Chapter 27

“It’s so ordinary…”

Bèlial stared blankly at the enormous entrance of the cave.

The cave was exceptionally mundane. It was just really spacious and radiated no divine aura at all, so if she didn’t know that Jörmungandr lived here, she might have passed it without a second thought.

‘Was that the intention?’

It certainly could be.

She wasn’t sure how many people in this world could recognize the divine, but she couldn’t outright declare that no one could, especially entities called gods, which could draw a lot of attention.

In that regard, this kind of cave was undoubtedly a perfect hideout for a quiet existence.

After all, even beings labeled as gods probably needed their own space.

“Let’s go in.”

At her words, the paladins followed suit. Bèlial took a step into the cave, a slight tension washing over her as it was her first encounter with a divine being.

And at that moment…

“……!!”

Her senses flipped upside down.

It was an unfamiliar sensation.

Her senses had likely been stolen away long ago.

But what she just felt was undoubtedly some kind of sensation.

It was like… crossing a wall made of transparent water. Suddenly, the saint turned around. There, right behind her, was merely a gigantic wall.

“…Spatial Transition?”

And it happened just like that, in an instant?

The saint surveyed her surroundings, bewildered by the unprecedented situation. The cave, which had seemed entirely ordinary just moments earlier, now appeared somewhat different.

A faint blue aura clung to the walls of the cave, softly glowing, while plants she had never seen before adorned the walls, illuminating the dark cave like signposts.

It was an incredibly mystical sight. Bèlial stared at it blankly, forgetting that she was alone.

It was so enchanting it captivated her completely.

Startled, she abruptly clenched her fist, only to be jolted by a stinging pain.

“Ow!”

And then, belatedly,

“…Huh?”

Her eyes widened at the sensation she felt from herself.

She quickly looked at her hand.

There, unnoticeable until now, was a wound that had formed from her prior tight fist. As she gazed at the wound that appeared to have stopped bleeding, Bèlial gently brushed it with her fingers.

Zing, zing!

“…It hurts.”

It was her first time experiencing such a sensation.

The saint opened her eyes wide and absentmindedly played with her hand.

This was not the same state where she felt nothing at all. The soft skin brushing against her fingertips, the vivid sensation of the joints composing her hand were all vividly alive.

“…Ugh.”

Only then did she realize the numbing pain coursing through her entire body.

The scars she carved into herself every night no longer felt as if they didn’t exist.

With the sheer agony beating throughout her body, the saint instinctively curled up.

The scars brushing against her clothing hurt.
They were so painful and stinging that it felt like she had been burned, and every nerve in her body was on fire.

And that pain—

“…Ugh! Ugh… H-huh….”

Plop, plop.

It felt so good to her.

“Ugh… It hurts…! I-I’m feeling… pain… Waaah!”

The saint cried tears of joy.

For the first time, she sobbed freely without a care for anyone’s gaze.

The pain coursing through her body felt so welcoming.

Kwahhak!

The saint tightly hugged herself instead.

“……!!”

The pain was like a blazing fire in her mind. The hands clasping her body trembled, her entire being screamed in agony, yet it didn’t matter at all.

What mattered more than the searing pain overwhelming her was the sheer joy that came from the fact that she could feel the pain.

“The, the sensation… the sensation…”

Tears streamed down her cheeks, tracing trails along her face. The saint truly realized that she was crying, something she hadn’t felt before. Even when she cried, she hadn’t sensed the water flowing; it was as if only the act of crying existed.

The sensation of tears dribbling down her face.

A cool breeze blowing from somewhere.

The sound of her own sobs echoing through the cave felt brand new and refreshing.

“A, ah…”

Bèlial blankly raised her hands to touch her hair.

Next, she felt her face, neck, arms, and legs in turn.

This is my body.

I’m experiencing this feeling.

Every sensation was endlessly delightful and novel.

For a long while, the saint struggled to accept the sensations surrounding her.

“It’s prickly…”

The cave floor was rough.

It was her first time sensing it, yet she naturally recognized that this was a prickly sensation.

Then she touched the soft grass, and when she dipped her fingers into the tiny pond at her feet, the water tickled between her fingers, making her giggle with delight.

Everything was fascinating.

The realization that there were so many sensations in this world brought her warmth and joy.

As she gently caressed the colorful fish gathering around her fingertips, she suddenly remembered why she had come here and sprang up from her spot.

“Jörmungandr!”

She had come here to meet him.

And the moment she crossed the threshold of the cave, she realized she had transitioned to another space—

“—I’ve regained my senses….”

She needed to meet Jörmungandr.

Nothing else mattered.

She had to ask how she regained those senses……

[Are you looking for me?]

“……!!”

Bèlial turned around.

There, a snake existed.

A serpent that appeared to be hundreds of meters long with profoundly blue and mysterious eyes—a shadowy serpent.

It had been there for some time, quietly staring at her with its blue eyes.

Gulp.

The saint swallowed hard.

Suddenly, even this sensation was unfamiliar, and she felt tears pricking at the corners of her eyes again, but she held them back and gazed at the massive serpent.

‘…….’

He was overwhelming.

That was the first thought that crossed her mind upon seeing Jörmungandr.

A sheer volume of pure divinity swirled around him, incomparable to anyone else. Despite his apparent restraint, the power she gained as a saint allowed her to see what others could not.

It wasn’t her first encounter with divinity.

She could always see the divine presence enveloping her body, and other solitary heroes sometimes possessed beings of divinity too.

But.

‘…To have such an overwhelming quantity and quality.’

The quantity and quality were on another level altogether.

The divine presence he concealed was overwhelming and potent enough to fill this massive cave. But did that mean the quality of his divinity was lacking? Not at all. In fact, the divinity he possessed was purer and more noble than anyone she had encountered.

“Could you possibly be… Lord Jörmungandr?”

She knew it was a foolish question.

After all, if a being with such overwhelming divinity wasn’t Jörmungandr, then who on earth could be?

As expected, he nodded agreeably.

[Indeed.]

His voice echoed through the cave, sending shivers through every cell in her body. Nevertheless, she forced herself to speak. There was still something she wanted to confirm.

“If that’s the case… did you also return my senses?”

His blue eyes fixated on her as she awaited his response silently. If he truly had restored her senses, what should she do?

A brief silence hung in the air, and even in that moment of stillness, her heart raced in anticipation.

[You could say that.]

The moment she heard those words, the saint couldn’t contain her joy.

Her eyes sparkled with elation.

Seventeen years.

It had been that long since she had lived life in a state of numbness.

And throughout that time, she had tried everything she could imagine to reclaim her lost senses.

She had attempted to heal her own body, and she had even tasted legendary herbs said to cure all wounds and ailments just by consuming them.

But nothing changed.

Her body felt nothing, and she thought she would have to live out her life in that numbness.

But that wasn’t the case.

For some unknown reason, Lord Jörmungandr had cured her affliction.

Just as she was about to regard him with eyes full of admiration—

[One, it’s not permanent.]

“…As expected, I see.”

She hadn’t harbored high expectations.

No matter how divine a being was, it was still a god.

It was the goddess, the first and creator god who had taken her senses.

Even gods would find it challenging to restore that which was taken.

“Then, is there a way to heal it?”

Yet she couldn’t help but harbor hope.

Whatever the reason, it was a fact that he had temporarily returned her senses to her.

If there was a method, she was determined to pursue it no matter the cost.

Even if it meant selling her soul.

As long as she could reclaim the senses she had lost.

The saint didn’t care if he tortured her or extracted her soul.

All she wished for was to regain her senses.

[Honestly, I haven’t found a complete way for you to restore your senses either.]

“Ah…”

[It’s just that if you’re by my side, my power can sever the negative divinity that connects you.]

Life suddenly sparked in her eyes, which had almost lost hope.

“Is that really all there is to the condition?”

[Yes. If you’re by my side, you could temporarily regain your senses… what are you doing?]

Jörmungandr looked at the saint, who had now clung to him in surprising disbelief.

But that didn’t matter.

She had no intention of letting go of Jörmungandr.

“Would you like to live with me?”

Her eyes sparkled brightly.