Chapter 481

The corpses of the Archangels, beings that were sacred in nature from the very beginning, could be used as holy substances without any modification, so they were left as they were.

Thirty Archangel corpses that had been restored to pristine condition were laid out in a row. Of those, ten were instantly turned into undead using Necro Dragon Arts while receiving Dragon Force shared from Cardina and the others. The Archangel zombies stood in place on standby.

Next, ten upper-body sections from the enormous mummies - each in a state of near-total ruin - were prepared, and all of them were neatly gathered together in one spot.

"That takes care of all the preparations. All that's left now is to see whether the double Celestial Demon Tribe Creation works as intended."

"Will you be using Divine-Dragon Magical Power for this?"

"Yeah, that's the plan. Using it instead of plain Divine Power raises the quality of the energy by a significant margin. It'll probably need to be done in one uninterrupted go, from start to finish."

With that, Tatsuro began refining Divine-Dragon Magical Power - an energy formed by perfectly blending Divine Power, Dragon Force, and Magical Power together.

He had not yet reached the level of mastery needed to use it freely in combat without any difficulty, but even so, his generation speed had improved considerably compared to when he had first started.

Once he had maintained a sufficient quantity of refined energy, he glanced over at Jeanne and Nana.

"Cardina and the others, I'll be counting on your support as well."

"Peewee!"

"Got it!"

"——!"

"Then let's do it - all at once."

"Neigh!"

"Leave it to me!"

As Tatsuro activated Celestial Demon Tribe Creation and Monster Human Tribe Creation simultaneously, Jeanne and Nana activated Celestial Tribe Creation and Demon Tribe Creation at virtually the same moment.

In much the same way as Mixed Magic, they began weaving their skills together, pouring that combined power over the materials.

In an instant, the forty bodies of material dissolved into a viscous, slime-like liquid, each of them merging with the others and shifting to a grayish color with a pronounced whitish tinge.

The gray substance churned and squelched with a sound like clay being kneaded, its form continuously changing.

Even as this went on, Divine-Dragon Magical Power was being sapped at a staggering rate - so much so that one could easily ask what all that prior consumption had even meant. The initial amount prepared was already gone, and Tatsuro left the continuous infusion to Amaterasu while he rushed to keep generating more energy.

(The double skill activation worked, but the energy consumption is nowhere near just double!?)

It was being drained so abnormally that it almost made him want to believe it was being pulled at hundreds of times the rate it would have been if he had carried out Celestial Demon Tribe Creation and Monster Human Tribe Creation with his skills alone.

Including Tatsuro, they had a seven-person setup, so the total energy supply was still not a problem - yet even so, being drained at this pace was enough to make him uneasy.

However, that anxious feeling turned out to be needless worry, as the rate of absorption gradually began to ease.

Relieved, he exhaled and composed himself, tightening his focus for the final push.

The shapeless gray slime-like mass eventually began taking on a humanoid form, exactly as Tatsuro had envisioned.

Once its shape had fully solidified, it began emitting light - and before long, even that faded away.

"How do you do, my Master."

What appeared before them was a female Celestial Demon adorned with six angel wings growing from her back, clothed in a crimson dress.

She stood around 165 to 170 centimeters tall - nearly the same height as Tatsuro.

Her golden hair, fine and smooth as silk thread, cascaded down to her waist, and her complexion was fair and translucent, with a beautiful face to match. She narrowed her strong-willed blue eyes with what appeared to be delight, and gave Tatsuro a graceful bow.

"Wow, a crimson angel."

"Even her nails are red, Sister."

Just as Leah noted, a closer look at her slender, elongated fingertips revealed they were dyed the same deep crimson as her dress, as though polished with nail varnish.

Overall, her frame was slender enough that one might believe it if told she was a sheltered young noblewoman - she did not look suited for combat at all. That said, while one could not feel the same level of holiness from her as from Jiya, there was nonetheless a faint divine quality about her that reminded him of Shirota.

"Mind if I take a look at your Status?"

"Of course not. My Master."

With her permission obtained, she was added to the Party, and he looked over her Status.

--------------------------------

Name: --------

Class: -

Level: 1

Spirit/Ki: 550

Magical Power: 550

Strength: 510

Durability: 510

Agility: 505

Magical Power: 510

Magic Resistance: 510

Magic Control: 505

|Acquired Skills|

[Heavenly Sacred Flame], [Crimson Claw Ten Apostles], [Complete Fire Absorption Healing]

[Savage Kill Enhancement], [Monstrous Strength Lv.5]

|System skills|

[Item Box +4], [Map Function +4]

Remaining Skill Points: 3

|Titles|

[Half-Divine Being]

--------------------------------

"Oh, we still haven't given her a name. The name field is just a line of dashes."

"We'll have to decide that later too. Now, about her Status - sure enough, there was something related to divinity."

Displayed clearly in this angel's title column were the words: Half-Divine Being.

"So that's why her base stats are so insanely high."

"The effect is weaker than Divine Being, but it still grants all stats +500. For a Level 1, that's quite a generous start."

Beyond the fact that the Half-Divine Being title gave her an overall favorable set of numbers, her raw specs also looked high by any measure - meaning her actual Strength and Magical Power were likely even greater than the figures suggested.

"On top of her Status, she seems to have some rather powerful-looking skills."

"Monstrous Strength I can sort of understand, but the others are something I've never heard of - actually, now that I think about it, Complete Fire Absorption Healing might be something Antares had."

Antares was Egeria's Familiar - Ishtar's mother - an attack-specialized Dragon bearing crimson scales. It was still a fairly fresh memory how readily he had handed over fangs and claws when given Laranest.

Tatsuro's memory of that moment surfaced immediately, and he silently offered a mental word of thanks.

"So what kind of skill was it?"

"Any attack involving fire is nullified outright - no questions asked - and instead, it's absorbed to heal wounds or replenish energy. So even if Tatsuro fired a laser into that angel over there, rather than injuring her, it would actually cause her to recover. What's more, since it also applies to her own fire-based attacks, she could pull off something like surrounding herself with fire, killing enemies with it, and healing herself in the process."

"That could be handy in a pinch. It would mean we can unleash fire attacks freely even if she's surrounded by enemies."

"Against fire-attribute enemies, it's an absolutely dominant skill. Now then - what about Savage Kill Enhancement? That seems like quite the misfit for a beautiful angel like this."

Ai had her eyes fixed on the clearly alarming-sounding skill, and it was Leela who answered her question.

"I've heard of that skill - Savage Kill Enhancement. If I recall correctly, it's originally a skill that evil-aligned beings tend to acquire, and it temporarily boosts one's power each time an enemy is killed."

"That's probably because I did Demon Tribe Creation alongside Nana."

"That sounds like quite a fascinating skill. I might be able to learn it if I work hard enough."

"Well, Nana-sis is thoroughly evil-aligned, after all~"

As they talked, they turned their attention to the remaining two skills.

First up, the angel herself seemed ready to demonstrate Crimson Claw Ten Apostles.

"This is a skill that allows me to summon the Apostles dwelling within my fingernails."

"Apostles? Are they something like familiars?"

"You may think of them in that way, if you like. And each finger is able to summon a different Apostle."

Saying so, she extended the index finger of her right hand so that all could see it, then pointed it at the ground.

The crimson hue drained from that index finger, and a single drop of blood-like liquid fell onto the sandy beach with a soft plop.

In that instant, the area where the crimson droplet landed swelled upward, and a deep crimson Slime a full meter in height appeared.

"This one is not particularly skilled in combat, but it is exceptionally versatile."

No sooner had the angel said so than the Slime's form began to change - taking on the exact shape and appearance of Tatsuro. Then it became Ai, then Cardina, then the sandy ground itself, shifting with a truly breathtaking fluidity.

"It is capable of mimicking anyone or anything in this fashion. However, its capabilities remain those of a Slime, so it cannot fight as its subject would."

"But for those without eyes capable of seeing through it - unlike me, Tatsuro, Leah, or Leela - it could be quite troublesome. If the mimicry is this perfect, with no visible difference to speak of, you genuinely would not be able to tell just by looking."

"You flatter me."

The angel gave Ishtar a graceful bow.

After that, she pressed her right index finger - now drained of its crimson - against the Slime, and the nail gradually returned to its vivid red as the Slime was absorbed back.

Then she proceeded to explain, one by one, what resided in each of the others.

The nail of the right middle finger housed a horse with crimson fur covering its entire body. About the size of a standard stallion, it possessed considerable strength and could attack with kicks. It could also be used to transport large amounts of cargo or ridden as a mount.

The nail of the right ring finger housed a crimson wolf. About the size of a large dog, it excelled in Mobility and stealth. Against weaker opponents, it could slip around behind them unnoticed and bite clean through their neck.

The nail of the right little finger housed a dark wraith. It ordinarily took the form of a deep crimson mist, but could merge completely into darkness and serve as its master's eyes during scouting. The nail of the left little finger, in contrast, housed a light wraith - the inverse of the right.

It too appeared as a crimson mist like the dark wraith, but could merge completely into any light source and serve as its master's eyes during scouting. It seemed the ideal approach would be to use the dark wraith and the light wraith interchangeably between night and day. As for combat capability, however, it was safe to say that both had none whatsoever.

The left index finger held a crimson bee. At around fifty centimeters, it was enormous for a bee. However, it was capable of differentiation, so by shrinking down to one millimeter or less, it could split into tens of thousands of individual bees. This one also carried a powerful Poison Stinger.

The nail of the left middle finger housed a crimson turtle. About one meter in size but weighing only around five kilograms - remarkably light. Its limbs were abnormally long, allowing it to wrap around one's arm and use its shell as a shield.

The left ring finger held a deep crimson snake. It could freely adjust its length anywhere from ten centimeters to ten meters, and excelled at coiling around opponents to restrain them. Against weaker targets, it could strangle them to death outright.

And then there were the two remaining - the thumbs of the right and left hands.

These two appeared to be somewhat different in nature from the rest.

Calmly, the angel pressed her right thumb against her crimson dress. The nail's crimson was absorbed into the dress - and then the dress itself transformed into a deep crimson dress-armor.

Next, she curled her left thumb inward, folding it into her palm - and from her left hand emerged a great spear over two meters long, shaped like a deep crimson cross with blades attached.

"These two are treated as my weapons and armor, but they are also living Apostles in their own right. As such, they will grow stronger and more resilient alongside me, as will the other Apostles."

"Equipment that grows together with its host - that is rather fascinating."

Leah was the one who showed the most interest in that, and she asked to be shown more when time permitted.

"That leaves Heavenly Sacred Flame. It looks like an attack skill, so we may as well set up a target. Sota! Go catch something for us again!"

"Kyuiiiirororoouu-"

As he had asked with Shirota, he requested the same of Sota, and within two to three minutes, Sota returned with three sea cucumber-like magical beasts roughly two meters in size coiled around his tail, dropping them onto the sandy beach.

He was about to step back and resume his standby position, but the angel said it might be dangerous for him to remain nearby, so he was asked to fall back.

In any case, the sea cucumber magical beasts were not particularly fast-moving, so they were unlikely to escape unless things became exceptionally leisurely.

"Then I shall begin. It will be quite bright, so please take care with your eyes -"

With that, the angel raised her right hand toward the sky. A round golden door materialized in the air above.

Then it began adjusting its angle, rotating until its face was directed squarely toward the three sea cucumbers.

"Open - O Gate of the Heavens."

At the angel's whisper, the gate split open to both sides, and from within, a blazing sacred flame of overwhelming intensity erupted forth, incinerating the sea cucumbers along with everything in their surrounding area.

All that remained afterward was a dark shadow in the area where the three sea cucumbers had been.

The sandy beach had melted and was simmering.

That was simply not a level of power that a Level 1 being should have been able to unleash.

"This is extraordinary. Those things must have been around Level 30 or so, and they were obliterated in an instant."

"You are too kind."

To Tatsuro's voice of genuine admiration, the angel - her expression slightly fatigued from having used such a powerful technique - nonetheless smiled with just a touch of pride at being praised by her Master.