Akatsuki Translations

“To put it simply, it’s the blessings of the spirits running amok,” Kalkara explained the situation to Shizuku and the others who had arrived, while dealing with the monsters at a slight distance from the gigantic Griffin. Around her were her priest apprentice attendants. Several of them had exhausted expressions on their faces as they continued to offer prayers.

However, about half of them had become strange, although not to the extent of Griffin. Some had their heads glowing, flowers were sprouting around them, and some were flustered by the snowflakes continually emerging from their fingertips. It was quite a variety of phenomena. Shizuku clapped her hands in understanding as she observed their appearances.

“You’ve bestowed them with the blessings of the spirits, haven’t you?” she asked.

“Yes. It was a rather forceful method, an awakening before they had fully mastered how to control it, so most of them are still not of much use,” Kalkara replied while waving both of her hands. The stone pavement of Uuga rose up and crushed the sandworms squirming around.

As she spoke, another person seemed to have received some kind of spirit’s blessing. They sank deep into the ground while still in a praying posture and cried, so Eckstein and Rock hurriedly pulled them up.

“It’s like a gathering of magical street performers,” Shizuku remarked.

“Well, I was in a similar state at first too. When bestowing excessive power upon humans, it relies more on intuition than magic. The more confusing it is, the more chaotic it becomes,” Kalkara explained.

“I see… By the way,” Shizuku said, casually glancing at Griffin, who was still gigantic and continuing to battle the Aether Jelly. Well, it couldn’t really be called a battle. It was a sight of Griffin desperately struggling against the squirming Aether Jelly, which had no joints.

“【【【Flames】】】, why has Griffin-sama become so large?” Shizuku asked nonchalantly while singing a fire magic spell in one breath, burning away the sandworms.

“I suppose it’s a testament to a Gran’s abilities. It seems he simultaneously bestowed multiple blessings, but one of them went out of control,” Kalkara explained.

“Which one?” Shizuku inquired.

“Obesity,” Kalkara replied.

Eckstein and Rock behind them made faces as if saying, “Is she serious?” Rock didn’t have a face, but his bones somehow conveyed that expression.

“Let me rephrase. It’s the influence of the blessing of the【Spirit of Expansion, Pupua】,” Kalkara clarified.

“Ah…” Eckstein’s face showed understanding upon hearing that name. Rock, who was unfamiliar with spirits, didn’t seem to grasp the meaning just from hearing the name.

『So, that’s it? The power to become big or make things big? Isn’t that convenient? 』 Rock asked.

“Well, yes, but Pupua-sama’s expansion doesn’t accompany the content. Even if you enlarge a grain of wheat to several meters, its nutritional value remains that of a single grain. It only becomes bigger in appearance, and temporarily at that,” Eckstein explained.

『Oh, so that’s why it’s called expansion, 』 Rock said.

“There have been incidents where money was made to look larger and used in fraudulent transactions, causing a commotion in the Knight Order. There were even talks of treating it as an 【Evil Spirit】 in the temple… Although now, I think it’s good that it’s considered a benevolent spirit,” Eckstein added.

Depending on the strength of the blessing and the type of power granted, it was essentially the ability to freely manipulate the expansion and contraction of matter. If used correctly, the benefits gained could be significant.

“However, it seems that for him right now, it can only be used as a decoy,” Kalkara said.

『He’s being used as a decoy?! 』 Rock exclaimed.

“It’s not like we directed him to do so. He just became big on his own, got confused, and started rampaging, which made him stand out, and the monsters are just clinging to him,” Kalkara explained.

『Won’t he get hurt? 』 Rock asked.

“That expanded body of his is just a hollow shell created by the spirit’s power. Whether he gets punched, bitten, or pierced by poison needles, he remains unscathed,” Kalkara said.

Griffin’s screams of “Hongyaaaaaaa!” continued to resound loudly, but it wasn’t that he was actually getting injured. He was just frightened by the large number of monsters gathering around him.

And those screams were attracting even more monsters. He was an effective decoy.

『But won’t he die if he runs out of power? 』 Rock asked.

“He’s a third-ranked priest. He won’t run out of power that easily,” Kalkara replied.

『Oh, I see. This power is certainly about how it’s used, 』 Rock said, impressed.

While the situation looked surreal, if it was attracting the surrounding monsters, it would greatly reduce the damage. It was truly amusing in appearance, but it was doing its job effectively.

“At the moment, the only ones who have been bestowed with a blessing strong enough to use it impromptu are him and a girl who has been bestowed with the 【Spirit of the Wind】,” Kalkara said.

“The【Spirit of the Wind, Fynellian】?! There’s someone among the priest apprentices who has been bestowed with one of the four elemental spirits?!” Eckstein exclaimed in astonishment, his eyes wide open. It was common knowledge in this world that among the spirits, the four elements of wind, fire, water, and earth were extremely powerful. They were strong enough to give rise to independent faiths and teachings.

Therefore, bloodlines capable of summoning the four elements were highly valued, and they often held high positions in the Temple. The Caraleigh family led by Aesula was a particularly clear example.

It might be harsh to call Uuga a remote place, but if they heard that there was such a talented individual among the priest apprentices working there, many priests in the temples would be flabbergasted.

“If you came on the 【Flying Ship Garuda】 of the Envy Knight Order, you must be close to the wind spirit,” Shizuku said.

“Offering prayers during Garuda’s operation has become a rule… What about that child?” Eckstein asked.

“She’s flying around Griffin-sama to calm him down. The strength of her blessing is unknown, but if she can fly without fear after receiving a blessing for the first time in her life, it must not be weak,” Kalkara explained.

Looking closely, they could see a small figure fluttering like a butterfly around Griffin, who was rampaging like a baby. It seemed she was speaking to him, and they could see Griffin gradually regaining his composure.

Seeing this, Eckstein sighed.

“It seems 【Uuga】 is going to become even more of a den of evil than I thought…” he said.

“If you want to back out, now’s the time,” Kalkara suggested.

“…I wish I could,” Eckstein said with a troubled expression.

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“I’m never doing that again! Never again!” Griffin shouted, crying as he was supported by the girl, his body having returned to normal.

“Be quiet,” Kalkara said, ignoring Griffin’s initial scream of anguish and surveying the surroundings. With the help of Shizuku and the others, they had successfully defeated the Aether Jelly. Most of the surrounding monsters had quieted down and were regaining their composure.

However, the atmosphere didn’t seem to indicate that everything was resolved.

This was evident from the constant surveying of the surroundings by Shizuku. Instead of looking at the immediate vicinity, she was gazing up at the sky, the direction from which the monsters had come.

“…There’s something there,” she said.

“Are monsters going to fall again?” Kalkara asked.

“No… Apart from the falling monsters—” Shizuku started, but her investigation was interrupted.

『…Huh? What’s that…..? 』 Rock said, as a black shadow appeared in the sky again. They braced themselves, thinking it might be another monster, but it was slightly different from the previous monster’s descent.

To be specific, it was simply, enormously large.

『It’s coming! 』 Rock shouted with an intense warning, a stark contrast to his slightly absentminded demeanor until now. That thing descended from the sky. It had a human-like body with an animal’s head. It was a type of monster called a Goze, similar to the ones Ur and the others had been defeating in the residential area.

However, when its size greatly exceeded that of a normal Goze, its name changed.

With its terrifying power and overwhelming ferocity, it transformed the treasure-seeking thieves of the dungeon into miserable lumps of flesh, tearing apart their corpses and raising a roar. It was the most famous monster among the dungeon’s magical beasts.

『ＢＵＧＯＯＯＯＯＯＯＯＯＯＯＯＯＯＯＯＯＯＯ！！！！』

The King of the Goze, Minotauros, had appeared.