Chapter 86
Chapter 86
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 86
Chapter Title: Conversation (3)
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A procession of mourners snaked up the rocky mountain where the Pyro Church stood.
Each held branches of the nokgak tree, heavy with blooming flowers.
The nokgak blossoms, known as hadongbaek, symbolized steadfastness and justice.
They were the flower of the Pyro Goddess herself—the sacred emblem of the Pyro Church.
When a servant of the gods passed, it was tradition to bring the church's bloom in place of funeral chrysanthemums.
Jamie clutched his own nokgak branch, trailing behind the crowd.
So many came to pay their respects.
He knew little of Grand Archbishop Sephira personally, but the throng gathering here was proof enough of the man's deep esteem.
No matter how entrenched a faith was in Upton, flawed leaders drew no followers.
Forced attendance yielded no true sentiment.
"The Grand Archbishop is gone... I can't believe it."
"He always greeted everyone with a smile."
"It feels like a nightmare. Someone like him shouldn't have been murdered... Whoever did this, I won't forgive them."
"A great star has fallen."
The crowd's voices brimmed with emptiness and rage over Sephira's death.
Jamie could sense their sincerity.
Ahead of him, Sears sobbed uncontrollably, little Sara clinging to her hand and weeping along.
Jamie knew roughly of the bond between Sears and the Grand Archbishop; Sara was just mirroring her mother's grief.
At the front, Marquis Bell marched in his black formal attire.
At the temple entrance, priests in mourning garb shook bells to announce the visitors.
Dong— Dong—
The resounding tolls were utterly heartrending.
In sync with the chimes, the procession dissolved into a sea of tears.
Jamie gently set down his nokgak branch and gazed at Grand Archbishop Sephira, lying peacefully in the casket.
He looked simply asleep, as if he might spring up at any moment.
Turning him into an undead... yeah, that's out of the question.
Putting aside everything else, Sephira had risen to one of the faith's three Grand Archbishop seats.
Raising such a figure's corpse would yield tremendous power.
In the old days, he would've done it without a second thought—but Jamie now was different from Diablo Volpir.
"Jamie."
Ras's voice came from beside him.
Bandages wrapped various parts of his body, and his expression was grim.
It was only natural. A senior serving the same god had been slain by the enemy; claiming otherwise would be a lie.
"Did you get some sleep?"
"Sadly, I slept like a rock."
No need to ask what made it sad.
"You're more worried about your mother than me."
At Ras's words, Jamie turned toward Sears.
She had collapsed before the casket, weeping endlessly.
A longtime acquaintance of the marquis—a priest—was comforting her at her side.
Sara clung to her mother's back, crying alongside.
"I heard the Grand Archbishop was your mentor."
"Yeah, that's what they say."
Ras chuckled wryly at Jamie's impassive demeanor and placed a hand on his head.
"You're one tough kid."
"What do you mean?"
"Doesn't matter."
Jamie squinted at the cryptic remark.
"Is it true the Grand Archbishop is dead?"
"What nonsense is this!"
A commotion erupted from outside.
Ras and Jamie rushed over, where Ras raised his voice at the source.
"Vice-captain! Seniors!"
They were the Holy Enforcers dispatched to Upton: Phiros and Airak.
"...Those Zenith mad bastards!"
Airak couldn't contain his fury and smashed the table with his fist.
A teacup crashed to the floor, shattering with a clamor as shards flew everywhere.
Yet no one condemned Airak's outburst. They all shared his rage.
"I have no face. I... I was supposed to protect him..."
"It's not your fault. We were held up by those bastards too."
Phiros shook his head and kneaded Ras's shoulder.
"Besides, I've heard of the Seven Knights' leader a few times. If he targeted someone with intent, no one could've stopped him."
"Damn it. Damn it! Now those filthy scum are dragging demons into this?"
His anger unquenched even after wrecking the table, Airak began hunting for something else to destroy—until Phiros restrained him.
"Enough, Airak. The memorial is underway. You planning to dishonor Sephira?"
"...Damn it. I know."
Phiros, understanding Airak's pain, said no more.
After a brief silence, Phiros sighed and spoke again.
"So, what exactly happened?"
Ras recounted the events in detail.
Having heard it all, the two eyed him dubiously and sought confirmation.
"So... this Jamie Welton kid sent the Seven Knights' leader flying somewhere?"
"A seven-year-old?"
Ras figured their reaction was par for the course.
Anyone who hadn't witnessed Jamie firsthand would find his tale absurd.
"He's not your average seven-year-old."
"Even an exceptional one—does that make sense?"
"He's already a sixth-class mage. Seven or not."
"...You got something wrong with your eyes? Sixth class is high mage territory, kid. No genius reaches that at seven."
"Airak's right. Even Siegfried, the pinnacle of mage talent alive today, hit sixth at fifteen."
"...You two haven't heard a thing about Jamie."
Ras nodded; it made sense. Among Holy Enforcers, these two were especially detached from worldly affairs.
Even so, it was shocking no one had passed along the news.
As Ras shook his head, Airak snapped his fingers as if struck by a thought.
"Hold on. Welton... Welton? That sword-famous family?"
"Now that you mention it, yeah. Seldam Kingdom's premier swordsmanship house. No other nobles bear the Welton name."
"Exactly. Jamie's the son of Count Welton—the young lord of Hesse."
Airak furrowed his brow.
"But magic? Welton blood means swords, not spells."
Ras's vision darkened.
Where to even start explaining? How to convince them? His head throbbed at the thought.
A hundred words pale against one sight.
Making up his mind, Ras shot to his feet.
"Follow me."
"Where to?"
"You'll understand once you see Jamie with your own eyes. Let's go!"
Phiros and Airak exchanged shrugs and trailed after Ras.
With the belatedly arrived Holy Enforcers joining Ras, Jamie found himself alone and wandered the church grounds.
The memorial was in full swing, leaving other areas deserted.
Last time, I sneaked in all stealthy.
Now he could roam openly without a word of protest—far more convenient.
But he wasn't wandering idly.
It was about time.
Sure enough, a presence flickered behind him.
"Wah!"
"Uwak!"
Jamie whipped around with a shout, startling Riki into tumbling onto his rear.
Jamie wagged a finger dismissively.
"You need to mask your presence better. I felt you coming a mile away."
"...You're just too perceptive."
"It's not perception—it's qi sense, rookie."
Riki grinned and extended a hand; Jamie grasped it and hauled him up.
"Knew you'd show?"
"Been pacing around urging you to hurry."
With Pyro regaining her strength, Riki should've reclaimed near-omnipotent sway within the church.
"Can't win against you."
"Anyway. You holding up?"
Riki caught the unspoken subject and shook his head.
"Not really. He was a good man."
Grand Archbishop Sephira's death stung Riki deeply too.
He'd only known the man a few days, but Sephira had helped him and his sister immensely.
Some might call it an apostle's duty, but Riki saw it differently.
He was a good adult.
One who'd mended some of the wounds from his time at the Zenith Church.
"Anna's taking it harder. She was thrilled to have a grandpa."
"Where's Anna now?"
"With a nun, probably. I slipped out. So let's move—Goddess is dying for me to fetch you."
Riki grinned awkwardly, the goddess's voice echoing in his mind like a migraine.
"Follow me."
"Not gonna pop in and vanish like last time, right?"
"Goddess says don't be irreverent."
Irreverent.
Jamie found the term amusing.
Knowing full well what he was, and still—clearly her idea of a joke.
The two headed toward the goddess statue.
"Going in."
Riki opened the door to the basement.
A chill wind wafted out.
Eerie for a chamber housing a goddess statue.
Jamie followed Riki down the stairs.
Scant light penetrated. The deeper they went, the thicker the darkness grew.
"No lights."
Jamie tsked, abandoning his light spell.
Strict protocol, but in a site for divine descent, he had no choice but to comply.
How far into the gloom did they descend?
The stairs ended at last, giving way to level ground.
"Hold up."
Riki's footsteps receded.
Jamie closed his eyes and waited in the dark.
Moments later—clink— an even fiercer chill swept in.
Dripping water echoed.
He could picture ripples spreading across a surface, unseen.
"Come on in."
Riki's voice called from afar.
Jamie advanced without hesitation.
Splash, splash.
Water. He'd anticipated from the drips, but it rose steadily—now knee-deep.
"She's descending now."
Riki clasped his hands and murmured unintelligibly.
The tongue of the gods.
Normally, invoking a descent demanded elaborate rites, but as the goddess's apostle, Riki skipped them all.
Pyro herself had taught him the divine words.
A faint glow emanated from Riki's form.
Darkness lifted, revealing the surroundings bit by bit.
Fetid, filthy water pooled to the point of nausea.
The goddess statue stood half-smothered in moss, sorely neglected.
Jamie knew the reason.
Gods can't sustain their will without a primal state.
What troublesome entities.
By human standards, cleaning meant purity.
To gods, pollution restored a comfortable origin.
Fortunately, they never foisted such notions on believers.
Consistent, then and now.
As Jamie pondered the rank puddle, preparations concluded.
"Goddess is coming down."
Riki parted his clasped hands.
Intense divinity drained from his body into the statue.
Light vanished in an instant.
But darkness didn't return.
A state beyond light or shadow.
A peculiar phenomenon—their so-called "miracle."
"Thanks for starters."
Riki turned.
But it wasn't Riki.
The boy's form had vanished.
In his place stood a woman with long green hair, clad in a pristine white dress, a radiant smile on her lips.
Her appearance bordered on ordinary, yet Jamie couldn't smile.
An overwhelming pressure crushed down, threatening to fell him then and there.
Undeterred, the woman pressed on.
"Thanks to you, I landed a solid hit on that Zenith fool."
Her mere presence rendered all else insignificant.
A force akin to violence, beyond measure!
...Humiliating.
Jamie smiled bitterly as he regarded the beautiful woman.
The Goddess of Mercy and Punishment, Pyro, had descended upon the earth.