375 Death Mage V12 Side Chapter 46

Side Chapter 46
"I am not a god," said the God


The revival of the Heroic God, Bellwood.

The shocking news gave a huge shock to Vandalieu and the others, who were holding a banquet to celebrate their victory in Gartland.

For them, Bellwood was the ruthless individual who led the slaughter of Vida's new races at the forefront during the battle between Vida and Alda one hundred thousand years ago. Bellwood was a cursed existence who sealed Vida and the subordinate gods of Ricklent and Zuruwarn who supported her, and defeated the evil gods of the former Demon King’s army who had defected to Zakkart’s side.

The extent of the damage caused by Bellwood was incomparable to Nineroad or Farmoun Gold, who joined the Demon Continent about fifty thousand years ago.

Darcia, Vida's incarnation, and Zod and Gufadgarn, who were attacked by Bellwood a hundred thousand years ago, certainly remembered the horrors. Privel and Doraneza, descendants of the survivors from a hundred thousand years ago, who had been told the tragic legend, now understood the terrifying nature of Bellwood precisely because they had grown stronger.

After the battle between Vida and Alda, Zorzaceiba, the gods of Gartland, and its people had to hide from Bellwood until he fell asleep about fifty thousand years ago. As for Luvesfol, the news was just as terrifying as the "revival of the Demon King."

Indeed, this world has continued to exist to this day because Bellwood defeated Demon King Guduranis. In that sense, one could express gratitude towards him.

However,  just because of that, there is no reason to let Bellwood's deadly blade rust on the lives of themselves, their families, lovers, friends, and acquaintances who are currently living.


Against Bellwood and Heinz, who had revived him, it was only natural to give priority to setting up a defense system akin to the maxim "the best defense is a strong offense" before engaging in dialogue.

"Well, anyway, the crab gratin is ready. We also have Gorn salami pizza, Madro bacon pasta, and Brateo fritto."

Of course, if they could continue the banquet while preparing their defense, it was only natural to proceed with it.

Moreover, since all Vandalieu had to do was create a new Demon King Familiar and teleport it to Gufadgarn's designated location, it wasn't a task significant enough to interrupt the feast, except for the substantial mana consumption from Vandalieu's perspective.

However, there were those who voiced their dissent.

"...Sorry, but could you please stop using names like Gorn or Madro that would make us know who they were?"

“Umu, as expected, my appetite…”

Deanna and Talos, who had known Gorn and others for over a hundred thousand years, expressed their objections to the names of the dishes. They were divided into enemies and allies when they fought, but it seems that they didn't like the sight of dishes with the names that reminded them of their faces.

"I understand. But you see, the texture varies for each demi-god... Then, how about the rocky salami pizza, deep sea bacon pasta, and roaring lightning fritto?"

"Mmmmm... then somehow-"

"No, just the name would be fine?"

Tiamat asked with half-closed eyes, but Deanna and the others seemed satisfied with the compromise. Unlike Zorzaceiba, they were also enjoying the food.

Perhaps it was their way of paying homage, as they had interpreted it.

"However, I wonder how long it will take for Heinz to become used to descending Bellwood onto his body?"

Pauvina asked as if speaking to herself, and Doraneza, the Shrine Maiden of Marisjafer, the True Evil God of the Red South Sea, answered.

"Unfortunately, I don't know."

...It wasn't the most helpful answer, but at least it was a response.

"Ehh~"

"Well, it can’t be helped. Throughout history, individuals who could descend gods into their bodies were not so common. It’s already quite rare even with Familiar Spirit Descent."

Doraneza explained that 'Familiar Spirit Descent' was a skill that believers with deep religious faith and well-trained bodies could acquire. It allowed them to channel a familiar spirit — a being equivalent to angels and messengers on ‘Earth’ — into their bodies. While the effects and burdens were significantly smaller compared to channeling an actual god, Doraneza explained that it is still a skill that can earn one great recognition as a saint if mastered.

"That's why there aren’t many cases to compare with."

"I see. What about Luvez and Leo?"

"...Hel... Ah, Scaled King. I haven't heard that name in a while."

Luvezfol, the Raging Evil Dragon God, whose eyes were lifeless after being played with by Bakunawa as an airplane toy, regained life in his eyes upon hearing the name of his former believer.

Scaled King, who was a dragon-type monster, was an extraordinary individual who had learned ‘Spirit Clone Descent’.

"Scaled King was adept at using 'Spirit Clone Descent' from the beginning. He never experienced any side effects while channeling it into his body, and even after use, he didn’t seem to suffer much after using it except for some fatigue. Even though he is of a dragon species with our diluted blood, his strength cannot be compared to that of humans… Well, even so, he still lost."

"Well, that's because I shot the spirit clone before it could descend."

Scaled King had fought against Vandalieu and his allies over the vast marshlands to the south of Talosheim, but was sniped while trying to descend a spirit clone into himself, sealing his trump card and ultimately leading to his defeat.

Now, after turning into an undead, he serves as Bone Man's aircraft, now named Leo, and is on standby in Talosheim.

"Pauvina-sama, if you're curious... 'Familiar Spirit Demonfall' wouldn't be a suitable reference, right? It's similar to a spirit Clone, isn't it?"

Vandalieu's ability to house his clones within bodies, known as ‘Familiar Spirit Demonfall’ is fundamentally similar to ‘Familiar Spirit Descent’ and ‘Spirit Clone Descent’. The only difference is that the beings being summoned are clones created from Vandalieu's soul fragments, rather than followers of the gods or their clones.

"Mmm, Luvez and Van's clones wouldn't be helpful. They're too kind."

"T-too kind!?"

To Luvezfol’s surprise, not only Pauvina but also the other users of the 'Familiar Spirit Demonfall' skill nodded in agreement.

"I've never experienced any strain on my body."

"It warns me before the effect duration ends."

"I heard that the clone that descends is roughly decided for each user."

"It seems like the size of the clone that descends depends on the user. By size, I mean that smaller clones lean more towards being familiar spirits, while larger ones lean more towards being spirit clones. That's what I think, at least."

It seems like we are making various efforts, aren’t we?


In response to Basdia and Eleonora's words, Vandalieu casually commented on his clones as if they were unrelated to him.

It couldn't be helped since he wasn't consciously managing the process of ‘Familiar Spirit Demonfall’.

By the way, as Privel conjectured, Vandalieu's clones are equivalent to familiar spirits and spirit clones. The difference lies in the amount of power... in other words, their size. And when they descend, their size changes according to the user's skill level.

"So, why doesn't Van learn Familiar Spirit Descent?"

The moment Pauvina asked, everyone except Vandelieu seemed to freeze.

"I would like to learn it too, but it's quite difficult."

"I see."

Meanwhile, Bakunawa, who was observing the casual conversation between the two, tilted his head in curiosity.

He must be thinking, "Papa is a god, so why does he want other gods' familiar spirits to descend on him?"

"Darcia-sama, is Bocchan still...?"

“Yes, unfortunately, this is something that he won't easily accept.”

"I thought he would accept it once the statue was completed."

"As expected of the great Vandalieu, he is indomitable."

Darcia and the others whispered to one another so that Vandalieu could not hear them, with Gufadgarn praising him.

The story goes back to the time before Botin's revival, shortly after the birth of Bakunawa.





On that day, Talosheim was livelier than usual.

Skeletons laughed heartily, zombies danced with vitality, ghosts praised, and even the silent golems seemed proud.

"It's finally happening today."

"Yes, I never thought a day like this would come..."

Normally, they are stationed within the walls of Talosheim, guarding it. However, they seemed particularly restless today.

"I haven’t had a day I’m more proud of since I was able to rank up and possess a body."

With their crossbows at the ready, these black-clad men, resembling shadows, who were keeping watch outside the city walls and scanning for dangerous monsters or intruders, were chatting away cheerfully.

"Oh, absolutely."

They were of course not ordinary humans, but Undeads who had ranked up from Cursed Weapons — monsters created by Vandalieu that were said to be born when evil spirits possessed weapons. They were Rank 5 Shadow Snipers.

Contrary to their appearance as black-clad men with crossbows, the crossbows were their main bodies.

"Now, for the sake of this momentous day, let us shoot down the approaching monsters and offer them to Vandalieu-sama."

"Oh, for the great Vandalieu-sama."

And perhaps because their main bodies were an object, its favorite thing to do is to work.



Meanwhile, inside Talosheim, a peaceful festival was taking place while the Shadow Snipers guarded against threats outside the city walls.

Various stalls were lined up.

"Come on, come on, they’re Transformation Equipment toys! They are of the latest model that emits sound and light! From the originator of the Magical Girls Zadiris model to the recently added Miriam model, we have them all!"

"How about some Gartland mushrooms? They're all-purpose mushrooms — great for grilling, boiling, and even using as seasoning after drying!"

There were also food stalls selling products from Gartland which Talosheim had recently started trading with.

Vandalieu and his Demon King familiars observed the joyful atmosphere of the citizens with eyes as lifeless as dead fish.

He had lost. Yes, he had lost in every aspect.

Negotiation, strength — Vandalieu had lost. No, perhaps he never intended to win in the first place.

In fact, if it was just to win, Vandalieu could have won very easily. But he couldn't do it.

"I don't think it would be very popular to pass a law stating that my statue should not be erected... Ah, there's only one hour left until the completion ceremony," he lamented.

Indeed, today was a festival celebrating the completion of Vandalieu's giant statue.

His plea, "Taxes should be used for more important matters," was crushed before the words of Nuaza, the head of the Church of Vida, saying, "This is the will of the people!" When it came to erecting a giant statue of Vandalieu, truly no one had raised objections.

Afterwards, Vandalieu continued to fall behind, unable to demonstrate his true potential.

At first glance, it looked like a large number of Demon King Familiars had been mobilized, but in reality, the opposition protest was perceived to be an unusual parade. While they were pleased to see so, not a single citizen joined the opposition movement.

Even during the construction phase, the protests continued, but looking back on it now, it's possible that it wasn't recognized by the public as an actual “opposition movement”.

When staging protests, he would give prior notice, visit the people who owned houses or shops along the street with gifts to apologize for the inconvenience, and clean the streets after the protest.

During the construction, he protested quietly, ensuring not to get in the way, and even joined in and helped out when the process was dangerous or lacking in manpower.

To the citizens, Vandelieu’s attitude did not seem to be seriously opposing the construction. But for him, it was the best possible form of opposition he could show to the people.

And so, the outcome of the battle, which was already known from the start, had been decided. Now that it was time to celebrate the completion, the opposition movement had to end.

He would graciously accept his defeat without struggling or making a scene.

He would at least praise the winners like a good loser. That's what he had thought until yesterday.

"Mom, can I pretend to be sick and take a sick leave?"

However, now he’s just a spoiled child.

"Vandalieu, I don't think feigning illness is a good idea. So many of your friends are here today. Is it okay if you don’t meet them?"

Darcia soothed Vandalieu, who was clinging to the wall with Demon King's suction cups, appearing pleased with her son's unusual selfishness, but as expected, she couldn't let him feign illness.

After all, among his friends were King Budarion and Princess Kurnelia of the Noble Orc Kingdom, King Godwin and First Princess Iris of the Majin Nation, Queen Donaneris of Zanalpadna, King Silvari of the Centaur Nation, King Tenma of the Kijin nation, Princess Yura, and their first child Oniwaka, as well as Rowen from the Drakonids nation. Key individuals from within the Boundary Mountain Range have gathered here.

In addition, Gartland’s Zarzalitt, Feltonia, Zolk, Doraneza, and Dediria, as well as Earl Morksi and Duke Alcrem albeit secretly, had come.

Earl Morksi and Duke Alcrem had apparently almost collapsed upon arriving in Talosheim. They had since recovered and were engaged in a serious discussion, accompanied by their closest confidants and advisers.

"I will properly attend Bakunawa’s unveiling."

It was scheduled that the unveiling of his first child, who hatched from an egg, would take place today. Although Bakunawa was not the next ruler of Talosheim, he deserves to be seen by the people.

While the circumstances surrounding Bakunawa's birth were a bit vague, Vandalieu recognizes him as his own child. Moreover, he was the Emperor of the Demon Empire of Vidal.

Therefore, it was only natural for Bakunawa, the emperor’s child, to be shown to the people.

"I’ve already deployed barrier magic in the sky to conceal everything, so you don't have to worry about being seen."

Bashas, the Goddess of Rain Clouds who had turned to Vida's faction, assured them. She had explained that the gods of Alda's faction were monitoring the situation inside the Boundary Mountain Range from the sky.

However, the method they used was surprisingly primitive, by watching the ground from a higher altitude than the barrier.

Using magic would be risky as it could be reflected by Vandalieu's ‘Root Source’ skill, and the outcome was uncertain. Therefore, it was a reasonable way to monitor without using magic.

However, viewing from a higher place than the clouds made it difficult to identify the people  walking on the ground. Moreover, it seemed that the effects of the ‘Mental Encroachment’ skill, given to the paintings on the roofs of Talosheim's buildings, were also affecting the gods observing.

When Vandalieu heard about this, he wondered if he needed to be vigilant... In the end, he improved the paintings on the roofs, thinking he needed to be on further guard.

And it was incredibly easy to evade their surveillance anyway.

By creating mist or illusions with magic, Talosheim could be concealed. And by installing lighting that would serve as a substitute for the sun below, there would be no issue even during the day. One could imagine it as a condition similar to holding a parasol and lighting a lantern.

"Still, it's no good. Even if everyone ignores Vandalieu's intentions, they built it for you, so we should properly appreciate it, shouldn't we?"

"...I participated in the celebration."

The celebration for those who participated in the construction of the giant statue took place on the day the final phase of the construction was completed, and Vandalieu was also present.

"Even so, it's no good. If you don't move away from the wall, Mom will have Master Veld descend and take you along with the wall!"

Veld, the Heroic Spirit of Vida, who is thought to be the reason why Darcia gained the title ‘Monster Parent’, had become a heroic spirit who would descend when she called upon him after going through many twists and turns.

Since Darcia already had the ability to descend Vida, the only reason why she ever uses Veld was for some kind of disguise. It was planned for Schneider to become Veld’s dedicated user once he acquired the ‘Heroic Spirit Descent’ skill.

"...Yes, Mom."

Resigned to the situation, Vandalieu was brought to the ceremony by Darcia… Originally, it was supposed to be an event he organized, not just participated in.

During the ceremony, Vandalieu's eyes lacked any vitality to the point that one would wonder how someone could appear so lifeless, calling the giant god statue a "huge statue", refusing to acknowledge that it was a god statue.

However, when it was time for Bakunawa's unveiling, he regained his spirit and joyously celebrated the birth of his first child alongside the citizens.





It was thought that such an event would increase Vandalieu's self-awareness of himself as an object of worship, but that didn’t seem to be the case.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have had doubts about not being able to learn skills related to Familiar Spirit Descent.

"Because there is no way a god can learn skills to power up by having another god's followers or the god himself to descend."

"He is also a god who grants divine protections to others and makes familiar spirits... clones descend."

Vandalieu wasn't a god, nor was he a normal… ordinary demi-god. In that sense, it wasn't entirely impossible for him to learn the ‘Familiar Spirit Descent’ skill.

However, he had not only given divine protections to others, but also dispatched his own clones to those who have learned the ‘Familiar Spirit Demonfacll’ skill.

Under these circumstances, descending familiar spirits, heroic spirits, or spirit clones would not do much. It would only result in the addition of another existence that was equal to or less than the countless clones of Vandalieu.

While Fidirg, the Evil Dragon God of Five Sins, empowered himself by having Vandalieu's clone descend, it wasn't because Fidirg was special. It was just that Vandalieu himself was beyond common sense.

Moreover, in Vandalieu's case, it was possible that the intrusion of a foreign element, that is a god's familiar spirit, could weaken him.
It was also difficult for him to descend the gods themselves, not the spirit clone, as their mental structures were too different… In other words, there were no gods compatible with him.

"I see. So that's how it is."

"I never realized that."

Zadiris and Zandia nodded with great interest as they listened to Deanna, Talos, and the others' explanations. Although they were excellent mages, it was quite challenging for them to imagine such circumstances from the perspective of believers.

"Shall I ask about this directly when I go to the divine realm next time? I feel a bit hesitant about requesting something like this directly, as it feels like cheating..."

"Vandalieu, may I ask you to listen to me for a moment?"

However, there was still a problem that Vandalieu had yet to realize. Darcia and the others had already done their utmost to convince Vandalieu.





<< ‘Cooking’ has awakened into ‘Divine Spirit Cooking’! >>





By continuously cooking using demi-gods as ingredients, Vandalieu had awakened the ‘Divine Spirit Cooking’ skill that allowed him to cook divine spirits.