Divine Right of Various Anime and Manga

In demonology, there is a saying that the true master of the Seventy-Two Pillars of Solomon is Belial, the Son of Darkness. In a mythological sense, the Seventy-Two Pillar Demons represent the heretical gods conquered by God. Regardless of which interpretation one follows, it only proves that the so-called Seventy-Two Pillar Demons are nothing more than minor branches beneath the Bible.

"Relying on some inexplicable 'right hand' that came from who knows where, you dare to declare victory? Utter nonsense! Kid, today I will make you taste my final hunt, feel the cruelty and joy of the hunt! You merely possess a single Authority, yet you arrogantly claim to have obtained 'all miracles'!"

"ROOOOOOOOOAR----------"

As the oldest Campione, Marquis Voban had slain countless gods and treated 'god-slaying' as a game of the Demon King. How could he be intimidated by Roy's words? For a venomous and cunning wolf, only the result was acceptable. Before the outcome was determined, he would not believe any speculation or verbal deception.

The power usurped from Ereshkigal granted the Marquis an indescribable immortality. In his fury, the black dragon's body gathered immense Magic Power, transforming into dragon flames capable of burning an entire city to ashes.

The great dragon opened its maw, and the annihilating flames of death descended from the sky!

"An Authority? To be honest, I'm quite doubtful whether this 'right hand' actually falls within the scope of an Authority."

Roy sighed softly, muttering to himself in a voice no one could hear.

At the same time, he recited under his breath:

"'Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.'"

"'The Book of Law,' Chapter Three, Verse Seventy-Two: 'I am the Lord of the Double Wand of Power; but my left hand is empty, for my right hand has shattered the universe and left nothing behind.'"

"..."

Roy took a deep breath, lifting his gaze to stare at the flames of the underworld that could incinerate him down to the last cell, leaving nothing but ash. He straightened his back, just like the true Archangel Michael facing the endless legions of Fallen Angels, facing the 'Beast' that was the enemy of Christ, facing the Great Red Dragon Satan from the abyss. Even if all 'evil' stood before him, he would not retreat, brave and fearless.

"'Beast' 777, I Shall Transcend Human Evil!"

The golden 'Third Hand' finally rose slowly, forming a grasping motion, as if it were about to seize the entire universe.

Then, Roy chanted the most famous Word Spirit belonging to Archangel Michael—

"I ask you, 'Who Resembles God the Most'!!!!"

Within the giant golden hand, a radiance bloomed, enough to illuminate the world—

This was the "Light of the Right"!

Swing it, and the enemy is destroyed—thus, there is no need to pursue power;

Swing it, and the target is struck—thus, there is no need to pursue speed;

Swing it, and all things are crossed—thus, there is no need to pursue distance;

Swing it, and everything is obtained—thus, there is no need to pursue wisdom.

This was the "Divine Right," capable of ignoring distance, power, speed, wisdom, tactics, formation, endurance, timing, terrain, human factors, and everything else—a single swing would secure 'victory'!

Chapter 46: I, Roy Crowley, Did Not Cheat!

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"Divine Right" Authority Analysis—

This is an Authority usurped from Michael by the Seventh King, divided into seven abilities, making it a comprehensive and powerful Authority. However, due to its excessive power, it has many restrictions. Analysis shows that the Seventh King, Roy Crowley, is currently unable to sustain combat for long periods with this Authority.

Special attention should be paid to the seventh ability of "Divine Right," the "Light of the Right." It manifests as a 'golden right hand' that defeated the most ancient Demon King, Marquis Voban, with a single swing. This ability is suspected to originate from God Yahweh, mastering all miracles of Christianity.

However, the Almighty God cannot descend in a manner that does not conform to God's ways—this is the truth.

Therefore, the true nature of this ability is unknown, its power unknown, its conditions unknown, its analysis unknown—everything is unknown.

(Note: Because the Seventh King, Roy Crowley, possesses this ability, he is regarded by Christians as the Son of God, the savior, and is widely worshipped by the Vatican.)

—<Compiled by the Council of Sages of Greenwich, Investigation Report on Campione Roy Crowley>

"AAAAAAAAAAAH--------"

The Marquis's screams filled the heavens and earth.

A flash of radiance that illuminated the entire world passed, and then everything returned to calm.

Having defined the Marquis Voban, who had transformed into the Underworld Black Dragon, as an 'enemy,' the "Light of the Right" unleashed by the "Divine Right" was applied solely to the Marquis.

Here, still at Shinjuku Gyoen in Tokyo, not a single blade of grass was crushed, not a single flower withered, not a single clod of earth was overturned. There was none of that world-destroying majesty, no earth-shattering scene to inspire fear. After just a single flash of light, the Underworld Black Dragon that had once soared through the sky was now prostrate on the lawn, panting heavily, utterly defeated.

"Unfathomable... unfathomable!! What kind of Authority is this... It's like cheating, like mocking all our efforts, like cheating!"

The prostrate dragon tried to support its body, but Marquis Voban had lost all Magic Power and physical strength. Even the simple act of rising was impossible. As Roy had said, he was already 'defeated.'

His dragon mouth let out a hoarse roar, like the unwilling words of a villain in a third-rate novel when defeated, completely lacking the demeanor of a Demon King, running counter to his reputation as the ancient Demon King and cunning Wolf King.

But one could hardly blame Marquis Voban for losing his kingly composure and sounding like an incompetent, raving clown. It was simply that the Marquis could not comprehend his own defeat.

He had done nothing. He still had combat power. But after that single flash of light, he was utterly defeated. He didn't even know how he was attacked, by what he was attacked, how he was hit, how he experienced 'defeat' and pain—and then the result was this.

Just as Roy had said, when that hand appeared, victory was assured. When that hand swung lightly, everything became meaningless. But precisely because it was too pure and simple, it was unbelievable.

'No, I, Roy Crowley, did not cheat!'

Roy looked at the nearly deranged Marquis Voban and silently muttered this to himself.

To be honest, Roy himself found his 'Third Hand' incredible. This hand was definitely not something that could be granted by an Authority of this world. After self-reflection and consulting Aiwass, Roy reached a conclusion: the appearance of this 'right hand' came entirely from Aleister Crowley's The Book of 777.

That book which Roy, in the world of A Certain Magical Index, had once comprehended in a single Epiphany just before his death, fully understanding and mastering it.

The Book of 777 is a Grimoire recording Aleister's philosophy and thoughts, and moreover, it was a Grimoire whose recorded realm Aleister himself had never achieved.

This book contained no recorded spells, so after comprehending it, Roy did not immediately become a powerful magician. Instead, it lay dormant as a kind of 'realm' and 'thought' within his mind and soul, until he slew Michael in this world. When he usurped the Authority, the power of this book manifested, weaving for Roy this 'Divine Right' that possessed all the miracles of Christianity.

Aleister Crowley looked down on Christianity, and the reason he did so was because he had comprehended the Christian system of the Bible to a certain realm. Precisely because he understood it, he could voice his disdain.

Aleister was no keyboard warrior who would look down on things he didn't understand. Because he understood, he had the right to comment.

The Book of 777 was the 'Anti-Christ' book authored by Aleister, using '7', the sacred number of Christianity, as its title. Yet within it were recorded discourses on the 'Tree of Evil' and the 'Beast', making it absolute blasphemy. But precisely because of this, the book contained all the essence of Aleister's understanding of the Christian system.

Having comprehended this book, Roy fully inherited all of Aleister's understanding of 'Christianity', and even elevated it, allowing him to weave this right hand symbolizing 'God Yahweh'. This was a 'miracle' that even Aleister himself could not obtain.

Marquis Voban quickly calmed down. He stopped his mad ranting, his violent emerald dragon eyes fixed on Roy's figure as he slowly approached.

That 'golden right hand' was still growing from Roy's right shoulder, twisting everything it touched, as if this material world could not accommodate the existence of this hand.

"Boy, although I lost inexplicably, I did indeed lose. From the result, I have no right to keep shouting... That right hand of yours must have strong restrictions, right? Otherwise, you could have just waved it from the start to defeat me, without needing to fight me here."

Marquis Voban stared intently at that 'Divine Right' on Roy's right shoulder, as if trying to understand its structure. But whether magician, Campione, or so-called Disobedient God, none could ever comprehend the existence of this hand.

"That's right, this 'right hand' has strong restrictions. I have no interest in explaining its specific abilities to an enemy, but to a defeated opponent like you, Marquis, I should show sufficient respect... What I can tell you is that when you used the Authority 'Black Dragon of the Underworld', you fulfilled the activation condition for this hand. Thus, what awaited you could only be defeat, and what I held could only be 'victory'!"

Roy had no pleasure in explaining his abilities to others. In anime, how many villains ended up dead because they smugly told the protagonist their powers?

'The condition to activate "Divine Right" is using the Authority "Black Dragon of the Underworld"'—this sentence gave Marquis Voban nothing to analyze. He just sighed slightly. "...I still fell into your trap, boy. I thought using my Authority decisively would prevent a slip-up in the gutter, but instead it became the opportunity for my defeat."

Marquis Voban's voice carried a hint of self-mockery.

'So, being decisive just means giving it away for free!'

Roy also sighed, silently mocking again.

Chapter 47: This Is the 'Hand That Crushes the Universe'

(I'll use this chapter to roughly explain the protagonist's current abilities and power system.)

(Those who've read Index should understand easily. If not, no worries—the story will gradually explain it.)

Roy's 'Divine Right' had great restrictions. First, to activate the 'Light of the Right', it could only be used once every seven days. That was the time limit.

But compared to the time limit, the condition limit was even more harsh.

The true principle of 'Divine Right' guaranteeing victory was that the force output by the 'Light of the Right' was necessarily stronger than the enemy's. It was an ability that grew stronger against strong foes and weaker against weak ones.

Simply put, if the enemy's combat power was 50, then when the 'Light of the Right' activated, its power was 51. If the enemy's combat power was 100, then the 'Light of the Right's power was 101. No matter how strong the enemy, the 'Divine Right's power would be stronger, bringing victory with a wave.

The power of the 'Light of the Right' was entirely determined by the opponent's output. That was why Roy said that when Marquis Voban used the 'Black Dragon of the Underworld' Authority, it was the moment of his defeat.

Although Marquis Voban had many Authorities, only a few could truly deal heavy damage to Campiones and Disobedient Gods. Among them, the 'Black Dragon of the Underworld' Authority was Voban's ultimate trump card, unused for eighty years. In terms of destructive power, it might not be the strongest, but among all Voban's abilities, none surpassed it.

Destructive power was never the sole measure of strength. Just like Roy's 'Divine Right', it showed no great destructive power on the surface, but it could bring 'victory'.

So when Marquis Voban used 'Black Dragon of the Underworld', Roy said all the pieces were in place. Because this was Voban's maximum output. His 'Divine Right' had calculated the opponent's output, allowing it to use stronger power to annihilate him with the 'Light of the Right'.

The greatest flaw of the current 'Divine Right' was that Roy couldn't control the output, nor did he know the limit of his right hand's power. It was now completely automatic. When he could use this move depended on his grasp of timing and the battlefield.

Explaining in game terms: if the enemy's maximum power value was 50, and they used the 'Light of the Right' when their output was 40, the 'Light of the Right's power would only be 41, which couldn't bring victory. Roy had to wait until the enemy output 50 to use this move for an instant kill.

'Divine Right' was the ability that, when the opponent used their trump card, ensured oneself was necessarily stronger. In a way, it was similar to 'Reverse Light Sword', but countless times stronger.

This ability was nearly invincible against enemies of equal or slightly superior strength. But against far stronger opponents, it was useless, because such strong enemies wouldn't need maximum output to kill Roy—they could just use a little power to annihilate him.

'If only I could fully control this hand's output.'

Roy sighed inwardly. He didn't know the upper limit of his right hand's power, but he had a faint premonition: if he could fully control its output, at the very least, like the right hand recorded in The Book of Law, crushing the universe would be no problem.

At the same time, because of the weaving of The Book of 777, this hand possessed 'all the miracles of Christianity'. Theoretically, Roy should be able to use this hand to resurrect the dead, reverse rules, distort mathematics, destroy the world, and even create a new world. If he could fully reproduce 'the miracles of Christianity', Roy's status would be equal to or even higher than 'Majin', the so-called 'God Above'.

In the power system Aleister himself created, he roughly divided power into two parts: 'Human' and 'God'. Aleister himself stood at the 'Peak of Humanity'. He could have become a Majin but chose to give it up.

In the 'Realm of Gods', Aleister divided it into three stages. The first stage was ordinary Majin, '8=3', meaning the ultimate pursuit of magic. Such beings were infinitely close to 'omnipotence'. However, although Majin could distort and change everything, they couldn't necessarily restore it, so they couldn't be considered fully 'omnipotent'.

The second stage was surpassing ordinary Majin, allowing one's theories and thoughts to influence the multiverse, '9=2'. Majin who reached this stage could truly be called 'God Above', because they could not only distort everything but also restore everything. In Roy's understanding, only 'Othinus', that 'One-Eyed Demon God', seemed close to this realm. And if Roy's right hand could complete all 'Christian miracles', it would also reach this level.

(Note: In real-world Aleister's theory, those he personally said reached '9=2' were Christ, Buddha, Lao Tzu, Odin, etc. So my Bible system is quite close to Aleister's mysticism. Othinus is Odin.)

As for the final '10=1' stage, that was entirely Aleister's conjecture, something even he couldn't understand, only labeled as 'the Self Itself', completely beyond mortal comprehension.

"But to complete 'all the miracles of Christianity', I need a vast amount of knowledge. The knowledge I currently possess isn't enough to accomplish those miracles."

Roy muttered. To achieve 'the Ultimate of All Mysteries' was incredibly difficult. In this endless multiverse, how many could truly reach that realm?

So for now, Roy had two major goals: first, to fully control his right hand, truly achieving the 'power to crush the universe'; second, to exhaust all knowledge, completing 'all the miracles of Christianity', reaching the 'Realm of God Above', and becoming the true Son of God!

Before completing these two major goals, he had a smaller goal: first, strengthen his current Authorities...

Compared to those two big goals, gradually getting stronger step by step was the true path. One couldn't become fat in a single bite. Taking too big a stride could easily strain something.

Roy came back to his senses. He looked at Marquis Voban, who had turned into a black dragon prostrate on the ground, then raised his right hand. A blood-red long sword appeared in his grasp!

Chapter 48: Modification of Pandora's Ritual

"The victor should execute the defeated."

Seeing Roy approach, the blood-red long sword in his hand, Marquis Voban, prostrate on the ground in his black dragon form with no resistance left, spoke thus.

The Marquis's tone was quite calm, showing no fear of death at all.

This is the Campione, this is the fate of the Campione—they fight eternally, and one day, they will die in battle.

It is not that the Campione do not understand the fear of death; it is simply that the moment they became Campione, they already possessed an awareness of their destiny. Even Roy, upon becoming a Campione, seemed to see his own inevitable fate.

Precisely because they know their end, the Campione do not fear death—it is only a matter of time.

However, Roy did not wish to meet his end like this. He was not a mere Campione; he had the power to change his own destiny.

"Then, please go well, Marquis..."

The cross-shaped long sword in Roy's hand aimed at the enormous black dragon head of Marquis Voban. Although the scales of the Underworld Black Dragon were extremely thick, capable of easily repelling any modern weapon, it was about to face the 'Sword of Judgment' held by the Great Archangel. Even the scales of the Underworld Black Dragon would surely be severed.

The blood-red cross-shaped long sword thrust toward the dragon's brow. Roy decisively struck down his own kin.

"Hehehehe... but I will not end like this. My fate was long decided, but now is not the time for my exit..."

Just as the cross-shaped long sword pierced the brow, Marquis Voban suddenly revealed a cunning smile.

The dragon's scales were like tofu, easily pierced by the long sword in Roy's hand, shattering its brain.

The enormous black dragon body, over forty meters long, along with the human form of Marquis Voban protected in the dragon's claws, all turned to ash, scattered by the wind.

But Roy's expression did not relax at all. Instead, he frowned and clicked his tongue: "...Such strong undying nature. Even after all that, he still left a breath behind."

The reason Marquis Voban's authority "Black Dragon of the Underworld" had become his trump card was that this authority granted him immense physical power and an almost absurd undying nature, making it very difficult for this ancient Demon King to die.

"Divine Right" brought Roy 'victory,' not 'death' to his enemy.

From the result, Roy had indeed won. After using the "Light of the Right," Marquis Voban had lost all resistance, allowing Roy to easily pierce him to death with a single sword strike.

However, the Marquis's powerful undying nature still took effect. In a situation where death was certain, a wisp of his soul still escaped, not completely annihilated.

"But relying on that single wisp of soul to revive, even for you, Marquis Voban, it will be extremely difficult. Moreover, even if you do revive, you won't be able to stir up any trouble before me."