Heinrich (2)
Holy Power was fundamentally different from other powers based on the mana of nature.
Warriors absorb mana and refine it into Aura within their bodies, while black magicians contaminate it through unholy rituals to create Black Magic.
The Blood Magic of vampires is also created by transforming the mana and life force contained in blood into a blood-sucking agent through the act of vampirism.
However, Holy Power is a force solely bestowed by the divine.
Once accepted, it becomes impossible to wield other types of magic due to its different origin.
This is why the baptism process is so complicated and has such strict conditions.
It is the process of swearing to follow the Holy God and creating a conduit to receive divine strength.
And determining whether that conduit will be a thin straw or a thick pipeline…
‘It’s all about belief in the divine.’
Heinrich continued to pray, feeling the Holy Power overflowing from his body.
This was the reason I chose the path of Holy Power like Heinrich.
Until now, I had only used the “Mind Hub” to limit emotions and stimuli, but I realized I could also use it in the opposite way.
Through various tests since then, I was able to confidently dedicate myself to the Holy Church Order.
By utilizing the “Mind Hub” and “Calmness,” I cleared Heinrich’s thoughts to a blank state.
Then, I infused only one emotion, ‘faith,’ as “Persona” and amplified it through the “Mind Hub.”
‘In other words, the current Heinrich is truly the embodiment of fanaticism.’
I halted all other avatars and poured the resources into Heinrich.
The main body, Hans, Heinz II, and the new avatar that I could summon again not long ago.
Utilizing the baptism ceremony made it easy to focus the direction of faith toward the Holy God.
And I poured every ounce of my mental strength into solidifying the conduit to the divine.
《Your unique skill has grown, revealing its potential. The avatars’ capabilities are enhanced, allowing for more efficient sharing of mental strength.》
The growth of the “Avatar” skill was an unexpected boon during this process.
Thanks to that, I was able to concentrate on the task more easily.
“Oh my, such a level of Holy Power from a first baptism.”
“Who is that? A candidate for paladin? I’d believe it if they said they had trained for decades as a monk.”
“Uh… that guy said he wanted to be a Knight and hasn’t even been here for a few months…”
The priests around and those waiting for baptism started murmuring.
The archpriest presiding over the baptism appeared to be flustered, but he proceeded with the ceremony without stopping.
‘Almost there.’
I drew forth Holy Power into the physical body with all my might.
If belief determines the thickness of the conduit, then it is mental strength that draws Holy Power through it.
One side cannot be lacking.
《The subject achieves the conditions to reveal its potential. You acquire the special skill “Divine Baptism.”》
‘Is this still my limit…?’
In theory, Holy Power is a strength received from the divine, meaning there shouldn’t be a limit.
As long as mental strength is sufficient, one can draw upon it endlessly.
But even though the one giving strength is a god, it’s the lowly mortal that uses it, and the more you push it, the more strain it places on both body and mind.
Using power that exceeds one’s capacity can lead to illness, and in severe cases, death.
‘Belief and mental strength are sufficient, but the body isn’t ready to accept more Holy Power yet.’
No matter how many tricks I used, it couldn’t be helped that it was a power I was encountering for the first time.
To accept even stronger Holy Power, the body needed time to adapt to the new strength.
Gradually, I started to channel the Holy Power while reverting my mind.
Naturally, the conduit of faith also shrank, but I could easily revert it whenever I wanted.
‘Just like a rubber band that has been stretched once, it should be easier to use next time.’
“Did you say your name was Heinrich?”
As I stood up with the help of the surrounding priests, the archpriest, who had been conducting the ceremony, spoke to me.
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“Huh, I’ve never encountered such a case before, so it’s quite overwhelming. Nevertheless, your faith is impressive, so you’ll make a fine priest. Keep striving forward.”
He smiled contently, patting my shoulder with encouraging words.
Although I aimed to be a paladin, there was no need to correct him.
I nodded in gratitude and moved to a different spot.
The ceremony continued in the chapel, but I could feel glances occasionally darting in my direction.
Ignoring the gazes, I sat down in a designated resting area, closed my eyes, and began meditating.
All these tricks were possible because the Holy God of Auterica was not a personal deity.
As Heinz II learned about the Holy Church Order and Heinrich entered to study theology…
I was convinced through this baptism ceremony.
‘It’s not like the gods from Greco-Roman mythology, with petty emotions. It feels more like a massive concept or system.’
It exists as a natural law within the world.
That was the Holy God of Auterica.
‘Though it seems to have its own will… but that wouldn’t be a standard that can be judged by human measures.’
When Heinrich connected with the Holy God through baptism, I could sense fragments of that transcendent existence.
Perhaps it was because I received the baptism through an abnormal method, but it was a phenomenon I hadn’t encountered during the preparatory training.
If I had to express what I faintly sensed back then in human emotions…
Yes, it was ‘curiosity.’
‘Am I fortunate that it doesn’t consider this blasphemous…?’
It could just be a minor problem for the divine, leading to no intervention, but that mattered little now.
My attempt had already succeeded.
*
A few days after the ceremony.
The newly reborn paladins and apprentice priests were receiving training in their own ways.
Building faith through prayer and religious studies, priests focused on mental training to enhance their mental strength…
“Just one more thing!”
Grrrgh!
“More! More, more, more!”
Ghah!
From every corner of the training grounds, sounds of near-death groans echoed.
These were the cries of new paladins being trained under the guidance of senior paladins.
“Phew, huh! Hah!”
‘I thought I exercised hard, but that’s nothing compared to this. These guys are intense…’
I alternated lifting weights in my hands while smirking inwardly.
Crrrrr, crrrrr…
As I moved, chains connected to the weights pressed against my entire body.
There were exercise machines installed in the training yard that could compete with modern ones.
The only differences were… they were larger and more menacing in appearance, with zero safety features?
They were objects designed solely to torture the body efficiently.
The more you used them, the more they tore at the muscles without stopping, gradually crushing bones and rupturing ligaments.
‘There’s a limit to putting the body in overload. What kind of twisted notion is this…?’
It was truly a training method that pushed the limits of the body.
Of course, there were consequences to such overtraining.
“Aaaah!”
A scream erupted from one side of the training yard.
A new paladin lay on the ground, convulsing.
Clutching one arm and shedding tears, they seemed to be in distress during training.
In a typical scenario, they would be rushed to the medical room immediately, but the senior standing over him merely barked orders.
“Your focus has slipped! You must never cease praying during training! Now, use your Holy Power again!”
Ghh… Holy God—!
With the prayer, a faint light rose enveloping the fallen one.
The moans gradually faded.
Moments later, he staggered back to his feet.
“Not nearly enough! Pray continuously while training! Recover your body before it completely breaks apart! Repeat this, and you’ll receive high-level blessings!”
“Yes! I’m sorry—!”
“You will train your lower body until that arm is completely healed! And don’t you dare stop praying!”
“Yes! Got it!”
It was a profoundly mindless sight.
But surprisingly, this was a long-standing tradition within the church and an efficient training method.
Prayer assists in the operation of Holy Power.
For paladins on the front lines of combat, it was as vital as life itself.
Creating artificially extreme situations and continuing to pray was also part of the training to ensure they wouldn’t panic while using Holy Power in actual combat.
‘Moreover, repeated prayers in extreme situations would strengthen faith through self-suggestion, which would lead to enhanced Holy Power.’
Training in the operation of Holy Power and physical strengthening, increasing Holy Power through heightened faith, and mental fortification through hardships.
It was a ruthlessly efficient method.
And I stood out significantly among that group of weirdos.
“Ohhh… you truly might be a promising candidate this time. I would never have guessed you could lift this much weight already.”
“You’re proficient at using Holy Power, and considering that skill, your recovery speed is no joke. You’re already exceeding the average paladin’s recovery ability.”
Seniors gathered on one side, evaluating me.
Right from the start, I had seamlessly followed their guidance thanks to the training I’d done, along with “Mugol” and “Super Recovery.”
With the status enhancement effects from the Karma shop, and becoming accustomed to the “Divine Baptism” that converted mana in my body to Holy Power, I began to shine even more.
“Afternoon training ends here! Clean up the equipment and proceed to the shower room in order! We’ll gather in the lecture hall in two hours. Dismissed!”
““Dismissed!””
At the senior’s shout, the paladins cleaned up the equipment and headed to the shower for a brief rest.
Moving to the shower room, I poured cold water over my heated body, causing steam to rise.
Splash—
As my body was washed mechanically, my overworked muscles twitched, showcasing their presence.
‘The effects seem to be quite good.’
A few days after the baptism, despite the twisted training methods, I could distinctly feel their benefits.
The body was driven to exhaustion, and the Holy Power spreading throughout my body to recover it.
With every repetition, I could feel each of my cells adapting to the Holy Power.
“Ugggh…”
“Ughh… I’m dying.”
Sounds of agony echoed throughout the shower room.
I dried my body with a towel and forced a wry smile.
‘It’s definitely excessive. Thanks to the “Mind Hub,” I could ease the pain, but they must be enduring it with sheer willpower.’
While that suffering might aid in increasing their faith and mental strength, I’d prefer to pass on that, as it was unnecessary for me.
I merely wished to support their belief.
“As servants following the Holy God, we shall lead the young lambs to the bright path…”
Mental education mixed with religious lectures took place in the lecture hall after training.
Paladins struggled to keep their tired bodies awake.
Of course, I was no exception; to become a Knight, I needed to master both martial and scholarly skills.
Thus, about two months passed.
While Heinrich struggled to become a Knight, the Undead King’s subjugation group faced a significant dilemma.
*
“Huff… this is frustrating. Where on earth could he have vanished?”
Archbishop Latinus, the leader of the Undead King’s subjugation group, sighed and rubbed his temples.
Having deployed several search parties to trace ‘Hans,’ they still couldn’t find a single trace of him.
Months had gone by since their first encounter, and they hadn’t seen even a shadow of him.
Meanwhile, the saintess had also done her utmost to locate him, but aside from a few fleeting moments, tracking him had proven impossible.
Even from the locations they did manage to scout, they returned empty-handed without a single trace of him.
Knock, knock—
“Archbishop Latinus, it’s Tuskin.”
“Ah, Paladin Tuskin. Please come in.”
With the archbishop’s approval, the door to the office opened, and Paladin Tuskin entered with a salute.
Like the archbishop, fatigue was evident on his face.
“So, what’s the situation?”
“…It seems difficult. Damn those vampires, they must be meddling.”
“Haah…”
As if that weren’t enough, political pressure from the Talia Kingdom was steadily increasing.
The subjugation team, organized to capture the Undead King’s descendant, was making no progress, and this was causing them to lose their grounds for justification.
“To have searched so thoroughly without results means he’s likely already left the Talia Kingdom.”
Tuskin cautiously expressed, and Latinus sighed once more, closing his eyes.
They had done everything possible to locate ‘Hans.’
They had even clashed with the vampire clan and ‘Oath of Reversal,’ hiding in the shadows.
In that process, the Oath of Reversal had sustained significant damage from attacks by both the church and the clan, retreating into the shadows, but conflicts with the Brokoslac Clan continued.
“…At this point, we can assume he’s hiding somewhere else. Let’s disband the subjugation team at the Talia shrine and return to the main base.”
“Understood. I’ll prepare for that.”
Tuskin bowed lightly and left the office.
Since most of the personnel supporting the Undead King’s subjugation team came from Talia shrine, there was a lot to do before they could disband.
Once those dispatched from the main base returned, they would be reassigned across the kingdom to resume usual duties.
And when the church’s surveillance network spread all over the continent picks up the target’s movements, that area will see the subjugation team called back into action.
‘By the way, there was one outstanding paladin.’
As Tuskin walked, he suddenly recalled someone and furrowed his brow.
A candidate for the Knight with priest-level Holy Power awakened during the baptism ceremony.
He had been keeping an eye on them, having shown exceptional promise during training thereafter.
‘It’d be a waste to leave such talent in this backwater…’
With physical abilities unmatched compared to other new paladins and recovery capabilities on par with a seasoned Knight.
His talent for rapidly absorbing training and steadily growing potential were undeniable.
Even aside from his Holy Power, he was a promising individual not to be missed.
While Tuskin had no intention of belittling the Talia diocese, the reality was that a warrior of such caliber seemed too stifled there.
No matter how well they cared for him, would they provide support equivalent to what he’d receive directly from the main base?
‘Hmm… I think his name was Heinrich. If possible, I’d like to bring him back and nurture him directly. I should at least try to mention it.’
