Ch.136Chapter 136 – The Sentinel

A ball of light in the form of a priestess flew up into the sky.

As she spread her wings wide, I could see dangerous-looking light gathering there.

[Take this first!]

With those words, beams of light began shooting from both wings.

“As if I’ll let you!”

Beatrice immediately swung her iron chains.

Surprisingly, the light bent like a living creature, avoiding the chains.

“What the—!”

[Did you think I’d use something so flimsy?]

The priestess shouted with a confident voice.

I changed my weapon to a halberd.

‘Which one should I aim for?’

With two streams of light flying toward us in unstable trajectories, it was difficult to know how to deflect them.

Beatrice, who had already retrieved her chains, was clicking her tongue, apparently finding it hard to aim as well.

At that moment, Eve shouted.

“They’re going to converge in the center!”

Eve was pulling Sera and Christina to the side as she shouted.

I quickly exchanged glances with Beatrice and we ran in opposite directions.

The wildly bending light beams, just as Eve had predicted, converged in the center and caused a massive explosion.

[Eh? You actually predicted that?]

The priestess made a dumbfounded sound.

And in an instant, Beatrice reached her.

Just as she thrust her fist forward to strike the priestess’s face, the priestess raised her arm to block the punch.

Beatrice and the priestess began to fight hand-to-hand.

[Wow, I’ve never seen a mage skilled in physical combat before!]

The priestess exclaimed in admiration as she deflected Beatrice’s kick.

After blocking and evading several of Beatrice’s attacks, she saw an opening and aimed a punch at Beatrice’s stomach.

But Beatrice caught the punch with her iron chain.

“You don’t know modern mages, do you, basement-dwelling granny!”

[Who are you calling granny!]

The priestess became angry.

But Beatrice had already started swinging her chain.

The priestess, caught in the chain, began spinning as Beatrice swung her around.

[I’m spinning! Spinning! Let me gooo!]

“Then I’ll let you go!!”

The priestess was screaming as she was swung at high speed.

Then Beatrice released the chain, hurling the priestess to the ground.

-CRASH!!

The priestess collided with the ground, sending stone fragments flying everywhere as dust rose into the air.

Watching this, Beatrice shouted.

“So she does have a physical form!”

[That’s right!!]

Wings began swinging through the dust.

The widely swung wing cleared away the dirt and dust, striking Beatrice like a blunt weapon.

However, before hitting the ground, Beatrice used her chain to leap back into the air.

Seeing this, the priestess spread her wings wide again.

[My wings aren’t just for show! Now, try this!]

As the priestess swung her wings, what looked like feathers began to fall one by one.

Then they transformed into blade-like shapes and shot toward Beatrice.

“‘Protect the young lamb!'”

With Christina’s incantation, the feathers embedded themselves in a shield and exploded.

Seeing this, the priestess nodded.

[Hmm. Not bad for borrowed holy power?]

The priestess seemed interested, as if she hadn’t expected them to be blocked.

[But how about this…]

“Magic Missile!”

As Sera immediately launched a magic missile, the priestess twisted her body.

She used her wings as a shield to block Sera’s attack.

Then, slightly lowering her wings, she stuck out her tongue at Sera.

[It won’t work…]

Unfortunately, the priestess couldn’t finish her sentence.

Sera had already put her hand into her pocket.

“Mr. K!”

At Sera’s call, I changed my weapon to a sword and held it in reverse grip.

Then Sera threw something that looked like a ball, which exploded in mid-air and released what appeared to be a net that fell over the priestess.

[What is this?!]

“It’s a net made of threads imbued with magical power!”

The net fell on the priestess, restraining her.

The priestess could be seen struggling to tear the net apart.

[This is tough! But don’t think I can’t tear it!]

After shouting that, she began to spread her wings.

It seemed she was trying to use her wings to remove or tear the net.

‘Now’s my chance.’

This moment when she was struggling with the net, making both movement and defense difficult.

I quickly grabbed my sword and threw it.

[Gyaaaaaaah!!]

With a shriek, the priestess tore through the net and quickly turned her head.

She had dodged the attack by a hair’s breadth, and I could see her placing a hand on her chest as if to calm her startled heart.

Then she began pointing her finger at me accusingly.

[Hey! You shouldn’t throw things at someone’s face! It ruins my makeup!]

“What makeup? You’re not even human!”

I shouted back, pointing my finger at her.

Meanwhile, the sword I had thrown automatically returned to me, but the priestess didn’t seem to care as she continued shouting.

[That’s not the point!! Don’t you know a beauty’s face should be protected?! You’re a virgin, aren’t you?! I can tell you’ve never been with anyone!! Want me to pity you?!!!]

“What are you saying, you ancient hag who’s so old you’ve forgotten your own age!”

She had quite the voice.

Honestly, I felt like my ears might split as I shouted back.

[You disrespectful little brat!!]

The priestess flew at me, flapping her wings.

With a wave of her hand, light gathered and transformed into something like a mace.

Seeing this, I changed my weapon to a mace and swung it.

-BOOM!

A considerable shock wave reverberated as our weapons collided.

I had thought her light-composed body would have almost no weight, but I was nearly pushed back.

Then I quickly changed my weapon to a spear and swung it, but the priestess flew up to avoid it.

I charged forward swinging the spear, and we clashed a couple of times in mid-air.

When I changed my weapon to a sword to stab her, the priestess blocked the attack with her mace.

[Now for your head…!]

The priestess twisted her mace upward, forcing my hand slightly upward.

I changed my weapon back to a spear and moved slightly to the side.

The mace came crashing down where I had just been.

[Stop being so annoying!]

The priestess was angry, but I had no time to respond.

I couldn’t miss the opportunity presented by her exposed side after her wide swing.

Without hesitation, I thrust my spear, but she blocked it with her wing.

‘That was shallow.’

Although the spear pierced through the wing of light, it only barely touched her body.

[Wow, you pierced through? How strong are you?]

The priestess seemed a bit surprised as she said this.

Then she quickly changed her expression.

[Sorry, but this much won’t even leave a scratch…]

“Let’s see about that.”

I changed the spear into a scythe.

The weapon that had barely touched the edge of her garment transformed, piercing through the priestess’s waist and shoulder, and I could see her expression turn to dismay.

Then I pulled the scythe with all my might and swung it.

[Uh, uh, kyaaaaaaah?!!]

I saw the opponent being cut in half, wings and all.

“Who’s being careless now?”

With a weapon that can transform at will, this kind of tactic is possible.

I watched as the bisected priestess turned to dust and disappeared.

[Ah… am I… like this…]

The priestess looked at me with a dejected expression.

And then.

She smiled.

[Do you think it’s over?]

I quickly ducked as a mace passed over my head.

When I changed my weapon to a sword and swung it with all my might, the opponent’s mace blocked my attack.

I clicked my tongue as I looked at the attacker.

“So this is what happens when you’re made of light.”

[Not light, but holy power.]

The priestess’s body, which had turned to dust, was reconstructing itself.

Soon, after regenerating even her face, she lightly tapped her hair and said:

[Regenerating like this makes me feel like my skin is refreshed too. What do you think?]

“I’d rather age with dignity than end up as old as you.”

[You know, girls are going to hate you.]

Saying that, the priestess flew up into the air again.

Then, smiling, she pointed at each of us one by one.

[That swordswoman seems to have good instincts, judging by how she read my attack trajectory… The mage can handle close combat too… The priestess seems to have decent potential…]

She seemed to be evaluating each of us.

[The alchemist seems smarter than I expected… and that gloomy helmet has good strength and technique.]

After evaluating each of us, she smiled and said:

[But I don’t see any way I could lose!]

The priestess was shouting confidently despite having struggled earlier.

Her wings spread wide again, and this time four lights began to gather.

[I won’t go easy this time!]

Beams of light shot from her wings.

Seeing those beams, Eve shouted:

“Christina! Upper left! Seraphina, the two coming toward the ground!”

Following the instructions, Christina began to pray and Sera started chanting.

A shield of light and two stone walls rose up exactly where Eve had indicated, perfectly blocking the enemy’s attacks.

The remaining beam was curving in from the upper right.

Beatrice swung her iron chain.

-BOOM!!

“The power seems stronger than before!”

[I told you I wouldn’t go easy!]

The priestess was looking down at us, responding to Beatrice’s comment.

She had somehow positioned herself directly above us, spreading her wings wide.

And feathers were falling from her wings.

[Oh, they explode on contact, by the way?]

“Oh no!”

I could see Eve using her sword to deflect feathers near Sera and Christina.

The feathers flew a short distance before exploding.

“Damn it, fall back!”

Beatrice swung her chain widely.

Indeed, the feathers in the path of the chain exploded.

After one wave of explosions that neutralized the falling feathers, we had a moment’s respite.

[Ah, they’re continuously falling, you know.]

“Damn it!”

Looking up at the sky, I could see feathers still falling.

“Damn, we need to intercept them somehow…”

Just as Beatrice was saying this, the priestess was descending, seemingly unconcerned about the explosions.

[An opening!]

She aimed her mace at Beatrice’s head.

I quickly jumped in, pushing Beatrice aside to dodge.

“Ugh, thanks, helmet.”

“Deal with the feathers!”

I asked Beatrice to handle the feathers, as we couldn’t fight properly like this.

I stood up, changed my weapon to a greatsword, and held it like a shield.

The priestess immediately jumped toward me and swung her mace.

-BOOM!!

As I blocked the attack, the priestess smiled and shouted:

[Sacred relics are amazing! They don’t break!]

I blocked the enemy’s attacks a couple of times with the greatsword, then changed my weapon to counter her mace.

During this time, feathers were still falling from the sky, and looking at the opponent, I realized her wings were gone.

[Actually, my wings are detachable!]

“What the hell is that?!”

I swung my weapon with all my might, but the priestess jumped back to avoid the attack.

I tried to pursue her, but a few feathers that Beatrice had missed exploded right in front of me, forcing me to abandon the chase.

Then the priestess emerged through the explosion to engage me in close combat again.

‘Was that just a warm-up before?’

Her attacks were more precise than before.

Not only were they stronger, but she was also incorporating feints into her attacks.

I could feel that the enemy’s close combat skills were extraordinary.

[In my lifetime, I only fought monsters!]

The priestess smiled as she spoke.

[Back in my day! If you couldn’t physically handle yourself after your holy power ran out, you were dead!]

I changed to a mace as well, blocking the path of her mace.

[But you’re better than I expected? I thought you might just be lucky grave robbers!]

“There aren’t even grave robbers who would target this place!”

As I retorted forcefully, the enemy showed an opening.

I quickly changed to a greatsword and slashed her body.

Then I clicked my tongue as I watched her regenerate again.

“Damn it.”

[I told you. I’m made of holy power.]

Thanks to the regeneration, the feathers had stopped falling.

[Sure, you can parry with weapons and such because I have a physical form, but even if you cut me properly, I just reconstruct myself, you know?]

And she smiled as if she had won.

[If this continues as a war of attrition, you know what happens, right?]

The opponent began to taunt us, even sticking out her tongue.

Honestly, it was infuriating, but I didn’t have a good solution.

Was this why there weren’t any proper defense mechanisms in the holy site?

‘What should I do…’

At this rate, we would lose.

Should we retreat while we still had strength?

As I was thinking this, I suddenly felt a pain in my heart and unconsciously placed my hand on my chest.

“Ugh…!”

[Your heart doesn’t seem good? Maybe prolonged fighting is too much for you?]

She spoke with surprisingly genuine concern, but I felt fine enough to resume my stance.

‘But she’s right.’

If the fight drags on any longer, we’re doomed.

Without a way to stop the enemy’s regeneration, we’ll eventually be worn down and defeated.

Additionally, judging from her fighting skills earlier, either Beatrice or I would have to engage directly.

And since Beatrice needed to intercept the feathers, it was ultimately up to me.

‘Think carefully.’

I needed to find a way to stop the regeneration of a body composed of holy power.

‘Wait a minute.’

Holy power?

I looked at my weapon again.

Then I looked at Christina.

‘That’s it.’

First, I needed to check if we had it.

I immediately looked at Sera.

“Sera.”

“Yes?”

“Do you have any of that holy water you jellified?”

“I have about one bottle…”

Sera seemed to catch on to what I was thinking.

She looked at me with slightly worried eyes.

“Will it work?”

“We’ll have to try and see.”

The rest of our companions were curious about what we were discussing.

And so was our opponent.

[What is it? What? Perhaps some final words? ‘I’ve always loved you,’ something like that? How passionate!]

“No way, you old hag!”

Angrily, I subtly extended my weapon toward Sera, and she immediately opened a bottle and began spraying its contents on my sword.

[Aw, what is it? If you were confessing your love, I was going to let you. Big sis is disappointed.]

“I’ve never had a sister like you.”

At my response, the priestess’s expression became slightly sulky.

[Here I come.]

With just those words, the priestess began scattering light beams and feathers again.

And she herself jumped into the fray.

While my companions were busy intercepting, I charged toward the priestess.

I deflected the priestess’s incoming mace and changed my weapon to a dagger, slashing her body as I passed by.

[That won’t be enough…]

The priestess paused briefly.

Then, as if surprised, she lightly touched her waist.

[Huh?]

“Looks like I was right.”

Holy power had gathered slightly on the dagger.

The weapon was faintly glowing with a golden light.

[What is that?]

“It’s something our genius alchemist made by turning holy water into jelly.”

I changed my weapon to a sword and pointed it at the priestess.

“It absorbs holy power and amplifies it slightly.”

It had been useful against corpse golems.

Originally, it was designed to absorb holy power, amplify it, and allow it to be wielded.

The important point is that it also has the property of absorbing holy power.

“You said you’re composed of holy power and keep regenerating?”

Then the solution is simple.

“I just need to absorb that holy power.”

I showed her the dagger that had absorbed the holy power from her body.

Smiling at the bewildered priestess, I said: