Your Majesty, Dinner Is Ready. - Chapter 78

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 78: The Purification Sanctuary of Rest — Final Confrontation (4)
The makeshift altar was completed in no time.
I’d grown so accustomed to it that I could set it up with my eyes closed by now.
“What comes next?”
Seraphina, kneeling beside me, glanced at the Mana Cores in the box.
“Do we simply stack those inside, one after another?”
“Before that, we need to prepare them first.”
“Prepare them how?”
“The Evil Gods complain endlessly that raw offerings taste bland, or that they tire of them. So I have to season the tribute as deliciously as possible.”
《Protest: If this were filthy Suhe or gloomy Leria, perhaps. But a wise one wouldn’t complain over a simple offering!》
I’m sorry, but Ridni is uniquely demanding.
If I had to express her picky palate in terms of age, the wise one possessed the refined tastes and complementary-dish grievances of a five-year-old preschooler.
“Where is the authority and majesty befitting a divine being? An Evil God without both is unworthy of faith itself—wouldn’t you agree?”
Unable to readily counter the Holy Priestess’s calm observation, I said nothing and simply drew out the Mana Cores one by one.
I’d already planned the menu in advance.
“Holy Priestess, please crush the Mana Cores down to the size of peanuts. Once you’ve broken them, scatter them across the altar.”
“Understood.”
Crunch-crunch!
Each time Seraphina clenched her fists tightly and then opened them wide, the Mana Cores crumbled into fragments.
For a priestess, her grip strength was unnaturally powerful.
It’s basic knowledge that a Holy Priestess must be strong if she’s to protect the innocent.
Whoosh!
While my sous-chef Holy Priestess prepared the ingredients, I began roasting the head of a patient afflicted with the Hair Proliferation Syndrome using the Fire Incineration Technique.
The Silent Watcher of Solitude.
What the quiet one preferred as tribute was a live offering brimming with vitality, charred over open flame.
‘Now comes the crucial part…’
If I simply roasted it carelessly, Leria would reject the offering.
To make it appetizing, I had to char the outside completely black while keeping the inside at a gentle medium.
Fortunately, that wasn’t difficult for me.
《Stop!》
The moment Jinsili gave the signal, I ceased the flames.
I lifted one charred head to inspect it and found one side had cooked to a golden brown.
“Thanks. You’re the best kitchen timer there is.”
《I don’t understand what you mean, but that didn’t sound like honest praise. >:(》
Admittedly, if I went deeper into it, I’d need to consider the types of fire and which races tasted especially delicious when roasted…
But since it’d been so long since the last offering, this much should be more than enough to satisfy the quiet one today.
“Everything is crushed.”
Inside the makeshift altar formed from stones, the granulated Mana Cores had accumulated in a thick pile.
The high priestess’s culinary helper skills were quite impressive.
“I’ll be generous with today’s wages.”
“Thank you, Chef.”
I carefully arranged the charred heads atop the bed of Mana Cores on the ground.
“Holy Priestess.”
Before conducting the ritual, there was one final ingredient to add.
“Please envelop the offering in Divine Power. Make it as thin as possible, if you would.”
Seraphina gave a subtle nod and wrapped the offering in a pure white aura.
It served as both wrapping and garnish.
Not only did the presentation become remarkably elegant, but it was an essential savory accent for an Evil God who experienced intense pleasure when consuming something so exalted.
“It’s complete.”
The recipe’s name:
Open-Flame Head with Crusted Mana Cores.
Human heads roasted until crisp, kissed by flame, paired with Mana Cores that burst with raw magical energy when bitten—a menu with real kick.
With all preparations finished, I laid my hand upon the offering and began to recite the prayer.
“From Chaos blooming, to Silence enshrouded in darkness I speak: May your supreme darkness, subjugating the order of all things, burn my body as a comforting flame of ruin.”
As long as the offering tasted good, one could overlook much of the form and procedure, but the quiet one was rather particular—proper prayers had to be spoken.
“The gloomy twilight that incinerates all the living and the inevitable death that shrouds all the earth—to you who witnesses such a sight, a living offering is prepared. I earnestly pray for the honor of witnessing your dim darkness.”
Finally, an abundant and hearty offering has been made ready.
“Leria.”
I withdrew my hand from the offering and stepped back, speaking softly.
“Dinner is served.”
Aaaaaah!
The serpent tattoo on his left arm bloomed into dark mist.
Not much—thin and wispy, like cigarette smoke.
Though the form was fragile due to the meagerness of Divine Power, the appetite for offerings was no different from any other Evil God.
In the emptiness, the mist coalesced into a black cobra and flew toward the offering, seeping into it.
Then.
The well-roasted head began to dissolve like a liquid, flowing sluggishly toward a single point.
At the destination where the head transformed to smoke, the black cobra’s mouth worked hungrily, splitting into a blissful grin.
【Ah, how delicious it is…!!!】
It was the delighted wail of the Evil God, tasting an offering for the first time in some five thousand years.
“It seems… you’re quite excited.”
Even the Holy Priestess, watching the offering ritual for the first time, could sense the brilliance of elation and joy bursting forth.
【Kar, Kar…!】
Soon after, a voice more animated than ever before echoed in his mind.
Though the volume was still quiet.
【It is unfortunate that this is not a sentient being, yet the taste is exquisite beyond measure…. My tongue dances of its own accord…!】
“Is it truly so delicious?”
【Why, why did none of the others manage what you do! Had they, I would have long since reclaimed my former glory…!】
The cobra-shaped black mist was eagerly devouring the great offering.
That serpent was a terminal directly connected to a great divine entity, blind like a crow’s eye.
In other words, the beaming smile that bloomed on that dark face was a perfect reflection of what Leria currently felt.
【Kar, I held great expectations for you, and truly, you have shown me a taste that exceeds imagination, one that makes my tongue rejoice. Ehehe… oh!】
Mid-sentence, Leria suddenly stiffened and hastily added a divine utterance.
【That laughter just now sprang forth because your oldest disciple said something most joyful. Do not misunderstand….】
He knew that particular god possessed a withered sensibility and could not comprehend jest, but he would not commit the folly of pointing out the words of so great a divinity.
Crackle.
“My lord, I confess the thought of ripping that smirking mouth to shreds is tempting, but I beg you—when conducting an offering ritual for others, please refrain from such petulance. If you continue, this Kar shall dress formally every single day henceforth.”
Crackling-crackling-crackling!
In contrition, the god beseeched him not to do such a thing.
The pain was too sharp; he pressed his hand to the tattoo at his collarbone to suppress the electrical current, and the cobra-shaped mist withdrew back into his left arm, becoming a small serpent mark once more.
【Kar, my Kar. Now tell me—what do you desire as recompense? Whatever it is, I shall grant it all…!】
The reticent god hesitated a moment before continuing the divine utterance.
【T-that is… if it does not require too much Divine Power….】
He had never intended to demand excessive Secret Arts.
After all, one ought to rob from the wealthy, not the destitute, if one wishes to profit.
“Understood. Then grant me the Secret Art: Life Reversal Walking.”
【That, gladly! You shall be able to develop it of your own accord, a most excellent choice….】
The sole advantage of the Lonely Silence Order.
Not only the Fire Incineration Technique granted as a foundation, but all Secret Arts are, to a limited extent, growth-type abilities.
Because the faith possessed by the reticent god was so scarce, every Secret Art began at Rank 1 and could be cultivated until reaching its original Rank.
And Life Reversal Walking was originally nothing less than Rank 8.
【Accept it well…!】
Soon the serpent tattoo on his left arm was enveloped in lukewarm heat.
Rolling up his sleeve to check, he saw a neat black circle added to the head portion.
【…ugh, how dizzy it is. I shall withdraw now. I hope you will maintain your faith in me and never abandon me henceforth…!】
Leria’s faint presence faded away.
Only then did he rise from his seat on weary legs, pressing his throbbing head repeatedly, when several lines of text appeared before his eyes in succession.
《Rank 1 (Growth-type) Secret Art, Life Reversal Walking, has taken root within your body.》
Life Reversal Walking.
He had finally acquired the Secret Art that could be called the central axis of the Immortal Cult build.
Seraphina, who had been watching over him, bent slightly at the waist and studied his left arm intently.
“You have received a Secret Art. Is the ritual complete?”
“It is.”
“Then go rest now.”
The Holy Priestess grabbed his clothes and forcibly drew him upright, then began pushing him toward the door.
“The enemy will resume their relentless assault early tomorrow morning. Go to sleep at once and recover your strength.”
“…Yes, I should.”
His eyelids were already growing heavy.
It was time to go and sleep deeply.
“Sleep well.”
I was about to leave the makeshift base, stroking the serpent tattoo that wagged its head merrily, when it happened.
Ping.
A crisis warning from Insight into Chaos.
“…Holy Priestess! High-Tier Wide-Range Guardian Divine Power!”
Seraphina didn’t hesitate. She deployed the Secret Art immediately.
A pure white aura bloomed outward in an instant.
Crack—!!
Then came a thunderous roar that shook heaven and earth.
A deafening blast that went beyond numbing ears—it felt as though the eardrums themselves would burst.
The explosion tore at the ears and shook the ground, sustained for roughly ten seconds before fading.
Once the sound ceased, Seraphina, who had been catching the fluttering socialite, spoke quietly.
“It appears the variable we feared has finally manifested.”
“So it would seem.”
I steadied myself with her support as we moved forward, and the Holy Priestess gathered the Holy Spear and Buckler.
“Let us go. We must shelter the innocent.”
We emerged outside.
The Temple was surrounded by a brightly luminous barrier of pure white.
A concise yet brilliant 9th-Tier Secret Art that erected a formidable barrier across the entire area—the Undefiled Sky.
Thanks to the Holy Priestess’s swift incantation, we’d repelled the night assault safely enough, but the true ordeal was only now beginning.
“…Holy Priestess.”
The Commander of the Torch of Purification approached with a grim expression and pointed northeastward with one arm.
Beyond the white defensive barrier and shield fortifications, five colossal golems the size of the King of the Dead lumbered toward us.
《Gigantic Destruction Golem (Level 8)》
《Due to the Tier difference, exact details elude me, but these are formidable war golems armed with various magics. Even under the influence of Undefiled Sky, it would be impossible for anyone but the Holy Priestess or the Commander of the Torch of Purification to topple one alone!》
These were Level 8 non-biological monsters that weren’t supposed to appear until the fourth day.
‘…So it comes to this.’
This Dungeon has been reinforced after all.
A dire crisis had arrived.
Yet there was one bright spot—unlike in the Nightmare World, we’d had time to prepare for this ‘new content.’
“Holy Priestess, they are all Level 8.”
“…I see.”
As Seraphina bit her lip, a peacock-form golem that had appeared alongside the massive ones flapped its wings gracefully and spoke.
– Listen well, you pitiful intelligences trapped in soft, weak flesh!
In a moment this critical, why did it have to be that tone again….
– If you surrender now, those of higher Level will be spared being processed as biological material and given the opportunity to serve as slaves!
In the game, we couldn’t converse with common monsters, so I hadn’t known—but it appeared the creator of this cheerfully-speaking golem series was a far more formidable mage than I’d imagined.
“What shall we do?”
The Commander asked carefully, though he likely wasn’t truly curious about the answer.
Anyone who knew the Holy Priestess’s nature would know exactly what she would say.
“We must hold until reinforcements arrive. Without fail.”
If we failed to bring down those massive golems, we would die.
The problem was that other enemies wouldn’t politely wait idle in the meantime.
《Not only the Gigantic Destruction Golems, but the average Level of all other golems and puppets has risen as well.》
Upon sharing this information, Seraphina’s hands trembled slightly before she lowered the visor of her helm.
“Everyone, we now stand at a sheer cliff’s edge!”
The Holy Priestess’s cry, imbued with Divine Power, rang out across the Temple and its surroundings.
“If we cannot unite and overcome this trial, not only we will be trampled beneath the monster army—so too will the innocent patients depending on us!”
Seraphina raised the hand holding her spear high.
“Let us shelter those who suffer unjustly! For Artein!”
Holy Knights assembled swiftly, raising their arms as one and roaring in unison.
“For Artein!”
“For the One who protects all!”
The Holy Knights of Artein shine brightest when they have something to protect.
And so, even as overwhelming foes pressed down upon them, they burned with fierce conviction.
“I will take on three of the massive golems, and the Commander will handle one! All other Holy Knights, hold the line against enemies attacking from the ground!”
Then Seraphina turned to face me.
“Even with my strength and the Commander’s combined, we cannot fully withstand all five of these massive golems. Will you handle the remaining one? Is this possible?”
It wouldn’t be easy, but I would do it.
I had to succeed.
A C-rank Dungeon was not befitting as my grave.
“Leave it to me. I’ll bring it down with glory.”
“Thank you.”
There was no time to exchange resolute glances before battle or to steel a wavering heart.
Seraphina gripped the Holy Spear and Buckler in both hands and charged forward.
“Eternal glory to Artein!”

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————