[Snippet] Making the Church Competent Through the Power of Faith(Gacha!): Chapter 11

High up in Heaven, Michael was going about his duties as normal.

The work of an angel never stopped. And that went double for Michael, who was also trying his best to hold together the system left behind by his father.

At the best of days, it was still a thankless and difficult task, but one that he had taken upon himself to carry each day.

Filtering through the millions of daily prayers was just one of the small parts of his job.

Though, admittedly, it often was the one that weighed the most heavily on him.

Hearing the many, many prayers asking, begging for salvation.

Michael felt powerless when his father died, to see their father and creator die on the battlefield. Yet, it didn’t prepare him for the burdens that came with trying to fill in for his father.

While he was sitting up on the throne of God, he felt a sudden surge of holy power through the system.

It was enough that he perked up.

It was only a split second; not even a whisper of it remained after that very brief moment. 

Such things weren't rare, but they weren’t common either. Michael could barely handle the broken systems available; he couldn’t interface with all the meticulous designs left behind by its true creator.

So often, Michael could sense or feel things he didn’t have a reference for.

Over the long years, he was able to deduce some facets.

And it felt like when a Sacred Gear was reborn.

Unfortunately, he hadn’t figured out how to track the reborn sacred gear, nor how to stop it from falling into the hands of others.

But also, it slightly felt different.

The closest approximation that he could give was that it was a sort of recognition by Heaven’s System—and by extension, recognition from their father.

That was what Sacred Gears were supposed to be.

A blessing bestowed upon them by Heaven—their Father.

It was one of the rare occasions that filled Michael with hope and a sense of accomplishment. Even if the Sacred Gears ended up in the wrong hands, he knew that his Father’s works were still out there, trying their best.

Unfortunately, again, it seemed such occasions were becoming less and less over the years. Many outside their faction were getting their hands on sacred gears.

Devils reincarnating humans with them, other factions recruiting humans with Sacred Gear—even the Grigori went to great efforts to find dormant Sacred Gear users to quickly pull into the fold.

And it didn’t stop at the Three Factions.

He knew that other Pantheons also stored away some of his Father’s works if they ended up in their hands.

With their Father gone, Sacred Gears not only ended up within reborn half-humans of various species but also in humans that were of other Pantheons.

And they didn’t have the ability to go…retrieve them.

Heaven was barely hanging on by a thread, as it were. Starting fights with other Pantheons was a recipe for disaster.

Still, something tickled the back of his mind that he was missing something from that latest ping.

It was similar but felt different.

He couldn’t quite put a finger on it.

Besides Sacred Gears, there were times when something happened that he didn’t understand, but over the years, he’d been able to at least map those individual sensations out.

However, those thoughts disappeared as he looked up. “Gabriel, what are you doing?”

His sister was peeking around the entrance to the throne room.

“Hi Michael.” She still hid mostly behind the threshold.

"...Hello, Gabriel.” Michael blinked. “Is something wrong? You usually don’t like coming here?” His sister didn’t like coming to their father's throne room without a reason. 

He couldn’t blame her.

“I did something.”

“Yes?”

"...a bad thing.”

Michael paused. “You did something bad?”

“Yeah.” He saw her nod, if partially from that point of view. “I did something without asking for permission.”

He knew she didn’t fall, so he was skeptical about the supposed ‘bad’ thing she did.

“Pray tell, sister. I promise I will not judge you harshly.”

“I blessed a group of humans.” She said bluntly.

Michael raised an eyebrow. “How many?”

Technically, they weren’t supposed to go around blessing humans. There were exceptions, of course, but the amount they interfered in human affairs was supposed to be limited. It was an explicit order from their Father, and even after his death, they followed it as much as they could.

“About a dozen.”

Michael let out a sigh. 

If he were the boss and Gabriel was his employee, it was basically the same as her saying that she was a few minutes late coming back from her lunch break.

“I also did something else.”

“How about you start at the beginning, Sister?" Michael asked.

“Um…you know about the thing I did before? I talked to the Pope and had him appoint a new Cardinal.”

“The Burial Agency.” Michael, of course, knew the name. It had been the talk of the Church for several weeks. And the fact that it was his sister that backed the inception of this new organization within the Church was enough to garner his attention. “I’ve heard of it. It only has a few members, if I’m not mistaken.”

Gabriel nodded again.

At the list of important matters, his sister giving her permission to a cardinal to develop a new order of exorcists was very far down the list.

If it weren’t her direct hand that allowed it to exist, he honestly wouldn’t even have known about its name.

If he recalled correctly, it didn’t even have five members.

Of course, he also knew it because of one specific member that made daily prayers to him that kept his spirits up.

But he kept that last bit to himself.

“Um, well. He asked for help, and I gave him a little bit and blessed a few people and let him do something that’s going to make some people mad.” Gabriel explained.

Michael’s lips twitched and let out a chuckle. “Don’t worry about it, sister. I’m sure it’s not a big deal. You can handle it how you see fit.”

“Thank you, brother!” Gabriel smiled warmly before turning around and running away.

Michael simply shook his head.

It was Gabriel. What was the worst that was going to happen?

@***@

Lucian sat on the steps of the church's entrance.

Currently, he was contemplating a great many of his life choices.

Sister Griselda and Father Anderson were coming over. He expected this; he couldn’t exactly hide the commotion he caused.

Rather, it was hidden.

He noticed an almost impermissible pair of wings wrap around the church as if to hide what happened from the world.

However, that didn’t mean that those nearby didn’t notice the light show.

Immediately, upon arrival, Griselda gave him a look.

The kind of look that spoke more than words could.

Yet, even so, she still opened her mouth. “Cardinal.”

“Sister.”

“What did you do?”

“That is a very difficult question to answer," Lucian replied evenly. "...What do you think I did?”

Her lips thinned. “I think you did something that caused a surge of holy power that could be felt several blocks away.”

“Ah.”

“Yes, ah," she deadpanned.

“Good evening, Father Anderson.” Lucian greeted the good father.

“Good evening, Cardinal," Father Anderson greeted back politely.

“Hmm.”

“Hmm?” Griselda looked at him, repeating.

“If the others don’t hate me, they’re going to now.” Lucian said casually.

Griselda felt her eye twitch. She still was technically supposed to report back to several other cardinals. Despite her desire to avoid that and her new status as a member of the agency under Cardinal Graves, she did technically still have a job to do.

Granted, she did it in the most difficult way possible, but the point remained.

“What happened, Cardinal?” She peeked over his shoulder and saw about a dozen people inside the church, seemingly unconscious. Though, the father that lived here was watching over them.

“I asked Heaven to bear witness.”

“And?”

“And it did.” Lucian looked at her.

Griselda let out a sigh, dropping her shoulders before taking a seat next to him. “How much trouble is this going to cause?”

“We now have a subordinate organization under us," Lucian told her bluntly. “Those who don’t qualify for the Burial Agency can join the Assembly of the Eighth Sacrament.”

Griselda was about to speak, her mouth hung open, and she had a great many questions, but Lucian cut her off.

“Sister, can you please check on the ones inside the church? They should have some newfound holy power within them, and I just want to make sure they’re okay.”

Griselda studied him for a moment before relenting. “Yes, Cardinal.”

Lucian waited until he was out of hearing distance.

“Father Anderson.”

“Cardinal.”

“I’m going to be blunt, Father Anderson. The Burial Agency in my mind does not have someone as weak as you within it.”

Father Anderson didn’t get angry; rather, he looked at the Cardinal, raising an eyebrow. “Weak?”

“Let me ask you a question, Father. How strong do you think Alucard would be in this world?”

Father Anderson didn't truthfully have an answer to that question.

While he was given information upon his summoning, he didn’t know everything about this new world he found himself in.

“There are Pagan gods running around. There are entities that could be able to slay Alucard with ease. And consider that I am saying that with his full power, considering every soul he had stored within himself. The current Lucifer is one such monster that could destroy every soul within him and the vampire himself in almost no time at all.”

Father Anderson slowly frowned.

“As far as normal Exorcists go, you’re up there, Father Anderson. The Church would be thrilled to have you, but we are not exorcists. Every member of the Burial Agency needs to be a monster. The you that you are now is still human.” Lucian didn’t hold back.

Lucian knew that Father Anderson was not thrilled by his words.

But he also knew that it had to be said; it had to be said directly without any room for misunderstanding.

“I know it sounds hypocritical coming from me. But understand that I will become stronger, much stronger.” Lucian continued, seeing as Father Anderson didn’t say anything. “And do not misunderstand my words either. I am not telling you to give up your humanity. Your humanity is just as valuable as your strength. But you must be able to stand shoulder to shoulder with the monsters of the world.”

He knew that Father Anderson was not a prideful man.

It was deceptive if you didn’t know him fully.

Sure, there were things he took pride in, but the nuance of pride was absent from him. His pride came from others, from his faith, from his work.

He placed no pride within himself.

“Your fight with the vampire.” Lucian spoke without reservations, without fear of the man before him. “You couldn’t slay him properly.”

“Aye.”

Father Anderson acknowledged it.

Lucian knew that Father Anderson was just as annoyed with himself regarding the vampire.

Truthfully, his weapons of choice would have been enough against such an enemy, but there was something interfering with the normal balance.

He knew that the vampires possessed a certain item that could remove weaknesses.

He kept that to himself for now. They were far from strong enough to be able to retrieve the Holy Relic.

“Your Blessed Bayonets are good weapons. But they aren’t going to be enough.” They were strong enough that they even slowed Alucard’s regeneration in his last world. But there were things here that worked against his familiar weapon of choice. “First, learn to use black keys properly. I’ll make sure you have enough.”

They were powerful weapons despite their humble appearance.

They were conceptual in nature; that meant that they could hit above their weight class.

“Second, you will be learning how to utilize Holy Power.” He said it in a way that left no room for argument.

That simply earned a curt nod from Father Anderson.

“Third, I will be teaching you the Baptism Rite. It’s a powerful ritual, a blessing bestowed upon spirits and evils of the world. It allows you to use your Faith directly as a weapon. It is the sole magical miracle that is permissible by the church's doctrine."

A single nod from the man was enough that he accepted the orders.

“This was your first time, Cardinal.” Father Anderson was a man of few words. Towards Lucian, even more so. He had been silently evaluating the man ever since his summoning. “To see the sacrifices up close.”

It was Lucian’s turn to frown. “A couple years ago, before I was a Cardinal. I was passing through a town in southern Italy. It was being attacked by werewolves every night for about a week. I ended up there by chance and did what I was supposed to, help. I had a bright idea, you know. They had made a makeshift wall of stone, wood, random pieces of furniture, and whatever they could prop up to stop the monsters from breaking into the small town. They came the same way every night, so it was easy. We dug some ditches and filled them with oil that we scavenged from nearby boats—it was near the coast. And when they came, we just lit the fields outside the walls on fire. They all burned.”

If it was perhaps a day ago, he would have taken pride in his good work.

But now, it just left a sour taste in his mouth.

“It was easy," Lucian spat out. “Much easier. They treated me like a hero; it was a nice feeling. We didn’t lose a single person that night, didn’t have to watch as they buried their families.”

Father Anderson didn’t just help him.

“My words still stand, Cardinal. Point me at the monsters, and I will remove them from the world.” Father Anderson’s words carried with them more than just the reaffirmation of what he said upon summoning.

Perhaps, for the first time, he acknowledged Lucian’s authority properly.

“And what about Sister Argento, Cardinal?” Father Anderson asked.

Lucian knew he was talking about his earlier words regarding what the Burial Agency needed.

“Monsters come in all different shapes and forms, Father. A monster that doesn’t let anyone in their sight die is a monster I would like to keep at home.” 

Father Anderson smiled faintly.

“Come, let us see the Sister.” Lucian said as he got up and went inside the church as Father Anderson followed behind him.

@***@

“Cardinal.” Griselda acknowledged his presence as he approached.

She was busy checking on each of the people inside.

The only other person awake is the former exorcist and priest of this church.

“It’s odd. When I left this church earlier in the morning, it was desecrated. Now, it seems to be fully sanctified once more. If not brimming with holy energies at every crevice.”

Lucian ignored her tone. “How fare they?’

“They’re fine. Holy Power is rarely detrimental to someone. Even if it was suddenly pushed into them.”

He wasn’t oblivious to the way she was saying that in a questioning matter.

He knew that it would be impossible to cover things up forever. But days, maybe weeks, or any amount of time would be helpful for now.

He looked over the newest members of the Eighth Sacrament.

The shock of someone suddenly pushing Holy Power into them must have been enough that they had dropped unconscious.

“Father.”

“Cardinal.” The elderly father bowed his head.

“This is your mess just as it is mine, Father. As such, you will be taking responsibility.” Lucian wouldn’t allow him to skirt it just because of his age. “I expect you to oversee everything here, to teach them about the wider world.”

“Yes, Cardinal.” The Father smiled faintly. “You are leaving then?”

“It’s inevitable. We will not be staying past today.” And he realized this was potentially contradictory to everything that just happened. “I will be leaving the tools you need for those who willingly walked this path. I expect them to train.”

He then took out his Bible.

The same one he always carried on him.

Griselda in particular had seen him use his bible often, and she knew for a fact that it wasn’t a normal Bible. But she had never seen him use it so overtly before, as if he finally stopped caring.

He reached his hand into the Bible and pulled out a thick stack of parchment. “This is where it will begin. These papers cover the ritual needed to create ash locks. They are conceptual weapons that can take any form according to the one doing the ritual. They are powerful against heretical creatures, evil and darkness.”

The Father’s hands all but trembled as he carefully took them from the cardinal.

As an exorcist, he knew a lot of secrets. He wasn’t particularly noteworthy in the career choice, but it was enough that he knew a lot of things.

And he never heard of Ash Locks before.

But if even half of what he suspected was real, then they were extremely powerful weapons.

It was the most recent reward that Lucian received for the creation of the Eighth Sacrament. And he could take the hint on the reward choice from his system.

He didn’t need the papers themselves; after receiving them, he memorized their creation process.

Like Black Keys, they were conceptual weapons of the Church. However, where they differed from Black Keys was that Black Keys were a very specialized weapon. Black Keys required years of very specific training to be able to utilize properly.

Whereas Ash Locks could take the form of any weapon. A gun, a sword, a gauntlet, whatever the user wanted it to be.

The trade-off was that they lacked the same power that a Black key had.

A trade-off of power for utility in this case.

Which meant that they could become widespread and the standardized weapon for the Eighth Sacrament.

“I will be sending over basic training methods for Paladins as well.” He didn’t expect any of them to become proper Paladins. But the most basic holy spells, they would be useful for the members. 

Though, in the future, he would expect them to master the basics.

For now, though, he couldn’t force too much too early.

They needed to get the organization up off the ground sooner rather than later.

As unfortunate as it was, they were fairly screwed from the start. They were going to be hated by most of the Church by virtue of their existence. They were going to be put under a microscope; they were going to be belittled and even condemned.

What they needed was results.

It was going to be a difficult path for these first members.

And all the little things he hadn’t mentioned yet.

Most of it needs just money.

Of which, he didn’t have that much.

It’s not like his organization was particularly favored by the Church at this moment, so his overall income was…minimal.

Yup, Lucian realized the most immediate problem.

They were kinda broke.

@***@

A/N

Cleaning up the mess after the last chapter, setting things straight for now before they depart. If it wasn’t clear, Gabriel was the one who appeared last chapter, and she’s sort of hiding things because she does know it’ll cause a commotion.

Anyways, this snippet reached 10 chapters, so this is the patreon exclusive chapter for you guys. For now on, this snippet will be 1 chapter ahead for subs. I’ll start doing this for any snippets that reach 10 chapters.