By the Grace of the Gods (LN) - Volume 11 - Chapter SS

Extra Story: The Meeting of the Gods and the Heirloom Sword

One day, in the divine realm of the fantasy world Seilfall, Gain had called the other gods to congregate around a round table.

“What’s the emergency, Gain? Serelipta hasn’t finished serving his punishment,” Kiriluel, the goddess of war, protested.

“I don’t mind getting a break, but I’m curious why you called us all in. You could have sent a message for most things.”

Gain produced a long, black box from thin air. All gods but Gain, Kufo, and Lulutia stared at it with apprehension.

“What is that thing...? And where’d you get it?” asked Tekun, the god of wine.

Wilieris, the goddess of the earth, visibly raised her guard. “Such an ominous... No, sinister aura...”

Fernobelia, the goddess of academia, was the first to guess the contents and origin of the box. “Gain, Kufo, and Lulutia... You three made contact with a god on Earth, didn’t you? A low-ranking one at that.”

“Bingo,” Gain said.

“The box gave it away. It’s sealed, but the power used for it feels different from any of us. Considering how often you went to Earth, the natural conclusion is that the seal was made by an Earth god. What’s more, the seal is fraying. Any of us would have made a better seal, and most Earth gods would have done an even better job, since the majority are more powerful than us. Therefore, the one who made this seal was an Earth god, but one lower enough in rank to have less power than us.”

“Mm. Thanks for the walk-through. You’re correct,” said Gain.

He, along with Kufo and Lulutia, explained what happened in Earth’s divine realm: about the current state of it, the Old God or Nameless One who had been sending magic over to Seilfall, and about the box before them.

“Hm...” Grimp, the god of agriculture, grunted. “I, fer one, gots a whole lotta questions. Like that ‘nameless one’ or whatever an’ wot ’e wants, or how they be copin’ with things in their own divine realm, but may as well start with what’s in the box thar.”

The other gods showed signs of agreement.

“So this box contains the final pair of swords made by Ryoma’s father, yes?”

“Mm. I want Tekun to take a look at it first.”

“Thought you’d never ask. Put it here.” Tekun, the god of skill and handiwork, took the box and extracted the longer of the swords with uncharacteristic care.

“Well, I’ll be...”

The sword, drawn from its protective white sheath, gleamed with an entrancing beauty that drew in and maddened those who beheld it. Tekun studied the blade from all angles for a minute. “Impressive. Only one special material of note, but...he must have researched and drilled everything into his memory, from the required amount of hammering, the temperature of the metal, fire, water... It was perfectly balanced, if that makes sense. You probably couldn’t find many katanas crafted better than this.”

“Special enuff ta git yer seal of approval, eh, Tekun. So what is this ‘special material’ yer on about?” Grimp asked.

“Right... It’s the soul of its maker,” Tekun said with audible disappointment. The other gods’ expression sank. “Ryoma’s dad was, undoubtedly, one of the best sword makers that ever lived. Even then, his passion kept burning and he always strove for better techniques. That’s how he made this... He used the sword that was already at the best durability, cut, and shape it could as the foundation to pour all of his soul and power into. I get the gist of that part, but you know better than I do, Fernobelia.” Tekun slid the box and the short sword within it towards the center of the table.

Fernobelia took it silently, and drew it from its sheath before studying it as Tekun did. “I see... It is similar to a sacrificial rite. He must have done it subconsciously, but a powerful thought awakened the magic within him, grinding down his soul in the process, skyrocketing the sword’s quality as if by a curse. It allures people because the katana is treated as a work of art as well. It’s like a byproduct. I hear the ideal katana remains straight, sharp, and unbroken. Ryoma’s father must have given all of his essence to these two blades to make them the epitome of that ideal. In addition to the sharpness found in many masterfully forged swords, it contains powers that you could call Indestructible and All-Slice.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Serelipta chimed in. “It won’t break and it’ll cut anything?”

“More or less. An indestructible sword would never so much as chip no matter how poorly it’s handled, and it’ll never rust even if it was left to the elements for years. All-Slice means that, in addition to being very sharp, it can cut monsters in spirit form like the undead, and even magic spells. If the right person wields it, I wouldn’t be surprised if it could cut gods like us.”

“Dang! A weapon wot kin damage a god? That’s fodder fer a real legend!”

“It just might get one. Long story short, the sword is incredibly powerful, especially for it being man-made. No matter the nature of his craft, I will praise its maker.”

Not even Gain had expected the swords to be so powerful. Even gods rarely saw humans who perfected their craft to this level. “Hrm... Then what should we do with these swords? The gods of Earth wanted Ryoma to have it, since it belonged to him. They left the timing up to us, so we have the choice to not give it to him.”

“I think I do want to send them to him. It’s his father’s keepsake, after all.”

“I agree with Kufo.”

“Cain’t think of a better human ta give ’er to.”

“We don’t have a reason to give them to any other human. My concern lies with sending something this dangerous down to the human realm.”

“Well... I don’t really want to keep something that can cut a god anywhere near me. Isn’t it safer down there than keeping it up here? There’s plenty of monsters to use them against, aren’t there?”

“Well, as powerful as it might be, it’s just a sword. It’s simply a sword that became enchanted as a result of the maker pursuing the ultimate blade. Nonetheless, it’s dangerous. We shouldn’t make our decision lightly. Even if we are going to send them down, we should do so carefully. We should keep it under a tight seal in the divine realm until we reach our decision.”

“Then I’ll craft new sheathes, well, everything but the blades, to keep them sealed. We need a proper seal no matter what we do with them, don’t we?”

“Can you do that for us, Tekun?”

“My idea. I’ll do it.”

“Then we’ll leave the sealing to you. Tekun will hold on to the swords for the time being, and we will discuss what to do with them afterwards. I would like each of us to consider our options as you keep an eye on Ryoma. We’ll take a vote down the road.”

“Let’s go!”

“Gah! Nooooooooo...!”

The meeting of the gods had concluded, and Serelipta’s scream faded into nothingness.