Chapter 79 : The Order Of Lunia

Having arrived in Revendale, a major city and strategic hub of the Empire, Ravi, Elfin, and Lenis, with their faces hidden under hoods and masks, supported the still-weak Benjamin as they made their way to the Church of the Lunia Order.

“Thank you for bringing me. I will confess everything to clear the Holy Knight’s name — the false charges that led to the bounty and the fact that Robert is the ‘Underground Worm’ you spoke of. This is one of the largest churches in the Lunia Order, so once I speak with the High Priest, everything should be resolved quickly. I’ll also ask for help in locating the Holy Knight.”

“Thank you so much, Priest Benjamin.”

“No, it’s I who should be grateful. You and your companions saved dozens, even hundreds, of lives. May the blessings of the Goddess Lunia be upon you all.”

Benjamin bowed and, limping slightly, headed into the church.

The three had intended to accompany him inside, but Benjamin politely declined, saying,

“Hoods and masks are not allowed inside the church. It could lead to further misunderstandings, so please don’t worry about me.”

In truth, the moment Ravi and Elfin removed their hoods and masks, their striking features would likely cause immediate recognition — and prompt someone to report them as accomplices of a wanted criminal.

So, the three ultimately let Benjamin go in alone and waited at a nearby shelter, keeping some distance between them.

It was to avoid suspicion — after all, three hooded and masked individuals huddled together might raise eyebrows.

Thanks to Lenis’s magic, they could still communicate even from a distance.

“…Where do you think Alvis is?”

“If Benjamin is right, he’s definitely still alive. If Alvis had been taken down by those underground worms, they wouldn’t have left things quiet like this. Let’s try to stay positive.”

“But… if he’s alive, wouldn’t he have come looking for us by now?”

“Maybe we missed each other somehow? And with the bounty on our heads, it’s hard to even ask anyone for help…”

Though they tried to believe Alvis was alive, the complete lack of clues about his whereabouts left all three feeling lost and aimless.

And with Alvis gone, they realized just how much they had been relying on him without noticing.

The three of them had always been close — good friends — but since Alvis’s disappearance, they’d all felt the change: conversations became fewer and far between.

When Alvis was gone, laughter faded.

When Alvis was gone, no one initiated jokes anymore, and the playful bickering and shouting stopped.

When Alvis was gone, no one dramatically reviewed the meals made from hunted animals or exaggerated their hunting tales.

When Alvis was gone, Ravi and Lenis especially felt the silence — no more whispers of love in their ears.

Even Elfin, who once loathed the man, found herself missing the one who had taken her first kiss.

She spent sleepless nights with a heart full of anxiety and longing.

The three, who had shared every day together for so long, hadn’t fought or argued — yet their journey no longer felt as easy, nor did the surroundings feel as cozy as they once did.

Even the same old campsite bedding felt unbearably uncomfortable, and sleep didn’t come easily.

Elfin and Lenis, who used to scold Alvis daily for his loud snoring, now found themselves missing even that.

A little over a week had passed since the battle at the Grand Cathedral, but it felt more like a month — time seemed to drag on endlessly.

“He—He’ll definitely… come back to us. I’m sure Alvis managed to escape safely. There’s no way he’d just abandon us, right? That guy… he’s hopeless at taking care of himself, so he can’t survive without us… So… yeah, he must be okay.”

Even as Elfin tried to comfort the others, a tremble in her voice betrayed the tears threatening to spill.

The three waited, holding onto a small sliver of hope and expectation — and also, deep unease.

Benjamin, who had promised to come back and deliver news once he had spoken to the others inside, still hadn’t returned.

“Benjamin’s really late.”

“Well, he is trying to tell them that the commander of the Goddess’s Sword Division is a heretic and a traitor. They’re not going to believe that easily.”

“Even so, it’s strange… I heard the followers of the Lunia Order are supposed to be able to tell truth from lies. Can’t they confirm it with their faith?”

BOOM!

Just then, a thunderous crash echoed from the church Benjamin had entered.

Part of the roof blew off.

“!!!”

The three whipped their heads toward the church and, without a word, all three rushed toward it.

With their sharp hearing, Ravi and Elfin could make out the voices coming through the hole in the roof.

“There is no justice in this! How can those who claim to serve and follow the Goddess turn a blind eye to a crisis like this — and even say they’ll detain me?!”

“Priest Benjamin, you’ve long been a cause for concern, inviting dangerous criminals into the church and unsettling the congregation. Then you stormed out and disappeared for ten years, only to return with this nonsense. Are you trying to stir up anxiety so you can steal away our followers? Have you become so blinded by greed?”

“I’m not looking for any of that! If you doubt me — if you think I’m just ranting out of greed — then use the power the Goddess has granted you! You only need to look at me once to know whether I speak truth or lies!

If you don’t act now, the real traitors within the Order will remain unchecked, while innocent people — a real Holy Knight — are being slandered and persecuted! Why won’t you believe me?! How can you justify detaining me instead?! This is sacrilege!”

“Priest Benjamin, don’t you realize your baseless rumors could throw not just the people but the entire society into chaos? Accusing the commander of the Goddess’s Sword of heresy is an outrageous claim that cannot be tolerated. And this nonsense about the Goddess being bound and shackled — truly, who is committing blasphemy here?”

“So now you’re saying that declaring a truth-speaker a heretic and imprisoning him is the will of Goddess Lunia?!”

“And is defending a wanted criminal and a false Holy Knight the will of the Goddess?”

At that moment, Ravi, Elfin, and Lenis burst into the church, shouting:

“Alvis has no reason to be a wanted man, and no reason to be called a fraud!”

“He may not be perfect, but that guy’s the savior of our whole race! Don’t you dare speak ill of him!”

“Do you even realize how many lives would’ve been lost if it weren’t for Alvis? Do you even know what happened on Mount Transen? Let Benjamin go!”

Seeing the three rush in, hoods and masks removed, the High Priest of the Revendale Church pointed at them one by one, then turned to Benjamin.

“These are… the companions of the Black Shadow Mercenaries! Their appearance perfectly matches the descriptions on the wanted posters! Priest Benjamin, you’ve been speaking of taking in criminals into the church, and now here you are, clearly aligned with a bunch of frauds! So this was your plan? Slander the commander of the Goddess’s Sword and ask us to lift the bounty on a conman?!”

“Why won’t you understand?! If you don’t believe me, then use the power the Goddess has granted you and see for yourselves just once!”

“Enough! Benjamin, from this moment forth, you are hereby expelled from the Lunia Order and declared a heretic who has sown chaos in society! All priests of the church — apprehend Benjamin for the crimes of harboring fugitives, slandering the Goddess’s Sword, and committing blasphemy. Arrest his accomplices as well!”

“Yes, sir!”

Watching the High Priest, who refused to listen to a word Benjamin said, Ravi, Elfin, and Lenis exchanged quick glances.

This scene just hit epic levels of emotion and tension — the perfect mix of desperation, loyalty, and that heroic last-minute comeback that gives you chills.

“…Could that person be one of the Subterraneans too?”

“Seems like it.”

“If Alvis were here, he’d know right away… But for now, we’ll have to fight.”

Because of the sheer size of the church, the stationed troops and priests inside were equally numerous.

Even just their numbers alone made this fight overwhelming — and on top of that, the trio couldn’t afford to kill the priests of the Order recklessly, leaving them in a deeply conflicted state as they readied for battle.

Priests poured out of the church en masse, surrounding the three known accomplices of the wanted man.

Meanwhile, the High Priest of Revendale and several senior clerics turned their attacks on Benjamin.

Already badly injured and barely able to move, Benjamin couldn’t mount a proper defense, and the trio, surrounded by sheer numbers, couldn’t get to him to help.

The battle raged on for over an hour.

Eventually, Benjamin, at his physical limit, coughed up blood.

“Guh…”

As he vomited blood, the High Priest and the senior priests gathered their divine power and struck Benjamin’s body with it.

“GAAAAAAAAH!!”

Benjamin screamed, and the three, mid-battle, turned their heads at once toward him.

“Benjamin!!”

“I’m… not lying… Why… Why won’t you believe me…”

Struck by the priests’ divine attacks like magical projectiles, Benjamin looked up at them with a dying face, pleading.

But the High Priest of Revendale and the others only wore cold expressions as they moved in to finish him off.

Trying to hold back so they didn’t kill the priests, the trio found themselves increasingly overwhelmed in a fight that was turning hopeless.

At last, Ravi made a decision in her heart.

If this keeps up, we won’t be able to clear our names, and Benjamin will die.

With Alvis gone, someone has to make the call.

If they won’t listen to anything we say… I know the priests aren’t at fault, but…

Her body trembled at the thought of crossing a line that mustn’t be crossed — but she saw no other choice.

She summoned power to her legs.

As wind began to gather at her feet, Ravi called out to Elfin and Lenis.

“Elfin, Lenis. With Alvis not here, someone has to decide. If we leave things as they are, nothing will change — and Benjamin will die. So… I’ll stain my hands.”

“Ravi, wait — are you seriously going to attack?!”

“We have no other choice. I’ll take all the blame. You two, get ready to treat Benjamin. And when this is over… pretend you don’t know me. Everything that happened here — I did it alone. Got it?”

“Ravi, no! If you do that, you’ll—”

“…I’m sorry. To both of you. And tell Alvis I’m sorry too. We probably can’t travel together anymore after this…”

Rather than all of them getting caught while doing nothing, Ravi made up her mind to cross that line.

SHHRRACK!

A blade of wind, strong enough to slice through buildings, exploded from her leg — and Ravi squeezed her eyes shut, unable to watch the destruction she was about to cause.

BOOOOM!

But the sound of bodies being torn apart never came.

Instead, a massive shockwave rippled through the area, as if something had canceled out the wind slash.

“Urgh…?!”

Through the cloud of dust that rose, a bright light began to shine.

As it cleared just slightly, standing at its center was a brown-haired man with translucent golden wings on his back.

The moment they saw his face, Ravi, Elfin, and Lenis all burst into tears.

“Everyone okay? I’m not too late, am I?”

“ALVIS!!!”