Chapter 155. Preparation for War (1)
An unexpected piece of information caught me off guard.
“I never expected that name to surface all of a sudden.”
Upon reflection, Charlotte was indeed a priestess of a Foreign God, and with a rather high rank as well.
“I don’t want to see her here.”
Though I felt a sense of disdain, it didn’t spark a hot anger like before. I calmed my thoughts and posed a question.
“Can we recommend a priestess to be accepted here?”
“Strictly speaking, it’s just a suggestion.”
Berga replied.
“We only have the right to make suggestions. All decisions are made by Sevika, who holds dominion over dreams.”
Even the priests of Foreign Gods present here were monstrous in their own right, yet they didn’t have that level of authority.
“For someone like you, Sevika, who protects dreams, simply brought you over directly!”
“That’s quite rare.”
The twins added, glaring at Berga.
“However, I’m quite disappointed in you, Berga. I was surprised to hear you became stronger by killing other priests.”
“Did you manage to achieve it by borrowing her hand?”
The twins, who seemed to hold a grudge against Charlotte, reacted sensitively.
“It seems Berga’s true strength isn’t all that impressive.”
While Berga was undoubtedly strong, it appeared he was not on the level to defeat multiple priests of the Foreign God, who were at least of the 4th rank standard. Though having already killed many, the story was different.
“When was the declaration of war made?”
“There was no need for one.”
“… What are you saying?”
Berga answered, crossing his arms.
“The declaration was made decades ago. But the war hasn’t ended; it became entrenched.”
As the stalemate continued, they occasionally showed their faces at gatherings.
But they hadn’t been seen for a while, until Charlotte intervened and decided the war’s outcome.
“Charlotte is overly elusive. Could she possibly teleport across continents?”
Who knows what she was up to now…
“I won, and they all died. The 5th rank’s awakening isn’t far off.”
“Ha! And you’re boasting about borrowing someone else’s hands.”
“Using such methods, any random individual could reach the 5th rank.”
Berga frowned.
“It’s unlike you to take issue with my methods. Is accepting Charlotte Prellati so disagreeable to you?”
“She’s not only unlikable but also closer to a mage than a priestess!”
The twins opposed, but the rest of the priests thought differently.
“A talent who can wield both magic and miracles is seen only once in centuries. Wouldn’t it be a shame to pass on such potential?”
Johann cast his support.
“I also see no issue. If such a talented individual joins, it could be beneficial in many ways.”
Beatrice supported the proposal.
“It seems some level of information sharing about Charlotte had occurred.”
I contemplated whether the twins had made a deal when Cahon unexpectedly cast a dissenting vote.
“Those inherently closer to a mage have a tendency to deceive and exploit. It’s doubtful if satisfactory dealings with such a person are possible.”
All eyes turned to me then. With two votes for and two against, the situation was at a standstill.
‘Naturally, I’m against it. I’ve hinted at past grudges too.’
Yet, I decided to twist my thoughts.
By revealing continuous hostility with Charlotte, it could lead others who might oppose me in the future to join forces with her.
‘By voting in favor, I could create confusion. The challenge is to secretly signal to Sevika that my vote is actually against Charlotte…’
I feared Sevika might, thinking it’s for my benefit, bring Charlotte after all. After a brief contemplation, I crossed my fingers subtly and spoke.
“I support it. She is rather useful and capable.”
In the West, there’s a gesture of crossing fingers when telling lies, as a plea for forgiveness.
Whether my lie conveyed to Sevika wasn’t clear, but there was no immediate change.
“It seems our consensus is to accept Charlotte Prellati. The final decision would rest with the exalted.”
So, after discussing how to meet with Beatrice separately, I withdrew from the dream world.
* * *
“Just a month of grace period…? That’s tight.”
Eldritch expressed concern upon hearing about the declaration of war. Lyla, too, didn’t appear pleased.
“Is there a chance of victory?”
I didn’t know the full extent of Cahon’s power.
Though I knew he could perform miracles at a mentally deranged scale, there were limits due to him being a 5th rank.
Additionally, he wasn’t in good condition, leaving his potential strength uncertain.
“However, by meditating with Beatrice’s gifted items, my understanding of him will become clearer.”
There were ways to ascertain the enemy’s power and enhance my own.
“The situation isn’t entirely hopeless. But your awakening is vital.”
Each time a member ranked up from the 3rd to the 4th rank, my burden would significantly decrease.
“I plan to request cooperation from Ender, Ansandy, and Delion. Arian may be unlikely, but I’ll try to contact her as well.”
The method of bringing them here required special consideration since traveling back and forth with Lyla’s ship would consume months.
“I’ll try contacting my mentor.”
Nodding at Lyla’s words, I realized having Cernun join us would be the ideal situation.
“Mary, how is your recovery going?”
“A month is enough. I’m confident in awakening within that time.”
Mary and Eldritch were on the brink of awakening, so barring any complications, both could achieve it within a month.
“Uncle, may I ask a question?”
Talia gazed intently at me and inquired.
“Isn’t the place the Dweller’s priest mentioned underwater?”
“That’s correct.”
“How do you plan to fight? On a boat?”
I shook my head.
“Everyone else will conduct a defensive battle using the shrine we visited last time as the base. I’ll dive underwater to confront Cahon. If someone accompanies me, it’ll likely be Eldritch.”
“Eh? Why? Isn’t it safer to fight together?”
Talia’s point was valid but posed a simpler issue.
“How would everyone fight underwater?”
“… Oh.”
Fighting underwater was feasible only for Eldritch and myself. Magic could help to some degree, but going deep made things untenable.
“Without magical or miraculous aid for underwater breathing, it’s barely possible.”
Seeing as the affected area Cahon had once tampered with was problematic enough for items to malfunction, holding one’s breath underwater would be disastrous with additional interference miracles.
“Are you using transformation to handle this?”
“There’s that, but I have other solutions in mind.”
Confirming no problem, I pulled out a map.
“The location Cahon marked is quite far from Hagos Archipelago. This means it’ll be hard for me to help.”
Thus, everyone needed to become stronger.
Three at the 4th rank reduced my burden, and Talia must become adept with divine relics for me to fight without concern.
“What’s primarily worrying is the princess’s stance. She poses the greatest threat, excluding Cahon.”
With the possibility of Cahon saying the princess can kill me, I had to be cautious.
“To counter potential ambushes, we need more webs around the shrine.”
“I’ll enchant as many defensive measures as possible.”
From that day, I pushed my members to train rigorously.
We closely replicated actual fighting, analyzing and enhancing our allies’ strengths.
Naturally, my training focused on meditation.
This time, the medium was grape seeds left behind by Estevan.
“This isn’t the sort of serious task I like.”
A voice echoed as meditation commenced.
A man, looking rather exasperated, was pouring himself wine. It was Estevan, the priest of Dionysus.
“Well, how about you make an appearance, future priest! Join me, Estevan, the leader of celebrations, for a drink… perhaps?”
Though he predicted something through prophecy, he still seemed puzzled about what to do.
Without further observation, I distanced myself from Estevan.
“Oh! Your hair is redder than the strawberries I’ve harvested.”
Estevan played with my hair the moment I materialized.
‘So this is Estevan.’
His appearance was quite delicate, and his shiny light-brown curly hair was strikingly memorable.
“Please, let go…”
I pushed Estevan away as he continued to touch my hair fascinatedly.
“Oh, sorry. Red hair is a first for me. Now, let’s have a drink.”
Accepting the glass Estevan offered, I took a sip. The wine was very tart.
“Just to ensure, you’re not going to command me to hold a 100-day drinking festival, or to brew wine, right?”
I’d braced myself for something like that.
“Haha! So you met Atra first? Here’s how to make wine and grow grapes.”
As expected.
“But before that!”
Estevan smiled and extended his hand. As I hesitantly clasped it, he twisted my arm.
“This kind of pain is…”
Such pain was familiar, but the shock of Estevan’s strength caught me off guard. Despite my bones and muscles not having regular human durability, my bone was crushed.
“I’m one of the twelve heroes, after all. Do you think we’ll only teach you how to relax? I demolished enemies on the front lines.”
I casually extricated myself from his grip.
“Oh, not even a scream?”
“Such pain is somewhat familiar. It’s fortunate. I’ve been keen on learning your combat teachings.”
“A pugnacious learner! I like you!”
“So, what exactly will you be teaching?”
“My lessons? Simple. I intend to teach you what I shared with my ‘Maenads’.”
The priestesses of Dionysus, the Maenads. They were notoriously wild.
Before Dionysus’ worship stabilized, they rampaged akin to terrorists. They’ve the rumor of tearing Orpheus apart.
“Is it a style akin to berserker combat?”
If so, it wasn’t of much use to me. Perhaps for Ender.
“I never taught priests of Foreign Gods. While uncertain, I suspect it might be an effective combat style against them.”
Estevan drank deeply from a massive oak barrel beside him.
“It involves enhancing attacks through frenzy.”