Holy Sword and Divinity (3)
"Wh-what are you doing here...? Mmph!?"
"Quiet! Do you want to get caught?!"
The Great Saintess, who had rushed over with quick steps, clamped a hand over Arthur's mouth at her outburst.
"Mmph! Mmm... Phew! Why are you..."
"Shh! We'll talk details later. We can't let him hear us."
Ignoring Arthur's probing with practiced ease, the Great Saintess eventually released her and peeked cautiously around the wall.
Having used the goddess's miracle to slip past the alert guard bot entirely, she now stared intently in one direction with an incredibly serious expression.
"...Great Saintess?"
"You're here to see him too, right? Then come over here."
"N-not exactly, I didn't come for that..."
But even as she said it, Arthur's body betrayed her, peeking around the wall herself.
Soon enough, her eyes caught sight of Yeon Je-seong sitting cross-legged on the bed, deep in meditation.
"Hngh..."
"...So noble."
The two women's sighs of admiration drifted out, and the guard bot that had been watching the room in his stead approached them.
"(Gr-Great Saintess...!)"
"(Shh! It's fine. The goddess's blessing keeps me off its radar.)"
Was it really okay to use a goddess's miracle in a place like this?
More importantly, wouldn't the goddess herself—who was undoubtedly watching—smite her for it?
Arthur swallowed the question that had risen to the tip of her tongue and lightly stomped her foot, lifting the guard bot slightly off the ground.
The bot, airborne from the small jolt, landed back down and turned around, retracing its path.
"(You noticed that quick.)"
"(They use guard bots in the palace too.)"
She knew their weaknesses all too well.
Once you lifted their chassis even briefly, they'd reset their route and head back the way they came.
"(So, what's your plan now?)"
"(What else?)"
The Great Saintess gave a short reply, then her eyes sparkled as she licked her lips.
"(I'm going to receive his seed.)"
"(R-right...?)"
...What did I just hear?
Arthur stared at the Great Saintess with a dumbfounded expression.
The Saintess continued, stroking her lower abdomen with a face brimming with affection.
"(I'm about to get the goddess-approved, thick impregnation press.)"
"(Wha—huh?)"
At those words, Arthur unwittingly took a step back.
It felt like she'd glimpsed some abyss she wasn't meant to see.
At the same moment, the Saintess's sultry expression turned toward her.
"(So, how about it? Care to join me?)"
"(H-huh?)"
"(Meeting by chance, at this time, in this place, for this purpose—surely the goddess's will.)"
("Uh, um, wha—?")
"(In that case, I'll simply follow fate.)"
The Great Saintess clasped her hands piously and closed her eyes.
Arthur's face flushed crimson at the erotic allure peeking through that seemingly sacred pose.
"(What do you say? If King Arthur's willing, let's make it a threesome...)"
"N-no, that's too much for me...!!"
In the end, Arthur slapped away the Saintess's outstretched hand and bolted from the room.
She covered her burning face with both hands and vanished in an instant.
Stunned for a moment by her sudden departure, the Great Saintess quickly composed herself into a reverent expression and approached him.
"You..."
Feeling her presence, he slowly opened his eyes. The Great Saintess knelt gracefully before him and clasped her hands together.
"I've longed—truly longed—to see you."
──Saint.
"No."
Yeon Je-seong immediately denied her words.
Holy God Venus.
The highest priestess of the Rosaria Holy Empire, also known as the Great Saintess.
A living demigod, one of the saints who carried out the will of the goddess Luce.
As a transcendent among the Seven Powers, her buffs were on a level unmatched even across the entire Failed Hero series—no one could rival their potency.
Her signature miracles, in particular, could revive even the dead, making it no exaggeration to say her very existence proved the goddess was real.
And this overwhelming authority figure was now...
"......"
"......"
...kneeling on the floor, forehead pressed to the ground, exposing the crown of her head to me.
"Ahem..."
"......"
The silence was heavy.
She hadn't even lifted her head since entering the room. I cleared my throat awkwardly.
"Ahem! Won't you stand up already?"
"I cannot."
"Hmm..."
"Even if it was to chase away an intruder, I have committed the grave sin of offending a saint."
"......"
It was burdensome.
Extremely so.
She hadn't been this bad when we first met, but after encountering the goddess, she started calling me apostle. Then, who knows what the goddess told her, because now it was saint.
Her titles kept escalating with every meeting—imagining what came next made me dizzy.
"Please, grant me the chance to atone for my rudeness to you, O saint."
"Even if you say that..."
At this rate, she'd start licking my feet.
I subtly pulled my foot back to avoid her inching tongue.
This is why I didn't want to meet the Great Saintess.
Even with her 0-tier buffer performance, there was a reason I avoided her.
How could anyone interact comfortably when she insisted on such overwhelming deference every time?
In some ways, she was more awkward than the impure-minded folk of Rischel.
"Then at least allow me to serve you, so you won't feel burdened..."
"I refuse."
I brushed off her attempt to sidle closer and slowly approached her.
"Stand up now."
"But..."
"It's fine. Come on."
"Hmm..."
Leaving a faint hint of regret, she rose and met my eyes—then hurriedly bowed her head again.
"So, what was the point of chasing Arthur out for a private chat?"
I'd sensed them entering the room from the start.
Women with presences that strong weren't easy to hide.
Others might have managed it, but not against my senses.
I'd been training aura control, after all—the room was fully under my domain.
The issue was the Great Saintess chasing Arthur away, despite me assuming they shared the same goal.
"I have something to ask you, O saint."
"What?"
"This battle has greatly weakened the Demon King's army. The War Devil, one of the Four Heavenly Kings, has been annihilated, and the Death Devil fled with fatal wounds. The front lines are already mobilizing to press the advantage."
"Mm."
I nodded in affirmation.
Sure enough, it was an opportunity we couldn't pass up.
With two Heavenly Kings unexpectedly sidelined, committing full force to the front would yield massive gains.
And I could guess what she'd say next.
"The Alliance will aim to retake the Holy Land."
"...Yes."
As expected.
The Holy Land, site of the ancient clash between the Light Goddess and the Demon God, was one of the continent's most vital locations.
In game terms, it was crucial too.
The first hero of the Failed Hero series, Hwarang, was summoned there.
Alex awakened his hero's holy sword there.
Every series featured it in some major role.
This Failed Hero 3 would be no different for Noah.
Religious significance aside—which couldn't be ignored—the Alliance had always centered operations on retaking it...
"Past attempts failed repeatedly due to the War Devil, but this time is different."
"Since the War Devil's gone."
"Yes."
Exactly.
With the War Devil—who commanded legions of undead—blocking the path, the Alliance had suffered defeat after defeat.
But with it gone, a new phase had begun.
"Word just came in: the Hero Association has announced the second Holy Land reclamation."
"Second..."
"Yes. The entire continent will unite for it."
"You'll join too."
"Not just me. Like the first reclamation, the other Powers will participate."
A massive operation uniting countless nations across the continent.
A blockbuster event, endorsed even by the Seven Powers, straight from the Great Saintess's lips.
"I've already secured the Divine Sword's commitment. Given the continental situation, the Divine Bow won't sit it out either."
"Mm. Without the Divine Beast, the Great Forest survives only under the Divine Bow's protection."
"Neria..."
She trailed off at my words, then steeled her expression.
"Yes, so they have no choice but to heed neighboring eyes. The Divine Bow will surely join."
Rischel's Divine Sword, Rosaria's Holy God, Great Forest's Divine Bow, and Bihite's Divine Spirit.
Over half of the Seven Powers committing to one op.
"Of course, they won't advance immediately."
"Obviously."
War wasn't that simple.
Logistics, support scale, tactical flexibility amid shifting tides—all had to be considered.
Especially with national leaders as reinforcements.
"Even at best speed, it'll take half a year to launch."
"Probably."
Half a year felt optimistic, honestly.
Coordinating a multi-species alliance was no joke.
And with every nation sending elites, decisions would be cautious.
"But why tell me this?"
"O saint."
She knelt again, beginning to pray.
Enveloped in holy light, her silver eyes gleamed as she spoke to me softly.
"We need your power for the Holy Land reclamation to come."
"...Is that your judgment, or the goddess's?"
She closed her eyes at my quiet question, silent for a moment, then opened them and whispered.
"The goddess's will is my will."
"...I see."
The goddess's will, in the end.
...Should I just go on strike?
Our forces were already maxed out.
Four Powers? The Four Heavenly Kings were nothing.
We could probably drag the Demon King out and beat him senseless.
"Hmm..."
Still, for Noah's growth, skipping a major event like Holy Land reclamation felt like a waste.
Above all, it pisses me off being the goddess's errand boy.
She couldn't handle it herself, so she dumped it on others.
She hadn't denied it when I confronted her.
Hmm...
"I'll think it over for now."
We had time, so I'd mull it slowly.
In the game, Holy Land reclamation was the turning point before Ma-wang Castle assault—things would escalate fast afterward.
Might need to conserve strength there for the Demon King.
Worst case, we retake it, and boom—the Demon King descends.
With unknown plot twists, I had to game out every scenario.
That means ramping up power ASAP.
My own strength, and Noah's—explosively.
Usually, Holy Land reclamation hits in the protagonist's third year... Story's definitely derailed.
But whining about the past was pointless.
Just do our best within limits.
"Oh, and the goddess has a message..."
"...The goddess?"
"Yes. I'll relay it verbatim."
Ahem.
Clearing her throat, she puffed up proudly.
"Hey, human! The moment you hear this, haul ass to the church and worship this body of mine!"
"......"
"Every second you pray, pour in reverence and praise, and maybe I'll deign to meet you!"
...That's it.
Leaving the indescribably conflicted Great Saintess behind, I clenched my fist.
...Damn brat.
Next time, 100 chestnuts for her.