Flood of Beasts
I was already telling you. After racing to the edge of where the monster horde was surging forward, I kicked hard off the ground and shot into the sky. Holy power condensed beneath my feet as I stepped onto the empty air and stood there.
The landscape unfolding below was literally a colorless hell. Lifeless, twisted dead trees jutted up like the ribcages of colossal beasts, while bizarre gray fog coiled between them like snakes, belching out a stench of demonic energy. The sight of hundreds of monsters rushing forward in waves from inside that fog made my brow furrow on its own.
…Why are there so many?
For this many monsters to be launching an assault on the outer zone of the Demon Realm—it made sense now why the holy knights had been making such a fuss since dawn. Maybe the movement of predators from deeper inside had driven the outer population out in massive numbers. If that was the case, these creatures had the worst luck imaginable. Oh, I don’t mean us. I mean the monsters. They’d fled desperately from one predator only to run straight into something far worse.
“Huuup…!”
I drew in a deep breath and poured holy power into the Holy Spear Astra. As if reflecting its owner’s mood, the silver-white radiance within the spear surged violently. Down on the ground, Deputy Knight Commander Leonid must have sensed the ferocious holy energy gathering overhead. He looked up, his blue eyes widening in pure shock.
“...What exactly are you doing up there, Nuna?”
“Just thinning the numbers a bit.”
“......Oh, for the love of— Everyone fall back! If you get caught in that, you’re dead!”
He must have realized what I was about to do. Leonid’s shout from below was frantic.
“Throwing the spear?”
“Agh, seriously! If you’re going to do something like that, please tell us in advance!”
“I’m telling you right now.”
After confirming the holy knights had moved safely outside the blast radius, I hurled the spear straight at the front line of the monster horde. Wrapped in silver-white light, Astra tore through the air like a bolt of lightning.
KWAAAAANG—!
The instant the spear struck the ground, an explosion ripped through the earth with a scream. The stored holy power detonated, tearing the monsters apart until nothing remained. Shattered chunks of flesh and black blood rained down like a gruesome downpour.
I landed gracefully amid the foul black rain, yanked Astra from where it stood at an angle in the dirt, and lightly tapped the butt of the shaft against the ground.
Ting—!
A clear silver wave rippled outward like a pulse of water, filling the holy knights with renewed vigor.
“Waaaaah! The Saintess has arrived!”
The apprentices, who had been standing there stunned by the carnage I’d created, finally snapped out of it and burst into cheers. They really ought to be using that energy to cut down monsters instead, but I suppose that’s what happens when you’re still just apprentices. Well… my job is to fight at the forefront and lead the holy knights anyway, so I guess it’s all good.
“Let’s wipe these monster bastards off the map.”
The moment I muttered those words, I charged straight toward the horde. I took the lead, with the holy knights following close behind. Without hesitation, I plunged into the thick of the monsters and swung my spear. The sensation of the blade slicing through flesh traveled up my palm and straight down my spine in a thrilling jolt.
Yes. This was it.
The disgusting stench clinging to my nose, that repulsive breath that had tickled my ears, the shameless coquettish acts—everything scattered like dust beneath the metallic tang of blood and the solid weight of steel.
“Ha… Yes. This is it!”
Unconscious laughter burst from my lips. I smashed the heads of monsters that dared attack me with the shaft of my spear, crushing their skulls. Using the recoil, I thrust forward without mercy, punching clean holes through their heads. Astra began to dance, tracing silver arcs through the air. Every stab, slash, and smash tore monsters apart or blew them open, sending black blood spraying in every direction.
My heart pounded like it would burst. Every cell in my body trembled with the ecstasy of battle. Sweat trickled down my chin. My condition wasn’t great to begin with, and I was swinging the spear more violently than usual, so my breath had already reached my throat. Yet strangely, my mind grew clearer and clearer.
I wanted to savor this battle trance a little longer, but unfortunately the fight ended quickly. One throw of my spear had already drastically reduced their numbers, and the holy knights who had joined us one after another from the campsite kept up the assault.
“Huu…”
Only a heavy silence and the metallic scent of blood remained across the battlefield. I gave Astra a light swing to shake off the gore clinging to its blade. As I caught my breath, I glanced sideways at the approaching presence.
It was Leonid, the red-haired, blue-eyed holy knight.
“...If you’re going to do something this reckless, couldn’t you at least warn us beforehand? Would that kill you?”
“I did warn you.”
“Telling us right before you throw it doesn’t count.”
The guy started complaining the moment he approached, without even asking if I was okay. Wasn’t this a problem with the chain of command? Still, it was fine. I was generous enough to tolerate this level of grumbling.
“Anyway, you really annihilated those monsters. You’ve been in a bad mood lately—did something unpleasant happen?”
“It did. But smashing these monster bastards has improved my mood a bit.”
“...Still, with so many new recruits around, shouldn’t you say something more saintly? Giving them a proper image of the Saintess would motivate them, wouldn’t it?”
Leonid slid his sword back into its sheath and spoke with a wry expression.
“Once they become proper holy knights they’ll find out what I’m really like anyway, so why bother? And don’t think I don’t know they call me a crazy bitch behind my back after training.”
“Huh? How did you— Ack!”
“You really did curse at me? Want to die?”
I kicked him hard in the shin. With a loud crack, Leonid grabbed his leg with both hands and hopped around me in circles like a wounded rabbit. Seeing that actually made me feel a little better.
“Hey, Leonid. Stop exaggerating. I didn’t kick you that hard.”
“You put holy power into that kick! Ow ow… I think it’s cracked.”
“Want me to actually crack it?”
“...Sorry, Nuna.”
I clicked my tongue at the pathetic way he whined and apologized. The future of the holy knights looked bleak if someone this frivolous was their deputy commander.
“Let’s wrap up this expedition and return to the Holy Empire.”
At my words, Leonid’s expression grew serious and he nodded.
“I agree. For this many monsters to attack even in the outer zone means something’s wrong in the Demon Realm. Plus… didn’t the composition of the horde seem a little strange?”
“What about the composition?”
I’d been too busy slaughtering them to pay attention. Was there something odd?
“Lately it feels like we’ve been running into lust-type monsters way too often. More than half of this wave were lust-types too. And now that I think about it, they seem to swarm especially hard whenever you’re around, Nuna.”
“...Now that you mention it, that does seem to be the case.”
After hearing Leonid, I realized the frequency of encounters with lust-type monsters had indeed increased dramatically. It left a bad taste in my mouth… Could this be connected to my increasingly violent nightmares lately?
When my expression darkened, Leonid lowered his voice and added, “Our church’s main enemy is the Archdemon of Lust, Lilith, so it’s not strange for her underlings to attack us. But the frequency and numbers have been abnormally high recently. That’s a fact.”
“We should report this to His Holiness the Pope and discuss it.”
“Yes. I’ll write the report myself, so please handle the audience with the Pope, Saintess.”
“Got it.”
After roughly cleaning up the battlefield, the two of us walked back into the campsite and wiped the monster blood off with damp cloths.
“Ah, Nuna. By the way.”
“Yeah?”
“Could you give us a chance too? You always rush ahead and wipe out all the monsters yourself. At this point I don’t even know who’s protecting who anymore.”
“Where’s this nonsense coming from all of a sudden?”
I tilted my head at Leonid’s unexpected complaint.
“Do you at least know that one of the holy knights’ reasons for existing is to protect the Pope, the Saintess, and the priests?”
“I suppose that’s true.”
“‘I suppose’? This is common sense. Please study a little, Saintess.”
“I don’t want to study boring scriptures or doctrines.”
“I literally just said it was common sense.”
“Shut up.”
“......”
Thwack—!
The look in his eyes clearly said, How is this woman a saint? I dropped a holy-power-infused knuckle onto the top of his head and stood up.
“Anyway, we’re pulling out immediately. I’m covered in blood and it feels disgusting. I need to wash.”
The monster blood that had drenched me had felt exhilarating during battle, but now it was simply unpleasant. I was undoubtedly a mess of sweat and gore, reeking horribly. Even a quick wash was necessary.
“Ughhhh…”
“Hey, if you keep whining I’ll hit you again.”
I wondered how much water was left in the bucket. As I headed back toward my tent with that thought, I absently tossed the words over my shoulder at Leonid, who was squatting and rubbing his head with both hands.
“No, seriously! Nuna, what would you even do if violence disappeared from your conversation toolkit? I oppose violence! The delinquent saintess should step down!”
The guy was seriously asking for it. Thwack—! I dropped a second holy strike on his skull. A fresh bump rose on top of the old one. He collapsed to the ground, twitching.
I used my foot to casually erase the words “The culprit is the Saintess” that his trembling finger had traced in the dirt. Then, humming a satisfied little tune, I headed for my tent.
The preparations for withdrawal were finished in no time. In the Demon Realm, it was standard practice to keep essential supplies packed for a rapid retreat at any moment. So it took less than an hour to completely break down the campsite and begin our journey back. If we hurried, we would reach the church by late evening.
I rode at the very front, with a sulking Leonid beside me. The moment we crossed the boundary of the Demon Realm, the calm earthy scent of the forest and warm sunlight tickled my nose. The thrill of victory had already turned into fatigue, and the chatter among the holy knights grew quieter. Soon only the clank of armor and the steady rhythm of hooves echoed across the land.
“Hey, are you mad?”
I spoke to Leonid, who had kept his mouth firmly shut for a while now.
“......”
The guy who normally never stopped talking was now sulking in silence. He really must have been deeply offended.
“You’re a grown man. Getting sulky over a couple of knocks on the head?”
“...You put holy power into those hits. And you hit the same spot twice.”
Leonid answered in a sullen voice.
“Come on, don’t you know that getting hit with holy power clears your head? I did it for your own good.”
“Wow, if I keep getting hit like this my head won’t just clear up—it’ll turn into an empty gourd sloshing around inside.”
“Pfft.”
“Don’t laugh. It really hurts.”
“I hit you because I wanted it to hurt, you idiot.”
At my words, he pouted and grumbled.
“Still, please give us a chance next time.”
“What, you’re still on about that?”
I gave him an incredulous look. He’d said the same thing earlier—had someone scolded him?
“Do you know what the holy knights from other orders say about us?”
“What do they say?”
“They call us cowards who hide in the Saintess’s skirts trembling the moment a fight breaks out!”
“Oh.”
I let out a small sound of surprise. So rumors really did get distorted the moment they passed through one extra mouth. I never imagined my fighting at the forefront would be twisted like this.
“So please, sometimes let us provide rear support. If Your Holy Body gets hurt, Grand Priest Bartholomew will literally kill me. Or the Knight Commander will.”
“Fine, fine. I’ll hold back a little from now on.”
Even so, I couldn’t just sit by while outsiders badmouthed our own holy knights. Only I was allowed to do that. So later I should storm another order and cause a proper scene—
“And please don’t go causing a scene at another order.”
...This bastard? How did he read my mind?
I stared at Leonid with wide eyes. Seeing my shocked expression, he gave a rather obnoxious smile as if he’d expected it.
“All your thoughts are pretty much the same, Nuna. It’s been over a year since your coming-of-age ceremony—don’t you think it’s about time you fixed that habit of solving everything with violen— AAAAACK!”
Thwack—!
See? It wasn’t that I was violent. This guy just kept asking for it. I brushed off my hand as I watched him slump over his horse, twitching. Had he fainted? Hmm… I might have hit him a bit hard. Well, his horse was smart. It would carry him back to the church on its own.
In the much quieter atmosphere that followed, I gently gripped the reins and looked forward. The cool breeze brushing against the back of my neck felt wonderful. The sound of hooves, the clank of armor, and the steady rocking of the horse lulled me like a cradle, tempting me with drowsiness.
But I couldn’t fall asleep. If I did, I would dream again, and it was obvious I would scream and fall off my horse—an utterly ridiculous outcome.
I closed my eyes slightly and sank into old memories. It had already been thirteen years since I fell into this world. Just how on earth had a Korean man in his twenties ended up possessing the body of a saintess from a webtoon?
With that thought, I gently closed my eyes, remembering the moment I first arrived here.