Ch.119119. Assassination Cult (3)

Organization—Lenovel, who had reached the upper-intermediate level at the young age of just 23, had faced countless enemies targeting “The Family of Alcatraz.”

He had fought to protect others in one-against-many situations, and in some cases, even had the experience of exploiting the openings of overwhelmingly powerful opponents to bring them down, but…

“W-what… is this… what on earth?”

Even someone like Lenovel couldn’t help but lose his fighting spirit when faced with the being that appeared before his eyes.

The presence that this entity was radiating so generously, while concealing its true form, was enough to break the resolve of someone who had been the boss of an assassination organization in an instant.

For a moment, he was reminded of the figure who had stood at the head of the victory procession returning after subjugating the Orc Empire when he was a child—someone he later learned was an apostle of the war god Makius.

“W-who… who are you?”

When Lenovel asked with a trembling voice, the overwhelming presence revealed its form.

“…!!!”

Lenovel froze completely upon seeing the being, who had slightly tempered its aura.

Its outward appearance was that of a girl who seemed to be a wolf-type Beastman.

She appeared to be around 15 years old at most, with distinctive blood-red eyes and crimson hair. Objectively speaking, she was cute rather than beautiful.

However, Lenovel wasn’t distracted by her appearance; he could sense “something” flowing from within her.

An overwhelming “light” that was immeasurable through mortal eyes.

If one were to make a comparison, it was like the sun—a brilliant radiance like a brightly shining, burning sun that this wolf beastman girl was unconsciously and subtly emanating in all directions.

A powerful “light” was shining clearly on his skin and toward his soul.

That sun-like light was a massive power, a pressure, a “something” that seemed to melt everything, standing independently with its own reality, separate from everything else—a massive presence in itself.

Lenovel felt this presence as if flames were sweeping across his skin.

Something that felt like it was burning hot, yet somehow merciful, and beneath it all, endlessly viscous mortal emotions could be sensed.

Lenovel’s “eyes that see souls,” which had helped him reach this upper-intermediate level, had glimpsed a part of the “being” wearing the form of a wolf beastman.

Thud!

Because of this, he collapsed to the ground.

There was not a moment’s hesitation. Not even the slightest reluctance.

It didn’t matter that kneeling before this being he was encountering for the first time went against all his beliefs and everything he had stood for until now.

Lenovel, who had reached the point of feeling a kind of inevitability toward this act, knelt on both knees before the red wolf and was ecstatic with excitement.

《”Lenovel, you… have seen ‘me.'”》

“Y-yes! I have beheld you, the Bleeding One, with my own eyes!”

And perhaps realizing that Lenovel had seen through the “wolf’s” essence, she no longer felt the need to conceal herself.

To the girl… wolf… no, “god” who was emitting a red light like a halo from behind her head, so enchanting that his eyes felt like they might burst…

Lenovel, not even noticing that he had been crying profusely, bowed his head with the utmost respect he could muster and pleaded:

“Please, please allow this lowly one to serve you, I beg of you! For you, for you… no, for the great Bleeding God! I, I will dedicate everything I have!”

There was no hesitation.

The moment he directly gazed upon the “light” with his soul-seeing eyes, Lenovel, who had witnessed the distorted power of chaos with his “eyes,” simultaneously saw himself following the Bleeding God in the flow of chaos and rejoiced in knowing that serving the god was predetermined in the fate of the world.

The Avenger, the Bleeding God, the Great King in Red, the Blood Wolf God. And—’Vengeance.’

When faced with the ultimate reality that this god, known by such names, would eventually reach, the only thought remaining in Lenovel’s mind was to submit to him.

《”What do you desire?”》

“Nothing, I desire nothing! Please, please accept me! That is the very reason I have lived until now and reached this place!”

True to his words, Lenovel desired nothing.

No, rather, the act itself of submitting to him, pledging loyalty and serving him—that is, loyalty to an absolute being—was the only reward for his submission.

What he saw in the essence of all irregularities and “undetermined” things, which he observed through the filter of that wolf beastman form, was:

A being that exists entirely separate from the world, like the sun in the sky.

And “Vengeance,” who had seemed to be merely watching his actions until now, had somehow approached right in front of him and was holding something out before his face.

《”Very well, raise your head and see for yourself.”》

Immediately after, at the “god’s” words, Lenovel opened his eyes wide and took in what the god was offering.

In that moment, Lenovel was so shocked that he momentarily stopped breathing.

In appearance, it was just an exceptionally ornate and beautiful dagger.

The handle—the grip—was gilded and inlaid with various red gems, and the blade, slightly over 20cm in length, formed a beautiful curve.

Additionally, at the end of the handle—the grip—a large, transparent red gem sparkled, making it appear more valuable as a work of art than as a weapon.

But he could see it.

Though it took the form of a dagger, it was not essentially a dagger.

To draw a comparison, just like the Bleeding God of Vengeance standing before Lenovel now, it was concealing the entity contained within using the shell of a dagger.

And the power emanating from this entity in the form of a dagger was so tremendous that he could hardly define it clearly.

No, of course compared to the Bleeding God, it was less than a candle before the sun, but precisely because of this, he could clearly recognize the strength of the entity within the dagger.

A being with this much power could undoubtedly take his body from him… and the Bleeding God had only told him to look, not to take it.

Therefore, he was determined not to touch the dagger until permission was granted, but… why?

From the very moment the ornate dagger in the Bleeding God’s hand entered his vision, Lenovel was overwhelmed by an intense impulse that made it impossible for him to look away even for a second.

He wanted to possess it, to hold it. By any means necessary, he wanted to embrace that dagger, to hold it in his hand.

It was more like mind control than an impulse—a powerful and persistent feeling—so Lenovel desperately tried to suppress his desire to grasp the dagger.

《”You may take it.”》

And the moment the god, who had been watching Lenovel expressionlessly, slightly raised the corner of his mouth and said those words, Lenovel finally released the control over his impulse and grasped the dagger.

At that very moment.

Lenovel realized that everything up to this point—the “god” personally moving to offer the dagger—had been a test for him, and simultaneously noticed that the magical power flowing through the dagger had begun to transform his body.

The pulsating essence of power traveled through his blood vessels to his heart, then seeped into his blood and began to circulate powerfully throughout his entire body.

The blood infused with power flowed through Lenovel’s body, spreading the essence everywhere, and this pulsating power essence eventually spread throughout his entire body, beginning to change Lenovel’s physical form from the roots.

His bones became harder, becoming as sturdy as metal, and his muscles transformed to become dozens of times tougher and more flexible than before.

Perhaps due to the sacred blood flowing into Lenovel’s head? Somehow, Lenovel felt certain that with his current self, he could control bodily reactions through his own will.

Thus, Lenovel had literally changed from his former self almost at the species level, but could such a fundamental reconstruction of the body be painless?

Despite the excruciating pain that felt like every cell in his body was being crushed, making each second feel like dozens of minutes, Lenovel endured without even a groan.

And so, by passing all tests with such strong mental fortitude and faith, Lenovel proved himself worthy of being called The Chosen Avenger.