At <Summon> Level 8, the new species I unlocked were Angels.
(Somehow, Angel feels different from my other summons. ...Is there another law that comes into play for summons from A-rank?)
I decided to continue to analyze my discomfort.
The A-rank Angel stared back at me while I was thinking about something.
"Well, who is this?"
"Hmm? Greta. What's wrong?"
"Helmios. Could this man be?"
Apart from my analysis, one of Helmios' party members, a Saint named Greta, seemed to notice something.
He turned pale and took a big breath to calm himself.
Clank
Greta dropped his wand and began to tremble while staring at A-rank Angel.
The Spirit God on Sophie's shoulder descended to the ground and bowed deeply to the A-rank Angel.
"Bow your head, too, Sofiarone. I wonder what this means? Haha!"
"Yes."
In line with the Spirit God, Sophie also sat down and bowed deeply to the A-rank Angel.
The Spirit God's laugh was awkward and very dry, unlike his usual laugh.
With the Spirit God and Princess of Rosenheim bowing their heads with their hands on the ground, everyone but me realized that it was no small matter.
I, as I was, was looking at my Grimoire and analyzing Angel's stats.
[Species] Angel
[Rank] A
[Name] Merus
[Strength] 20000
[Mana] 20000
[Attack] 20000
[Endurance] 20000
[Agility] 20000
[Intelligence] 20000
[Luck] 20000
[Blessing] All status +2000
[Special Skill] Attribute Enhancement, Angel's Ring
[Awakening] Judgment Thunder
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(His status is twice the maximum of other A-rank summons. This should solve the lack of firepower that we've been facing.)
Previously, summons of the same rank had the same maximum status.
However, only the A-rank Angel had twice the maximum status of other A-rank summons.
In the battle against the Demon General Razel, my summons, who had less firepower than Kurena and my party members had no choice but to defend, disperse attacks, and recover, but that problem was about to be solved.
(The blessings are great, too. Like +2000 in all stats? Won't I be a monster if I have 80 summons in my Holder? Let's increase it a little. Mm? I can't do it, you mean only one? And the other summons? I can!?)
I still had a large amount of A-rank magic stones, but I couldn't summon another Angel.
There seemed to be a limit on the number of summons only for the A-rank Angel.
"Oh, um. Mr. Allen. Could this gentleman be...?"
While I was staring at my Grimoire, Saint Greta approached me fearfully with a determined look on his face and spoke to him.
"Ah! Huh!? Merus!? His name is Merus!"
"I knew it was Master Merus!"
I noticed why I was feeling uncomfortable.
And Greta seemed to be convinced of everything.
(Hey, I can't select a nickname.)
I had decided the nicknames of other A-rank summons but I hadn't set any nickname for the A-rank Angel.
Previously, if I didn't set a nickname, my summons didn't have a name. There was never a case of them already having a name.
(Merus. That's a name I've heard before. But still, Merus... I wonder what Merus is.)
"Merus, Merus..."
"That..."
Greta desperately tried to reach out to me, but I was caught up in something about the name Merus.
"Merus is too similar to Merle. I'll use a different name. I'll go with Tenshi or Tenten."
The name Merus was too close to Merle to my liking.
I felt like a small bone in my throat had been removed when I found what had caused me discomfort.
'I came up with a tasteful name', was what I was thinking.
(Tenten and that? What the heck. I can't change his name?)
I should have been able to change his name at least once even if I couldn't change it as many times as I wanted.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Allen. Isn't he the First Angel, Master Merus?"
Greta's voice reached my ears.
"The First Angel?"
(Huh? Isn't Merus Elmea's Angel? Why are you on your knees, Sophie?)
"Yes."
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Before I could fully recall, the Angel Merus responded.
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His tone was calmer than when he first appeared.
He also noticed that several people behind me, including Sophie and the Spirit God, were bowing their heads, which was an odd situation.
(Merus? Oh, I remember. Is he the Merus, who is said to be the First Angel? But why is he a summon of mine?)
I recalled a theology class from my Academy days.
This world had several Gods, with the Creator God Elmea at the top.
There were numerous Gods, including the Four Major Gods, the God of Fertility, the God of War, and the Beast God.
And in the Divine Realm, there were not only Gods, but also Divine Messengers called Angels.
Each Angel served a different God, and one God could have several Angels under them to show their power.
Among the numerous Angels, the most famous Angel that had permeated the human world was the First Angel Merus.
The reason why he was called the 'First Angel' was that Merus served as the First Angel to the pinnacle of the Gods, the Creator God, Elmea.
He was tasked to convey the will of the Creator God Elmea to other Gods, deliver oracles to the Church, and take care of Creator God Elmea as his servant.
He had been deeply involved in people's lives since the beginning of time.
The cathedrals of each country had a painting of the Creator God Elmea, and the First Angel Merus was always depicted next to him.
It was the perception of the human world that among the many Angels who served the Creator God Elmea, he was the one with primary authority and was the one closest to the Creator God.
The Priests of the Elmea Church recognized that he had a higher position than some of the other Gods.
There was even a religion that believed in Merus.
"What? Why are you a summon?"
(What? A real Angel changed his Talent to a summon? I want to change my name.)
"Hmmm. Where do I start? Rosen, it's been a long time. Oh, how is it that God is so near and I don't even know it? Have I become a full-fledged summon?"
Merus looks around to see where to begin in response to my question.
Then he noticed Rosen kneeling behind me.
"It indeed has, First Angel Merus."
"As you can see. I am no longer the First Angel."
He told them they didn't have to bow so deeply and stood everyone up.
"So, it was true that you were killed during the invasion of the Divine Realm."
Rosen, on Sophie's shoulder and with pity in his eyes, said to Merus.
"Do you know of the invasion of the Divine Realm?"
Having said that, Merus realized something.
No one was surprised when Rosen said that the Divine Realm had been invaded.
It was a well-known fact.
"I went to the Divine Realm and heard from the Gods and Angels. I was told that the Second Angel, Lupto, will take your place Master Merus."
"I see. It was you, Rosen. Can you tell me more about what happened after I passed away?"
"Yes. In the invasion..."
The Spirit God answered Merus' question.
He said that Freya, the Fire Goddess, had her Divine Artifact stolen and her power was weakening.
It was unclear how the Demon King's army would use the Divine Artifact.
The Divine Realm had already decided to start a Talent change system, and that it had already been oracled, along with the weakening of the power of the Fire Goddess Freya.
The Talent change system was said to begin in April.
"That's what happened, huh."
Merus began to murmur in mid-air.
"So, why is the First Angel my summon?"
"Actually, I was thinking of being a summon. That's part of it."
(Uha, you were the creator of my summons? Did you also decide on that limbed apple summon? You have good taste.)
I thought it was a hell of a revelation.
The Angel in front of me was like the creator of my summons.
Then Merus told us how he became a summon.
Following the invasion of Divine Realm, Merus, who was in the temple of the Creator God, rushed to the scene.
He fought against Great Demon General Kyubel and was defeated.
In the midst of realizing his own demise, he remembered one fact.
In fact, as of last March or April, my A-rank summons had not been fully set.
In his vanishing consciousness, he asked the Creator God Elmea to put him in a new slot for an A-rank summon.
It seemed that Creater God Elmea heard his wish and sealed his soul in the Grimoire.
(Oh? But was Kyubel perhaps injured at that time? Could we have defeated him if we had fought against him then? No, it was impossible in that atmosphere.)
At the end of the battle with the Demon General Razel, the Great Demon General Kyubel, who suddenly appeared, might have been seriously injured from his participation in the war in the Divine Realm.
I thought we had a brief conversation and then he was gone.
The Spirit God was also there, so he may have come just to check the situation.
"Such is the case."
The Spirit God seemed to be moved by the way he used his own life to fulfill his mission, going as far as to become my summon.
"Thanks to you, I've escaped the shackles of the nagging Master Elmea! I am free!!!!"
The Angel Merus held up his hands and exploded with the joy of his freedom.
The last words ruined it was what Allen and the others thought.
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