Chapter 66: Holy Land(6)

When Avalli was still on Earth, a student lost in thought, like many young people who loved books, she often pondered metaphysical questions.

Communication and dialogue.
Forgiveness and understanding.
War and peace.

Her conclusions were always the same: ‘There’s nothing I can do.’ It was a disheartening answer, reducing her concerns to mere fantasies.

It felt like a lifetime ago, but it had only been less than ten years. Why had she forgotten those feelings?

‘…Well, no one wants to remember their angsty teenage phase.’

Avalli thought, catching her breath. The sudden resurgence of those memories was perhaps triggered by the fact that, for the first time since arriving in this world, she had felt a genuine threat.

She sat on the empty black throne, catching her breath, the remnants of the Demon King, a pile of ashes, not far away.

Talking hadn’t been an option. He had attacked without hesitation, and she had responded in kind.

It had been different from her previous battles. For the first time, she had felt a true sense of danger, a very real possibility of…dying. It brought back memories of her first arrival in this world, stranded in the middle of the Great Forest.

‘Perhaps it was even more dangerous than that.’

Back then, her fear had been amplified by panic. Now, she was fully aware of her own power.

And yet, she had still felt the touch of death. Her skin tingled, marked by a dark curse, though it would fade now that the caster was gone.

The Demon King had been strong.

While she had outmatched him in terms of raw power, his combat experience, his knowledge of battle, had been far superior. If it weren’t for the holy sword embedded in his chest, the outcome might have been different. Or if she hadn’t visited Gail and obtained… a certain item.

As she replayed the battle in her mind, she felt a sudden chill. She looked up at the hole in the ceiling and saw snowflakes drifting down.

The world outside the Demon King’s castle, frozen by Selenoxia’s power. The battle had cracked the frozen time, and now… the world was thawing.

‘Is that… 500-year-old snow?’

She felt a strange sense of wonder and then warmed herself with a touch of magic. The warmth dispelled her lingering melancholy.

“…Talking didn’t work.”

She shrugged, stepping down from the throne.

If talking had been an option, the Goddesses wouldn’t have resorted to such drastic measures, freezing time and retreating into a dream world. Even if demons looked like humans, communication was impossible if they didn’t share a common understanding.

There might be exceptions, but… the Demon King wasn’t one of them. She had tried to reason with him, to subdue him without killing him, but he had been relentless.

‘A difference in species, perhaps.’

Avalli knew how cruel humans could be to each other. She came from a world steeped in such history. So perhaps communication with demons, monsters closer to beasts than humans, was simply impossible.

She had still hoped…

“No use dwelling on it. Time to go home.”

Avalli muttered, rummaging through the ashes of the Demon King. She found a small crystal, seemingly absorbing all light.

The Demon King’s magic stone. It radiated a power unlike anything she had ever seen.

Unbeknownst to Avalli, the Demon King could be resurrected through this stone, even after death. The only way to prevent it was to seal the stone within a powerful, living vessel. But no matter how strong the host’s will, the Demon King would eventually find a crack, a weakness, and revive.

He had returned countless times, driving the world to ruin, but—

—Avalli’s power had completely annihilated him, his soul destroyed, leaving no fragment behind to cling to the stone.

So, the magic stone in Avalli’s hand wasn’t a key to his resurrection, but simply a source of immense power, enough to create a new world, perhaps.

She tucked it away and prepared to teleport. Normally, it would be instantaneous, reality bending to her will, but she was exhausted.

Just in case, she decided to follow the proper procedure. As she formed the hand signs, recalling the Spatial magic she had read about—

“…Wait.”

A voice, clear and strong, echoed through the empty castle.

“I don’t know who you are… but this place is dangerous. I managed to wound the Demon King, but his forces could return at any moment.”

The voice was… concerned for her safety. A moment later, a figure emerged, a girl with shoulder-length black hair, clad in battered white armor. Her expression was resolute, but she looked…fragile, as if she might collapse at any moment.

“Who are you?”
“…That’s my question. You need to get out of—”

—here. She didn’t finish her sentence. She fainted.

Avalli hesitated. Who was this girl? Should she help her?

‘She’s weaker than me, so it doesn’t matter,’ she decided.

‘And she seems… reasonable.’

Avalli teleported, taking the unconscious girl with her.

Back to the Holy Kingdom, to Lumia.

One Transcendent Being had fallen; another had departed.
And within the Demon King’s castle, frozen by Selenoxia’s power, time began to rewind, erasing all traces of his presence.

****

It took less than two hours.

Lumia, who had been sensing the fluctuations in space and time, gasped as Avalli reappeared.

“Are you alright, Avalli?”
“I’m fine. My arm is a little singed, but it’ll heal.”, “The Demon King’s curse isn’t that easily dismissed! Come here!”

A warm, golden light emanated from Lumia’s hand, enveloping Avalli’s arm. The tingling pain vanished.

“Oh, thanks.”
“This is no time for casual pleasantries!”

Lumia was about to continue, her voice filled with concern, when she noticed the unconscious, black-haired girl behind Avalli.

“Who is this?”, “I found her in the Demon King’s castle. She’s not an enemy… I think. She looks hurt. Could you heal her?”

Avalli said, then sat down on the central throne and, noticing the uneaten cookies from earlier, popped one into her mouth.

Lumia healed the girl, then asked cautiously,

“…What happened to the Demon King?”
“As you can see, I won.”
“Where is he now—?”
“Gone. Completely.”

Lumia stared at her, aghast. How had she defeated that monster so quickly?

“A…Are you sure?”
“Can’t you feel it? Such a powerful presence… vanished?”

Lumia shook her head. She wasn’t powerful enough to sense such things across the barrier of frozen spacetime. In fact, Avalli was likely the only one in this world capable of such a feat.

“I defeated him. Believe it or not, it’s up to you.”
“…I believe you, Avalli. But it’s… hard to comprehend.”

The Demon King, a source of terror for centuries, had been defeated in mere hours. It was like something out of a children’s story.

She focused on what she could do: healing the unconscious girl.

‘…Her clothes… look familiar…’

Lumia thought, just as the girl stirred and opened her eyes. She looked around, then, seeing Lumia, seemed to relax.

“G…Goddess. You came for me.”

She seemed to recognize Lumia, but the Goddess, being a Transcendent Being, didn’t remember every mortal she encountered.

“Do I know you?”
“What? Of course, you do! It’s me— uh—?” Her face paled.

“Wait a minute… Why does my voice sound like—?”

She touched her throat, her voice filled with confusion and then stumbled towards a nearby mirror—

“This can’t be happening…”

—and mumbled in disbelief.

‘…This seems familiar.’

Avalli’s mind, fueled by sugar, raced. The holy sword. The voice. Lumia’s reaction, and the girl’s familiarity with her… and her presence in the Demon King’s castle.

‘…Hmm…’

She quickly put the pieces together. It was like…

‘I’ve been promoted to senpai.’

That day, the Demon King was defeated, and after 500 years, the Hero had returned.
…Albeit in a slightly different form.