Chapter 152

were relatively common in Earth's past, as beings born from religion's failure to protect its believers. With the collapse of mana levels, they became rarer, but they remained a known entity.Nick had not personally faced any, but his grandfather had, and he had prepared Nick in case he ever encountered one. The first thing to do, he’d said, was to deny the creature any belief in their power.

If he made the mistake of considering them too strong, they’d be empowered and would make exorcizing them much more difficult. Now, Nick didn’t want to go that far, as he had a totem in need of a spiritual occupant, so he couldn’t overwhelm and destroy it.

That was the most commonly employed method when facing such a creature, and as he stared down the intense power of its anger, Nick could see why. Allowing a to ramp up was unwise and ran the risk of it feeding on the fear generated by its growth.

was already active to protect him from the attack, but Nick couldn’t risk matching it again. The subsequent explosion would be far more powerful than the previous one and could either kill the angel or send them all careening into the ether.

While the ritual technically anchored Nick to one location in the physical world, he knew better than to trust that anything worked as it should in the astral plane.

Tanking the hit was his best chance. Allowing the enemy a free shot was never wise, but he was sure a combination of and would suffice.

That decided, Nick crafted a protective shell of wind around his astral form, grateful for his previous practice and ready to confront the might of the head-on.

More and more dark energy coalesced into its form, and when it finally reached its apex, it released with a thrum of power.

Nick put a good portion of his free mana into his defense, pushing and to their limits.

It wasn’t at the level of the monstrous construct he’d fueled with the lives of the fae, but it was by far the closest he’d come to that using just his own mana.

The shield was so thick by the time the beam struck that Nick could see its effects on the ether. A bang echoed in his bones at the moment of contact, but he remained in full control, empowering his defenses more with every passing second.

Worryingly, the angel’s attack was also becoming stronger, but just as Nick began to notice cracks in the barrier, it cut off abruptly.

A yowl echoed through the astral sea, sending any lingering spirit fleeing. Nick’s senses soon gave him an idea of what was happening, showing Talbot shaking the false angel for all it was worth, his silver claws and fangs brutalizing its eyes.

“Bring it here!” Nick called, working furiously to redirect the excess power he had summoned into the ritual itself. He had prepared for a lesser spirit, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t change things on the fly.

When Talbot dragged the monster into his vicinity, Nick acted. He didn’t bother with an explanation as he had with the remnant. There was no benign intelligence to convince here, just a spirit to shackle.

He bit his thumb until it beaded with blood, activating the ritual’s provision for reticent spirits, and when he spoke, his voice thundered through the ether.

“Behold this bleeding hand of mine,

Gashed with the sacramental sign!

I stanch the blood; the wafer soaks it up,

and the high priest invokes!

There is no grace: there is no guilt:

This is the Law: DO WHAT I WILT!”

Where once thin chains of red power had snaked around the remnant and kept it still until it agreed to terms, this time Nick used a fully fledged binding.

The false angel had lost and would die if it refused. However much it might despise servitude, it was a creature born of despair. When order was imposed upon it, it could only accept. It knew it would cease to exist as it was, but that didn’t mean much for a spirit.

And accept it did, as the thick chains of power dragged it down into the circle, where its essence was broken down, its strength stripped from its grasp, and it was all channeled into the owl figurine.

When it was all done, Nick returned to the material world feeling drained. The false angel hadn’t been strong enough to kill him, but capturing the spirit alive had taken more out of him than he’d expected.

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Fortunately, the rewards were worth it. Picking up the owl figurine, Nick noticed the changes. Where it had once been scuffed and dirty, it now shone as if it had just been lacquered. The roughly carved eyes were now perfectly visible, and upon examining the wings, he found tiny dots scattered across them.

More importantly, Nick could sense the power within. The false angel’s consciousness had been shattered, yet its vigilance and strength remained. He’d just have to set the owl to it, and it would guard any location.

A quick application of ensured that no signs remained of the rituals, and Nick and Talbot were soon hurrying back home.

Dinner that night was a tense affair. Eugene tried to lighten the mood by recounting how his attempts at training had instead led him to develop one of his fire skills, attempting to draw laughs. However, Nick was too tired to follow his lead, especially when it became clear that nothing interesting had happened on the Prestige front, and Elena was brooding.

When they finally washed and put away the dishes, Eugene had had enough. “Alright, out with it. You two have been quiet as mice the whole time, and while I don’t mind a quiet meal, I know better than to think you’ve both decided to take a vow of silence at the same time.”

Nick forced himself to smile, “It’s nothing that bad. I’m a bit tired from training, and I think Mom is still digesting what I told her earlier.”

Elena notably avoided sitting in her usual armchair and instead took the seat next to Nick, hugging him to her. “My baby wants to leave!” She said sadly, and Eugene released an “Ah” of understanding.

“We have already spoken about this,” he said after a moment, “No one will be able to force you away if you don’t want to go.”

Nick shook his head. “No, it’s not about that. Well, it is tangentially related, but that’s not important. I’ve decided to help Elia go through a series of trials that will enable her to become a Miko, which is an important figure in the beastmen community. We must reach one of their temples within a month to achieve that. I will come back once that’s done.” He didn’t mention that he doubted he’d stay for long, as there was no need to add to the burden.

Eugene murmured, “Miko…Miko…”, looking as if he were trying to remember something. “Ah! I got it. That’s the traditional spiritual leader, right?”

Nick nodded, surprised. “Yes! Technically, she already held that position since she got the second tail, but Wulla tried to force her out of power once she opposed resuming planning for the rebellion, and so she’s being forced to go through the whole ceremony. If she receives the Trait, though, no one would be able to gainsay her without an actual Chief.”

“A whole month!” Elena grumbled, hugging Nick tighter. “And in the grassland alone!”

Eugene gave her a weirdly intense look, “Didn’t your mother send you out on hunts by yourself when you were his age?”

She scoffed, apparently not moved, “Bah, those were different times. Just the other day, there was this huge column of fire in the distance. Who knows how many trolls are ambling around, destroying villages!”

Nick shook his head, concealing a smile. He knew she was being deliberately dramatic. It was her method of processing her emotions, and so he let her.

“I think that it’s a good idea. Having a Miko would make things easier on our front, too. It means we can start talking about the treaty and not just skirt around it.” Eugene surprised them again.

Nick tilted his head, urging him to explain more. “What treaty?”

“Are you talking about the treaty that was signed a century ago after the kingdom’s expansion?” Elena asked, and Eugene made a so-so sign with his hand.

“There are actually multiple treaties, one for every center the beastmen were displaced to. There is an overarching one that lays down the major rules, like them not being allowed to form a beastmen-only locality, and that should anyone try to bring war to the kingdom, the entirety of the youngest generation born within ten years of the attempt would be culled.” He explained in a matter-of-fact tone, as if he hadn’t just said there would be a genocide if the kingdom realized what was going on in Floria.

“What? But then why would they even try, if they know the consequences are so great?” Nick asked, and Eugene shrugged.

“I suspect they are hoping that no one would care. It’s been a long time since the king sent any troops this way, given how much more active the eastern and northern borders are. It’s a stupid gamble, but it’s not necessarily wrong.”

That explanation didn’t sit well with Nick, but he’d already made peace with the whole rebellion thing not being particularly well thought out. “What was that about becoming Miko helping out?” He asked instead.

“With a proper representative, one that is recognized in the treaty at least, and not just someone the beastmen chose among themselves as an informal leader, we can hold talks about their future. I couldn’t do that so far because they lacked anyone who could be called lawful, and if they tried to force the issue and name someone, they’d risk the kingdom’s wrath just the same as with open rebellion.”

Again, that explanation wasn’t at all satisfactory, but Nick was starting to realize that this whole treaty issue had been very one-sided. It made sense that the conquered people would have very few avenues to be heard, no matter how much he might dislike it.

“Does that mean I have your consent to go, then?” He eventually asked. He’d question Elia more about this, as she’d spent the last few days preparing for the trials and learning about being a Miko. She’d know.

“You do,” Eugene said, giving his wife another intense look. Surprisingly, she didn’t complain. She just hugged Nick much tighter, making him flail for air.

It felt like a lifetime ago since they had discussed the Purification of the Ashes in class, but it was finally here.

The day promised to be a scorching one. Not a single cloud was in the sky, and the sun was already beating down on the paved streets despite the early hour. As Nick walked with his parents toward the temple, he nodded in greeting as more and more people joined them in the procession.

He tugged at his ceremonial clothes, annoyed at how they restricted his movements. They belonged to Devon, as his own set from the previous year was now too small, and his brother didn’t need it.

He grumbled half-heartedly to himself.

This was one of the few ceremonies with mandatory attendance. While people wouldn't be jailed for not attending, the temple would look very badly upon anyone who missed it.

The great white building buzzed with energy as priests and acolytes wandered about, greeting people while carrying a pot of ash to sprinkle on their clothes as they entered.

“Welcome, Captain and family!” The acolyte who met them wasn’t someone Nick recognized, and he noted that nearly everyone with an active role today appeared to be part of the group Marthas had brought in. Some local priests could be seen in the back, but they didn’t interact with anyone and seemed subdued.

Before Nick could contemplate the reasons behind that, he sensed what felt like the sun touching his senses. His head snapped in that direction, and he was surprised to discover that it was Marthas.

The Prelate had returned to full strength, and from the glint in his eyes, today promised to be anything but boring.