More than one Heretic God? For a moment, Erica's thoughts came to a screeching halt.
The descent of a single Heretic God could potentially lead to the destruction of several nations, or even the entire world. More than one? You might as well just give up.
"That's right. Aren't there standing stones in Sassari? Near there, five days ago, my spirit vision detected an unusual concentration of divine power. I went to investigate. What I saw there was a battle between two gods. One was Melqart; the other was a deity in the form of a warrior, wielding a golden sword. The result of their fierce battle was that both were grievously wounded."
Lucretia Zola let out a soft, weak sigh.
She was now leaning slightly against Seiya's shoulder, observing with great interest the impassive young man and the deeply frowning young woman before her.
Only when Erica's eyebrows were practically scrunched into a mountain did she satisfy her mischievous whim and begin to explain in an unhurried tone, "Don't worry, Erica-dear. I'm getting to the point—Melqart with his club and the other god with his golden sword delivered final blows to one another. Both were severely injured. Melqart vanished in a flash of lightning, and the god of the golden sword was shattered to pieces."
"I see! So that's how it all fits together!" Erica shot up to her feet in excitement.
The white-robed youth with the air of a victor, the divine incarnation manifesting as a storm, the black boar of destruction, the recurring natural disasters... all of it was now explained.
Several days ago, a Heretic God had manifested and, for unknown reasons, fought a great battle with a second Heretic God. The outcome was that the God King Melqart was severely wounded and went into hiding, while the warrior sword god's manifestation was shattered into the form of a youth.
Her excitement stemmed from several facts: first, she wouldn't have to face two gods at once. Second, these two gods were hostile to each other. And third, both were currently in a severely weakened state.
Although she spoke with humility, as the young lady of the Blandelli family, the Crimson Devil of her generation, and a direct descendant of the Campione, the Demon King, how could she not harbor the ambition of slaying a god? A wounded god was the perfect opportunity to close the gap between them.
"And then? What is the current situation with the gods?" Erica asked eagerly.
"I did not witness it myself, but through my spirit vision, I sensed that the body of the sword god broke into many pieces, each taking on a new form. One was a boar, another an eagle, and there were other creatures like a horse and a goat. These avatars immediately flew off into the sea or sky."
"Which means the giant beasts appearing all over the island are the avatars born from the god of the golden sword. And the god of the storm that Seiya defeated was an incarnation of Melqart. And they are both still on this island."
"Who knows. Neither Melqart nor the sword god could possibly recover in such a short time. If they had, my spirit vision should have received some kind of omen, but there was nothing. It's not impossible that they have left Sardinia."
Erica trembled with a mixture of fear and exhilaration. The wounded God King and the sword-wielding war god were both slumbering on this island. It was as if a doomsday clock had been started. When the time ran out, the supreme ruler of the sky and the war god who slays dragons and serpents would reawaken, returning to their true forms as Heretic Gods. They were calamity, supreme beings who defied myth itself. Only a god-slaying beast could stand against them. But the nearest Demon King was all the way in South Africa. By the time he arrived, this island, perhaps even this entire country, might have already sunk into the sea.
It was as if destiny had constructed a stage just for her. She was the fated savior.
"My lady, I have an impudent request, and I hope you will grant it," Erica suddenly said, standing up with a serious expression and looking at Lucretia Zola.
"You want the grimoire in my hands, don't you?" Lucretia Zola smiled, lifting the Prometheus stone tablet.
Her thoughts laid bare by the ancient witch, Erica no longer hid her intentions. "Yes, your insight is as sharp as a torch. This grimoire is itself a divine artifact of the highest order. If I can make use of its power, I will be much more confident in my ability to seal a god."
"Unfortunately, you do not meet the conditions for using this artifact," Lucretia Zola said, shaking her head.
"My lady, I am a witch as well. I have some experience in the use of various grimoires," Erica said hurriedly.
"Have you not noticed? Although your spirits are high, you are no longer in a state to be making decisions. My little cabin may not be large, but I can still clear out a room for you to rest. Go and sleep now."
Erica wanted to say more, but seeing the unquestionable look on the witch Zola's face, she could only nod in agreement.
Late at night, Seiya opened his eyes.
Outside the window was the dark of night. A withered apple tree swayed in the fierce wind, looking like an emaciated ghost in the brief flashes of lightning that illuminated the earth.
He thought back to his time training in the Fairy Realm, to the three years of his ordeal. He thought of the people he saw as Marin and Shaina, and he also remembered the beautiful maiden who would occasionally appear in the forest to pay her respects with a deep bow. He had originally thought she was just a girl who admired Saints and had come to worship. But thinking back on it now, there were many familiar faces among them.
Flowers would bloom where they walked, they could call forth the miracle of spring, and there were the girls by the spring, in the forest, and in the middle of the sea, holding hands, singing and dancing. They wore thin gauze, their figures graceful and lovely. How had he never noticed before?
Or perhaps, his attention had simply not been on such things.
"You're awake. You're a light sleeper. Or perhaps, you simply couldn't fall asleep at all," a gentle voice spoke from beside him.
"On this island, which is on the verge of destruction, who can say which will come first: being swept into the sea by a storm, or dying in your sleep?" Seiya turned his head to look at the figure beside him. Even in the faint moonlight, Seiya could still make out the girl's full form.
It was the ancient witch of the highest terrestrial order, Lucretia Zola. She was the mistress of this house, so her presence here was perfectly reasonable—
—like hell it was!
A girl who would climb into a man's bed in the middle of the night, even a single tear from her wouldn't be so cheap.
As a European witch, Zola's figure was exceptionally curvaceous. She had a beautiful, melon-seed-shaped face and the eight-head-tall proportions of a model. Despite this, her ample bosom seemed ready to burst from her lingerie, irresistibly bringing to mind a peach in late spring or early summer.
This was a beauty full of feminine charm, the kind of provocative image one would be hard-pressed to find even on resource sites. But right now, she was clinging to Seiya, unconsciously pressing her fullness against him.
"Thank you, but I'll pass," Seiya said, raising a hand in refusal.
_____
Greetings! ✨ Walnut here with another translation! Saint Seiya united by their strength!
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