Under Alvin's deductions, advancing cross-pathway from Sequence 3 of the Door pathway to Sequence 2 of the Fool pathway required not only completing the Miracle Invoker advancement ritual, but also meeting the ritual requirements of Bizarro Sorcerer and Scholar of Yore.
That was why Alvin had laid the trap more than a thousand years ago. Under the Goddess's witness, he used the Land of the Unknown to sever Zaratul's "resurrection" plan, driving that angel completely mad and out of control, turning him into a monster and thereby completing the Bizarro Sorcerer ritual.
That was also why, after Alvin "died," he remained cut off from reality in the church of the Night Kingdom for over a thousand years, more than fulfilling the ritual requirements of Scholar of Yore.
And now, the Miracle Invoker's requirement—"to let a lost segment of history return to the current era"—was likewise achieved through his "resurrection."
After all, as the only angel of the Abraham family—an angelic family long fallen into obscurity—since Mr. Door was banished, his return itself represented the revival of that family's once-glorious history in the present age.
In short, because the ritual effects were exceptionally good, Alvin—or rather, Ebner—quickly passed through the most dangerous phase. After that, within his mind, he encountered the two abnormalities described in the original text that accompany advancement to angelhood:
One came from the Beyonder characteristic fused into his body. A powerful, terrifying, lofty, irresistible will seemed to awaken slightly, transmitting one image after another. Some images contained mystical knowledge related to Miracle Invoker; others depicted dust igniting into suns, and the magnificent birth of various celestial bodies. All of them carried spiritual imprints of primitiveness, cold indifference, cruelty, madness, aloof superiority, and utter lack of emotion, rapidly assimilating Ebner's spirit and forcing his state to change beyond his control.
The other came from Alvin's "anchors." They were few in number—only several faint points of light—originating from the prayers of Abraham's family members. Clearly, they were not very firm; the illusory "forms" they condensed were extremely thin and weak, utterly unable to contend with the divinity within the Beyonder characteristic.
Thus, very quickly, divinity completely overwhelmed the "anchors," compressing them to their limit, and was about to thoroughly assimilate Alvin's mind.
But Ebner was not particularly worried. He simply waited quietly.
Sure enough, just as the divinity within the Beyonder characteristic was about to "succeed," traces of the Unknown aura appeared out of thin air within Alvin's soul. They seemed utterly inconspicuous, yet they could render the pollution of divinity intangible, perfectly helping the "anchors" and divinity reach a balance…
Seeing this, even Ebner—who had long known about this from Alvin's memories—silently thought as expected, and then pondered:
"At Sequence 2, no matter how domineering the divinity within the characteristic is, the 'anchors' will receive spontaneous 'assistance' from the Unknown, allowing divinity, anchors, and the Unknown to maintain a dynamic balance. That's why Hermes said Vicente and Rhine didn't need 'anchors' at all to preserve their humanity well."
"Mm, based on my observations, this should be an expression of the Unknown's authority. It defines the excess 'pollution' of divinity as an 'Unknown' state, causing it to lose its original effect."
"If the pollution of the 'anchors' were to surpass that of divinity, it would probably define the anchors' attributes in the same way…"
"Come to think of it, this kind of passive effect of the Unknown probably isn't something unique to Sequence 2; it just didn't manifest clearly before."
"For example, back when I was Sequence 8 and 'analyzed' the gray fog, my spirituality was completely exhausted. Logically, that should have led to characteristic erosion and signs of loss of control… but at the time, I merely fainted. Even my teacher found it strange and told me not to spread the word…"
"Now it seems this was also the Unknown's passive effect at work."
"Heh, Roselle was obsessed with balancing triple-source pollution—was he also simulating this state?"
"Sigh! If not for the fact that each of my lives effectively comes with built-in 'missions,' and staying unadvanced for too long would likely bring various dangers, remaining at Sequence 2 would actually be the most 'comfortable' choice."
"Also, the Unknown provides protection and various conveniences to 'me' at Sequence 2 and below, yet erupts after Sequence 1, assimilating and taking over avatars like 'me'… This means what it desires is at least a Sequence 1-level Beyonder characteristic."
As his thoughts turned, Ebner confirmed his post-advancement state, digesting the mystical knowledge he had just obtained:
"The abilities of a 'Miracle Invoker' are complete. Most of the former 'Wanderer' abilities are also retained, with a small portion fused with abilities of the 'Seer' pathway to produce some mutated abilities."
"Among them, the most interesting one is this… Mm, let's temporarily call it 'Bizarre Domain.'"
"This ability called 'Bizarre Domain' can distort spacetime and establish a 'hidden' space completely isolated from the outside world—so isolated that even information cannot interact with it."
"Within this space, anything that has been 'recorded,' or any 'historical projection,' can be 'materialized' and exist long-term—as long as spirituality can support it."
"And as long as someone obtains a token of the 'Bizarre Domain,' or establishes a connection with its master, they can be instantly 'teleported' inside…"
"This should be the product of combining the sublimated 'Hidden Space,' 'Record,' and other abilities of the 'Mystic Mage' with abilities of the 'Fool' pathway…"
"Tsk, it already somewhat resembles that space above the gray fog."
"Unfortunately, its level of 'secrecy' is far inferior to the 'Sefirah Castle.' Ordinary people and low-to-mid Sequence Beyonders are fine, but if a demigod with the right methods is pulled into the 'Bizarre Domain,' they might be able to crack it and find a way out."
"Of course, high-Sequence Beyonders are also unlikely to easily establish contact with me—or with the 'Bizarre Domain.'"
"Overall, it's a great way to put on an act of gods and ghosts, but not very practical for frontal combat."
"But no matter what, 'I' am now a genuine, bona fide 'Miracle Invoker'!"
"After all, an avatar is also me!"
With that thought, Ebner glanced at the Abraham family members below the mountain peak. Instead of having Alvin use Blink, he pulled a magnificently styled "chariot" out of the gaps of history, drawn by nine extraordinary creatures.
This "chariot" had once been the conveyance of a "Goddess of Wealth" Alvin had befriended on an alien planet. Now it was just right to "borrow" it for use.
—When it came to putting on a show, Ebner had never seen anyone surpass that extraterrestrial "goddess."
Of course, although she was called a "Goddess of Wealth," she was in fact only of angelic status. Strictly speaking, she could only be considered a subordinate god… it was just that her planet had no Sequence 0.
…
Below the main peak of the Hornacis mountain range, the Abraham family's currently only a few Sequence 7 Beyonders, along with some Sequence 8s, had gathered here under Dorian's summons and had already been camping for two days.
Although they all harbored doubts about Ebner's "prophecy" as relayed by Dorian—indeed, doubt outweighed belief—they still chose to come here to welcome the return of "Alvin Abraham."
Because in their hearts they all knew that, given the Abraham family's current situation, complete extinction was only a matter of time… This was not pessimistic speculation, but a fact one could "see."
Even the most optimistic members of the family could see no hope of revenge, no dawn of restored family glory.
Thus, when Dorian brought news that their ancestor Alvin was about to advance to angelhood and return, even though doubt was prevalent, they still made contingency arrangements and resolutely gathered below the Hornacis main peak, waiting for that illusory miracle to truly occur.
A man wearing gold-rimmed glasses, resembling a university professor, glanced at the surrounding clansmen and spoke to comfort them:
"It's only June 2nd. We still need to be patient…
"And in the end, this matter came from Dorian's apprentice… She is the one from the 'prophecy'!"
Hearing this, Dorian's previously anxious mood eased somewhat, and he smiled. "Vildur, I didn't expect you to be even more confident than I am."
"I firmly believe that the great Abraham family will not sink like this… Restoring the family's glory and returning to the very top of both the Southern and Northern Continents—I have always believed this ideal can be realized!" Vildur pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses and said in a deep voice.
Such obsession—if it can never be realized—might increase the risk of losing control… Dorian frowned slightly, just about to offer a few words of caution to keep Vildur from going too extreme.
But at that moment, the two gentlemen and two ladies besides them suddenly raised their heads, then widened their eyes, so shocked they could only repeat words like "Look!" and "By the ancestors!"
Dorian's spirituality was also stirred. He instinctively looked into the air, only to see a chariot radiating golden light all over, its exterior adorned with countless treasures, slowly descending under the pull of nine powerful extraordinary creatures he had never seen before.
And seated upright upon the chariot was a tall, handsome man dressed in a gorgeous silk robe.
The man had jet-black long hair and azure-blue eyes, identical to the ancestor "Alvin Abraham" depicted in the family portraits.
Of course, appearance alone was unreliable—but the spiritual intuition of an Astrologer, as well as a "Grade 1" Sealed Artifact within the family, convinced them that the man on the chariot indeed possessed Abraham's bloodline!
"It's real!"
"Ebner Brain's prophecy is actually real!"
"The family's ancestor really became an angel!"
"Abraham is about to stand at the top of the continent once again!"
"Dorian's apprentice really is the one from the prophecy—her message let us welcome our ancestor back!"
At this moment, all the Abraham family members were overcome with emotion. Some even covered their faces, unable to lower their hands for a long time.
For them, from today onward, Abraham's suffering had finally ended!
After all, a single angel was enough to deter those enemies coveting the Abraham family's treasures, and the family's great vendetta now had hope of revenge.
As for the "Full Moon Ravings" problem, everyone optimistically believed that an angel would have a solution.
At this moment, the chariot finally touched down. Immediately after, a blonde beauty clad in transparent gauze appeared out of thin air, respectfully opening the carriage door and welcoming Alvin out of the chariot.
This blonde woman was "Saintess of Yellow" Natalia. After being tainted by the waters of the River of Eternal Darkness during the battle in Trier, she had been trapped in a dream ever since.
Previously, Ebner had had no particularly good way to deal with her—forcing an attack might even have caused her to awaken from the dream… But now that Alvin had become a Miracle Invoker, the available methods had increased greatly.
Thus, during the descent just now, this Sequence 2 Demoness of Calamity had already become Alvin's "marionette."
(End of chapter)