"An angel has descended! An angel has descended!"
"Long live the Hierarch!"
"The Hierarch truly is mandated by heaven!"
"The Azure Sky is already dead, the Yellow Sky will soon rise!"
"Make the Empire great again!"
"If Honest can be Prime Minister, why can't our Hierarch?"
"Hey, look! The stone effigy we just pulled from the river only has one eye!"
A gentle yet brilliant light cascaded from the sky, as if piercing through the firmament to reach the mortal realm. Within the light, the air seemed to turn transparent, and time itself felt as if it had stopped.
The figure of an angel gradually materialized. Her wings were as white as snow, each feather shimmering with a faint luster, as if woven from starlight. Her face was both gentle and solemn, her eyes containing infinite compassion and wisdom. A golden halo enveloped her body, and the air filled with the faint scent of sandalwood and flowers.
A soft, rhythmic chant surrounded the angel, a sound like heavenly music—distant yet intimate, as if originating from the depths of the cosmos.
The believers watched the descending angel with fervor, basking in the baptism she bestowed upon them.
(In the world of Akame ga Kill!, angels do exist as a concept. The capital's decorations include images of angels with wings.)
"A holy hymn! This must be a holy hymn!"
"I can't understand the words, but it sounds beautiful!"
"Lord, please forgive my sins!"
Displaying her angelic powers, Gabriel shot a deadpan look at Chen Li, who was in the middle of the crowd shouting all sorts of ridiculous slogans at the top of his lungs. But Chen Li's words seemed to have a powerful agitating effect. Combined with the genuine angel descending from the sky, the followers of the Path of Peace were whipped into a frenzy.
As for the so-called holy hymn, it was one of Robin's songs. Chen Li hadn't even paid for the copyright.
The Hierarch of the Path of Peace had long since prostrated himself before the angel, leading countless followers to receive her baptism. The "holy hymn" was Robin's song, the "angel" was a guest appearance by the fallen angel Gabriel, and the "baptism" was, naturally, just as unorthodox—it was water that had been steeped with a divine object of Abundance.
The effect, however, was remarkable. While the water couldn't grant immortality, it could temporarily cure all illnesses, increase vitality, extend one's lifespan by a small amount, and leave one feeling refreshed and comfortable.
"This world feels a bit strange. The restrictions on using my powers are quite significant," Gabriel communicated with Chen Li telepathically while using her angelic power. As an angel, Gabriel was the real deal; for example, she could restore sight to a blind girl. She had originally wanted to grant these believers a bit of angelic power herself, but it was too much effort, so she decided against it.
"I told you, this is a genuine other world. Your angel school requires that you don't use your divine powers carelessly in the mortal realm, but it doesn't say you can't in another world," Chen Li replied.
Top-tier angels like Gabriel were under strict limitations when using their powers during their internships in the mortal world. The consequences for unauthorized use were terrifying—their allowance would be cut in half.
"Sigh, it's a shame I can't report what I'm doing in this world to the principal. Otherwise, my allowance for next quarter would probably increase quite a bit," Gabriel complained.
"Forget about your allowance. You'll get 100 Star Stones after this is done. [Mom's Tablecloth] is still in its free trial period. Once that's over, you can use it three times for just one Star Stone. 100 Star Stones is enough for you to eat your fill for several months," Chen Li said.
Curio leasing—this was an idea Chen Li had worked out with Yurine Hanazono. As the strongest magician on earth in her world, Yurine also needed to watch her figure and couldn't use the tablecloth constantly. Plus, she wanted to earn Star Stones. Thus, the idea of leasing Curios was born.
Low-income groups can rent out their idle Curios, or use their own exclusive Curios to pull in some business! If you can't earn Star Stones, have you considered if it's your own problem?
In the end, Yurine decided to rent out the tablecloth, splitting the Star Stone earnings with Chen Li at a 30-70 ratio. Chen Li took seventy percent. He didn't really care about the earnings; he just wanted to give his group members a way to spend their Star Stones. Only with a healthy circulation of earning and spending Star Stones could he live a good life and find new "sisters-in-law" for his group mates.
"Are you done yet? I'm getting a little tired," Gabriel said. Maintaining a holy and warm smile was exhausting. Gabriel felt this kind of work was more suited for her past self, right after graduating from angel school. Her smile was so natural back then; she couldn't fake it anymore. Now, all she wanted was to finish the job and go home to play games.
"All done. You can go straight home."
"See you." Gabriel nodded and was sent back by the Guide to Forging Curios to the exact spot she was in before transmigrating.
The angel's disappearance left the countless believers feeling a sense of loss. Chen Li, however, put on the angel halo he had prepared, a smile gracing his lips. Holding the divine object of Abundance that radiated holy power, he walked toward the slowly rising Hierarch of the Path of Peace.
"Blessed one, shall we talk? About how to save the world?" Chen Li extended an invitation to the Hierarch.
The Hierarch was no ordinary man. He was born with the ability to heal wounds and see the future, could read people's hearts, and could even remember the name and number of every single one of his followers. His true form was a hybrid of a Danger Beast and a human, a being considered taboo.
But as the Hierarch looked upon Chen Li, who was radiating a holy aura, his first feeling was not of love and compassion, but a sudden, rising terror—the kind of fear one feels when encountering a natural predator. The Hierarch had a gut feeling that Chen Li could swallow him whole in a single bite.
Suddenly, under the watchful eyes of the many believers, Chen Li leaned in close to the Hierarch, took a light sniff, and uttered a sentence that nearly broke the man's composure—
"Bro, you smell so good."
---o---
[Dad]: Alright, problem solved for you. @Najenda
[The World Needs a Seven-Day Weekend]: Mend your pace, sway to the beat
[Najenda]: Ah, that was incredibly efficient.
[17-Year-Old Beauty]: Hands up! Embrace who you wannabe
[Dad]: With a real angel as a spokesperson, plus my coercion and inducements, the Hierarch of the Path of Peace knew which way the wind was blowing. It just cost me a bit of my own image.
[Green Squiggly Snake]: We're reaching heights unseen
[Najenda]: Thank you for your hard work.
[Dad]: So how are things on your end?
[Najenda]: Still on the way to the Revolutionary Army's base.
[Fallen Angel Gabriel]: What's going on? Why do they keep sending voice messages of themselves singing? Is this some kind of custom?
[Dad]: Don't mind them. They just got [Ad Brainwashed] while watching the resurrection ads. Speaking of which, I never thought Mobius would be interested in resurrection.
Besides the three group members above, many others had actually joined the chorus. Some were just joining in for fun, but others had genuinely been brainwashed by Robin's voice.
[Peerless and Perfect Herta]: Hey, Chen Li, is your ad slot still for rent?
[Dad]: What for?
[Peerless and Perfect Herta]: I was thinking, if I loop an ad of my praising puppet complimenting me in the resurrection card ad slot, and the group members get brainwashed, wouldn't they...
[Dad]: That's a dangerous idea you have there.
[Peerless and Perfect Herta]: So?
[Dad]: The ad slot will be up for rent again tomorrow at noon. Highest bidder wins.
[Peerless and Perfect Herta]: Great, I'll go find Asta right now!
[Dad]: Why do you always go to Asta? You have that huge Herta Space Station, does it really run entirely on Asta's dime? Sounds like Rhodes Island's entire operation being funded by squeezing that crying cat girl, Jessica.
[Peerless and Perfect Herta]: Yes, of course. How else?
"Just go drown in your Asta's embrace for the rest of your life! Wait a minute... I'm a member of the Genius Society now, too. Could I poach Asta?" Chen Li was suddenly tempted.
That's right! Herta is a genius, and I am a genius. Herta is a member of the Genius Society, and so am I. What have I to fear? Why not ask if that Herta fears me?!
Everyone is jealous of Herta, but everyone wants to become Herta, surpass Herta, be super-Herta! Having a rich lady to foot the bill for everything... that sounds pretty damn good, doesn't it?
[Dad]: I choose you, Herta! How about I come to the Herta Space Station tomorrow to discuss the ad shoot with Asta?
[Peerless and Perfect Herta]: Fine. I'll be logged into my puppet then. Oh, and give me another Friends Circle terminal. I'll send it to Asta overnight so she can pay directly. But wouldn't it be more convenient for you to just come to my place?
[Dad]: I want to take a look at the Herta Space Station's collection while I'm there.
Chen Li made up a random excuse. He couldn't very well tell Herta he was planning on poaching her sugar mama, could he? Besides, he was genuinely interested in Herta's curios. For instance, what score would that biased scoring gun give him? And did the Herta Space Station really have a Wind Glider and the broken sword of a certain unknown, red-haired, greatsword-wielding character in its collection?
"Tomorrow's going to be busy. It's time to plant some miraculous items in the Previous Era, waiting for the inheritors of the next civilization to dig them up and spread their stories, thereby artificially cultivating Entries. Let's see, what kind of message should I add... I've got it. I'll add an [Ancient Saying] Entry. Give those archaeologists who accidentally dig up the stuff a little shock from the 'ancients'!"
Chen Li had a great idea.
Or maybe he could record a piece of apocrypha: The Flame-Chasers weren't some noble organization fighting the Honkai, but a food delivery company! Their slogan was: "No matter how scary the Honkai is, you still gotta eat!" Dr. MEI was actually the chief nutritionist, responsible for researching how to make delicious bento boxes under Honkai energy radiation. The reason Kevin became a MANTIS was because he ate too much irradiated takeout and mutated. And the Herrschers were all just contestants on a massive talent show called Honkai 101! The Herrscher of Finality was the center debut, the Herrscher of the Void was the main dancer, and the Herrscher of Thunder was the main rapper.
Ah, but one can't help but ask: how did such a "normal" Previous Era get destroyed?
Because... there was a certain doctor named Einstein who insisted on proving that if you gave her a fulcrum, she could lever the entire Earth!
---o---