Chapter Summaries

Rentaro Satomi and the others arrived beneath the Life Sacred Tree, where a mysterious girl named Lilith appeared and questioned the Cursed Children about their powers. The chapter ended as one girl bravely asked Lilith whether she was a god.

• Rentaro Satomi, Aihara Enju, and Hiruko KageTane joined the Cursed Children beneath the Life Sacred Tree, where they sensed a powerful being watching them.
• A voice called the newcomers extra, unsettling Rentaro Satomi and Hiruko KageTane before Rentaro Satomi regained his composure.
• Lilith descended from above, and her appearance left everyone entranced until she snapped her fingers and broke their daze.
• Lilith addressed the Cursed Children and wondered how they had survived contamination by aberrant creatures while gaining extraordinary strength.
• One girl stepped forward, looked at Lilith, and asked whether she was a god.

Lilith invited the Cursed Children to cooperate in an experiment, while Rentaro asked whether she could remove their Gastrea virus. Libra finished its metamorphosis, shrank to a tiny petlike form, and settled in Lilith’s hand as she returned to Rentaro’s question.

• Lilith told the Cursed Children she was interested in them and offered them the chance to cooperate in an experiment.
• Aihara Enju and other Cursed Children moved toward Lilith, while Hiruko Kohina chose to remain Hiruko KageTane’s weapon.
• Rentaro Satomi shielded Aihara Enju and asked Lilith if she could remove the Gastrea virus from the Cursed Children.
• Libra arrived after devouring the Stage Five Gastrea, having grown to enormous size, then shrank with each step until it fit in Lilith’s palm.
• Lilith stroked Libra’s tentacle-covered, petlike form and repeated Rentaro’s question.

Lilith developed a way to control the Cursed Children’s mutations and created a drug that removed their threat while boosting their abilities. The children began calling themselves the Chosen of God, while Hiruko KageTane underwent a sudden change.

• Lilith explained that she could not directly remove the children’s mutations but could potentially give them new bodies, and she kept them and the two mechanical soldiers near the Life Sacred Tree.
• Lilith studied the children’s powers, discovered that Libra held two friendly consciousnesses, and began developing a way to make their mutations controllable.
• Nations sent aircraft toward the Land of Origin, but every aircraft lost contact, and satellites revealed nothing about the missing Stage Six Gastrea or the area’s changes.
• Lilith successfully made one child’s mutated power controllable, then created a drug that resolved the mutation threat and greatly improved the children’s physical abilities.
• The children took the name Chosen of God and embraced Lilith’s faith, while Hiruko KageTane began speaking strangely before suddenly changing as if enlightened.

Hiruko KageTane decided to help the Chosen of God save the Cursed Children, while warning Rentaro Satomi that their actions could determine whether the world was saved or destroyed. Rentaro was left stunned by KageTane’s sudden change of purpose and unable to say whether the children would spare the world.

• Hiruko KageTane realized that the Chosen of God might need an adult’s help to save the Cursed Children and decided he would support them.
• Rentaro Satomi came out of his cabin and heard KageTane declare that a new era had begun.
• KageTane described the children’s mission as a myth that could lead them to save the world or destroy it and create a new civilization.
• Rentaro recalled the persecution of the Cursed Children and could not claim that they would save the world.
• KageTane told Rentaro that he only wanted to help the Chosen of God, leaving Rentaro shocked by his change.

After more than a month in the Land of Origin, Rentaro Satomi and the others returned to their city carrying a way to transform Cursed Children into a new race. Rentaro and Aihara Enju headed to the Outer District to find the abandoned children, while Hiruko KageTane and Hiruko Kohina went their separate way.

• Rentaro Satomi watched Hiruko KageTane quickly befriend the children and teach them how to save Cursed Children.
• Lilith strengthened the children and created a device that extracted bloodline factors to transform Cursed Children into a new race.
• Lilith sent Rentaro Satomi, Aihara Enju, Hiruko KageTane, and the others from the Land of Origin to a city surrounded by giant monoliths.
• Hiruko KageTane and Hiruko Kohina parted from Rentaro Satomi, and Rentaro suspected Hiruko KageTane planned to kill a powerful enemy of Cursed Children.
• Rentaro Satomi and Aihara Enju passed through the monoliths and went to the Outer District, where they found the abandoned Cursed Children and their elderly caretaker, the Elder.

Aihara Enju and Rentaro Satomi gave the Outer District children a potion meant to stop them from becoming Gastrea, while the Elder watched over the first child to take it. After Tendou Kikunojou and much of the Tendou Clan were assassinated, Rentaro and Enju found Tendou Kisara at the security company, where she embraced them in relief after fearing they had died.

• The Elder let the oldest child drink Aihara Enju's potion and stayed awake through the night to watch for signs of a reaction.
• The children carried the exhausted Elder to bed, and Rentaro Satomi's food delivery woke him at noon.
• Rentaro and Aihara Enju learned that Tendou Kikunojou, many Tendou Clan members, and numerous officials had been assassinated.
• Rentaro worried about Tendou Kisara's reaction to the deaths and went with Enju to Tendou Security Company to find her.
• Tendou Kisara embraced Rentaro and Enju, saying she had feared they were dead after their aircraft lost contact over the Land of Origin.

After learning that the Tendou Clan had been wiped out, Tendou Kisara suspected Rentaro Satomi was involved and questioned him about what had happened. Rentaro explained that Hiruko KageTane and Hiruko Kohina had carried out the killings after a god in the Land of Origin gave the Cursed Children great power, but Kisara remained incredulous.

• Rentaro Satomi told Tendou Kisara that her grandfather, Tendou Kikunojou, and many other Tendou Clan members were dead.
• Tendou Kisara grieved that her enemies had died before she could uncover the truth about her parents or take revenge.
• Tendou Kisara wondered whether Rentaro's return was connected to the Clan's destruction and suspected he had teamed up with Hiruko KageTane.
• Rentaro Satomi denied involvement and said Hiruko KageTane and Hiruko Kohina had killed the Tendou Clan members.
• Rentaro Satomi explained that a god in the Land of Origin had removed the Cursed Children's danger of becoming Gastrea and granted them tremendous power, leaving Tendou Kisara questioning his account.

Rentaro Satomi took Aihara Enju to Muroto Sumire for an examination after returning from the Land of Origin. Muroto Sumire believed Rentaro's account and revealed that Enju's body had transformed, leaving her permanently safe from becoming a Gastrea.

• Tendou Kisara insisted that Rentaro Satomi and Aihara Enju visit Muroto Sumire for an examination.
• Muroto Sumire examined Aihara Enju and found that her body had undergone enormous changes despite being in excellent condition.
• Muroto Sumire asked Rentaro Satomi what had happened in the Land of Origin, and he repeated his account.
• Muroto Sumire believed Rentaro and said that a god's power could explain Enju's transformation.
• Muroto Sumire explained that Enju would never become a Gastrea and that the evolved virus had fused with her as a source of strength.

Muroto Sumire recognized Enju’s transformation as a hopeful evolution for humanity, while Rentaro Satomi revealed the Chosen of God’s plan to save the Cursed Children by offering the world to God. Rentaro went with Tendou Kisara to protect Holy Child, as Muroto stayed behind to investigate the secrets in Enju’s blood.

• Muroto Sumire praised Enju’s changes as a sign that the Cursed Children could become humanity’s hope.
• Rentaro Satomi told Muroto Sumire and Tendou Kisara that Hiruko KageTane and the other Chosen of God planned to save the Cursed Children and offer the world to God as tribute.
• Tendou Kisara worried that Hiruko KageTane might target Holy Child, and Rentaro went with her to protect her.
• Muroto Sumire remained in her underground laboratory and reflected on the unexplained changes in Enju’s body and blood.
• Muroto Sumire recalled that she had secretly drawn two extra tubes of Enju’s blood and considered it one of the best decisions of her life.

Tendou Kisara and Rentaro Satomi met the Holy Child, who confirmed that she had willingly agreed to cooperate with Hiruko KageTane and Hiruko Kohina. Rentaro refused to join their plan to liberate the Cursed Children, then took Aihara Enju to the outskirts to check on the child who had drunk the medicine.

• Tendou Kisara and Rentaro Satomi were finally allowed into the Holy Child’s residence after the Holy Child summoned them.
• The Holy Child told Rentaro Satomi that she had chosen to cooperate with Hiruko KageTane and Hiruko Kohina after hearing about their experiences in the Land of Origin.
• Tendou Kisara thanked Hiruko KageTane for killing Tendou Kikunojou, then withdrew without explaining her feelings.
• Hiruko KageTane said they would stabilize the Tokyo Area, turn its Cursed Children into Chosen of God, and then liberate children in other Areas; Rentaro Satomi declined to help.
• Rentaro Satomi and Aihara Enju went to the outskirts with food and were led to the sewer where the children lived, including the child who had drunk the medicine.

Rentaro Satomi confirmed that the child who took the serum had completed her transformation and would not become a Gastrea, prompting the Outer Area children to hope for doses of their own. As Rentaro and his allies organized the serum effort, Aldebaran led a vast Gastrea horde toward the Tokyo Area, intent on a Monolith it could endure and corrode.

• Rentaro Satomi brought the transformed child to Dr. Muroto Sumire, whose examination confirmed that she was healthy and no longer at risk of becoming a Gastrea.
• The child shared the news with the Outer Area children, who eagerly looked toward the serum, and Rentaro left twenty doses for them.
• Aihara Enju continued donating blood to produce serum while Hiruko KageTane and the Holy Child prepared to recruit trusted Civil Security officers for their plan.
• Aldebaran led a massive horde of Gastrea toward the Tokyo Area after the summons that had drawn them toward the Land of Origin ended.
• Aldebaran approached a Tokyo Area Monolith that emitted less radiation than the others, which it could withstand and even corrode.

Aldebaran corroded the Tokyo Area’s faulty Monolith, prompting the Holy Child to prepare for a Gastrea attack. Hiruko KageTane sought Rentaro Satomi’s approval for a plan to use the crisis to change attitudes toward Cursed Children, but he rejected the plan, leaving Hiruko KageTane ready to offer Plan B.

• Aldebaran climbed the Monolith and corroded it, and the Holy Child’s inspection revealed it was close to collapse because the Tendou Clan had used inferior materials.
• The Holy Child commissioned civil security officers to eliminate Gastrea that might slip through the weakened barrier.
• Hiruko KageTane considered telling the Holy Child that the Chosen of God could control Gastrea, but saw the crisis as an opportunity to improve conditions for Cursed Children.
• Hiruko KageTane went to Rentaro Satomi before the public learned about the Monolith’s condition and presented Plan A.
• Rentaro Satomi rejected Plan A, and Hiruko KageTane prepared to propose the less dangerous Plan B.

Lilith completed years of cultivating the Life Sacred Tree for battle, and it transformed into a colossal beast. The creature displayed immense size and power, though its strength compared with other Life Sacred Trees and the Life Divine Tree remained unstated.

• Lilith infused the Life Sacred Tree with the final trace of magic power, triggering its transformation.
• The Life Sacred Tree gathered its leaves, branches, and roots into a massive beast with scythe-like arms, serpentine appendages, and scarlet eyes.
• The transformed creature stood a thousand meters tall and stretched ten thousand meters from head to tail.
• The chapter stated that adult Life Sacred Trees possessed ninth-rank strength, while the Life Divine Tree fought at demigod level.

Lilith’s War Beast revealed its complete combat form, and its roar destroyed the mecha concealing the Land of Origin, exposing it to satellites around the world. Hiruko KageTane, Holy Child, and Kohina watched the footage, and KageTane realized he and Kohina had seen the beast in the Land of Origin before.

• Lilith’s War Beast displayed its combat abilities, including its scythes, magical cannons, regenerative tails, and ability to breed War Ancient Trees.
• The War Beast roared, destroying the invisible mecha that concealed the Land of Origin.
• Satellite footage showed the thousand-meter-tall, ten-thousand-meter-long beast, and world leaders mistook it for a Stage Six Gastrea.
• Holy Child questioned Hiruko KageTane about the beast’s size, and he said he did not know how it had appeared.
• Kohina said the beast felt familiar, and KageTane recalled that he had seen it with her in the Land of Origin.

Hiruko KageTane prepared to leave the Tokyo Area after partnering with the Holy Child, but Lilith’s War Beast form destroyed the satellites watching her. Lilith assessed the War Beast’s combat potential and considered how Life Sacred Trees could grow stronger, though divinity remained scarce.

• Hiruko KageTane relied on the Holy Child to keep the Tokyo Area running after he killed much of its leadership, then gathered intelligence on the other survivor bases.
• The Life Sacred Tree revealed her combat form, and the nations with satellites feared the enormous War Beast might destroy them.
• The War Beast sensed the satellites watching her and fired a crimson beam that annihilated every satellite overhead.
• The War Beast approached Lilith, who judged her nearly perfect despite her limited ability to fly.
• Lilith considered using Life Sacred Trees as powerful growing subordinates, but noted that breaking their limits required a divine tree or scarce divinity.

Lilith cultivated a War Beast that consumed much of the continent’s energy, then stored it away and planted trees to keep the region from becoming a desert. Meanwhile, Hiruko KageTane found that religious fanatics could help him oppose humanity’s upper ranks, and Lilith noticed a sudden surge of faith directed toward her.

• Lilith realized that cultivating a second War Beast would devastate the planet, sensed the beast’s power, and stored it in dimensional space.
• Lilith planted Trees of Life and War Ancient Trees where the War Beast had grown to keep the land from becoming a desert.
• Lilith watched a growing stream of Power of Faith and wondered how she had gained so many believers.
• Hiruko KageTane recalled how his efforts to control regions had failed, how a Chosen of God escaped after being captured, and how the upper ranks put him and Hiruko Kohina on their wanted lists.
• Hiruko KageTane approached religious fanatics to cause trouble for the upper ranks and discovered that they were unexpectedly useful.

Hiruko KageTane’s church expanded across the world, rescuing Cursed Children, fighting the Five Sacred Society, and distributing medicine that treated the Gastrea virus. The church gained control of nearly a third of humanity’s remaining cities, driven in part by Muroto Sumire’s discovery of a drug that extended life to at least 180 years.

• Hiruko KageTane found devoted believers and talented supporters who helped him build a church and liberate another city.
• The church uncovered the Five Sacred Society’s plans and sent its Judgement Knights, adults transformed through experiments with the Chosen of God’s blood, to attack the organization.
• The church spread to several cities and secretly sheltered Cursed Children while distributing medicine that treated the Gastrea virus.
• Sixteen years after the Gastrea outbreaks began, the church controlled nearly a third of humanity’s remaining cities, while its powerful Judgement Knights alarmed other rulers.
• Muroto Sumire developed a drug that could slow aging and let people live for at least 180 years with regular injections.

The church used hypnotic abilities and medicine derived from the Chosen of God to control cities and support the Cursed Children, who came to admire the Saintesses. Rentaro Satomi woke to Aihara Enju demanding the date he had promised, while his feelings for Kogetsu and Enju’s increasingly bold advances left him anxious.

• The church controlled city leaders through threats, inducements, and hypnotic abilities, while medicine from the Chosen of God shaped the Cursed Children who used it.
• The church’s Saintesses inspired the Cursed Children, and the children willingly took medicine that made them resemble the Saintess they admired.
• Aihara Enju woke Rentaro Satomi at six in the morning by jumping onto him and reminded him that he had promised to take her on a date.
• Rentaro Satomi recalled his feelings for Kogetsu and worried that Enju’s growing advances might lead him to act against his intentions.
• Rentaro Satomi imagined waking after surgery as a girl, then asked Aihara Enju why she was still there as she tried to charm him.

Rentaro Satomi reluctantly agreed to take Aihara Enju on a date, and the two visited an area where the church housed children brought back from other cities. Their outing ended as they entered the area to see the children.

• Rentaro Satomi pushed Aihara Enju out of his room so he could change, then made breakfast for them.
• Rentaro Satomi stopped Aihara Enju from sitting on his lap and reminded her that she was still a child.
• Aihara Enju disguised her face with a device, and she and Rentaro Satomi set out on their date.
• Rentaro Satomi suggested they visit the area housing children brought back by the church, and Aihara Enju agreed.
• Rentaro Satomi and Aihara Enju presented identification and entered the restricted area.

Rentaro Satomi and Aihara Enju visited a shelter for rescued Cursed Children, then shared a date that Enju turned into a teasing provocation. That evening, Enju told Rentaro that the church had decided to wage war on the cities controlled by the Five Sacred Society.

• Rentaro Satomi saw the rescued children living under protection and told Aihara Enju he believed all Cursed Children could be saved.
• Tendou Kisara spied on Rentaro Satomi and Aihara Enju while Muroto Sumire went to buy food.
• Aihara Enju deliberately licked the corner of Rentaro Satomi's mouth, leaving him flustered as Tendou Kisara watched in anger.
• Aihara Enju told Rentaro Satomi that the church planned to wage war on the cities controlled by the Five Sacred Society.
• Rentaro Satomi said the Five Sacred Society would not abandon its ambitions and that its members' deaths were the best outcome.