novelraw Chapter 448
Chapter 448
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
Chapter 448
The servants of the Cascadia estate were in a frenzy due to an unexpected disaster.
For some reason, from early in the morning, a wave of bread had suddenly poured throughout the entire estate.
“Good grief… this place really never gets boring, does it?”
Speaking nonchalantly, a male attendant chewed and swallowed the bread in his hand with a crunch.
“It’s tasty.”
“Senior, didn’t you hear? They say Miss Elpiria made that.”
“Miss Elpiria?”
“Yes.”
The beastkin maid who had once been rescued with Leon’s help in the past smiled softly.
“They say the young lady was hungry. So she made bread with magic… but her talent is just so extraordinary that it turned out like this.”
At those words, the attendant tilted his head.
“Making bread out of thin air is magic?”
Is that really magic?
Does that even make sense?
It feels more like a miracle.
To the attendants and maids who did not know the truth, it was nothing more than an absurd story.
Thus, they began dealing with the bread that had unintentionally filled the estate—eating it, setting it aside to distribute throughout the territory, or discarding the ones that had gotten dirty, handling them one by one.
And then.
For the attendants and maids, their greatest interest at the moment was fixed on Elpiria, who was running around the garden with an innocence so pure it was like that of a newborn child.
In the case of a newborn, most emotions are expressed through laughter and crying.
Happiness or interest is shown through laughter, while hunger, pain, and sleepiness are expressed through crying.
And now, all of Elpiria’s senses were filled with curiosity and fascination toward the world.
At an age where even a fallen leaf brushing past in the wind would make her burst into giggles.
That was Elpiria right now.
Watching the four spirits playing tag, along with Arsha’s contracted magical beast Radon and the black dragon, she clapped her hands and laughed brightly as she chased after them, and that sight naturally brought smiles to everyone’s faces.
Isna silently observed the scene.
Leon and Luna showed no signs of concern at all, but what Elpiria had displayed that morning was not something that could simply be brushed aside.
‘It’s certain. That isn’t a power any ordinary living being could possess.’
The Archangel Michael had tried to bestow upon Elpiria the title of the Immaculate Archangel.
But.
From what Isna could see now, Elpiria was nothing like an Immaculate Archangel.
The power Elpiria had just shown was creation.
And transformation.
For now, it was merely twisting something of a completely different structure to create something new, but if that power were to fully develop, it could quite literally become the ability to create something from nothing.
That was the problem.
In this world, there was only one being she knew who possessed such power.
The being who created light in the beginning, and created the world.
The power of the Chief God.
At present, the Chief God remained silent.
Through her conversations with the two Leons, Isna believed that the reason the current Chief God remained silent was the price paid from the countless repetitions of time.
Perhaps… the Chief God had fallen into a sleep from which it would never awaken.
And in such a situation, Elpiria was born possessing what appeared to be the power of the Chief God?
No matter how she thought about it, her doubts would not settle.
‘Doesn’t he realize… that if this goes wrong, Elpiria’s existence could drift too far away?’
Leon and Luna merely looked at their daughter as if she were adorable, but for Isna, complex worries arose instead.
At that moment, the murmurs of the attendants and maids nearby reached her ears.
“She’s so cute…”
“Oh my. Miss… she’s so beautiful. When she grows up, she’ll make so many men cry.”
“Wouldn’t they get completely wrecked by the young master before that?”
With a complicated expression, Isna approached Leon.
“Leon.”
“Yeah?”
She asked him as he smiled while watching Elpiria.
“You… don’t have any thoughts about Elpiria’s power?”
She truly could not understand it.
Normally, if one were to name the most unpredictable—or even insane—person in the Mielephon territory, she herself would not be excluded, given her own peculiar way of thinking.
But.
Even for her, Leon simply smiling in a situation like this was beyond the scope of understanding.
“What do you mean no thoughts? I’m worried she might get hurt while running around.”
“That’s not what I’m asking! Aren’t you worried at all right now?!”
At her outburst, Leon quietly turned his head and looked at Isna.
“Isna.”
“W-what.”
“Our daughter is just amazing. Do we need anything more than that?”
Isna was left speechless, staring blankly.
“Elpiria!”
“Kyahaha!! Aba!”
Clapping her hands in delight, Elpiria’s eyes sparkled as she ran straight toward Leon and threw herself into his arms.
Despite her body having grown, pronunciation still seemed difficult for Elpiria.
To begin with, it was only temporary growth.
Her body had matured, but her mind was still no different from that of a newborn.
Seeing that, Isna let out a hollow sigh.
“Ahh… yeah. I suppose someone who endured that absurd place like you… there’s nothing you couldn’t handle…”
Isna deliberately chose not to mention it.
The absurd stretch of time Leon had to endure alone while accumulating power in the Labyrinth.
The others were the same.
Even Luna, who knew the truth, said nothing.
Even Luna, an archangel said to have existed since the beginning of creation, could not recklessly judge the time Leon had spent there.
“More importantly. What happened to the gate to the heavens?”
“If we want it to be safe, we have to be careful. Don’t expect it to be done quickly.”
Saying she would practice controlling her authority, she left the scene.
At that moment, Elpiria’s body, which had been giggling, began to be wrapped in light.
“Looks like she’s returning now.”
Soon, in Leon’s arms remained a small newborn baby wrapped in oversized clothes, giggling as she vigorously waved her arms and legs.
It was already the second transformation.
* * *
After a few days passed, we managed to gather a decent amount of information.
Elpiria would periodically grow, and after a certain amount of time, she would return to her original form.
During that process, no abnormalities were found in her body.
The extent of her growth had not gone beyond the appearance of around fourteen to fifteen years old—the same as when she had produced piles of bread.
That was likely her maximum.
Though, in truth, judging age purely by appearance wasn’t exactly reliable either.
Just in case, we had tried teaching the grown Elpiria various things.
We tried teaching her speech and writing, and even general knowledge.
In the end, it was a meaningless effort.
The moment she returned to being a child, Elpiria forgot everything as if she were a blank slate.
Just like how one forgets the contents of a dream upon waking, Elpiria could not remember anything at all.
“Kyaa!! Awu!”
And.
In her current newborn state, Elpiria could not use that mysterious power.
It seemed to be an ability that could only be used after she grew to a certain extent.
However, there was a difference.
They say children have boundless stamina.
“Urgh…”
Thud…
Melissa, completely exhausted, collapsed onto the bed.
Beside her, Grivy—who once boasted the greatest stamina in Cascadia—was also sprawled out.
“Kyaa!! Kyareureuk!”
Amazingly, Elpiria possessed enough vitality to knock both of them down.
It was enough to make one wonder where such endless energy came from.
“Hey… you take care of her. I think I’m going to die…”
“Do I look fine to you?”
I replied with sunken eyes, and she buried her face.
“Babies are cutest when you only see them once in a while.”
She was still lovable, but childcare was truly on another level of difficulty.
“I don’t think so. I asked the attendants and maids—they said they’ve never seen a case like Elpiria either.”
The problem was that the things Elpiria laughed and wanted to keep doing weren’t activities that used just a normal amount of stamina.
For example, Melissa had to hold Elpiria in her arms all day, bouncing her while running around the estate at incredible speed.
And that was the issue.
On top of that, Elpiria caused quite a lot of trouble.
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
When she was a newborn or in her normal state, it wasn’t much of a problem, but when she took on the appearance of around fourteen, she would frequently manifest her unique power and fill the surroundings with piles of bread or flour.
Fortunately, for now, it only happened when she was hungry, so we made sure to prepare things in advance in case she might get hungry.
[You can receive the transfer of a new Hall’s memory.]
“This time, I won’t let it be taken.”
[I will do my best.]
The Martial God’s Hall inside my body was, quite literally, a thief that snatched away what I was about to consume.
The moment I prepared to receive the memory transfer, it would gulp it down.
What was even worse was that the cooldown after receiving a transfer still applied.
The memory wasn’t in my head, but the burden was still placed on my body.
I shuddered at this responsibility without any benefit.
No matter how necessary it was to face the Outer Gods, wasn’t this too much?
At the very least, it would be one thing if this damned power actually helped directly, but so far, all it did was sit inside my body and steal things, which only made my irritation grow.
[Would you like to transfer the memory?]
“Very secretly and carefully.”
At my words, the Librarian began transferring the memory to me with extreme caution so as not to awaken the Martial God’s Hall inside me.
[Maintaining Concealment Prayer.]
[When injecting covertly, various penalties may occur. The name of the Hall and detailed memories can be confirmed immediately after the transfer is complete.]
[Additionally, you cannot choose between special Halls and general Halls. All resources are invested into concealment.]
“Got it for now.”
I stared at the Librarian’s message while breaking into a cold sweat.
There was a change, but unlike before, nothing surged in all at once.
Very slowly.
Very secretly.
So that the Martial God’s Hall wouldn’t awaken and snatch it away.
Then, as if one second felt like ten years, about five minutes passed in tense anticipation.
Fortunately, the Librarian proved highly capable and successfully completed the memory transfer to me.
[Congratulations. The Hall’s memory transfer has been completed.]
“That’s it!!”
I let out a shout of triumph and activated my mind.
An enormous amount of memory flooded in, but by now, I was practically an expert.
“What kind of Hall is this?”
The moment I activated the memory, vast knowledge seeped into my mind.
[The Aura of the Divine Craftsman resides within you.]
[The Eyes of the Divine Craftsman reside within you.]
At the same time, my eyes burned with an intense heat.
“Ugh…”
The pain didn’t last long.
A level of agony that blurred my vision surged through me, but soon it returned to normal.
[From this moment onward, you can perceive the Breath of Metal.]
[From this moment onward, you can see and verify the grade of all equipment you see and touch.]
The Hall of the Blacksmith!
The power I had obtained this time was none other than something related to blacksmithing.
Until now, I had processed items using the Machine God’s Heart from the Hall of the Sage.
Just considering that alone, it was already an incredible level of skill.
But.
The power I had now gained went even deeper.
Rather than simply making something, it felt like bringing it into existence.
I reached out toward a wooden training sword nearby.
And checked it.
[Wooden Sword]
[Material – Ebony Wood]
[Grade – Normal]
[A wooden sword carved from ebony by a fairly skilled craftsman. Its sharpness is poor, but as it was made for training, it is sturdy and heavy.]
Interest flickered in my eyes.
“Oh… so this is what I can see now?”
To be honest, I wasn’t particularly interested in weapons.
Before obtaining the Demon Sword, I used to name them things like Black Night Sword No.1 and No.2 and just use them.
And after acquiring the sturdy Demon Sword, I simply focused on its durability and didn’t bother using anything else.
Besides, I already had the power of the Hall of Enhancement, the Hall of Communion for buffs, and the Hall of Imbuement for enchantments.
Even applying those to weapons instead of people had considerable merit.
However, none of those could strengthen the very base itself.
I had thought that items created with perfect ratios through the Hall of the Sage were the best.
But now, after gaining this memory, I was certain.
Things made like molding clay with the Hall of the Sage might look good on the outside, but in every other aspect, they were no different from mass-produced goods.
Not that mass-produced goods are bad, but… it’s like the difference between factory-made items and luxury craftsmanship.
And the moment I obtained this power, everything looked completely different.
If I combined this technique with the Machine God’s Heart, I might be able to make even the base materials themselves far stronger.
But.
After gaining the power of the Hall of the Blacksmith, everything began to appear a little differently.
I immediately pulled out the Ghost Sword Elekstra from my subspace.
This was what I was most curious about.
A sword related to Adam, and one I had used well until now.
Though it overflowed with ghostly energy, the moment it was in my hand, it became quiet as if nothing had ever happened.
Then I activated its information.
Beep!
And the information appeared.
[Demon Sword Elekstra]
[Material – Tears of God]
[Grade – Unmeasurable (Sealed)]
[Divine equipment with most of its power sealed. It contains no special techniques. Forged with the power of a god, its durability is astonishing, but aside from that, nothing particularly notable can be seen. However. For some reason during the sealing process, the lingering resentment of an ancient spirit attached itself, turning it into a sword that emits ghostly energy and drives its wielder to ruin.]
[Special Option – Indestructible]
[Special Option – Sealed]
[Special Option – Cursed Energy Emission, Cursed Energy Erosion]
[Special Option – Sealed]
“Pretty decent features. Should I try making a rattle for Elpiria?”
The first thought that came to mind was that of a foolish doting father.
[A… rattle, you say?]
Even the Librarian seemed dumbfounded as it asked.
“Think about it. A god-tier rattle. Add buffs with the power of Communion, push it to +15 enhancement, and enchant it with the Hall of Imbuement?”
Wouldn’t it become a planet-destroying toy rattle, in a ridiculous sense?
[For infants, metal toys are not used as they could cause injury. In this case, the toy is merely an excuse to satisfy your desires as a father…]
“The metal will be inside. I’ll wrap the outside with a soft material.”
At my nonsensical idea, a sigh could be heard from somewhere.
—It’s been a long time since I’ve seen someone waste their talent in such a novel way. What use is a rattle like that?
It was Lucifer’s voice, sounding utterly incredulous.
“Who knows. It’s pointless.”
—And yet you still…
Exactly why I’m doing it.
—Haah, you’re insane…
With a voice full of exasperation, Lucifer sighed and fell silent.
Ignoring him, I immediately rushed into the workshop and infused mana into the extinguished furnace.
[Hellfire]
Whoosh!
A 9th-circle ultra-high-temperature flame spell was used merely to melt metal.
Then I picked up a basic iron ingot from nearby.
The memory was clear, but since my body had not yet fully synchronized with it, the results could differ.
I needed time to adjust it to my body.
Gripping the ingot, I coated it with the Divine Craftsman’s aura and threw it into the blazing furnace.
A normal ingot would melt instantly, making it impossible to work with, but through a special process, the internal structure of the ingot could be altered.
The furnace won’t melt, right?
It’s coated, after all.
The furnace before me was an ultra-high-strength object created by combining the Machine God’s Heart with multiple layers of magic, possessing exceptional resistance to heat.
[Based on the current situation, the power of Hellfire imbued with the Breath of the Divine Craftsman is analyzed to be stronger than its original output. There is a 99% probability that the furnace will collapse in 10 seconds. Subsequently, the workshop and estate are predicted to catch fire.]
However, the flame activated using the Breath of the Divine Craftsman easily exceeded my expectations.
I had never tried combining Hellfire with the Divine Craftsman’s Breath before, even within the Hall.
Still, this clearly far surpassed my anticipated range.
“You should’ve told me sooner, damn it!”
[This is absurd.]
For some reason, the Librarian’s message felt slightly sulky.
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]