Infinite Returns : The More I Give, The Stronger I Become

"Don't worry. I'm known to be a gentle and caring master," Ethan's voice echoed, stunning Airi to her core.

Saintess? His Saintess?

Airi froze, completely puzzled. She couldn't wrap her head around what he had just said.

Because surely… only gods could have Saintesses. A Saintess wasn't some mere title—it was a divine role. A chosen one. A messenger blessed directly by the gods.

And blessings… were something only gods could give.

So—

"What… what do you mean?" Airi asked in a voice soaked in confusion, not understanding where Ethan was going with any of this.

Ethan, of course, understood her confusion. He knew exactly what Saintess meant to someone like her. He knew the weight behind the title.

So why did he say it?

Simple.

'What if I'm not a god? he thought. If I want something—if I truly desire it—then as long as I'm willing to pay the price, I can take it. I can make it mine.'

And just now, he had paid a price. He had sacrificed two claimed truths—the belief that he couldn't break her chains, and the belief that he couldn't lift her curse.

So now, he could make a wish.

'Can I make Airi my Saintess with the truths I just sacrificed?' Ethan asked silently.

<It's enough. Is that your wish?>

Ethan smiled.

He looked at Airi, who still stared at him, unsure whether he was insane or divine. He crouched down until he was at eye level, gaze locked with hers.

"It seems I've forgotten to introduce myself again," he said lightly. "Truly, what a bad habit."

He let the silence hang for a second, then continued.

"I am Ethan Yagami, also known as The Allholder—a title given to me by the dear Tower itself."

"There is nothing between Heaven and Earth I cannot obtain… not even a Saintess."

He smirked.

"So tell me," he said, voice now laced with certainty and authority, "do you wish to be my Saintess? The Saintess of The Allholder?"

But Airi still couldn't understand. Couldn't grasp how someone at D-rank could even speak such words with conviction.

And yet… she didn't question it anymore.

From the beginning, Ethan had been a complete enigma. A mortal she, a stage-2 goddess, couldn't see through. He had surprised her again and again. He had promised her freedom—and she believed him.

So now?

Now she wouldn't hesitate.

Because if the man who listened to her story without flinching, without pity, without mocking—if he was the one who gave her comfort, gave her peace, gave her hope—

If he said he would make her his Saintess…

Then she would accept.

So without hesitation, without doubt, she spoke.

"I don't know how you'll do it… but yes. I accept to be your Saintess, Ethan Yagami. The Allholder."

Ethan smiled beautifully. Then rose to his full height and said, "You've made a great choice."

'I wish to have Airi as my Saintess,' Ethan declared inwardly to his skill.

And—

<As you are not yet a god and cannot give blessings, you may give a trait to your Saintess.>

<What trait do you wish to give her?>

Ethan paused, hand on chin, eyes narrowed in thought.

A trait.

Something like his Eye of Revelation. Something defining.

'Airi is a Fallen Saintess—a woman bound unjustly, cursed unjustly. A woman who wants revenge. A woman whose faith was shattered not by the people she served, but by the very god who betrayed her.'

'So what kind of trait does someone like that need?'

What could give her power, purpose—and reflect who she was?

And then the answer came.

"You want to give them ruin, don't you?" Ethan muttered to himself.

"Then I will help you. The trait will be: The Saintess of Ruin."

He grinned.

"And since we're already going wild, give her a title too—same as the trait: The Saintess of Ruin."

He turned to Airi, his voice low and certain.

"Do you like it?" he asked. "Because you're going to bring ruin to your enemies… and to anyone who dares to stand against me, against us."

Ethan grinned wide.

"What do you think?"

Airi matched his grin, a spark in her void-black eyes.

"You couldn't have done better."

Ethan's grin deepened.

He activated his concealment skill 'No One Beneath the Sky' and confirmed his wish without hesitation.

A long pause.

Then—

<Airi Claimance, The Fallen Saintess, has now become your Saintess. The Saintess of Ruin of The Allholder.>

The moment the skill finished speaking, the chains that had bound Airi for so long weakened instantly—so frail that a simple breath, a single movement, caused them to snap apart into dust.

Her curse, too, broke.

The black tears stopped.

And that was only natural—because Ethan had sacrificed the truth that he couldn't destroy them.

Which meant now… he could.

And if he could destroy them?

Then for Airi, it was nothing.

But it wasn't over.

Because now that Airi had become the Saintess of Ruin, her appearance had to match her new title. Her new identity.

It began.

Her hair turned red—no, not red. Molten. Like rivers of blood flowing down volcanic stone.

Her eyes turned black. Void-black. Looking into them felt like staring into the abyss. A place where ruin and silence walked hand-in-hand.

Her body, once slightly older, transformed. The traces of exhaustion and divine torment vanished. Her face became younger, mid-twenties, radiant, refined, dangerously beautiful.

She looked like a woman who had seen everything and had come back sharper.

More complete.

Then, once again, the skill spoke.

<What will be the symbol of The Allholder?>

Ethan paused again.

The Merchant Beneath the World already had a symbol: black and white coins. One side marked with a scale, the other with a faceless figure.

But this—this was different.

This needed to stand apart.

Something symbolic. Something primal.

'Heaven is blue. Earth is brown. If I fold them into one sphere… what color do I get?'

Simple.

'Ashen gray.'

'A hand folding the Heaven and Earth into one sphere. That'll be the symbol.'

The moment the thought crystallized, the skill acted.

Airi's new form was draped in flowing robes of beautiful ashen gray, and on her back, the new symbol was etched—bold and absolute:

A hand folding Heaven and Earth into one sphere.

And in that moment, Airi felt something.

Something she had long forgotten. Something she once feared to feel again.

But now that it was here?

She embraced it. And she only felt peace and belonging.

She looked at Ethan, at the man who gave her a place again, a purpose, a future.

And in her eyes, there was nothing but clarity.

She smiled.

Then bowed.

Not out of fear.

Not out of submission.

But out of respect. And gratitude.

Her voice, clear and ringing like a vow across the broken forest, echoed loud and proud.

"I bow to you… O Allholder."

—End of Chapter 71—