episode_0044

“Who’s there?”

“Heh, you still don’t recognize me? Well, engrave this name in your memory today. The woman who’s about to wipe the floor with all of you—’Marin.’ Two syllables. Remember it.”

Finally, Marin tossed aside her glasses and blanket, leapt up, and landed neatly beside Arina.

“Knew you’d be here. You saved me.”

Arina praised Marin with a simple remark. Her tone lacked any real warmth, but since Marin was such a simpleton, it didn’t matter.

Or so she thought.

Unlike usual, Marin wasn’t grinning like an idiot. Instead, she stared at Arina with a grave expression.

“Arina, was what you told me last time… true?”

“Last time? You mean my past? What would I gain from lying to you about that?”

Arina gave a curt reply—it wasn’t a topic she wanted to dwell on. But Marin still muttered with a puzzled look.

“‘That’s weird. There’s no way…’”

“‘No way?’”

It doesn’t make sense. Delusions. Stop talking nonsense.

She’d heard that kind of remark before, but saying there’s no way was oddly out of place.

“Marin, what do you—”

Whoosh! A greatsword sliced through the space where Arina had just stood.

Dodging the blade, Arina leapt onto the roof and grumbled.

“Can’t you wait a second? We were in the middle of talking.”

“Like I’d give you that luxury. We can chat after we capture you. Did you really think adding one more brat would change anything?”

“Yeah, actually. She’s stronger than you, at least.”

Arina jutted her chin toward Marin’s direction. Following her gaze, Leona’s eyes shifted—

CRACK!

In the blink of an eye, Marin’s flying kick slammed into Leona’s face as she turned.

Leona went flying, crashing through a market stall and burying herself under a pile of fruit.

Erwin blinked in shock.

“Even if she was caught off guard, Leona couldn’t even react? Where the hell did this girl come from?”

“My new friend. Pretty impressive compared to trash like you, huh?”

“Even so, fighting all of us is impossible.”

The paladins charged forward, their heavy footsteps shaking the ground.

“Marin. Handle Leona and Erwin. Drain their stamina as much as possible.”

“Got it.”

Planning was Arina’s job. Marin accepted her words without hesitation.

Watching Arina plunge into the midst of the paladins, Marin focused on her own enemies.

As Leona struggled free from the fruit pile, Marin lunged toward Erwin.

“Kkh—?!”

Caught off guard by the sudden attack, Erwin barely had time to react as Marin closed her eyes. This was the moment to go all out.

If her opponents were humans who could be hurt, she’d handle them just fine.

Taking a deep breath, Marin’s mental world unfolded behind her.

The sight before Erwin’s eyes was something she’d never seen before. No—it was a place that shouldn’t exist anywhere in the Peria Continent.

“I’ve seen landscapes like this in paintings. Are you from the Eastern Continent?”

“No.”

Marin spread her legs shoulder-width apart, back straight.

“My hometown is…”

Her left hand rested at her waist while her right fist drew back to chest level.

“…a little further away.”

She grounded her stance.

“Marin Seventy-Two Techniques.”

(She just slapped a name on someone else’s move.)

“Single Fist.”

A simple strike—just a straightforward punch from the rear hand. But even its power betrayed its simplicity.

“Hup!”

Erwin blocked with her bow. Had it not been made from a World Tree branch, it would’ve shattered instantly, taking her down with it.

She barely managed to skid back, scraping her feet against the ground. One more hit like that, and she’d have been out cold.

“Leona, be careful. I don’t think we can beat her one-on-one.”

“Embarrassing. A member of the Hero’s Party getting pushed back by a lone adventurer.”

Still, she wasn’t about to let pride cloud her judgment. This was a fight they had to win.

The usual airheaded, carefree Marin was nowhere to be seen. Her gaze was deadly serious.

“That porter in your party… just what kind of person is she?”

“Why do you care? Got a crush? Too bad, he’s not into scrawny girls like you.”

Erwin and Leona subtly straightened their backs, flaunting their ample chests. Normally, such a topic would’ve made Marin puff up with excitement. But now, she just stared at the ground with hollow eyes.

“So she does exist, huh? Who exactly… No, forget it. That doesn’t matter anymore.”

Marin gritted her teeth.

She wanted nothing more than to pummel these two and lay them at Arina’s feet—

‘But is that even possible?’

Enemies surrounded them. Paladins, the Saintess, the Paladin Commander, even the Pope. Arina was holding her own, but eventually, her mana would run dry before theirs did.

Marin couldn’t guarantee victory against two Hero Party members backed by the Saintess’ blessings.

BOOM!

Leona yanked her greatsword back and stomped the ground.

The half-collapsed fruit stall was obliterated in the shockwave as she charged Marin at speeds only Erwin and Marin could track.

Ducking just beneath the blade, Marin gathered energy in her fist.

“Marin Seventy-Two Techniques—”

“Hundred-Step Divine Fist!”

Her fist shot upward like a comet, aiming for Leona’s chin. Though dodged at the last second, the sheer force left a thin cut on Leona’s cheek.

“Whew, that was close. You’re strong.”

“Too bad you didn’t take the full hit. You’d really feel it then.”

“Like I’d let you—Erwin!”

At Leona’s call, golden arrows shot from three directions simultaneously—left, right, and behind—while Leona poised her sword in front.

Only one escape remained: the sky.

Marin kicked off the ground, launching upward to evade.

An instinctual move against a quadrant attack—but this instinct was her undoing.

No matter how fallen the Hero Party was, they were veterans of countless battles. They’d let her escape to the air for a reason.

FWOOSH—!

An arrow, channeling mana magnitudes beyond what she’d dodged, locked onto her.

Trapped midair, even the strongest couldn’t maneuver.

Below, Leona, wreathed in golden flames, waited.

Marin pressed her palms together.

THUD! THUD! THUD! BOOM!

Her heart hammered, funneling energy—no, mana—into her hands. It surged through artificial circulatory paths, coalescing in her palms.

Blood vessels bulged grotesquely as her hands swelled with pooled blood and mana.

Merging the dual streams into one, she thrust her right palm toward Erwin.

KWA—AAA!

The arrow tore through the atmosphere, obliterating buildings in its wake. Marin’s brown hair whipped in the gale-force winds.

Stone pillars trembled. Weapons flew from hands.

Even as the radiant arrow dimmed its own light in paradox, Marin stood unwavering—anchored in her own world, whispering inwardly:

“Marin Seventy-Two Techniques…”

“Divine Palm of Tathāgata.”

A massive blast of mana, shaped like her palm, surged forth and collided with Erwin’s arrow.

KWA—AAANG!

A blinding explosion lit the plaza. Buildings evaporated. Entire blocks were wiped clean, doubling the square’s width.

Most collapsed or were sent flying—but there was no time to breathe.

The second Hero Party member was already striking.

A golden sword of solar fury—larger than before, nearly scraping the sky—descended toward Marin.

No time for another Divine Palm.

Her stance shifted. Tight. Focused.

“Marin Seventy-Two Techniques—”

(For a split-second, foreign words flickered in her mind, but she suppressed them.)

WHOOSH!

The Empire’s flames—a warrior’s pride—engulfed her.

Inferno Blades’ signature superheated flames.

Enhanced by the Saintess’ buffs.

No amount of physical reinforcement could save her now.

“Ngh…”

Stumbling out of the flames, Marin’s body was charred black from head to toe.

“Hurts… It’s been a while since I felt like this.”

“You should be dead. Seriously, why not join the Hero’s Party instead?”

Even as she spoke, Erwin nocked another arrow, ready to finish her off then and there.

Marin’s strength was astonishing—but she wasn’t a priority like Arina.

“Would I get to go on adventures with Arina? Tempting, but pfft—no thanks.”

Black smoke curled from her lips as she grinned through the pain.

“You’d rather die?”

“Heh… As if… I’d lose… to the likes of you.”

Trembling legs steadied. Stance reset.

With every ounce of strength, she torqued her hips, detonating the energy coiled in her left fist.

A blinding white light erupted, flooding her entire body.

“Marin Seventy-Two Techniques—”

Leona and Erwin reacted late—they hadn’t expected her to have anything left.

And why would they?

This level of endurance shouldn’t exist outside of demons or heroes.

No ordinary human, no matter their lineage or training, could withstand this.

Erwin loosed her arrow. Leona swung her flames. But their attacks lacked full power.

“Arhat Divine Fist!”

The shockwave swallowed their attacks whole. Leona’s shield—the one even Arina’s magic couldn’t breach—shattered.

Orichalcum armor cracked under the fist’s imprint, sending both women hurtling across the plaza.

“Kkh—!”

Erwin groaned, biting back frustration.

“Hah… Haah… Heh. Damn, she’s strong.”

Leona lay sprawled, chuckling weakly.

Panting, Marin steadied her breathing.

She’d taken down two key members—but she was in no shape to celebrate.

“…Huh?”

Her eyes darkened with dread.

A blinding light cascaded from the heavens.

Holy. Radiant. Divine.

Golden radiance—beautiful, yet staining Marin’s heart gray.

The light washed over Leona and Erwin, healing their wounds as if they’d never been injured. They stood.

Paladins, moments from death, rose again.

No matter how many times they fell, the enemy would always get back up.

A sight that bordered on terror.

“Marin.”

A voice from behind.

Arina gripped her shoulder, meeting her exhausted gaze—and smiled.

“Sorry… I tried my best,” Marin mumbled.

“No. You did enough. They’re worn out now. Even Marika.”

Arina had only asked her to drain their stamina, not defeat them. Against a Saintess, the latter was impossible.

The stage was set. Now it was her turn.

“This ends here.”

Arina closed her eyes, forming a hand seal.

“『Eclipse』.”