Seiya heard a voice amidst the rumbling thunder. "I've been waiting for a long time, Mad God's Beast! Come! Come and fight me here! I will l
Seiya heard a voice amidst the rumbling thunder.
"I've been waiting for a long time, Mad God's Beast! Come! Come and fight me here! I will let you experience the true might of the Ancient King, the Dragon Slayer, with the speed of lightning! Advance towards the east, old man, I will be waiting for you in the ruined city ruins to the east!"
The roaring wind and thunder were a message only Seiya could hear, because Melqart ignored everyone except him.
After sensing Melqart's presence, Seiya didn't respond immediately.
He first used the strong wind power of the Pegasus Cloth to protect Parthenope and return her to Naples, because Melqart's title, "King of Gods, Great Warrior, Strongest Dragon Slayer Hunter," didn't guarantee that he wouldn't instantly appear in Parthenope's form as lightning, and then completely deplete the ley lines of this land with a single blow.
But just as he finished all this and prepared to respond to the God King's battle invitation, he sensed a familiar aura rapidly approaching him.
It was a red figure, and Seiya's gaze softened.
"Erica, you didn't have to come."
"The God King is our destined encounter on this island. If we let our lord face him alone, it would be a dereliction of duty as knights." Erica knelt before Seiya, "Please allow me to contribute my meager strength."
Her words were sincere, but Erica's face was flushed. Even as a great knight, she was hard-pressed to intervene in this divine battle, but if she only provided assistance to Seiya, she could still manage it. Or rather, the knowledge she had accumulated over more than a decade preparing to become a God Slayer, a thorough understanding of various mythologies, was her key contribution.
Because of the God Slayer's anti-magic constitution, to transfer knowledge, only close physical contact would work.
Seiya didn't make a fuss about it. Before Erica was mentally prepared, his lips were already covering hers.
"I…I understand. Listen, Seiya. Melqart = Baal originally originated from the Proto-Semitic nomadic society, it's a very ancient deity…"
"Proto-Semitic? What specifically?"
"You don't need to ask questions as they come to mind. I will explain it all to you…"
Regardless of Erica's intention, whether she wanted to get ahead of that annoying Far East Shrine Maiden, or truly wanted to put a perfect end to this original story, at this moment, she finally became the first person to transmit knowledge to Seiya.
Faced with Seiya's initiative, Erica was nervous. As she imparted her knowledge, her lips were pressed together, nervously answering back and forth, causing their teeth to collide, and uttering quite a few unnecessary words.
Despite this, their lips remained tightly pressed together.
Erica's magic transmitted vivid impressions and knowledge into Seiya's mind— numerous place names and historical stories, the names and myths of the gods who reigned over this land, linking together various elements, clarifying various keywords….
"Baal, the true form of Melqart, is a deity who could not exist in a land with four distinct seasons like Japan. He was born from the desert and wilderness, and is the god of storms formed by the fiery sun and rain."
Erica whispered warmly, her breath incredibly sweet.
"Records regarding Baal are very scarce. However, an ancient book where he frequently appears exists very close to us—the Old Testament. The traces of Baal are easiest to find in religious texts dedicated to him."
As she transmitted the knowledge, their bodies leaned forward. Seiya seemed to want to completely envelop Erica's lips with his own. Erica's lips were being held, but she continued transmitting knowledge.
Baal is the King of Gods, Great Warrior, Strongest Dragon Slayer Hunter.
Baal is also the gluttonous demon king in Christian culture, one of the Seven Deadly Sins. Milton's Paradise Lost portrays him as a demon king comparable to God; he is also the demon king Beelzebub; and the chief of the Seventy-Two Pillars of Demons, the Dark Great Emperor Baal.
Baal's mythology was later passed on to Greece and became the archetype of the hero Hercules.
This amount of knowledge, sufficient to fill a book, was transmitted entirely into Seiya's body within seconds. At this moment, Seiya's strongest armament, the Golden Sword, which he had rarely used since obtaining it, vibrated intensely for the first time.
Because it generates corresponding special attacks and seals based on the degree of knowledge of the deity's mythology.
Long after Seiya left, Erica's heart remained unsettled. Was it the joy of having contributed? Or the smug satisfaction of having outdone that annoying Far East Shrine Maiden? Or something else…?
Erica touched her lips, as if still reminiscing about her inner turmoil. A cold, detached laughter drifted on the wind, like the innocent giggles of a little girl.
Seventeen kilometers east of Palermo, now the Ruins Street, is the ancient Phoenician frontline base, the Sorrento ruins.
Sorrento was a street built in the coastal mountains by the Phoenicians in the fourth century BC, later becoming the territory of the Greek and Roman Empires, gradually expanding, then destroyed by Islamic Arab conquerors, now becoming the Sorrento ruins. Occasionally, tourists might reach this remote place.
Even the Heretic Gods, defying mythology, have their unique and distinctive characteristics. Melqart's might is particularly ritualistic. The God King's majesty had already enveloped the island since his awakening, and the battlefield he chose was the symbol of the Phoenician sky god Melqart, the two stone pillars standing in the center of the ruins, resembling antlers.
Immense divine power spiraled in the sky in the form of natural phenomena. When the destined enemy appeared, formless raging winds, violent storms, and fiery thunder gathered in the air.
The Sky God King Melqart appeared in a blaze of heavenly fire.
"So it is. Your body is brimming with words that are potent against Baal." Melqart's sharp eyes immediately noticed Seiya's change. "But to make the God King wait so long, that is a great impiety!"
"For the God King, adequate preparation is the greatest respect, isn't it? So a slight delay wouldn't bother Your Majesty, right?" Seiya raised an eyebrow.
Melqart let out a wild laugh. "Indeed! Indeed! Unleash your full strength! If you can't satisfy Baal, then Baal will sink you and this land into the sea. If you don't want that to happen, fight with all your might to defeat Baal, the God King!"
Boom! The two pillars were shattered by the storm, and the voice of heaven thundered!
Divine might was like a prison, the atmosphere was like the sea. The place where Seiya had stood was instantly engulfed in a thunderous inferno.
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