episode_0225

“Hmph… Shalev… To let your guard down against a mere human while fighting dragons and be defeated… It seems your faith is still lacking.”

“Ugh… What… What is this crazy Holy Knight now…”

Okute, witnessing Shalev being caught off guard by Andres in mid-air and falling to the ground, sighed, displeased with Shalev. An elf resistance fighter, collapsed at Okute’s feet, groaned in pain, trembling as they recalled how Okute had just crushed them with overwhelming power. Hearing the groan, Okute looked down, spotted the still-living fighter, and immediately raised their right hand holding a hammer high, speaking to the fighter.

“Still alive… All your friends around you seem to be dead. Don’t worry. I’ll send you to join your friends soon…”

“You… you damn Order follower…!!”

“I am not just a follower; I am Okute, a member of the Children of Light. Remember that one thing as you go to the afterlife…!!!”

As the resistance fighter considered them a mere follower, Okute, in their arrogance, personally informed the fighter of their identity as a Child of Light and prepared to strike them down with the hammer. But at that moment, flames suddenly burst forth from beside Okute, engulfing them. While Okute was distracted by the flames, a beastkin resistance fighter quickly rescued the elf resistance fighter, asking worriedly.

“Are you okay?! Are you hurt anywhere?!”

“Uh… uh… I survived thanks to you… But those flames just now…!!”

Curious about who had unleashed the flames that saved them, the elf resistance fighter turned their head to the right, following the flames, while being moved by the beastkin fighter. There, Rubaea and Iruvan were seen by the elf fighter, attacking Okute by shooting flames from their hands. Meanwhile, Rubaea and Iruvan continued to spew fire from their hands, diverting Okute’s attention. Iruvan was surprised that the smaller Rubaea was emitting flames of the same power as his own.

“Wow… that’s really impressive, isn’t it? How can someone so small emit flames the same size as mine? You must have trained a lot in wielding spirit power, haven’t you?”

“Because I trained every day to sweep away all those damn bastards…!!!”

“Hmm… but it seems there’s a problem… That guy… looks fine even after being hit by fire?”

“What…?! Is that even possible…!!”

As Rubaea declared she had trained every day to destroy the Order, Iruvan admired Rubaea’s effort and turned his head to Okute. Realizing that Okute was resisting their fire, Rubaea, unable to believe it, looked at Okute, who was engulfed in their flames, with a bewildered expression. When she saw Okute truly enduring their flames with his entire body and slowly walking towards them, Rubaea was horrified. Okute continued to walk slowly towards them, saying,

“Did you think you could pierce my armor, imbued with His blessing, with such flames…!! Absurd…!!”

“Aaaah…!! That’s a complete monster!!! He seems to be on a different level than the followers we’ve faced before?!”

“Ah… this is bad…”

Rubaea, now realizing that Okute was powerful enough to be on a different level from other followers, was bewildered. Iruvan, anticipating that if they stopped their flames now, Okute would fiercely charge at them, was greatly troubled by this inescapable situation. While Iruvan and Rubaea clashed with Okute, Aria was moving around, strongly striking and killing nearby resistance fighters with her staff. At that moment, Aria stopped in her tracks, surprised, upon seeing the people before her.

“Oh my. Look who it is. Aren’t you the elves from Proserpina? Hehehe…”

“Saintess-nim Aria…!! While it’s good to meet you so soon… to meet again as enemies like this…”

“Please stop here, Saintess-nim Aria!!! If Zeke-nim sees you siding with the Order like this, how heartbroken he will be…”

“That’s none of your concern, as you will all disappear when this world undergoes its upheaval anyway. Besides… I haven’t forgotten, you know? How you threatened Zeke-nim the first time we met… Hehehe, that’s why I’m quite happy to have you as enemies like this…!!”

No matter how much the elves pleaded with Aria to stop aiding the Order by mentioning Zeke, it fell on deaf ears for Aria, whose emotions were already running wild due to Camilla’s divine power. The elves then looked at Aria with anxious expressions. Aria, seeing them with a hunter’s eyes, gripped her staff, filled with divine power, tightly and rushed at them. The elves then gripped their respective swords and spears tightly, muttering,

“Is there really no choice…? Saintess-nim Aria is now…”

“This is maddening…!! We don’t even know if Zeke-nim is alive, and now even she’s like this…!!”

“Hahaha…!! Don’t worry about that either. Camilla, the Goddess, took Zeke-nim to a safe place…!!”

“…?! What nonsense are you…!!! *gasp*…”

Aria, having overheard their muttering about not knowing if Zeke was still alive, replied that Zeke had been moved to a safe place by Camilla. The elves immediately realized it was a lie and tried to refute Aria. However, Aria swiftly pierced the abdomen of one of the elves with her staff. The elves, realizing that dialogue was impossible, began to rush at Aria.

“Damn it…!!! We’re sorry, Zeke!!! We tried our best!!!”

“Forgive us for attacking Saintess-nim Aria… *gasp*…”

“Do you think you can defeat me? How foolish…”

As the elves rushed at her, muttering apologies to Zeke for attacking her, Aria scoffed at them incredulously. She then struck another elf’s head from the side with her fist, crushing it. Immediately, she threw the impaled elf from her staff onto the ground and swung her staff, powerfully striking another elf’s waist. As Aria dispatched three elves and thrust her staff at the last remaining elf, Gid appeared, swinging two swords held parallel at Aria. Aria, sensing Gid’s swords, immediately blocked them with her staff, then smirked and spoke to Gid.

“Look who it is. Isn’t this Gid-nim, Zeke-nim’s relative? If only you had been with us, you could have been part of that ideal world with Zeke-nim…!!”

“Ideal world…?! What kind of ideal world are you thinking of, Aria, that makes you side with the Order?!”

“Isn’t it obvious? An ideal world where Zeke-nim and I face no threats, Gid. In that world, Zeke-nim can explore the world with a peaceful heart, and I can have Zeke-nim all to myself, away from the gazes of other women, you see? How is it? It’s truly an ideal world, isn’t it?”

“Aria…!!! Do you think Zeke would like such a world?! You’re not creating an ideal world for Zeke right now; you’re creating an ideal world for yourself and Camilla!!!”

“It doesn’t matter. As long as it’s a world where Zeke-nim can be safely protected… no matter who that world is for…!!”

When Gid refuted her, claiming the world she desired was not what Zeke wanted, but what she and Camilla wanted, Aria asserted it didn’t matter and began to exert more force on her staff, which was blocking Gid’s swords. Gid’s swords slowly began to be pushed back, and Gid clearly felt the intuition that he wouldn’t be able to defeat Aria. Yet, Gid, unable to give up on Aria for Zeke’s sake, continued to try and persuade Aria even as danger loomed.

“Look around you, Aria!! Isn’t a situation that Zeke wouldn’t want unfolding around us?! And you really think this is what Zeke wants?!”

“If Zeke-nim were to see this situation, he would certainly deny it.”

“Exactly…!! So stop this madness right away…”

“However, once the ideal world is complete, Zeke-nim will surely realize that this was an unavoidable sacrifice for a noble purpose…!!”

‘Damn it…!! She’s not listening to me!!!’

As Aria lightly disregarded any persuasion, Gid realized that Camilla’s influence was immense and immediately leaped backward, moving away from Aria. At that moment, other followers suddenly swarmed him from all sides. Gid desperately blocked their swords and hammers with his two swords, shouting at Aria.

“Aria!!! Zeke would never accept your current self!!! He might even hate you forever!!! So snap out of it right now!!!”

“Don’t worry, Gid. Zeke-nim will never hate me forever. Hmph~ You’re busy dealing with other followers over there, aren’t you? If you keep challenging me, you might get killed… And I don’t really want to kill Zeke-nim’s relative with my own hands, you see? Hehehe.”

“No….!! No!!! Damn it!!! Get away, you annoying followers…!!”

“For Goddess Camilla!!!”

Ultimately, Gid, having lost Aria while dealing with the other followers, was enraged and had no choice but to confront them. Aria, seeing Gid, leisurely left the spot. Meanwhile, Kate created lumps of divine power in her hands and shot them at the resistance fighters and the monsters aiding them, reducing the number of resistance forces.

“How pathetic. To think you could face our Order with such a disorganized rabble… Ah… They say even a cornered rat bites fiercely [a proverb about desperate efforts]. It’s truly astonishing that you aren’t even capable of being that rat.”

“Then what about an attack from beastkin who are attuned to that rat…?”

“…!! *Gasp*?!”

As Kate continued to shoot lumps of divine power at the resistance fighters, a woman’s voice suddenly came from behind her. Only then did Kate sense a presence and hastily turned around. Arvina, who was there, struck her with a spear, sending her flying. Kate cried out in pain and was sent straight into a rock, hitting it. Arvina then sighed, stating that she had accidentally struck Kate with the shaft of her spear instead of the blade.

“Haaah… I really have gotten old, haven’t I… To make such a mistake… Ah, no. Perhaps it’s because I’ve been holed up at home for so long… Is that why my body has become dull…?”

“Haa… Haaah… Damn it… To think a mere beastkin dared to strike me… My pride feels shattered…!!!”

“Mere beastkin? Are you of the same kind as humans from a very long time ago? Ah… Is that why you kept abducting beastkin? And to brainwash abducted beastkin into becoming priests and saintesses like this…”

As Kate, who had collided with the rock, cried out in pain and rose, expressing her anger, Arvina’s expression turned cold. She looked at the beastkin saintesses and priests fighting the resistance fighters around her. Then, she frowned and spoke to Kate in a chilling voice.

“Watch your mouth. In this situation, I’m angrier than you are, having discovered my kin in such a wretched state, with their minds manipulated like this…”

“Is that so…? Then how about you personally face our proud beastkin followers, who have become such a wretched sight…!! Everyone!!”

“We obey your command, Child of Light!!!”

“…..”

As Arvina expressed anger that the beastkin had become followers of the Order, Kate provoked Arvina, calling the surrounding beastkin followers and pointing at Arvina, giving the command to attack. Arvina, seeing the beastkin followers rushing at her, exhaled and muttered,

“Ah… I remember all your faces. I remember all your kindness. I remember all your sorrows… That’s why I can’t bear it any longer… I truly can’t!!!!!!!!”

“…!?”

Arvina, recalling the normal appearances of the beastkin followers rushing at her, instantly erupted in fury. Her expression became enraged, and she began to rush forward at high speed. Kate then saw Arvina rapidly striking the beastkin followers’ abdomens with the shaft of her spear, knocking them unconscious, and approaching her. Kate smirked, creating lumps of divine power in both her hands, and said,

“Good!! I admit you are quite a strong rat!! But a rat is still a rat!! No matter how much you struggle, you can’t overcome a human!!”

“I am not a rat beastkin…. I am a wolf beastkin!!!”

When Kate called her a rat, no matter how much she struggled, Arvina shouted that she was a wolf beastkin, not a rat beastkin, and charged directly at Kate. While Arvina and Kate fought, Viola was subduing followers by swinging her spear. Then, a priest, pinned to the ground by Viola’s spear and hand, shouted at Viola.

“Damn it…!! Viola!!! How could you betray Goddess Camilla like this…!! You are no Saintess!!”

“If you were to experience that, would you truly feel pride in being a Saintess…? Thanks to that experience, I finally found the light, but you are still in the darkness called Camilla…”

“Goddess Camilla is our light!!! How dare you even insult her…!! I will never forgive…!! *gasp*…”

When the priest refused to listen to her words and began to reach for the sword beside him, Viola struck the priest’s jaw with her fist, then slammed the shaft of her spear into his abdomen, knocking him unconscious. Just as Viola had struck down a priest and was slowly rising, she sensed a yellow spear approaching her and hastily blocked it with her own spear. Adoleth, who had thrust the spear at Viola, smirked and said,

“Well, well… Saintess Viola… no, former Saintess… To betray us like this… No one in the Order has ever betrayed or doubted Saintess Camilla’s light and faith until now… To appear on this battlefield as our disgrace…!! I’m truly grateful…!! Thanks to you, I don’t have to go to the trouble of finding and killing you…!”

“Ugh…!! Who exactly are you…?! While I was in the Order, I never saw anyone with divine power as strong as Aria…!! Could it be that you are one of the Children of Light…!!”

“What…? How do you know so much about our existence, which even high-ranking followers don’t fully know…? Well… it doesn’t matter, I suppose… My purpose is to eliminate heretics…!! Including you, the traitor!!!”

“….!!”

Adoleth was startled that Viola knew about the Children of Light, but soon refocused on her goal of killing all heretics and began to infuse her spear with divine power. Viola, seeing Adoleth’s spear begin to transform into a form of light, felt an ominous sensation and hastily pulled back. At the same time, a powerful beam of light shot out from the tip of Adoleth’s spear, destroying all rocks and trees it touched.

“….!! What is that…?!”

“Hmm… it seems you haven’t lost your touch, Viola. But can you truly defeat me without divine power?”

“Such divine power…!! Even if I can’t defeat you, I will never accept it again…!! I’ll resolve this with my own strength…!!”

Viola, though bewildered by Adoleth’s destructive divine power, soon regained her composure and charged at Adoleth once more. Thus, the battle began to intensify even further. Casualties started to mount on both sides, and the battlefield was filled with dust. Camilla watched all this from high above in the sky.

“Good… it’s almost done… No matter how much you struggle… you will never be able to ruin my plan….”