Chapter 104: Blade of Raging Fire
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 104: Blade of Raging Fire
"Tea—cher."
A whisper, so faint it was barely audible, drifted through the sounds of grieving sobs.
This was not a conscious awakening. Rather, it was a sliver of instinct, carved into the very marrow of a young girl’s bones after countless times calling out that name in the past, manifesting now in this final moment.
【Professor Prang, can I go out and play?】
【Professor Prang, I got a hundred percent on my martial arts exam! Aren't I amazing? I wonder when I’ll ever get a score that high on a magic exam... Hehe, who knows?】
【Teacher, I wasn't brawling! Those bullies just happened to run into my fist.】
【Teacher, if you get angry so easily, you’re going to get wrinkles.】
【...】
【Teacher, I’ve decided. I want to be a Saintess in the future.】
【You’re asking why? Because... because being a Saintess sounds really cool, doesn't it?】
【Dressed in a pure white gown, smiling as I bring salvation to the world under the guidance of God—and then using my fists to blow up all the bad guys. That would be so cool.】
【A Saintess can't get married? I don't care about that. If I find true love, I’ll definitely be brave enough to pursue it.】
【...】
【Teacher, you’ll give me your blessing, right?】
Those voices from the past, never once faded, echoed in his mind once more, crystal clear.
The old man froze for a moment. Then, from his aged eyes, a rage like molten lava erupted.
"Love God! I’ll—fuck—your—mother!"
The old man let out a lion-like roar. Filthy words he had discarded the moment he became a teacher spewed from his mouth.
Fire surged in his palm. The staff he usually maintained with such meticulous care, inlaid with precious gems, melted within the intense heat, forging itself into a twisted, pitch-black blade.
The old man gripped the blade and charged forward, moving against the blinding light of the Holy Sword.
Then.
He plunged the blade, forged of raging fire and hatred, deep into the girl’s chest.
This time, it was the heart. Precise and unerring.
In the old man’s other hand, the pink star staff—the control center of the Grand Ritual—trembled. Along with it, the Crown fused into the barrier began to vibrate as well.
It was as if they were resonating.
The massive mechanism beneath the Academy roared to life with unprecedented vitality. A colossal power used the old man’s withered body as a medium, surging frantically into the Saintess’s body.
Centering on that heart which had long since ceased to beat, layers of tiny yet precise structures proliferated rapidly along the Saintess’s blood, flesh, bones, and skin. They searched, suppressed, and then began to purge the power and mark belonging to that God of Corruption.
"Get the hell out of this body, Love God!" the old man roared again.
As the power continued to pour in, the Saintess’s body convulsed and trembled violently. It was as if some entity was scurrying and struggling inside her, only to have its living space squeezed away inch by inch by the advancing precision of the magical structures.
The cracks on the Saintess’s exquisite face became clearer. From behind those cracks, a terrifying will from a higher plane of existence cast its gaze upon the old man.
It was cold.
It was angry.
And then...
It was mocking.
You’ve poured all your strength into this one spot. Does that mean the other side is... very weak?
In the next instant.
The Saintess suddenly gagged, and a hideous ball of flesh was vomited out. An eye surfaced on the flesh-ball, but it merely gave Professor Prang a cold, fleeting glance before controlling the mass of meat to fly toward the heavens without a hint of lingering attachment.
The Saintess’s face began to crumble, as if losing the support of some great power. Her body, too, began to wither and rot.
Watching that shattering face, Professor Prang felt his heart twitch once more.
But he quickly snapped back to reality, his gaze chasing after the remnant of the Love God—that ball of flesh.
High in the sky, a blue moon hung suspended.
A sudden chill rose in his heart.
Ignoring the wound on his own chest, Professor Prang violently swung the pink star magic wand in his hand.
Infinite structures stacked upon each other, rapidly pursuing the flesh-ball.
But it was too late.
Or rather, the Love God was too decisive. After the first wave of the offensive was blocked by Professor Prang, He had unhesitatingly abandoned the precious body of a Crown Bearer to hasten the appearance of today’s second protagonist.
Splat.
The flesh-ball slammed into the barrier.
Like a high-speed insect hitting a windshield at night.
The flesh-ball instantly burst, turning into a puddle of gore.
Within that gore, wriggling sprouts suddenly germinated and grew at an incredible speed, spreading along the barrier.
Like some plant with tenacious vitality, it relentlessly drove its roots into the barrier.
Crack.
Before Professor Prang’s attack could arrive, the clear, crisp sound of the barrier snapping caused his expression to darken instantly.
A crack appeared on the barrier.
Just as a dam cannot stop its collapse once a leak appears, a massive amount of flesh-sprouts frantically tunneled into the crack.
And then.
Crack, crack, crack, crack...
More cracks appeared. Even as the Grand Ritual continuously poured in mana to repair the barrier, those sprouts that had already burrowed inside acted like shrapnel embedded in flesh, preventing the barrier from healing.
Outside that barrier, the giant blue moon became increasingly vivid.
A beam of moonlight seeped through a gap in the barrier.
Then two.
Then three.
Countless beams.
Until it was riddled with holes, the barrier that had been resisting the Blue Moon finally shattered completely.
And so,
A massive blue moon, already occupying half the sky, appeared directly above all of St. Maria.
The moon was so gargantuan that all things in the world seemed minuscule before it. The craters and shadows on its surface were exceptionally clear, faintly forming a hideous, distorted face.
Under the moonlight, countless shadows on the ground began to sway, like evil ghosts catching the scent of blood, wandering through the desolate Academy.
Staring at the Blue Moon, Professor Prang felt cold all over.
Blood was still flowing from his chest.
And because of that, he felt a very real sense of despair.
Just facing the Love God descending through a medium had already exhausted all his strength and resources.
So now, how was he supposed to deal with this terrifying existence before him—one who, by the unique nature of its Authority, had managed to descend with a portion of its true body?
*
"I didn't expect the Purification Saintess to be corrupted by an Evil God as well."
In the Great Clock Tower, Professor Glen watched everything unfolding on the field. Even a man as habitually irreverent as him couldn't help but sigh.
"However, paying such a high price... it seems these two are dead set on getting the thing beneath the Academy this time. I really don't know what they're after."
"The Love God's actions are understandable. By human standards, He is a madman, so nothing He does is surprising. But what puzzles us is..."
From the darkness, another aged voice spoke:
"The other one... why would He do this?"
"..."
A brief silence followed.
The dim candlelight flickered, illuminating several extremely old figures.
Most of them leaned on canes, their faces covered in age spots, exuding an aura of decay. Some had even just been shaken awake from the coffins they had prepared for themselves.
Yet, despite being at death's door, these old men were not to be underestimated by anyone. Each of them was an absolute titan in their respective fields; if their names were released, it would cause a massive earthquake throughout the Empire's academic world.
They were the true foundation of St. Maria Academy.
Seventeen life-tenured professors of St. Maria Academy—excluding Professor Prang, who was currently fighting the Evil God in the sky—were all gathered here.
When they made a decision here, not even the Academy Head could change it.