Chapter 87: True Purpose (3)

Saint Jeanne stood there.

Deep within the temple, where bright light poured down from the ceiling, she spread her arms toward Wolfgang with a serene smile, as if she were a savior.

The scene felt strangely unsettling, like a sister welcoming a long-lost sibling after a long time apart.

It was hard to describe this feeling as anything other than out of place. Wolfgang and Jeanne were far from close, even in the loosest sense of the word.

Before Wolfgang possessed this body, even Lana Frost, the body’s previous owner, had been Jeanne’s sworn enemy.

To top it off, Wolfgang herself harbored no favorable feelings toward Saint Jeanne.

In fact, Wolfgang had once traveled to the kingdom under Lana Frost’s name with the sole purpose of killing Jeanne.

Knowing this, Leifen spoke with a displeased expression.

“Is that the saint of the kingdom?”

“Yes. She’s Jeanne.”

“She looks like nothing more than a fraud with a good reputation.”

The Iron-Blooded Emperor Leifen had encountered countless charlatans in his life.

Some claimed to have amulets or magical artifacts capable of repelling Wendigos, spouting absurd lies.

To Leifen, Saint Jeanne seemed no different—a vile fraud deceiving people or an overconfident fool biting off more than she could chew.

Despite Leifen’s open disdain, Jeanne remained unfazed.

Her golden eyes were fixed solely on Wolfgang, who stood at the front.

Normally, Wolfgang might have tried to start a conversation.

Instead, she chose to summon a spear of flames and hurl it as a response.

The sharp spear of fire flew straight toward Saint Jeanne, but unfortunately…

It didn’t reach her.

A massive greatsword intercepted the fiery spear.

Wolfgang immediately recognized the person who had blocked her attack.

It was Prince Jaiha—or rather, the hero Van, who was controlling Jaiha’s body.

With a cold expression, Van turned his gaze toward Wolfgang.

“Damn it. Looks like Monika wasn’t bluffing.”

“You had to face consequences. You tried to deceive me and my goddess.”

“And those consequences include turning someone into a puppet? What a disgusting price to pay.”

“The punishment for lies is always cruel. Besides, he made the promise himself.”

“Is that so? Then I suppose you’ll have to face your own punishment soon enough. Won’t you?”

Although Wolfgang’s encounters with Van hadn’t been extensive, she respected Van’s determination to risk his soul to set things right.

Van didn’t deserve to be treated as a mere tool.

Wolfgang wanted to break the seal immediately and free Van from his torment.

However, the backlash from forcing her power to fight earlier still lingered.

Her unstable state made it impossible to release the seal without risking irreversible damage.

For now, she had to rely on the support of the Vendetta Legion.

Still, Wolfgang had no intention of standing idly by.

Even sealed, her strength was more than enough to overwhelm most heroes.

As Wolfgang gestured, countless flaming spheres appeared in the sky and began to rain down like meteors.

Jeanne, however, simply smiled silently and waved her hand.

With just that simple motion, all the fiery spheres aimed at her exploded and vanished.

It was only a fleeting moment, but Wolfgang saw it clearly.

It was a shield.

“So… that’s the secret behind the saint’s invincibility?”

“The Shield of the Goddess. A shield meant to protect the saint from merciless threats. To wield this shield is proof of being a true saint.”

“A false saint of a false goddess, more like.”

In other words, as long as that shield and the goddess granting its power existed, Jeanne was untouchable.

Only a power comparable to or surpassing the goddess’s authority could overcome it.

But Wolfgang had not come this far unprepared.

Before arriving, she had spoken with Goddess Milena and gathered critical information.

The Shield of the Goddess was not invincible.

Its power had been divided in two, leaving it unstable and unable to function at full strength.

[The Shield of the Goddess is in a very unstable state right now. Since its power is split, it can’t be fully utilized. While it’s still effective, my presence could make a difference.]

In other words, with Milena nearby, this was their one chance to defeat the saint.

Had Wolfgang ignored her advice and destroyed the relic, they might have been out of options.

“Leifen.”

“I get it. You want me to handle the guy with the greatsword, right?”

“Exactly. Sharp as ever.”

“Don’t forget I’m the No. 2 of the Vendetta Legion.”

Leifen quickly grasped the situation.

Wolfgang was focusing on attacking the saint behind the man wielding the greatsword.

The implication was clear: if Leifen handled the swordsman, Wolfgang could deal with the saint.

It was also evident that Wolfgang hadn’t fully recovered.

Leifen made a mental note to look into it once this battle was over.

With these thoughts in mind, he moved into action.

“Your teamwork is impressive, I’ll admit.”

“That calm demeanor won’t last long.”

“True. If I were alone, that might be the case.”

“…?!”

Using the fiery propulsion of her flames, Wolfgang launched herself into the air and struck downward toward Jeanne like a meteor.

Unfortunately, her kick never reached Jeanne.

A massive hand stopped Wolfgang’s kick just before it could land.

Not only that, but the hand, wreathed in a faint fiery haze, grabbed Wolfgang’s leg and swung her around violently.

Boom!

An explosive impact sent shockwaves through Wolfgang’s back.

But the pain wasn’t what shocked her most.

There was only one reason for her astonishment.

“The Winter King…!”

The monster had returned.

The very cause of the Winter War and the entity that had plunged the empire into a century of suffering.

Wendigos were created in the image of the Winter King himself.

In appearance, the Winter King looked like a massive Wendigo, but his power and authority dwarfed those creatures, striking terror into the heart of the empire.

Wolfgang instinctively understood: this Winter King was not the real one.

If it were, she wouldn’t be standing intact.

‘It looks unstable, like a corpse being forcibly controlled. Is it even possible for a god to have a corpse? Aren’t they immortal?’

“How did you get your hands on the corpse of a god?”

“It’s not a corpse. It’s alive and moving, isn’t it?”

“A being stripped of its will is no better than a corpse.”

The Winter King, now nothing more than a puppet with no will of its own, was a pitiful mockery of the terror Wolfgang once knew.

Though she felt a shred of pity, she had no intention of letting it slide.

How the puppet had been resurrected wasn’t important now.

Even in its weakened state, the Winter King was a formidable foe.

Wolfgang knew she had to fight with everything she had.

Unsealing her power, Wolfgang removed her eyepatch, unleashing a torrent of golden flames.

Engulfed in her blazing aura, she clashed head-on with the Winter King.

Meanwhile, below, Leifen looked up at the scene and turned to the others.

“The boss is in battle! We can’t just stand around, can we?”

“I’m aware.”

“I’ll take care of the one with the greatsword. The rest of you, focus on the saint.”

“….”

Recognizing each other as foes, Van, controlling Jaiha’s body, charged Leifen with his greatsword.

Leifen drew his own sword and met the attack head-on.

“Do I have personal feelings about this? You could say that. I don’t like your face, for starters.”

Though the empire was saved by the Vendetta Legion’s intervention, it didn’t change the fact that the scars left behind were unforgivable.