The Azure Dragon's Judgment
The quiet forest echoed with ragged breathing. A man stumbled through the undergrowth, gasping desperately for air. It was Lessa Lont, the Vice-Commander of the Evantiana Knights and a Second-Rank Holy Knight of the glorious Justron. Once showered with admiration and respect, he now fled in terror, his white armor caked in dirt, his eyes wide with primal fear.
'What in the world was that thing?!'
The elation and arrogance he'd felt while preparing to carry out the Execution had vanished in a single instant. Now, an endless dread and crushing helplessness clung to him, draining his strength. Though he'd suffered no physical wounds, his legs kept buckling against his will, forcing him into an awkward, limping gait.
To be reduced to this state by merely seeing something. It was the same terror he'd felt as a child when a priest described the demons from the scriptures. That single existence had turned a grown, capable man from the Evantium Empire into a frightened little boy.
Lessa trembled with fear, yet his heart burned with rage. If the being that had descended from the heavens had looked grotesque or monstrous, he might have understood his own terror. But it hadn't. If anything, it resembled the dragons that ruled the southern canyons. While its lack of wings and the length of its body made it closer to a serpent than a dragon, that wasn't what mattered.
Despite its nearly divine appearance, the sight of it had filled him with every negative emotion imaginable.
'Why?'
He'd asked himself this question over and over as he fled the forest to seek help from the Church, but no answer came. The symptoms he was experiencing felt far removed from ordinary fear, making it even harder to comprehend. A sense of deprivation. Terror. Helplessness. Emptiness… They were eerily similar to what heretics were said to feel after having their Holy Scar stripped away.
If simply looking at it could make one feel as though they'd been robbed of God's grace, then that being was like the great Justron himself…
Smack!
A mud-stained white gauntlet struck Lessa's right cheek. No, that couldn't be. The thought he'd just entertained was far too blasphemous.
"It must be a demon. Yes, it has to be a demon."
Though gods sometimes took the form of beasts or monsters, he could not accept that thing as divine. The presence of a true god was never so violently oppressive. It was supposed to be warm. Embracing. The kind of feeling that comforted those who believed and followed.
That was why Lessa continued to call out to Justron in his heart as he fled the forest.
The vast eastern forest that cradled Nuru's Forest. The kingdom bordering it most closely was the Lunan Kingdom. Compared to the mighty Evantium Empire—or even most other kingdoms—it was tiny. Yet it still functioned as a proper nation.
And even in Lunan, a temple of Justron stood. It hadn't been welcomed with open arms; rather, it had been forced upon them by the Evantium-backed Church. But to Lessa and the other devotees of Justron, such details were irrelevant.
That was why the Justron temple had become an excellent base for the holy knights dispatched from the main Church to deal with Rachel and Jonon Est.
One of the knights standing guard spotted Lessa approaching, covered in filth, and rushed forward in alarm.
"Sir Lessa! What happened to you?!"
"All personnel remaining in the temple will move out tonight."
"…!!"
"We cannot afford any more delays. The heretic used that thing's help… No, no!! He used every trap at his disposal to eliminate the others."
"That wicked bastard…!"
The knight growled at Lessa's words.
"Nuru's Forest is not far now. Arm everyone before sunset."
"Understood."
"Do it properly. And… tell those capable of performing the Execution to prepare themselves."
"But the Church's policy is—"
"I believe eradicating heretics takes precedence over policy. And to eradicate this heretic, we must bend the rules somewhat. Don't you agree?"
"…Understood."
"Thank you for your service."
With those final words, the knight disappeared into the great hall. Only then did Lessa look down at his own sorry state.
"…One must always remain clean, lest we tarnish His name."
His gaze fell to the white sword at his waist. It still glowed softly, maintaining its Execution state. According to His will, the light would not fade until the Execution was complete. And the longer that light remained, the more pain he would feel.
After all, the Execution—one of Justron's secret arts—was a fragment of the Holy Scar, a power granted by the God of Justice himself. To hold divine power for too long was like throwing oneself into fire.
And so, night fell.
Nearly twenty holy knights gathered and began to move out together. These were no disposable pawns designated by the main Church. From Second-Rank Holy Knight Lessa himself down to the lowest Fifth-Rank knights, every one of them represented a portion of the Church's true fighting force.
The First-Rank had not come. Their opponent was a former Sword Master whose Holy Scar had been stripped away. There was no need for Justron's own Sword Master to appear. Instead, after assessing Jonon's potential, the Church had sent Lessa Lont, who stood at the threshold of Sword Master.
In other words, their force consisted of one near-Sword Master, five Sword Experts, and fourteen Sword Users. It was excessive firepower for dealing with a single heretic, but given the nature of their opponent, the Church had deployed the greatest force it could spare.
Under Lessa Lont's command, they drew closer to Nuru's Forest.
'That thing… it isn't here.'
Approaching the place from which he'd fled hours earlier, Lessa scanned his surroundings and came to that conclusion.
'For such a being to descend so easily would already defy causality.'
It had pierced the dark clouds and come down from the sky. That meant it did not originally reside in this forest. Jonon's receiving its help had been nothing more than luck—and the creature's whim.
"Tighten your guard. The heretic will have anticipated our approach."
At his command, the knights drew their white swords in unison. They advanced for several more minutes until they reached a wide clearing.
And in the center of it stood Jonon Est, holding a sword stained black.
"It's the heretic."
"Combat formation!!"
Clang!
The white swords moved together, forming a single array. It was a unique formation devised by Justron to allow many to confront a powerful few. Standing at its center, Lessa spoke quietly.
"Heretic, receive your Execution."
At Lessa's calm declaration, Jonon silently drew his sword. The blade, once blackened by the loss of his Holy Scar, now bore strange blue lines. Seeing the black sword filled with the will to fight back, Lessa commanded:
"All Experts and above, declare the Execution."
"I define. Evil deserves death."
The same words flowed from five mouths. Soon, six white swords—including Lessa's—were bathed in light. The knights felt uneasy about going all-out from the very beginning, but none voiced their doubts.
'We finish this before that thing appears.'
In truth, they weren't rushing simply because they were near Nuru's Forest. It was to avoid witnessing its return. From the start, they had revealed their full power.
Finally, the final verse of the execution declaration left five mouths.
"I execute. Jonon Est is evil and my enemy. Therefore, I shall judge him."
Six beams of white light. Six executions. Together, they formed the power of a god.
Facing that power, Jonon began to recite words entirely different from theirs.
"O Eternal Father, who holds the pure power of the beginning."
These were not words Jonon had prepared in advance, nor had he heard them from Rachel. They were simply what came to him instinctively as he faced his enemy, a desperate attempt to overcome this trial.
And at those words, his left arm began to resonate.
"That is…"
"Blue… light?"
From between the torn sleeves of his travel-worn clothes, blue energy began to swim along Jonon's arm. As if finding the fabric too constricting, it tore the sleeve completely apart and began to surge in earnest.
"Spokesman of nature, master of the heavens, O Azure God."
The rosario engraved with his loyalty to the Empire was now stained by two streams of blue energy. With every surge, more blue power flooded from his arm, soon enveloping his entire body.
"…Execute," Lessa growled.
"…What?"
"Execute!! Now!!"
With that, Lessa swung his sword. The Third-Rank holy knights followed suit immediately. Brilliant light erupted from their white blades, turning the entire forest pure white.
The descent of justice. It was a power that could be described as nothing less.
The group that had judged themselves as "justice" now delivered divine judgment upon Jonon, whom they had defined as "evil." He should have been torn apart by the light into a thousand pieces, his remaining brain forced to reveal the princess's location.
…But that did not happen.
"…What."
Jonon stood completely unharmed. As if mocking them, as if their Execution had been nothing but an illusion, nothing had changed.
Lessa could not comprehend it.
'The Execution… of justice… Huh? No, what…?'
The fact that his justice-infused Execution had failed left him utterly speechless. The knights beside him were in the same state of shock.
Yet regardless of their reaction, Jonon gathered his thoughts and spoke.
"Her Highness and I have received grace from Him."
"W-what are you…"
"Therefore, I shall borrow my meager talent and dare to engrave His form upon my blade, that I may slay His enemies."
"I… define. Evil deserves death!! Gah!"
"Sir Lessa! The recoil…!"
"Get out of my way!! Discern…"
"He called Himself the Azure Dragon. I seek to imitate His movements. Yes, just like the waves—fierce yet gentle—as He soared through the heavens."
Where the white light had vanished, blue energy now flooded in to take its place. The azure aura surrounding Jonon and the holy knights was so thick it made the forest feel like an ocean.
When Jonon took a single step, his black sword moved smoothly through the air. Two streams of blue energy that had emerged from his left arm followed the blade, dancing through the sky in perfect harmony with its motion.
Dragon Sword Art
Tsunami Sword
"The Dragon bestowed upon my blade the name Tsunami Sword. With this blade and the Dragon Sword Art, I shall protect the one to whom I have sworn eternal loyalty."
As blue currents flowed along the sword, the surging azure energy began to roil violently. It was like a small tsunami.
"Impossible! It's only been a few hours! How could he possibly have received such power in that time?!"
"Our connection ends here, Lessa Lont. And you, false god who claims to be the God of Justice watching from the heavens."
Boom—!
Somewhere, the furious sound of a judge's gavel rang out. At the same moment, Jonon's wave-infused blade cleaved through space.
And that was the end.