The questions of world leaders and Mussolonia's bitter frustration never reached Florence. Facing Typhon's terrifying power, the angel showed neither joy nor sorrow.
He knelt on one knee in the sky, his six wings covering his face. The little angels around him sang in unison:
"Holy, holy, holy, Messiah, God of All Powers..."
"Holy, holy, holy, merciful and omnipotent..."
"Holy, holy, holy, Savior and Redeemer..."
Countless hymns drifted over the sea. In an instant, Florence was bathed in Radiance.
Within the Radiance, glorious Heaven flickered into view. At its summit, a faint figure gazed upon all living beings with loving eyes.
God had not always been merciful. He was omnipotent, free to do as he pleased, a god who could destroy the world on a whim. But when the Son of God returned to Heaven, God gained mercy.
At the sight of that loving god, countless Believers remembered how he had sacrificed himself to save the world. Hot tears fell to the ground, mingling with the soil and the surging seawater.
A vast Radiance descended from God. The howling winds, sweeping seas, erupting volcanoes, and lava flying across the sky all froze in its light, then vanished.
Everything fell calm.
It was as though those supernatural forces could not exist simply because God believed they should not.
Countless people breathed a sigh of relief. World leaders began reassessing the angels' combat strength.
Angels had always held high status, but they were not necessarily powerful. According to Church scriptures, apart from those charged with fighting, most angels had no combat strength. They existed chiefly to convey God's will and sing his praises.
Even the two strongest fallen angels, Satan and Lucifer, had seemed underwhelming: Satan's destructive power fell short of the Great Serpent Jormungandr's, while Lucifer's command of time