episode_0187

From the center of the altar, as the light subsided and Tier opened her eyes again…

Nari could glimpse, however slightly, the scene of her meeting with the Goddess.

‘It doesn’t seem to be thanks to my power…’

Through the large sanctuary magic, “[Lumina’s Cradle],” it was as if their conversation seeped into her skin.

Perhaps Nari’s conversation with the Goddess was relayed to Pope Gregorius in this way.

Tier’s appearance, once more captured by her eyes, was strikingly different from before.

The faint light mana that had been weighing down her body no longer oppressed her.

Now, it radiated intensely, blindingly so.

And within it, a familiar feeling of mana.

‘That’s…!’

But while it was familiar to Nari, its emanation from Tier’s body felt utterly strange.

Her look around suggested considerable surprise.

Nari waved her hand high, and Tier soon descended toward her.

*Taaat-*

“Did the talk go well?” “Yeah, but…” “It’s alright. I know, you don’t have to say it.”

Her gaze, now devoid of hesitation. Tier, having made her decision, had nothing left to fear, only the slight strangeness of this new world.

“Do you have any, uh, rituals memorized?” “Of course not…? I only just realized that ‘dark mana’ existed within me…”

The reason Tier’s hair was a deep purple. It was because of the dark mana she inherited from her parents, even before awakening to the light mana.

To be precise, the dark mana itself isn’t purple.

However, even after receiving the light mana from Lumina and becoming a saint, her hair didn’t turn gold, and she remained weaker than other saints—all because of the dark mana.

Tier’s body instinctively didn’t want to forget the traces of her parents. She didn’t want to erase her inherited body, her remaining memories.

Unconsciously, she’d hidden it, if only as a tiny physical characteristic.

“Then… I want to claim the lips I left behind.” “In this situation…?”

*Cheol-geok-* *Cheol-geureuk—*

The sanctuary erected by Pope Gregorius surrounding them didn’t allow their reunion to go undisturbed.

Nari, exercising a minimum of restraint, had not inflicted fatal wounds on the brainwashed knights.

Simultaneously, she received continuous healing from the sanctuary’s effects, almost completely recovering from her physical injuries.

And, now.

Like corpses rising from a grave, the fallen knights began to rise en masse.

The last order they received.

「Ho- Holy Knights—!! Stop them immediately—!!」

The Pope was already somewhere, fallen and buried under the ruins of the sanctuary.

But in their minds, his final cry, the ‘sacred word,’ echoed incessantly.

The sacred word uttered by Pope Gregorius is not his own speech. It is the word of the , spoken through the Pope’s voice.

Victims of brainwashing, their hearts torn open, clinging only to faith, are unable to think for themselves.

They simply obey orders.

*Jeol-geok-* *Cheol-geok-* *Teobok-* *Teobok-* *Teobok-*

Along with the fallen knights, reinforcements arrived from outside due to the expanded range of the sacred word’s effect from the sanctuary.

Their number: a thousand.

A thousand knights marched toward Nari and Tier.

“Looks like… you’ll have to keep those lips a little longer.” “I agree.”

Tier’s awakening from the sacred word was an extremely rare case. She had possessed the most fervent faith in the Goddess, yet simultaneously harbored the resolve to abandon her.

She could awaken from even the slightest (?) stimulus.

But these knights were different. They lacked any planted vibes, and their faith, amplified by the strengthened sacred word, pierced the heavens.

To stop them, they would have to be knocked down, just as before.

“I’ll buy time. You go find a way to stop this [Lumina’s Cradle], then undo the sacred word.” “Yes…!!”

*Paaat—*

Simultaneously with the reply, they swiftly dispersed to their respective positions.

… … …

“Now… how am I going to handle this?”

Despite her confident declaration of buying time, Nari had no suitable means at hand.

Magic was unusable due to this damned sanctuary, and her body was more tired than she had anticipated.

The surest course was to hold out until Tier deactivated the sanctuary magic. After that, she could somehow use the returned Aether to subdue them.

While deeply pondering this issue…

She spotted something in the distance, beyond the temple.

*Ssiik-*

Nari stretched her legs long—then,

She started sprinting toward the advancing knights.

*Taaat—!!*

“Ever since I was little, long jump was—”

She put strength into her toes, increasing her stride gradually.

*Skaang—*

The moment a knight’s sword fell toward her…

She pushed off the ground and leaped high into the air.

“Always my best event—!!”

*Paaat—*

Nari shot forward like a bullet, cleaving the air.

Even on the steep downhill section of the stairs, knights were densely packed. She ran toward the opposite side, trampling over their helmets.

“Hot- Yop- Heup- Heuat—”

*Teok-* *Peok-* *Kwang-* *Pat-*

In a single stride, she surpassed dozens of knights, leaping over them. Having evaded them all, she reached the entrance to the outer walls of the Great Temple.

“Looks like I really can’t stand how they’re relying on their numbers…”

*Chwa-aak—*

Nari landed smoothly, standing tall. The knights turned and advanced again.

From the top of the Great Temple, countless knights poured down like an avalanche. Their overwhelming presence made even Nari’s cheeks tremble.

But she never leaves a disadvantageous situation as is.

From behind her, far off, from the First Diocese to here…

A resonance comparable to a Temple Knight’s battle cry spread out.

“I also called for backup.”

*Kung-* *Kung-* *Kung-*

The girl with the pale green hair at the forefront carved a path with her sword, raising a storm. Behind her, knights, each with strong resolve, marched in her wake.

And the man at the center of the formation carried an enormous flag on his back.

It was a flag with the crest of the Nifrantz Kingdom and the emblem of the Second Kingdom Knights.

*Taaat-*

Aspi, arriving first, knelt on one knee behind Nari.

“I apologize for being late, Your Highness.” “It’s fine. You arrived just on time. Phillip?” “He is leading the troops from the rear.”

Nari hadn’t seen the whole army herself, but she could estimate its size just from the sounds of footsteps behind her.

They would certainly be a strong force. However, subduing—not killing—knights under the sanctuary’s buff would be difficult.

“Divide the troops in two; one half protects the common people in each diocese, and the other half seals off the Great Temple.”

This isn’t war.

The sacred word’s effect would likely cause turmoil even among the unarmed citizens of the Holy Kingdom. Protective measures for them are the utmost priority.

This is why she summoned the ‘knights.’ Especially the Second Knight Commander, Carmoer, who would be invaluable in directing the field operations.

Soon, the rest of the troops arrived behind Nari and Aspi.

They immediately changed formation, splitting to the left and right, encircling the temple’s outer walls. Raising swords and shields, not even an ant could pass.

“And this side…” “Rest. I’ll take over for a little while.” “Then… let’s see your skill?”

Nari crossed her arms, took a couple of steps back, and plopped down.

Aspi took a step forward.

Drawing her sword from the scabbard at her waist, the pale-green blade shimmered intensely, catching the sunlight.

Behind her was her beloved husband, her respected lord. Grateful for Nari’s trust in calling her here…

“Heup-”

With a short breath, she raised her sword.

Aspi’s senses were comparable to Nari’s; she also felt the strange phenomenon unfolding around them.

‘The magic… no, the flow of mana is disrupted.’

She released wind mana from her fingertips, and it vanished—*whoosh*—as if scattered by a strong wind.

Then, she realized she could control mana as long as she didn’t release it ‘outward’.

*Chwa-aak-*

Pulling one foot back, she lowered her stance and sharpened the blade.

In her hand was… the Spirit Tempest, Wind Spirit Sword. A sword with a blade made of a wind-attribute magic stone with high mana conductivity, and a magic stone containing Nari’s Aether embedded in its core.

The entire sword was like an empty box for mana. Slowly pouring in wind mana, it was just as Aspi expected; she could manipulate mana into objects as long as her hands were touching them.

She grasped the sword, brimming with wind mana, firmly in both hands.

*Jeobok-* *Jeobok-* *Jeobok-*

Toward the knights, surging like a tsunami, she unleashed a dull yet powerful storm of sword strikes.

“Haaap—!!”

*Shuwaak—*

The instant Aspi swung her sword, the surrounding wind stilled, as if it had stopped.

Then, a green storm tore through the sanctuary.

*Kugugugugugu—!!*

The swirling, rampaging gale swept the knights away, tossing them like leaves in the wind.

“Haat- Haaap—!!”

Aspi kept delivering her blunt sword strikes. Fully accepting Nari’s order to subdue, not kill, it was a violent yet gentle pale green wind.

By the time she paused for breath, after her twenty-seventh storm, more than half of the Temple Knights were lying scattered on the stairs.

… … …

At the same time.

Tier was striving to stop the [Lumina’s Cradle] magic at the center of the sanctuary’s altar.

“Huuu… how should I…”

Like Nari, she lacked expertise in the intricacies of magic rituals, so the same image kept repeating.

“Ugh, what am I supposed to touch…”

The most straightforward method had occurred to her from the moment she first saw the altar.

Destroying the sacred object in the center.

The empty golden chalice was the sacred object symbolizing Lumina, and it looked like it was acting as a medium for the magic.

However.

‘If I destroy this… I might never see the Goddess again.’

The magic, automatically activating after leaving Pope Gregorius’s hands, was beyond her ability to control.

Moreover, forcibly stopping the magic that created the connection with the Goddess was significant; it would be like turning her back on the light descending from her.

So, Tier’s answer was simple.

“On behalf of all the faithful of the Luminus Holy Church… I will offer a final prayer.”

Kneeling, offering a farewell.

If anyone represented the handover and could offer a final prayer to the Goddess of Light, it would be Tier, the saint.

Of course, this might be wishful thinking.

From their one meeting, it seemed unlikely that such a being would permanently withdraw their light just because of the destruction of a mere sacred object. Lumina’s light was warm and comforting.

But even this small act would have meaning. After all, miracles were born from such small meanings.

Tier closed her eyes, pouring her heart into her voice.

From the end of the earth, the end of the heavens, the end of the sea, Goddess Lumina, who shines upon us always…

I bow my head before your power, which grants eternal blessings in a fleeting blink, and I, Saint Tier, earnestly beseech you.

Today, we of the Luminus Holy Kingdom have indulged in our excessive desire to meet you.

We instilled false words from the Goddess into the hearts of the entire nation, driven by wrongdoing, wielding swords and spears against innocents.

In the end, we have reached this situation where we must desecrate the golden chalice you yourself filled with light.

Help our people who suffer because of our sins, forgive us who continue to sin.

And to us who have turned our backs on your light, we await the day you will appear again and embrace us warmly.

Even if we may lose the light in our eyes, we earnestly hold the light in our hearts, wishing for us to live as your daughters, not ashamed, saving ourselves.

Tier reopened her eyes and immediately punched the golden chalice.