In My Second Life, I Rule from the Shadows

Chapter 188: Divine Duel (2)

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How could he handle the stolen divinity so skillfully?

That was what astonished Kylos about Carl.

‘How on earth?’

Divinity was different from any other kind of power.

Mana or aura could be trained or drawn out through discipline, but divine power had its limits set from the beginning.

It was what people called proof of faith.

The degree of one’s belief in God determined the scale of divinity, and sometimes, depending on how the god used it, additional power could be granted.

‘But using the divinity of my own divine being is different.’

He was the one who descended and wielded the divinity himself.

It was not something borrowed from another—it required understanding and mastery of the essence of divinity to use it like that.

“Could it be you were a priest?”

“As if.”

Carl shrugged.

It was an amusing misunderstanding.

To think someone would mistake him not for a killer spirit, but a priest.

‘Well, I suppose that’s understandable.’

Skillfully controlling the divinity coursing through his body, Carl looked at Kylos.

“Are you curious? About how I can handle this power?”

Of course, there had been continuous training behind it.

Gallon had once said that, without formal ordination, handling divinity in a short time was almost impossible.

But to Carl, manipulating divinity did not feel so different from handling inner energy.

As long as he was careful about the repulsion between mana and inner energy, he could now use it—albeit awkwardly—to block his opponent’s attacks to some extent.

‘Though that was limited to within the space of mental imagery.’

If he tried to wield divinity that strong in reality, the backlash would be severe.

And since it was incomplete, there were several spots where he had still taken hits from Kylos’s attacks.

Had it not been within the space of mental imagery, he might not have dared to even attempt such a method.

Fwoosh.

Carl shifted his energy again, drawing up not divinity but the demonic energy of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.

Kylos rearmed himself with divinity once more, and this time, he drew a long spear and hurled it toward Carl.

Clang─!

There was no room to dodge.

The moment it left Kylos’s hand, it was already upon him.

Crossing his arms, Carl raised the body-protecting aura of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art to its extreme and braced his legs.

When his body, pushed back relentlessly, finally stopped, he realized he had been driven far from his original position.

“……”

Carl stared at the pure-white spear embedded in his flesh.

He could have blocked it more efficiently, yet he had taken it head-on for a reason.

‘Nothing beats learning through one’s body.’

To wield the divinity of a divine being, it was most efficient to steal that being’s method of use.

Moreover, he had almost no information on it—he had to establish an entire martial system from scratch—so he needed as many exchanges as possible.

‘The limit is… until I reach my breaking point.’

The more shards of Kylos he absorbed, the easier it would become to absorb others.

He contained multiple fragments, while his opponent’s divinity consisted of only a single one.

To that end, he had to learn how Kylos fought using divinity.

He wasn’t scattering demonic energy from the Heavenly Demon Divine Art just to provoke Kylos.

Whirr.

At Carl’s gesture, the Heavenly Thunder Sword spun lightly.

The white spear, already retrieved to Kylos’s side, now emitted a sharp aura, ready to strike again.

“Longinus.”

“……I’ve heard of it. The name of a weapon said to slay gods.”

Carl narrowed his eyes.

“How amusing. A demigod using a weapon meant to kill gods. Or perhaps you hold it in your hand to kill other gods and become the main deity yourself?”

Whish─!

As if answering his words, Longinus shot forward.

The Heavenly Thunder Sword also charged ahead to meet it, but an unexpected result occurred.

Crack.

The Heavenly Thunder Sword, which radiated a bright white glow unique to sword projection, could not withstand the spearhead of Longinus and snapped.

The spear pierced the air and struck Carl once more, but this time stopped, blocked by the thickened protective aura of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.

“……”

Carl furrowed his brow.

Even when he had fought Kylos in the Territory of Tohochu, the Heavenly Thunder Sword had not broken.

Though it was not a real sword but a product of mental will, the fact that it broke meant his own will had been overpowered by Longinus.

“……No, is it because it’s a divine sword?”

But Carl soon faintly understood the reason.

A name held the most fundamental essence in describing existence.

The Divine Sword Heavenly Thunder.

Even if it was not truly a sword granted by a god, since it shared the same resonance of name, it had been neutralized by the perfect counter of Longinus.

Finding the structure unexpectedly amusing, a faint smile appeared on Carl’s lips.

Tap.

Thus, he erased Heavenly Thunder and drew his old sword from before—Black Fang.

It was a captivating weapon with a pitch-black blade.

When he launched the Technique of Sword Mastery Over Weapon to counter the incoming Longinus, the sword did not break this time and held its ground.

Clang, clang-clang!

Sword and spear clashed fiercely before Carl.

Maintaining the Technique of Sword Mastery Over Weapon consumed immense inner energy and mental focus.

If Kylos could wield Longinus at a comparable level, he should have been equally drained, yet no sign of fatigue appeared on his face.

Carl suspected it might be due to the greatness of a divine being, but soon found the reason within Longinus itself.

‘I can see the flow.’

Only his eyes now contained divine power instead of demonic energy.

What he read was the causality imbued in Longinus.

What was engraved there was an unavoidable piercing strike.

‘A divine word?’

It seemed to impose divine will upon the world through divine power, continuously driving force until the declared result was achieved.

A similar example existed in the dragon race’s dragon words.

Dragons of high rank could command the world through mere speech, producing harmony and phenomena.

If a divine being stood at an even higher rank than that, manipulating the will of the world itself would hardly be difficult.

Having awakened to a new method of using divinity, Carl’s eyes gleamed.

‘But using it right now would be reckless. I’m not familiar with it yet, and I don’t know what kind of backlash might occur if I use it carelessly.’

It required a spell formula far more refined and advanced than any magic or sorcery.

Only with perfect conditions and structure could one command the will of the world and bring forth a phenomenon.

It was, quite literally, the path to becoming an omnipotent god, and his heart stirred greatly at the thought.

‘The will imbued in Longinus right now is…’

Unerring and piercing.

In other words, it would not stop until it reached and penetrated its target.

While Kylos watched without any expenditure, Carl’s immense inner energy and mental power were being consumed to maintain the Technique of Sword Mastery Over Weapon.

‘……Watched?’

Carl frowned inwardly.

While Longinus attacked, if Kylos added another strike, he could have inflicted even greater damage on him—so why wasn’t he moving?

‘No… perhaps he can’t.’

Could it be that only one divine word could be used at a time?

If he was operating through a separated divine being, that might indeed be his limit.

It could still be a bluff, so Carl left that as an uncertain variable.

‘If that’s the case.’

While the Technique of Sword Mastery Over Weapon and Longinus clashed fiercely, Carl slowly stepped forward.

Then he stretched out his hand and lightly tapped the tip of Longinus.

Swish.

The white spear vanished and, as expected, returned to Kylos’s grasp.

“……I see.”

As Carl raised his head with a grin, Kylos’s face twisted with dismay.

“A divine word isn’t absolute. It only needs to fulfill its command in any form. Whether it pierces a fingertip or the heart’s core—it’s all the same.”

“……”

Kylos said nothing.

Instead, a faint hint of admiration appeared on his face as he looked at Carl.

“You can see it, can’t you?”

“I’m a bit special, you see.”

Carl tapped his own eyes with his finger as he spoke.

However, it seemed he didn’t have much strength left to continue this fight.

Even in the space of mental imagery, he had overused the Technique of Sword Mastery Over Weapon.

His head throbbed, nearing its limit, so it was about time to bring this to an end.

“You must’ve realized it already—you can’t defeat me.”

Carl slowly raised his sword and activated the Primordial Unity Divine Art.

What made Kylos a difficult opponent was the somewhat unfamiliar energy he wielded—divinity.

Back in the Territory of Tohochu, he hadn’t yet reached the level of a Master, and his pure martial strength had been lacking.

But now Carl had reached the Master’s realm, broken through the wall, and could draw upon the advanced martial arts he had achieved in his previous life.

Moreover, having delved into the study of divinity, even the advantage of unfamiliarity was gone.

“Hah, it’s a complete defeat.”

Kylos shrugged, holding Longinus in hand.

As his fighting spirit gradually faded, a flicker of curiosity appeared in Carl’s eyes.

“Was this a test?”

“Of course.”

Kylos smirked.

“I was curious which madman would dare absorb the divinity of a demigod.”

“And your conclusion?”

“Even madder than I thought. It’s no wonder Tosenn got absorbed.”

“Hahahaha!”

Carl burst into laughter.

He liked Kylos’s frankness.

“Since I’ve already lost a fragment of my divinity, I have no other choice.”

Kylos lifted his gaze to the sky as he continued.

The demigod Kylos could only reach a complete state when all his divine fragments were reunited as one.

But since one fragment had been absorbed by Carl, he had to either kill Carl to reclaim it—or become one with him through it.

Otherwise, he would never win against the other demigods in Ragnarok.

“So you’re saying you’ll let yourself be absorbed?”

“For now.”

Kylos nodded.

“You’re truly a special human. At least among all I’ve seen, none have been like you.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“It’s both a compliment and a curse. A mere human daring to absorb a demigod’s divinity.”

Though he grumbled, Kylos turned again, his eyes filled with a dark gleam.

“But we are demigods. When all divinities unite as one, another trial will come for you. Whether you can devour me and claim the divinity of a demigod will depend on the size of your vessel.”

“And why are you telling me this?”

“To place suppression through the divine word you mentioned. That way, no matter what happens, you won’t abandon the task of gathering my fragments.”

Kylos grinned.

It was the confident smile of one who believed that once his divinity was whole again, he could seize Carl’s body whenever he wished.

“Never forget. I am always watching the world through your eyes.”

Tzzzzt.

Kylos’s body crumbled away.

Then, turning into a faint green light, he became a wisp of smoke that was absorbed into Carl’s body.

“……”

Closing his eyes, Carl sensed the fragment of divinity merging within him and faintly gauged how many remained.

‘Thirty… no, just under forty. He really shattered it into quite a lot of pieces.’

If he was to gather all fragments before the outbreak of Ragnarok, as Kylos had mentioned, he would need to move swiftly.

Of course, he had no intention whatsoever of giving up this body.