On the night the red moon rose, it seemed as though it was drenched in screams.
Silent screams, which must have perfectly depicted this scene.
The moonlight shouldn’t have been red, yet it was astoundingly crimson. The moonlight, unable to overcome the dark and crimson magic emitted by Yona, fell to the ground tinged with the color of magic. And within that, only the desperate chants of Priest Vigrind shone with a golden radiance.
It seemed there were two demons present in this place. Yona, standing tall and surrounded by her aura, exuded a magic so dense that it was indistinguishable from that of the demons, while a snake coiled nearby, mocking the surrounding Holy Knights with its disdainful gaze.
Priest Vigrind felt as if he couldn’t even breathe, crushed beneath the weight of the situation. This wasn’t just about Vigrind; it extended to Ludvik as well. For those with divine power, the magic that opposed them, alongside two overwhelming magical beings manifested in the current situation, was nothing short of a nightmare.
“I’ll only say this one last time.”
Yona took a slow step forward. Vervaria, who had been circling around her, moved slightly in sync with her steps, seemingly wanting to ensure that her movement wouldn’t be hindered. It was as if it was making a careful consideration for the steps of someone extremely important and precious.
“Give Alex back.”
The ominous and foreboding light sprang from Yona’s gaze.
It shimmered, sometimes flickering, while the orange glow blazed fiercely.
“This is not a suggestion—don’t get it twisted.”
Every time Yona’s lips moved, the dark red magic billowed forth.
As she continued to stir the magic around her, Yona scanned her surroundings.
Then, at one moment, her gaze stopped suddenly.
The eyes that radiated ominous light seemed to pause, and then her eyes widened as if they couldn’t get any larger—larger and larger—
“Ah, Al… Al, Al… Ale… Ale…—”
She had initially thought it was some crumpled thing in the corner.
That which was so devastated it was unrecognizable, it was something that you wouldn’t have noticed if Yona hadn’t looked closely.
Yona’s hands trembled.
With hands that couldn’t stay still for even a moment, she slowly raised them to cover her face.
Cold hands that couldn’t even feel human warmth.
“Ah, uh, uh, aah, u—”
A string of incomprehensible words spilled from Yona’s mouth, lacking any context.
Like blood gushing forth, the words escaping Yona eventually began to form a shape.
“Al, Alex… Allexxxxxxx—!!!!”
– Kwahahahahah!!!!!
With a deafening roar, a storm erupted beneath Yona’s feet.
The black and red magic, as if showing that this had all just been a prank, surged with the force to fill the vast courtroom.
Shattered fragments flew chaotically in that momentum.
“Saint, it’s dangerous!”
Ludvik rushed over, deflecting the shards with his spear, approaching Vigrind.
Vigrind was sweating profusely.
The golden radiance emanating from her was now physically opposing the flying fragments, protecting not only herself but also a significant number of Holy Knights, including the Pope.
“Yona, stop—! Stop it, stop—!!!”
Vigrind shouted loudly.
No more, no more should Yona be allowed to commit sins.
What, what should be done?
“I’ll try to block it…!”
Ludvik, veering from the spear thrust, made a move.
Unbeknownst to herself, Vigrind grabbed his wrist.
“Saint…?”
“No, no! No, no…!”
Vigrind shook her head, looking at Ludvik with a tearful expression.
One should not provoke a fight here.
For reasons unknown, Yona had literally become a demon, and now even the Holy Knights and the Pope wouldn’t dare to approach her.
He was abandoned, and now even the Holy Knights and the Pope dared not approach.
In this situation, despite being a hero, Ludvik couldn’t even properly contend with Vervaria’s avatar.
If he were to charge at Yona, Priest Vigrind could only foresee doom.
Right now, it’s just Priest Vigrind.
Only the holy can stand against that evil.
Only the holy can pierce through that dark magic.
Priest Vigrind bit his lip.
*
“Get out of the way, Vigrind.”
Yona spat as she glared at Priest Vigrind blocking her path.
Her voice was quiet yet filled with power, and it sent a shiver down Vigrind’s spine.
“No, Yona. I’ll heal Alex. Calm down.”
“Shut up, Vigrind. I’m the one who’ll heal Alex. So move.”
“Yona…!”
A golden radiance surged fiercely from Priest Vigrind.
The holy power was draining rapidly.
Although it exceeded the amount of holy power in Evian, releasing it like this made its limits painfully clear.
“I told you to move.”
“Yona, pull yourself together…! You’re not like this…!”
“You all made me this way—!!! Not just me!! Even Alex!!! I said to move before I kill you—!!”
– KABOOM!
The surging dark magic seemed poised to crash down upon the radiance.
The magic blooming from Yona’s lips began to take on a deeper shade of red, while Priest Vigrind, trying to repel it, felt his hands trembling uncontrollably.
“Move, Vigrind—!!!”
The force of the dark magic bore down even harder.
The golden radiance began to fade, and Priest Vigrind felt his consciousness slipping away.
It all felt like a dream, a hazy segue—
“Saint—!”
With a shout, the hero charged in.
Under the blessing that had arisen from the holy spear, the hero barely managed to catch the collapsing Priest Vigrind in his arms.
“…Have mercy. Yona.”
Yona said nothing as she looked at Ludvik’s face.
Interpreting that silence as an unspoken consent, Ludvik nodded gravely and hurriedly fled the scene, cradling Priest Vigrind.
Now that the hindrance was gone,
Yona slowly approached Alex, step by step.
As she moved closer, the ground, unable to withstand the dark magic, sank and cracked, producing shards.
“Alex… Wh-why… why, why…”
Yona knelt before Alex, trembling hands reaching out to him—
“What should I do, what must I do…”
In that moment, one of the cathedral knights swung a morning star and aimed for Yona’s back.
The silver morning star gleamed ominously as it flew toward her head, just as the spikes seemed to embed themselves—
Yona’s magic ensnared the cathedral knight.
The swirling dark magic, as if possessing its own will, wrapped around and began to crush the knight.
The holy power emanating from the knight dissipated like a mirage before Yona’s magic.
“Cough, cough…!”
The dark magic constricted and twisted the knight’s wrists, ankles, and body.
And within that dark magic—
– Do not interfere.
One head of Vervaria attacked the cathedral knight.
Vervaria opened its enormous jaws, teeth crunching down mercilessly, starting to devour the knight whole.
A shrill scream echoed.
Again and again, the sound of armor being chewed rang out, until the cathedral knight vanished into Vervaria’s mouth.
Vervaria is disappearing into the mouth of the beast.
In the meantime, Yona’s gentle touch enveloped Alex.
There was not a single uninjured spot on him.
His face, swollen and covered in wounds, was unrecognizable, and his body was riddled with signs of torture.
Plus, there was a giant nail embedded in each of his thighs, making it clear he couldn’t walk properly.
Even his wrists were chained—
“That man is a sinner. Drop him. Evil heretic.”
Scarlet glared at her.
“…Heretic? Are you talking about me?”
Yona’s gaze turned towards Scarlet.
The mana emanating from her danced and swirled, and after seeing the horrifying scene of a cathedral knight being brutally killed moments before, the remaining knights hesitated to charge in and were watching closely.
Meanwhile, only Scarlet stood firm, glaring back at her.
“That’s right… filthy heretic. The courage you showed coming all this way to find your friend is commendable, but this will be your grave.”
“…You did this to Alex?”
No matter what Scarlet babbled on about, Yona wasn’t even listening.
What truly mattered was that the chains clamped around Alex’s wrists were in Scarlet’s hands.
“Consider yourself fortunate that it stopped at that for a heretic. Don’t worry; you will share the same fate.”
“You mean you did this to him.”
Yona gently laid Alex down and slowly stood up.
Even now, mana swirled around her, and her ominous orange eyes gleamed fiercely as she glared at Scarlet.
“Let go of those chains.”
At Yona’s command, Scarlet yanked on the chains.
As a result, Alex, who had been unconscious, stirred weakly and groaned, causing Yona’s eyes to blaze even more furiously.
“Let him go, before I kill you.”
“Let a heretic go? That’s not happening.”
“Fine.”
With her lips sealed, Yona nodded.
Then, the mana swirling around her flared up as if dancing—
From within the blazing mana, a black snake slithered out with a hiss.
“Ugh?!”
The snake, noticeably smaller than Vervaria, charged straight at Scarlet.
As the snake coiled around Scarlet’s helmet, he instinctively dropped the chains and tried to grab the snake off of him.
But his hands, lacking any real strength, only slid off the snake’s skin—
With a crunch, his helmet crumpled into a heap of metal and rolled across the ground.
Followed by Scarlet crashing down and writhing in pain.
“Ahhh! Aah, aahhh!”
Scarlet’s screams erupted.
But it didn’t stop there.
The snake not only crushed his helmet but coiled around his arms, lifting him up.
– Crack.
The armor on his arms crumpled horrifically.
The divine essence that had filled the crumbling armor burst forth like cloudy vapor.
Yona watched him with a cold gaze.
Her gaze, devoid of any mercy, was directed squarely at Scarlet.
– Crack.
“Aaaaargh!”
A high-pitched shriek echoed.
With sounds of his shoulders and elbows breaking, the snake then moved down to his legs—
– Crack.
Scarlet’s desperate screams resounded alongside the sickening sounds of broken bones.
The pain felt as if his mind was being set ablaze.
In sheer agony, Scarlet screamed so loudly that he didn’t even notice his teeth breaking.
Only after his arms and legs were completely shattered did Yona move the snake back towards his neck.
Yona was intent on choking him to death right then and there.
– Clatter…
With a metallic sound, the armor Scarlet wore clattered to the ground.
I rolled on the ground.
Amidst that, a girl with a ridiculously small stature compared to the armor appeared.
The girl jumping out from the gigantic armor wasn’t much bigger than Priest Vigrind himself.
“…….”
Seeing that, Yona called back the snake once more.
With that figure reminiscent of Vigrind, she couldn’t bring herself to finish him off.
If she thought about the agony inflicted upon Alex, killing him a hundred times wouldn’t be enough.
But she could not bring herself to do it, not with that resemblance to Vigrind.
‘…I still haven’t completely abandoned my humanity, huh…’
When I cast away the priesthood,
And when I saw Alex.
I thought I would no longer grant pity as a human.
But it seemed I couldn’t quite do that yet.
“…I’m glad Alexis is alive.”
With a last cold glance, Yona turned away from Scarlett, who was writhing in pain on the ground.
If she was going to kill him, she wouldn’t care, but if she was going to keep him alive—this much was enough; she wouldn’t dare challenge her further.
If he dared to attack again, not knowing his place, she would truly kill him then.
Thinking this, Yona approached Alex again and knelt in front of him.
“…I’m sorry, Alex. Because of me. Because of me… you’re in so much pain, I’m really sorry, Alex.”
Yona raised her right hand.
Her right arm, which was always wrapped in Sacred Barrier, was now devoid of any protection.
The smooth skin of her arm was exposed.
Instead of the pale white skin, it was now covered in black writing.
With that right hand, Yona brushed over Alex’s body.
The most urgent issue was the large nail piercing his thigh.
Yona took a deep breath and gently grasped the large nail in his thigh.
“Ugggh…!”
A groan escaped from the unconscious Alex.
Tears dripped down from Yona’s eyes.
Could she even imagine this horrible pain?
It was hard for Yona to accept the fact that Alex was suffering so much because of her, someone who was nothing.
“…Alex, there was no reason for us to end up like this. No one can blame us. So please, just hang in there.”
The large nail began to slowly come out.
Though the specially processed nail didn’t let blood flow as it was pulled out, Yona’s tears flowed endlessly over it.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry… Alex, I’m sorry…”
Throwing the nails she pulled from both thighs aside carelessly, Yona’s hand continued to trace over Alex’s entire body.
And when her hand reached around his lower abdomen, she felt something she hadn’t noticed until now.
It was like a solid barrier.
Something tightly wrapped around Alex’s lower abdomen.
It felt like it was sealing away Alex’s divine power.
‘This is…’
Unconsciously, Yona tightened her grip on that barrier.
The divine power flowing from her hand clashed with different opposing natures of divine power, unlike that of a heavenly god.
But Yona’s divine power overwhelmed it, and finally, that barrier shattered beneath her touch with a sharp sensation.
In that moment,
A flash burst forth from Alex’s body, which had been lying unconscious,
Enveloping him.
A flash as pure as white jade.
With the sound of shattering, whatever had been sealing Alex’s lower abdomen exploded,
As the power confined within began to regain its light.
At last, when the flash subsided,
Alex’s appearance had changed.
Yona couldn’t hide her astonishment as she scanned Alex.
His signature baldness was completely gone.
His appearance remained the same, but now, his head was filled with jet-black hair.
And as Scarlett witnessed this, her eyes widened in shock before—
They slowly closed.
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