Overgeared

“Vex? How fast…”

“They must’ve manipulated the timing of when they got the holy weapons. We need to contact the three forces of Sez, Aldia, and Hachiton right now so they can send a relief force…”

The three churches sought revival after gaining the holy weapons. The informants became urgent as they looked at the movements of the Rebecca Church after they gained 19 holy weapons.

Vex—they heard that thousands of Rebecca believers gathered in the eastern outskirts of a city far from the imperial capital. The enemy’s gathering speed was much faster than expected. They had no choice but to interpret it as intentional confusion in the information.

The good news was that there were three baronies surrounding Vex. Tens of thousands of rescue troops could be dispatched relatively quickly. However, this was already a war. The situation in each territory was different from usual.

“I can’t communicate with Sez or Aldia. It is presumed that the remnants of the Rebecca Church, who haven’t joined Vex, raided and cut off their magic communications.”

“Hachiton sent their army in the morning. It is meant to suppress the rebellion in the west, but the remnants of the Rebecca Church might’ve dazzled the people…”

The faces of the informants gradually darkened. They belonged to the Overgeared Shadows and they felt resentment toward the vast continent. In the days when the empire was still a kingdom, the territory was small and easy to manage. It was possible to monitor the continent’s major bases at all times due to the availability of manpower. It was no longer possible to properly watch their own territory.

It was the aftermath of absorbing almost all of the large continent. No, if they had to say a cause, it was the Great Human and Demon War. Too many people died during the Great Human and Demon War. In particular, the more talented they were, the more valiantly they went to the frontline and lost their lives. The vacancy of dead people became even larger when combined with the expanded territory.

It was the time when the sober informants couldn’t hide their agitation.

“You don’t have to worry about the Rebecca Church. Let the relief force handle the damage scale and support of Vex, Sez, and Aldia. You focus on tracking the Dominion and Judar Churches.” Lauel came to visit and took command. The cohesion of the Dominion and Judar Church remnants was much weaker than the remnants of the Rebecca Church. There were many loopholes, so spies had been planted.

The informants nodded, but their expressions were dark. The Rebecca Church obtained as many as 19 holy weapons The prime minister judged that they couldn’t be overpowered immediately, so he seemed to be standing by for the time being. However, the reality was different.

“His Majesty has personally departed for Vex.”

“Gasp…”

There was no warp gate in Vex. Among the apostles, it would be difficult for them to get there quickly unless it was Braham, the great magician. In the worst case, a barrier was installed to block magic and even Braham’s movement could be hindered. The informants saw Vex’s independence as a matter that was already decided. They were convinced it would be the base of the new Rebecca Church. The best they could do was hope for fewer casualties.

However, Grid was directly sent.

A being capable of high speed movement comparable to Braham. It wasn’t even magic. It was movement using physical strength and a power. As always, His Majesty would save Vex.

The faces of the unsuspecting informants rapidly brightened. However, the faces of the tacticians stiffened.

“According to the eyewitness accounts, the masters of the holy weapons displayed transcendence. Of course, I don’t doubt his skills, but I’m worried about His Majesty dealing with 19 transcendents alone.”

“Um…” Lauel couldn’t answer hastily.

In fact, Lauel was also worried about this. Grid had rode (?) a dragon during the time they hadn’t seen each other, so he was active and growing… furthermore, Lauel heard he had created a new dragon weapon and armor. It was just that no matter how strong Grid was, there would be limitations.

Grid, who had been steadily building up his transcendence, status, and divinity, had already lifted the limits such as the ‘movement speed limit’ and ‘attack speed limit.’ He had grown beyond the maximum area permitted to the players. It was hard to expect him to have exploded in strength compared to the last time they saw each other.

Dealing with 19 transcendents alone? It never seemed easy when thinking of the power of the holy weapon that Damian handled. Furthermore, all the holy weapons obtained by the three churches plagiarized Grid’s work. Assuming that the unique function of the holy weapon, which granted powerful divinity along with an increase in stats, was added to the effects of Grid’s works… wouldn’t it boost the power so it was closer to Grid’s divine swords?

‘In the worst case scenario, there is a restriction on the knights summoning skill.’

The gods of this world couldn’t be predicted. They were endlessly indifferent and didn’t give any help, but they were powerful at interfering in important matters. Rebecca, who reigned over them, had been silent for so long that it was impossible to read her intentions and she was unpredictable.

Therefore, Lauel worried about several variables. Even so, he didn’t stop Grid. Grid was also hard to predict. If both sides were unpredictable, then Lauel would naturally believe in Grid.

***

“Why…?” Winter muttered in vain as he was deprived of his holy weapon.

The Blessing of Light, one of the foundations of Grid.

It was a very long time ago. Grid, who was blessed by the goddess in exchange for defeating the corrupt pope Drevigo, was still favored by the light. The holy weapon didn’t refuse his touch even though he tore the angels to pieces, cruelly trampled on the three churches to destroy them, and damaged the authority of the goddess and the honor of heaven. Instead, it shone more radiantly. The light was incomparably intense compared to when it was held in Winter’s hand, despite Winter having worshiped the goddess even before he became an adult.

It was a cruel sight for Winter. He felt wronged by the goddess. He sobbed because it seemed like the divine message he received was wrong.

“Ugh…” Winter, who completely lost his fighting spirit, couldn’t do anything. He couldn’t even sit down. Grid was still holding his wrist.

Fire Dragon Ifrit’s Arms—the fully armed gauntlets covered his fingers to his upper arm and had 286 small scales that repeatedly tightened and released like it was breathing. It instantly detected and responded to the movement of the wearer’s joints and muscles, reproducing the power of the dragon by creating a mana cycle that only occurred in a dragon heart. Among them, the most basic power was ‘significantly increased grip strength.’

Grid’s limit, which already exceeded the limits of a player by building transcendence, was lifted once again. It was right to say that he always reproduced ‘Power of Not Knowing Defeat,’ the power of the 19th Great Demon, Saleos, with his grip.

“Ugh…!” Winter was eventually unable to suppress his scream as his knees bent and he staggered. His wrist that was gripped by Grid was strangely contracted. It was clear that the bones and muscles were shattered. The skin below his elbow blackened in real time.

“Who gave you this?”

“A-Archangel…”

“I will take it.”

Grid’s blacksmithing technique was inferior to Hexetia. It was because the Overgeared God wasn’t classified as the blacksmith god. The Overgeared God encompassed the blacksmith god, but he was a completely different being. It was possible to create and dominate more diverse materials and to take away the target’s items.

However, taking away the target’s item using his power was only a temporary effect. In order for Grid to completely take away Winter’s holy weapon and gain permanent ownership, he had to kill Winter. Furthermore, he had to hope that Winter would ‘drop’ the holy weapon when he died. Or—

“Yes… as you… wish…”

[Rebecca’s paladin, ‘Winter,’ has transferred the ‘Holy Weapon’ to you.]

Taking it away like now… no, it could be received when transferred to him.

“U-Uhh…”

It was only after that holy weapon was transferred that Winter was released and he took a step back. He bowed his head like a sinner. He considered it a sin to make eye contact with Grid. The overwhelming force that couldn’t be resisted even while holding the holy weapon and the majesty of being chosen by the light…

Winter, who had always denied Grid, finally realized it. The Overgeared God was like a heavenly god. Even if he went against the goddess, the goddess recognized him, so no human being should criticize and oppose him…

Winter knelt as if praying to Grid only to scream. A large arrow of light embedded in his back and he collapsed.

“He who was chosen by the holy weapon actually succumbed to mere force.”

“……”

Grid’s gaze shifted in the direction that the arrow flew.

At the entrance to the half-collapsed Overgeared God temple…

Thousands of Rebecca Church members were flowing in. The 14 people in the lead were all armed with holy weapons. The Efficient Hunting Sword, Failure, Sword of Self-transcendence, Thorn of Deep Grievance, Grid’s Greatsword, Sword Ghost, etc. The forms of the holy weapons were all familiar.

There was also the bow that resembled the Red Phoenix Bow. A bow emitted a radiant brilliance formed a divine arrow and was aimed at Grid.

“I can’t believe you bewitched the warrior with a holy weapon. It is right to call you an evil god whose black magic has reached the peak,” Shuri hid behind the masters of the holy weapons and shouted. He hadn’t seen the holy weapon in Grid’s hand. It was because Winter’s collapsing body covered the short holy weapon.

Soon, Winter’s body turned to gray ash.

“……!”

The thousands of Rebecca believers, including Shuri, witnessed it. The appearance of the holy weapon emitting light in Grid’s hands. It had the appearance of a dagger and was emitting a greater light even though it was smaller in volume than the weapons held by the other warriors. It was so brilliant that it made the 14 holy weapons confronting it look shabby. It seemed appropriate to say it was ‘burning.’

Four paladins belatedly joined the scene. This resulted in a total of 18 weapons owned by the Rebecca Church. It was meaningless. The light from Grid’s weapon was still growing stronger. It was enough to cast a shadow on the ground.

Grid’s gray gauntlets and gaiters refracted and dispersed the light from the holy weapon at various angles to increase the power. It couldn’t be called a simple light any longer.

A sanctuary—it was the foundation of the sacred realm that no one should or could interfere with.

“G-Gasp…!”

“Ahh…! How can he be so divine…?!”

The remnants of the Rebecca Church had already been ignored by the goddess several times. They even faced the risk of being killed by an archangel. Nevertheless, they wanted the revival of the Rebecca Church, so they were clearly fanatics.

Grid knew it as well.

He clashed with the Rebecca Church several times because he had to. Each time, he felt sorry for the damaged Rebecca Church members and was reluctant to harm them… now he acknowledged that he should no longer sympathize with them.

“The Overgeared God spread the sanctuary of light, so is he the incarnation of the goddess?”

“Sophistry! How could the incarnation of the goddess persecute and destroy the church?”

“Isn’t this an ordeal that we have to overcome?”

“If the Overgeared God was the incarnation of the goddess, would the archangels have given us the holy weapons to punish him?”

“The archangels never told us to punish the Overgeared God! It is right to say that the holy weapons were given to proclaim that the Overgeared God is the incarnation of the goddess!”

“Shut up! Have you forgotten that the Overgeared God mercilessly slaughtered the archangel?”

The fanatics were divided. Both sides interpreted and expressed their opinions based on strong faith and didn’t back down. It was meaningless. They were already dead.

“Disgusting things. I can’t look at you any longer.”

A god descended.

Martial God Zeratul—he suddenly appeared high in the sky and thousands of the Rebecca Church members exploded and died when he stomped his feet on the ground. The 18 holy weapons that lost their masters rose in the air. They danced with the white beard that fluttered before stopping at a certain point. Even though the aftermath of the martial god’s descent still shook the world, they aimed at Grid in an upright manner regardless of the chain of ripples that burst the city buildings and trees like balloons.

“I was going to kill you from the very beginning.”

He was disturbed by Hayate once, but Hayate wasn’t here right now.

“I will kill you again and again until your divinity is completely worn out and you disappear.”

The memory of the dual wielding swordsmanship secret technique returned by Venice still clearly remained in the mind of Martial God Zeratul. He buried deep in his heart the humiliation he felt at the time with killing intent.

“Today is the most appropriate time.”

One day, Raphael had said it. They took possession of the human soul that the Overgeared God cherished during that time. If they wanted to give the Overgeared God a taste of true frustration and pain, it would be better to damage his old memories rather than just kill him.

Zeratul agreed. After waiting until the angel developed the ability to embody the remnants of memory, he finally descended in front of the Overgeared God.

He already enjoyed it.

Look. The figure of this stupid guy who felt killing intent without knowing who made the holy weapons.

Zeratul was planning to stab, slash, and cut the Overgeared God to death with the holy weapons. He planned to whisper the identity of who made the holy weapons that killed him to the man who would die in pain.

Grid, who had been silently watching Zeratul who was drunk on delight, slowly opened his mouth, “Are you alone?”

The gods of Asgard were subject to great restrictions when acting on the surface. However, if they formed a trinity like the angels, then the constraints would be loosened to some extent. Therefore, Grid was wary of the concept of the trinity.

Zeratul’s eyes, which were curved in an arc, slowly rose upward. “I… alone? Perhaps you… do you think there is a chance of winning? A fake god—a human god who doesn’t deserve to ascend to heaven?”

“……”

Grid didn’t respond and just focused.

An opponent whom Hayate defeated virtually alone. At the very least, Martial God Zeratul on the surface was lower in status than Baal or Raphael. He was an opponent who couldn’t be avoided out of fear by Grid, whose goal was to raid Baal.It was right to fight and win. It should be used as a means of proving his qualifications to challenge Baal.

“Perhaps you… don’t you know me? I am the Martial God. Do you think that I, the only one god in the world, will lose even if I am alone?”

In the first place, Zeratul wasn’t an opponent who needed provocation. He would lose his cool by himself, even if Grid was silent. It was the limit of an existence that was unstable due to the gap that came from knowing he was a fake and denying it.

“You… a little bastard who didn’t even dare meet my eyes not long ago has become completely arrogant after getting entangled with the dragons through luck. Okay. This was better… I can feel more joy when I see the despair on your face as you die.”

“You are very angry. Is Rebecca looking at you with pity these days?” Grid finished his preparations and finally opened his mouth.

This was what Hayate had said when he provoked Zeratul. The effect was big.

Zeratul moved his eyes and immediately fired an attack. The 18 divine weapons floating around him flooded together with it. It was a sight like light forming a river. The eyes of the survivors who watched while holding their breath were suddenly blinded.

Gujel’s Fang and Cranbel’s Horn—the two dragon weapons split apart the light.