A dull longsword and a heartbroken villager

That kind of instinctive desire that comes from the depths of one's heart is very difficult to suppress.

Although you may not want something, once the thought of wanting it arises, that thought will expand infinitely.

In the past few days, Bray has been able to sense the light of the divine source simply by closing his eyes.

There is also that unspoken allure that strikes deep into the soul.

Time passed by, and they were getting closer and closer to Beishan Fort.

Bray's eyelids felt incredibly heavy, so heavy that he had to close them; he was just too sleepy.

---

Everything around was a vast expanse of white, and in the center was a suspended ball of light.

The ball of light pulsed, more vibrant than ever before, and of course, more alluring.

Of course, Bray was also well aware that this stuff was like drugs in the underworld—once you touched it, you were doomed.

Bray sat cross-legged on the ground, no longer looking at the source of the divine power.

Are all divine sources just a ball of light? That feels so cliché.

"Of course not! It's only because my fragments are so beautiful!"

Ah, it's that gossipy voice again.

"What?! I haven't spoken to you in so long, and you call me a chatterbox?!"

Hearing the faint hint of anger in the voice, Bray paid no attention.

Who is the owner of the voice?

Is it the silver race? Or the golden race that was banished from the world?

However, no matter what, there is no equality between higher and lower species.

Just as humans never consider other animals to be equal to themselves, no matter how much you love them.

The current situation is probably similar, right?

But right now, Bray is on the lower side, and maybe the owner of this voice just sees himself as someone to pass the time.

"You think about a lot of things unexpectedly; it truly surprises me."

"But what you said makes a lot of sense, or rather, it's correct."

"Perhaps deep down I only ever saw you as something to pass the time."

"After all, being banished from the world, that empty plane is quite boring."

Golden seeds, that's truly extraordinary.

So, is he talking to God? What would happen if religious people found out?

"They might be used as divine messengers? Or perhaps as sacrifices."

Can the fates of two people really differ so drastically? It's terrifying.

"By the way, you stubborn little thing, aren't you going to touch my fragments?"

"With me here, you won't break down at all, after all, this is a fragment of me."

Forget it, I don't even want to touch something like divine source.

No matter what promises the owner of the fragments made, no one can guarantee what the future will hold.

It won't collapse in a year, or a hundred years... but what about a thousand years? Ten thousand years?

Is it truly possible to control immense power without losing oneself or collapsing into self?

This is really suspicious.

There may be a chosen one, but it certainly won't be me.

"—Give me some confidence!! You stubborn little rascal!!!"

Is your eagerness to experience power yourself a search for better enjoyment?

—"..." As if her heart had been pierced, her voice fell silent.

"Human, you like to assume the worst about others."

That's right, it's absolutely wrong to assume malicious things about others.

However, this may not always be a correct assumption, but it is often a correct one.

"In the end, you're still so stubborn."

Yes, after all, all I want is to be born a human being and die a human being.

"Well then, stubborn humans, bring me some fun."

---

"Drink!!!" Bray suddenly woke up, then froze.

Because a picture resembling the result of an appraisal technique suddenly flashed into my mind.

However, the image only contains simple information, or rather, a simple sentence.

"—This is the lovely goddess! Stubborn little humans can chat with me!"

"Let's skip the chatting," Bray muttered to himself.

“Bray…” Marlene grasped Bray’s hand.

"Are you feeling unwell?" Marlene looked up at Bray.

"It's nothing, just a nightmare." Bray patted Marlene's head and calmly looked out the car window.

Upon hearing Bray's shout, Sass, who was outside the carriage, immediately poked his head in.

"what happens?"

"No, it was just a nightmare."

“Is that so, Mr. Bray? Would you like to hear a quiet story?” Sass laughed.

“Perfect timing. The journey from here to Beishan Fort ahead is enough for me to tell a story.”

“Okay, but no tip.” A smile unconsciously curved the corners of Bray’s mouth.

“That’s quite harsh, Mr. Bray.” Sass twirled his large hat, covering his face. The Federation is short for the Federation of Leicester.

It is formed by the union of scattered regions.

The entire federal government is governed by the federal parliament, the federal supreme court, and the federal president.

Meanwhile, Federal President Pride Oman is alone in a dimly lit underground factory in Inleigh, without any guards.

Inlai does not belong to any country, but it has been infiltrated by the Federation without anyone noticing.

They didn't even discover that the federal government had built a factory in Inle.

The dimly lit factory was not as noisy as I had imagined.

It was a factory, but there wasn't a single worker in sight; it was eerily quiet.

In this quiet factory stands a ten-story-high empty suit of armor, covered with magic arrays.

"Is this what they call the Aragami?" Pride's voice echoed through the factory.

"Of course not..." A voice was interrupted as soon as it began.

Pride didn't even need a second before drawing his gun from his waist and pointing it at the person who had spoken.

"Please, Your Excellency, put the gun away."

“Riveh, huh?” Pride said, putting his gun back.

“Of course it’s me, Your Majesty,” Reeves said, adjusting his glasses with a blank expression.

"You're still alive? The Empire has sent word that you self-destructed."

“That was just a clone.” Levi shrugged.

"The Empire's people are pursuing us too closely, it's really troublesome, we can only try to divert their attention." The speaker looked exactly like Reeves, whom Clinton had revealed.

No, it should be said that this is the true form of Rivi.

Clinton was nothing more than a puppet created by Reeves, into which a portion of his own consciousness was inserted.

This is what Levi referred to as a clone.

"However, creating clones is also troublesome, since it consumes consciousness, that is, the soul."

"Wow... He really is a madman, even using his own soul as material."

“A madman? The president’s vision can’t be so narrow.” Reeves’ face remained expressionless, but despite this, he didn’t give off a dull impression.

"So, this useless armor is the Aragami you mentioned—"

"A god who can destroy an empire in an instant?" Pride's tone was full of doubt.

“Of course not.” Reeves shook his finger.

"Heh, if you tell me now that all that support from the Federation resulted in this piece of scrap metal, I bet you won't have a good ending."

Despite the threatening words, Levi showed no sign of nervousness.

"Of course, I know very well."

“This armor is merely a vessel for the Wild God.” Levi waved his hand, and countless characters and magic circles appeared around him.

“These things…” Pride frowned as he looked at the words.

"This is simply to help you, President, understand the Aragami."

"Where did you learn about this?"

"Just a little bit of knowledge discovered in taboos that some presidents would never want to know."

“Perhaps I’d like to know.” Pride narrowed his eyes.

"Perhaps," Levi shrugged, a look of helplessness on his face.

Levi clenched his fist, and the surrounding text vanished instantly.

"Even a god needs to be composed of a vessel, a soul, and a will."

"The soul drives the container, and the will determines the soul's actions."

"A vessel without a soul is merely an empty shell, and a soul without will can only drift aimlessly."

Reeve spoke at a fast pace, but every word struck a chord with the president.

Although Pride knew nothing about magic.

But I instinctively sensed the immense amount of information contained in these words.

"So, this armor is a container?"

“Correct.” Levi snapped his fingers and praised.

"What about the soul? What about the will?" Pride raised an eyebrow.

"The soul is already there; we just need to wait for the moment when it's all gathered. As for the will, it's always been in my hands," Levi said calmly.

"However, the Empire's obstruction is indeed annoying; otherwise, we should have arrived by now."

"The soul you're talking about, is it that girl...?" Pride realized what the girl Levi wanted to capture was.

That girl is the soul of the Aragami.

"correct."

"If we want to create an Aragami, that girl is indispensable."

“What if something happens to that girl?” Pride asked.

"Don't worry, I've already thought about it."

“Safe, that girl’s survival will be very, very safe.” A cold glint appeared in Levi’s eyes, making Pride feel uneasy.

"Why bother with all this trouble? Why not just keep your soul within the Federation from the start?"

“No, no, no, it’s not as simple as you think, Mr. President.” Reeves shook his finger.