“What should I do? How can I solve this problem?”
Encia began to lost in thought, tapping the tip of her feather pen with her fingertips.
“Tiara definitely said there’s divinity within me, so that must be true. But why can’t I feel it? Is it because I’m human? Because I have a living body?”
「There have been those who awakened to divinity even while in a living body.」
“Really?! So it’s not because I’m a living human then!?”
This time Encia started to gently stroke the feather part of the pen with her fingers.
“Could it be because of my name? Is it because the name ‘Encia’ doesn’t match ‘Sientia’? But if that were the case, it wouldn’t make sense that there’s divinity within me.”
「Hmm…」
While the exact reason is unclear… Roughly speaking, the biggest issue seems to be that [Encia ≠ Sientia].
Rather, if only Encia’s name had been used as is… Hmm, then maybe the mages didn’t pray properly? Or perhaps they resented Encia for claiming to be the God of Magic.
Is it because the names are different that she can’t wield divinity? Do names really have that much power? Just because the names are different, does that mean she can’t handle the power of divinity and faith?
I don’t know. While I may be close to omnipotence, I’m far from omniscience. There’s still so much I don’t understand.
The knowledge available through wikis only pertains to that world, not this one.
It would be nice if there was something like a wiki in this world too… Even if not a full wiki collecting all knowledge, at least having a library would be helpful.
Hmm. Let’s set aside these meaningless worries for now and return to Encia’s problem.
Perhaps the reason Encia can’t sense the divinity and faith within her is akin to lacking permission?
Like a [Usage Restricted: Sientia] kind of feeling. No, this is slightly different… If she can’t even sense it, then there must be some other issue at play.
Divine faith, though different from mana, feels similar thanks to which it should be perceivable if one tries… Yet it’s not easy.
Perhaps it’s because Encia and Sientia are recognized as separate entities.
To put it simply, it’s like a package arriving at the Sientia address but with “Encia” written on the label, making it impossible to open… Cough, what am I even comparing here?
Anyway, resolving this inconsistency is necessary for Encia to fully become a god. This requires further contemplation.
“Tiara, any good ideas? I can’t figure this out at all.”
「A good idea…」
Since there have been cases where people obtained divinity even while alive, being human isn’t the issue… However, the current Encia cannot use the divinity of Sientia…
Hmm… Ah! That’s right!
「How about trying astral projection?」
“Astral projection?”
If Encia separates from her physical body, perhaps she can awaken to the divinity of Sientia?
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
There is much debate among many mages regarding astral projection training using mana bodies, but no mage denies its effectiveness.
After creating a virtual body made of mana called a mana body, transferring one’s consciousness to it greatly improves affinity with mana. This training is so effective that even those unable to handle mana can obtain minimal talent.
However, if the connection with the physical body is completely severed due to external factors, control over the body may be lost or, if attempted in an unsafe environment, there’s a risk of wild elementals taking over the body. Therefore, this training is not recommended unless conducted under the supervision of skilled mages in a specially prepared environment.
Thus, preparation for this training includes creating an environment inaccessible to elementals and having highly skilled mages supervise while considering worst-case scenarios.
The materials and magic circles required to create such an environment are as follows:
– Advanced Mage Training Manual
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
“A little unsettling…”
「Don’t worry, don’t worry. What else could happen but death?」
“But… My soul will leave my body, right?! Isn’t that dying?!”
「It’s fine, it’s fine. You won’t die, you won’t die. And if you do, I’ll collect you. I’m also the God of Death, you know.」
“T-That’s true, but! Still! As humans, we instinctively fear death!”
「Maybe experiencing death once will change your mind?」
“There’s no way that would happen!!”
Anyway, I observed the body being formed using Encia’s mana as material.
The basic technique involves creating an avatar… Giving advice whenever issues arise, resulting in the forming mana body.
A body resembling Encia, purely composed of mana, connected to her physical body by threads of mana.
If we transfer Encia’s soul into this created body, perhaps there will be some changes in divinity or faith?
“Hmm… I don’t know if doing this is okay, but I’ll trust Tiara.”
「Of course! When it comes to souls, I’m an expert!」
When it comes to handling souls, I’m the best! Though I might tussle with some gods of the underworld.
“Alright, let’s begin.”
Thus Encia started transferring her soul into the mana body using the method I taught her.
Her soul leaving the physical body and moving through the mana thread into the mana body… So far proceeding without issues.
Ah, the mana body has started to move.
“Did it succeed?”
“Nothing unusual seems to have happened. Do you feel anything?”
“Hmm… Not quite yet.”
I thought she might lose the ability to communicate with me after leaving her body, but apparently that’s not an issue.
Encia began moving the mana body around, looking amazed, while I observed her.
Hmm. It seems faith and divinity are subordinate to the soul, as they’ve moved along with the soul into the mana body. Makes sense, given Maybel became a proper god after dying. Divinity must be subordinate to the soul.
“Uh… What’s this?”
“Do you feel something?”
“Yeah. Inside me, there’s some sort of tremendous power…”
Simultaneously, the faith within Encia’s mana body began to stir. Has she gained the ability to manipulate faith by separating from her physical body?
“AAAAAAAAAAH! An incredible power is surging up!!! Tiara! What is this?!”
“Don’t know. What is it? Scary…”
“What?!”
“Just kidding. That’s faith. The power gods wield.”
Similar to mana but infinitely more powerful thanks to countless prayers gathered within.
There’s a reason miracles invoked by gods using such faith are extraordinarily potent.
“So this massive power was dormant within me, and I couldn’t sense it at all?”
“That’s right. Do you get the feel of manipulating faith? Shall we slowly return your soul to your original body?”
The soul shouldn’t stay separated from the body for too long.
At that moment,
“My body…?”
An air elemental drifted in, noticing Encia’s vacant body and approaching cautiously.
“Empty body!”
“Back off!”
Using just a bit of force, I slapped the air elemental lusting after Encia’s body and scolded it before addressing Encia wielding faith in her mana body.
“I understand you’re distracted by manipulating faith, but let’s return soon. Leaving the body unattended isn’t good.”
“Ahh, yeah. Got it.”
Though Encia’s mana wasn’t insignificant, compared to divine faith, it was merely the power of one person.
Handling such powerful faith must have felt exhilarating for Encia.
Thus, after experimenting with her faith, Encia returned peacefully to her original body.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
“So, how did it feel?”
“It was amazing. The power of faith.”
“That’s because it’s the power gods use to perform miracles. No matter how much Siar’s mana, it can’t compare to faith.”
Even a dragon priestess is weaker than a god. Except me, others like Bibi. Bibi… Hmm. There’s no one else besides Bibi yet.
“But when I returned to my body, it’s like I suddenly can’t use it anymore. Actually, I can’t even sense it.”
“Hmm. Since the root problem wasn’t solved, this was just a temporary measure. Creating a mana body doesn’t resolve the underlying issue.”
“Then what should we do?”
What should we do? The simplest solution would be the end of Encia’s life… Hmm.. Hmm..
Nope. That’s unacceptable.
Then… Hmm.
“How about transforming Siar’s body?”
“My body?”
“Yes. Since she could normally use faith in her mana-made body, let’s transform Siar’s body. Like Arthur changed his body, Siar should transform hers into one capable of using faith.”
“Hmm… Is that possible?”
“We won’t know unless we try.”
Whether it works or not remains to be seen.
Which I was thinking…
“It works? This?”
It actually works.
