Finally, the morning of the fourth day dawned!
Of course, that’s just a rhetorical expression; the sunlight didn’t actually shine here.
Instead, Hieronymus brought three kids, asking for a blessing: a confident boy, a girl, and a super nervous boy.
They stood behind Hieronymus, but there was one who was obviously terrified: the nervous boy.
This kid looks scared.
He might have been brought here against his will.
Hmm, hmm, hmm. Why was he forced to come? They said it’s a blessing, yet hardly anyone would volunteer for it, right? Forced to come?
Aha!
I get it now.
You want to see how much the target’s performance improves when I create the harvesting period. Now that I see it, I’m curious too!
We need someone to compare with.
“Rebecca, if you could.”
Hieronymus stepped aside. So, I reached out. I want the one most likely to run away. Plus, it’d be fun if they ended up arguing later on!
The most nervous boy.
I pointed at him.
“Come forward.”
Swoosh!
The glares from the other boy and girl sharpened at that.
Hehe, that’s jealousy! The kind you see in someone about to stab you in the back. It’s the reflection of their feelings in those eyes—betrayed, seeking revenge, and then miserably failing and hopeless. Surprisingly, that happens a lot, you know?
So, I approached the boy and pushed myself a bit further into Rebecca Rolfe. It felt like my body was cracking apart, grayish-purple mist spilling out.
And that mist is me.
I stretched out to touch the boy. A vivid light with a relatively small warmth. The light is big and bright, but the warmth is lacking, huh?
I really don’t get the correlation here.
Anyway, just like I did with Joanna, I shove myself into the light. I’m filled with the temptation to take that warmth, but I gotta hold back here.
Gotta invest to get more, right!
As the grayish-purple mist touched the light, it turned black. There’s something subtly different from when I absorbed the warmth of the last offering.
This is maintaining its form. Last time, the light shrunk away.
Assuming this light follows the properties of light, among the various wavelengths, the rest would get cut off, and only one wavelength would remain. I wonder if it really has the properties of light?
Then, the light centered on the boy became faintly purple-black.
Oh?
Unlike Joanna, whose body shattered revealing blue skin, or eyes changing to pitch black, he’s just shaking in fear.
Tisah is a strange boy. He was kidnapped at a very young age and brought to Future Hope Church. And like others, he underwent brainwashing.
But this boy held questions. About the education they were giving him and the god they spoke of.
Why does exploding one’s body connect to salvation? Why use the word “hope” in a future where the god that assists you when you’re despairing?
He has very valid questions.
After asking around when he was younger and realizing that asking only earned him resentment, he stopped questioning.
And he seems to have realized that asking those questions was dangerous. And now, years later, he hasn’t voiced those doubts.
But he knows he’s not fully brainwashed.
During training or when other things were happening, he pretended to be passionate. Ah, maybe that’s why he hasn’t done it?
There’s one thing he hasn’t done.
“I’ll give you myself. But later, after you finish everything, I’ll take everything you have. How about it?”
Thump, thump!
Hmm. His heart’s pounding loudly. Thump, thump. He’s nervous.
A contract might sound dangerous, but it’s actually not that bad.
You gain power, and if you die, you inherit what you’ve built with that power. That much.
If I can help you, feel free to use me. When I die later, I get it all.
In that process, receiving the warmth of the lives you’ve killed counts as dividends.
It’s not like I’m binding him to some unknown force like dealing with a devil, and there’s nothing specific I’m telling him to do, so he can feel at ease.
Thinking that way, I waited for a response, but he just trembled and couldn’t say anything.
His heart just raced.
Thump, thump.
In other words, it means there’s no problem seeing through Tisah’s perspective. Even without speaking, I know if this boy kills someone, he’ll gain warmth.
“If you don’t need it, I’ll take it back.”
I wonder what happens if I completely pull myself out?
Drip. Drip. Sweat dripped down, and the boy tensed up, quaking uncontrollably.
“I… will contract with you. Apostle.”
Apostle?
Hieronymus said something along those lines. Since I denied that god Cruxshibal, he introduced me as this god’s apostle.
But I’m not an apostle. I make contracts clear.
“Call me Rebecca. Human.”
I still want to keep the info about knowing memories by licking the light under wraps. So it seemed strange for me to know this boy’s name. In the introduction, he was just presented as a kid seeking god’s power.
“I will contract. Rebecca.”
“Alright.”
But the dramatic result I expected didn’t happen. His brownish-blond hair just turned purple.
I heard gasps from behind.
The two kids looked at Tisah with admiration, expectation, and jealousy. Joanna stood a bit far away, and Hieronymus observed the harvesting period creation site with sharp eyes.
Now, who shall I choose next?
I’m curious what will happen if those with my power fight each other, so I’ll go with the direction that increases jealousy.
I pointed at the girl for the next round. In other words, the boy’s last. Same gender is more stimulating, right?
Hehe.
“Come over.”
“Yes!”
The girl approached me with a lively step. The cracks already appeared on my body. Although they weren’t real cracks showing bones, you know.
Inside, there was an unsightable darkness. Not black darkness but the kind that looks like the power of emptiness from a game, as if moving the night sky inside.
The grayish-purple mist flowed out from there and touched the girl.
This side has lots of light and warmth.
Wow, this must be really warm. Should I try to take the warmth? Since it’s said to fail, what if I accidentally snatch warmth? That won’t do, right?
You know, once you lie, the next time it’s easier, so that’s not good.
To deceive someone for a long time, speaking only the truth is best.
Thus, I leave the warmth I truly want behind and color the light black.
This girl’s name is Isla.
She, too, was kidnapped at a young age. However, she showed talent in physical abilities and was trained as a warrior.
They teach the kids quite systematically, picking out those with talent from there. I couldn’t see it just with Tisah, but seeing Isla, it becomes clear.
They say the children raise their basic stamina. So every child at the cult receives training to move their bodies, including stamina training.
It doesn’t matter if they are boys or girls. In a cult, there are many places to utilize those who learned martial arts. They also can effectively impose rewards and punishments.
If they train, punishments don’t break the tools, but instead make them stronger. The training program is remarkably thorough.
Indeed, Hieronymus is no ordinary man. It means he didn’t just build a cult with charisma. He knows a lot. There’s a strong possibility he’s someone who has led a massive societal assembly before.
Then I’m good. I can use this to navigate the harvesting period much better.
The girl named Isla has nothing special. She’s just talented, so she’s praised, and she has the ambition to be the best. Just that much.
So when Witga received support, she immediately raised her hand.
“I’ll give you myself. But later, after you finish everything, I’ll take everything you have.”
Knowing this situation, I thought about asking this first. But if it goes wrong, the information evaporates. Thus, I first lick the light before asking.
I questioned Isla, who stared at me with shining eyes.
“Do you agree?”
“Yes! Rebecca!”
She replied without hesitation. Since she saw earlier, she doesn’t even call me apostle, directly calling me Rebecca.
Crack.
Suddenly, Isla grew about a thumb taller. Unlike Joanna, whose body changed like porcelain that broke and revealed a new form, she just slimmed down slightly, becoming a well-built woman.
Her hair, with the roots dyed purple, has red tips. I can tell in time she’ll turn completely purple.
And her skin turned much whiter. It might seem pale from a distance. Her eyes changed purple too.
That was the extent of the transformation.
Isla, getting up, jumped joyfully back to her spot.
And then I called the last remaining boy. Isla, suddenly transformed, was so fascinating that he was staring at her, but quickly hurried in front of me.
Again, the same actions. I touched the light with the grayish-purple mist and licked it to know the memories. This one is a cult member’s kid, name is Wide. He came from Future Hope Church and unlike the other two who were kidnapped, he received a lot from his parents.
On the flip side, he had to carry his parents’ wishes.
Like how it was in the lands he lived as a human. Transferring their dreams onto their kids. They pushed them into competition, demanding high grades.
Thankfully, this boy had talent. So he possessed outstanding skills, and when the opportunity arose, he jumped at it.
“I’ll give you myself. But later, after you finish everything, I’ll take everything you have. Do you agree?”
“Yes. Rebecca.”
Crack.
The contract was complete. He was similar to Isla. In an instant, he seemed to gain a couple of years in height. Since his hair is short, it turned entirely purple, and his skin became pale white.
And the initial differences with the first two? A purplish flame rose from his hand. At first, Wide was startled and tried to put it out, but soon realized it wasn’t hot and stopped.
Watching the purplish flame dance from his hand, he clenched his fist, and the flame vanished. A moment later, it flared back up.
Realizing he controlled it, Wide turned to me with joy. But when he saw Hieronymus’ face in the mix, his heart sank.
He was wearing a very stiff expression while looking at him.
He quickly turned to me with a greeting and rushed back to where the children stood. Then Hieronymus came forward.
“Thank you, Apostle of the God. For bestowing blessings upon these kids. We praise this joy and give eternal glory to our God. May our future be filled with eternal hope.”
After that concluding remark, Hieronymus led the kids outside.
Wide was fascinated that he could utilize me and found the different mutations interesting; there’s plenty to contemplate. I’m sure Hieronymus would feel the same way.
Anyway, the first goal achieved. Harvesting Period increase +3!
Now, it’s time to watch the changes.
