To Paolo, commander of the Bronze Black Cross, although they nominally recognized the King of Swords, Salvatore Doni, as the leader of the Italian magic associations, everyone knew it was in na only.
It wasn’t that they were insincere in their loyalty. The problem lay entirely with Doni himself.
Salvatore Doni, the so-called King of Swords, had been a knight obsessed with swordsmanship. A few years ago, he beca a Godslayer after defeating the Celtic god Nuada.
His feat ignited wild enthusiasm within the then-weak Italian magical community, which imdiately pledged allegiance to their new "king."
However, Doni turned out to be a man who cared only for swordsmanship and combat—forgetting almost instantly that anyone had sworn loyalty to him.
Other than his friend and part-ti attendant Andrea, he couldn’t rember a single na.
He paid no attention to the affairs of the Italian magical community.
This left the entire association in an awkward position. Their sworn "king" neither acknowledged their loyalty nor rembered he was the titular leader of Italy’s magical world.
And yet, all of that might still have been tolerable.
What truly made things complicated was Doni’s obsession with sword fights. Whenever he caught wind of a Heretic God or another Godslayer, he would rush to battle with gleeful abandon.
Collateral damage ant nothing to him: ruined cities, destroyed farms, obliterated heritage sites—these were just side effects of his so-called training.
Paolo snapped out of his thoughts and sprinted toward the source of the commotion.
This was Milan, after all—and the headquarters of the Bronze Black Cross.
If Doni picked a fight with a goddess here, the whole city would be wiped off the map.
Paolo knew all too well that a Godslayer didn’t care who the opponent was.
Even if it were their symbolic "foster mother" Pandora, Doni would slash first and ask questions never.
He hadn’t run far when the searing edge of pressure and wind slamd into him.
BOOM—
The wall in front of him was split clean in two, rubble flying everywhere.
The sudden shockwave blasted knights and magi alike against the walls like ping pong balls.
"Aaaahhh!"
Paolo was losing it.
"Noooo! That building was over six hundred years old!"
Even the most composed gentleman would be internally screaming.
Doni, you sword-obsessed maniac! If I could beat you, I’d make you pick up every stone and glue it back together!
The goddess, stripped of her Pandora True Na, frowned.
Out from the wreckage strode a shirtless man in beach shorts, a magic sword in hand and a radiant smile on his face.
Having arrived in this world, she had already learned about its circumstances.
In her eyes, a Godslayer was rely a quasi-god who had stolen partial Authorities from divine avatars.
While they possessed Authorities, those were weakened ones. Instead of divine power, they ran on low-grade magic and spell energy. Their bodies were at most a fifth as strong as a Lower God.
Lower Gods didn’t have Authorities or Laws, but their divine cognition far surpassed that of any Godslayer.
Clearly, this particular Godslayer had co for her.
She sighed. Though her True Na was lost, so of her divine laws remained. She was still a Middle God and highly proficient in magic.
Salvatore’s eyes glead as he looked at the Heretic God before him, grinning like a fool.
"Heh heh... It’s been over a year since I last fought a Heretic God. My sword’s getting rusty."
"Hey, whatever-god-you-are—let test my blade on you."
Paolo braced himself and tried to stop Salvatore.
"W-Wait! Sir Salvatore! That goddess is not a Heretic God!"
Then a chilling realization struck him.
Salvatore didn’t care whether the opponent was a Heretic God or not—he just wanted to fight. Even if it were soone else, he’d still engage in battle.
Cold sweat dripped from Paolo’s forehead.
Salvatore looked confused. "Who are you? Get out of the way. This isn’t a place for a magician like you."
Paolo said, "I’m Paolo Bluntly, commander of the Bronze Black Cross, Sir Salvatore."
Salvatore replied, "Oh, never heard of you. Anyway, move aside. This is my fight with the Heretic God."
With that, he raised his magic sword and unleashed a slash.
The blinding sword light forced Paolo to retreat in panic, despair washing over him.
The Bronze Black Cross headquarters, with over six hundred years of history, was dood.
Buzz... BOOM—
The mont the sword light overwheld everyone’s vision, a deafening explosion rang out.
When the mages finally regained consciousness, most of them promptly passed out again.
Only Paolo, thanks to his status as a high knight, managed to peer into the smoke.
His jaw dropped, eyes bulging in disbelief.
As the dust cleared, he saw a massive crater—tens of ters wide and several ters deep—in the hall.
Hovering above it was a golden magic array, pinning Salvatore beneath it like a squashed frog, completely motionless.
The goddess stood there unscathed, her expression calm.
She was a Middle God. Against a re quasi-god like this, she didn’t need to exert herself.
One anti-magic seal was enough.
It sealed not only all energy below the level of divinity but also restricted movent.
Without energy, even possessing Authority ant nothing.
Her task complete, the goddess vanished from the scene.
Now, she only needed to wait for this world to be assimilated and then return to the Main World.
Paolo slowly approached after confirming the goddess had left, still dumbfounded.
Their so-called leader, Salvatore, lay pinned under the magic array, struggling in vain.
"W-What just happened?! Why am I suddenly on the ground? What’s pressing on ?! Let go! Hey! Let go!"
"Co fight fair and square!"
...
anwhile...
On a small island in Italy, a silver-haired loli wearing a knit sweater and cat-ear hat looked up at the sky.
Her otherwise emotionless expression curled into a faint smile.
"The True Na Gift Ga... I won. My main body’s power has increased significantly."
"And tis, dusa, and Hades don’t exist in that world. That ans I can claim those True Nas."
The girl, realizing sothing, turned around.
Behind her stood a young boy, catching her completely off guard.
To appear so silently behind the incarnation of the most ancient Earth Mother Goddess—even if just a fragnt of her—was no small feat.
And he had deliberately let her notice.
"Who are you?"
Though she sensed the boy behind her, all divine perceptions beyond eyesight were completely ineffective.
As a goddess, this was utterly inconceivable.
It ant whether or not she could perceive his presence depended entirely on his will.
Athena might not be the pinnacle of deities in this world, but she was one of the top-tier ancient Earth Mother goddesses.
If judged by the universe’s hierarchy, she would be classified as a Second-tier Primary God.
For her to be unable to comprehend this being could only an one thing—he transcended the realm of Primary Gods.
She understood clearly that between tiers in the universe, there were uncrossable gulfs. The power of a higher-tier god was absolute suppression to those below.
Her Authority of Wisdom spun rapidly, trying to trace the source. But the being before her remained utterly without information.
Nothing. He was simply too powerful for her to comprehend.
Noah looked at her and chuckled. She had just attempted to analyze him using this world’s Authority of Wisdom.
"To use low-tier Authority to analyze a higher being... what an audacious transgression."
"Had it been soone else, your divinity would’ve been shattered on the spot."
Even gods of equal rank wouldn’t dare such a move—akin to stripping another’s divine raint. Let alone towards a superior existence.
Athena’s Wisdom was now screaming warnings at her. This unknowable presence was danger incarnate. Unless she apologized imdiately, she would face unimaginable consequences.
"I deeply apologize. My actions were impudent. You are a Supre God, are you not? I beg your forgiveness for my ignorance."
Her small hands folded together, Athena bowed respectfully to Noah. Clad in a knitted sweater, skirt, cotton socks, and a cat-ear hat, she looked like a scolded schoolgirl.
Noah waved a hand. "Wisdom may have made you cunning, but ignorance holds no guilt."
Athena quickly expressed gratitude. "Thank you for your magnanimity."
He didn’t deny the title of Supre God—which ant he truly was one.
Though she’d only joined the "System" a day ago, her Wisdom had already taught her the rules of the universe.
There were only seven Supre Gods in existence—those capable of creating entire worlds.
Most gods were birthed from the world itself. Even those who possessed "Creation" Authorities due to myth could not truly create worlds. Their divine status simply placed them one notch above the rest—a symbolic Authority.
"Might I ask... is there sothing you wish of ?"
Noah smiled. "I was simply curious about you."
"Just like a human who spots a stray kitten and feels an urge to tease it with a treat."
Athena’s expression froze. Then she fell silent.
Her Wisdom had generated countless possible reasons, yet not this one.
To think it was sothing so whimsical.
Still, it made sense. Gods often followed impulses that could demote a divine na into a rogue god on a whim.
"Great Supre God... may I ask what it was about that caught your attention?"
If a Supre God had noticed her, there had to be a reason. Just as a human would notice a stray cat for so specific reason.
With a glimr of curiosity in her eyes, Athena waited. Noah, admiring the expression on this loli Athena, smiled and said—
"I’m interested in your very existence—and your desire to claim multiple true nas."
"In the cosmos, each true na is unique. That ans every true na is an independent origin power."
"Because each true na is tied to the origin force of a mythology, two identical origin forces cannot coexist. Otherwise, mythologies and gods would overlap, and the order of the universe would collapse."
"You can only choose one."
Currently, Athena possessed a trinity of domains: Earth Mother Goddess, Heavenly Wisdom, and Queen of the Underworld. Heaven, Earth, and the Underworld—all covered.
If she maintained such a status, every divine faction in Teyvat would be forced to share their authorities with her. That would be outrageous.
It would be like being a rchant wealthier than nations, an imperial chancellor, and a supre general all at once.
With enough power, she could overthrow the entirety of the Greek pantheon’s mythic origin.
Naturally, the other Greek gods wouldn’t allow that. A war would erupt, and Athena would likely be eradicated by her fellow gods.
As Noah finished explaining, a flood of new information poured into Athena’s awareness.
She quickly bowed and thanked him. "So that’s how it is. Thank you for helping avoid disaster. May I ask if there is anything I can do to repay your kindness?"
She had always known that true nas were important—tied to origin power—but never truly understood what that ant.
Now she did.
Origin Power was a supre authority beyond divine Authority itself. It was akin to the Supre Gods’ comprehension of Truth and the Law Rings they forged from it.
Though it lacked the omniscience and omnipotence of supre power, it allowed a god to wield divine force equivalent to a Supre God within a specific domain.
Athena’s Origin Power encompassed the stages of womanhood: maiden, mother, crone. A wide-reaching concept of femininity.
Thus, in the cosmos, she could channel the power of all won beneath her divine tier.
This was her Origin Power—a unique privilege.
If she one day reached First-tier Primary God, she could use this to contend with a Third-tier Supre God for several exchanges.
Just a few exchanges, yes—but it would still be a privilege beyond any regular deity.
In ranking terms, it was a "Exceptional Primary God."
Every true na possessed its own distinct Origin Power.
And since Origin Powers clashed, only one could exist.
Noah looked at the obedient, schoolgirl-like Athena and stroked his chin. "Sothing you can do as thanks, huh..."
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