The priest's voice came to an abrupt halt.
Because his companion's prayers were complete... Nothing happened. The divine spirits that once responded swiftly now seemed as though they hadn't heard the prayers, offering no response.
Their only response was silence.
The wind still blew, the candle flames still refused to ignite, the gods remained unresponsive, and the barn was deathly silent.
"How could this be? This isn't how it's supposed to be!" The priest's expression froze, and he gazed upward in disbelief, as if expecting some form of reply.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
...
Athena offered no response.
No divine miracle descended.
Not even a ripple of divine power was felt.
The priest's face shifted from ferocious to bewildered, and finally... turned to fear.
"No... Impossible..." he murmured, his voice trembling, "Lady Athena... why..."
Ian strolled over to him, looking down at him from above, his smile deepening.
"It seems..." he said softly, "your goddess isn't interested in meddling today."
—Thud!
The priest could no longer hold himself up and collapsed to his knees, his expression completely shattered. The wild wizards stared at the scene in a daze, their worldview seemingly turned upside down.
A wizard...
A mortal...
could make the Divine Hall priest's prayers go unanswered?! It wasn't just the priests who found it unbelievable; even these wild wizards, in an era when the gods fiercely maintained their authority, found it mind-boggling. They had no idea what kind of background this legend before them had.
Could he be a demigod?
A child of Zeus?
Someone speculated along the most logical lines, but did not voice it. The rescued wizards looked at the situation, all urging Ian to leave quickly.
"Go quickly." A wizard urged Ian in a low voice, "You've angered the gods; the consequences won't be good."
"Yes, hurry and escape." Another chimed in, "Even if you've won now, you will be targeted by the gods in the future."
To this, Ian showed no panic, instead smiling slightly: "I'm not afraid of the gods. Because I've always believed wizards surpass everything, and divine spirits are merely stronger but niche wizards."
He slowly turned around, looking at the priest still kneeling in place, and said coldly: "Do you think prayers will work? Do you think the gods will respond to your call? You're just a poor soul blinded by faith."
The priest suddenly looked up, glaring at him: "You dare to question the existence of the gods?!"
"I'm not questioning." Ian's tone was calm, "I'm certain—your gods, they don't care about you."
He slowly approached, looking down at the once arrogant priest:
"The reason you can't hear the gods' response is because she doesn't wish to respond to you. She knows the consequences of angering me, because her father has witnessed how invincible I am."
Ian was boasting.
But he was also speaking the truth.
"You... you're spouting nonsense!"
The priest roared.
"I don't like lying."
Ian coldly laughed.
"The gods fear me, just as gods fear wizards."
He raised his hand and lightly tapped. An invisible force instantly enveloped the entire barn; the air seemed to solidify, and the temperature plummeted. The knights felt a tightness in their chests, as if pressed into the deep sea, unable to breathe. The priests also felt their magic powers fall silent and their connection with the divine spirits severed.
"Get out."
Ian said faintly, "otherwise, I'll let you taste true fear."
No one dared to linger.
The knights helped the collapsed priest and fled the barn in a panic, quickly disappearing into the night. Amidst this unbelievable scene.
Only.
The Little Wizard turned around.
"Continue, everyone, I haven't heard enough of your conversations yet."
He warmly addressed the group of weak wild wizards.