Forsaken Priest of the Hero's Party-Chapter 13: The Sapling of Lineage

The Phylogenetic Seedling, or Sapling of Lineage.

A sacred miracle from the Lord.

Proof that He has heard my pleas, and granted the wish of a mere believer.

I could feel the power of this new Miracle taking root inside me.

It is truly something to be grateful for, but that is only from my perspective.

“So, what’s that?”

Roka asked as she stared at the sprout-like form of the sapling that appeared between my hands.

From her expression she must be thinking something like this - ‘Can I eat it?’.

Well, her reasoning wasn’t wrong. To a starving person, a loaf of bread would be more useful than this Miracle.

One must eat to survive. And sleep to rest their spirit.

Everything else comes second.

Only after solving those two necessities, one could move to other things.

Everyone was like that.

“Although we humans can accomplish many things during our lives...Time is not on our side.”

A normal human could only live up to 100 years,

If you subtract the time for eating, sleeping, and... physiological needs, you would halve at least 50 years from those 100.

Yet, even these 50 years are rarely used properly. After all, who can work 100% of the time? One must also drink and celebrate. Sometimes people would waste their money on things like gambling. I’m also like that. One could argue that the time I spent playing with Roka was not a productive one.

“Even if time was on our side, we wouldn’t be able to make proper use of it.”

Take Roka for example. She has more than enough time to learn how to read and write.

But if I were to shove a book down her throat and tell my little wolf to learn, I wouldn’t doubt she would throw the book away in less than 30 minutes, and come to play with me.

While I used Roka as an example, this applies to anyone.

As long as one is human, one cannot contrate all the time. When doing something one dislikes, efficiency will drop dramatically, and even while doing something one enjoys, there is always a little distraction.

Sometimes, what you wish to do, and what you’re good at doing are two different things.

Pursuing an activity you’re not good at, and neglecting something you have talent in, can result in an enormous waste of time.

But if someone wishes to dedicate themselves to an activity they are talented in...

The Phylogenetic Seedling will bless them.

“This miracle from the Lord is to help us with that. By offering your karma to this sapling, your potential is realized.”

Offer thy soul. Dedicate thy hands, let them be fruitful, for thy work is blessed.

Then, from nothing, a sapling sprouted. A new possibility bloomed.

What was once just a hypothesis, a possibility, gained form as a new stem and spread out towards the void.

Let the phylogenetic seedling be with you.

Those who wish to use the seedling must receive your permission.

A person’s accomplishments. The connections formed during one’s life. In other words, Karma.

By offering Karma, one receives now what one could have possibly had some time in the future.

This Miracle encompassed a higher Authority. I could immediately understand why the tree angel warned me not to abuse this ability.

“......?”

“It would be easier if you tried for yourself. Put your hands on the sapling, Roka.”

“Like this?”

Roka placed her hand on the sapling without hesitation.

As she did so, we were transported to the place where the Angel of the Lord talked to me.

In a place devoid of a sky or earth. Countless possibilities existed. They were so numerous that it hurt to gaze at them.

They appeared like a tree. From it’s bark, infinite lines branched out.

I could instinctively know. That bark represented Roka’s past and her present. The past couldn’t be changed, as such, it appeared as the single line that held the branching possibilities.

All those branches are the futures Roka can choose.

No one can have it all.

Because a person cannot put in that much effort, or have that much time.

If the Lord had not granted this, it would have been so. Now it is different.

“Roka, you can dedicate your life to the Lord, and bring forth the desired future to the present.”

“I don’t understand...But I think I know...It feels like my heart is guiding me.”

Roka muttered as if entranced.

“The feeling that I knew it since I was born... it’s mysterious. There’s no way I could have known how to use something like this.”

Among them, my gaze was directed to the future where Roka learned how to read and write.

From what I could see, she would learn it in roughly three months, should she keep up.

Since such a possibility is closer to reality, only a small amount of Karma must be offered up.

Roka went through a lot in her short life, so she has accumulated a lot of Karma.

But who doesn’t go through difficult times in life?

It was something I couldn’t help but consider.

Everyone lives with difficulty, and everyone struggles. The more difficult life is, the more everyone bears their own karma.

That’s why the Phylogenetic Seedling was a dangerous Miracle.

It was too powerful.

What I had prayed to the Lord for and wished for was just the small matter of Roka learning to read and write,

I didn’t ask for this sort of Authority.

However, the Lord granted me this Miracle.

Then surely, it must be because He thought such a powerful miracle was necessary for me.

‘If that karma could be converted directly into power, or into knowledge... No. There must be a reason why the Lord bestowed this miracle upon me. He sees more than I do.’

“Master.”

“Hm?”

Skip-. My little wolf jumped and clung to my back.

Wrapping her arms around my neck, she whispered in my ear.

“Master, please choose for me. I don’t know what I should do.”

“Roka. This is your sapling. How you will grow these three is for you to decide.”

Honestly, I hoped she would choose to learn how to read and write.

But even if she chooses something else, I will respect Roka’s will.

This is her future, not mine.

Everyone must decide their own future through their actions.

Roka is not my slave. She’s not my servant. She’s her own person.

A human being with the same rights as me.

I am merely watching her steps. What right do I have to force Roka’s life?

“Then Master, I want to do that.”

Roka pointed to a branch with her finger.

“That... feels like it’s calling to me. Just thinking about it makes my tail stand on end, and I feel like I can hear whispers. I want to have that.”

“Let me see, that is...”

Her desired choice would consume all of her Karma.

That branch represented the future where Roka trained her Sun attribute for 30 years.

Solar mana...?

I wonder if there was such a thing as a Sun attribute or Solar-type mana...But I don’t really know since I can’t handle mana.

Anyway, that branch is a fragment of a future possibility where the solar attribute, which is not currently possessed, was painstakingly obtained. It may sound simple, but the details were a bit more complicated.

No...It’s more than that.

This future represented a possibility where Roka’s Lunar Magic and her Solar Magic were in harmony and trained until mastery.

People born with an attribute were quite rare, but to think Roka would have two of them...

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I didn’t know because she never really used mana in front of me.

“This branch?”

“Yes.”

When I looked at her, Roka nodded intently.

The child’s will was clear. She wanted to put all the karma she had accumulated through her difficult life into that one branch.

“It shall be done according to your will.”

That is her choice.

I approved. The branch that was just a hazy possibility shone brightly and connected to the trunk. At that moment, Roka trembled. Her body became as warm as the sun.

Her body temperature was so warm, almost hot, that I had to put her down.

“Master, I...”

The chilling magic of the Moon,

And the scorching magic of the Sun.

Two energies. Direct opposites.

The Sun and the Moon now revolved in harmony, as if they had been wielded for decades.

The Phylogenetic Seedling fulfilled its role.

“It feels like... I’ve become incredibly strong.”

“Is that so?”

Truthfully...Rather than wanting you to become strong...I just wanted you to learn how to read and write...

Well, if she’s happy with it, then it’s fine.

“...I will protect you, Master.”

“What a reliable wolf I have...Thanks to you, I don’t have to worry anymore.”

Ah...Just look at that beaming smile. How could someone be this joyful?

As I embraced Roka, she hugged me back. When I patted her head, she grinned as if she received the world’s greatest gift. What manner of adorable creature is this? No one should be allowed to be this cute.

My Lord and Savior bestowed upon this unworthy servant such wonderful gifts.

While patting Roka, a sudden question came to mind.

Just how much power can the priests of the Three Goddesses, who are worshiped by half of the continent, wield?

I may not know for certain, but I was convinced they possessed truly formidable might.

Perhaps they weren’t allowed to display their strongest Miracles, like revitilizing springs, Holy Sanctuaries, or things like this Phylogenetic Seedling...?

The saint who took my place in Yurinel’s party, Lady Aridel.

Just how immense of an authority could she wield?

Perhaps she could freely communicate with her God and receive divine blessings to overcome crises whenever necessary. She would be incomparable to the likes of me.

Everyone has their own path. Myself and them alike.

The reason I can now recall the memory of being expelled from the party with composure,

Is because the Lord is still behind me, watching over me.

The reason the memories I shared with them are no longer missed.

Is because Roka is by my side, saying she will protect me.

The past that had flowed by was no longer important to me.

Only the present I am living and the future truly mattered now.

*****Something acquired just by living,

Yet, this simple thing encompasses the entire world.

Something that all creatures, including humans, thoughtlessly let flow by without knowing its value.

Karma.

A higher concept that even Angels couldn’t comprehend.

Beyond this universe,

A giant tree that had taken root in the void trembled.

Its branches were continuously growing even at this very moment.

Squirm-.

In the center of the tree, a single eye opened as it gazed upon the cosmos.

-Apostle. Never abuse those Miracles.

However, there is a clear distinction among Karma.

That is, the Personal Karma of someone, that belongs entirely to them.

This so-called ‘Bond’ was relatively easy to manipulate.

This being, which Kyle calls the Three Angels, could not manipulate the universal Karma. But it could wield the Personal one.

By receiving a person’s karma as payment, could summon the possibilities of the future through it.

Honestly, this wasn’t a good trade for the Three Angels. Even for him, an Angel, a person’s Karma wasn’t something he could properly handle. After all, he was an Angel, not a God.

However, it does not complain because the Lord compensates for its power to that extent.

-This power is not something that should exist in your world, Apostle.

All of Kyle’s miracles are like that. Because he is human and lives in the human world, they cannot exert their true power.

Only when he finally transcends humanity and accepts his destiny as an apostle, when he comes to the Lord’s side and stands alongside the angels, will all those miracles surpass their limits and become truly magnificent.

When that time comes, he will be able to use the Phylogenetic Seedling on his own, without the tree angel’s assistance.

Ascension was already prepared for him.

It was only a matter of time now.