Chapter 174
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 174
Chapter Title: The Descent of the Archangel
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She bellowed as if scolding it and began forcibly controlling her holy power, which started surging wildly in response.
Like a child putting up a fight.
But astonishingly, with her limits shattered, she began to forcibly bring the holy power under control.
"Listen to me, you bastard! Do you have any idea how much I've suffered because of you?!"
Fortunately, so far only I and Holy Knight Captain Rehelon Ban had witnessed her like this.
The other holy knights and priests had mostly collapsed, unconscious, and Diablo hadn't been visible since earlier alongside Luna.
"Luna, where are you? Things are getting messy here."
But there was only silence from the artifact.
I didn't think something had gone wrong with her.
Still, I couldn't help but worry.
"Puhehe... Puhehehehe..."
In the midst of it all, the saintess—driven mad—burst into laughter as if her eyes had rolled back from performing a miracle, all while controlling her holy power.
Did unleashing a large-scale miracle really require this much force?
No way.
The pure white glow overflowing from her entire body had already spread across the capital of the Holy Kingdom, more than enough to purify every strange energy writhing inside people's bodies.
A large-scale miracle?
She was emitting power far beyond that—more than she'd already expended.
"Ah... Aah! Something's coming... It's coming... It's coming!"
"Wow... that crazy woman."
Regardless, she threw her arms wide, laughing in rapture.
Even as a massive gale whipped her hair wildly, her beauty shone undimmed.
"Haa... It's here, it's here! It's come!"
And with those words.
Kuuuung!!!!!
A pillar of pure white light—easily three meters across—plunged from the heavens to the earth before her, radiating an overwhelming presence.
And then.
The entire world fell silent, as if every sound had vanished in an instant.
White feathers, like those from an angel's wings, exploded outward across the area, drifting gently down.
"O... Ooo..."
Holy Knight Captain Rehelon Ban dropped to his knees, his face dazed, eyes gleaming.
"To think I'd witness this sight in my lifetime..."
The real shock came afterward.
The holy knights, priests, and citizens who'd lost consciousness began stirring blankly, then gazed up at the sky in unison. As if compelled, they knelt and clasped their hands in prayer.
What could be up there?
I followed their gaze skyward.
Then I understood why they were acting this way.
So that's where she'd gone.
Floating in the heavens was a being radiating immense light, pure white feathers, and an overwhelmingly sacred aura.
And that being was none other than the person I knew best.
Her long pink hair flowed freely, her eyes shimmering with galaxies like the cosmos itself.
And astonishingly, three pairs of pristine white wings spread from her back.
An archangel.
One pair or two were said to mark ordinary angels—but three pairs signaled archangel rank.
Though the third pair wasn't fully formed wings but swirling masses of light, its mere manifestation proved it was leagues beyond a regular angel.
Why is the halo and wings white?
Most couldn't even capture its form amid the living rays of light spreading outward.
Even those who glimpsed it bowed their heads, lost in prayer.
Only I beheld its true appearance.
She's... wearing the smuggest look right now.
"Ah... Aah... That form... That halo! No doubt about it! No doubt!!"
At that moment, an elderly high priest began trembling violently, as if seized by convulsions.
"God's messenger!! The angel has descended!!"
"O... Ooo... An angel has come down..."
"Have the prophecies been fulfilled?"
No one dared doubt the angel's existence.
This was divinity on a scale beyond mere theatrics—no one could dismiss it as fake.
Diablo had said as much: performances were just that, nothing compared to the real thing.
That must've been what he meant.
Luna was an angel, after all. And from predictions, she ranked as something like an archangel.
Whether she counted among the seven great archangels was unclear, given her long seal—but those wings clearly marked her as archangel-class.
"The Saintess... The Saintess has summoned an angel..."
"Ooo... Saintess."
Just half a day ago, these same people had branded her a witch and heretic. Their about-face was lightning-quick.
Not everyone would be thrilled with this turn, but in the end, no one could challenge the Saintess's legitimacy anymore.
Luna had never been fond of wielding angelic power, yet her expression didn't look displeased.
She did possess power, but nothing on this scale.
Silently, she raised one hand high.
Vast holy might poured forth, planting pillars of light across the entirety of Rapel's capital.
Whatever alien presences still lingered in the Holy Kingdom's people's bodies were utterly scoured away.
Even remnants untouched by the large-scale miracle—gone completely.
Immense divinity enveloped the area, bestowing blessings upon all.
"Aah... The angel descended to proclaim God's will, manifesting as seven pillars to purify the holy domain."
Someone murmured scripture under their breath.
Watching the masses recite verses in eerie unison felt like staring at a cult of fanatics—chills ran down my spine.
"Ah, right."
Saintess Nadia crossed my mind. I turned to see her staring blankly at the sky before collapsing limply, utterly spent.
"Whoa."
I rushed over and caught her in my arms.
The soft sensation against my hands brought a flicker of embarrassment, but that was it.
But.
Wuuung...
Crack!!!
Luna clearly disagreed.
With a flick of her hand, one of the light pillars crashed down on me with ferocious intensity, sending a dizzying torrent of power surging through.
That's real.
I shot a glare up at Luna, poised aloofly in the distant sky. She snorted and looked away.
If only the others could see this.
Your precious divine messenger—the angel they worship unto death—is exactly like that.
Her jealousy was almost endearing, though. I handed Nadia off to a nearby priest.
"Her mental energy must be severely depleted."
It wasn't Nadia alone who'd summoned the angel.
Luna, being an angel herself, had already been in a state of descent. That power seemed summoned through some special means.
In truth, what knocked Saintess Nadia unconscious was the suggestion I'd planted—triggering her rampage. She'd succeeded in controlling her holy power in a way she never could before, only to suffer the backlash.
Of course, no need to share that truth.
As if her role complete, Luna soon wrapped herself in light and scattered like an explosion of hundreds—thousands—of feathers.
All an act.
"Ooo... Ooo... Sacred feathers!"
"The divine messenger has fulfilled its duty and ascended!"
The people had no idea.
They say blending truth into deception makes it flawless.
A genuine angel woven into the descent performance? Impossible to tell apart.
And not some two-pair regular angel, but an archangel-class being... no wonder.
Leaving the entranced crowd behind, I slipped into a less crowded spot.
There I found Luna, cloaked in a robe, staring blankly at the sky—and Diablo standing silent guard at her side.
"Shh. Leave her be for a moment."
Diablo spotted me and guided me a short distance away.
"She needs rest right now."
"What did you do? Why was Luna suddenly up there?"
"She wished it. Said she wanted to help you."
"Did Luna even have that kind of power to begin with?"
He shook his head at my question.
"Do you see the bracelet on her arm?"
"First I've seen it."
"It was originally hers. I'd been holding onto it—returned it this time. Normally, Saintess Nadia couldn't produce a descent like that. But her devotion was genuine."
Even so, her power alone was far too feeble to summon an archangel—let alone a two-pair seraph.
But with Luna present and the bracelet's infused might, responding to the saintess's desperate—no, frenzied—call wasn't difficult.
Luna was now calming the holy power she'd wielded after so long.
A process she normally wouldn't need.
As a fallen being, pure divinity was clearly a burden on her.
"Was this planned from the start?"
"To be precise, she dislikes using angelic power. But she wanted to help you even more."
I took in the sight of dazed Luna. Given her past betrayal and fall, I'd heard her gripe plenty about how unwelcome holy power felt as an angel.
I'll have to comfort her soon.
But first, something to check.
A new entry had appeared in my status window.
🔗 [Merger Ability]
Resonates the powers of each Hall, merging two functions that could never coexist into a single body. The exact effects remain unknown until personally verified.
The seven pillars of light embedded in the Holy Kingdom's capital of Rapel by the angel descent ritual unleashed vast waves of divinity, utterly expelling every trace of foreign taint that had seeped into the land.
The schemes to oust Nadia from the Holy Kingdom had crumbled completely.
But as long as they still existed, it wasn't a fundamental solution.
"Saintess, please strike off my head."
Holy Knight Captain Rehelon Ban proffered his drawn sword to her.
"This fool of little faith was blind. I failed to heed God's will and fell prey to wicked heretics, doubting you."