Ludvik had never been this close before, but without realizing it, Priest Vigrind was getting angry.
From Yona’s left arm, black smoke was billowing up—magic.
Humans can’t conjure magic.
Only monsters can create magic.
A human can only conjure magic if they’ve given up their humanity.
Moreover, the chill emitting from Yona made Vigrind shiver.
Even Vigrind, who was protected by the divine granted directly by the Celestial God, felt the magic radiating from Yona was dangerous.
If that’s the case, then all the clues point to one thing.
Yona has given up her humanity and has become a monster herself.
“No, that can’t be! Please, just a bit more… let’s talk—!”
Yona screamed at Scarlet, who stood in front of Vigrind.
She was sure that there was a misunderstanding, something was wrong, some circumstance.
But her cries fell on deaf ears.
Instead, Scarlet stood firm, blocking her.
Ludvik stood next to Scarlet, aiming his spear.
And in front of them, the cathedral knights formed a circular siege around Yona and her group.
With hazy divinity rising up, they seemed poised to pounce on Yona’s group at any moment.
“Saint, please calm down. I don’t know how you entered the Church Region, but you are no longer a member of the Church of the Celestial God. You are an enemy of the Celestial God and a servant of the Demon!”
Did Scarlet’s words even reach Yona?
In that moment, Yona’s gaze shifted to Scarlet.
Her hollow, empty golden eyes met Scarlet’s, then shifted to Vigrind.
“Yona, Yona!”
Even at Vigrind’s desperate call, Yona wouldn’t respond.
She glanced at him briefly, then returned her gaze to her left arm, where the magic was erupting.
A sudden explosion,
and the magic thrumming from her left arm.
Yona stared blankly at her arm.
Suddenly, she didn’t understand what was happening, but she knew this wasn’t normal.
“Yona, are you okay?”
Slowly, a look returned to Yona’s dazed face.
The distant voice of Alex brought her back to her senses, like waking from a deep sleep.
“I… I don’t know what’s happening.”
“It doesn’t matter. Let’s find a way out of here.”
But how?
Yona couldn’t voice that question.
Only then did she take in her surroundings.
“…Alex, I think it would be better for you to run away.”
That was her honest feeling.
The dangerous aura from the cathedral knights aimed at her was sharp, ready to strike at any moment.
Wasn’t it Yona they were targeting?
“Stop talking nonsense. I’ve never abandoned you.”
“That’s true, but I feel like I’m going to die here—”
“Who’s dying!”
Alex cut off Yona’s words, sounding angry.
At his voice, Yona closed her mouth, her lips trembled as she tried to say something, but nothing came out.
“I will never, ever let you die. I will save you. I will absolutely save you!”
“I’ll save you.”
But just because he wasn’t saying it, who doesn’t know?
In the meantime, the encirclement of the cathedral knights was gradually tightening.
Alex gulped as he watched their perfectly coordinated encroachment, marveling at how well their training had gone.
If he wanted to escape from here—well, there was a way.
If Alex could endure that hellish pain, there was indeed a way.
“Pope Akzel IV!”
Alex shouted the sacred name loudly.
His hand holding the shield was unwavering, while the other gripping the hammer was brimming with strength.
“Please let us go! If you release us, we will leave the Church Region and never set foot here again!”
At Alex’s cry, Akzel IV’s eyebrows twitched.
He had already garnered agreement among the elders for the lifting of the ban.
Johannes, Johannes Spilban.
The youngest cathedral knight in history, also known as the strongest cathedral knight ever.
He defied the orders of the church and refused the commands, resulting in his punishment and expulsion from the cathedral.
Now, he had returned as a pathetic and shabby adventurer, unable to even use divine power.
Yet, he still had spirit.
However, despite that, there was no way he could be let go.
Akzel IV’s gaze turned towards Scarlet.
Scarlet took that look as a signal and suddenly roared.
“Don’t say ridiculous things—!!”
Even though he cried out Akzel IV’s name, another voice returned.
A voice that echoed mildly from inside the helmet.
A hoarse yet commanding voice, heavy with weight.
Alex turned sharply, his eyes gleaming, towards where the voice came from.
A massive frame, clad in brilliant silver armor.
A tower shield in one hand, a morning star in the other.
The morning star, with its vicious spikes, gleamed silver but exuded an ominous force.
Every time Greave’s feet hit the ground, a clanking metal sound resonated.
Yona, still engulfed in black and red magic, stood frozen in fear.
Alex stood in front of her, protecting her.
And towards them, Scarlet was approaching.
*
“…I will leave quietly. Release us. Yona hasn’t sold her soul to a demon.”
“Don’t make me laugh, demon worshiper. The only way you’re getting out of here is as corpses.”
Alex sighed deeply.
If he forcibly lifted the ban, how long could they hold out?
Based on a rough estimate, there was no chance they could go through the main entrance. So, the escape route would be the window against which Scarlet stood.
Since this was the first floor, if he could break the window with Yona in his arms and jump out, then run straight through the side door where he had parted with James, it might just be possible.
Whether it was possible or not was beside the point—it had to be done whether it was impossible or not.
While Alex was thinking about this, he felt a familiar hand gently rest on his shoulder.
“…B-budding, I’ll just go that way.”
It was Yona’s voice.
Her voice was sorrowful.
As if she realized it was the last time, she seemed to be letting go of everything.
Alex didn’t turn to look at her.
He felt he might already know what expression she wore without needing to see it.
I feel like I can understand it now.
I don’t want to see that expression on her face.
“Don’t joke around, Yona. You have to be by my side. Your hand needs to be on my shoulder. So why are you going over there? Who do you think would allow that?”
Alex took a deep breath.
He raised his hand, clenched his fist, pointed forward, then laid his finger down.
Next, he spread his fingers, twirled them in the air, then pointed forward again.
He just hoped Kaiyak would understand this signal.
It felt like countless blades of malice and hostility were poking at his skin.
He had crossed many battle lines with Yona, but this was the first battlefield entirely about protecting her.
Could they escape—no matter how much he thought about it, the odds were low.
But that made it an even bigger gamble they had to succeed in.
Yona had embraced the demon to save him and Kaiyak.
With a voice full of fear, trembling yet resolute, she had accepted Vervaria.
“Yona. From now on, I will protect you.”
“What do you—”
“Right now!”
Alex shouted loudly.
And along with that shout, Kaiyak suddenly picked up Yona, and at the same time, Alex and Kaiyak charged at Scarlet.
*
– Bang!
He deflected the flying morning star with his shield, but the attack was still relentless.
The grounded greaves did not step back; instead, they turned towards the front, and Alex smashed his shoulder into the slightly opened chest of Scarlet.
A heavy impact struck his shoulder. Without missing a bit of retreat, Alex took another step and tackled once more. Even after pushing Scarlet away, it wasn’t over. As a spear flew towards him, Alex flattened himself on the ground. In that position, he grabbed Ludvik’s ankle and yanked it hard.
As he yanked at Ludvik’s ankle, his balance wavered violently. Attacking didn’t even cross his mind. Opening the path was all that mattered. That was Alex’s objective.
Countless vicious attacks from the Cathedral knights flew toward him. No matter how skillfully he handled the shield, he couldn’t block against sheer numbers.
Amidst that, as soon as Alex confirmed Ludvik was falling, he rolled away, using that momentum to rise and position himself behind Kaiyak, who was holding Yona.
“Kaiyak, go!”
Alex shouted as he raised his shield once more. The Cathedral knights who had already gathered here roared and charged at him, and Scarlet was also rushing toward him.
Numerous seals of blessings erupted around Scarlet, making a clamorous sound as they appeared and faded. The knights of the Cathedral, who could be considered the source of their power, were buffed repeatedly, raising their morale even higher.
“Never let them go, we cannot miss! Reinforce the external defenses and let it be known!”
Scarlet shouted, and he saw a messenger rushing toward the main gate.
There was no way he could just stand by and watch.
Alex bit his lip.
A sharp pain surged, and the taste of blood filled his mouth.
Forcing the divine power from his lower abdomen, the pain constricted his heart and intestines, weighing him down.
‘…I have to endure. I must hold on.’
He wanted to hear Yona’s playful laughter again.
They would escape this place, and he would definitely hear that laughter once more.
He objectified the pain.
He tried to observe the pain overwhelming his body as if it were someone else’s business.
This pain was his, yet he aimed to regard it as casually as if it belonged to someone else.
‘…Isn’t something strange about this?’
Scarlet thought as she noticed the sudden change in Alex’s demeanor.
It felt somewhat familiar, yet also nostalgic.
But the man before her was clearly just a worthless adventurer,
a mere companion of a fallen priest who had sold his soul to a demon.
There was no reason for her to feel a sense of familiarity towards such a man, so Scarlet gripped her morning star tightly and raised her shield.
“Don’t even think about surviving here.”
However, Alex’s expression didn’t change at all.
In fact, the pale blue aura blooming around him and the emblem of blessing beginning to flicker between that aura only perplexed her further.
“What are you doing—?!”
Scarlet’s eyes widened.
That emblem of blessing was definitely that of a cathedral knight.
But there was no way this adventurer could wield that—
By this point, Scarlet’s mind had already decided that Alex was no different from the demon’s minion.
He had sold his soul to the demon, which was why he could mimic a cathedral knight.
As that thought settled in her mind, Scarlet’s rage began to swell.
“Are you not coming? If not, I will go to you. I don’t have much time.”
Alex murmured as he tightened his grip on the hammer.
Just then, as he prepared to charge forward like a bolt of lightning,
one of the cathedral knights went flying backward, shield raised.
Another knight collapsed, his helmet severely dented.
As Alex swung his shield, it smashed into another knight as if he had just been hit by a massive carriage.
None of the twenty cathedral knights managed to withstand his single blow.
“You’ll be the last. Let’s finish this quickly. I don’t have time.”
As Alex turned around, Scarlet charged at him fiercely.
Her morning star raised high, aimed straight at Alex.
“You’re making unnecessary big movements.”
With those words, Alex brought up his shield.
Not to block, but the moment the morning star touched his shield, he slightly deflected it.
That single motion changed the direction of the morning star, as if he were slapping a bouncy mattress, exposing Scarlet’s front completely.
And in that opening, Alex did not let the opportunity slip away.
His hammer struck the right side of Scarlet’s helmet.
A thunderous bang echoed, and Scarlet felt her consciousness slipping away.
The force exceeded what she could bear, causing her helmet to fly off her head and roll on the ground,
as she slowly closed her eyes and collapsed.
And upon seeing Scarlet’s revealed face, Alex’s pupils expanded, huge, almost bursting—
“Se-Sekti…?!”
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