Chapter 171

Different types of mana reacted differently when coming into contact with other spells. Elemental magic was the most predictable, as it typically aligned with its natural counterpart, unless a significant power imbalance existed.A fireball that came into contact with a wall of water would usually sputter out and fail to achieve much of anything. Of course, if it was cast by that archmage and the recipient was a novice, the water would evaporate, but that was more to do with the people than the magic itself.

When light magic encountered dark magic, it often tore the other apart. Divine magic, when confronting a demon’s toxic mana, would frequently prevail.

But what happened when purifying flames, fueled by a divine relic, clashed with a greater demon’s deluge of noxious shadows in the middle of an exorcism?

Pain for everyone involved, that was what.

Nick was violently thrown back, crashing against the distant walls and dragging Rhea with him. Waves of darkness engulfed Elia until the screech of an owl rang out, and exorcizing waves of power began to restore the fabric of reality, immediately weakening the demon’s hold.

The Bornless Ritual invoked the unity of the divine and the individual soul's capacity to access higher realms of existence. It was something Nick had avoided so far, even when faced with the Summer Court, because he wasn’t sure whether using the name of something as powerful as the Bornless One might result in it answering back.

However, knowing that his only other option was to end up in the gullet of a demon—if he was lucky—he took the chance.

Fortunately, the ritual worked as intended. The owl figurine was the perfect catalyst, harnessing the formless waves of exorcizing magic and giving them purpose. It infused them into its own spiritual structure, using its nature as a guardian spirit to position itself at the center of the ritual.

From there, Nick lost control of the matrix, but he had imbued it with enough stabilizing intent that he was confident it could repair the cracks in reality.

After all, the demon’s existence went against the natural order. The World was already fighting against it. That was why they usually needed an anchor to breach through, often in the form of a voluntary sacrifice, much like the mothman. It wasn’t exactly an invitation, but it meant that as long as they inhabited the borrowed flesh, they wouldn’t be resisted as strongly.

The fact that this specific demon could materialize, albeit partially, on its own had implications Nick would need to contemplate deeply in the future.

Still, the restorative portion of the ritual proceeded smoothly. The that the owl statuette was based on possessed a natural ability to influence such matters, and Nick’s own desperate desire to resist the demon, along with the invocation to the Boundless One acting as a catalyst of purity, caused the cracks to begin sealing, and the corrupting effects of the demon’s presence started to reverse.

As a result, the shadows lost just enough strength, and a blinding light erupted from the spot where Elia had been engulfed, followed by a ball of silver flames exploding and shredding the last slithering remnants of the demon’s presence.

A horrifying screech rang out, akin to nails on a chalkboard raised to the tenth power. Nick’s brain felt scrambled, and even his various layers of protection could only do so much.

Eventually, when he mustered enough strength to carefully pull himself up, he was greeted by a unique sight. Where there had once been an altar, only molten slag remained. On the opposite side of the chamber, where the eye of the demon had appeared, there was nothing.

Not broken marble, nor residual mana—nothing. The perfectly smooth crater told Nick that the demon had cut its losses and retreated before it could truly be hurt.

However, he did not expect another attack.

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A noise distracted him from his contemplation, and he looked up to see that where a young foxgirl had once stood, there was now an imposing figure. With a corona of power surrounding her and three white tails swishing behind her, alongside long white hair, Elia had evidently undergone a significant transformation.

She stared ahead at the spot where the enemy had been, waiting to see if it would attempt to materialize once more. A minute later, she finally broke her gaze and turned to face Nick.

Quick steps allowed her to cover the distance in the blink of an eye, and she knelt beside him. Her attention, however, was focused on Rhea, who was moaning in pain.

Despite Nick’s best efforts to protect her, the poor girl had very little physical resilience, and even just the backlash from the three separate magics coming into contact was enough to hurt her.

Elia’s hand glowed with white flames as she laid her palm upon Rhea’s head. Nick spasmed, instinctively reacting to stop her, but her calm gaze stopped him. Elia wouldn’t hurt her friend, regardless of what changes she might be undergoing.

A little voice in the back of Nick’s head told him that she might not be in control at all. After all, his experiences with gods so far hadn’t exactly been positive, but he could see her shining through, no matter how different she might look. She still felt like his friend.

“I am just going to heal her,” Elia murmured. Her voice was slightly deeper, which made him tense up. Still, he held back, observing carefully.

The white flames slowly coated Rhea, making her groan. This time, however, it was out of relief. Bruises and scrapes he hadn’t been able to prevent gradually mended, and more importantly, her hips snapped back into place, drawing another moan.

Eventually, Elia pulled back, staring at her friend silently until Rhea cautiously pushed herself up, pressing her back against the wall.

“Thank you,” the alchemist groaned, “Healing potions don’t work well with dislocated joints, and hips are the worst. I would have had to waste a restorative elixir for that.”

The absurdity of pinching pennies at a moment like this finally broke the tension, and Nick couldn’t help but laugh. The girls soon joined him until the three of them were howling, half in relief, half in hysterics.

When Nick finally opened his eyes again, Elia had lost her brightness, and her hair had gone back to its usual color, but the third tail remained where it was.

“So.” He said, “What the hell happened?”

Rhea snorted, though she didn’t fall back into giggling.

“There was some truth to what the false guardian said,” Elia sighed, sitting beside them. “The hand we saw was a relic of Inari’s chosen, who had once led this temple as its miko. At the height of the human conquest of the grassland, she protected the temple from their attacks, but was caught by surprise when, soon after repelling a powerful push, demons began attacking the temple.”

“She still didn’t know how it happened when she died, but a splinter faction had begun forming within the beastmen forces, composed of those who thought that merely resisting the human advance would end in their complete destruction.” Elia continued.

“Well, that’s what happened, isn't it?” Rhea murmured, raising her hands when Elia glared. “Sorry.”

"The miko was exhausted, and everyone else who could fight had already left for the frontlines. So she did the only thing she could do: seal all the demons into the temple with herself, so that she might defeat them and prevent an Incursion.”

“I’m guessing it only worked partially,” Nick muttered, looking at where the demon had emerged from. Thanks to his ritual, there were no other cracks in reality, but that didn’t mean this place was safe. The demon had implied it had been waiting for a trap to spring for quite some time. It was possible other dangers lurked nearby.

“It worked too well,” Elia replied with a grimace. “The demons couldn’t escape the temple, but that only meant everyone else was trapped inside with them. The first few waves of lesser creatures were dealt with by the miko easily enough, but eventually, a stronger one stepped in. We saw its shadow at work just a while ago. That Which Corrodes is a powerful demon, capable of incredible destruction. When it started to seep into the material plane after a hidden ritual took place, the miko was left with little recourse. She used her own life force as fuel to purify the temple and still barely managed to prevent its coming.”

Yeah, that thing had been nasty. Even the pale imitation they faced was overwhelming, so Nick didn’t know what the poor miko could have done.

Evidently, she had done something right, considering that the grassland wasn’t crawling with demons, but they had encountered many victims in the tunnels. Whatever she did, it was not powerful enough to repel the demon’s taint entirely.

“I imagine the foxes we met were among those few unlucky ones who managed to survive until the very end,” he said. Those encounters had been quite unpleasant to deal with, and the knowledge that they might have been waiting for release for over a century only made it worse.

“Yes,” Elia replied simply. She didn’t seem to want to add more.

After a moment of silence, during which they contemplated how many things had happened in such a short time, Rhea tilted her head. “Wait, does this mean you got the trait? You have three tails!”

“Did you just notice now?” Nick asked, amused.

She waved him off, staring at Elia in wait, who smiled, “I have, yes. I didn’t exactly get an explanation, but inheriting the will of the previous miko and using it to fight back a demon was deemed enough for me to have completed my trial.”

Nick took her in. Despite clearly being fatigued, she exuded a newfound strength that had been absent before. He was sure she’d earned a few levels, but this was more significant than that. The new trait she possessed must be exceptionally powerful; although he felt confident he could still defeat her in a confrontation, he sensed that Elia would now be able to put up a fight.

Compared to what she had been capable of before they left Floria, that was a massive jump.

Part of Nick wanted to feel suspicious. His past encounters with gods and their relics had been far from favorable, and now Elia had just come into contact with a powerful one.

As if feeling his stare drill into her, Elia turned to him with a determined smile. “We have completed the trial, and I must thank you guys for all that you’ve done for me. I wouldn’t have been able to get here. You are free to return to Floria as soon as we get out of here.”

Nick paused before responding. She was implying that they would return alone, but why would that be the case? “Are there more corrupted temples?” he eventually asked, drawing a gasp of surprise from Rhea.

Elia lowered her eyes for a moment, clenching her hands. “I do not know for sure, because the relic only held so much knowledge. But the constant attacks we experienced on the way here can only mean that something is stirring up the grassland. And I must find out if the other temples are the cause.”