Chapter 407
Chapter 407
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 407
Chapter Title: Ready for the Next Stage?
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"Are you ready to move on to the next stage?"
Belnoa fell silent.
Ready to advance to the next stage? Well, it wasn't easy to answer that question right away. Belnoa's eyes scanned the names etched on the map.
The Hero, and the superhumans. Superhumans on par with them.
The names listed on this single map were literally humanity's entire fighting force. Those who had transcended limits in their respective fields. Powerhouses whose names or epithets alone were known to all. And among those powerhouses, her own name was written there.
"Professor."
Belnoa looked up.
Raniel gestured for her to speak.
"Are you showing me this now because... I've become a superhuman?"
"Exactly. Want me to be more precise?"
Raniel extended her finger.
That finger pointed straight at Belnoa's heart.
"Three years ago, on that day, the fragment of the Holy Grail I implanted in you and Rak's souls. I had to wait for that fragment to bloom. You two needed to reach the realm of true superhumans."
"Necessary... you say?"
"Because you're their successors and inheritors."
Whose successor was she?
She didn't need to ask. Belnoa already knew whose power she had inherited.
"...Black Storm, Belial."
"Right. In Rak's case, it's Death's Sword, Ganikalt."
Belnoa now knew that those currently called calamities were once the first Hero Party who had opposed the Demon King. As if affirming that fact, Raniel nodded and continued.
"We need you for the Apostate subjugation battle. To completely sever the contract, or for the sake of someone who's been waiting hundreds of years... your presence is essential."
She muttered with a bitter smile.
"Honestly, it's also because we're short on manpower."
Belnoa couldn't easily grasp what she had casually tossed out. Short on manpower? With all these superhumans being deployed, and that great mage leading the charge... how could they be short?
Of course, the Apostate was a terrifying calamity.
Her strength was beyond reproach for the title, and even most superhumans couldn't stand before her. It wasn't for nothing that she had been classified as a disaster throughout centuries of history...
Still, subjugating her wasn't impossible.
The Apostate had been repelled several times before, and the one who had led those operations was standing right in front of Belnoa. Stronger than ever, now called a mage approaching divinity.
'If we've pinpointed where the Apostate is and gathered this much force... shouldn't we be able to subjugate her right now?'
To Belnoa, Raniel seemed strong enough to make it possible. As if reading that thought, Raniel smiled bitterly and spoke.
"You're making the exact same face as Destel. Like, 'We've planned this much, so why haven't we subjugated her already?'"
Belnoa fell silent, pierced to the core, as Raniel quietly shook her head.
"I can say with certainty—it's impossible."
She stated firmly.
"You know the Apostate's true identity, don't you? Either from your goddess or through Belial's arrangements..."
Raniel glanced back with a smirk.
Kalt stood there, tapping his ear and shaking his head—a signal that he couldn't hear anything.
In fact, Kalt, who had no access to this information, had been hearing their conversation as silence since moments ago.
"I'm used to it by now. Talking about stuff only you two know? Feels like I'm being left out even in the same space..."
Ignoring Kalt's whining, Raniel continued.
"The Apostate, Gletus, is the first Saintess. The one said to be closest to the gods. In terms of distance, and in terms of authority."
Over time, the authorities of later Saintesses had specialized in one field. Even Sara, a monster in divine power, was the same. But the first Saintess was the exception.
"If the ancient dragon mage polished the foundations of magic... it was none other than her who systematized divine arts. She mastered all divine arts, and at their pinnacle, she reached the realm of miracles. Even the Holy Grail you used was made by her."
Now classified as alchemy or miracles.
The highest divine arts could barely be mimicked by borrowing artifacts tied to the first Saintess.
"Doesn't that strike you as odd?"
"What... do you mean?"
"She's a Saintess, an alchemist, and a summoner. Yet every Saintess humanity has faced never used divine arts. Not once."
Alchemy and summoning.
She had cornered humanity not with her greatest strengths, but with other fields. Ruling as a calamity. That was certainly strange.
"Did becoming a calamity strip her of divine arts? From what I see, no. She's no longer the Star's priestess... but she's the priest most favored by the Shadow."
Shadow and Star were essentially the same.
So borrowing the power of the transcendent being she served—called divine arts—should still be possible.
"Yet she never used them. I don't know why, but one thing's certain..."
Raniel extended her hand.
Her fingertip pointed at Alkeia.
"The answer lies here."
Alkeia, the land for those without faith.
"When humanity reaches this place and faces the Apostate in the final battle... she'll reveal everything she has. Just like the Saintess who once wrought miracles."
It was something she'd heard from Cardi.
Alkeia's geographical traits, and the Apostate's call for aid.
Having reviewed all contract details, Raniel had reached the same conclusion as Cardi.
'The Apostate must be subjugated first.'
To reach the Shadow's temple, they had to pass through Alkeia and Gehete.
'And whether it's Gehete or Alkeia...'
The moment they crossed that jagged line.
What would appear there wouldn't be the Apostate, but the fallen Saintess—the priest closest to the gods. That's why they needed to subjugate the Apostate before reaching Death's Sword.
"If that happens, I can't handle her alone. Especially considering Alkeia's unique terrain. That's why we need this much force."
"So..."
"That's why we need you."
Variables. Blades that could reach the calamity.
Raniel smirked and tapped the map. The four names in the boldest script. Pointing to the talents she had raised herself, she said,
"You and Rak, inheriting the Hero's legacy; Chloe, carrying Galahal's will; Resti, with the talent to oppose the calamity..."
...Children she once thought would succeed her. But the future had changed. The disciples Raniel had nurtured were no longer just following in her footsteps. They never would be again.
"We need that special power you possess."
Comrades to stand on the same battlefield.
To minimize sacrifices, and to avoid retracing the path walked by the Goddess of Ashes—her future self—their power was absolutely necessary.
"Belnoa."
Raniel said.
"Let me ask again. Are you prepared?"
2.
Leaning back in the chair in her tent, Belnoa let out a long sigh. The night was deep, but sleep wouldn't come.
It was because of the conversation from earlier.
Raniel had asked if she was prepared, and after a moment's hesitation, Belnoa had nodded. It was her mentor's request, and she felt it was the right thing to do... but that wasn't all. Closing her eyes, Belnoa recalled the past.
"If you're caught, you'll die."
"So go, before my whim ends."
Belnoa remembered the Apostate she'd seen in her final moments. A woman so like Chloe. The words she'd murmured with a distant smile weren't those of a calamity.
A human voice. A senior's advice.
That advice had guided Belnoa to the superhuman realm in her last instant. Her mind was a mess. As Belnoa sighed deeply...
"Belnoa, you there?"
Chloe's voice came from outside the tent.
...Trying to force another subservience contract? With hollow eyes, Belnoa opened the tent flap. Chloe stood outside in light attire.
"Can I come in?"
Her aura was different from usual.
Under the moonlight, Chloe's white hair shimmered.
'White hair and green eyes...'
Looking at Chloe in this situation, where the Apostate came to mind, Belnoa felt a strange guilt. Clearing her throat briefly, she steadied her breath and nodded.
"Come in."
Chloe smiled brightly and entered Belnoa's tent.
"I heard everything from Senior Lania."
Perched on the bed, Chloe said.
"About planning the Apostate subjugation, and that you and I... and a lot of forces will be deployed."
"Yeah."
"And you agreed, Belnoa."
"Felt like I had to. And..."
Belnoa sighed, looking at Chloe.
"You have to go there, right? No choice."
Chloe smiled bitterly.
"...Lord Galahal wouldn't want revenge, but I do. And it's my selfish desire."
Decisively, it was the Apostate who killed Galahal.
Chloe harbored hatred for the Apostate—not as venomous as a sword ghost or madman's, but she felt a sense of duty.
To subjugate the Apostate.
She, whom Galahal had saved with his life, had to play a major role in that subjugation.
That was the path where the value of Galahal's death would shine, Chloe believed. Belnoa had no intention of denying it.
"I'm thinking something similar."
Belnoa sighed.
Looking at Chloe kept bringing back the Apostate's final words. Her expression, that distant smile, and...
"How should I put it? She's been on my mind..."
As Belnoa overlaid the Apostate's image on Chloe, Chloe suddenly reached out. Her hands gripped Belnoa's shoulders firmly.
"Belnoa."
"Wh-what? Chloe."
Gripping both shoulders, Chloe widened her eyes and thrust her face close. Noses nearly touching. Chloe's green eyes, reflecting the lantern's crimson light, gleamed with an eerie hue.
"What were you just thinking?"
Belnoa swallowed hard.
How was her intuition this sharp?
"Definitely another wom..."
"Nothing. Absolutely nothing."
Gently pushing away her childhood friend with suspiciously keen senses, Belnoa let out a long sigh.
"Just... she's on my mind. Maybe similar to my previous contractor's wish."
A wish to free her comrades.
And perhaps...
"Could be related to old man Cardi too."
"Why him?"
"From what I see, that old guy's got something."
Heroes from centuries ago.
They seemed to regard Cardi as a comrade. With the Apostate, it felt like something beyond that. She'd have to visit him someday.
"Anyway..."
Belnoa tilted her head back.
"Half a year from now."
"Yeah, that's what she said."
Raniel had said the Apostate subjugation would happen in half a year, and until then, to master their power. It wasn't just consideration for Belnoa and Rak.
"I've been holding back and pacing you so far, but from now on, I'll push without rest. All conditions are met; no need to wait anymore."
Frontline expansion.
"Considering that pace, and when all fronts stabilize... the operation will launch in six months."
She judged six months as optimal.
Thus, Belnoa had six months too. Half a year to get used to this power.
"Let's work hard, Belnoa."
Chloe smiled faintly, eyes half-closed.
"This time, I'll protect you."
Feeling an inexplicable chill in her half-lidded gaze, Belnoa shivered briefly. Chloe seemed headed in a weird direction for some reason...
"Yeah, sure."
Probably just her imagination.
Belnoa exhaled shortly and said.
"Let's do our best."
To repay the debt.
3.
Late at night, inside the tent.
Raniel was skimming the records Belnoa had written. About what Belnoa had seen inside Alkeia, and the Apostate's bizarre behavior.
And finally...
"A letter, huh..."
The letter Belnoa mentioned.
Raniel silently stared at the letter on the table. She considered tearing it open but decided against it.
'She asked to deliver it to Cardi?'
Belnoa had said that in her final moments, the Apostate hadn't felt like a calamity. More like facing a senior. Raniel didn't think it was Belnoa's illusion.
"Hoo..."
Raniel sighed deeply.
On her table lay a pile of documents. Handed to all operation participants, but the last page was missing from theirs.
Only Raniel had that page.
For a very long time, Raniel stared at the final page. The deep night passed, dawn arrived. As the sun rose, she finally set the documents down.
...In six months, the operation would launch.
On the day they entered Alkeia, Raniel would thoroughly crush the Apostate. She would strip her of everything and burn it all away.
Because the Apostate was a calamity that had to be subjugated.
For those she had insulted, trampled, and left to die—she had to be subjugated. That resolve hadn't changed.
'...Still.'
Still.
"I should show her at least minimal respect."
Raniel neatly folded the operation's final page, which no one else had seen, and slipped it into an envelope. She tucked the envelope, secured with countless spells, deep into her robe and stood.
The operation's last page, and the letter the Apostate had asked to deliver to Cardi. With those two papers in her bosom, Raniel headed somewhere.