375. Gap (3)
375. Gap (3)
- 1 -
Seogeok—!!
A stillness as if time itself had stopped.
Within it, the only sound was the ghastly noise of something being severed.
Paimon doubted her own eyes and ears.
That insignificant maid who had been pouring tea just moments ago.
That woman from whom only high-grade mana had been felt.
The sword strike she had swung had cleanly sliced off one of Paimon's arms from the shoulder.
'...What is this?'
Even as she witnessed the result with her eyes, her mind couldn't comprehend the process.
Even the stinging pain arrived a beat late.
'Something is wrong.'
Paimon stared at the blonde female knight who hadn't moved an inch from her spot, horrified.
That was clearly an 'anomaly.'
It was not a realm of power that a mere high-grade being could produce.
But the black blood now trickling down her own left arm was already reality.
'These things cannot be judged by the common sense I know!'
An alarm blared inside Paimon's head.
These were not materials she could 'digest' yet.
She had to retreat from this place.
She needed to recover her strength, properly assess that unknown Dungeon Lord, and then come back.
It had been a mistake to greedily try to swallow prey while her senses were still dulled from 200 years of sealing.
But the one behind her had no intention of giving her that leisure.
"Did you forget about me."
In that instant, a cold yet polite voice came from behind Paimon's back.
It was Saya, who had appeared after burning away the thousands of chains binding her with lightning.
Chwaak—!
The moment her sword was swung, Paimon was seized by the illusion that the world was splitting in two.
A world torn diagonally across.
Immediately after, she realized it.
"Kh...!"
That it was her own face that had been cleaved.
Between the torn eyeball, a dark gray 'power' leaked out.
- How dare you...!
Paimon, who had placed a hand on what remained of her face, trembled as she saw the black blood smeared on her fingertips.
The beautiful face of the saintess she had coveted in the past.
The peerless beauty she had cherished and loved most among the many 'possessions' she had absorbed, the very reason Paimon had been sealed in the Holy Kingdom.
That face was now marred.
What she had donned was not a mere shell.
It was a work of art, created by wholly absorbing the saintess's body and soul.
Regeneration might be possible, but a work of art once damaged could never recover its 'perfection.'
- You alone...!
The whites of the ruined undead saintess's eyes were completely dyed with black-red hatred.
Her reason snapped.
Retreat, strategy, all of it vanished from her mind.
All that remained was the primal possessiveness and destructive impulse to shatter that beautiful woman before her eyes and steal her face.
- I will make your vessel mine—!!
The woman's appearance happened to be beautiful enough to stimulate Paimon's possessiveness.
Black hair, pink eyes, a cold yet mysterious atmosphere.
Above all, that cold face with its perfect balance would surely replace the damaged face of the saintess.
Charararak!
Her remaining arm, stretched forward, transformed into grotesquely glistening black chains and flew toward Saya.
"This much...!"
Saya reflexively swung her sword to cut through the chains, but this time it was different.
"This is...?!"
The moment the lightning-clad blade touched the chains.
Saya felt not the sensation of cutting, but a bizarre feeling of being sucked into a sticky bog.
Her sword was being 'devoured' by the chain.
Because this chain, possessing elasticity and viscosity like a slime, was the power of binding that embodied her very material substance.
It was a chain composed of Paimon's very essence, on a completely different level from anything summoned before.
"Kh...!"
Saya sensed the instinctive danger.
She flapped her wings powerfully, radiating mana to try and escape the spot.
- You cannot escape!! You are mine...!
But Paimon, seized by obsession, desperately tried to capture and absorb Saya, even shaving away the very power that constituted her own being.
Right at that moment.
"「Stack your heart. 」"
A clear woman's voice rang out vividly.
"「For the highest and most beautiful divinity shall reside there.」"
And immediately after, the heavens opened.
Kwang—!!!!
What fell upon Paimon's head was a colossal pillar of yellow-white light, as if the sun itself had descended.
It was the holy art of the current Saintess, Esther.
- Keuaaaaah—!!
A holy art that the normal Paimon could have easily withstood.
But to her, who had been shaving her own being to attempt the final 'seizure,' this light of purification was a deadly poison.
Saya did not miss that fleeting moment either.
「Void Annihilation - Underworld Silence」
The mask draped over her shoulder was dyed pitch black.
Not a dull ink-color, but the light of obsidian holding a darkness deeper than anything as it absorbed all light.
As if resonating with that power, from the roots of her golden wings, to the sword in her hand, and even her two eyes—all turned a deep black.
Immediately after, a single word slipped from her lips.
"「Sever.」"
Her voice became word magic, imbuing her sword with absolute power.
Seukaaaak!!
If Evangeline's sword strike had been a vertical line surging from earth to sky.
Saya's was a horizontal line that cleaved the sky itself.
A single flash that rent space.
Everything caught upon it.
The hundreds and thousands of chains Paimon had spread, and the neck of the black horse she rode—all were severed in a single stroke.
- Ah, ah... ah...
Paimon's snow-white legs, and the neck of the black horse that was her 'main body,' separated in midair and plummeted powerlessly toward the ground.
Her first battle in 200 years was once again recorded as a defeat.
- 2 -
As their master lost her power, the remaining demons holding out on the surface completely lost their will to fight.
"W-We have to run!"
- Wait! If we don't combine our strength...!
The Black Knight shouted desperately, but he too had already lost the strength in his hands.
They scattered in all directions to save themselves, fleeing at full speed.
Originally, I had intended to leave them as prey for Shue, but I couldn't just let them go like this.
"Ash."
"Yes."
In the end, Esther had to step forward as well.
Esther spread a massive barrier with her holy power to block their escape route, and for the other two to subdue and bind the surrounded demons, it was hardly any work at all.
However, I did not send Evangeline.
"Are you alright?"
"...Hoo. I apologize, Master."
The single flash that had severed Paimon's arm.
That attack had been quite a strain even for her.
It was an attack executed with all her might, born of the will to never tolerate any aggression against me, and at the same time, the faith that even if she exhausted herself, the others could finish things.
I held her hand and gently patted it.
I was worried. Worried, but more than that, these words were better, right.
"Thank you."
A simple phrase. But the effect was tremendous.
The emotion welling up in her eyes.
And the love for her that blossomed in my heart as well.
Truly, you could call this a 'low cost, high efficiency' phrase.
"It's over. Let's go."
"Yep."
After the battlefield was tidied up like that.
Shue approached and bowed her head.
"...Sorry, Master. I let one get away."
Her body, which had been dyed red, had returned to her characteristic white hue, but lingering regret and disappointment were evident at the tips of her red eyes.
It wasn't her usual languid expression, but a face of sincere apology.
I gently stroked the head of Shue, who had bowed to me.
"It's alright. Weren't they ancient demons who've lived for hundreds of years? They each have a hidden trump card. Rather, it's impressive that you dominated so overwhelmingly against the other five."
"Yeah... "
"And besides... "
I turned my gaze toward the forest in the distance, where the fog was thickening.
The one that escaped was a kin of the witch with the ability to conceal herself like mist.
Shue had torn her entire body apart at the beginning, but she had regenerated at some point and used the chaos to flee alone.
"It was intentional that we let her go."
"...As expected of Master."
At my words, Shue's eyes sparkled with renewed respect and joy.
I gently caressed her chin, smiling pleasantly.
"Did you enjoy running wild?"
"They were too weak so it was no fun... They had strength but couldn't use it properly, so it was frustrating. They don't even come close to your toes, Master..."
"I see..."
I couldn't suppress the chuckle that escaped me.
It truly was an answer befitting her.
"That's a shame. It's alright. There will be plenty more opportunities next time."
"Yeah...!"
I turned my gaze to Evangeline.
"Are you ready, Eve?"
"Whenever you command, Master."
"Truly outstanding."
"You flatter me."
When we returned, I would have to prepare to bring a new lord to my side.
"The Holy Kingdom gave me a very nice gift."
Feeling the smile on my lips deepen, I lifted the teacup Evangeline had refilled for me.
- 3 -
The Holy Kingdom, the Holy See.
"May the grace descending from a place higher than the heavens be upon us all, and may it guide us all to the light of true peace."
The chorus of clergy and believers echoed through the grand cathedral.
Anselm descended from the pulpit and bestowed his blessing upon the people with a benevolent face.
"Ahh, Your Eminence...! We truly pray that all wars will vanish from this world!"
"Those are fine words."
Today's sermon topic was 'Forgiveness and Reconciliation.'
A truly beautiful and noble story of how even opposing forces could reconcile through the love of the divine. The believers were so moved that some even shed tears.
"Archbishop, your words today were deeply moving as well."
"I will strive to practice the saint's teachings myself."
"As long as Your Eminence is with us, the future of the Holy Kingdom will be bright."
One by one, believers approached to express their gratitude.
Anselm politely thanked each one, sometimes patting a child's head, sometimes holding an elder's hand.
Outwardly, he was a truly faithful, exemplary religious leader.
A perfect clergyman.
At least, on the surface.
After the sermon ended and most people had left.
It was then, as Anselm was about to exit the chapel.
"Um... Your Eminence."
A single priest approached cautiously.
Anselm inwardly frowned the moment he saw him.
Considering the task the man was entrusted with, he was someone who shouldn't be here.
"... Why are you here?"
"For a moment..."
The priest looked around and trailed off.
A few believers still remained inside the chapel, and other clergy were cleaning up.
Realizing at once that the priest's business concerned 'that matter,' Anselm silently led him to the confessional booth behind the chapel.
A small space for confession.
A place where thick stone walls and soundproofing magic ensured no conversation leaked outside.
"Your Eminence."
The moment the confessional door closed, the priest held out a small object to Anselm.
"That object you entrusted to me, Your Eminence... it suddenly lost its light."
Anselm's pupils trembled minutely upon seeing the object.
A palm-sized red crystal.
Normally, a light would pulse through it as rhythmically as a heartbeat, but now it was completely submerged in darkness.
'How...?!'
Anselm's face hardened momentarily.
But he quickly managed his expression and asked in a calm voice.
"...Brother. When... when did it become like this?"
"Just a moment ago. I brought it the instant the change occurred."
Anxiety was mixed in the priest's voice.
He didn't know exactly what this crystal signified, but he knew it was something very important.
"...Thank you. Give it here. I'll handle things from here..."
"Y-Yes... Your Eminence."
As Anselm took the crystal, the priest let out a sigh of relief.
"Ah, before you go. Thank you. Take this. It is the 'Sacred Drug.'"
Before the priest could leave, Anselm stopped him, took out a small bottle, and handed it to him.
It was a small glass bottle containing a transparent liquid.
"Ah...! Thank you!"
The priest smiled involuntarily.
Because this was the special drug Anselm occasionally gave out as a reward.
The 'Drug of Enlightenment.'
A special drug distributed by certain archbishops only to trustworthy individuals; its true nature was that of a hallucinogenic solvent with no side effects.
Of course, the priests truly believed it granted 'enlightenment,' but...
'Damn it...'
After the priest had left, Anselm remained alone in the confessional, glaring at the crystal and gritting his teeth.
It was an incomprehensible situation.
Why had the demons who went to scout the united forces suddenly met their deaths?
And not just any demon, but Paimon, the being called the 'Archduke of Binding.'
The united forces of Grakheisen should never have been able to handle Paimon.
Even if Esther had betrayed them, it was absolutely impossible for her alone.
'Then what could have brought down Paimon? A hidden power of Grakheisen? Or... don't tell me.'
An ominous possibility flashed through Anselm's mind.
'There's no way. Absolutely not.'
But he forcibly pushed the thought away.
There was no way beings possessing the power of the Thirteen Stars, the pinnacle of adventurers, had been there.
There shouldn't be.