[Host can evolve their divinity to Level 1 after accumulating a sufficient amount of faith.]
[Advancing beyond Weak divine spark is tied to the development of a Divine Authority.]
After receiving this answer, Souta stopped asking about divinity upgrades.
After all, he hadn't even gathered enough faith to reach Weak divine spark—talking about Divine Authorities was still far off!
With his doubts cleared, Souta continued experimenting with divine spark's properties.
Before long, the faith he had collected and converted into divine spark was completely exhausted.
However, the aftermath of his divine descent was still spreading throughout the believers, continuously funneling new faith into his Divine Realm.
As his converted divine spark increased, so too did the sacred aura surrounding him.
A majestic pressure radiated from his body, carrying the weight of a mountain.
The palace's patrolling guards and cleaning maids began subconsciously avoiding his area, unable to withstand his presence.
When Kurumi and Chelsea returned to the palace and saw Souta in this state, they were shocked.
Chelsea, now back in her original form, called out hesitantly.
Souta, who had been meditating, opened his eyes. A golden glow flashed through his pupils.
The moment Chelsea saw that golden radiance, she felt her breath catch and her heart tighten—an instinctual urge to bow in reverence overtook her.
"Ah, my bad. I didn't notice that."
Souta quickly retracted his divine spark, pulling all of its pressure back into his Divine Realm, ensuring that not even a trace leaked out.
In an instant, his intimidating aura vanished, and his demeanor returned to that of a friendly, easygoing young man.
"Phew... much better."
Chelsea patted her chest in relief.
Her chest bounced slightly with the motion, her shirt shifting in a way that was... very distracting.
"Personally, I actually liked your previous state~"
Kurumi approached, her face slightly flushed, and murmured in a barely audible whisper:
"That forcefulness... would probably be quite thrilling in bed."
Souta turned to look at Kurumi.
With his enhanced senses, he heard her words perfectly.
What the hell are you thinking, Kurumi?!
Chelsea quickly shifted the conversation.
"Souta, how's your faith accumulation coming along?"
To answer, Souta raised his hand, allowing a divine glow to form at his fingertips.
"Faith is flowing in steadily. This light—this is what faith converts into: Divine spark."
Then, without warning, he sent a surge of divine spark into Chelsea's body, baptizing her with its effects.
Chelsea shuddered—a wave of comfort swept through her entire body.
When she came back to her senses, she suddenly realized—
Her strength had significantly increased!
"I... I feel way stronger all of a sudden!"
"I enhanced your physical capabilities. You could now use your Teigu continuously for an entire month without getting exhausted."
"'Gaia Foundation' isn't even a combat-type Teigu! It barely drains stamina to begin with!"
Despite her words, Chelsea's expression was filled with excitement.
She eagerly approached Souta.
"Hey, give me more! You know I have weak combat ability—if I get stronger, my survival rate will increase by a lot!"
"You're afraid of losing your head, aren't you?"
Chelsea gritted her teeth—she really wanted to punch Souta in the face.
However, she forced herself to smile and changed her strategy:
"Let's just say that's the reason. Souta, I literally kneeled and prayed to you on that stage! If you don't help me, you're an ungrateful god!"
"Relax, you've been a big help.
Not only will I boost your strength—if you want immortality, I can arrange that too."
Chelsea's eyes widened.
Kurumi, intrigued, asked:
"Souta, can you already grant people immortality?"
Eternal youth? That was easy—he could just purchase longevity cards from the store.
But true immortality? That was much harder.
"Not through divine spark alone—not yet."
Souta explained to Kurumi:
"Right now, my divine spark isn't strong enough to grant someone cellular-level immortality."
"Simple. There are plenty of immortality methods in the multiverse—I'll just go farm 'Baccano' again and bring back some of their immortal liquor."
Kurumi nodded in approval.
Then, with a teasing smile, she added:
"This world isn't exactly peaceful. If Chelsea doesn't have self-defense abilities, she might lose her head again."
"Yeah," Souta agreed, nodding seriously.
"Chelsea helped me out a lot. I have to make sure her head stays where it belongs."
Chelsea rolled her eyes.
To prevent them from continuing to joke about her decapitation, she decided to strike back—
"Souta, consider yourself lucky."
Souta raised an eyebrow.
"If the god of Path of Peace had been female, you would've been forced to crossdress as a goddess."
Her smirk deepened, like a mischievous little devil.
"Did you see the stained glass in the cathedral? Judging by its style, if the god had been a goddess, the outfit would've been... extremely revealing. Maybe even nude! What a shame, huh? You missed out on a divine strip show. I would've loved to see that."
Souta twitched slightly.
"Fine. You win. I won't mention your head anymore."
"I'll hold off on upgrading your body for now. Once I level up my divinity, I'll head to 'Baccano' and bring back some Immortality Elixir for you."
"No rush." Chelsea waved a hand casually.
Suddenly, something came to her mind, and she became serious:
"By the way, Souta—what are we doing about Bolic?"
"Now that faith is secured, we don't need him anymore, right? That disgusting pig came to see me at noon today. He kept hanging around me—I think he suspects something."
"He also seemed interested in me. He was trying to probe my background, checking if I had some deep ties to the Lord."
"Oh? Then let's just kill him."
Souta's expression suddenly turned cold.
"I'll send him straight to meet God."
Chelsea blinked in confusion.
"Wait—why are you so eager? Have you even killed anyone before?"
Kurumi smirked knowingly as she watched Souta's unusually aggressive attitude.
"That pig has been harming my followers," Souta stated flatly.
"As their god, how could I tolerate that?"
"What about the Imperial Minister?" Chelsea asked. "Won't this escalate things too soon?"
Souta's tone was decisive:
"The only Imperial forces here are the Four Rakshasa Demons. We don't need to show them mercy—we'll just erase their memories and turn them into double agents."
His divine power had made him more decisive—he no longer hesitated over such things.
"Even if we're exposed, the Imperial Minister isn't a threat to us right now. We move tonight."