Only My Magic Levels Up - Chapter 76



Only Noblemtl

The water giant, whose arm was torn off while he was in a fist-stretching stance, was unable to regenerate his arm this time.

The strong waves that had been filling the gap left by the heavy giant’s blow also fell silent.

“······.”

It was because Galen, who had to allow the use of magic power, was frozen in place.

“Let’s stop sparring here.”

Damus spoke calmly and scattered the light.

Even though the end had been declared, Galen was still in shock.

Lilia, who had been frozen in the same way, was the first to come to her senses. It was thanks to her not being the person involved.

She swallowed dry saliva and opened her mouth with a slightly trembling voice.

“What is this······?”

“Did you get the feeling this time too?”

“Oh, no. I can’t see anything at all… This is the first time something like this has happened….”

Lilia was flustered, which was unusual for her.

When I first saw the miracles of the deacon and the priest, when I first saw the light of Myra, when I first saw the blessing of Roald.

Whenever Lilia herself encountered a higher level of miracle that she had not yet reached, she always felt the same way.

The feeling that ‘I know a little bit, but I’m not ready yet’ and can’t reach it.

By thinking hard on her own, sparring with Galen, and going through various experiences, she filled in each of those missing pieces. That’s how Lilia grew.

But this time, it felt like ‘I couldn’t see anything’.

Damus clearly used miracles, I saw a scene where his powers were used, he was a fellow priest.

Why is it that I can’t understand it at all? It’s like magic, like I’ve seen a technology that’s completely different from a miracle.

“To be honest, it was a bit unusual that I could tell just by looking at it once.”

Damus smiled bitterly.

“So I guess it’s understandable that you feel the darkness only this time. Are you okay, Duke Galen?”

“······It’s not that good.”

After a moment of frozen silence, Galen managed to shake his head and muttered in a hushed voice.

The shock was so great that I regained control of my magical power, which I had let go of.

Swaaaaaaahh …

The water in the backyard, which had been completely submerged as if it had been raining heavily, gathered in one place.

The one-armed giant slowly disintegrated as it sucked in the water gathering at its feet. Its body curled up into a round mass of water, shrinking in size as well.

Before long, the backyard was back to its original appearance.

It wasn’t exactly what it looked like when it first came out, as it was dented here and there, as if it were a construction site, but at least it wasn’t so sloppy anymore.

“It was even worse than the realm of fantasy.”

Galen said, taking back the spirit and wrapping it around his wrist.

“It felt like magic itself wasn’t allowed.”

A magician who has reached the Golden Realm will establish a special realm centered around himself.

Fantasy realm.

A kind of home ground where your own magic is buffed and others’ magic is nerfed.

The fact that Moritz was unable to directly burn Galen’s body in the Devil’s Cradle, and that Galen was unable to directly drown Moritz, was also due to the realm of illusion.

Just as the atmosphere protects the Earth from various threats from space.

But the miracle that Damus had just shown… should have been called a black hole, not an atmosphere.

It’s not a feeling of suppressing the magic that’s about to be activated with force, but rather a feeling of completely dismantling the structure itself.

It was a feeling of uneasiness that could not even be described as pleasant. The feeling of the existence of magic that had become so familiar to me being denied in an instant was terrifying in itself.

Damus nodded as if he understood her feelings and opened his mouth.

“Warriors and wizards are bronze, silver, and gold. Priests are deacons, priests, and bishops. After going through this series of growth processes, you can use the word perfection.”

“Is it finished?”

“If you reach the golden stage, you can perfectly perform the roles required of a warrior or a magician. The same goes for a priest. If you have a long career as a bishop and can freely handle up to the seventh miracle, you can perform all the roles required of a priest. That is why it is called perfection.”

A completed warrior, a completed wizard, a completed cleric.

Damus said that the realm of gold or bishop is just like that.

“Of course, even within gold, there are bound to be differences. Just like you in the cradle and you in the ruins were different. However, such an increase in skill is a process of increasing perfection, not a process of breaking out of the mold.”

“If it’s a mold······.”

“You and Bishop Lilia reached your current level in your early twenties, but not the others. Even if you come from a noble family, it is rare for you to become golden before your thirties, and even if you do, the process of perfecting it takes another year. Even if you were initiated around the age of ten, it would take at least thirty to forty years.”

From childhood to middle age, and even to old age at the latest, it was like walking one path throughout one’s life.

“It’s your own world that you’ve worked so hard to complete over so many years. You have to step out of it again to advance to the next golden level.”

“···That’s a difficult question.”

“Of course it must be difficult. There must be only a handful of people who have reached the level of a jewel. I am not a magician, so I cannot help you. At least I can give Bishop Lilia some brief advice.”

Damus said that and looked back at Lilia.

“You said that this time, unlike usual, you felt like you couldn’t see anything?”

“yes.”

“Perhaps you are so talented that you can only vaguely see the path ahead of you. However, as I said, the realm of the Archbishop is one where you have reached the end of the path and must find a new path to take. That is why it must be dark.”

“ah······.”

“So, first of all, focus on increasing the perfection of your brilliance and blessings.”

“yes!”

“and.”

Damus hesitated for a moment and then spoke again.

“Just remember that this advice won’t be of much help at this point. The eighth miracle requires unwavering faith.”

“Religion… right?”

Lilia tilted her head as if she didn’t quite understand.

“I’ve never really had any impious thoughts······.”

“Of course. How could I distrust you? But the faith I speak of must be supported by thorough self-confidence. Bishop Lilia, do you faithfully follow and practice the teachings of the Church?”

“yes!”

“So, are your actions always right, even though you are so sincere?”

“···yes?”

Lilia hesitated at Damus’s sudden question. She answered hesitantly.

“Well… I try to live as righteously as possible, but I don’t always seem to be right.”

“That’s true, usually. It’s a humble answer that acknowledges one’s own shortcomings.”

Damus’ eyes, which seemed to be nodding, shone sharply.

“But ironically, the Archbishop is not supposed to do that.”

“yes?”

“What would happen if the one who has reached the top of the church, the one who sits at the top of the clergy who preaches the doctrine to the multitudes, did not believe in himself? If the captain is not confident, the ship cannot sail straight.”

“Ha, but… what if I become so self-righteous that I don’t admit my own mistakes?”

“So, you must not make mistakes. You must continue to work hard. You must understand the teachings of the Church more deeply than anyone else, and you must be proud that your actions are the teachings of the Church itself.”

Damus held out his arm lightly. A glow grew in his hand, forming a long staff.

“Then, my standard will become the new standard that distinguishes between right and wrong.”

The cane tapped the ground lightly.

Bullfight!

An unknown vibration spread through the surroundings, as if the sound of a drum was making a heart beat.

That was all.

“Ugh?!”

“Huh?!”

Galen and Lilia groaned at the same time.

It felt like an invisible rope was binding my body.

“What I judge to be right will live, and what I judge to be wrong will not.”

The staff struck the ground again. As the vibrations spread again, Galen and Lilia felt at ease.

“This is the eighth miracle, the miracle of selection.”

Damus scattered the staff.

Lilia, who had been blankly staring, muttered in a slightly tired voice.

“I’m not sure yet… I’m sorry to say this, but I feel like if I make even the slightest mistake, it could turn into fanaticism….”

“I understand. If you could truly empathize with what I am saying, a new archbishop would have been born here.”

Damus smiled softly.

“You are still young, Bishop Lilia. It’s not that I am ignoring you because you are young, it’s that you have not had time to reflect on your own path. You have just passed by it with your outstanding talents.”

“······.”

“As I said before, for now, focus only on the light and blessings. When your own subjectivity is fully established and no longer wavering, then one day you will understand what I am saying.”

“······.”

Looking at her gloomy, silent face, it seemed that Lilia still wasn’t convinced. Damus said with a smirk.

“Okay, let’s stop here for today.”

“Ah, yes······.”

“Take your time and think about it. You have plenty of time. That kind of time to think is precious.”

Damus turned around, patting Lilia on the shoulder to encourage her.

Damus told her not to come out because she seemed to be thinking a lot, and only accepted Galen’s farewell.

“I’ll come back tomorrow. I think morning would be better than evening. Before my work hours.”

“Yes, please do so. I will tell Lilia too.”

Galen nodded, hesitated for a moment, and then asked.

“Your Eminence, Archbishop.”

“Tell me.”

“It’s a miracle of selection. To put it simply… can I say that it’s like canceling magic as you wish?”

“To be precise, you can see that all beings whose powers I do not permit have their powers restricted. Warriors, magicians, and even fellow clerics.”

Would it be too rude to recall the witch hunts of medieval Earth?

Just like how even an innocent person would be labeled a witch and be killed and burned.

Doesn’t that mean that if the Archbishop doesn’t like something, he can just get rid of it?

To be honest, I agree a little more with Lilia’s opinion that there is a danger of self-righteousness and fanaticism.

But for Galen, who was not a church man, the clergy’s way of interpreting enlightenment was a good problem.

“Then… is there no way to prevent miracles?”

“You have to consider that there is nothing less than gold. Or else you can just wait for me to get tired.”

“So you can resist jewels?”

“I guess so.”

Damus nodded and added softly.

“I hope you won’t have to resist.”

“···What would I have against the church?”

If you have no quarrel with the Archbishop, you will have no resistance to the miracle of selection.

Galen smiled bitterly as he realized what she meant. Damus smiled back and said,

“You, an outsider, can’t blindly follow the church’s instructions. A cooperative relationship, not a one-sided command relationship, always has the potential to fail. Even if you don’t want it, if the situation gets messy.”

“That’s true, but… I’ll have to try my best not to let that happen. I like our current relationship.”

“I feel the same way. I like you personally. I hope the church can stay with you until the end.”

Damus gave a faint smile, nodded slightly, then turned around and disappeared.

Galen closed the door and turned around, letting out a faint sigh.

‘There’s still a long way to go······.’

I had gained confidence after outperforming the other golds in the ruins.

It may have stood out among the golds, but I never thought it would be this different from the jewels.

If the magic itself is blocked, then the fight itself won’t be possible in the first place.

Of course, if you were fighting a Jewel Warrior or a Wizard, things might go a little differently.

It seemed unlikely that they would be able to properly rub up against the Archbishop, who was on par with the jewels.

‘······No. There’s no need to be depressed.’

Galen shook his head.

It only took me a year to get to my current level.

Whether it was silver or gold, I grew without any difficulties thanks to the power of the status window.

The Archbishop’s power certainly felt like a wall.

It wasn’t the kind of wall that others feel they can’t climb up because they haven’t achieved enlightenment.

It’s just an area I haven’t been able to reach yet because I lack experience.

Now is the time to level up the Earth Restraint and Territory Advance as originally intended.

You can then aim for the experience points needed to become a jewel.

Lilia also just needs to refine her radiance and blessings.

‘I just have to do my job.’

Don’t be impatient.

Galen pulled himself together again.