Chapter 96
Misconception
The Sacred One’s divine power flooded the Forbidden Archive.
Everything burned pure white.
Amid the brilliant holy flames, Shaperia swung her sword.
Sacred radiance rippled along its path.
Holy flames that incinerated evil surged like a wave toward Gawain.
Pitch-black smoke rose from his entire body.
A piercing scream rang out.
“S-stop!”
Gawain had no means of resisting the divine power.
His body was bound by countless restraints, and the divinity consuming him was far too pure.
At this rate, Gawain would be reduced to dust.
Amid the blazing holy flames, Shaperia cried out,
“Your Highness! Please forgive this disloyal subject!”
She continued swinging her sword.
She had to kill Gawain.
If they failed to stop him now, he might bring calamity upon the world.
Johan must have known that well, which was why he had used the Brilliant Sigil at the cost of his own life.
Shaperia could not allow Johan’s sacrifice to be in vain.
She pushed the blessing’s divine power to its absolute limit.
The condensed divinity turned blue.
It had transformed into moonlight.
Shrouded in moonlight, Shaperia brought down her sword.
A deep-blue blade of energy hurtled toward Gawain.
The space surrounding him lit up blue.
His demonic energy and malice were submerged in the moonlight and vanished.
Gawain raised his arms as though attempting to block the approaching light.
“W-wait!”
It was a futile resistance.
“…Forgive me, Your Highness.”
The blade of energy swallowed Gawain in an instant.
The moonlight burned away all evil.
Not even a trace of Gawain remained.
There was not so much as a dying scream.
Only black ash drifted through the space where his malice had burned away.
The exorcism was complete.
Shaperia collapsed to her knees.
Overwhelming weakness and drowsiness suddenly washed over her.
Was it because she had wielded divine power for the first time in so long? She could not endure the exhaustion that battered both her mind and body.
With great difficulty, Shaperia turned her head.
Her gaze fell upon Johan.
“…Baron.”
Johan lay on the floor with his eyes closed.
He was probably dead.
It was the price of using the Brilliant Sigil.
Shaperia tightly clenched both fists.
“I will never forget your sacrifice, Saint Margiel.”
After finishing her brief prayer, she too collapsed.
Her consciousness sank into darkness.
***
She awoke to an unfamiliar scene.
A caved-in ceiling and partially destroyed walls entered her view.
Everything she could see was covered in scorch marks.
Was she in the middle of a battlefield?
Puzzled, Shaperia sat up and slowly looked around.
“…A bedroom?”
She was sitting on a soft bed. Every piece of furniture before her was smashed or broken, but the bedding alone was as clean as if it were brand-new.
It appeared that someone had hastily brought a new bed and blankets into the half-destroyed bedroom.
Shaperia clutched her head.
An intense headache washed over her.
She could not clearly remember why she had been lying there.
As she groaned, a familiar voice reached her ears.
“Are you awake?”
Shaperia immediately turned her head.
Her pupils widened.
Johan was entering the bedroom.
“B-Baron!”
The moment she saw him, her strength returned in an instant.
The events in the Forbidden Archive flashed before her eyes.
Gawain transformed into a demon, Johan using the Brilliant Sigil, the brilliant holy flames, the surging moonlight…
No matter how she looked at it, Johan could not possibly be alive.
Shaperia immediately leaped out of bed.
She rushed over and seized Johan by both shoulders.
Her expression was that of someone who had seen a ghost.
Johan, meanwhile, remained perfectly calm.
He spoke as though it were nothing important.
“I entered your room without knocking. Please forgive my discourtesy. As you can see, there is no door.”
Only the doorframe remained where the door should have been.
Shaperia nearly screamed,
“Th-that doesn’t matter! More importantly, Baron, how in the world…?”
“You’re wondering how I’m still alive?”
Shaperia nodded rapidly.
“Yes. You undoubtedly used the Brilliant Sigil right before my eyes!”
The Brilliant Sigil was a holy relic that burned its user’s soul to summon the Sacred One’s divine power.
Anyone who borrowed its power was destined to die.
Johan looked troubled.
“To be honest, I don’t know either. I have no idea why the Brilliant Sigil failed to take my life.”
Shaperia found it difficult to accept the reality before her.
Using the Brilliant Sigil led directly to death.
That fact was even recorded in the sacred text known as the Compendium of Holy Relics.
There was no possibility that its records were incorrect.
The Compendium of Holy Relics contained only verified and officially recognized information.
Every piece of knowledge written within it was considered an immutable law.
Yet that truth had now been overturned.
Shaperia was utterly confused.
“…Even with my limited knowledge, I cannot begin to understand why.”
Johan pondered briefly before speaking.
“This may be a foolish question, but could the Brilliant Sigil I used have been an inferior replica?”
Counterfeit holy relics did exist.
Shaperia immediately rejected the possibility.
“Absolutely not. Those holy flames undoubtedly contained the Sacred One’s divine power.”
The purer divinity became, the more closely it resembled moonlight.
The divine power Shaperia had experienced earlier had unquestionably been moonlight itself.
No inferior replica could even imitate the faintest glimmer of moonlight.
Johan groaned.
“If it wasn’t an inferior version, I can’t think of any other possibility.”
Shaperia fell into deep thought.
After quite some time, she spoke.
“There is one hypothesis remaining.”
“What is it?”
A strange conviction appeared in Shaperia’s eyes.
“Johan Myatro is an emissary of the Sacred One. Nothing else could explain this.”
An emissary of the Sacred One was a holy champion personally chosen by the Sacred One.
Such champions were not bound by truth, immutable laws, or prohibitions. Mere earthly rules could not restrain an emissary of the Sacred One.
A holy champion existed solely to obey the Sacred One’s divine mandate.
If Johan was an emissary of the Sacred One, then his survival after using the Brilliant Sigil could be explained.
Johan struggled to suppress his laughter.
He was extremely pleased.
Shaperia’s reasoning was proceeding exactly as he had planned.
Designing that illusion had truly been worthwhile.
Johan feigned embarrassment.
“Sir Shaperia, an emissary of the Sacred One? Someone like me could never…”
Shaperia shook her head.
“There are many extraordinary things about you, Baron. Not only your abilities, but also your selflessness and sense of duty. You are more than worthy of being chosen as a holy champion.”
Johan had sacrificed his own life to prevent Gawain from being unleashed upon the world.
The sight of him calmly giving up his life remained vividly engraved in Shaperia’s mind.
Johan visibly grew embarrassed.
It was an act, of course.
“Your praise leaves me at a loss. I can only thank you for thinking so highly of me.”
“I am merely stating the truth. Anyone would agree with me. Instead of standing here, we should go to the Order’s headquarters immediately.”
Johan looked puzzled.
“The headquarters?”
“Yes. The moment we report this incident, the barony will be placed under the Order’s protection.”
Johan looked skeptical.
“And the Order’s interference will come along with its support.”
“…Surely you don’t intend to conceal what happened today?”
“To be honest, I find the Order somewhat troublesome. Besides, the matter concerning His Highness has yet to be resolved.”
Confusion filled Shaperia’s expression.
“Did His Highness not already meet his end?”
Gawain had unquestionably disappeared beneath the moonlight.
“No. He is still alive.”
Shaperia was visibly startled.
“H-how can that be?!”
“Because he had not yet transformed into a complete demon, it seems he managed to survive even moonlight of such intensity.”
Shaperia found Johan’s words difficult to believe.
She had witnessed Gawain’s destruction with her own eyes.
“…May I see His Highness myself?”
“Of course. Let us descend to the Forbidden Archive together.”
Johan and Shaperia immediately headed for the Forbidden Archive.
At the center of the archive, a human sat bound to a large chair.
It was difficult to confirm his identity.
Chains were wound tightly around his entire body, while countless talismans covered his face, leaving not even a speck of skin exposed.
He looked like a sealed mummy.
Shaperia swallowed dryly.
“I-is this His Highness?”
Johan nodded.
“Though it was an act of disloyalty, I had no choice but to restrain him. We do not know when he might awaken and lose control again.”
Shaperia fully understood Johan’s decision.
After all, only a few hours had passed since she had personally experienced Gawain’s malice.
She swallowed a groan.
“What are we to do with His Highness now?”
Johan spoke calmly.
“We must cure him, just as we originally planned.”
They had intended to treat Gawain from the beginning.
That objective had not changed.
“Is there a way?”
“As I told you earlier, we must go to the Abyss.”
Suddenly, a better solution to the problem occurred to Shaperia.
They could simply kill Gawain here and now.
There was no need to take the risk of entering the Abyss.
Whether Gawain lived or died, Johan had sufficient justification for either choice.
Gawain had already become a demon.
Shaperia quietly stared at Johan.
“Forgive my impertinence, but may I ask you one question?”
“Ask whatever you wish.”
“Why are you trying to help His Highness?”
Johan replied in a composed voice.
“Repay the kindness you receive. Do not turn away from those who suffer. Choose justice, even if it forces you to take the longer path. Those are all teachings of the Sacred One. As the Watcher of the Abyss, I merely obey the divine mandate.”
As far as Shaperia knew, Gawain had been cursed while helping Johan.
Gawain was suffering because of it, and Johan therefore had an obligation to save him.
He had to repay that kindness through righteous means.
Without the slightest compromise, Johan was following the Sacred One’s divine mandate.
He was more faithful and devout than anyone Shaperia had ever known.
He truly was a man worthy of becoming a holy champion.
Shaperia murmured quietly,
“…I have been waiting for someone like you.”
Johan did not hear her.
“What did you say?”
Shaperia brought a hand to her waist.
Her sword slid free with a weighty rasp.
She suddenly lowered herself onto one knee.
She held the sharpened sword out before her with both hands.
“Please accept this sword. I wish to become your loyal servant.”
Johan was slightly bewildered.
I wasn’t looking for this much loyalty.
He had orchestrated the entire incident to erase Shaperia’s suspicions.
However, he had left a far greater impression on her than he had planned.
Shaperia now wished to swear her allegiance to him.
Johan fell into thought.
Could he accept her sword?
Since this had not been part of his plan, he found it difficult to decide immediately.
He needed to weigh the advantages and disadvantages.
…Perhaps I should simply accept a fortunate outcome.
There did not appear to be any real disadvantage, yet he still felt strangely uneasy.
After deliberating for quite some time, Johan finally spoke.