Divine Grace Like the Sea, Divine Might Like a Prison

"Everyone, please follow me."

Led by Amame, the group arrived at the Main Hall of the shrine.

This was typically where the sacred objects, offerings, and ritual wands were kept; it was the dwelling place of the deity. The Main Hall was the most sacred part of the shrine, strictly off-limits to humans.

However, since they were acting under the divine will of the deity, such restrictions no longer applied. After all, the entire shrine was the territory of that Inari God, so naturally, there were no taboos.

Creak.

The long-sealed wooden doors were pushed open.

The setting sun shone into the Main Hall, painting it in a layer of golden light.

Inside this small shrine Main Hall, nothing was enshrined but a single fox mask.

Even though this was the largest "Main Hall," it felt cramped and crowded the moment the group stepped inside under Amame's guidance.

The next second, the fox mask suddenly came to life.

Whoosh.

The surrounding scenery shifted abruptly.

The sunset's afterglow transformed into the scorching sun of high noon, and the cramped Main Hall expanded into an endless expanse of golden rice paddies!

"This is..."

"This isn't the shrine!"

"Could it be that we have stepped into Takamagahara?"

Just as the group felt bewildered and astonished, a crisp sound of bells drifted from ahead of the rice paddies.

Looking up, a dark-blue exotic beast approached slowly. Its ears were perked, its eyes were slits, its cheeks were outlined in gold, and its four hooves were accompanied by cloud patterns. A massive bell hung around its neck, the source of the ringing they had heard.

Sitting sideways on the back of this beast was a young girl.

The girl wore white robes with a red hakama, dressed in the style of a shrine maiden. However, her white robes were adorned with subtle patterns of cranes and pine trees, and her head was decorated with gold ornaments with stalks of grain hanging on either side. Combined with a face that blended gentleness, joy, and happiness, one felt instantly refreshed upon seeing her.

"Is that... a donkey she's riding?"

The female consultant from America, Lieutenant Colonel Tina, subconsciously whispered this, only to be quietly reminded by Nagisa Kazuha beside her.

"It's a fox."

America had donkeys, and in fact, the wild donkey population was rampant.

The beast ridden by this "deity" did indeed bear a slight resemblance to a slender donkey.

"Welcome to My divine realm, humans."

The girl riding the donkey—no, the fox—approached slowly. Wherever she passed, the golden waves of grain swayed in layers, as if welcoming their creator.

"I presume you all have many questions, but before that, there are some things I must let you witness first—"

The girl's words were spoken with a strange accent, yet they reached everyone's ears with perfect clarity. No, that wasn't right; the voice was resonating directly within their minds. Even the two American consultants, who should not have understood the language, clearly grasped the meaning.

Before anyone could ask, the scene shifted abruptly:

"ROAR~~~~!!!"

Amidst a heaven-shaking, earth-shattering roar, ripples of visible air pressure expanded outward like a gale.

The shockwave uprooted the trees on the land, turning them into flying debris scattered across the sky!

And the cause of all this was:

BOOM!!

A massive, sharp claw slammed into the ground, causing the earth to tremble.

As the claw lifted, amidst the scattering of soil and stone, a crater the size of a basketball court came into view.

???

The group looked up.

A beast as large as a mountain filled their vision.

The creature's size was terrifying; trees over a dozen meters tall were nothing more than weeds beneath its feet, and its mere movement caused mountains to crumble and the earth to split. Nine tails danced wantonly in the sky, appearing like a calamity destined to destroy the world.

It wasn't just appearing like one; it was the calamity that would destroy the world!

In front of the giant beast, which kicked up rings of white air pressure with every step, a dense mass of "human figures" charged forward.

There were warriors clad in heavy armor with ghost masks covering their faces, sprinting like galloping horses; there were monks wearing straw hats and wielding monk staves; and there were Onmyoji in wide-sleeved robes and tall hats, riding upon various "monsters."

These "people" all moved at speeds that were shocking to the world.

Their two legs achieved speeds that even modern armored vehicles could not hope to match.

Facing the trees sent flying by the shockwaves, the team did not slow down; they swung their blades in mid-air, slicing the obstacles into fragments before they could even land!

They were all superhumans!

As the two sides closed the distance at high speed, the superhumans either chanted incantations or formed hand seals: spitting out fireballs the size of cars, summoning water dragons with bared fangs and claws, or causing their own bodies to swell out of thin air, transforming into armored giants dozens of meters tall.

As close-quarters combat erupted, a massive battle broke out instantly!

Huge fireballs whistled through the air; wherever they passed, the ground—even without direct contact—was torn into a bright, blinding river of molten lava.

A giant water dragon danced with claws and fangs, smashing hills into crumbling ruins as mudslides poured down like waterfalls.

A giant armored warrior swung a long blade, slicing through the forest as if it were mere weeds.

It is no exaggeration to say that the intensity was in no way inferior to a carpet bombing by modern artillery!

Yet, these superhumans appeared so weak and powerless before the giant beast with nine tails: its mountain-like tail swept across, and flames, water currents, and the warrior were all unable to withstand it, shattering into fragments that scattered across the sky.

The fierce beast, with its own strength, fought countless superhumans without falling into a disadvantage.

In the heat of the battle, the nine-tailed beast seemed to grow impatient, suddenly opening its giant, tooth-filled maw.

A pitch-black light condensed into a sphere, filled with ominous signs of destruction; even the superhumans engaged in the battle changed their expressions and fled in all directions, but it was too late:

The pitch-black sphere was spat out by the giant beast, flying into the center of the fleeing "crowd," and then:

Light.

Endless light, born from the pitch-black void!

The entire world seemed to "brighten" as the black sphere instantly expanded into a "sun" with a diameter of over two kilometers, engulfing the entire battlefield:

Scorching fire, Incomparably dazzling light, Endless high temperature and heat, just like a real sun!

The earth melted instantly under the "sun," turning into a giant crater; shockwaves rippled out one after another like billions of wild beasts charging forth, crushing forests, rivers, and mountains! Everything in its path was reduced to dust and ashes.

The dark clouds that had been raging over the battlefield vanished under the light of this "sun"; the entire sky was left with nothing but a blinding white, the intense light reflecting off the clouds and the high heat causing the clouds in the upper atmosphere to evaporate once more.

The shockwave continued, and while the cold air had not yet begun to backflow, a vortex had already formed in the clouds above, taking the shape of a super-giant tornado.

With a single strike, it was a world-ending catastrophe!

"A nuclear explosion?!"

"No, this power..."

The light of the explosion reflected on the shocked faces of the crowd.

This scene was even more terrifying than the "Little Boy" and "Fat Man" of the past!

They were absolutely qualified to say this; as the only "user" and "victim," Japan and America knew the power of nuclear weapons like the back of their hands.

"Nine-Tails."

"Tamamo-no-Mae."

Although many novels and anime exaggerate the beauty of "Tamamo-no-Mae" while ignoring her strength.

But after witnessing everything before them, as long as they were Japanese, no one would harbor any more fantasies about this golden-haired giant beast.

Apart from the legendary "White-Faced Golden-Haired Nine-Tailed Fox," no other existence could look like this.

Swish.

The scene around them changed again.

The desperate battlefield vanished, and everyone found themselves once again amidst golden waves of wheat.

"The identity of that Demon King, you should have already guessed."

The girl riding on the fox spoke, her gentle voice soothing the terrified hearts of the crowd.

"And as for Me, you should also know."

"Yes, Lady Miketsu."

Bowing their heads deeply, Takeya Haru and the others were now certain of the girl's identity.

"May I ask, what was that just now?"

"A war that happened over a thousand years ago."

"I know the doubts in your hearts: because of that... zzzt... reason,"

In an instant, it felt as if red-hot steel rods had been thrust into their brains and stirred, causing them to clutch their heads in agony.

"Ah, human souls are too fragile; merely hearing that name is enough to nearly shatter them."

The girl riding the fox raised her hand and grasped, and a bundle of wheat appeared in her palm.

She then waved the wheat, and starlike specks of light fell upon the crowd; the excruciating pain that felt as if it would tear them into a thousand pieces the next second vanished rapidly.

"It seems I can only speak simply."

"Hundreds of years ago, the human world gradually became no longer 'suitable' for living, and existences like Myself chose to leave one after another."

"However, just like the rising and falling of tides and the changing phases of the moon, recently, this world—or to use your words, this planet—has once again ushered in a tide of spiritual energy."

As the crowd listened intently, the girl pointed downward.

"The tide of spiritual energy will take this place as its center and sweep across the world once more."

"The first to awaken are those monsters who once left behind 'resurrection contingencies'."

Tamamo-no-Mae!

Connecting this to the shattering of the Sessho-seki a year ago, the faces of the island nation's officials twisted and contorted in horror.

Damn it, why did it have to start in the island nation, in Tokyo?

"Do not worry, I shall shelter you all, just as I did thousands of years ago."

"Wait,"

Just at this moment, the male advisor from America stepped forward.

"These are all just your one-sided claims; why should we believe—?!"

Before he could finish his sentence, he could no longer make a sound.

His throat and tongue felt as if they were being throttled by an invisible force.

"Human,"

"Are you questioning Me?"

The young girl riding atop the fox sighed, lowering her eyes.

"Always so arrogant, so presumptuous. Perhaps I have been too kind, leading you to harbor the fantasy that you could stand on equal footing with Me?"

Having said that, the girl waved the wheat ear in her hand once more.

This time, it was not for healing.

"Ahhhhhhh!!!"

The American male advisor suddenly found that his mouth and tongue could move again.

However, he was now capable of only one sound: a scream!

His body beneath his clothes, and the skin on his exposed hands and face, all began to writhe violently, as if countless mice were scurrying underneath, or as if roots were spreading—

Squelch.

With a soft sound, two vines pierced through his eyeballs, growing wantonly!

Immediately after, a thicker vine erupted from his mouth, cutting off his scream.

Then came his hands, his chest. In the blink of an eye, this 'tree' growing from within his body replaced the existence of the American male advisor.

Swish.

As the tree continued to grow and unfurl, tender buds sprouted on its branches, and flowers bloomed.

What a vibrant, living sight!

If not for that tattered American military uniform.

"Rude human,"

The girl sitting on the fox seemed bored and waved her hand.

"Perhaps I should follow 'Their' advice and wait until half of humanity has perished before projecting My power into this world?"

Swish.

The next second, everyone's vision blurred once more.

"Where is this?"

"The main hall of the shrine."

"Ah~~~ Lieutenant Colonel Miller?!"

The scream beside them brought the others back to their senses; what met their eyes was a blooming cherry blossom tree!

Except, the trunk of this tree was still 'wrapping' around a blonde-haired, blue-eyed corpse.

"He still has a pulse."

With his fingers placed on the wrist of 'Lieutenant Colonel Miller', who had now merged with the tree, Superintendent Takeya was the first to speak.

"Lieutenant Colonel Tina, regarding your personnel's disrespectful actions toward our deity, I will personally report this to the Prime Minister's Official Residence later and lodge a formal protest."

Having said that, the head of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department pointed outward with a grim expression.

"Now, please leave!"

Damn American beasts, accustomed to being arrogant and domineering, they were even this insolent in the face of a deity?