Ch.130130. Operation Gehenna

After leaving Gilbert’s hospital room, Veronica boarded a carriage under the escort of Holy Knights who had been waiting outside the door. As soon as she got in, the carriage headed toward the warp gate to return to the Holy Empire.

Looking at the panoramic view of Infractus’ capital from the swaying carriage, Veronica tapped her fingers on the window frame out of habit. Though she still wore a smile, her mind was incredibly complicated.

Her visit to Gilbert had not been planned. If she returned to the Holy Empire like this, she might face a barrage of scolding from the Pope and the cardinals.

Considering the influence that Saint Veronica held in the Holy Nation, moving about so freely wasn’t the right thing to do. Beyond political reasons, it was too dangerous to move in a situation where her safety wasn’t guaranteed.

But she had to meet Gilbert. The reason she had undertaken this risky trip to Infractus was entirely to face him in person.

“The problem is that my head has become even more complicated.”

Veronica let out a deep sigh.

While her impulsive meeting with Gilbert had gone well enough, she couldn’t help but feel bothered by unnecessarily arousing his suspicion. She couldn’t forget how he had questioned her reason for coming until the moment she left.

Of course, she understood his feelings. A saint from the Holy Empire visiting a fifth-rank knight of the Empire would look suspicious from any angle.

Nevertheless, she had made this journey to Infractus, and she felt uncomfortable knowing she had earned Gilbert’s hostility.

Twirling her long silver hair with her finger, Veronica recalled their recent meeting. Gilbert’s eyes, harboring a rigid heart, had shone brilliantly.

Despite having just awakened from injuries so severe his body was in tatters, his light hadn’t dimmed—rather, it shone even brighter. That alone was enough reason for her to have come here.

Though she couldn’t be certain yet, she could confirm the possibility from that brief meeting. Enough to place some hope in that direction.

“Saint, we’ve arrived at the warp gate.”

“Already? I’ll get out right away.”

Veronica emerged from her thoughts at the Holy Knight’s words. Her complicated mind had sorted itself out somewhat.

As she stepped out of the carriage, she looked back in the direction of Gilbert’s hospital room.

She fervently prayed that at their next meeting, she would know whether he was the figure from the revelation.

***

After Saint Veronica left and Gilbert had organized his thoughts, he welcomed the members of the special unit who had come to see him. They seemed to have arrived as soon as they heard he had awakened.

“Sir Gilbert! I, Hans, am moved once again. To think you cut a Golem Soldier in half?!”

Seeing Gilbert in good health, Hans greeted him with his usual exuberant manner. Having sworn to become a knight following in Gilbert’s footsteps, his eyes resembled those of a young child looking at his idol.

“Hans. This is a hospital room. Don’t you think you’re being too noisy?”

Angelina frowned as she scolded the excited Hans. Of course, Hans, already in high spirits, didn’t listen to her at all.

“Lady Angelina. It was a Golem Soldier! How can I not be excited after seeing someone cut such a thing in half single-handedly!”

“If you find it difficult to close your mouth on your own, I’d be more than willing to help.”

As Angelina raised her fist, Hans wore a nervous expression. Lately, it seemed she had been honing her combat skills, as her punches felt more painful than before.

“I’ll restrain myself…”

“Even so, I was surprised too. I never expected a human body could split even an old model Golem Soldier in half.”

Brynhild recalled the armory with its deep diagonal sword mark. Even now, it was a scene that made her heart race with excitement.

“I guess I’ve found a proper husband candidate.”

Until recently, she couldn’t have imagined that the great Brynhild would be captivated by an Imperial man, but now she felt that choosing Gilbert had been the right decision.

Given the Sigurd clan’s reverence for the strong, there could be no better husband for Brynhild than Gilbert. Although his stubborn attitude currently prevented much progress, she had no intention of giving up easily.

Though she had clearly lost their duel, she had no plans to lose in this arena.

“How are you feeling? Are you alright?”

Lily, who had now put aside past grudges, looked at Gilbert with concern. With her naturally warm personality, she asked if there were any problems with his body.

Gilbert felt a warmth in his heart at her kindness. That she could speak so caringly to someone who had given her such terrible memories showed how broad-minded she was.

“I’m fine.”

Of course, he couldn’t express what he was thinking out loud. His body still refused to speak such warm words. Though he had improved since first possessing this body, the discomfort remained.

“That’s a relief. But how exactly did you do it? When we arrived after receiving the support request, everything was already over, so I didn’t see the details.”

Illen, like Hans, was looking at Gilbert with admiring eyes, but his attitude was distinctly different. True to his serious character, he showed only scholarly interest in martial arts.

Gilbert recalled the memory at Illen’s question.

To be honest, Gilbert himself didn’t understand how it had been possible. He had been fortunate that his physical abilities had increased, allowing him to use the White Tiger skill, and when he pushed himself to the limit, he had developed a vague confidence that he could do it.

So he had put everything into that one strike and delivered it.

Having put his all into it, he had immediately passed out, and when he regained consciousness, he heard he had split the Golem Soldier in half. He couldn’t guarantee he could succeed again if given the same situation.

After all, a Golem Soldier wasn’t a tin can—it wasn’t easy to just cut it in half whenever one wanted.

“I don’t know either. I thought I could do it, so I did it, and that’s how it turned out.”

“Do you realize how arrogant that sounds?”

Angelina’s eyes turned slightly fierce.

“This is why geniuses are insufferable.”

Gilbert cleared his throat after reading her gaze. He had spoken without thinking, but on reflection, even he thought it sounded incredibly arrogant.

“By the way, where’s Camilla?”

Gilbert looked for Camilla, the only member of the special unit who hadn’t come. Given her personality, he had expected her to appear before anyone else, which was unexpected.

“I think Lady Camilla is training separately. She seems to feel guilty about leaving you behind…”

Hans trailed off.

Since Gilbert had been hospitalized, Camilla had been training like a madwoman. The fact that she was following Gilbert’s terrible training regimen made Hans feel sick just thinking about it.

As devoted as he was to Gilbert, following that training was nothing short of insanity.

Once, out of misplaced ambition, Hans had tried Gilbert’s training method. His reasoning was that to follow in Gilbert’s footsteps, he needed to train the same way.

Of course, that resolve didn’t last even a week before he gave up. It was a conclusion reached after countless thoughts that this wasn’t something a human should do.

Yet Camilla was following that impossible training.

He had tried to stop her, thinking she was pushing herself too hard, but she wouldn’t budge. As if possessed by some obsession, she was dedicating herself to training, even skipping meals.

Hearing this from Hans, Gilbert clicked his tongue.

In Tactical Combat, there were various routes for her awakening, but most occurred when she was about to lose something precious.

Sometimes it was a friend, other times family.

She would begin training intensely, believing that her casual attitude toward training was the root cause. Her dormant talent would be triggered and bloom—that was her awakening scenario.

And this time, Gilbert thought, he was the catalyst for her awakening.

“Where is Camilla now?”

“Probably in the courtyard of the quarters. She’s been there constantly since you were moved here.”

At Lily’s words, Gilbert got out of bed. Though his recovery wasn’t complete, moving around wasn’t a problem.

Checking on Camilla was the priority. Her awakening scenario was like a double-edged sword—without proper care, she could take a destructive path.

Not particularly fond of such dark outcomes, Gilbert intended to guide Camilla toward proper growth. It wasn’t right for her to fall into despair when he wasn’t even dead.

“Is it okay for you to get up?”

“It’s fine.”

Despite Lily’s question, Gilbert calmly answered and rose from his seat.

The recovery did seem faster, likely due to the saint’s holy power treatment. It made sense, considering the saint’s holy healing could even offset the penalties of pushing beyond his limits.

Though physical fatigue remained, his super-regeneration, which had been working to offset the limit break penalty, was now focused on recovering from physical fatigue, so he would likely be fully recovered soon.

“Then lead the way.”

Gilbert followed the special unit members toward the courtyard where Camilla was.