Answer When Called Earnestly

The banshee is a deeply malevolent monster whose very existence strikes terror into the hearts of hunters.

Its incorporeal form completely ignores simple physical attacks—

—and if its mental attack, unleashed upon close approach, lands a direct hit even once, the victim's mind is utterly shattered, leaving them dead on the spot.

Because of this, everyone now knows.

When dealing with a banshee, you can no longer solve the problem by just throwing bodies at it.

Holy power, therefore, holds immense value.

While the vast majority of climbers scale the Tower using mana, those who can wield holy power—whether by birth or through training—are few and far between.

Consequently, their worth is bound to be highly sought after.

Otherwise, if you are unlucky enough to encounter a banshee in the lower floors...

"Kieeeek!"

"Kyaaaak!"

The banshee's shrieks gradually grew more desperate.

Sensing the shift, Lisha's ears twitched repeatedly, betraying her discomfort.

"More! Sing more for me!"

And amidst the chaos, there was one person charging forward, shouting like a madman.

"...Ah."

Lisha, who had been staring blankly at the scene, snapped out of it a moment too late.

"Keeeeeek!"

Just now, another banshee was obliterated by the man's skill.

One, two, and then more.

A swarm of banshees desperately tried to close the distance to launch their mental attacks—

And Kang Woojin was charging madly straight toward them.

"What in the world...?"

Lisha muttered, utterly dumbfounded by the sight.

At this moment, the fact that she was wearing a rather embarrassing outfit was completely wiped from her mind.

She was so overwhelmed by the visual shock that her thoughts spun rapidly, dominated only by the desperate attempt to make sense of the situation.

She knew he was no ordinary person.

She knew he had cleared the tutorial of that notoriously brutal difficulty all by himself.

She also knew he had handled that monstrous, catastrophic entity she had witnessed in the simulation room alone.

She knew all of this.

That was why, despite the risks, she had chosen to become Kang Woojin's ally, determined to prove that she wasn't wrong.

But this... this was something else entirely.

"This heritage object's performance is insane! Hahaha!"

"Kieeeaaak!"

Brandishing the Faded Holy Sword in his hand, he swung it wildly, vaporizing the banshees in real-time as they entered his wide domain.

The established common sense of the hunter world that Lisha had held onto was slowly crumbling.

...Is this even allowed?

Creatures that would normally make hunters tremble in fear if even one appeared were rushing in droves only to be instantly vaporized.

At this rate, the monsters looked like the ones running for their lives.

"..."

She flinched.

For a while now, the energy radiating from Woojin had been triggering a strange reaction within her.

At first, she thought it was just her imagination, but now she was beginning to understand the source of that sensation.

Holy power.

Within his constantly swirling domain, there was an energy that particularly stimulated her senses.

"...Ngh!"

At that moment, a sudden headache struck her.

"What... what are these memories?"

Regardless of her own will, Lisha was suddenly confronted with memories of an unfamiliar era.

This was my first time dealing with monsters approaching from the air.

Because of that, I was a bit tense, but...

Who am I again?

Am I not the proud owner of holy power, the very thing that makes the undead tremble?

Considering the monsters' perspective—where they had no choice but to mindlessly charge at climbers—I had all the justification I needed to stop hesitating.

"Kyaaaak!"

The banshees shrieked as they closed in.

Sssss...

Feeling the presence of the Predator's Domain swirling around me, I took a step forward, as relaxed as if I were out for a casual stroll.

"...?!"

The moment the first banshee entered my domain, the attacks generated within it swept through its body.

Slash...!

It felt completely different from fighting skeletons or low-grade ghouls.

Leaving behind a sensation like a passing breeze, only a very faint resistance betrayed the banshee's presence.

However, the source of that resistance was precisely the energy I needed to focus on.

The effect of the Heritage Object melted directly into the attacks within my domain.

If one strike wasn't enough, then the next.

And the next.

Under the relentless onslaught of Shadow Slash within the domain, the banshee's body was torn apart helplessly.

The same fate awaited the other banshees charging at me in a rage.

"Ah, let there be light upon this land!"

"Kieeeaaak!"

"Begone, you wicked demons!"

I invoked the name of God to pump myself up.

The banshees were fleeing, and I was chasing them down.

Maximum output.

Glancing back to see Lisha staring blankly at me, I immediately used the distance to expand the range of my domain.

*Sssss...*

"...!"

The banshees that had managed to pull away were suddenly swallowed by the rapidly expanding range of my domain.

"Wahahaha! Holy shit!"

The higher I climbed the floors, the stronger the Predator's Domain became. And I grew stronger along with it.

Just like that.

"...Whew."

With the final banshee's death knell, the situation was settled.

"Done!"

"..."

"It's over!"

"..."

"Lisha! What are you doing?"

"...Ah."

Lisha, who had been staring blankly, flinched as she finally snapped back to reality.

Did she get hit by a banshee?

As I looked at her with a suspicious gaze, she started, startled, and spoke.

"I-I suddenly felt something strange..."

"A strange feeling?"

"Woojin, I was watching you fight the banshees, and suddenly, memories..."

Lisha's eyes clouded over for a moment before regaining focus.

"...I know this place."

"Huh?"

"I think it's the item's effect. A strange sense of familiarity keeps—"

Right at that moment—

Suddenly, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a bright light began to envelop Lisha's body.

This is...

An incredibly familiar sensation.

It was definitely the same energy I had felt while sweeping through the battlefield with the Faded Holy Sword.

Holy power.

Starting with the sudden recall of strange memories, genuine holy power was now manifesting from Lisha.

"Oh, behold, the Saintess...!"

"D-Don't say such weird things!"

As I watched Lisha freak out, her tail standing straight up, she suddenly wore a surprised expression.

"Oh, what is it?"

"Ah... wait a second."

The beastkin woman clasped her hands together in an awkward gesture, as if faintly pulling up memories from a distant past.

*Whoosh...!*

As if answering her prayer, an even more intense holy power burst forth.

"Oh."

"...!"

Lisha, who had checked the same window as me, looked at me with wide eyes.

"This..."

"It ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠popped up, right?"

"Y-Yeah."

"What's the effect?"

"It says that if I use the skill, I can guide the owner of the Faded Holy Sword..."

Guide?

Is it roughly related to the flow of the Main Story?

In any case, since another quest condition had just been cleared, it seemed we were heading in the right direction.

"Congrats on becoming a Saintess."

"I-I told you, I have no intention of being a Saintess...!"

"Yeah, yeah, sure."

She was so happy that her tail was wagging in real-time, giving her away completely.

It's common sense that a beastkin's tail wags when they're happy, right?

After spending some time congratulating her on her class change to Saintess, we decided it was time to move on to the next step.

"We've wrapped up the banshee fan meeting, got the Saintess's class-specific skill, and now all that's left is..."

"...The field boss."

Only one quest condition remained.

Although the stage floor seemed to stretch out endlessly at first glance, it was actually a themed zone reconstructed by the Tower's system.

In other words, the area within our immediate sight was the main stage where we had to fulfill the conditions.

"Where is this guy hiding?"

I looked around for the final condition of the quest, the field boss, but unlike the banshees that had swarmed us, there wasn't a single trace of it.

Maybe it'll show up if I just sweep the whole place with my domain?

I had no idea where it could be hiding.

"...Woojin."

"Yeah?"

"Let me try."

At Lisha's words, who was looking down at her own window, my gaze shifted to her.

"Can you do it?"

"I told you earlier. It guides the owner of the Faded Holy Sword."

"Yeah."

"I think finding the boss monster is also included in that skill."

"...Impressive."

Even without anyone telling her to, Lisha was slowly becoming a Saintess on her own.

Soon, she composed herself and activated her newly acquired skill.

*Whoosh...!*

Like a scene out of a myth.

The holy power radiating from Lisha's body brushed past me and flowed toward a single point.

And then—

*Rumble.*

The ground shook as a massive figure rose from beneath the earth.

"...Excuse me?"

A size so massive that its mere presence cast a shadow over both of us.

A mountain of flesh, stitched together from who knows how many corpses...

"..."

...looked down at us.

"Whoa... damn, that size. It's practically Sae-ah's level."