"Welcome back, everyone. I'm The Librarian here with my partner, The Narrator."
Hello (^_-)-☆
"And we're here today to explain Holy and Unholy magics!"
Is that going to be our new intro from now on?
"Who knows? Maybe it'll stick, maybe it won't. Anyway, set the scene, Mr. Narrator!"
Alright, here it goes (☞ﾟヮﾟ)☞ We're back in the field! That's all. This is not going to change anytime soon.
"Ha ha, quite right. Now to begin, let's start with Holy magics, shall we? What is it? How do you use it? What sets it apart from the ones we discussed before? Well, to explain all of that, we need to go back in history," said The Librarian as he snapped his fingers.
A hazy painting materialized before him, shimmering faintly. It depicted a radiant, divine being descending from the heavens, a figure of pure light surrounded by ethereal golden rays, coming down upon a small village nestled in the hills. The villagers were painted kneeling in awe, arms raised in desperate supplication.
"This is a painting from the Second Generation, capturing one of the first recorded moments when a god descended to the material world to aid their worshippers. Now, to clarify, this wasn't the first time a god had come down—several had done so in the past—but most of those instances were less... charitable. In the First Generation, gods often descended to punish mankind, though, uh, that didn't end all too well for the gods."
Yeah, let's just say the Arch-King of Humanity got hands or, um, swords.
The Librarian cleared his throat. "Moving on. The reason this god descended was that the village in the painting had fallen on hard times—famine, disease, you name it. Completely out of options, the villagers turned to prayer, pouring their hearts out for a miracle. And they got one. Their god came down and answered their cries."
He gestured toward the painting, tracing the glowing form of the god with his finger. "Now, due to certain events in the Second Generation—"
Cough Cough Godslayers Cough Cough
"—gods were no longer permitted to interfere with the material world directly, except under very specific conditions. At the time, though, those conditions weren't yet established. So this god, wanting to help their worshipers in a way that wouldn't violate any future agreements, decided on a creative solution. They didn't just solve the villagers' problems for them; instead, they gave them the power to solve it themselves—by gifting them Holy magics!"
The Librarian clapped his hands, and the painting vanished in a swirl of light. "Now, I apologize once again, as I can't demonstrate Holy magics to you given that I can't use it. Hah, this is becoming quite the recurring problem. And no, this time I'm not making The Narrator bring anyone here, especially after who he brought last time."
Hey, you're the one who told me to bring someone. You never specified who.
"I'm sure if I ask you to bring someone who can use Holy magics, you'll bring someone like Jesus."
How'd you know? (;一_一)
"Sigh. Anyway, Holy magics are essentially the ability to perform miracles. And if my earlier mention of Jesus didn't give it away, they allow you to perform the same kinds of miracles he did—and then some. Anything from creating an aura of protection that ensures no one within its radius can die, to obliterating supernatural creatures like vampires or werewolves with a single touch."
That sounds a little too convenient.
"It is, but there's a catch. I don't recommend trying that single-touch trick on a vampire or werewolf king unless you're looking for a fast pass to whichever afterlife you believe in."
Fair enough. Anyway, I know Jesus can use it pretty much endlessly, but is that the case for everyone who uses Holy magics?
"That depends on the type of Holy magics granted by the god in question. There are two main categories: Saints and Clerics. Saints are granted immense physical prowess and one defining trait, if you will, that lets them tackle problems head-on. Because of their nature, they don't run out of divine energy. Clerics, on the other hand, are miracle workers. They can perform incredible feats, but their divine energy functions like mana, meaning it can run out."
He adjusted his bow tie and continued, "Now, here's the interesting part. Even if the god that granted someone Holy magics ceases to exist, their powers remain intact. That's because the god essentially gives them a fragment of their essence to fuel those abilities."
Wait, so you're saying even if their god dies, they can still use their powers?
"Exactly. That's why Jesus can still perform miracles despite..."
God being dead?
"Yes, as for why he doesn't run out of divine energy, it's because his Holy magics were granted by a True God. But explaining what a True God is would derail this chapter too much, so let's move on."
The Librarian snapped his fingers, and another hazy painting materialized. This one depicted a lone figure standing in the center of a dark, cavernous room, their hands outstretched as an ethereal force enveloped them. "Ah, Unholy magics—how misunderstood you are. So much beauty, so much elegance, yet burdened with such a negative name. Unholy magics got their title because those wielding Holy magics saw something that defied the established magical norms. Naturally, anything outside their rigid understanding had to be Unholy. And so, the name stuck."
So it's not something you exclusively get from demons or... you know, the Devil?
"No, not exclusively. You can receive Unholy magics from demons—or even the Devil, for that matter—but it doesn't always work that way. Yes, there are decidedly evil aspects to Unholy magics, like necromancy, transfiguration, domination and other... let's call them delightfully macabre practices. These powers often come from entities like liches or demons who grant mortals a fragment of their essence, much like gods do with Holy magics."
Right, that tracks. So, evil lich gives you a piece of their power, and boom—you're summoning skeleton armies?
"Essentially, but there's more to it. Unholy magics can also come from less sinister sources, like fey, spirit kings, or even angels."
Wait, angels? That doesn't sound Unholy at all o_0.
"Precisely," The Librarian said, gesturing toward the painting. "It's another reason the term is misleading. Despite their origins, Unholy magics are all united by one defining feature—they're inherently destructive in nature. Unlike Holy magics, which can shield, heal, and create, Unholy magics are designed to break down, consume, or obliterate. That's why they've earned their dark reputation, regardless of their source."
So people just lump all of that together and call it evil?
"Pretty much. Practitioners of Unholy magics are often referred to as witches or warlocks. Personally, I find that insulting to actual Witches. They don't deserve the association. As for the warlock label, well, that one's not far off the mark. Anyway, any magic considered heretical by most real-world religions—and doesn't fall under the recognized Affinities like Summoning or the others—is categorized as Unholy magics."
Got it. So, anything heretical or not easily classified gets slapped with the Unholy label.
"Exactly. And with that, we've reached the end for today."
The Librarian snapped his fingers again, and the painting dissolved into nothingness. "Bye!"