With a single swing of his sword, countless Beasts and Demons were swept away. A Beast far larger than Jian was split in half, and winged Beasts falling from the sky came crashing down like rain. He was swinging his sword with all his might, yet he was not tired. The power granted by the Demon was indeed immense.
Was this something Clara had anticipated?
No, Jian didn’t think so. When he revealed he had become the Demon’s apostle, Clara looked genuinely surprised. In fact, just based on her reaction, she seemed shocked when Jian split a projectile flying towards him.
However, aside from that, there were times Clara acted as if she naturally accepted Jian’s strength.
Back when he had not yet become the Demon’s apostle and was still weaker than he was now, Clara had not shown much surprise at Jian’s movements. Unlike others who gasped in admiration or clapped, she was different. This was something that should have seemed odd. Unlike other young scions who could vaguely guess Jian’s lineage, Clara was a Nun living in a Convent.
At that time, he brushed it off without much thought, but thinking about it now, it could have been evidence that Clara knew a lot.
While lost in such thoughts, a baptism of golden light poured from behind him. Injuries on the bodies of the horses and knights healed in an instant, while the Beasts and Demons touched by that light crumbled to dust. The knights who were previously fighting multiple Demons cheered.
Jian swung his sword once more, dealing with the Beasts and Demons that had not yet contacted the light.
“Incredible!”
A sudden voice reached him.
“With just one swing of your sword like this… there won’t be anyone in our Knights with that level of skill.”
It was the voice of the female knight who was speaking on his behalf. Feeling a bit embarrassed by the compliment, Jian awkwardly chuckled.
“Thank you.”
This ability couldn’t be entirely considered his own. Of course, the Demon had said it was ‘the realm you would someday reach,’ but he had suddenly gained this power without going through the process of striving for that realm. How long would it take to gain such skill? Decades? Maybe a lifetime? It might be a level only attainable just before death after a lifetime of effort. Yet he had awakened such abilities at this age—there couldn’t be a downside.
In truth, he would have refused if it weren’t for the situation at that moment.
Jian swung his sword again. One Beast flew in from a direction the female knight hadn’t spotted and was sliced in half. The horse leaped to avoid the corpses rolling on the ground.
“I-I’m sorry! I didn’t catch that in time….”
The female knight’s voice trembled slightly. Perhaps it was due to surprise, or the excitement of battle. She sounded somewhat exhilarated.
“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of the charging Beasts and Demons.”
And he truly could have.
“Thank you.”
The female knight replied in a slightly shaky voice.
“I can see the end!”
A knight running at the forefront alongside Jian shouted. Looking ahead, the density of Beasts and Demons had significantly decreased; they were almost at the edge of the formation.
“I can see the end!”
A knight at the back echoed. And behind them, the messages continued to relay. One knight, running beside Jian, suddenly veered to the right, crashing into a Beast charging head-on to restore the formation, then began to cut down Demons and Beasts. The knight who had been following increased speed to catch up with Jian.
On the opposite side, a similar situation was unfolding. Knights were clinging to the formation they had forced open against the Beasts invading from outside.
Thanks to that, Jian’s horse at the forefront was able to cross the edge of the formation.
From behind, golden light appeared once more. Even without turning his head, he could see the corner of his sight illuminated by a brilliant light. A cheer erupted among the knights once again. In this moment, Clara was the very embodiment of their courage.
The long procession of Beasts and Demons filling his field of vision ended, revealing an open plain. Judging by the half-burned trees interspersed throughout, this area had likely not been a plain originally. It was a region that had been flattened by the military in the previous battle.
Even if it had been flattened, the original forest had been forcibly erased. Naturally, the trees that had once stood were toppled, creating numerous obstacles. In a normal situation, a military horse or a transport vehicle would be the common sense way to approach this.
However, the rain of black falling from the sky granted no organic matter remaining in this place.
Here, only the darkened earth remained. The few standing trees and stumps were still intact, but the fallen trees, possessing no life to resist magical power, had rotted away.
“Let’s go!”
But the horse did not stop. The goal was to hunt down the very cause of this crisis, the Demons.
If they didn’t capture them as quickly as possible, everyone entering here would be at a disadvantage. Fighting in armor in a downpour was by no means easy. Moreover, if it was a situation where they absolutely couldn’t take off their armor, they couldn’t predict what would happen if they got wet.
They could hear cheers from the knights far away in the distance. With the name of the Goddess loudly proclaimed, it seemed Clara had once again used her Holy Power.
Perhaps Clara had also managed to pass the edge of the formation. She wasn’t far from Jian after all.
He looked up at the sky. The eye holes of his helmet were extremely narrow, but it wasn’t obstructing his view too much. He tilted his head just enough for the rain to not get in, and saw no Beasts flying in this direction.
“…….”
“Goddess!”
A voice came from behind. The edge of his sight brightened once more. This time, instead of golden light, it was an unblemished white light.
Jian turned his body slightly to look back.
In the distance, a glowing figure could be seen shining brightly. Behind Andrea, who was urging her horse vigorously, was a glowing Clara. The light was so intense he couldn’t even see her face.
“Goddess…”
He didn’t know when he had looked back, but the female knight murmured the same words.
…… Jian recalled what Clara had said about the story she had created.
Setting up an army of evil, establishing heroes to stand against them, showcasing a powerful protagonist.
Perhaps in her story, she herself did not exist.
Then, who was that powerful protagonist she put forth?
“…….”
This might sound a bit self-centered, but Jian felt like he knew who it was.
No, now?
At this timing?
I was suddenly taken aback by the light erupting from my body. Of course, it wasn’t a bad kind of surprise.
One could be taken aback when suddenly gaining benefits from an unexpected direction.
“Ha-ha! It seems people have gathered to pray!”
Andrea said in a refreshing voice while riding her horse. Jian could easily imagine Andrea smiling brightly under her helmet.
“But it’s still quite a while before the joint prayers start, isn’t it?”
“With just the power of people gathering to pray every day, you’ve accomplished something miraculous that even saints don’t achieve.”
But surely the power of the people gathering together to pray would have been used by other clergy in their stead? That was why he could maintain his daily life without forcibly ascending.
“Well, it might be spreading the news that we’ve started fighting.”
Andrea said with her gaze fixed straight ahead.
“A Goddess throwing herself into battle against Demons! Even I would have run to the nearest Cathedral to pray.”
The atmosphere in this location was utterly uninviting, yet Andrea’s voice breathed an air of refreshment that went beyond it. Was this really such a lively matter?
Well, it didn’t matter.
Whether it was right or wrong for people to pray to him, the fact that he possessed this power at the moment was undeniable.
He looked up at the sky. Thick storm clouds obscured the sky, blocking out even a single star. Perhaps countless Magic Points resided within those dark clouds.
And it was always the clergy’s job to shatter those Magic Points.
Among the clergy present here, the strongest was—
…It might be a little embarrassing to say, but yes, it was him.
He relaxed his left arm, which had been wrapped around Andrea. His body, which had been closely aligned behind her, now pulled back slightly. He looked up at the sky and reached his right hand straight up.
There was no necessity to aim for a specific target. The sky was densely packed with Magic Points.
He closed his eyes and thought of the people praying for him. He could hear the voices of people murmuring prayers ringing in his ears.
What could he do for them?
In reality, it was impossible to tend to each and every one of them from afar. The only ones he could help immediately were those within his reach. However, nothing was graspable with his outstretched right hand.
Therefore, what he could do here, the only thing he could do for the countless people calling his name, was of course to respond to their summons.
And so he answered them.
*
A white pillar of light appeared. The pillar pierced through the black sky.
The thick clouds vanished, and in an instant, numerous black orbs became visible but were immediately obliterated by the waves of light emanating from the pillar. The shadows of flying creatures were swept away without a trace by the light.
It was a sight so holy that even those swinging swords below, risking their lives, were momentarily entranced, and soulless Beasts and Demons turned to glance back in an instant.
The heavens, which could only be temporarily opened with a Holy Bomb, began to obliterate under the waves extending from the pillar of light. Not only where the Goddess had passed, but even over the heads of those fighting behind her to maintain the path.
The black veil concealing the sky was drawn back. The pouring black rain in the place where light shone evaporated immediately. Stars appeared, aiming to restore their places in the sky.
“The Goddess has opened the path!”
Someone shouted that.
A shout echoed across the eerily silent battlefield, which had been engulfed in calm, leaving us wondering who it had come from.
“Follow the path!”
Someone led the call,
“Follow the path!”
And someone responded in echo.
Suddenly, those who had just moments ago been pushed back by the Beasts flooding in from both sides dashed forward with all their might as their walls began to collapse, slicing through the Beasts and Demons blocking their way.
Boom! A loud explosion resonated from somewhere far away in the distance beyond the walls of Beasts, where the knights were. It seemed a kind of explosive device had fallen on the Beasts pressing against them in constant waves.
“Fire support! Just hold on a little longer! Secure the path for the Goddess!”
The knights swung their swords with every ounce of strength they had.
But no matter how much they fought, they didn’t seem capable of growing tired.
The knights were with the Goddess.
*
But it was not merely those on the battlefield who were watching the pillar of light.
“The sky has opened!”
An officer stormed into the Command Room, shouting. But the commanders in the command room had already seen the spectacle through the windows. In fact, they could see it better than the knights below them. They could see the immense power of the Goddess stretching high into the skies.
“Good, can we distinguish friend from foe?”
“Yes. In fact, there are far more Beasts and Demons than allies.”
Nodding at the aide’s words, the commander spoke firmly.
“So that means… fire support is ‘very easy.’”
He rubbed his head with his hand and spoke in a strong voice.
“This is the sky opened by the Goddess. We must use it efficiently.”
Among those present, no one could misunderstand the meaning of using it efficiently.
“Burn everything that isn’t our allies to ashes.”
“Yes!”
The officers who shouted that immediately dashed out of the command room.
*
“Selena, over there!”
“I know!”
Selena shot an arrow towards the sky. The magic-made arrow rose upward, colliding with the winged Beasts. With a powerful pop, golden light burst forth, annihilating part of the Beasts. One Beast, missing a wing, plummeted downwards.
The unpleasant crack was heard as the Beast lay still, its movements ceasing after a while.
Even though it was the Infirmary in the rear, if there were hundreds, thousands, or perhaps tens of thousands of Beasts in the sky, it would be impossible to stop them all. Countless missiles and shells were efficiently shooting down the Beasts, but they still couldn’t prevent some from veering off toward the rear.
The volume of Beasts pouring down was truly overwhelming.
Of course, the Nuns had learned at least basic combat skills and there were those guarding the rear, but…
Selena, who had felled a Beast, glanced down at her hand.
The golden light streaming from her hand showed no sign of stopping. While Selena was continuously praying to the Goddess, she felt as if someone was gently aiding her.
…Could it really be?
Was it possible that just having seen the Goddess once could grant her more outstanding Holy Power than other clergy? Or was it more likely that someone high above was lending a hand?
…No matter how she thought about it, the latter option seemed more plausible.
Was this… a sort of divine revelation?
Having befriended a nun, she was now the being incarnated from the gods who had directly descended. Later, she learned that instead of just a being sent from the gods, one among them had actually come down in human form.
And that goddess was the one assisting her in conversing with the other gods. Selena had met and conversed with the goddess she worshipped.
Anyone could see it was a revelation.
If someone claimed it wasn’t a revelation, that person would likely have great doubts in the existence of gods to begin with. If those who recognized Goddess Ariel as a Goddess were there, it wouldn’t be strange to say everyone present had received revelations.
Moreover, Jian had not entered the battlefield with the Knights of the Church?
Every time Selena shot her magical arrows towards the Beasts, the Holy Power encompassed those arrows, assisting them in vanquishing the Beasts in one go.
“…….”
Um, th-that, Goddess?
…
The voice of the goddess did not resonate inside her head.
But Selena murmured once again to herself.
Um, th-that, I am… young still… and I like someone… and if possible, I want to get married…
Still, there was no reply.
However, Selena felt like someone was smiling gently at her.
No, it didn’t feel like just a ‘feeling’ either.
That was permission, wasn’t it? Right?
There was no response, but there was no voice that sounded displeased either. Selena decided to interpret it as an approval.
If she truly thought otherwise, she would have said so.
While coming to that conclusion by herself,
“Selena!”
She heard Ella calling her loudly. Surprised, Selena quickly hid her hand behind her back. She was a little afraid Ella might suggest she join the Church after seeing that.
But fortunately, the Nun running with her Nun’s outfit flying wasn’t here to point out Selena’s actions.
“Look over there, over there!”
Ella pointed behind Selena. Looking in the direction Ella had pointed, Selena couldn’t help but drop her jaw.
In the distance, nearly at the height of the wall but far enough to require serious travel, the bright and powerful pillar of light was clearly visible from here.
The pillar of light that seemed to pierce the sky had an area around its center where it spread out like an opened umbrella. The black clouds that touched the spreading light vanished in an instant.
At that moment, Selena felt a sense of disquiet. Looking around, she heard nothing. Soldiers, who had been enthusiastically shooting up at the sky, and soldiers groaning and being carried off by the Beasts had momentarily forgotten what they had to do, gaping up at the sky. Even the Beasts soaring towards them had disappeared.
“Over there, Selena.”
Ella quietly called to her from behind.
“Yes, this must be Clara’s…”
Still captivated by the wonderous scene, Selena responded, but—
“No, that’s not it.”
Ella cut off her words. Momentarily puzzled, Selena turned to Ella, realizing she was still hiding her hand behind her back.
“…….”
An entirely different kind of silence wrapped around the two.
“Um, this is…”
Selena, sweating, evaded Ella’s gaze, raising her index finger to her lips as she whispered.
“Could you… keep this a secret?”
“…….”
Ella’s eyes narrowed.
In that moment, Selena felt like she slightly understood what Clara must have felt all along.
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