The End of Childhood (1)

I traced back through my memories. It wasn’t an awakening that day. It was the day the seal finally broke. I had stacked body enhancement five times and compressed my holy power five times as well. After that, except for the final strike that took down the Behemoth leader during the subjugation with the Holy Front Knights, I kept both the stacking and compression at three. The fights simply lasted longer instead. Compressing holy power raised its efficiency. Stacking it multiplied the effect. An incredibly tempting and powerful way to fight. But it came with a condition.

If you kept compressing and stacking past the limit your body could endure, the recoil would hit you later. I still didn’t know exactly how much recoil you’d suffer based on how far you pushed beyond that limit. When I had gone all-out in a short burst back then, I’d coughed up blood, collapsed, and spent two full weeks in bed. When the count was lower but the duration longer, I’d simply fainted for about a day. Since I had only crossed the line twice, it was hard to establish a clear standard. Maybe I would never know. The old records had lost all meaning now.

After the Behemoth pack subjugation came the training. The journey from Entat Parish to Ravendi. For nearly two months my body had grown stronger day by day. How far could the current me endure? And how many times could I stack and compress now?

Current body enhancement with compression and stacking: five times. That used to be my limit, but not anymore. I added one more. No problem. I added another. Still fine. This seemed like a good spot to test it. Let’s see how it lands on a sandbag.

The sandbag’s name was the Clown’s puppet: Ryolk.

I started with Divine Punch.

“You’re telling me that wasn’t full power? Even with all those magic tools on you…”

BOOOOM!

The power that erupted from my tiny frame was hard to believe. A deafening roar split the air and the shockwave gouged the earth deep. A long gash like a sword wound opened on one of the Clown’s cheeks and blood began to spill.

Hmm. That seemed on par with Grandpa Carlo, maybe even stronger?

“Hey, you scared? Stop flapping your lips and come at me already.”

“What did you…?! Me? The Apostle of Chaos known as the Clown?! Afraid of a brat like you?!”

The Clown charged again, this time cloaking his entire body in blue energy instead of just his sword. So he hadn’t been going all-out either. His movements were faster now, more cunning as he searched for openings. But to my eyes it all looked slower.

Not a single one of the Clown’s attacks reached me. I leisurely parried, blocked, and deflected every strike. The one full of openings wasn’t me—it was him. Our positions had completely reversed.

When you swing a sword to cut someone down, you need to shift your weight to transmit speed and power. The upper body handles the slashing and thrusting, but if the lower body can’t plant firmly on the ground, balance collapses and posture crumbles. Unless, of course, you’ve reached the Master rank and can do that mid-air stepping nonsense from martial arts novels.

Every time the Clown showed an opening, I hammered his calves, shins, knees, thighs—every part of his legs. He was still bigger than me, though not as much as the last puppet, so I destroyed his mobility and balance to drag him down. Faster. Deeper. Stronger!

I saw him reverse-grip his sword, trying to stab down at me. A stupid move. It was no different from shoving his head into my jaws while trying to stop me from closing in. I layered body enhancement on myself one more time, easily dodged the descending blade, and leaped.

I slammed the pommel downward, driving his sword deep into the ground. The Clown’s balance broke for an instant. I didn’t miss the chance. Using the pommel as a foothold, I spun and delivered a roundhouse kick straight into that spider-like face.

“Kuh… ack!”

The impact knocked the Clown’s body backward. But I wasn’t done yet. I stepped on his shoulder, jumped again, and slammed a double-stacked Divine Punch straight down onto his skull.

Then I grabbed the rising head and did it again.

BANG!BANG!BANG!

“You damn brat—!!!”

Energy exploded from the Clown’s body and blasted me away. He staggered back to his feet, clearly hurting. His once spider-like face was now stripped of skin, and blood poured down his neck from the massive wound on the back of his head.

“This… this toy definitely reached the Master rank… so why—?!”

I understood perfectly now. He had been acting like some intelligent mastermind, babbling about plans and performances, but he was just an idiot. A huge coward, too.

“Idiot. Just because a bronze player got a Master account doesn’t mean they suddenly play like one.”

“What…?”

Right, he wouldn’t get that one.

“You’re weak.”

“How dare you! How dare you—!!! I’ll kill you! Levia Leviathan!!!!!!”

Time to finish this. I layered body enhancement on myself once more. That made nine. Instinct told me ten was the current limit. But I didn’t go that far. I needed to save the rest of my holy power for something else.

I caught the charging Clown’s sword with my bare hand and shattered it. There was an opening to rush in, but I didn’t need to. I drove a triple-stacked Divine Punch into his stomach from range. His body couldn’t withstand the impact and flew backward. I chased after him and slammed him into the ground again. The blood he vomited mid-air told me his organs were damaged. He wouldn’t be getting up this time. I was going to destroy every last part of this puppet body.

I broke his legs. Then his arms. By the time he was forced to crawl across the dirt, I grabbed him by the hair and lifted his head. The stench was still awful.

“Ugh! Levia Leviathaaan!!!!”

“Something I’ve been wondering since earlier. You’re not acting, are you?”

Last time he had pretended to feel pain. This time it was real.

“…!”

“Why so surprised? The last puppet was a corpse. But this one… is alive, isn’t it?”

Dead bodies don’t feel pain, after all.

“Ha! Just who are you? What is your connection to the First Saintess?”

Why was the First Saintess suddenly being brought up? This idiot was really straining his tiny brain.

“Stop trying to be clever. Once I end this puppet’s life you’ll just return to your main body anyway. I can see right through your pathetic attempt to gather information.”

It was disgusting how he kept throwing out the First Saintess bait to read my reaction.

“This isn’t working? Very well. Next time I’ll come with my real body—”

“By the way.”

I cut off the Clown’s words and pressed my empty hand against his solar plexus.

“You won’t be going back in one piece this time.”

I could see it now—the “part” of you hidden inside the puppet. I poured holy power into the puppet. It traveled from the solar plexus up through the throat, across the face, and reached the brain.

“Found you.”

“This… this is impossible! A human can’t do something like this!”

Look at him panic. How ridiculous. Now he was finally acting like a proper clown.

I seized the wriggling thing that had taken root inside the skull with my holy power and forcibly ripped it out.

“GYAAAAAAAAGH!!!”

The body that had been Ryolk, the Clown’s puppet, crumpled powerlessly. A repulsive lump that filled me with disgust even to look at was revealed, trapped inside my holy power.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

The dark, writhing mass struggled desperately to escape. It seemed unable to speak in that state. That was fine. It would still hear me.

“You really are hideous. Your stench is disgusting too.”

—KIIIIIEEK!!!

“Make sure to tell me later.”

—KIIIIIIEEEEEEEK!!!!!!!!

“What it feels like to be purified.”

I squeezed out every last drop of remaining holy power and poured it onto the Clown’s real “part” instead of the puppet. I sincerely hoped it would suffer something truly, unimaginably horrible.

“Purification.”

—KIIIIIIEEEEEEK!!!

Unlike the Seed of Sin, the Clown’s fragment burned as it vanished.

“Haa…”

My chest felt clear and refreshed. The fact that I had truly landed a blow on the Clown felt incredibly satisfying. I had arrived late and couldn’t stop him in advance, but at least I wasn’t too late. I had prevented Benika’s tragedy and saved the Holy Knights as well.

Wait a second. Now that I thought about it, this felt unfair. The math wasn’t adding up. Cardinal Dominic’s request was simply to deal with the seed inside Benika, right? Smash it, done. Finding out the Seed of Sin was an object was fine. But then Benika ran away, the Clown showed up, and I even saved Holy Knights who were on death’s door? A super-sized spatial pouch clearly wasn’t going to be enough. I needed to squeeze out a lot more compensation.

“Lady Levia!!!”

I saw Cheska and Grandpa Carlo running toward me. Even Jacob was sprinting over. Why were they in such a hurry? The situation was already—

“Cough…”

Blood. It came from my mouth.

“Lady Levia!!!!!”

Cheska’s eyes were wide with shock.

“Cheska, I’m going to sleep for a bit. Wake me up later.”

Ah. I still needed to do proper sightseeing on the way back. Please heal in one day. Please.

When Levia coughed up blood and fainted from the recoil, someone else on the continent was also vomiting blood beneath the dark night sky.

“Cough…!”

It wasn’t over in one go. The pain came in several agonizing waves.

“GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!!!!!!”

“Le… Levia!!!!! Leviathan!!!!!! No matter what it takes, I will kill that bitch!!!”

“Just wait!!! This clown will come find you in his true body, exactly as you wished!!!!!!”

“That cannot be allowed.”

A man appeared and stopped the Clown, who was pouring out his rage amid the pain.

“Prophet!!! Levia Leviathan must be killed immediately! Right now!!!!!”

“I said no. Are you defying me?”

The Clown’s fury still burned, but he couldn’t bring himself to challenge the Prophet. No matter what, he had already failed the Prophet’s orders twice. He was in no position to argue.

“You seem to have calmed down somewhat. Report.”

If it had been ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠before, the Clown would have mixed in jokes while reporting. Not this time.

“I failed. I could not kill the Heretic Inquisitor, and the seed was destroyed right before it could fully bloom.”

“Did you identify the method the Heretic Inquisitor used to find it?”

“The thirteenth Saintess candidate, Levia Leviathan, can directly detect the seeds and…”

“And?”

“She can destroy them.”

“…”

The Prophet remained silent for a long time. A human who could not only detect the seeds but destroy them?

“We must kill her before it is too late. That woman not only identified me accurately but also erased a part of me.”

It meant she could track not only the seeds but every Apostle of Chaos secretly moving across the continent. The Prophet nodded in agreement. He had stopped the Clown earlier, but if Levia Leviathan ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠possessed such power, the situation had changed. She would definitely become an obstacle. A massive one.

“Very well. It would be best to remove her before she becomes an even greater hindrance. Once your body recovers—”

“That will not do.”

Just as the Clown and the Prophet began planning Levia’s assassination again, someone interrupted their conversation. The face was hidden behind a mask, but the light yet serious voice suggested it belonged to a man.

“I warn you. It would be wise not to touch Levia Leviathan.”

The man raised his sword and pointed it threateningly at the Clown and the Prophet.

“Ha! You threaten us with that broken sword?”

“Were you the Clown? Cowards should stay out of this. I came to speak with the Prophet.”

“Do not call me a coward!!!”

“Enough.”

The Prophet stopped the Clown who was about to charge.

“He is not an opponent you can face.”

The man reacted to those words.

“You recognize me?”

“Would it not be strange if I did not?”

“I appreciate the recognition. I won’t call it an honor, though. I dislike all of you.”

“I dislike you as well. Therefore there is no need to heed your warning.”

“You really should listen. Otherwise I’ll start killing your Apostles one by one.”

The man pointed at the Clown and asked if he should start with this one, then began listing the current hiding places of the Apostles of Chaos.

The Clown couldn’t hide his shock. Only the Prophet and himself knew the exact locations of the Apostles. How could this man possibly know?

“How do you—”

“I’m not saying to abandon your plans forever. Just wait a few years.”

“I know your plan is still in its early stages. That’s why you ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠cannot defeat me yet.”

“Now choose, Prophet. Will you proceed with the plan despite the obstacle? Or shall I annihilate you all right now?”

The Prophet knew the man’s words were not a bluff. Though he spoke of choice, the answer was already decided.

“We will… accept the warning.”

“Good choice.”

“However.”

“Hm?”

“If that side touches us first or directly interferes with the plan, we will respond in kind.”

“Why fuss over something so trivial? That would be the child’s own decision, wouldn’t it? I’m not so petty that I’d interfere with every little thing.”

The man waved his hand in farewell, saying he was busy, and vanished in an instant.

“Will you truly accept the warning?”

“Yes.”

“But—!”

“His words were not empty. He said responding in kind is acceptable, so we can make use of that.”

“As long as Levia remains a Saintess candidate, she will inevitably oppose us. When that time comes, we can cut her throat for certain.”

“…Understood.”

The Clown wanted nothing more than to rush to his true body immediately and tear Levia to shreds, but he could not disobey the Prophet’s command. He endured.

“For the time being, do not touch Levia Leviathan or anyone around her. Make sure the other Apostles are informed as well.”

“Yes!”