Chapter 27. Echoes of Divine War

Chapter 27: 27. Echoes of Divine War

The short rest ended with a quiet agreement.

Tina spoke first after checking the path ahead.

"We keep going. That Oni fled deeper, but the boss chamber should still be ahead. Better to clear the dungeon and report everything to the guild than leave an open threat behind."

Brianna nodded, adjusting the minimal scraps of her travel-worn tribal gear. Dean gave a short grunt of agreement despite the missing finger.

Ryn only shrugged and stood, oversized sword resting on one shoulder.

Seraphine pushed away from the wall and walked straight to Eira.

Her eyes flicked once toward Kael and Brianna with clear irritation before she spoke in a low, firm voice.

"You stay with me from now on."

Eira looked up, pure black hair under the Ring of Veil shifting slightly, then gave a small nod and moved closer to her sister’s side.

Kael noticed the sharp glance and the protective way Seraphine positioned herself between Eira and the rest of the group.

Seraphine’s crimson gaze did not hold its usual dismissive contempt; it held a sharp, territorial edge she had not yet learned to hide, her irritation masking a curiosity that bordered on obsession.

The group formed up again and continued deeper into the frost-choked passage.

Azure-tinted fog thickened around them. Ice crystals clung to the rime-crusted walls.

The cobalt luminescence from the embedded stones shifted from blue toward a colder white.

After several minutes of steady walking Dean suddenly spoke from the front, voice low and edged with suspicion.

"That Oni had a clear shot at your head. He stopped right before the shackle landed. Why? And what is that mark on your wrist? I saw the light hit it when he froze."

Ryn turned, sharp eyes fixed on Kael.

"Yeah. In that collapsed dungeon the Ascension Devil also looked at you and let us walk. You’re hiding something. You’re not working with the demons, are you?"

Both men watched him closely. The heavy white shroud of mist drifted around their boots.

Seraphine’s gaze shifted toward Kael as well, waiting, the usual sharp dislike still present but mixed with suspicion.

A soft window appeared only in Kael’s vision.

[Lust Dominion System]

[LP: +80]

[Source: Fingering a different race (hybrid orc) while her brother is nearby and your stepdaughter is watching]

[Total LP: 310]

Kael’s thoughts flashed with irritation.

’Where were you when that demon attacked us? Couldn’t you give me a temporary skill or something? And why are you giving the reward now? I would have forgotten by now that I fingered her if you didn’t popped up with some points.’

Outwardly his expression stayed calm. He met their gazes without flinching.

"I do not know the full details myself. A seer gave me this mark some time ago. He said it would help against demons and devils when the time came. I suppose I should thank him for the blessing."

Dean’s eyes stayed narrowed.

Ryn’s grip on his sword tightened. Seraphine watched Kael’s face in silence, her usual sharp tongue held back for once.

Tina’s voice cut in from the side, quiet but direct.

"Which goddess blessed you, then? Marks like that do not appear without divine favor."

Kael’s mind turned briefly to the divine powers that shaped this world.

Divine favor dictated standard life across every realm, whether a warrior prayed to Strength on the battlefield, a mage sought Wisdom in quiet halls, or holy knights raised banners to Light.

Shadowed races looked to Darkness, outcasts whispered to Sin, and the courtly vain offered homage to Beauty.

Yet the Goddess of Lust stood apart from them all, her domain woven through quiet corruption and forbidden desire, spoken of in hushed tones if acknowledged at all.

Kael kept his expression steady.

"I was never told which one," he answered. "The seer only said the mark would answer when it was needed."

Tina studied him a moment longer.

Kael turned the question back toward her.

"And you? Which goddess’s blessing do you carry?"

Tina’s eyes met his without hesitation.

"The Goddess of Beauty. Most of my people follow her. She grants ageless beauty and the strength to protect it. Elves who walk under her favor do not fade the way other races do."

Kael looked at her under the flickering sapphire glow.

The smooth cocoa skin, the long straight black hair, the sharp yet balanced features, the quiet grace in every movement.

Tina carried the effortless, ageless grace that the High Elves claimed was a direct gift from Beauty, an unnatural perfection that set her apart even among other dark elf lineages.

He then glanced toward Brianna.

"What about you?"

Brianna adjusted the damp leather wrap across her chest and answered in her usual straightforward tone.

"A lesser goddess known among the orc tribes. The Goddess of Beasts. She watches over those who live by strength and instinct. Her blessing is not as famous as the seven supreme deities, but it is enough for my bloodline."

The group continued walking. Ice cracked softly under their boots.

The frost-choked passage narrowed as they moved deeper, the heavy white shroud growing denser with every step.

Kael’s thoughts turned inward once more.

The mark on his left wrist had not come from any goddess.

The brand on his wrist felt like a cold stone beneath his skin, a permanent weight left by the devil’s touch.

The five dragon heads seemed to snarl silently beneath the ambient glow, an enigma that had turned a C-rank demon into a coward.

The system given by the Lust Goddess and the mark given by the Ascension Devil were two separate chains, and he still did not fully understand either one.

The goddesses did not hand out blessings for free.

Each favor bound the receiver to the giver’s will. Followers were tools. Their strength, beauty, knowledge, even their sins were cultivated for distant intentions.

He had been given a system by the Goddess of Lust.

Yet no mission had been given. No command. No demand for worship or service. Only a system that rewarded desire & taboo.

Most races spoke of the Lust Goddess with open dislike or quiet contempt.

Her domain was considered unclean, dangerous, something to be resisted rather than embraced.

Temples to her were rare and usually hidden. Public followers were few.

So why had she chosen him? And why had she remained silent about what she actually wanted?

Another thought followed, heavier than the first.

The long war between humans and demons had lasted for decades. Official histories blamed territory, resources, and ancient blood feuds.

But what if that war was only a surface conflict? What if it was a smaller piece of a much older struggle between the Goddess of Light and the Goddess of Sin?

The Goddess of Sin was said to hold strong influence over the demon races. If her blessings guided the demons while the Goddess of Light guided the human kingdoms, then the endless fighting might be nothing more than two divine wills grinding against each other through mortal bodies.

Kael had no proof.

Only the shape of a possibility that refused to leave his mind.

And beneath all of it lay a quieter, more personal mystery.

He still had no clear idea who the original owner of this body had been.

The memories he inherited were incomplete.

A low-rank porter. A man who had somehow married an A+ ranked succubus. A man who had five stepdaughters of different races.

A man who had died under unclear circumstances before the Lust Goddess placed a new soul into the empty shell.

Every time Kael reached for deeper memories of the predecessor, the path ended in fog.

No name beyond Kael. No clear past. No explanation for why Isolde had chosen him or why the Ascension Devil had marked him.

The heavy white shroud swirled thicker around the group as the unanswered questions settled in his mind.

Ahead, the tunnel began to open into a wider chamber.

Faint traces of corrupted black-and-white mist still clung to the air, a reminder that the Oni had passed this way not long ago.

The boss chamber was close.

And the silence surrounding both the Lust Goddess and the true identity of the body’s former owner remained unbroken.

The air grew colder still as they advanced. Soft cracks of ice underfoot mixed with the quiet sound of their breathing.

Dean kept his injured hand close to his body. Ryn walked a half-step ahead of Tina, oversized blade ready.

Brianna’s staff tapped lightly against the stone with each stride. Seraphine stayed near Eira, blood-forged dagger still in hand, her posture alert and closed off.

Kael kept his own short sword loose at his side.

The mark on his wrist remained hidden beneath the sleeve, yet the weight of it felt heavier after the Oni’s reaction. Whatever the five dragon heads truly meant, it had bought them time once.

It might buy them more before this dive ended.

No one spoke for a while.

The only sounds were the drip of melting ice somewhere in the distance and the soft scrape of boots on frozen stone.

The wider chamber ahead waited in silence, its entrance framed by pale crystal light and the lingering traces of the corrupted mist the Oni had left behind.

Whatever waited inside, the questions about gods, marks, and the body’s true history would have to wait.