"The Gods speak through me."
"The scales that balance all worlds have decided to make an exception for you, as you are the Star of Promise."
"They have granted you a portion of the Law's strength using the closed-eye as a vessel. This does not count as the eye being open, however."
"The Power of Law given to you is just the smallest amount, small enough for it to not disrupt the balance, but it will allow you to taste true power for the first time."
"But, my son, you must know that this is not your power, nor will you ever obtain "Essence Power" like this again if the Gods think you are unworthy. With the power of Ink, the Deity that presides over Laws only wants to see in reality what new "Laws" you may create."
…
Ink exploded around William, and that power turned luminescent, beyond even the glorious colour of golden ink, it became the colour of the omnipresent, the omnipotent and the void.
Colourless, because it was something almost beyond this reality.
It was Divine Ink, created by the Power of Law.
It was not an Authority, as that was too powerful for this world to contain. However, with Essence Power, secondary to Authority, the natural elements of the world could be manipulated in wholly different ways. This was something only the small faction of humans and monsters that had ascended the boundaries of mortality, The Sovereigns, could do.
William's body was illuminated with this power, and six wings forged from ink sprouted from his back. Even while using the closed eye as a vessel, to maintain this form, he had to sacrifice mental power as a price, otherwise, his lifespan itself would decrease.
This meant he was only a few minutes away from fainting, and, if he maintained this form for just an hour, he would become brain-dead. But, against a beast of this proportion, whom the others could not deal with, that price was almost nothing.
He wanted to wield the power of a hero.
And, as a wielder of the Artisan's Law, a temporary, false Essence Power he created by fusing ink with Law, he could do so for the first time.
He raised his hand and forged his First Law.
"All weapons I wield from now on shall be imbued with ink. This ink will have the same "purification" effect as light itself!"
Every single person within and around the area of that cavern heard those words. And Sylvia, in the spur of the moment, threw to him his sword, which he pointed at the Unholy Steellion.
"…Haha… HAHAHAHA!!!" The demonic entity laughed.
"…You are a special one. However, you think you can hurt me with that puny Law alone? No matter how much the Gods adore one being, they will never give you enough power to defeat a single enemy that easily!"
"You should have "written" a better Law!" The demonic entity yelled as it charged at William.
However, as the Law proclaimed, the sword was imbued with ink, and it sliced through the Unholy Steellion's body.
"…Still… purification is something annoying to deal with… I'll have to kill you quickly!"
The Unholy Steellion regenerated its limb and struck down at William with impeccable force. With his six wings, William was able to dodge with ease, but the demonic entity charged again, swiping at him with its sharp claws.
With every strike of the demonic claws, with every sword slash unleashed by the inky blade, the cavern trembled like never before.
"They're both… terrifyingly strong…" Shard muttered.
"If I had just continued with that research… maybe I could've reached such a level too…"
The cavern shook, and William flew upwards, preparing a sword strike that would split the earth asunder.
"Everyone! Get out of the way!"
The inky sword shimmered the bright yellow possible, and sparks of power akin to divine strength fell from the blade. Such great power illuminated even the cavernous abysm below him, and finally, he struck down, splitting everything into two.
The demonic entity was scorched by the golden light and split into two. And, after the dust cleared, there was a clear victor between the two. Or so it seemed at first.
However, the Unholy Steellion, which was split apart, rose slowly, regenerating even from that life-threatening wound.
"…Concepts… there are concepts that you do not understand, boy… there are reasons why Laws and Divine Laws exist, and why there are so many of them… if I were the Gods, I would be… the most disappointed in you!"
William descended, glaring with eyes of fiery resentment.
"What do you mean?!"
The Unholy Steellion grinned as it flexed its claws.
"Hahaha! To kill a being that has begun its steps to transcend mortality, which is any Magic Creature out there, you must "understand" how to kill it! You must be able to comprehend how to sever and cut Mana, and how to sever all that is metaphysical!"
"And, only those who have trained for years can effortlessly do such a thing, such beings that you pretend to be!"
"Now, die!" The Unholy Steellion roared, "At the end of this battle, I shall feed on your despair and anguish as you try desperately to survive—"
From the entrance of the cavern itself, the Unholy Steellion felt a presence on par with a holy warrior. An innate fear of the Steellions, and perhaps all other Demonic Creatures.
A holy light, with all the attributes capable of slaying evil. And, although this counterpart of the Angel of Delusion wasn't truly a Steellion but was moulded into one, he still felt that horrifying sensation.
It was so powerful that even William felt odd. And then, it felt like a ray of the most brilliant annihilation was coming to destroy them all. A bright light akin to the sun itself burst through the underground stone and soil and committed the total obliteration of the Demonic Creature.
And then, following that blast of light that left everyone else untouched, two men strolled into the cavern, guided by the destruction left behind by the ray of light.
"…You…"
Shard's eyes widened as he recognized the two people at once.
"…The Golden Gatekeeper of the Skies! And, one of the Bishops of the Brilliance Church!"
The man wearing the armour of the Steeled Lion Brigade chuckled at Shard's absolute shock and slowly approached the crumbling remains of the Unholy Steellion.
"…I have heard of this obscene ability to create and transform clones of himself. But, I had no clue that it would be this potent. I'm almost surprised. I suppose that man must be collecting his strength right about now."
The Bishop nodded.
"The Bewitched's Higher Faiths are also beginning to reveal themselves one by one. We must be on our toes. But, besides that…"
The two of them turned around to face William, who had lost the Power of Law, and wasn't even sure if the God of Laws was satisfied or not.
"…You're naked, young man." The Bishop said.
William looked down and was shocked to see his unclothed body. He was quick to cover himself, but his face drooped and he seemed a second away from fainting. However, Barrow approached him while clutching his head from a bad migraine and stopped him from falling and planting his head on the ground.
"…Hm. But, now that the Unholy Steellion has been eviscerated by your mighty strength, we have no leads on where he is. Let us leave this place at once, and have your knight tend to these unlucky fellows…"
The sudden collapse of Barrow behind them was swiftly brought to their attention, as the migraine had suddenly appeared again and gotten worse out of nowhere.
And then, an eerie voice spoke.
Do not make my sacrifice be for nought. I command you, for the sake of Salvation, kill that boy and cast his body into the abysm!
Barrow's dazed eyes landed on William, and without a second thought, William was pushed into the deep, dark caverns below.