“Saint…”
Ludvik set down the spoon he had been holding and sighed softly.
It had already been two days.
Since that chaos in the courtroom, and the rampage caused by the descending Vervaria, not only was the courtroom building severely damaged, but the administration building had also suffered significant destruction, crumbling down for two whole days.
The Church of the Celestial God had sustained immense losses.
The injured were still being counted, and even the estimated numbers were staggering.
Yona, who had retrieved Alex and even managed to recover Rubina, had summoned Vervaria, turning the Church of the Celestial God into a disaster zone.
In the meantime, the nearby Holy Knight Brigade and the priests all gathered, pouring down their holiness in an effort that barely drove them to retreat.
And at the forefront were Ludvik and Priest Vigrind, who gathered the divine power of the Celestial God to the ground and channelled it; as soon as Yona and Vervaria retreated, she fainted.
The next day, when Vigrind regained consciousness, she stared blankly, keeping her place on the bed without having eaten anything.
“You should eat something. You know that, right?”
No response came back.
How could Ludvik understand Vigrind’s feelings? He did know that she had quite a fondness for Yona.
Right now, she must be in a lot of pain.
At least he could think that much.
That’s why he could understand her skipping one or two meals, but Vigrind had already gone without food for two days, and that naturally made him worried.
“You should at least eat this.”
Ludvik stirred the lukewarm corn soup, scooping up a generous helping of the chunky bits to offer.
“I have no appetite.”
Vigrind didn’t even glance at the spoon.
The corn kernels, bacon, finely chopped onions, and carrots made for a rather extravagant corn soup, but what good was it if the person was steadfastly refusing to eat?
Ludvik quietly set the spoon down on the plate.
If Vigrind didn’t eat by dinner, he’d have to take drastic measures, but for now—yes, for now.
“A bounty has been declared.”
Vigrind, looking out the window, flinched slightly.
Ludvik noticed it, but chose not to comment, continuing his discourse.
“Not only in the Duchy of Kapatia, but a bounty has been declared in all areas influenced by the Church of the Celestial God. The bounty level is…”
Vigrind’s gaze shifted towards Ludvik.
More precisely, it was fixed on Ludvik’s mouth.
She seemed determined not to miss a syllable he uttered—
“Heretical Enemy.”
With that word, Vigrind’s eyes widened in shock.
Heretical Enemy.
The enemy of the entire church.
It was the highest-level bounty that had never been declared even once until now.
Considered the enemy of the Church of the Celestial God as a whole, it was a high-level bounty for which the entire organization would spare no effort for its eradication.
A higher-level bounty.
Not only the armed groups affiliated with the Church, but the entire organization is mobilizing to obliterate that existence.
Anyone who brings that individual will be treated as a distinguished guest of the Church of the Celestial God.
“Wasn’t this something we could have expected? Apostasy, demon worship—it’s gone beyond mere following and has devolved into worship. They’ve attacked the holy courtroom, harmed many, slaughtered countless people, and even led to the courtroom’s collapse. It would have been weirder if they weren’t affiliated with the Church.”
“…I guess that’s true…”
Priest Vigrind’s voice was heavily laden. She couldn’t understand how it had come to this.
Even back in the banquet hall, when she met Yona—wasn’t everything fine then?
They had even shared warm conversations, and she had planned to ask for help in tracking down the Dark Sect again.
The corpse trees in Evian and the evidence linking those corpse trees to Evian’s back alleys.
And the signs that those who infiltrated the alleys had come from Kapatia Port.
After Kapatia Port, back to finding Ceres into the Church Region.
With the thought that an even larger whirlpool would be created,
Vigrind was thinking of requesting Yona and her group to join in tracking the Dark Sect.
“If only I hadn’t healed Yona back then…”
“That’s a meaningless assumption, Saint.”
Ludvik quickly dismissed that assumption, shaking his head.
It truly is a pointless matter.
Vigrind’s healing, that holy power was merely a flare.
Yona’s condition hadn’t been good prior, and considering it now, she must have been succumbing to the demon influence.
And then to pour the conflicting power of divine energy on top of that would have only hastened the explosion,
Even if nothing had been done, a magical explosion was inevitable.
“Yona is—no, no, we’re inside the Church Region… The apostate Yona was surely succumbing to the demon influence regardless. Even if you hadn’t done that, an explosion would have occurred. So…”
Right now, she hoped that at least that would provide a little comfort to this tiny Saint.
“It’s not your fault, Saint.”
“……”
Upon hearing those words, Vigrind lowered her head.
Though it was meant to be comforting, she wished it could at least provide her a tiny bit of solace.
But it seems that wasn’t the case.
“Elder Ceres has already begun the search.”
“Elder Ceres?”
“Yes. Sir Scarlet is also planning to join the search as soon as he recovers.”
Scarlet was gravely injured.
With broken and twisted bones, not to mention his armor—
“I never expected Sir Scarlet to be such a small girl.”
He chuckled lightly, Ludvik laughed out loud.
Right now, a small chuckle was needed, and the little girl popping out from the broken armor was certainly surprising, making it a fitting subject to laugh about.
“It was a good time to talk just now.”
“Right? How could such a small girl wear that huge armor…”
“It seems it was custom-made armor.”
“Is that so…”
“And once Sir Scarlet completely recovers—how about we join him in the hunt?”
“Are you… really serious!?”
Priest Vigrind, who had been maintaining his spot on the bed as if nothing had happened, suddenly popped up to face Ludvik.
That was music to Vigrind’s ears.
Even though Yona had become an enemy, he at least needed to know why.
Why she made that choice.
Why she turned her back on the God of Heaven and chose to follow evil.
Vigrind wanted to know.
*
With a blink, he found himself in a strange place.
His vision sharpened with every blink.
‘…What is this, heaven?’
Alex thought maybe he had died.
It made sense; his body felt so clear and light.
‘This isn’t the courtroom…’
When he looked up, the sky was right there.
Filled with gray clouds, it seemed like rain would pour down at any moment.
Seeing the sky directly in front of him meant he was lying down.
‘What’s going on…’
As Alex lay still, trying to gauge the situation, he slowly sat up.
The peculiar smell of campfire tickled his nose, and above it rested a half-open lunch box, letting off some steam.
And next to it—
“…Yona.”
A person huddled with their knees drawn up.
Though he couldn’t see the face, he recognized her from the distinctive milky hair.
“Yona.”
She twitched.
The one curled up flinched and shook at Alex’s voice.
Then she slowly lifted her face from between her knees to look at Alex.
Eyes devoid of focus.
Seeing that gaze almost made Alex chuckle.
Yona taking a long time to wake up.
Yona always a little out of her mind in the morning.
Then suddenly, she would return to her senses.
Even this little detail felt like a reminder that she was indeed Yona.
“…Alex?”
“Yep.”
“Alex?”
“Yep.”
“Alex—!”
It happened in an instant.
The moment her eyes found focus, Yona, confirming that Alex was indeed sitting up, sprang to her feet without realizing it.
What a relief. Alex wasn’t dead.
What a relief. Not that he thought he was going to die.
What a relief. He had healed completely.
What a relief. Even though he had slept for two straight days.
What a relief. That he woke up like this.
What a relief. That he got up looking perfectly fine.
What a relief. That he didn’t die before she arrived.
Before I got here, please don’t die.
The world swayed in front of her.
Yona didn’t even try to hold back the intense warmth surging from deep within her chest.
She didn’t need to know what this swaying was about.
Nothing else mattered.
It didn’t matter that she was wearing a tattered nun’s outfit.
It didn’t matter that they were just sitting here in a clearing in the woods with only a campfire, unable to even go to an inn.
It didn’t matter if everyone in the world pointed fingers at her.
Because Alex was alive, nothing else mattered.
She needed nothing more.
As long as Alex was alive, that was enough.
“Al, Al… Ale, ugh, ugh, ugh…”
Tears finally flowed from her swaying eyes.
Even though Alex’s baffled face turned into a silly grin, it didn’t make her feel any resentment.
What was the reason for that?
“I thought… I’d never see you again…”
She didn’t even know what she was saying.
And she wasn’t sure if she needed to.
Yona just pulled out the swirling emotions from her chest.
“I thought… you… were going to die…”
“Why would I die, you fool? Why would I die leaving you behind?”
Alex’s voice settled heavily on her chest.
That weight soon melted away, spreading warmth throughout her body.
It felt like a gentle heat enveloping her.
“I really thought… you were going to die…”
“I can’t die.”
Alex smiled.
He smiled because he felt he had to, and so he did.
“I have the best healer as my partner. There’s no way I’d die.”
Yona laughed too.
Her tear-streaked face still bore a smile.
“That’s obvious!”
With her hair fluttering, Yona lunged at Alex.
She cherished his warmth so much, so sincerely, that she hugged him tightly.
Fearful that this warmth might disappear, she clung on with all her strength.
Determined not to let go, again and again.
“Uwaaaaaah—”
Only Yona’s wailing echoed through the empty forest.
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