On The Other Side: I Quit Being Human

While the Temple is quiet, it doesn't mean that there are not enough eyes to witness what I am about to do. Because of this, I am slightly conflicted about what I should do.

I am not wearing my mask; even if I was, it wouldn't still allow me to see how powerful the people in the Temple are. Priest use Holy Energy to perform their Magic—it is derived from Divinity—so my mask can't detect it.

Betting on my luck and just openly set the Array up on the altar is the quickest way to do it, but it is also the silliest option I can choose. The chance of me being able to pull it without dying is fifty-fifty for the fact that I can't measure my opponent's power.

"It seems like something is burdening your mind, my friend."

My thought is interrupted by the girl standing beside me. She was fully concentrated on her prayer before—I have been ignoring her, so I am actually quite surprised that she reaches out to me.

"Just because I was in a deep thought doesn't mean that something is burdening my mind," I answer calmly. "I am just fascinated by the finesse of the statue in front of me." It is the 23 feet tall statue of the so called God of this world.

"You dwell in arts?"

"No, but I know how to appreciate one."

The God is depicted as a lanky man wearing a loose tunic with a hood covering his head that makes it hard to identify his face. He is holding a reversed cross, which I assume is actually a great sword.

The great sword is the symbol of the Temple; they make the blade facing downward, so it looks just like a fancy cross. I can say for sure, though; despite the resemblance, this cult has nothing to do with Christianity.

"Have you ever thought that worshipping our God silly?" I ask out of the blue as I take out the Array Scroll.

"Why do you think so?"

"Despite the fact that we can see this statue in front of us, we never know how he actually looks. He maybe the fruit seller we encountered this morning or, as ridiculous as it sounds, even us." I pause.

Gesturing at the statue, I continue. "I just find it funny that we worship him without even knowing him."

The female Priest beside me doesn't immediately respond me. She takes a couple of seconds of silence before eventually saying, "Don't you think that's what makes it called faith? His miracle is real, so we just have to believe in him."

Quirking my eyebrow at the answer, I finally face the girl for the first time.

Dressed in the alternate version of the female Priest outfit; which consists of a white head veil, a slightly revealing golden robe, and a sufficient amount of golden necessary; the girl looks more like a Holy Maiden than a Priest.

Despite not being an official title given by the Temple, the Temple greatly respects the people who bears the title of Holy Maiden. It is, after all, only given to females who can utilize a ridiculous amount of Holy Energy.

I don't exactly know how to identify a Holy Maiden other than from her outfit, but this girl I am looking is certainly qualified to be one. What attracts my attention, though, is not the title she bears, but who she is.

A waist length blonde hair; a pair of clear, brown eyes; a sharp, but small nose; a rather chubby, but still mature looking face; and a matte, bright skin tone—I am extremely familiar with these features, so much that I can't forget it.

"Brianna..." It is the fucking bitch that twiddled with my feelings. "It is a surprise meeting you here, this soon no less."

"Yes...? Do I somehow know you?" The bitch looks at me in genuine puzzlement.

I merely chuckle sardonically, and wave my hand mildly. "No, you don't know me. My colleagues are crazy about a new Holy Maiden named Brianna, and I just didn't expect to meet that very person here."

"Oh... I didn't know I was that famous as a Holy Maiden. Most people have been referring me as a Hero rather than a Holy Maiden."

The bitch covers her mouth as she giggles just like what she always did back on Earth. Upon looking at that, I try my best to hide the twitch on my face as I force down my urge to kill her.

Now is not the perfect time to kill her; not only am I not strong enough to kill her now, but killing her now will also hamper my future journey. Everyone treats the death of a Holy Maiden seriously, so they will definitely find a way to get my ass.

"It has been pleasant talking to you, Brianna."

"Oh, it has been pleasant talking to you too." She smiles, then realizes something. "Ah, I haven't known your name yet. Do you mind to tell me your name?"

Quirking my eyebrow, I smirk faintly. "I have a feeling that we are tangled by fate, so I am sure that we will meet again in the future." I put my hand on the Array Scroll that I have laid out on the altar. "I will tell you my name when we meet next."

"... You are the most romantic Priest I have met so far—I am not going to lie," she says after a few seconds of looking at me longingly.

I clench my left hand at her statement, and force my anger down; keeping a cool head in front of the person I want to kill the most is harder than I expected. Regardless, I managed to activate the Array without notifying her.

Temples are always built on the ley lines, which are the point where the Mana that the ground contains gathers. Ley lines are crucial for cities since they power the Magic Defense System.

In conclusion, by taking over the Temple, you also take over the ley line where it is built on; which means you can take over the whole city. This Array that I have activated is now powered by the ley line, which allows it to seal the entire Dukedom.

"Hm? This Mana Pressure..." Brianna looks up to me. "Did you feel that? Did you feel something weird in the air?"

Tilting my head to look clueless, I say, "I personally don't sense anything weird, so I am not sure if I understand you." Turning my head to the door, I mutter, "Maybe, the invasion has finally started."

Walking toward the door, I make myself looked as unbothered as I can. The 12 or so Priests inside the Temple are still floored by the situation, but none of them show any intention to get out of the Temple soon.

My way to exit the Temple is unbothered until all heads turn to me. I personally think my act of activating the Array Scroll was flawless enough to be unnoticeable, but these guys seem to notice something wrong with me.

I keep walking as I ignore their gaze, of course, but the bitch, Brianna, decided to stop me. "Wait! You're quite young for a Senior Priest now that I think about it. Are you recently promoted?"

Wondering how she can tell I am a Senior Priest, I instinctively look down on my clothes and compare them to the rest of the Priests. There are some ornaments on my tunic that some of them don't have, and vice versa.

"I have also never seen you here before. Are you just recently stationed here?" One of the Priests asks.

The suspicion is already too high, so I can't help clicking my tongue. The only way to get out of this situation is to sprint to the door that is still 30 feet away from me, while also watching for their attack.

I can't definitely turn my back on them, because they will be able to do something to me the moment I do so. Because of that, I stop in my tracks, take out my mask and put it on under their gaze.

Immediately convinced that something is wrong, they clasp their hands and start to pray. Swiftly changing to my combat suit, I summon Rexorem from the Bond Seal, and stab it into the floor with Great Impact active.

"Stop that ma—"

Boom!

Brianna's shout is interrupted by the explosion Rexorem caused. As soon as it is embedded in the floor, except for the circular area that I am standing on, which is just as wide as my shoulder, the floor rises as if the water of the river after you throw a big stone in it.

My Mana sweeps the entire room, creating a shockwave that is enough to knock the stubborn Priests off their feet. In this chaos where they are too busy to protect themselves, I use my Footwork Technique to dash outside the Temple.

Swish!

I run to the closest Teleportation Gate without looking back, while also simultaneously contacting Velucan through my Rank Necklace.

"The Array is set. You can now enter the Dukedom through the Teleportation Gate!"

He doesn't give me an answer, but in the next moment, I can see my troop mates coming out of the Teleportation Gate I am heading one by one.

Much to my bewilderment, by the time I arrive there, I find all of my troop mates have come out of the same Teleportation Gate.