Was it the arrogance of the strong, or was he adapting to his mutated body?
The deformed Cult Leader remained motionless. If it was the latter, they should’ve attacked before the Cult Leader got used to his strange body. However, Bennett chose to run towards Niolle.
He cut off the protruding part of the lengthy bone spear with his longsword, helping the fallen Niolle. He didn’t pull out the spear. There were no priests here with healing abilities, so they wouldn't be able to handle the bleeding.
“......Can you maintain consciousness?”
"⋯⋯⋯⋯."
Niolle nodded weakly. Her strength drained and her vision became blurry, but the searing pain that felt like being stabbed by a hot iron allowed her to see clearly and helped her stay conscious.
Bennett picked up the Goddess's Crystal and blurted out something vague.
“Niolle, I’ll leave it to you.”
"⋯⋯⋯⋯?"
She couldn’t understand his vague wording. What exactly was he leaving to her? What was she supposed to do?Brilliant light began to flow from the Goddess’s Crystal. Colors that seemed like they were singing enveloped Bennett's entire body, seeping into every part of his body.
“Burnt Offering(燔祭) - 『Mana Amplification』.”
The amount of Mana emanating from Bennett began to increase exponentially. The Mana, leaking out of him in the form of light, was overflowing. He rushed towards the Cult Leader with his body covered in a subtle golden hue.
Thud.
At the sound of something dropping, Niolle lowered her gaze and looked down.
The Goddess's Crystal, still shining brightly, appeared to have been dropped by Bennett. She carefully picked it up and checked the amount of Mana remaining in the crystal, and found that it had barely decreased.
"⋯⋯⋯⋯."
Was it because the Goddess's Crystal is a near infinite battery, comparable to a Dragon Heart? Probably not. If it had that much power, he could’ve summoned something like a meteor a long time ago.
Bennett had pretended to use the Goddess's Crystal.
In that case, that Mana Amplification⋯⋯was done by at the expense of his own soul, using the Black Wizards’ secret arts. Bennett was burning his soul and lifespan right now. Though he was currently shining brighter than anybody else, when it came to it, it was nothing more than a flashy suicide.
Niolle's blood went cold.
Bennett, unbeknownst to the Cult Leader, sneakily entrusted her with the unused Goddess’s Crystal. There could be only one meaning to this. She had to become a deadly hidden blade.
Niolle hid the Goddess's Crystal behind her back and began the incantation of a spell, watching Bennett burn out his life, struggling with desperate eyes
===============================================================
It was hard to kill two birds with one stone. Following this reasoning, choosing to practice both swordsmanship and magic often led to mastering neither. If one became only mediocre in both, it was worse than if they had concentrated and excelled in just one.
Another fatal problem was a limit to an individual's amount of Mana. Both swordsmanship and magic consume mana. If one used them at the same time, the consumption would also be doubled.
Nevertheless, what could a Magic Swordsman, who overcame all these barriers show?
“『Blinding Vermilion』.”
He unleashed a blinding red flash that pierced through his eyelids, burning the cornea.
"『Sinkhole』”
The ground on which the Cult Leader started sinking, making him lose his balance and miss Bennett with his whip.
“『Rock Induction』, 『Instant Glaciation』”
When the Cult Leader's right arm hit the ground, broken pieces of stone and dust were sent flying in all directions, before Bennett launched the fragments at the Cult Leader’s face. He then subsequently froze his joints to slow his movements.
He leapt up.
"『Abyssal Slash』──!!"
His Mana Blade, its sharpness further enhanced by magic, was driven into the 3 meter tall Cult Leader.
Organically weaving various magic to create variables and land effective hits. The completed Magic Swordsman could tie down an opponent of a higher level effectively.
But…
Grindddd-!
Even though the skin was clearly made of blood and flesh, the slash powered by all of Bennett’s mana only inflicted a wound a finger’s width deep. The wound was enough to kill a human, but inadequate against a monster.
His inability to land a decisive blow despite the increased mana from the Soul Burnt Offering was bad news for Bennett.
Bennett thought that there was no way he could win, but shook it off. It wasn't the time to think about such things.
Rippp.
The Cult Leader opened his mouth so wide that the upper upper jaw seemed to flip backwards completely. From beyond his throat, ominous colors flashed.
A sense of crisis so intense it made his hairs stand on end.
“『Mana Rope』⋯⋯!"
Bennett flew in the air. He tied Mana Rope to the handle of his longsword and threw it like a boomerang.
The longsword spun through the air, wrapping a magical rope tightly around the Cult Leader's ankle. With the rope secured, it was then forcefully pulled downwards.
KUAAAAAAAK──!!
The Cult Leader fired a mana cannon from his mouth, destroying the spot where Bennett had just been. The ground bubbled and boiled as the soil turned into gas and evaporated. In that state, the Cult Leader moved his neck to track Bennett.
PZZZZZZZZT──!!
A beam of light that could melt even a block of stone chased after Bennett. Bennett jumped onto the Cult Leader’s head, grabbing his shoulders and hung onto the Cult Leader’s back. Bennett took a shaky breath.
Since Bennett was using the Cult Leader himself as cover, there was no way that the Mana Cannon would⋯⋯.
Rippp.
The Cult Leader’s upper body was torn apart like a hot knife through butter, literally creating a hole. Bennett blinked rapidly in confusion.
“⋯⋯Keuk, has his body turned into a slime or something?”
Bennett grabbed the Cult Leader’s shoulders to pull himself up. Then, he gathered all his Mana into his legs and kicked the Cult Leader’s head, bending it backwards.
Boom-! Keeeeeeeeeee-
With a noise unimaginable as a leg kicking someone’s head, the Cult Leader's mouth was forced shut. An explosion erupted inside his mouth, blowing his head apart.
Boooom-!
Bennett was thrown back by the impact and fell to the ground.
"⋯⋯Keok!”
As his back hit the ground, knocking the wind out of him, Bennett grit his teeth and stood back up. Normally, you would think that someone would die if their head exploded.
But he had no intention of letting his guard down against the Cult Leader who had already become something beyond human. He needed to deal as much damage as possible while the Cult Leader was stunned as head blew off.
“Ugh⋯⋯."
Bennett, overcoming the shock spreading through his body, forced himself to stand.
Bubble bubble . Bubbles rose from the cross-section of the Cult Leader's neck as his head began to regenerate. Bennett gripped his longsword and targeted the Cult Leader’s legs, judging that if he reduced his mobility, he would be able to take the initiative.
He had to prolong the fight as much as possible. Since he couldn’t win one-to-one, he needed to endure this tightrope walk for as long as possible, therefore aiming for the legs.
Even a slash with enhanced sharpness only left a finger-deep wound, so to inflict significant damage, he had to use a spell that required more time to cast.
Since his head is gone, there should be enough time to finish the incantation of a spell.
After about 10 seconds of chanting, he was going to strike the Cult Leader’s legs with 『Magma Blade』 before feeling a chill down his spine and pulled back.
Immediately afterward, dozens of eyes sprouted all over the Cult Leader's body.
Booom-!
A tentacle, swinging at an almost blinding speed, split the ground and retracted.
Slash-!
Bennett's left arm flew through the air.
"⋯⋯⋯⋯!!"
Niolle, who was watching the battle, let out a silent scream. The left arm flew through the air, then fell before rolling on the ground.
The cut from his shoulder was clean as if cut by a blade. Bennett grabbed the wound and cauterized it before he could bleed out. The smell of cooked meat filled the air.
A line of cold sweat ran down Bennett's face, which was twisted in pain. If he had been even a little late in dodging, he would’ve died instead of just losing his arm.
The Cult Leader sprouted a mouth from his shoulder and spoke.
“You have good instincts.”
"⋯⋯What kind of body is that? You’ve already given up on being human.”
“I thought you would let your guard down if I let my head blow off, but you seem to have a rich imagination. Now then⋯⋯ enough playing around. He said it’s getting boring.”
Bennett forced out a twisted smile.
“For all that, haven’t you only gotten beaten up so far?”
“We don’t say that getting bitten by a mosquito is ‘getting hit’. But you seem pretty worn out. Not only is your arm cut off, but your entire body is already soaked in sweat.”
"⋯⋯⋯⋯."
Bennett wiped his sweaty palm on the hem of his clothes and held his longsword firmly with his other arm.
The Cult Leader thought calmly. This strange body gifted by God was a masterpiece that would never be repeated in the entirety of history. Throughout the battle, he had never once felt that his life was in danger, and he did not think he could ever be defeated, even if he played with that young man all day.
However...
His only concern was the Goddess’s Crystal.
Before the battle began, the young man had used some of the Goddess's power. But that was not the limit of its strength. His God had also given him some advice.
His God told him to be wary, so he was taking his time cutting down the young man. If he wouldn’t pull out his last resort even after pushing him this hard⋯⋯.
The Cult Leader shifted one of his many pupils. He saw a girl laying down, clutching her stomach. Since they seemed to be close to each other, perhaps. Perhaps, he could draw it out.
The Cult Leader rushed towards Niolle at a speed that was unimaginable for his gigantic body.
"⋯⋯STOP-!!"
“Heh, hahaha! Hahahahahaha! Try running a bit faster! If you’re too late, the girl will die!”
His speed was superior.The distance between Bennett and the Cult Leader grew, and the gap between Niolle and the Cult Leader rapidly closed. Take it out. Come on. Hurry. If you don't want to see your friend die──.
Right as the Cult Leader was about to strike Niolle with his tentacle…
Brilliant golden light burst out from behind.
“Finally⋯⋯ You intend to properly use it!”
The Cult Leader turned around to face Bennett. He was confident that he could handle any attack. If it was something that strengthened his body like before, he could just wait it out.
If it was an attack that he couldn’t handle, he could just distort the space to avoid it, grab the girl and use her as a shield.
"⋯⋯⋯⋯?"
He felt a sense of discomfort somewhere.
The Cult Leader looked closely at the golden light emanating from Bennett's grasp. What he was holding was not the Goddess' Crystal, but an ordinary stone. He was just using magic to make it shine a golden light
If that young man doesn’t have the Goddess’s Crystal⋯⋯ then where is it?
An intense, burning sensation from behind him provided the answer. Niolle held the Goddess' Crystal as she finished her long incantation.
A pronouncement of death uttered by an unimpressive voice mixed with wheezing.
“『Flames of Purification』.”
A huge pillar of fire rose up. High enough to be seen from anywhere in the city.
===============================================================
“AHHHHHHHHHHHHH──ACK!!!"
Inside the pillar of fire, shadows of inhuman shapes danced. The Cult Leader changed his appearance countless times to try and escape the flames—Mantis, butterfly, toad, lion.
The shadows that constantly changed shapes seemed to be dancing at a glance.
However, the flames burned his body faster than it could regenerate. His cells, empowered by his God turned black one by one, became charred and crumbled to dust.
If only I wasn’t able to regenerate!
If only I was able to turn into dust and scatter away without any sense of pain, like someone with an ordinary human body!
In the end, the Cult Leader ended up resenting the power of the Outer God that dwelled in his body.
It was a long, painful death.
"⋯⋯It’s over.”
[It’s… over.]
“Can you still move?”
[I feel like I’m about to die, but yes. What about you Bennett?]
"⋯⋯I feel like I’m about to die.”
Niolle and Bennett looked at each other and burst into laughter. It didn't make sense. His arm had been cut off and her stomach had been pierced.
“Let’s complete the ritual. If we move quickly, we can finish it before we die.”
[We’re literally doing this prepared to die⋯⋯.]
Regarding death from bleeding out, it was unknown how the Wizard's Emergency Return would work. If more blood was lost, the magic might judge them to be in danger and forcibly eject them back to reality with a blue light. So they had to hurry.
"⋯⋯It’s a shame that there’s no Divine Magic.”
[I know. But umm, what would happen to Tara?]
“If you think pessimistically, a Saintess who has lost her Divine Power wouldn’t be treated as a Saintess. She’ll likely be expelled from the Academy.”
[Then. How about⋯⋯ taking in Tara as a servant? Of course, I'm not saying that we would actually make her serve us. It would be nice to have her at the Academy. If Tara is fine with it, then⋯⋯.]
“Sure, that’s a great idea. We can’t just sit and watch her get kicked out.”
They briefly discussed the future. The future of Bennett, a Black Wizard, and the upcoming days of Tara were unclear as if shrouded in fog. Yet, they hoped that by joining forces, they could find a way through, just as they were doing now.
He was relieved. The tension that had built up in his shoulders has eased somewhat.
Then, a charred finger pointed at Bennett.
"⋯⋯Be, net, t⋯⋯!"
The Cult Leader gathered all his remaining strength for one last time and activated his magic. The power to send the victims hit by it, 100 years into the future. If he couldn’t kill them, he at least wanted to stop their plans.
Niolle threw herself as if to shield Bennett, and the two were caught up in the magic. They disappeared as if they were erased from a drawing.
As the caster moved to another timeline, the 『Flames of Purification』 also went out. However, the Cult Leader who used up all his power, died without being able to be resurrected.
And that was how…
Only Bennett's severed arm and a corpse burnt beyond recognition were left in the meteorite pit.
===============================================================
What’s happening now?
Did Bennett and Niolle successfully complete the ritual?
Tara couldn't stay still, pacing around the room for a while. She was anxious. Could it be that he was involved in another accident? What if he met the Cult Leader?
"⋯⋯Please, O’ God.”
The only consolation for her as she trembled with anxiety was that they couldn’t truly die here.
When faced with the threat of death, you’re enveloped in blue light and transported back to their original world. So even if they couldn’t save this world, Bennett and Niolle's survival was definitely guaranteed.
It’s fine if they couldn’t save it. Please just let them be alive.
ITime passed excruciatingly slowly for her. Every minute and every second seemed to crawl by, and her anxiety echoed and grew louder. Tara prayed, prayed earnestly, and then clung to the window, looking outside.
The party went there. Right there. In that direction that can be seen right out of the window.
Tara waited patiently.
And then, a pillar of fire soared, rising up so high it seemed to reach the ends of the sky.
"⋯⋯That’s..."
“Wh-what is that? Could Bennett have done something⋯⋯?"
“Sally, I think I need to go. See you later.”
“Wait, Tara! You said you lost your power⋯⋯!"
Tara couldn’t resist her impulses and anxiety. She slung a wooden bat on her back for self-defense and strapped the Demonic Sword to her waist. She picked up three throwable stones and set out.
No matter how much Sally tried to stop her, she couldn't break Tara's stubbornness.
On the way to the meteorite pit, Tara marched on.. Because her body no longer had Mana, she was not as strong as she used to be. Like a normal girl, she got tired after walking for a while.
The weight of the Demonic Sword and wooden bat felt too heavy. The anxiety that fanatics might emerge at any moment also gnawed at Tara's heart. But, but⋯⋯.
She had to check.
The pillar of fire that reached the sky went out. It seemed like the fight was over. She quickened her pace. She didn't care when the tree branches scratched her arms or if sharp blades of grass cut her calves.
Tara desperately hoped to see Bennett and Niolle beyond the bushes.
Bennett would definitely scold her, asking why she came here when it was so dangerous. He’d worry about what would’ve happened to her if something bad happened on the way.
But if she said that she was so worried that she couldn’t help it… He’d soften his expression and pat her head. Niolle would also be concerned and ask if her wounds hurt. Then… Then, she would tell them…
That they worked so hard. That they had done such a good job. That they should hurry back home and have a simple celebration. To commemorate saving a world.
All of it… Together.
Just like they had once done at Abraham's house, laughing and talking. Eating delicious foods. Abraham might no longer be here, but in his memory. Raise their glasses⋯⋯ and move on.
"⋯⋯⋯⋯Ah.”
Tara took a cautious step forward.
Traces of a fierce battle. It seemed like a huge fight had taken place here. No matter how much she looked around, Bennett and Niolle were nowhere to be seen.
I see. That means they went back.
They appeared to have returned due to severe injuries. If so, the celebration party had to be held⋯⋯ without Sally. For now, I also have to get out of here⋯⋯ and tell them that they’ve worked hard.
"⋯⋯⋯⋯."
Huh?
Tara lowered her head. There was something that'd been completely charred. She squatted down and took a closer look. It was somebody's corpse.
Most of their clothes and skin were burnt, making it impossible to identify who it was. Tara's blood went cold for a moment, but she reassured herself. It can’t be. That’s impossible.
There’s a safety measure.
The safety measure must have been activated, making sure Bennett and Niolle returned safely. So, this is not the body of one of them, it would be the body of someone else⋯⋯ a passing fanatic. It has to be.
That’s how it should be.
But then, what⋯⋯ is that arm?
That’s… Bennett’s arm, though. It’s severed. Bennett’s sword is on the ground too.
No.
No, it can’t be.
“No⋯⋯, no, nO, NO──!!"
If the safety measures worked, then there wouldn’t be any corpses…
It can’t be. Tara strained her eyes to look for evidence that the corpse wasn’t Bennett. However, she didn’t have sharp eyes like Niolle, so she couldn’t find anything.
All she could see was Bennett's severed arm and someone's charred corpse.
"⋯⋯『Heal』."
Tara placed her hands on the corpse and chanted a spell.
"『Heal』, 『Burn Recovery』, 『Regeneration』⋯⋯!!"
There’s no way it would activate. After all, she was completely void of Divine Power.
In the first place, it was impossible to revive someone who had already burnt to death like this. Nevertheless, Tara cried out for her Divine Magic until her voice turned hoarse. Until the sun set and darkness fell over the world.
Tara kneeled down and desperately prayed.
“Answer me⋯⋯ Please, answer me⋯⋯."
She prostrated her head to the ground again and again, desperately calling out for the Goddess.
“I’m, I’m sorry. From now on⋯⋯ I’ll do it properly. I will serve you every day, praise you, and do everything properly⋯⋯ just as a Saintess should.”
However, only the stars and the moon were there to look down on her.
“ANSWER ME, PLEASE──!!!"
Tara's cries dissipated meaninglessly across the night sky.
She remained like that for a long while.
Her tears dried up. Even though she cried out loud, scratching the ground until her nails broke, no one listened. Tara looked down at the body with a blank expression.
Naturally, the body did not move. All her prayers, pleas, and threats yielded no results. Tara felt an overwhelming loneliness, as if she were completely alone in this vast universe.
And then, she quietly murmured.
“You’ve already taken my family away from me. Are you… trying to be late again?”
She calmly spewed out her resentment. Quietly.
“This time as well? Are you trying to appear before me, only after everything has been taken from me, and toss me some Divine Power as if doing me a kindness⋯⋯?”
A wildfire started to spread from a small spark.
The fire that had lingered deep within Tara’s eyes seeped out little by little. As if swallowing the remaining ashes, a crimson fire erupted.
If you’re not going to answer me… If my misfortune is worthless and means nothing to you.
“IF SO, IF THAT IS HOW IT IS—!!”
Then...
“I will no longer cling to you. I will not be swayed by your condescending, pretentious help. With only my own strength, with my own will──!!"
Tara stood up and drew out her Demonic Sword.
Thorn vines sprouted from the sleeves of her Saintess attire. Filled with Tara's blood and pain, they grew, radiating a crimson hue as they wrapped around and dug into the Demonic Sword.
-Are you my new ma-, m, m-mas, ter⋯⋯.
Crunchh, Crackkk.
The thorn vines squeezed in encroached on the Demonic Sword. The blade of the Demonic Sword gradually turned red. After the beautiful moment of predation passed, the Demonic Sword was completely hers.
Tara noticed that her soul had been dyed red.
What was truly wrong was faith. Religious belief. My laziness, where I just prayed and complained to God, never trying to achieve anything on my own. And since I bitterly regret that fact…
Metamorphosis, 『Thorns of Lament』.
As the dawn rose and stained the sky red, Tara declared her grudge against the Order of Silver Twilight, the monsters, the Goddess, the corrupt clerics, and those who had killed her comrades. Anyone who had anything involved in this. Every. Single. One of them.
“I’ll kill them all.”
On that day, many fanatics were killed by the Fallen Saintess.
***
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