For Sale. Fallen Lady. Never Used.

Chapter 267: On My Way To Meet You (4)

Chapter 267: On My Way To Meet You (4)

“O... Reckless Roar! Hear my final roar!!”

Then, with his remaining hand, Gef tore out his own heart.

Raising it toward the sky as if offering it to someone, the moment I saw the still-beating heart, I knew.

Something had gone terribly wrong.

It seemed that the paladins, who were much more experienced in these matters than I, thought the same, as they hastily summoned their holy power.

It wasn’t as powerful as their initial attack, but thanks to the combined strength of the four elite paladins, it was still quite formidable.

A wave of potent holy power surged toward the dying Gef.

...But it was a bit too late.

Squelch!

The beating heart melted into a bloody sludge, which then began to swell and grow.

The red sludge expanded, swallowing up Gef and the other half-dead cultists, growing larger and larger with each passing moment.

Each time it expanded, it swelled many times over, until it finally pushed back the holy power and shot up into the sky.

“These bastards never just die quietly, do they?”

“Yeah, because they’re damn fanatics!”

Iona and I cursed as we frantically gathered more magic power in preparation for what was to come.

We didn’t know exactly what was happening, but it was clear that the best course of action was to destroy it before it was complete...!

Normally, I conserve my magic a little, but this time I threw it all out, as if I were emptying my reserves, hurling spell after spell.

Flames roared, and an icy blizzard spewed forth. Iona, on her end, tried to tear apart the sludge with blood flames and bloody explosions.

However, aside from some superficial damage to its surface, none of our attacks seemed to have a significant effect.

No matter how strong a barrier is, it shouldn’t be able to withstand this much magic without taking damage.

Which left only one possibility.

The Evil God, Reckless Roar, must be directly intervening.

If the God had consumed the cultists as offerings and used some of its own power, that kind of defense would make sense.

The only thing that could work against it was holy power from a divine source...

But after expending so much of their holy power earlier, the paladins’ weapons were visibly dimming.

It couldn’t be helped.

“That’s enough; fall back for now! It’s not working right now, so let’s wait for it to emerge and attack it all at once when it does!”

“...Tch!”

“Understood!”

The paladins, gritting their teeth in frustration, withdrew at my command.

As I watched them retreat, I began casting again. Iona also started preparing Csepes—her most powerful magic.

The moment we completed our spells, with our eyes wide open, we saw a change in the muddy pillar that had been shooting upward like an inverted waterfall.

It gathered into a single point in midair... then scattered in all directions.

“...Huh?”

We waited for a bit, just in case, but nothing happened.

No manifestation of the Reckless Roar, no terrifying monster, and not even an explosion.

There wasn’t a single sign of anything happening.

Had it misfired?

Just as I felt my tension start to ease, thinking it might have been a failure...

“Yandel, look over there.”

Iona frowned and pointed with her hand. At the end of her finger, a veil had appeared, completely covering the church.

“Oh.”

You’ve got to be kidding.

Clara, who seemed to have figured everything out, spoke.

-...My Lord, I suppose we’re screwed, aren’t we?

“Yeah. Was it that obvious?”

-Of course. Helena might not have noticed yet, but I’ve served you for nearly twenty years.

“Haha, it’s come to this. Sorry.”

-There’s no need to apologize. It may sound odd, but we did our best, didn’t we? It’s just that our enemies were craftier and stronger.

“Yeah, still... I’m sorry. You only recently managed to project your consciousness outside, and now you’re about to die again.”

-You know, after dying once, dying a second time doesn’t seem so scary. By the way, my Lord, you’re...

Clara trailed off, her voice uncertain. The Righteous Radiance shrugged.

“The only thing I can do for Helena is to spare her from the moment of death. I just want her to find peace, even if it’s just for a little while.”

-I’m sure she will.

The two continued talking for a long time.

As if they were old friends catching up on everything they hadn’t said. Or like children desperately fighting to stay awake.

But all things have their limits.

-The stored divine power is running out.

“...I’m sorry. The remaining divine power...”

-Needs to be used to keep the barrier up a little longer, right? For the people still inside the Great Church?

Clara interrupted the Righteous Radiance’s words.

It was rudeness she would never have committed under normal circumstances, but there was something she absolutely had to say while her voice could still reach her god.

-My Lord, bringer of light like the sun’s radiance, your decision is the right one. So please, don’t apologize to me. It was an honor to serve you.

Whether it was in the past or the present.

She didn’t resent her god at all. She believed that the Righteous Radiance had always made the right choices, as she always had.

With her voice growing fainter, Clara spoke her final words.

-...You are still the Righteous Radiance.

“......”

With that, her voice vanished completely. Clara’s consciousness hadn’t disappeared from the medallion, but the lack of power made it impossible for her to speak.

Knowing this, the Righteous Radiance gently stroked the medallion.

And softly whispered.

“Yes. That’s right. I am the Righteous Radiance.”

Helena was asleep, and Clara had fallen silent.

Born from the light, always praised, the Righteous Radiance now felt the coldness of darkness and silence for the first time in her existence.

When humans feel anxious, when they face something beyond their ability to handle, they pray to their god.

Hoping that a transcendent being will save them.

But what does a god do when they themselves are lost in despair?

Who do they turn to?

Who do they pray to?

Who... saves them?

The Righteous Radiance shook her head with a bitter smile.

She was the one who saved, not the one who was saved.

From the day she met the first high priest, she had been a god.

And so, the Righteous Radiance resolved to fight until the very last moment.

As she had always done.