Good.
*Prick! Prick!*
On a hill not far from the temple.
Cancho, with one eye closed, watched the ruins through a yodeling telescope.
He hadn't taken his eyes off the place since the Captain went there.
If he got distracted and missed the signal from the Captain, it would be a disaster.
*Whoooosh!*
A dark red aura shot up from the ruins into the sky.
He flinched for a moment but quickly returned to his position.
That was a signal for the old hag, Psyche.
It meant the gate was open, and the ritual should begin.
'It's the third time!'
He reminded himself once more and continued looking through the telescope.
Soon, the signal he was waiting for appeared.
Three streaks of aura shot out cleanly and scattered in the sky.
Even though nothing seemed to be there except the ruins, the fact that the Captain sent a signal meant there was something there that needed to be wiped out.
*Thump!*
He put away the yodeling telescope, lay down, and shouldered the heavy machine gun.
But he didn't pull the trigger.
He just rested his finger on it and counted silently in his head.
- Got it, Cancho? Don't shoot right away. Count to thirty, then shoot.
Using the Soul Reaper, five seconds would have been enough, but knowing that Cancho counted like *one-two! one-two-three!*, he had generously added a buffer.
'One-two! One-two! Two-three! One-two-three!'
After counting ten seconds that felt like thirty, Cancho's eyes flew open.
Cancho, Deputy Commander of the Yodel Rangers, ready to bomb!
With a click, the trigger was pulled.
*Rat-a-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat!!!*
A hail of light, dyed pitch black with the dark attribute, tore through the air.
And when that light reached the temple, a tremendous explosion erupted with a deafening roar.
The speed amplification from the Magic Engineering Society and the unique characteristic Clay, riding the wind, created a terrifying explosive force.
The entire surrounding area shook, and his body jolted.
But he didn't care.
There was no time to stop.
The days when he had to hold back because all his guns were holy attribute.
He had held back for too long, so now he had to fire off everything that had built up.
*BOOOOM!!!*
Had it exceeded the temple's damage threshold?
The barrier that had been hiding the area was lifted, revealing the majestic temple.
"It's huuuuuge!!"
For a small Yodel, it was almost unbelievable that such a thing existed.
'My heart is pounding!'
Being able to freely blow up something that huge without restrictions.
It had been a long time since he felt this kind of excitement, not since the birthday party the Captain had prepared for him.
He grinned widely and pulled the trigger again.
Bullets rained down on the outer walls of the temple.
It was quite sturdy, as befitting a place where a god resided.
But even such a temple was helpless against the endless tactical-grade firepower.
*CRAAAAASH!!*
The temple of Azriel shattered and collapsed.
"Puhehehehehehe!!!"
A mad cackle burst out.
Blowing things up was definitely the most fun thing in the world.
*Click! Click!*
"Huh!?"
Cancho, who had been laughing joyfully, lifted his head.
He had forgotten for a moment.
The existence of Private Momo, the ammo supplier who was always there when he used the heavy machine gun!
He quickly pulled a belt of ammunition from his inventory and connected it to the heavy machine gun.
The temple had collapsed, but there were still a huge number of giants inside.
He had to blow those up too.
*Rat-a-tat-tat-tat-tat!!!*
How much time had passed since he started firing again?
Hundreds of beams of light fell onto a spot a little further away.
Monsters in the form of angels began to appear, one by one.
It seemed they had been hit hard and had pinpointed his location.
'No light falls beyond that range!'
He took out his adorable Yodel notebook and noted down the maximum summoning range.
It was good news, meaning no monsters would come from the rear.
*Rat-a-tat-tat-tat-tat!!*
He moved the gun barrel and fired at the approaching monsters as well.
They were a complete swarm.
Even as they exploded on contact, the monster legion kept being summoned.
Because of that, the front line was slowly getting closer.
*BOOOOM!!*
He detonated the explosive clay he had planted earlier.
Since it wasn't a dark attribute attack, it couldn't deal damage, but it could slow their advance.
Some angels flew into the sky, out of his firing range, but that was fine.
Since the distance had closed, he personally pulled out an assault rifle and poured fire into the sky.
*Click!*
As the downed angels fell, Cancho quickly reloaded the ammo belt one more time.
It was the last belt.
He would have to ask Tzuyou's blacksmiths to make him many, many more later.
*Rat-a-tat-tat-tat-tat!!*
He poured out another hail of fire.
This place was a major passageway between the temple and the ritual site.
He had to hold it for as long as possible.
*Click!*
Cancho, having squeezed out the last bullet, stood up.
Then he covered the submachine gun with vines and leaves.
He wanted to take it, but it was too heavy to carry.
"Wait for me! I will return!"
He had initially planned to have Private Momo wait and take it when they withdrew.
But he had to give up on that plan quickly.
Momo was incredibly fast when it came to picking up items, but aside from that, she was as slow as a fat little pig.
He couldn't escape from those monsters while dragging that fat pig along.
*BOOOOM!!!*
After detonating all the remaining explosive clay, he turned around.
The monsters had already chased him to a close distance.
But there was no need to worry.
What lay ahead was a dense forest with limited visibility.
The home turf of the Yodel Rangers.
* * *
*Phew.*
Smoke was blown into the air and slowly dissipated.
Camella, who had been staring blankly at the smoke, put away her long-stemmed pipe.
"Tch!"
She clicked her tongue.
The signal had gone up.
What could she do?
She had to do it, even if she didn't want to.
She lifted her head.
A massive red pool was suspended in the sky.
It was the blood of the Black Dragon Drakkan and the Remnant of Judgment, Teharam, contained in a barrier vessel.
Camella closed her eyes and lightly waved her hand.
The vessel shattered, and a massive amount of blood poured down helplessly.
Thoroughly drenched, Camella let out a low sigh.
She didn't really like this feeling, so she wasn't fond of holding large-scale rituals.
"She's become the Red Hag!!"
Momo backed away with a grimace.
She sometimes turned into Red Momo when she went into monster territory, but even Momo found Camella's current appearance grotesque and frightening.
*Sssssss...!*
A chilling aura burst out like an explosion, and Camella smirked.
Even for her, a full-fledged shaman, this blood with such absurd power was a first.
No wonder it was called the blood of a dragon and the Remnant of Judgment.
*Thud.*
Leaving bloody footprints, she walked towards the blade-walking platform.
Without hesitation, Camella stepped onto the Heavenly Mandate Platform.
Then she drew her two sacred artifacts.
In one hand, the Scythe of Judgment, which cleaves the boundary between this world and the next.
In the other, the Vajra, the unbreakable truth and wisdom.
The blood flowing over her body soaked the two sacred artifacts.
Looking at the blood-red Vajra, Camella wore a wry smile.
'Forgive me.'
She thought of the bald monk... no, the high monk of Tibet who had given her the Vajra.
The old monk who had gladly given the Vajra to Camella, who wasn't even a nun, saying she would wield it better than anyone.
She had intended to use it properly to repay that trust, but she had ended up drenching it in blood.
Well, she could just clean it up nicely later, right?
Taking a low breath, she stared at the path of blades laid out before her.
"Momo."
"Got it!"
Momo ran off somewhere and pressed a small button.
Shamanic music flowed from the speakers surrounding the ritual site.
Why modern, massive speakers for a traditional ritual site?
What could she do?
She couldn't exactly bring an orchestra to play the shamanic music into the tower.
Camella slowly began to sway her body to the music.
As promised, Momo gradually increased the volume.
The sound of gongs and drums exploded chaotically from all directions.
A bead of sweat rolled down Momo's chubby cheek.
This was scarier than the horror movie she had watched with Jinhyuk, Cancho, and Vayla two days ago.
The rhythm, uncontrollably fast, matched the volume turned up to the max.
Camella's movements also quickened to match.
'No way!'
Momo's eyes widened.
That raccoon granny, who was always lying on her chair puffing smoke, was moving that fast!
Even if she told Cancho, he probably wouldn't believe her.
"Haaah."
Camella exhaled and walked on the blades.
The smell and sensation of the blood engulfing her body were still not pleasant.
But despite that, a smile wouldn't leave her lips.
She had barely walked half the blade path, and her divine power was already this strong.
The Heavenly Mandate Platform, the ritual objects filling the area, the owner had gathered them very well.
Feeling the divine power seeping into her skin, she slowly closed her eyes.
- Listen carefully, Camella. You are a shaman born with incredible talent. More precisely, a chosen one personally marked by a god. You will surely become a shaman unlike any in history. But being chosen by a god is both a great blessing and a curse. You will see and hear more than others, but you will also face proportionally more interference. So, remember this. Never defy a god's will. Do not covet beyond the boundaries they have allowed. The moment you step out of line, your destiny and the paths of your connections will be twisted.
Had she followed this advice well?
Of course not.
She had tried to hear more than the gods allowed, and she had tried to see more.
It wasn't for personal greed.
She just wanted to protect a little more than what was allowed for her vessel.
As a result, she incurred the gods' wrath, her destiny and connections were twisted, and she was forever trapped in an inescapable pit along with the Plague of the Earth.
That was how her fate should have ended.
And yet.
- Hello.
She had been able to say it so casually.
Because of the hand extended by her master, Yoo Jinhyuk.
The promotion quest currently given to Camella was to step upon a god.
If it were the her of the past, she would have hesitated.
No, she would have definitely shaken her head.
Defying a god was on a completely different level from simply seeing and hearing a little more.
But not now.
A smile spread across her face at the thought of Jinhyuk's face.
The person who had casually shattered the destiny and connections the gods had twisted and pulled her out.
No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn't quite figure it out.
What did she have to fear when she was with such a monster?
*Slowly.*
She opened her closed eyes.
She had already arrived at the end of the blade path.
Finishing her dance, she lightly stepped off the end.
And as she stepped down from the blades.
*BOOOOOOM!!!!*
The divine power, amplified by the Heavenly Mandate Platform, burst out like an explosion.
Divine power that dyed not only Camella but the entire ritual site a vivid red.
Camella, enveloped in the energy, stretched her lips into a wide grin.
Then, looking at Nia, who was still asleep, she spoke.
Now then, you gluttonous predator burdened with the task of devouring.
Together with me, let us... kill that arrogant being who calls itself a god.
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T/N:
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