No sooner had they destroyed one wave than ten new angels appeared in the sky—higher-ranked Surveillance Authority Angels.
Summoned angels all possessed special abilities.
Third-tier Flame Archangels were battle angels whose damage intake was drastically reduced unless struck by weapons made from specific materials.
Fourth-tier Surveillance Authority Angels could boost the defense of all allies within their field of vision while possessing exceptionally strong defenses themselves.
The angels' appearance resembled silver-white armored robots with wings.
The Surveillance Authority Angels were not particularly fast. Kiana Kaslana raised her gun and fired—one clean headshot instantly destroyed it.
Before her, the so-called high defense of the angels might as well have been paper.
To counter this world's magic system, she had developed a special nanomaterial capable of disrupting mana. It not only significantly boosted resistance to magic but also actively broke it down.
Summoned angels' bodies were merely magical constructs formed from their summoners' mana. Though they carried the same weight as humans, they were still composed entirely of energy.
After disposing of the Surveillance Authority Angels, Kiana Kaslana turned her gaze toward the Slane Theocracy soldiers riding griffins and firing shockwaves, fireballs, and other spells at her.
The effects of their low-tier magic against her were something like—immune, immune, minor HP loss, immune…
Compared to the kingdom and the empire, the Theocracy's intelligence network was far more capable.
Kiana Kaslana and Iron Maiden had only just entered the nation when members of the Windflower Scripture detected them.
Flight wasn't considered a particularly high-level magic in this world—many magical beasts and heteromorphs were also capable of flying.
Thus, they had countermeasures prepared for airborne intruders.
Of course, having the means to attack flying targets didn't mean they could actually win.
Theocracy Headquarters.
Six figures sat around a round conference table.
"The two of them have arrived," said the Wind High Priest.
"Should we dispatch the Black Scripture?" asked the Earth High Priest.
"Do you wish to send them to their deaths, or bring calamity upon us?" retorted the Water High Priest.
"According to gathered intelligence," continued the Wind High Priest, "at the beginning, they knew no magic at all. But after just seven days, their squad leaders could already use first- to third-tier spells. Now, their entire units are capable of magic."
"They can communicate freely with members of other squads. If we attack even one of them, the remaining forty-seven will know immediately."
He paused, then added, "And what we're seeing isn't even their true selves—merely puppets, avatars they created."
"Have you determined what their purpose is?" asked the Light High Priest.
"Possibly world domination," replied the Wind High Priest.
"Possibly?" the Fire High Priest raised an eyebrow.
"Their goal," explained the Wind High Priest, "is to have every race of this world obey their governance and arrangements—living together peacefully and happily. That is their stated objective."
"To rule all races, huh," murmured the Fire High Priest.
It was reminiscent of the Eight Greed Kings. The Theocracy's last true god had perished in battle against them, and for a time, the nation had become their vassal state.
"What about those who refuse their rule?" asked the Earth High Priest.
"They're typically executed," answered the Wind High Priest. "Also, intelligence reports that one of them tends to treat beautiful women far better—perhaps even with… interest. Meanwhile, they display disgust toward demi-human species like ogres or pig-headed tribes."
"So they like humans?" the Earth High Priest asked.
"Correction," said the Wind High Priest. "They like beautiful women."
After hearing the full report and analysis, silence fell over the group.
These beings—descended into the world like the Six Gods themselves—none of the priests harbored any thought of opposing them.
They knew well the power once held by the Six Gods and the Eight Greed Kings.
Records and surviving artifacts testified to their unimaginable might.
And now forty-eight such beings had appeared all at once.
There was no battle to be fought.
Besides, their attitude toward human-type races was, at least for now, relatively benign.
They knew well the weakness of the human-type races on this continent. For humanity to survive, it needed unity—and the wisdom to recognize when to submit to power.
Those beings who sought to rule all races would inevitably bring war.
Their methods were simple and direct—using brute force to seize and control cities.
Perhaps, in time, humanity could simply stand aside and watch them annihilate the heteromorphs that posed the greatest threat to mankind.
But before that—they needed to ensure their own survival.
Upon arriving in one of the Theocracy's cities, Kiana Kaslana saw many shops openly selling forest elf slaves.
The current hostility between the Theocracy and the Elf Country stemmed entirely from the Forest Elf King, Decem Hougan, and his own lust.
He had betrayed the Theocracy, once their ally, deceived and imprisoned their champion, and forcibly violated her.
Thus began the war between the two nations.
Kiana Kaslana's objective for this journey was simple—to kill Decem Hougan and take control of the elven race.
After strolling through the city for a while, Kiana and Iron Maiden stepped into a shop dealing in forest elf slaves.
The shopkeeper greeted them warmly, enthusiastically advertising his wares.
Iron Maiden's gaze swept across the room, eventually stopping on a forest elf girl curled up in a corner.
Seeing this, the shopkeeper hurriedly said, "Honored customer, that one is a new arrival—we haven't had time to properly train her yet."
Iron Maiden reached into her magic pouch and took out a small bag of gold coins. "I'll take her. How much?"
"What do you even want an elf for?" Kiana Kaslana asked, puzzled.
"Aren't we going to kill the Forest Elf King? I'll need a docile elf to replace him."
"Can't we just find one on the spot afterward?"
"I'm not that kind of casual person."
You buy one from a slave shop, and that's not casual?!
Kiana Kaslana was speechless.
"You... you're going to kill the Forest Elf King?"
The shopkeeper's eyes widened as he looked them up and down, recalling the recent chaos involving the kingdom and the empire.
"Is there a problem with that?" Kiana Kaslana asked calmly.
"No, no—he should've died long ago." The shopkeeper quickly shook his head.
"How much for this elf?"
"Twenty gold coins," he said cautiously, quoting a high price to test them.
Iron Maiden didn't bother to haggle. She simply paid in full.
"I don't usually carry money," Kiana Kaslana said with a smile, her sword appearing in her hand as she glanced at the other elf slaves in the room. "But I still want an elf. So, what do you think I should do?"
"..."
Cold sweat trickled down the shopkeeper's forehead. His body trembled as he stammered, backing away. "N-no need to pay, esteemed guests—take whichever one you like, free of charge."