Heh heh… That’s good, that’s good. I can finally rest easy…”
****
Meanwhile, in Volantis City, on the way back to the Thunder Tavern…
As per their agreement, Leya had first transformed into Jeanne, patiently awaiting the cooldown period of the Saber transformation card after noon. At last, she had more or less assumed Saber’s form. Yes, precisely so.
And why “more or less”?
‘“Phew—this outfit is truly so comfortable… Ahhh… Perhaps I should simply fight like this from now on? Armor, after all, seems almost entirely superfluous, doesn’t it?”’
She was clad in what appeared to be a white gown—no, perhaps ‘dress’ would be a more apt description.
It was Leya’s first time changing a character’s attire while in a transformed state.
‘“Hmm, of course, I would never confess that I merely found walking in heavy armor cumbersome and thus requested the system to alter my attire. Hmph, never!”’
‘“No, that simply won’t do… A skirt this short, if my movements during battle were too expansive, could lead to a rather unfortunate exposure, couldn’t it?”’
‘Oh no, no, no—’
‘Shit! When did I ever grow accustomed to such a flimsy, flowing garment as a skirt? Ugh… it seems my focus is misplaced again… It’s the shame, the sheer mortification!’
‘Ahhhhh!’
‘Still… well, it does look quite fetching, doesn’t it? Perhaps I should just embrace it…’
“…………”
Reflecting on it, when she first gained mastery over this body, she distinctly recalled having quite the tantrum over this embarrassing ensemble.
Yet, her protests proved fruitless, for the system had claimed it possessed no such function to alter attire. Hmm… she wondered if, given the current circumstances, she should perhaps press the issue now.
***
Lost in thought, time always seemed to fly.
The brightly lit Thunder Tavern now stood directly before them, yet the scene within today stirred a peculiar concern in Leya.
“Hahaha! Come on, everyone, eat and drink to your heart’s content! Tonight’s tab is all on me!”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa!—”
Such boisterous sounds seemed to echo from within the tavern’s main hall.
‘Is someone holding a banquet here?’
This turn of events was quite unexpected, for in Leya’s estimation, while the tavern was indeed a tad more upscale, it remained a rather small establishment, hardly suitable for hosting large-scale communal events like banquets.
“Hey, hey, hey? Wait a minute, tsk tsk, look, everyone, look who I see?”
“…………”
‘Honestly…’
‘It’s those tiresome individuals stirring up trivial trouble again. The sight of it is truly vexing…’
‘Sigh, perhaps I should just overlook it this time? They all appear to be acquaintances, and surely they won’t cause too much of a commotion in such a public setting, right? I might as well just make my exit for now…’
“Maxwell! Tsk tsk, it’s actually you, you scoundrel!”
“Who, pray tell, granted you permission to enter?! This noble assembly is hardly a place for a former—noble, a disgraceful wretch such as yourself, to partake!”