Chapter 295
Chapter 295
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 295
Chapter Title: The Prophecy Points to Death (7)
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Sara looked at the mage before her.
A mage with ashen hair.
The sage, Raniel van Trias.
Her appearance had changed greatly, but Sara was certain the person inside—Raniel—would never change. It was only natural.
That mage truly never changed.
No matter what she saw or experienced, Raniel remained the same. She always stood straight and true. Hadn't Sara cast her out precisely because she couldn't bear that unyielding integrity?
"So..."
She had expected an outright refusal, of course.
A sharp rebuke like "Are you insane?" followed by a roar to get out immediately. Sara had thought that's what Raniel would do, and she knew it would be the right, proper response.
The Saintess was the agent of the gods.
The Hero was the apostle sent by the gods.
The Church's doctrines stated that they must bring salvation to the mortal world on behalf of the divine. It was their duty and responsibility as Hero and Saintess. Even if they turned a blind eye to it, the responsibility wouldn't vanish.
Raniel lived by the straight and narrow.
Her old comrade would surely do the same this time, Sara thought.
"I'm not forcing you. Run away or don't—do whatever you want."
That's why.
"What's the point of forcing someone who ran off because they didn't want to die? I'm tired of it anyway. I've been yelling for years, and he won't listen—what more can I expect?"
At this moment, Sara doubted her own ears.
The girl before her was definitely Raniel.
Yet she was saying things Raniel would never say. From someone she thought she knew inside out, Sara discovered an unfamiliar side. She didn't even have time to feel surprised.
"What? Weird?"
Raniel propped her chin on her hand.
"Were you expecting me to tell you to get lost and drag Kyle over by the collar, shove a sword in his hand, and force him?"
Sara nodded silently.
Raniel had done exactly that before.
"Pick up the sword."
"Pick it up, you bastard."
"Pick it up. If you give up here, what does that make me? You know damn well what I've sacrificed to save your sorry ass..."
After their first encounter with the Demon King, Raniel and Kyle had fought endlessly. Sara hadn't dared intervene in those countless arguments.
"...Yes, I thought you'd do that."
That's why Sara had steeled herself.
If bowing her head once wasn't enough, she had come prepared to follow her for days on end.
"But... so easily..."
She hadn't imagined Raniel would listen so readily. As Sara floundered in confusion, Raniel let out a long sigh and spoke.
"Maybe if it were a little while ago."
"...What?"
"Just... yeah."
Raniel irritably tousled her hair. She too had found some answers to the doubts she'd harbored for years. The decisive one had been Garahal's death.
Fighting a calamity at the cost of one's life.
His end had been beautiful, but to Raniel's eyes, it wasn't purely so. Garahal had lived by the ideals she championed, achieved them, and died—sparking her doubts.
That end was indeed beautiful and noble.
She wouldn't mind going the same way.
Raniel truly believed that.
"...If it's a death that accomplishes something and leaves a legacy, I could accept it."
But she had no desire to force that life on others. Garahal himself had proven it was a harsh, grueling path.
"I said don't force it."
Raniel muttered.
"It's like his dying wish, in a way. You gotta honor the dead's last words, right?"
Even if she didn't feel like it, she'd give it a shot.
She'd already failed once. If it failed, she'd try another way. Truth be told, even Raniel didn't know how to deal with Kyle anymore.
She didn't think he was right—not at all.
What that bastard had done to her was unforgivable. Who was walking this path for whom, only for him to try slipping away? She couldn't tolerate it. Because of that, Raniel had felt profound betrayal toward Kyle.
For years now.
Even getting angry felt exhausting.
She questioned the point of it all. Maybe it was because she'd tried replacing him, or perhaps because she realized she wasn't entirely in the right either.
Simply put, she was tired.
Tired enough to leave his side.
"I just don't want to care anymore."
Raniel muttered hollowly.
It was, in a way, her true feelings. Her voice slipped through the cracks of the mask she'd worn so long it felt like her own skin.
"What's forcing some guy who ignored years of nagging gonna do? Just figure it out yourself. Don't you remember what I said back then?"
Raniel chuckled.
"Live well without me. That's what I told you."
Raniel stood.
"Come or don't—your call. I've been planning without that guy from the start anyway."
So you do your part.
As she muttered that and brushed past Sara, Sara reached out and grabbed Raniel's wrist.
"...What?"
"You're still going, aren't you?"
Sara sighed.
"If you go, Kyle will too. I don't know why, but it always ends up that way."
She sighed again and looked back at Raniel.
"Raniel."
"What."
"Are you sure?"
"About what."
"That you can find the answer... and that you won't jump into a fight to the death—that you'll run if you have to."
Raniel blinked, then answered.
"Yeah."
Short, as always.
"Ah, seriously...!"
Sara ruffled her own hair.
She let out an irritated sigh, glaring at Raniel with wide eyes.
"Tell me what to do. I'll do whatever you say."
"Suddenly? Are you crazy?"
"Yes, I'm crazy. You and Kyle both lost it—what choice do I have?"
Sara stood.
She pointed at Raniel with her index finger.
"Tell me anything. Like the old days. To me, it looks hopeless, but you see something, right? Yeah?"
"My vision's a bit broader than yours."
"Wow, what a jerk."
Sara let out a weary, hollow laugh.
The laugh didn't last. It cut off abruptly, and she narrowed her eyes.
"I'll do whatever you say, but promise me one thing."
She said.
"Don't let Kyle die."
Somehow, make sure of it.
"Please."
Sara bowed her head to Raniel in plea.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ 2.
Sara didn't head straight to the battlefield. She borrowed a church near the capital and spent the whole day there with her eyes closed, dreaming. She passed most of the day kneeling before the statue of the god.
She knelt, head half-bowed.
She fell asleep as if in prayer, and when she woke, she spoke in a hoarse voice.
"Write it down."
At her words, the priests waiting beside her took up their quills. In this way, Sara crystallized the prophecy without missing a detail: locations, places, surroundings, even the motion of the blade of death.
Sara saw it all.
She recounted it all upon waking.
The prophecy book compiled from her accounts was excessively detailed. Unprecedented in the Church's history, but considering Sara's talent, it wasn't surprising.
A child born with unparalleled gifts.
Sara, hailed as the once-in-a-generation Saintess who would lead the Delorim Church for centuries. When she poured all her power into one theme, the result was astonishing.
"......"
The prophecy book, updated daily.
Receiving it, Raniel began to plan. Gathering intel, pinpointing terrain, seeking every available means.
"Senior, I found related materials."
Kalt was by her side.
The two pulled every scrap of info from the detailed prophecy, sleepless nights. Raniel pronounced the pinpointed location and time.
"26 days from now, Kennel Plains in the North."
It overlapped with the site of the first prophecy centuries ago.
Raniel didn't think the blade of death appearing there was coincidence. There was clear purpose. What was it?
Raniel looked at the map.
Not properly marked, but she knew what lay near Kennel Plains.
"The Northern Holy Site."
Where Ganikalt van Garatric's holy sword—the first Hero's—was embedded.
Centuries ago, Ganikalt had targeted it.
And been stopped by the first Grace. Now, centuries later, Ganikalt sought to set foot in the North once more.
"To reclaim the holy sword?"
Was that truly the goal?
There was surely a connection. Pondering, Raniel sought out Kardi. The ancient elf might know something.
"My old comrades can't cross the demon realm. You know that well."
"Yeah. Some contract, right?"
"Ganikalt made the strongest one. He's practically an apostle of the Shadow now."
Kardi spread the map.
Pointing to a line crossing Kennel Plains, she said.
"That holy site is a boundary of sorts. Proof of the contract too. He shouldn't cross it. He must not... but."
If he was determined.
If he truly willed it.
"If he seeks to reclaim his discarded demigod half, the stars might look the other way once. Ganikalt was more favored by them than anyone."
"...That make sense?"
"It does, and that's the problem. Didn't Glorea get chances too?"
Raniel bit her lip.
When he'd invaded the night city, the heretic had called it his last chance. Had the stars truly permitted it?
"This is insane. No weakening or anything?"
"Doubt it."
"...Then why not go sooner?"
"Ganikalt didn't want to."
Kardi said.
"Fallen as he is, he hasn't forgotten his pride. He wouldn't think of taking back the sword he gave his disciple."
"But now..."
"The Shadow's will, probably. Strongly."
The black dragon's head had fallen.
Skeval kept losing.
Amid it, the heretic took a mortal wound and vanished.
Unprecedented anomalies from centuries of stasis, happening in mere years. The Shadow stirring wasn't mere speculation.
"So, what's your plan?"
"Stop it. What else?"
"Can you?"
"Gonna try everything I can."
After long silence, Kardi spoke.
"Don't die, Raniel."
Raniel laughed.
"Not yet. Too much to do."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ 3.
The North's ties with the Church had completely soured.
Due to the cardinals' misdeeds, they ignored the Church. Priests were barred entry, so a royal envoy went instead.
"I am Kalt, leader of the Hounds—Guarder. I come to see the North's lord."
A sword superhuman.
Eryahl inwardly admired the realm the bowed figure had achieved so young. His eyes were razor-sharp.
"A fine man."
Eryahl smiled in satisfaction.
Kalt relayed the info amid warriors' respect.
"A prophet has appeared, and prophecy come down."
As Kalt explained, warriors frowned. In the North, gods were nigh myth. Irritated by Church ties, their gazes turned to Eryahl.
Should we silence him?
They asked with eyes, but Eryahl just shook his head. Only after Kalt finished did Eryahl speak.
"I don't trust zealots' words."
But, Eryahl added.
"We mustn't forget the ancestors' words."
"The day prophecy points to death will come."
"Do not deny that day."
A legacy passed to Grace's bloodline. Eryahl hadn't forgotten the fate conveyed upon ascending the throne.
"Death does not forget pride."
"Grace must show pride before death."
"It is my final vow with my master."
Bam!
Eryahl slammed his beloved sword down.
The hall of Baekya Castle rang out.
To the warriors, it was affirmation.
The North's lord, Grace, had given leave.