episode_0222

LLXIV.

Above the witch’s head is a card that emits black light.

On Santa’s chest is a light blue card like clear water,

Above Huang Yi’s head is a white card that emits a clear and bright light.

Each one had a strong presence.

The appearance of three linked cards.

If you ask me if I expected it, I would say no. And I would say no with the modifier ‘not at all’.

Although the original linked cards would appear out of nowhere, this time, regardless of whether it was out of the blue or not, what was even more unexpected was that three cards bloomed at once.

“Brother?”

“Huh? Oh. Okay.”

So I could only stare blankly for a moment, and only after May’s urging did I focus on the three cards.

Among the three cards, the first one was the one that emitted a light blue like clear water in front of Santa’s huge chest.

As the linked card blooms, the card information that comes to mind is that card,

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〈 Card Information 〉

1. Name: TEMPERANCE

2. Number: 14(Fourteen)

3. Type: PAIR

4. Opening Conditions ▼

5. Opening effect ▼

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He was talking about the Temperance card.

And as if it had been waiting for my gaze, the information floating on the card flipped over,

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〈 Card Information 〉

4. Opening conditions ▲

⓵ Arcana, THE HIGH PRIESTESS Bloom and Summon (Complete)

⓶ Arcana, THE HIGH PRIESTESS Divine Power Stat [250] Breakthrough (Complete)

⓷ Arcana, THE HIGH PRIESTESS heals 100 times or more (Complete)

⓸ Card Master Grand Master Intermediate and above (Completed)

5. Opening effect ▲

⓵ Arcana, THE HIGH PRIESTESS Divine power consumption reduced by 90%

⓶ Arcana, The High Priestess’ Divine Power stat greatly increased

⓷ Increases the overall divine power efficiency of Arcana by 5%

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It shows the conditions for opening and the effects of opening. It’s like expressing your presence.

And if the revealed effect is true, it is an excellent card that you can be proud of. It reduces the divine power consumption of the powerful healer, Santa, by 90%.

It’s not a ‘90%’ reduction, it’s a ‘90%’ reduction.

This means that you can achieve the same level of healing power with just 10% of your usual divine power usage.

‘It’s a scam.’

As if it had heard my inner thoughts, the Temperance card’s pale blue color became more and more vivid, as if it was shouting for its name to be called.

then,

“Card No. Two, THE HIGH PRIESTESS.”

Wouldn’t it be common sense to give them whatever they want?

Santa radiates a warm and holy light as if she had been waiting for my call. The Holy Power she displayed when she healed.

“Card No. Fifteen, TEMPERANCE.”

The card, which did not match its name of Temperance, emitted a blue light as soon as its name was called.

“Fair!”

As soon as the fair order was given, he jumped into Santa’s huge chest.

‘That kid?’

I jumped in with such excitement that I almost got angry without realizing it, as if I was aiming for that sight.

At least in my eyes.

Phew!

But as if it were a delusion, a divine light burst out from the halo that had been glowing softly on the side of Santa’s head.

Despite the explosion of light, Nana Arcana did not cover or close her eyes.

On the contrary,

“Huh?”

The Arcanas felt that something had changed under the influence of the light that had seeped into them.

Brrr.

The light that reached me also affected the card I held in my heart. It was an effect that was clearly beneficial.

The light that emanated from Santa due to the influence of the fair did not stop there.

Just like the first pair, May and the Moon Card, the priestly robes that Santa is wearing have been changed.

The golden robe, which looks like it was made by melting gold, is embroidered with mithril, and is naturally embroidered on the chest, arms, waist, and shoulders.

The watcher is surprised and exclaims, “Huh?” at the unique patterns carved on both shoulders and back of Santa.

A pattern that resembles multiple overlapping angel wings.

It is a Divine Mark, a sign from God that appears on a saint or a holy person.

After the light that had been moving and embroidering on its own completely disappeared, Santa gave off a noble aura that made him bow his head on its own.

The golden robe and pure silver silk that reflected the sunlight made the atmosphere of the room even more noble and sacred.

Her chest became fuller and her waist became slimmer, making her body look even more attractive.

I was momentarily lost in thought as I gazed at the sight of Santa, who seemed like a saint and at the same time a virtuous mother.

“Thank you, my lord.”

Santa, who greeted us with a warm and cozy smile, was holding a ‘cup’ in his left hand, made of gold, or rather, it looked like gold, but was actually made of orichalcum, the metal of the gods.

How did you know it was Orichalcum?

Of course,

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『The Holy Grail [God–]』

This limited edition tumbler was specially created by ‘Cafe Mora’, run by the new god of time who loves coffee and tea. It is made of orichalcum and has useful magic engraved by the god of magic himself. Only 369 pieces were made.

Because it is mass-produced, its rank has been lowered by one level from its original rank of [God-].

– Purification

– Holy water

– Does not dry out

– Preservation

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I know because I see it like this.

“My lord?”

“Yeah. Oh, sorry. Thanks for your hard work. Really.”

“No. It was you who did the hard work. So… … .”

Paat―.

As Santa interrupted his words, the light flowing from his outstretched hand permeated my entire body. As I enjoyed the warm yet cool, contradictory energy and opened my eyes, Santa, who had been in front of me, was now standing behind me with the Arcanas.

Hwang stepped forward, leaving behind Santa, who was hanging out with the Arcanas.

And then Huang checked the card that was emitting a brilliant light above his head.

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〈 Card Information 〉

1. Name: THE SUN

2. Number: 19 (Nineteen)

3. Type: PAIR

4. Opening Conditions ▼

5. Opening effect ▼

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As expected, this card was the same as the power of the Card Master, it was a sun card.

As with the temperance card above, let’s keep our eyes on the card for a while.

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〈 Card Information 〉

4. Opening conditions ▲

⓵ Arcana, THE HIEROPHANT Bloom and Summon (Complete)

⓶ Arcana, 360 or more demons, beasts, and undead killed by THE HIEROPHANT (Completed)

⓷ Arcana, THE HIEROPHANT At least one power related to Jema (制魔) has been opened (completed)

⓸ Card Master Grand Master Highest Level or higher (Completed)

5. Opening effect ▲

⓵ Arcana, the Pope (THE HIEROPHANT)’s divine magic power is greatly enhanced

⓶ Arcana, The Pope’s (THE HIEROPHANT) divine magic range increased by 4.6 times

⓷ Arcana, within the range of the Holy Magic of THE HIEROPHANT, all stats of the Arcana increase by 5%.

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The card reveals its opening conditions and opening effects, expressing its own necessity.

Huang Yi’s divine magic is truly superior to the demons. Even with just the existing divine magic, it is possible to do a sort of roundup of mid-level demons.

The ‘power’ of such sacred magic becomes ‘greatly’ stronger and its range expands?

I’m looking forward to it.

“Card No. Five, THE HIEROPHANT.”

So even my voice calling out Hwang Yi’s true name maintains a cheerful and lively tone.

Huang Yi responded to the Card Master’s call and was enveloped in a bright light that obscured her entire body.

“Card No. Nineteen, THE SUN.”

The card, which was worthy of its name, the Sun, emitted light that filled the space of the World Tree as soon as its name was called.

“Fair!”

At the command of the Card Master, light emanated from Hwang Yi’s entire body.

And as the game character evolves, the unused hat on Huang Yi’s head becomes more splendid, and the third branch of the World Tree that Huang Yi was holding in his hand begins to transform into a golden metal staff.

Above all, the sight of the 『Third Branch of the World Tree』 that Hwang Yi had received as compensation a little while ago being enveloped in a vivid golden light was enough to make everyone open their mouths in admiration.

This is because the branches of the World Tree, which originally gave off a sacred feeling, were transformed into the golden metal, Orichalcum.

Also, how did you know it was Orichalcum?

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『The Third Branch of the Evolved World Tree [God-]』

(Strategy)

The third branch of the World Tree evolved into Orichalcum after being affected by a piece of fragment imbued with the power of a god.

– Special power 〈Jema (制魔)〉

– Special power 〈Evil Extermination〉

– Special power 〈Exorcism〉

– Special Power 〈Walking Alone in the Darkness〉

― Power of Use 〈Holy Land〉

― Sustaining Power 〈Divine Light〉

Sustaining Power 〈Divine Light〉

Orichalcum, which was created naturally by combining a branch of the sacred world tree and divinity, has the power to destroy evil just by its existence.

Just holding this staff will cause the successor to emit an aura with the power of exorcism within a 99m radius.

Ability to use: Amplifies the power of the Holy Land and greatly increases its duration.

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Of course I know because I saw it again.

But I thought Orichalcum was originally made of metal, so does a world tree touched by divinity become Orichalcum?

“Thank you, my lord!”

Hwang Yi’s gestures of greeting with such restraint that it almost seems like he’s a knight are strangely cute.

As he smiled brightly and nodded his head several times, Hwang Yi’s cheeks turned red and he walked towards the Arcanas with quick steps.

Finally, I looked at the information on the black card that was emitting an ominous light above the witch’s head.

The previous two link cards were also meant to be double-checked, but this time I checked them more carefully.

That card, which was linked to the witch, was special and a bit difficult to understand.

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〈 Card Information 〉

1. Name: THE DEVIL

2. Number: 15(Fifteen)

3. Type: PAIR

4. Opening Conditions ▼

5. Opening effect ▼

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Yes, that’s right.

THE DEVIL, it was a devil card.

What the hell is a devil card?

It seems like something that wouldn’t go well with the Arcana, but it also seems like it would fit because the Arcana is a witch.

‘Where…? Hmm?’

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〈 Card Information 〉

4. Opening conditions ▲

⓵ Arcana, THE WITCH Blooming and Summoning (Complete)

⓶ Arcana, The Witch’s first experience was entirely driven by the Card Master’s desire (complete)

⓷ Arcana, THE WITCH Voluntarily Wanted (Completed)

⓸ Card Master Tendency is at least [Neutral – Good] (Complete)

5. Opening effect ▲

⓵ Unsealing of Walpurgis’ sacred object, Ouroboros

⓶ Inheriting the “Night Contract” made by Walpurgis

⓷ Arcana, grants ‘darkness’ attribute to THE WITCH’s magic.

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I’ve been looking closely at the open effect, but I have no idea.

Oh, I understand one thing. The part about giving the witch’s magic the ‘dark’ attribute.

I learned that the attributes closest to the source that have an advantage over the four major attributes are the dark and light attributes. When I was being educated about magic.

A qualitatively different attribute from the evil and death used by the demon race.

But now, its dark nature wasn’t important.

If you ask me if I’m doing this because I feel uncomfortable with the Devil Card, I can confidently say no. At first, I was like, “Huh?” but the fact that it’s standing in front of the witch means that it will definitely be helpful to the witch.

but,

‘A devil in front of the World Tree… … .’

There was only concern about whether it would be okay to unleash the Devil Card in front of the World Tree.

But the time spent worrying and pondering was short. The ‘Card of the Beginning’, which was the power and everything of the Card Master, was awakened by the will of God. By the power of the candidate.

I believe that nothing that would clash with the World Tree would pop out of such a card.

“Card No. One, THE WITCH.”

In an attempt to atone for her momentary hesitation, the powerful and resolute Card Master’s call caused a black glow to flow from the witch’s body.

“Card No. Fifteen, THE DEVIL.”

Likewise, the linked card, ‘The Devil’, which was floating at the witch’s eye level, emitted darkness that seemed like it would suck up light.

“Pair!”

The witch’s pair was different from the previous pairs of Santa and Hwang, including May.

In the case of Mei and the Moon, the Moon card was absorbed into Mei to fill in what Mei was lacking.

Accordingly, May’s hanbok-like clothing changed, her appearance changed, and her strength also became stronger.

Rather than making up for their shortcomings, Hwang-i and Sang-ta made their strengths even stronger. The change in attire was a natural progression.

On the other hand, the pair of the witch and the devil was a little different.

The belt the witch was wearing around her waist came loose on its own. The Ouroboros, a symbolic being that bites its own tail and wraps itself around the universe, representing infinity.

Ouroboros rose to the height of the witch’s chest and held the linked card ‘The Devil’ in its mouth.

and,

Gulp!

“?????”

Swallowed it.

“Huh? Oh, no! You evil snake!”

As Mei flapped her arms in shock, Ouroboros’s mouth opened and a darkness appeared that seemed like an abyss that would swallow up even light.

The only changes to the witch’s appearance so far are that her belt now flutters around her and her red robes have become more gleaming.

Instead, the Ouroboros that had fooled us into thinking it was the Witch’s Belt had grown in size. It had become thicker, and most importantly, its mouth had opened.

As I was observing Ouroboros, its enlarged mouth opened wide and something shot out from the abyss-like darkness coiled within it.

― It has been a long time since I have seen you, Maiden of Walpurgis. The first of the seventy-two greets the Master of the sacred covenant.

No, I was summoned.

“Long time no see. BAAL.”

Seriously. The devil.

A human face with a crown on its head, with the heads of a cat and a frog next to it, and legs sprouting out like spiders, giving it a hideous appearance.

Rather, it was a strange appearance that would have been even stranger if he had insisted that he was not a devil.

“Is that uncomfortable? I wish you would come back with a more comfortable appearance.”

– According to the will of the sacred contracting party.

Then Baal changed into the form of an old man in broad robes, holding a spear in his left hand and a thunderbolt in his right.

It was emitting such a sacred and destructive power that it could be considered a ‘god’ rather than a ‘devil’ in some sense.

okay.

Just like Indra in Indian mythology.

“What about others?”

― The space is small and inadequate, so I have no choice but to come here to greet you as a representative.

“I see. It was nice to see you after such a long time.”

– As per the contract of the night.

The witch leaves behind a strange slogan-like message, meaning to tell her to go back, and disappears into smoke.

The witch’s face darkened noticeably.

And I could guess why, so I hugged the discouraged witch.

“Thank you for your hard work.”

When he conveyed such words of gratitude to the witch who had come into his arms, the witch moved her lips several times as if she was hesitating, and then finally opened her mouth to ask.

“Isn’t it ugly?”

“Not bad.”

“… … .”

“If you say it’s not ugly after seeing that appearance, you’re lying. But that’s separate from you. You don’t need to be discouraged by that.”

The witch dug deeper into me at my answer. It was the first time in a long time that she felt comfort and affection, so she was enjoying the feeling.

– Are you finished now?

If only it weren’t for that World Tree guy who wouldn’t even know how to eat it and die.

“Uh. Why?”

– Really?

I couldn’t confidently say yes to the World Tree’s question, as if it was asking with anticipation of something.

It was a ticklish feeling in my brain, as if something was coming to mind. In that moment of worry about something that wouldn’t come to mind, the World Tree bent all of its branches to caress me.

From the first branch to the fifth branch.

Five large branches touch every part of my body.

– May blessings be with you.

It is a blessing from the World Tree that only a few people in the history of the elves have received.

And as if waiting for that blessing, the feeling that had been tickling my brain, as if the thought was coming to me, becomes refreshing.

“Ahh.”

The exclamations and admiration that came out without me knowing,

Chorrr-!!

It meant the summoning of a new Arcana.

That too,

“Brothers!!”

The flowering of not one, but two Arcana.