My World is… (3)
Tagmah stared at the sight of Lahamod's head falling, his eyes filled with fury.
He couldn't breathe. He struggled to move his body somehow. But with his energy completely drained, seized by the storm of holy power, it was no easy feat.
"Grrrgh… why… why is this happening…"
What escaped from his lips was not so much words as a scream mixed with resentment and despair.
Victory had been within reach. Just one more step and everything would've been over.
And yet, at that very moment, the Saintess appeared!
No one could have predicted such a turn of events.
With the Saintess's arrival, the entire tide had turned to despair. The accompanying priests and dark mages were collapsing one by one.
Grinding his teeth, Tagmah squeezed out the last of his strength.
"Grondal!"
He roared like a beast, stretching out his hand.
He intended to kill the Dwarf King at all costs.
But his weakened attack was no match for Grondal, who had already recovered.
Clack.
Grondal blocked Tagmah's attack with laughable ease.
Now, Tagmah was no different from an ordinary human. His once-terrifying aura had long since burned away.
"…Miracles always come in the most unexpected moments."
Grondal's words echoed with weight.
Everyone present today had witnessed a miracle. And that miracle signified that Valskrum had triumphed in this war.
"Now that the real Saintess has appeared, you'll fail again."
Grondal raised his halberd high, speaking as if prophesying.
Tagmah glared at Grondal and exhaled his final breath.
"…On the day the noblest light falls, our king shall appear."
"A king, you say."
Grondal scoffed lightly, then asked.
"You think that one would be stronger than the Saintess who wields the goddess's power?"
"If the Saintess is the goddess's agent, then the king is the agent of our god. No matter how you struggle, in the end, you'll kneel before Him. It was our god who cast the goddess down."
"Fine then… I'll just lop off his head when the time comes."
Crack!
With a swing of Grondal's halberd, Tagmah's head was ripped off in an instant.
Another priest of the Salvation Church died in agony within the divine storm, slain by Erenes.
Munareff also crawled on the ground, trying to flee. His eyes were completely consumed by fear, and his breath was ragged like a wild beast's.
Before he realized it, Ghislain had approached, looking down at him.
"I told you, didn't I? I'd let you go once, but if we met again, you'd be dead."
"U-Urrrrgh…"
Munareff kept crawling on the floor, his face frozen in terror. He was desperate to escape.
But Ghislain drew his sword and brought it straight down on Munareff's neck.
Slice!
With no will left to resist, Munareff's head flew off without a shred of dignity.
Ghislain slowly brushed his hair back and said,
"See? That's what you get for messing with someone just taking a peaceful stroll."
He had never forgotten what happened in the Elven Forest. Ghislain Perdium was a quietly tenacious man who held many things deep in his heart.
Waaaaaaaaaah!
A roar erupted from afar. Even without seeing it, it was obvious. It was the cry of overwhelming victory.
Against all odds, they had achieved a miraculous triumph. And at the heart of this victory was undeniably one person.
Deneb.
A noble being who would now be called the Saintess.
Everyone turned their eyes toward her.
Deneb still had her eyes closed, holding the fallen Yulian in her arms. She didn't say anything, didn't move at all.
She merely held Yulian quietly… peacefully.
But everyone could tell that Yulian was alive.
Because Deneb was smiling gently.
Ghislain looked at her and let out a chuckle.
"Well, yeah. If you died after receiving that much holy power, that'd be the real scam."
The divine storm that had exploded here was of an unprecedented scale.
As long as your life wasn't completely snuffed out, you could definitely be brought back. Even a severed arm could probably be regrown.
Fwoooosh…
The light pouring into Deneb began to thin and fade away. At the same time, the holy stone also began to lose its glow.
Everyone except Ghislain still stared blankly at Deneb.
Especially Lionel, who was deeply shaken.
'The Saintess… so that is what a real Saintess is…'
Even the Pope, said to possess the greatest holy power in the world, wasn't like this.
The power Deneb had shown now—one could believe it was the descent of the goddess herself.
How could such a miracle dwell in a lowly priest?
'I—I must inform His Holiness the Pope immediately…'
The holy stone had reacted. A stone that had never once responded throughout all of history had reacted to a mere priest.
This was an event that would shake the entire history of the continent. Every king, every racial representative, would take great interest in this matter.
Sure enough, Grondal slumped to the ground, laughing heartily.
"Amazing! Absolutely amazing! Who would've thought that the holy stone we treated as just a symbolic item actually held the goddess's power!"
Grondal, like Iraniel, had always seen the holy stone as nothing more than a historical artifact.
Of course, since it granted its owner great legitimacy and authority, they had treated it with care—but nothing more.
But now it was clear they had all been gravely mistaken. That object truly contained the goddess's power.
It was just that no one capable of wielding that power had come along—until now.
Now, the true master of the holy stone had appeared. They couldn't keep acting as they had in the past.
Grondal looked at Ghislain and said,
"Hey, mage."
"Yes?"
"That woman… no, the Saintess, the holy stone she carries—did those pointy-eared folk give it to her?"
"They did. The Elf Grand Chieftain personally set it on her necklace."
"Hmph, for folks who hole up in the woods, they sure have an eye for things."
Grondal grumbled to himself, then soon laughed heartily and declared,
"Alright! I've made up my mind!"
"About what?"
"We came here to get our holy stone, right? I'll give it to the Saintess."
At those words, Ghislain smiled brightly.
If they'd asked, Grondal wouldn't have been able to refuse anyway.
But since Iraniel had given theirs first, Grondal, not wanting to lose face, volunteered the offer himself.
Ghislain bowed his head slightly and said,
"Thank you. It seems our journey here wasn't in vain."
"Thanks to you all, we won this battle. Hahaha!"
Listening to their conversation, Lionel broke into a cold sweat.
'T-This is bad.'
Iraniel had declared Deneb the official owner of the holy stone. Now Grondal had done the same.
If the Pope tried to forcibly seize it, both races' leaders would rebel. Ultimately, Deneb would have to offer it to the Pope voluntarily.
But…
'Is that really the right thing to do?'
Lionel gulped as he looked at Deneb.
It already seemed like the holy stone had chosen its master. Even if Deneb offered it, those around her would surely stop her.
She was the first to awaken the goddess's power and also awaken the holy stone's power—a true Saintess. A symbol of faith, the embodiment of salvation, and the will of the goddess.
Thus, it was only right that all priests of the Church kneel before her in reverence.
The problem was, would the Pope accept that?
"N-No, this can't be happening..."
The Pope was a terrifying man. Lionel, having served closest to him, knew his true nature all too well.
A man who believed he was the agent of God, and that he alone could bring salvation to the world.
One who was convinced that he alone could carry out the will of the divine.
There was no way such a Pope would willingly acknowledge a Saintess.
'If that happens…'
Lionel glanced sideways at Ghislain.
What he had seen of Ghislain so far was utter chaos. An unpredictable being who defied all logic.
Lionel realized instinctively.
'That lunatic won't sit still.'
Even if Deneb offered the holy stone of her own volition, Ghislain wouldn't stay silent. That much was certain. And if that happened, conflict with the Pope was inevitable.
The problem was, that lunatic was someone who might genuinely take on the entire Empire.
'Ugh… w-what should I do?'
Lionel was a knight of deep faith. Having witnessed the miracle with his own eyes, he couldn't deny the power of the Saintess.
But that didn't mean he could blindly side with Deneb either.
He belonged to the Holy See and pledged loyalty to the Pope. Not to mention, he had received this mission directly from His Holiness.
Gripping his head, Lionel writhed in torment. His greatest worry now was a clash between the Pope and the Saintess.
While Lionel groaned, Erenes turned to look at someone else.
Yulian.
As amazing as Deneb's miracle was, what had shocked Erenes even more was what Yulian had done.
He had thrown himself into danger, sacrificing himself to protect someone precious.
That desperate emotion had broken through his limits and brought him to a superhuman realm.
It was a state of being that Erenes had never once experienced or imagined in all her long life.
And it was no wonder. Elves normally attained enlightenment and mastery through harmony with nature.
To reach such a realm through emotional intensity, like Yulian, was unheard of.
Suddenly, she remembered something Ghislain had once said.
— There's this guy named Yulian. He's cooler than most princes.
Hearing that, she had looked forward to meeting him. But when they did meet in person, she had to admit, she was a little disappointed.
His striking appearance was princely, sure—but Elves didn't value others based on appearance.
His skills were decent. His affinity with spirits was also quite impressive.
But it wasn't enough to leave a lasting impression on Erenes.
His personality wasn't bad. He was gentle, polite, and quiet. But none of it had justified Ghislain's glowing praise.
And yet…
To think he harbored such a fierce fire in his heart.
'...He was impressive.'
Erenes corrected her assessment of Yulian. Just as Ghislain had said, he truly was a remarkable man.
The same went for Deneb. For Yulian's sake, she had performed a miracle no one could've imagined.
That kind of phenomenon only occurred when someone's emotions reached an extreme.
A pure, intense bond between two people.
That emotion had moved even the divine.
But seeing the two of them like that only stirred the desire slumbering within her.
"I want that too…"
Erenes bit her lower lip without realizing.
That was it.
A yearning so strong you'd burn everything for it.
Elves were a people who kept their distance from such feelings.
And yet now… she wanted that feeling.
Whether it was conviction, ambition, or love.
She wanted to feel an emotion that Elves weren't supposed to feel.
Everyone continued watching Deneb and Yulian, each lost in their own thoughts.
Deneb held the unconscious Yulian tightly in her arms.
It was as if she were declaring with her whole being that she would never let him be hurt like that again, that she would never let go.
The light in the sky had faded, but the divine storm's aftermath still lingered.
As if to proclaim the birth of a Saintess, it spread slowly, and far.
There were still some enemies left, so the battle hadn't completely ended. But there was no need for anyone here to take part anymore.
That was how overwhelming the battle's momentum was. The enemies were weakened by the very ripple of holy power and collapsed one after another.
"Whew… so it's finally over."
Ghislain let out a breath of relief. He had just finished dealing with two of the strongest enemies that had constantly worried him.
But then, he suddenly had a feeling he had forgotten something.
As if to point that out, Dark suddenly burst in and shouted loudly.
"Is it over here?! Then get moving, now!"
"What?"
"Kyle's in danger! He's about to die! No, he's dying as we speak!"
At Dark's urgent words, Ghislain's expression stiffened.
They had spent too much time here. There had surely been a high-ranking priest of the Salvation Church on Kyle's side as well.
And right now, Kyle would not be able to handle a superhuman-level enemy alone.
'Damn it…'
A terrible premonition gripped Ghislain.
Yulian achieving transcendence and Deneb awakening her powers were predetermined events. Even in the original past, before Ghislain's intervention, those things happened.
But now the past had changed.
Two Apostles are dead.
They were ones who were supposed to fight the Hero's companions in the future.
Them dying now had never happened in the original history.
'Don't tell me…'
The death of the Apostles might mean that the Hero's companions could also die here.
Perhaps… this was the balance of the world correcting itself.
To offset the altered past, it might be trying to take Kyle's life.
But to Ghislain, that was unacceptable.
If Kyle died here, then killing the Apostles would have been meaningless.
Kyle had to survive and save the world alongside the Hero.
And…
He was a comrade and friend Ghislain could never bear to lose.
Ghislain drew out the last of his remaining mana. Fatigue weighed heavily on his body, but there was no time to rest.
BOOOOM!
His body blasted off toward the direction where Kyle was, like an explosion.
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