Memories of the Fourth Past Life
My consciousness slowly faded, and the memories of yet another past life surged in with overwhelming intensity.
BOOM—!
A deafening roar that seemed to tear the earth apart filled my vision with a crimson haze.
It was the heart of a brutal war that would decide the fate of both humanity and the demon race.
The moment I heard that the Demon King’s vast army had trampled the continent and that Saintess Ariel, humanity’s final spiritual pillar, had been kidnapped by the Demon King’s forces, I gripped my sword and set out alone to rescue her.
“Ariel… just hold on… a little longer.”
After slaughtering thousands upon thousands of demons and coating my armor in layer after layer of their black blood, I finally reached the highest floor of the Demon King’s citadel—the fortress that had plunged the world into terror.
Having cut down the Demon King’s executives one by one to reach the top floor, I found Ariel bound and forced to her knees before the Demon King’s throne.
Her pure white priestess robes were torn and filthy. Her beautiful snow-white hair was matted with sweat and blood.
Flames raged all around us. The stench of blood hung thick in the air, mingling with the drifting white smoke.
“Hero…!”
I leveled my sword at the Demon King to save her.
The desperate battle between light and darkness raged for three full days and nights. In the end, the supposedly immortal Demon King fell to his knees in utter defeat.
“Ugh… Hero. Do you really think you’ve won?”
“That pathetic race called humanity will eventually drown in greed and taste defeat.”
“Shut up… and just die already.”
“Kahahaha! You pitiful fool. Do you even know who pushed the Saintess into this trap and offered her to me as a sacrifice?”
“It was the very humans you risked your life to protect!”
The Demon King watched my face twist with savage rage and curled his lips into a faint smirk.
“Bullshit.”
“If you don’t believe me, see for yourself with those noble eyes of yours!”
“And then fall into utter despair and learn to despise humanity!!!”
Slice—
Even as his head was severed, the Demon King wore a twisted, mocking smile.
My merciless blade sent his head tumbling to the ground.
His body disintegrated into a handful of ash without leaving a trace, scattering into the fierce winds.
It was the moment the one true savior of the world was born—the man who had single-handedly ended the catastrophe that threatened to destroy the entire continent.
I thought it was all over…
But an even greater ordeal was waiting for me.
After slaying the Demon King and rescuing Ariel, I brought her back to the cathedral.
Yet instead of welcoming us, the high-ranking clergy were consumed by shock and horror.
“…Hero. What did you just say…? You killed the Demon King?”
The archbishop asked in a trembling voice.
“Yes. The Demon King who threatened humanity is gone. The war is over.”
At that moment, the cardinal standing behind the archbishop let out a cold, mocking laugh.
“You foolish hero, lying through your teeth! The Saintess… Saintess Ariel was already offered as a sacred sacrifice to the Demon King’s army for the eternal preservation of humanity!”
“We… no, humanity offered her up for the sake of peace!!”
“To dare spout such lies while holding the title of Hero—how utterly shameless!”
“I never liked you being called a hero in the first place, and now you’re lying too?”
For a moment, my mind went completely blank.
Ariel, who had just entered the grand cathedral a little later, trembled in shock as she stepped inside.
“What… what are you saying?”
At Ariel’s appearance, every high-ranking cleric in the room froze.
But the archbishop quickly regained his composure and looked down at the Saintess with cold, emotionless eyes.
“If the noble sacrifice of a single Saintess can save tens of millions of lives across the continent, then that is the true will of God—His absolute decree.”
My clenched fist dug nails into my palm until droplets of blood pattered onto the floor.
To think that the price of risking my life to slay the Demon King would be this disgusting and cruel.
My vision turned red with rage. I ground my teeth.
“The will of God? Cut the crap.”
At that moment, my sword began mercilessly destroying the sacred grand cathedral.
Massive pillars collapsed in ruin. I grabbed the greedy high priests by their hair, dragged them down, and brought my blade down on them without mercy.
“Hero! Are you declaring war on us?!”
The archbishop screamed in agony as his limbs were severed, his voice filled with malice.
Beneath the shattered fragments of the holy temple, elderly priests crawled through their own blood, veins bulging as they hurled curses at me.
Their luxurious robes, embroidered with pure white silk, were now beautifully stained with the filthy blood and dust they had spilled.
I held my blood-dripping sword loosely and looked down at them with icy eyes.
“War…?”
“Who was it that sold the Saintess? Who was it that knelt Ariel before the Demon King’s army, begging for their own lives? Wasn’t that you bastards?”
“T-that was a noble sacrifice for the greater good…!”
“It was a necessary decision to ensure humanity’s survival! God will surely look kindly upon our cause!”
The old cardinal ground his teeth as he made his excuses.
The moment I faced that disgusting hypocrisy, something inside me snapped.
“God will understand? Don’t make me laugh, you sons of bitches.”
I readjusted my grip on the sword and unleashed a blade of energy toward the giant crucifix that symbolized the grand cathedral.
RUMBLE—!!
The sacred marble walls, the very embodiment of the continent’s faith, split vertically with a thunderous roar and collapsed.
Over the heads of the clergy, their faces deathly pale with despair and terror, I poured every ounce of mana and killing intent I possessed like a tidal wave.
“War? I’ll give you as many as you want. Go ahead and get miserably torn apart in the arms of that precious god of yours.”
That day, the hero who had saved the continent once again drenched his sword in blood.
All for one person.
To rescue the Saintess Ariel—my only light—who had endured torture while bound hand and foot in the Demon King’s underground prison.
The continent’s central knight order and high-ranking mage corps arrived late, but they couldn’t stop me in my madness.
After slaughtering them all, I finally held Ariel in my arms amid the collapsing ruins of the holy temple.
Even though her body was battered beyond recognition, Ariel looked at me—Aren, the man who had turned the entire world against himself for her sake—and wept.
The noble faith the Church had instilled in her, the hypocritical laws of God—everything had been an illusion.
The only thing that became engraved in her heart as the one and only true god was the silhouette of the cruel hero who had bathed himself in the blood of the world just to save her.
After burning every last trace of the Holy Kingdom’s ugly remnants, we secluded ourselves in a quiet cabin on the isolated frontier of the continent.
Outside the window, multiple barriers that blocked persistent pursuers emitted a soft magical glow. Inside the cabin, a small campfire burned, filling the space with cozy warmth.
It was a quiet, peaceful night that made the brutal battles of the day feel like a distant dream.
Ariel sat on the bed wearing nothing but a thin white dress. She no longer looked like the despairing Saintess I had seen earlier that day.
Her cheeks were flushed as if with fever, and she held my hand tightly, her golden eyes filled with nothing but longing for me.
“Hero… no… Aren. Are you truly alright?”
“Everyone on the continent is after you…”
“I don’t care.”
I gently wiped the dust from her cheek and smiled.
“If God abandoned me, then I’ll just kill that god. Religion means nothing to me. The only thing that matters is you, Ariel. You are my salvation. You are my entire world.”
My rough yet resolute confession made Ariel’s golden eyes tremble violently.
Her chest rose and fell rapidly.
She was a Saintess who had lived her entire life in purity and abstinence according to the Church’s teachings. Yet in front of the man who had destroyed the world for her sake, uncontrollable emotions were surging forth.
Ariel gave a soft smile.
When she slowly slid the shoulder straps of her dress down, her pure white, smooth shoulders were revealed along with her sacred body that had never once been touched by a man, bathed in moonlight.
“…Then God will gladly forgive our fall from grace.”
Our lips met.
The moment the memories of that past life ended, I snapped my eyes open, cold sweat pouring down like a waterfall.
The headache that had been crushing my skull had subsided, but the vivid images of the destroyed grand cathedral and the burning heat of Ariel’s inner walls were so real that my lower body grew heavy.
“Huh? Aren’s awake!”
Isilia, Kaina, and Silphid were looking down at me from the inn bed with worried expressions.
“Move aside, pointy-ears. Master, are you okay? Smell me and get your strength back.”
As I staggered upright, all three of my wives closed in around me at once.
I scratched my head with a bitter smile.
“I remember everything now. All the things that happened with Ariel in my past life.”
Isilia snorted at my words.
“Obviously that fake Saintess wagged her tail and completely devoured you in your past life too.”
“Master is too soft.”
Kaina wagged her fluffy tail and casually leaned her head on my shoulder.
Not missing the chance, Silphid silently approached and planted a light kiss on my cheek.
“Well, it doesn’t matter how many wives you had in your past life. The destination of this life will be me anyway. Right, darling?”
The varied reactions and jealous comforts from my three wives brought a relieved smile to my face.
The terrible loneliness and rage from my past life seemed to melt away like snow thanks to these noisy women by my side.
I stood up, slung my backpack over my shoulder, and headed for the inn door.
“Alright, let’s get moving. Like Ariel said, our next destination is finding the Witch. I need to meet her to uncover the secret behind my power.”
“The Witch… The inquisitors will be a real pain if they catch wind of that.”
“But if Aren is going!”
Isilia tightly hugged my left arm.
“I’ll protect Master’s back.”
Kaina adjusted her weapon and took position on my right.
“Don’t worry.”
Silphid melted into my shadow without a sound, covering my rear.
I had no idea what other connections from my past lives were waiting ahead, but a strange sense of excitement welled up deep in my chest.
Meanwhile, Ariel watched the carriage grow distant from a high window in the cathedral, a bitter yet calm smile on her lips.
“Aren…”
At that moment, a dull knocking sound broke the silence, striking the thick oak door of the prayer room.
Knock.
Knock.
“Saintess, preparations for the next pilgrimage are complete.”
“…Understood. I’ll be out shortly.”
Ariel slowly lifted her staff.
The sacred light radiating from its tip illuminated her cold face.
This life will be different.
I will climb to the very peak of the Church’s ugliest heights. I will make sure no one—no power, no authority—can ever dare touch my husband again.
Even if that power is God Himself…
Ariel whispered softly as she walked out.
With a chillingly beautiful smile on her face, she strode from the secret chamber with the graceful steps of a saint.
“Very well. Shall we head to the next city?”
