In the blazing scene.
“I… I never heard that the hero was this strong-”
Shwaaaak-
A demon with two wings and a pair of horns was shredded by the sword.
Seeing him vanish without a trace after being cut by the sacred sword, the surrounding demons and monsters started to eye me warily.
“If you don’t come in, do I have to go out?”
In the blink of an eye, I approached the clustered monsters and made a huge swing with my sword.
Then, along with the surrounding space, the monsters were split in half.
As I shook off their blood from my sword, a man flew beside me.
“You’ve been working hard, Hero Student.”
“Chairman.”
The academy’s top fighter, known as the chairman.
He was an old man aged enough for white hair to show, but his power was not to be underestimated. Perhaps he could even match my teacher.
“Damn those demon bastards. They were quiet for a while and then suddenly launched an attack like this.”
“Is there a problem with the barrier?”
“No. Someone opened a passage from the inside. It seems there’s a traitor in the academy.”
He clicked his tongue in annoyance, clearly irritated that such a thing happened in the academy which he took pride in.
The demons attacked the academy while leaving manpower behind at the imperial palace.
This was definitely a planned operation targeting something.
It wasn’t hard to guess what the demons would aim for in the academy.
Either the hero himself or the saintess. One of the two.
“..Iris.”
The girl who always approached me brightly.
Sometimes I felt burdened by her excessive kindness, but still, it wasn’t a bad feeling, so I kept her close and became friends.
As long as she was blessed by the goddess, no demon should be able to harm her. Yet, I couldn’t shake the feeling of unease.
‘…I need to find her.’
With that thought, I tightened my grip on the sacred sword and turned my steps back toward the academy.
*
A burning pain surged from my abdomen.
Once she drew out her sword, I had no choice but to collapse helplessly on the ground.
“Ah… The saintess’s blood… Just imagining it makes me excited.”
Looking at me with a rapturous expression was my teacher.
I clutched my belly, trying to stem the flow of blood gushing onto the ground.
“Haah… Huh…”
As time passed, the pain that had been obscured by confusion began to rise through my body.
It was my mistake; I shouldn’t have let my guard down until the very end.
But it’s okay.
Holding back the pain as much as possible, I spoke to my teacher.
“Teacher… Did you bring the demons?”
At my words, Katrina-sensei looked at me with a sinister smile.
“Of course. I embedded mana stones all over the academy to open the passage. Though it took a while to work while avoiding people’s eyes, heh heh.”
My eyes squinted at her brazen words.
Overwhelmed with anger, I almost let my feelings pour out, but somehow I managed to hold it in.
‘…Just wait a little longer…’
I could feel my stomach healing.
I had the goddess’s blessing.
Except for fatal wounds, I had the power to heal myself.
I would probably recover in a minute.
All I needed to do was buy time. I had to keep the conversation going somehow.
“Why… are you doing this?”
At my question, Katrina-sensei raised my chin with her toes.
“It’s because of you, Iris.”
“Me…? Because of me?”
“Yes.”
Then she covered her face with both hands, shaking her body as she began to laugh maniacally.
“I’m an alchemist. I live with the desire to explore new combinations at all times.”
As I silently stared, she continued her ramble.
“I was always curious. What precious potion could be created by combining the saintess’s blood and bones?”
“…What are you saying?”
“The day you enrolled, I was captivated by you. Like a first love, you know, hee hee…”
“…..”
“I wanted to dissect you as soon as possible. Who else could come up with such a genius idea as making the saintess a material?”
Her horrific words made my body tremble, and goosebumps spread all over me.
“Of course, I couldn’t act on it. If I carelessly touched the saintess, I would be punished beyond death. I had no choice but to endure this painful desire.”
A grotesque smile spread across her face, which had seemed pitiful moments before.
“But one day, Melrum came to me.”
In her outlandish words, I heard a familiar name.
The commander of the Third Legion, the Immortal King Melrum.
A monster that took the form of a lich and could not die no matter how many times his heart was pierced or his head was taken.
“That very one offered to help me! Surely he recognized the truth of alchemy too!! Hahahaha!”
“Then… the commander who attacked the imperial palace, could it be…”
“Heh. You catch on quickly. Yes. The great Melrum extended a hand to me.”
Truly a madwoman.
There’s no way I could call someone like Katrina-sensei a teacher.
“All this… just for that? To hurt so many students?”
I asked in disbelief, and she started to get angry at me.
“Just for that!? Ugh, those who don’t know anything. They don’t realize how amazing alchemy is.”
Clack-
I couldn’t endure her twisted logic, and a surge of fury bubbled up inside me.
‘Not yet… Not yet, Iris…’
But I gritted my teeth so hard that it bled, barely managing to keep my emotions in check.
The wounds had healed.
Now I just had to take her by surprise in her moment of carelessness.
Although my divine power was amplified against demons and monsters, I could easily bind one person.
Just when I was about to guide her into a state of carelessness to strike again.
“Did you buy some time?”
With a grin stretching wide enough to split her face, she swung her sword again.
But this time, it wasn’t aimed at my abdomen.
It was directly at my neck.
I felt a horrible pain there.
“Cough… Hack…”
The sensation of not being able to breathe tormented me.
As I clasped my hands around my neck, an uncontainable amount of blood gushed forth.
“Iris. Do you think you can take me for a fool?”
With an annoyed expression, she grabbed her sword and began to stab my body mercilessly.
Thud-
Thud-
“!!!..!..!!”
Screaming in unbearable pain, I could only gasp as my voice was strangled by the wounds on my neck.
Thud-
Thud-
Once. Twice.
Each time her sword pierced my body, I felt my insides twist.
‘It hurts..!! It hurts..!! I’m telling you, it hurts!!!’
But no matter how much I cried out, no sound escaped my throat.
Tears streamed down my cheeks as I clutched at her ankles.
“Where do you think you’re putting those blood-stained hands?”
With a frown on her face, she kicked my body aside, and I collapsed to the ground.
“Guh… Huh… Guh…”
It’s dangerous.
This was beyond the goddess’s capabilities.
If I got hurt any further, even the goddess’s blessing would be unable to heal me.
For the first time in my life, I felt myself trembling before the brink of death.
“Haah… I’m so excited. If the saintess is the material… I could create an elixir that even brings the dead back to life.”
She stood in front of me with her sword drawn.
Overwhelmed with primal fear, I couldn’t resist.
“Then, Iris. Please die.”
D… die…?
D… die…?
No!
No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No! No!
Help me.
I don’t want to die.
Please, someone help me.
As ugly as it was.
I had no choice but to plead for assistance like a small child.
This shouldn’t be happening.
The saintess can’t be afraid of death.
But… I was so scared.
I had just begun to make friends.
I was finally able to enjoy academy life.
I wanted to get closer to Lily…
“Guh… Huh…”
A wretched wail that could barely be called a sob escaped my lips.
Perhaps tired of hearing my pitiful cries, she raised her sword high.
She was probably about to strike at my neck.
In fear, I tightly shut my eyes.
As I waited for death quietly.
“What the… A crow?”
A suddenly appeared black-feathered bird fluttered in front of her eyes.
Irritated by the incessantly fluttering bird before her, she lightly slashed it.
Like smoke,
The bird turned to powder and disappeared into the air.
“Wait. This is-”
Noticing something strange, she squinted her eyes.
But before she could do anything about it…
bwaaaAaAaAAAANG–!!!!!!!!!!
A bizarre sound like a gigantic bomb exploding echoed, and someone appeared in front of me in an instant.
The woman in front of me burst apart like a balloon, scattering in all directions.
As I watched the scene in a daze,
A figure cloaked in black robes rushed toward me.
“Oh no..!! Iris…!!!”
A beautiful voice that pierced the air like a melody.
She hurriedly approached, helping me up with a trembling voice.
As she got closer, I was finally able to see the face hidden beneath her robe.
“I… because of me… uh… what should I…”
She cried as she checked my condition.
Seeing her face hidden beneath the robe, all I could do was mumble in disbelief.
“Go… Goddess…?”
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