In the marshlands, just outside the Rock Dragon Giant Lizard's lair.
"York, do I really have to come along?"
York rode on horseback with Lucia, heading toward the Rock Dragon Giant Lizard's lair. They could already see the swamp.
On horseback, Lucia hugged York's waist, her expression filled with apprehension.
"Don't worry, Lucia. This summons is an Oracle from His Majesty."
"During these past days, He has seen my efforts from His Divine Kingdom and has also become aware of your existence, Lucia."
"Therefore, for this audience with His Majesty, you, Lucia, as the Baroness of the Swamp Territory, are indispensable. Besides, this is a joyous occasion of the highest order for both of us."
Faced with York's ecstatic expression, Lucia nodded, but a deep-seated worry filled her heart.
This worry had been with her throughout the past days, and it hadn't lessened in the slightest.
Lucia didn't know much about Deities.
On the Oakland Continent, although the various Churches had always proclaimed their existence, a god was still a distant concept.
There were even many ancient texts recording a Divine Descent in an Empire in the Central Region of the Oakland Continent three hundred years ago.
But for the last three hundred years, at least, there had been no more genuine cases of Divine Descent.
Even if there were, they were nothing more than tricks orchestrated by the Vatican Church to deceive the Commoners.
At least, that was what many among the Nobility believed.
Of course, neither Lucia nor even the Nobility and Royal Families of the various nations denied the existence of Deities.
However, even among Deities, not all of them stood on the side of the Human Race.
In the ancient records.
The earliest Deities of the Human Race had fought earth-shattering wars against various Demon Gods, Evil Gods, Sea Gods, and other Alien Gods.
Only then did they manage to secure vast lands for the Human Race to survive.
Even now, the situation on the Oakland Continent was far from ideal.
After all, the Human Race currently occupied only two-thirds of the continent's Central Region.
The Western Realm was the Demon Beast Forest, territory of the Demon Beasts under the command of the Demon Gods.
The Northern Realm was a frigid ice plain, including parts of the Central Region, and was the domain of the Beastmen under the Beast Gods.
The Eastern Realm was the Elf Forest, also including parts of the Central Region, home to the Elves who served the Alien Gods.
The Southern Realm was the Azure Sea, including the coastal lands, the territory of the Sea Race under the Evil Gods.
Although the Human Race occupied the fertile lands of the continent's center, they were surrounded on four sides, a precarious position to be in.
However, compared to the ages ten thousand or a thousand years ago as recorded in history, the various human nations were now, at least, militarily capable.
In the current era, with no Deities descending upon the world, they could already stabilize the situation at the continent's borders and even continuously encroach upon the territories of other Alien Races.
Of course, this encroachment wasn't aggressive. Instead, it was done step-by-step, using methods of land reclamation like York's to claim more territory.
It was like boiling a frog in warm water—at least it wouldn't provoke a major reaction from the Alien Races or escalate into a full-scale war.
'Deities...'
'It's been over three hundred years since a Miracle was last seen on the Oranck Continent.'
'The same was true even for the Alien Races.'
Therefore, when she first heard that York had been accepted as a Divine Servant by a deity, Lucia was both surprised and incredulous.
She was even a little delighted.
But after arriving in the Swamp Territory and seeing that enormous Rock Dragon Giant Lizard with its terrifying aura, a constant worry had taken root in Lucia's heart.
'A deity who uses a Demon Beast as its mortal vessel instead of a human... will He really stand on the side of the Human Race?'
'What if this is all a conspiracy by a Demon God?'
'Or even a plot by those High Tier Magical Beasts with advanced intelligence? What would she and York do then?'
Because of this, she couldn't help but think about these things every night, and they gave her nightmares.
She didn't want to crush her husband's lofty ambitions.
But she was truly worried.
However, since they were about to meet this deity, all she could do now was use this audience to see for herself whether this god was truly as great, or even as benevolent, as York claimed.
Soon, the two of them, still on horseback, finally arrived at the edge of the swamp.
York and Lucia dismounted onto a patch of hardened earth at the swamp's edge.
Then, right there beside the swamp, York knelt on one knee, pulling Lucia down to kneel with him as they faced the center of the marsh.
"My Lord, Your faithful servant, York Smith, has come with his wife, Lucia Callum, to see you in accordance with Your Oracle."
"I beseech You to grant Your Divine Descent upon this place!"
One of them had an expression of fervent zeal, the other of apprehension.
Meanwhile, Lince, sitting in front of his computer, found the whole thing rather amusing.
He moved his mouse and clicked on the character ability 'Descent' effect.
As the Divine Descent initiated, Lince, back at his computer, once again skillfully rolled his face across the keyboard.
At the same time, inside the Game World, it was dusk, the time when the Sun was setting.
With Lince's 'Divine Descent', a vast and magnificent scene of a Miracle suddenly unfolded.
A pillar of light reaching to the heavens suddenly descended from the sky.
The pillar of light was as brilliant as a river of stars, shimmering with a multitude of colors.
As it fell from high above, its radiance covered an area of at least several dozen kilometers in radius.
However, since it wasn't nighttime, the only ones who could observe this scene, besides the humans in the Swamp Territory, were the Demon Beasts in the surrounding Wilderness.
At the same time, the disturbance in Magic Power caused the many Demon Beasts around the Swamp Territory to whimper ceaselessly.
Fear and terror gripped the Demon Beasts, but the phenomenon was just as shocking to the humans near the Swamp Territory.
"By the God of Truth! Look, what is that?"
"A Divine Descent! It must be the God of Truth descending!"
In a world where the Church held sway, the God of Truth was the one and only faith for the people of the Silver Lion Duchy and even its vassal Kingdom.
Therefore, upon seeing such a spectacular scene, the first thing that came to the minds of ordinary Commoners and even Knights was 'Miracle'.
Miracles were never a distant concept; after all, this was an Extraordinary world.
Even though Deities hadn't manifested in the mortal world for over three hundred years, the major Churches would always find suitable moments to reasonably display some 'Miracles' to maintain the people's faith—and, of course, to secure the Church's 'power'.
Thus, at this moment, everyone from the Apprentice Knights of the Swamp Territory to the enslaved Commoners and even the merchants of the commerce guilds were all crying out to the God of Truth.
"Praise the God of Truth!"
"Praise the Lord!"
"The Lord has successfully reclaimed the land! He must have received our god's approval! That has to be it!"
"Otherwise, how could the Lord have defeated a stronger foe and even ended up taming a powerful Demon Beast as a Blood Contract Battle Pet?"
"This must all be the guidance of the God of Truth!"
At the right time and in the right place, the old steward Mo Wen's eyes glinted, and he seemed to whisper something to an Apprentice Knight.
And so, under the watchful eyes of the territory's subjects and the commerce guild members, this Apprentice Knight suddenly shouted out in excitement.
"Is that how it is?"
"So that's what happened!"
"Praise the great God of Truth!!!"
"Praise the Lord!"
"..."