NOVEL WEB Chapter 730: The Soul Rite Festival
The next day after his reunion with Thomas and Mash, Allen came to Rabul, the capital of the heavenly Sandal Kingdom, along with his teammates.
He had spent the night at the academy, catching up with his younger brother, Mash, after a long time. Princess Reylana appeared in high spirits, as she had Thomas play his flute, starting an impromptu karaoke session.
Bidding his brother goodbye after just one day was a bittersweet moment for him, however the parting words from Mash override all those emotions in a huge shock.
«Big brother Allen, you're fighting the Demon King, aren't you?»
It appeared even Mash now had caught up the information. It wasn't a surprise however, after all, he was among the echelon of the Allen's army, and was in party with the very princess of Latash Kingdom. It would be a surprise if he still hadn't learned the actual details. Nevertheless, Allen was surrounded by complex feelings when Mash asked him.
Mash had already left for the academy when Allen returned from the Spirit Paradise and informed his parents about the war that he was waging against the Demon King, so Mash alone was left out.
The magic ship ALLEN that Allen had offered also routinely made a round to the Rodan village, which made it possible for Mash to return anytime, so it could be that he learned about the situation around then.
On the other hand, Allen had also focused on more trials after the ordeals of Spirit Paradise, which left him with no spare time, so he ultimately failed in delivering the news by himself.
As Allen was lost in a mix of regret, excuses, and reflection, the sound of a crying baby broke his thoughts.
(At least the little one seems healthy. Still, so they have wings and a halo right from their birth huh.)
"Aww, it's alright. Don't cry. Mormor-sama will be conferring you a name soon."
From a floating, sleek, futuristic-looking cradle that hovered just thirty centimeters above the ground, King gently cradled the baby in his arms, trying to soothe it.
The royal capital Rabul was structured like a pyramid, divided into three layers, with commoners of Divine Realm, nobles, and the royal family inhabiting each in ascending order.
At present, Allen and his companions were in the central area of the royal family's residence. At the heart of this area was a grand hall with an open ceiling at the very top
Often serving as the auspicious spot for rituals held by Divine Realm people, it was also a place to draw the lots to enter the divine territory of gods. Of course, Allen also vividly remembers the coldness of the floor he had felt when the same draw right was terminated due to Cecile and everyone's commotion.
Now, they stood in front of the recently born progeny of the King and Queen of Heavenly Sandal Kingdom. Chief Somei and protector Abigail were also present next to Allen. And a certain behind their back were the dragonkin, 12 patriarch, 12 chief warden, and several hundreds of royalty and nobles.
The Great Gods watched the masses from above their high pedestal, naturally eliciting murmurs from the dragonkin.
(Look, it's Easley-sama. This is my first time watching in flesh. I hope they don't take offense to our dragonkin presence......)
(You don't say. But, it's also our first occasion after all. We weren't here during the patriarch appointment ceremony either...)
(Maybe, it wasn't that bad of a decision to plead our allegiance to Sume-sama.)
(I guess, this should be the complete line-up of gods that were meant to be here? Now, if only they can wrap it up quickly, sigh. And dragonkin are especially nervous huh.)
As for Allen himself, he couldn't wait for the Soul Rite Festival to end while he brainstormed about the ideas to burst through the level 250 wall.
Apparently, even for the patriarchs and wardens, being invited to such a grand ceremony was an uncommon event, and the Dragonkin were visibly shaking with tension.
«Fuhahaha, it seems some are eager for this to end already. Let's swiftly begin the 'Naming Ceremony' before the 'Soul Rite Festival' then, shall we?»
(Ugh, he read my mind. But I definitely didn't lie, yeah, so it's fine. Anyway, the Mormo fruit was truly delicious.)
Allen murmured to himself when Mormor, God of Harvest, urged for the ceremony to begin reading his heart. He was sitting deeply in the throne once occupied by the heavenly kingdom's king during their last visit.
God of Harvest Mormo. It was Allen's first sighting of him. Hearing him, he immediately expressed his admiration for the mormo fruit, almost as if he was trying to get it registered in the log. The fruit, named after a god, could grow in any environment and was affordable enough for even peasants to purchase. And in proportion to its cheap price, it offered an abundance of nutrients.
He was also quite surprised to see him attending this event, considering he was one of the ten pillars of this world.
As the God of Harvest, he was worshipped in all nations, cities, and villages of the human realm during October. In Kurena Village, the Harvest Festival was held on October 1st, Allen's birthday.
God of Harvest was reminiscent of the Buddhist deity Hotei from the Seven Gods of Fortune—a large, protruding belly that stretches out of his robes, and a completely shiny head. Including the celebration for harvest festival, God of Harvest could be seen in any tiny village, or even pioneer village.
There were other gods too, like the Great Spirit God Easley, or the Gods of Four Major Elements; Earth God Gaia, Water God Aqua, Fire God Freya, and Wind God Ninril.
Even in the smallest of villages, or in developing settlements, statues of the God of Abundance can be found, especially during harvest prayers. There was also the Beast God Grian attending the scene from Paradise of Primordial Beasts.
(Is this... because of my request? Even Giran is here huh)
Saving the God of Harvest, rest of the line up was something Allen had requested from Great Spirit God Easley, and their presence was an indication his request had been accepted. Of course, he hadn't put forth an elaborate deal, so the forwardness had been from gods all along.
It appeared Gods couldn't willfully step out of their domain either, and were barred from allowing a miracle without a just cause for the people, hence they're more than ready to take up the offer for a change of scenery.
"Understood. I, Jigen, shall be the facilitator of the ceremony. We shall start off first with the naming ceremony of our first angel, born after a drought of 100,000 years. Everyone, please kneel in the presence of the God of Harvest Mormo."
An old man from the divine realm, seemingly the chancellor, took the helm as the master of ceremonies.
Already kneeling, Allen and his party lowered their heads even further, their faces nearly touching the plush carpet beneath them.
(A naming ceremony, huh? I suppose, it's the same ol' baby naming sequence? Hmm, I presume our hunted spirit crystals had been put to use huh.)
The ceremony evoked the memories of when they had come to the divine realm in Allen. They learned that to enter the divine territory, they needed to pull the divine lottery, as was said by the Heavenly King when they made their request so as to tackle the trials of gods. And for that, they also required spirit stones, which they could find from strong spirit beasts.
Some of them, like the demigod class spirit beasts even had a far more valuable spirit stone inside them, though they're also one that could give them run for their money with status surpassing 100,000 value.
Allen had heard that by delivering the spirit crystal of demigod class spirit beast to a pregnant lady of royalty of Divine Realm, the lady would give birth to the angel of highest order—The First Angel.
And apparently, the child, the First Angel, that the queen gave birth to was first in the last 100,000 years.
(After the invasion of Demon King army to the Fire God's divine territory, they also lost many angels in the ordeal if I recall correct. Considering they've been recruiting any rank angels, First Angel's birth must have been a timely rain for them.)
The Divine Realm was also experiencing an angel baby boom due to the Demon King invasion. Albeit, any of them were ordinary rank angel. And this was a concerning matter since, while the Demon King army hadn't lost just a few of the army, Divine Realm lost a majority of their First Angels, including Merus.
[The Ranks of Angels and Their Serving Gods – Chapter 12 Edition]
First Angel (Three sets of wings): Creation God, and a portion of higher-ranking gods
Archangel (Two sets of wings): Primarily higher-ranking gods
Principalities (Spiked Halo): Gods, First Angels
Angels: Gods, Principality, Archangels
Note - Often times, the second angels serve the Creation God.
(Speaking of, you were given your name by God of War Luminea, right, Merus?)
«Indeed. First Angels can only be named by high-ranking gods or above. It's also the ceremony where the power of the divine is shared.»
Allen quietly whispered to Merus via their synchronisation, and confirmed.
Meanwhile, the Heavenly King rose slowly, his movements slow and deliberate. He gently cradled the crying infant in the royal carriage before him.
With calm steps, he turned his body, walking with measured grace as though he were in a bowing hall, careful to keep his feet barely lifted. He approached the God of Harvest with the same composed stride.
He ascended the few steps before the throne, and knelt just one step before the top, bringing the infant before him with both hands raised high, as though offering it up to the God of Harvest.
Though the First Angel was born from the spirit stone and was a special creation, there was still a separate ritual to be performed—«Naming Ceremony» bu the higher god.
«Guaaahhh! Gyaaahhh!!»
Perhaps feeling the unknown shadow of God of Harvest, the baby burst out crying.
«Haha, it sure is an energetic child.»
God of Harvest spoke in amusement, and gently extended his hand toward the kid. In doing so, it also once again evoked the grandeur of his stature. God of Harvest had to be around 30 metres tall, and the baby was barely as big as his fingertips. But in contrast to the absolute mammoth entities that were Beast God Giran, and Great Spirit God Easely, he did appear mildly big.
«*Snivel*...»
The baby suddenly ceases its crying as it stared at the fingertip, and affirming that, God of Harvest parted his lips.
«So, it's a boy, huh? Then I shall name him «Homaru». Perhaps, he will serve the Elmea-sama one day. O' the King of Divine Realm, raise him healthy till the boy is ready to adopt the training of us gods. So as I share my divinity. May he grow strong and healthy.»
The God of Harvest gathered divine power into the palm of His hand and extended it to the First Angel, Homaru, offering His strength.
"Yes, that would be our honor!!"
At the God of Harvest's words, the Heavenly King lowered his raised arms, cradling Homaru in his arms. Taking a step back, he turned his back to the throne and slowly descended the stairs.
He gently placed Homaru into the floating baby carriage beside the queen. The child, Seemingly exhausted by the surroundings, had already descended into a peaceful slumber, sucking on his fingers.
"*Cough* Now, a round of applause to the birth of the new First Angel, Homaru-sama! Shortly, the oracle shall be transmitted to the Human Realm by Lupto-sama."
*Clap, clap, clap!*
The beings of the Divine Realm applauded in unison, the sound echoing throughout the chamber.
"This is truly a momentous day. The birth of an angel is an extremely important cornerstone to sustain the world of gods after all. Well then, onward to our second revelation of the day, and a terrific one if I may add. I believe the words of it should've been travelled already, and indeed—Spirit Beast Nestirad has been subjugated. A message from the Great Spirit God Easley will now be shared."
«Thus, my role has ended. Heigh-ho.»
«Excuse me.»
Passing the baton to Great Spirit God at the end of his speech, God of Harvest rose from his throne. Great Spirit God followed the same, and switched their position.
As their towering figures moved, the platform beneath them swayed slightly, but the construction of the room was solid enough to handle the presence of such immense deities.
The throne room, including its vast depth, was designed with incredible grandeur and space.
A silence followed as everyone waited quietly for the words of one of the pillar gods—Great Spirit God Easley. While Allen quietly wondered how Homaru didn't cry further, with the God of Harvest's finger still turning at him, the Great Spirit God weaved his words.
«The Spirit Beast Nestirad was the very embodiment of stagnation within the Divine Realm. As one entrusted with the cycle of souls, I am greatly pleased that this stagnation has now been eradicated. But it also came at an extremely expensive price—the passing of young souls not meant to join that cycle yet.»
«Hoho! And by virtue of this, not only will the lands below but also the Divine Realm will be able to have ample nourishment. Mmm! Experience the overflowing blessing of mine!!"
The God of Fertility raised His arm to the heavens, clenched his fist filled with divine power. As He did, snowflakes-like light began to fall gently from the open ceiling.
Apparently, the restoration of the cycle of life also quietly buffed the power of God of Strength.
«T-The god's blessingggg!!»
«Ah, how sublime!»
«Indeed, so this is the Great God of Harvest.»
«*Giggle*»
Amidst the raptured crowd, Homaru's giggling also echoed as he reached out his hand toward the snow brimming with warm adoration.
«A silence now. But while they had turned into souls, they've now become the very lost soul, wandering aimlessly due to the lingering attachment to their promises yet to be fulfilled. Let us now pray for the future of those who have returned to the cycle of life as new souls.»
The gathered crowd solemnly lowered their head in prayer as the Great Spirit God conveyed.
(Hmm, this kind feels like a con show Fire God put up to trick the crowd.)
While the rest of his team members curiously pondered if this had been the reflection of Soul Rite Festival, Allen's thought alone charted into, err, what was a blasphemy. Suddenly, one of the snowflakes burst into tiny embers
"Ack!"
Allen unwittingly cried out when he felt the burning sensation atop his head.
«Tis' the sacred ceremony. Make no noise.»
A rebuke immediately followed from Freya, the god of fire.
T/N - And thus, as the lost soul return back to the cycle, so does I am back from my lost cycle. Alright, I know that's lame pun. But, moving on, I really don't know where to begin honestly. My health had been upside down during the beginning of last month, and just as I thought I was better, updated one chapter, I got sick again. Turn out It was typhoid. Now my focus would be to finish the schedule without prolonging it. Moreso for our dear patron readers. Let's see, right now, it's 1/16. Will keep updating regularly.