episode_0173

EP.173: 173. The Ariel Order

It is already a known fact that the Ariel Order called in all their followers before starting the holy war.

But District 1 isn’t only filled with such people.

Just like District 11 isn’t exclusively full of mages.

Of course, even if the Ariel Order does have a significantly larger number of followers residing there compared to other districts.

There should still be a sufficient number of ordinary people.

However, currently, no people could be found in District 1.

“……Every house is empty.”

“Surely they didn’t kill them all?”

“For now, there’s no smell of blood at all in District 1.”

Since Grace, who is sensitive to smells, said this, it seems they didn’t kill everyone.

“Perhaps, just like the other Holy Knights, they brainwashed all the civilians too and made them come out voluntarily?”

“That’s probably the most likely possibility. If so, isn’t there a place where they gathered all of them?”

At my words, the Saintess seemed to have a place in mind.

“Perhaps they put the civilians together with the followers in a place where followers can be gathered? Honestly, ordinary people also have mana.”

“Where is that?”

“Mostly near the Holy Land. It’s efficient to be close to the Holy Land to use divine power.”

“Then going towards the Holy Land is our top priority.”

Whether it’s rescuing people or defeating the Pope, everything requires going to the Holy Land.

But.

“There are a lot of Holy Spirits spread around, and barriers scattered in between.”

“It won’t be easy to secretly break through with stealth.”

As if already knowing that I could use stealth, the path leading to the Holy Land was densely filled with barriers and Holy Spirits.

“Just as expected of the Pope. His position is the most important thing in the world.”

That’s also true of how he smeared divine power all over the castle walls behind barriers that would never be breached.

On top of that, within District 1 itself, there were barriers that seemed to have been prepared long ago, and Holy Spirits guarding this place alone.

Seeing the Pope’s personality revealed, everyone clicked their tongues.

“How did someone like this rise all the way to Pope?”

“It’s precisely because he’s someone who thoroughly looks out for his own gain that he rose that high.”

People who are too kind and devout ultimately get pushed aside in politics and can’t reach the top.

The Pope isn’t just handpicked by the Main Deity either.

As far as I know, the Main Deity currently has very little influence on the Order.

“Haa…. This is a bit troublesome.”

Honestly, I thought it would be very easy to break through if I used stealth.

I thought there would only be Holy Spirits inside, or brainwashed Holy Knights.

But they created barriers everywhere, between buildings and all around.

This is bordering on madness.

“To break through this, normal methods won’t work.”

“What method is there?”

All that’s left is a frontal breakthrough.

But a blatant breakthrough is something only a fool would do.

If they are this thorough outside the Holy Land, there’s no reason they wouldn’t be the same inside.

“We need to rescue all the brainwashed followers. And fight together.”

*

The best way to confront a massive enemy with a small number of troops is guerrilla warfare.

A tactic of hitting and withdrawing to gradually chip away at the enemy.

Even if they chase us, there’s no problem. If they chase a small number, their formation will collapse, and if the main force enters there, it could cause a huge problem.

Here, the main force is me.

If I enter near the Holy Land and start making the brainwashed Holy Knights regain their senses one by one, the game is over.

The enemies would know that too.

The Pope is cunning and selfish, but unlike the Saintess, he’s not an idiot.

“Is it really okay to shoot as much as I want?!”

Kairek’s voice, heard through the small communication-type monster summoned by Noah.

“Yes. Make sure the opponent can’t get their bearings.”

“Understood.”

Not long after, a flash of flame appeared in the distance.

I could see Kairek starting to shoot fire arrows using [Rain of Arrows].

Starting with that signal, the Saintess alone boldly charged forward to break through the front.

The Saintess advanced, deliberately scattering divine power in all directions as if asking to be noticed.

“Th-this is my chance to look good to the Apostle…!!”

Hearing the Saintess’s voice through the communication-type monster, it seemed she would do exactly as I wished.

I also headed to my position.

Grace was waiting for me, her arms spread wide.

“It has begun.”

“And the others?”

“Over there.”

Where Grace pointed with her chin, the sight of Jack and Luca starting their attacks simultaneously was visible.

Jack, Luca, the Saintess, and Kairek attacking from all sides and tearing through the barriers.

Me and Grace. And Noah, who is in my shadow.

The plan is for these three to use the opening they create to move stealthily to the location the Saintess informed me about.

*CRASH*!!!

The barrier in front of us shattered from the Saintess’s attack, and at the same time, I was held in Grace’s arms.

This posture has become familiar now.

Immediately, Grace held me and began to move quickly inside.

The only enemies visible were Holy Spirits.

Perhaps they filled the area only with Holy Spirits, considering that I could break brainwashing.

Thanks to that, there was room in the battlefield.

Unlike the brainwashed Holy Knights who actively use barriers and divine magic, Holy Spirits just blindly extend fists imbued with light.

It’s a fighting style very similar to the Saintess.

Perhaps if you just increase the power of a Holy Spirit, you could call it a Saintess.

Anyway.

The Saintess, who is clearly a superior version, crushed the barriers and enemies in front of her with a powerful light.

She was so powerful that the barriers where her fist touched were completely shattered.

We aimed for that opening and entered inside.

Wrapped in stealth, we quickly ran through the alleys between buildings.

The Holy Spirits were convinced that we had entered and started searching the surroundings.

Certainly, it was obvious to anyone that we would enter this way.

As if not giving even the slightest opening, they were just pouring attacks into thin air.

“…Just as Mr. Ivan expected.”

Immediately turning back, Grace returned to the starting point.

During that time, there were moments when attacks passed right by her head.

But thanks to Grace’s fast footsteps, we successfully returned to the original position safely.

Of course, there were no Holy Spirits at the initial position.

They were attacking wildly near the Holy Land to fight the intruders and to attack enemies they weren’t sure had entered.

[Wasn’t that called shadowboxing?]

Noah, sticking her head halfway out from the shadow.

Just as she said, the invisible Ivan would accelerate the enemies’ exhaustion.

As the saying goes, haste makes waste.

Watching the Saintess and the party members rampage, waiting for the moment the enemies showed a momentary opening to break through.

That is the best strategy we can use right now.

*Boom* – *Boom* –

District 1 became noisy.

Around the time the Saintess’s figure was no longer visible to my eyes.

Gradually, the Holy Spirits started to become invisible.

The barriers had also almost disappeared. It seemed the path to the Holy Land was open.

“How about we enter about now?”

“That would be good.”

Both Noah and Grace judged that it would be good to enter.

But why? My intuition was telling me not yet.

It felt like the Pope, who had prepared this thoroughly, would throw in one more trick.

“Not yet.”

Ten minutes, twenty minutes.

As time passed, the Saintess fought more desperately.

The condition of the party members was also getting worse.

Furthermore, it seemed they were calling in troops from outside. Holy Spirits started coming from the outskirts.

And the enemies who were attacking everywhere to keep me, who was moving around in stealth, in check, also seemed to realize it was meaningless. They just started pouring attacks onto the Saintess.

Unlike Luca, Kairek, and Jack, who were skirmishing on the outskirts, the Saintess was taking all the attacks head-on, and she seemed to be reaching her limit.

“Ughhhhhh!!!! I should have just stayed quietly in the corner!!!!”

Even if you regret it alone, you’re already part of our group, so you have to bear it yourself.

“Think of it as repayment for the hell you put me through at the beginning.”

After pushing the Saintess even harder than I expected.

When the Saintess became the Pied Piper Saintess, leading numerous Holy Spirits around.

“Let’s go!”

Finally, the time had come.

[Stealth]

Me and Grace quickly melting into the world.

Having confirmed through Noah that stealth was applied well, I immediately held onto Grace.

“Hold on tight!!”

Held tightly in Grace’s arms, I ran towards the Holy Land.

The barriers that had been guarding the area around the Holy Land were already destroyed, and the buildings were also leveled.

After silently giving my thanks for one second to the Saintess, who had perfectly done her job of clearing the path.

I dashed forward, cutting through the wind.

“All the barriers are gone.”

As a result of the Saintess truly wreaking havoc.

There was nothing blocking our path ahead.

“Are you going straight to the Holy Land?”

“No, just as the Saintess said, let’s go to the place where people might be held captive.”

Immediately, Grace’s ears twitched.

Grace, who had been checking for faint breathing sounds in the noisy District 1.

While running for a long time, she suddenly changed direction.

“Found it!!”

The place Grace immediately took me to was a chapel.

“…I can hear people’s breathing sounds from inside.”

“Just as the Saintess told us.”

District 1, unlike other districts, has the Holy Land of the Ariel Order, so most of the humans there are followers.

Therefore, to accommodate the prayer times and worship services of so many people, there are such large chapels.

Indeed.

There were Holy Knights defending this place alone.

Are they brainwashed Holy Knights? I immediately spread my senses to check, but.

Unfortunately, that was the wrong answer.

“…They aren’t brainwashed. They’re probably the Pope’s personal guards, or Holy Knights who are his underlings.”

“Then let’s go around and enter.”

We have a guide here, after all.

Finding not only paths in a labyrinth but also secret ways to enter buildings was not difficult.

Silently opening the window lock, we carefully entered the chapel on the 3rd floor.

Entering a place similar to a storage room, we cautiously came out, and a wide space was revealed.

A gigantic chapel stretching from the 1st to the 3rd floor.

The moonlight filtering through the stained glass depicting the Main Deity subtly illuminated the interior.

“……It’s scary.”

First, brainwashed Holy Knights and priests stood still, staring into the air.

Their eyes had lost reason, and their bodies were stiffly rigid.

The sight of such individuals packed tightly in rows was truly something out of a horror movie.

And that wasn’t the end of it.

People stacked neatly.

All the chairs for worship were cleared away, and people were laid out neatly on the flat floor as if playing Tetris. They seemed to be in a deep sleep from which they wouldn’t wake up no matter what.

Seeing humans stacked up like a warehouse, we could see how recklessly the Pope was acting.

“Does that mean there are several more chapels like this?”

“…Yes.”

I immediately spread my senses to check their condition.

Unlike the Holy Knights and priests whose consciousness was merely suppressed so they could fight at any time.

Divine power was being applied to ordinary people to keep them in a deep sleep.

However.

“Mana is continuously draining from the bodies of the followers.”

“Is that what they’re using to maintain the Holy Spirits and barriers?”

“Since they used all the humans in District 1, such unbelievable actions are possible.”

“Furthermore, they called in all the followers who were in other regions as well.”

By continuously using the mana of so many citizens in this way, he could continue to use such unbelievable divine magic.

“Huh? Isn’t that Kitra?”

Grace pointed to a certain priest.

She was wearing priestly robes, but the symbol of the Blue Sun Clan on her shoulder stood out.

The clan members had already been worried since Kitra disappeared after going to District 1.

Her consciousness seems to be gone, but fortunately, her body seems unharmed.

While looking around and examining numerous people in this way.

Suddenly, Grace’s head snapped around.

“Wait, some of those Holy Knights over there are moving?”

Some of the Holy Knights who had been stuck in the corner began to move.

“`