Miracle Summoner

The Next Day

After experiencing several bouts of chaos and upheaval, two major events occurred today on Itogami Island.

One was utterly unbelievable.

The other was utterly shocking.

The unbelievable event referred to the state of disaster on Itogami Island.

Originally, after the devastation wrought by the Tartarus Lapse, nearly seventy percent of the island's infrastructure had been lost. Logistics had ground to a halt, food supplies were critically short, resources were lacking, and aid from Japan had yet to arrive. In short, the entire island had become a disaster zone.

And yet, today, the disaster vanished.

A deep crimson radiance swept across Itogami Island, restoring it to its original condition. All buildings returned to their former state, and even the East District's warehouse district, including its destroyed grain storage, was completely restored. Logistics resumed, food supply returned to normal, and the island's crisis was resolved.

It was as though the catastrophe the island had endured had never happened at all—like it had been erased from existence.

This miraculous event caused a stir among the citizens of Itogami City and triggered heated discussions online.

People began speculating: was this some new technology developed by the island? Or perhaps a gift from a magically advanced foreign nation?

Only the Management Cooperative knew the truth—that Itogami Island had restored itself through its own power.

That crimson radiance was a forbidden power capable of altering the world itself: the ultimate forbidden curse invoked by the Priestess of Cain.

It was this power that revived the island and breathed new life into it, allowing the artificial island to once again take its place as a functioning Demon Sanctuary.

And this was what Aiba Asagi, as the Priestess of Cain, had always intended to do.

According to Asagi herself, ever since she had emerged from the C Room, she had wanted to use the power of Cleansing to restore the island. However, the magical computation programs had not yet been perfected, and she had not yet mastered the forbidden incantations of the God of Sin. As a result, she had been unable to wield the power freely until now.

Because of this delay, Itogami Meiga—who also possessed knowledge of Cleansing—was able to take advantage of the awakened power for his own sinister purposes. Worse, he shared this knowledge with Dimitrie Vatler, allowing Vatler to learn how to wield Cleansing as well.

If not for this, Vatler and Itogami Meiga would never have been able to use Cleansing against Rozen. There's no way Asagi would have lent them that power if she had known their true intent.

Asagi had only agreed to collaborate with Vatler in order to counter the multinational fleet dispatched by the Sanctuary Treaty forces. Her aim had always been to protect Itogami Island, not destroy it.

If Vatler and Itogami Meiga had been targeting Rozen from the start, she would never have lent them the power of Cleansing in the first place. That was likely one reason they delayed using it until the last moment.

Rozen even suspected that Asagi had realized Vatler's betrayal early on, and had struggled in secret to stop him.

After all, a power like Cleansing, capable of reshaping the world, could never have been wielded so weakly—not unless Vatler and Meiga had failed to properly harness it. Even Asagi herself hadn't fully mastered it yet. If she had, she could have stripped Vatler and Meiga of the power at any time.

But now, Asagi had finally come to grips with the process of activating Cleansing, and she immediately used it to heal the island—saving Rozen the trouble of using the Holy Grail to make a wish.

As for the other shocking news—it came from the Holy Ground Treaty's member nations.

Following the incident, countries around the world issued official statements: the designation of Itogami Island as a large-scale destructive magical weapon was revoked immediately. The island would no longer be considered a threat, nor would it be attacked.

This announcement caused yet another uproar across the globe.

The disastrous retreat of the Sanctuary Treaty's military forces had already been widely publicized. In response, global discourse had intensified, and now this surprising revocation had many reading between the lines.

Suddenly, people across many countries found themselves confused, whereas the citizens of Itogami City were both shocked and dumbfounded.

After all, the Management Cooperative had never disclosed that Itogami Island had been designated as a large-scale destructive magical weapon. Now, with that information suddenly revealed, of course the public was stunned.

In summary, these two events combined made people feel like the world had changed overnight.

Still—for Itogami Island, this was undoubtedly good news.

But unknown to the public, something else happened that day as well.

"You want to speak with Cain?"

In the grand hall of the Minamiya residence, Akatsuki Kojou sat at the head of the room, both awkward and surprised.

Before him were all of their friends.

Akatsuki Nagisa, Kanase Kanon, and Avrora Florestina were present.

Yaze Motoki, Aiba Asagi, and Himeragi Yukina were also standing at Rozen's side.

Even Natsuki was present today, with Astarte quietly pouring tea beside her.

Everyone had gathered, facing Kojou, leaving both him and Tokoyogi Yuuma slightly uneasy.

Then—

"Didn't you say that you've never succeeded in establishing a dialogue with the God of Sin?" Yuuma raised the question on Kojou's behalf.

And it was none other than Asagi who answered.

"That's because Cain didn't want to be disturbed."

As the Priestess of Cain, who had inherited the memories of the God of Sin from the C Room, Asagi gave this explanation.

She turned to Rozen.

Rozen nodded, recalling what Asagi had once told him, and smiled faintly.

"Many know that the God of Sin, Cain, was once rejected by the gods and even exiled to another realm. That's what set the later events into motion."

Rozen's gaze was fixed on Kojou—or rather, on the entity within him.

"But what exactly was it that led the gods to reject and exile Cain?"

This was a secret.

A secret even more deeply buried than Cleansing itself.

"People say Cain was the original sinner. But in truth, the real sinners were the gods."

Rozen began to recount that ancient history.

"In the distant age of gods, divine beings ruled the earth with overwhelming power and immortality. Bored by their eternal lives, they waged wars across the land for mere amusement."

Think about it: even old-generation vampires, tired of living too long, would risk everything in pursuit of excitement. How could the gods—who were even more powerful and equally immortal—be any different?

Thus, the age of the gods was one of constant upheaval. The world had never known peace.

The gods acted recklessly out of boredom.

They abused their powers without remorse.

And the one who couldn't stand it anymore—was Cain, the God of Sin.

"Cain objected to the gods' atrocities, and for that, he was rejected, exiled, and ultimately unified the other realm to develop a power capable of resistance—"

Rozen spoke solemnly.

"—That's how Cleansing came to be."