"To think there would still be someone from the Holy Flower Sect lurking inside the city... If not for that divine beast saving me, I might have died..." Having successfully managed to escape from the eastern district, Nelic once again found himself inside a medical tent outside the battle. A look of gratitude clearly visible on his face as he mentioned the divine beast that had saved him from the ambush of the Holy Flower Sect Assassin.
Although he hadn’t been able to stay behind to hold the line in the face of the monsters due to his serious injuries and forcibly overexerting himself during the rapid retreat that had now seemed rather useless after he had been saved, he had still seen how Scaly had taken care of the assassin from the Holy Flower Sect before leaving.
This action alone made it clear to him that Scaly wasn’t a monster that had come from the dungeon, but instead some kind of divine beast that had shown up to save him. After all, if she had been a normal dungeon monster, she wouldn’t have hesitated to attack the weaker adventurers that he had been defending. Allowing them to safely retreat.
Of course, Nelic was unaware that the divine beast he was talking about had simply ignored the weaker adventurers because they were worth far too little experience for her to care about. Instead, she would much rather target some stronger adventurers or monsters that would give her the same experience as she would get from killing hundreds or even thousands of those weaker adventurers.
"A divine beast...? Are you sure?" Standing beside him and hearing him mumbling to himself, Mari, who had rushed over after hearing about how he had returned gravely injured, could not help asking in a somewhat questioning tone after hearing what he said.
The reason for this was rather simple, a divine beast was an extremely rare type of monster that not only helped adventurers and others in need, but was also generally powerful to the point where even an S Rank Adventurer would struggle to deal with them in case they did something that angered them, which in the first place was rare... And that was only for weaker divine beasts, there existed some that exceeded the S Rank and there were even rumors that the Holy Light Church. The dominant religion on the continent was secretly guarded by one such divine beast.
If a divine beast really had appeared, it would not just garner the interest of the guild’s higher ups but would undoubtedly also draw the attention of the Holy Light Church.
Under normal circumstances, the attention of the Holy Light Church would be negative for the guild but considering the current situation in the Great Sky Kingdom, it wouldn’t hurt for the Holy Light Church to send over some of their people to help while searching for this divine beast.
All things considered, the Holy Light Church getting involved in the Great Sky Kingdom might be somewhat negative for the Adventurers Guild’s reputation, but for the Holy Flower Sect, the involvement of the Holy Light Church would be nothing short of disastrous. After all, the Holy Flower Sect was also a religion, one that opposed the Holy Light Church.
Meaning... The Holy Light Church would be more than happy to join the Adventurers Guild in purging these heretics when they got to the Great Sky Kingdom...
But before any of that could happen, she still needed to make sure what Nelic said was correct and a divine beast had indeed appeared. So, filled with a sense of anticipation, she looked towards the still bloody beastkin with a stare that caused a shiver to run down Nelic’s spine.
"Y-yes... I’m fairly certain it was a divine beast. Not just because of how it acted and saved me, but also because of its enchanting appearance reminding me of the divine messengers often depicted in the chapels dedicated to the Holy Light." Stuttering a bit in the face of the intense stare from Mari, Nelic slowly nodded his head as he remembered the dreamy appearance of his savior that seemed to embody image of the divine messengers depicted in the chapels under the Holy Light Church.
Not that she looked like the divine messengers, but more so her translucent wings looked like the wings of the divine messengers and her shimmering, yet dreamy scales looked like the armor worn by these messengers.
Along with the way Scaly had saved him, it was understandable that he mistook her as a divine beast and even Mari felt convinced after listening to his description of Scaly that followed shortly after his affirmation of her question.
In a short time, a second person had been convinced that Scaly was a divine beast and to confirm with absolute certainty the truth of this, Mari did a quick check up of Nelic and helped stabilize his situation before setting off for the chaotic battlefield herself. Intending to confirm that a divine beast had indeed appeared.
After all, the appearance of a divine beast was difficult to conceal and while it might only have saved Nelic in the eastern district, it would undoubtedly also appear elsewhere on the battlefield. All she needed to do was ask around a bit and she would be able to confirm whether the divine beast Nelic had seen was indeed real.
...
"This... Is far more chaotic than I anticipated..." Showing up at the edge of the battlefield that had already begun to spill out of the city, Mari could not help frowning to herself as she looked towards the city where faint magical explosions could be heard followed by the angry roars of monsters.
Having stayed at the rear in charge of medical treatment, she hadn’t realized just how far the situation had degraded, as even from afar, she could see monsters successfully breaking past the defensive line that had barely been put together outside the city walls.
The situation had already degraded beyond what could be dealt with and the only hope was for reinforcements to show up soon or the city would truly be lost.
But... Along with the situation degrading in front of her very eyes, Mari also felt a hint of determination welling up inside of her. Knowing that if she could confirm the existence of a divine beast, the Holy Light Church would undoubtedly rush over. At which point, the guild would be able to focus their entire attention on the dungeons inside the Great Sky Kingdom while leaving the troublesome Holy Flower Sect for the Holy Light Church to deal with.
Rustle~
Taking out her own weapon, a wooden staff a head taller than herself with a pristine blue mana crystal embedded at the very top, Mari began heading into the city. Moving along the still safe part of the city before she began asking around about the divine beast that Nelic had described to her.
Although the adventurers she encountered were unwilling to waste their time talking to her. After she used her healing magic to help them recover their strength along with several strengthening buffs, they were more than happy to sit down and answer her questions.
From these adventurers, Mari learnt that the divine beast described by Nelic had indeed appeared on the chaotic battlefield.
Not only that, but from the descriptions of the adventurers, it was clear that this divine beast wasn’t targeting the adventurers but instead helping deal with the monsters streaming out of the dungeon.
On several occasions, she even confirmed that some of the adventurers she talked to had been saved by this divine beast just as a powerful monster was about to cut them down. Confirming to her, with even more certainty than before, that a divine beast had indeed appeared on the chaotic battlefield and was currently aiding the adventurers in holding back the monster stampede.
Unfortunately, even with the aid of a divine beast, there was little it could do to change the overall situation, but its appearance alone would be more than enough to draw over the Holy Light Church that could change the situation. Especially considering how its appearance resembled that of a divine messenger to some extent.
As for why these were the only tales Mari ended up hearing about Scaly after she stepped inside the city... Well... That was rather simple, as Scaly had killed anyone who could say anything else.
The ones that had ended up being saved by her was nothing short of an accident on her part or simply because they had been too weak for her to bother... Or in most cases, because she had spotted a far more tempting enemy about to die.
In the end, all of this had contributed to Scaly now looking like a divine beast to Mari, as she just wanted to continue increasing her strength on the battlefield and the stronger adventurers weren’t as easy deal with as the monsters.