Chancellor Sullivan stared at Faenol with a serious gaze.
âAre you sure youâre okay?â
â...Yes.â
Faenol forced a fake smile while replying.
Thanks to the fact that she had lived half her life faking her emotions ever since she was forcefully âbrought back to lifeâ because of the Red Devil, the smile came out so naturally.
Of course, even such a superb acting skill couldnât suppress the âphenomenonâ she was going through.
Red flame surrounded her body, this was the thing that she had failed to suppress.
Though she managed to erase the flame right awayâas expected as a prodigious talent when it came to MagicâFaenol knew very well the identity of the phenomenon.
â...â
Demonic Aura.
In other words, the Devilâs Fragments that she had, leaking out of her body.
It was getting harder and harder for her to control it.
âŠSo suddenly?
She asked in her mind as she tried to soothe the overflowing aura, letting out ragged breaths as she did so.
Thanks to her increased affinity with Dowd Campbell, she was gradually getting better at âcontrollingâ the Devilâs Power. It was to the point that she became hopeful that sheâd be able to calm down the Devilâs Aura and achieve eternal rest.
But, at some pointâŠ
She felt as if the Fragments were trying their best to come out of her body. As if they âreactedâ to something and went wild.
But why�
She couldnât tell why that was the case.
The one month time limit she had given Dowd in the beginning hadnât ended yet, and her feelings for him also hadnât faded yet either.
â...Iâll just have to hold on until the end of the Hero Selection Ordeal.â
Faenol said while struggling to put up a smile.
âBecause that man said that he would help be by any means necessary after the Last Ordeal ends.â
That was what he had told her just before the Last Ordeal began.
Even if it gets difficult, hold on the best you can.
She genuinely believed that if she were to hold on, heâd really come to save her.
â...Faenol.â
Hearing those words, the Chancellor called out to her, still weaning a serious look on her face.
âEat this first.â
She said so while giving something to Faenol. The moment the latter saw what it was, her eyes widened.
Rejuvenation Pills�
It was some kind of medicine, which, according to what she had heard, was used in the East.
The medicine was rolled and clumped to a bead shape.
Medicine with such a form was something that couldnât be seen often in this continent.
â...Hm.â
In any case, since the Chancellor was the one who handed it to her, she figured that it would be safe.
So, she gulped the medicine down.
â...Huh?â
As soon as she did, the pain that was hurting her whole body subsided in an instant.
A ridiculous outcome for sure. It was hard for her to believe that a medicine that could suppress a Devilâs Aura existed in this world.
â...How does this kind ofâŠmedicine exist?â
âThe Cursed Speech User gave me. He said that youâd be needing it at around this time. Also, he said that the medicine is extremely valuable because he canât make the same thing again, so youâll need to handle it with care.â
HoweverâŠ
As Faenol heard who it was that gave the Chancellor the medicine, she let out a frown.
âYour Excellency the Chancellor.â
She worded her next words carefully.
â...I am genuinely grateful that you have accepted me.â
âWhat are you talking about, all of a sudden?â
âYou are aware of the being that resides inside my body, yet you still accepted under the Heretic Inquisition. Your compassion is something that Iâll always feel grateful about.â
Then, she looked at Sullivan right in the eye.
âBut I think I'd need to say this.â
She continued with a serious look on her face.
âNo matter how I look at it, I donât think forming a relationship with the Prophet is a good idea.â
That person, the one who was called the Prophet.
She was like a black lump of death.
That was the feeling that Fanol felt every time she saw her.
âAfter all, sheâs the leader of those Devil Worshippers.â
â...â
Actually, it wasnât only that.
The Prophet seemed as if she knew a lot of things about this âworldâ, even more so than the Chancellor, who often felt as if she knew the future already.
It was to the point that she felt similar to Dowd Campbell, who, in Faenolâs opinion, was the best person in that regard.
âBut, you canât deny that you need these right now, no?â
Sullivan said as she put down a few more of the Rejuvenation Pills that Faenol had taken earlier.
âDowd saysâŠthat he has a planâŠso Iâll trust him. Because that man has never failed before.â
Sullivan continued with a sigh.
âBut, you still need these right now. Or else, something bad might happen if you keep this up.â
â...â
Bearing an anxious look in her eyes, Faenol looked down at the Rejuvenation Pills in front of her.
The thing was related to that woman, so she felt especially uneasy about it.
ButâŠ
âŠI wish the Last Ordeal would end quickly.
But, at the momentâŠ
It wasnât like she had any other choice.
So, she reached for the Rejuvenation Pills while letting out a sigh.
â
â...Hey, Caliban.â
[Hm?]
He replied indifferently to me again.
âLook, I get that youâre plotting something.â
[Yeah, so?]
â...â
This fucker didnât even try to hide it anymore, huh?
I could feel my head start to ache.
â...What the hell are you trying to do?â
I thought as such while glaring at the window before my eyes.
System Message
[ âThe Red Devil's Vessel is nearby! ]
[ âThe Purple Devilâs Vessel is nearby! ]
[ âThe White Devil's Vessel is nearby! ]
[ âThe Blue Devil's Vessel is nearby! ]
[ â ???????????????C???????????????????????????e????????????????????????????????? ?????????????????????âs Vessel is nearby! ]
I could understand the first line.
Like, Faenol was nearby, so it made perfect sense.
â...â
But, the others?
Since the Fallenâs Seal didnât react, it seemed like none of them had been emitting any âDemonic Auraâ. Which meant, at least I wouldnât have to worry about Faenol suddenly going berserk now.
But that didnât mean I could feel relieved about it.
âHave you lost your mind?â
Because the fact that all these Devils had gathered in one place was a big enough of a disaster already.
There was a good chance that one of them would go berserk. If that were to happen, the situation would definitely be ruinedâespecially when they were all gathered in one place like thisâŠ!
[They won't go berserk.]
â...Sorry?â
[Look, the reason why the Vessels go berserk is mostly because of you, no?]
â...â
[Most of the time, they lose their mind because you stir up their emotions like a torrent.]
That wasâŠtrue.
But, so what?
[Thatâs why, this time, they wonât ever go berserk, even if all of them are gathered in one place. I made it so that it wonât happen.]
â...What made you so confident about it?â
[You donât need to know. Just trust me.]
â...â
[Unlike you, I canât plan out as if I knew everything that would happen in the future, but, Iâm the person who made the punks, the most experienced sword wielders in the Empire, struggle for more than ten years. There is a reason why I feel so confident.]
Now that he had said it like that, itâd be ridiculous of me to force him to talk.
In the first place, if something went wrong when all of them were gathered in one place like this, everyone here would be swept away.
Including Iliya, who was out there looking nervous right before being conferred the Holy Sword.
â...Fine, Iâll trust you just this once.â
As long as Iliya received the Holy Sword, the majority of situations would be able to be dealt with.
âŠIâm worried about that bastard the most, thoughâŠ
Like, if the Prophet intervened before Iliya got acknowledged by the Holy Sword.
The problem wasâŠ
[ Gift-Related Character Alert]
⌠Faenol Lipek
[ Trust Level 3 ]
[ Related Event Occurs in D-1 ]
â...â
Seeing it again, it still looked strange.
Why tomorrow?
Sheâs supposed to go berserk today, no?
_âŠWell, it's not a bad thing. _ freeweÉnĂžvel.com
Anyways, it wasnât an exaggeration to say that this chapter could be considered finished as long as Iliya received the Holy Sword.
Iâve said it again and again, but the combination of the Holy Sword and Iliya would be so powerful to the point that sheâd be a match for even the Grey Devil.
The power that came from their synergy would be guaranteed to a certain extent.
[You seem to be very sure about this, huh?]
âOf course I am.â
The Holy Sword would only belong to the current Hero. No other punks would be able to touch it.
As far as I knew, no one in Sera even came close to earning the title Hero except for Iliya.
Even if I were to put myself, who came from another world, into the equation.
[So, thatâs the Holy Sword?]
âYes.â
I replied while looking at the ârockâ that Archbishop Luminol was carrying as he wore a nervous expression.
Visit Æreeđ€ebnÏvel.com for the đest nđ°vel reading experience.
[...A rock?]
âWell, people who arenât qualified will die the moment they touch the Holy Sword, or at least, suffer a serious injury that would put them close to death.â
I answered Caliban with a shrug.
âThatâs why theyâre transporting the rock the Holy Sword was stuck on instead.â
[...Is that also why those people are on standby?]
I looked at the direction Caliban was pointing at.
At the end of my gaze were the Priests Corps, whoâI wasnât jokingâcould save people as long as they didnât die in an instant. The Archbishop, who was transporting the Holy Sword, was also part of them.
They were staring at the people transporting the rock with an extremely nervous expression. A natural reaction, I guess, since they mustâve seen plenty of people who got severely punished after coming into contact with the Holy Sword.
[...What an absurd treasure.]
Caliban said as soon as he saw the Holy Sword, which was stuck on the top of the rock.
Honestly, the shape of the sword was unconvincing.
It looked like something that you could find lying around in the middle of a warehouse somewhere.
Of course, its appearance was deceptive.
âŠThat thing is the most powerful offensive item in this universe, after all.
I thought so while looking at the worn-out sword that lacked any kind of decoration whatsoever.
The thing was made of Starsteel, the same thing that I put on Yuria before.
Except that the purity of the Starsteel that was used to forge the Holy Sword couldnât even be compared to that little trinket.
AndâŠ
Even someone who was unaware of that could acknowledge that the sword had a different âpresenceâ.
It was as if it was âisolatedâ from the world and stayed detached.
And if the person observing it was someone who had reached the stage where they were able to recognize a âSpecial Powerâ, whatever the type, with their naked eyes, they would moan as soon as they saw it.
The sword possessed the ability to disperse all kinds of âSpecial Powerâ.
From Divine Power, Law Power, Magic Power, Curse, any other Special Power in all dimensions. Every single one of them.
This automatically included âall Auraâ, which meant that it could even strike the Devils effectively, even though they stood at the pinnacle in all dimensions.
Because that meant it could disperse even the âDemonic Auraâ they used, and even attack their main body.
âWell, let's wait and see.â
I said so while observing Lana, who got the opportunity to âtry to grabâ the Holy Sword before Iliya.
She was the one with the most excellent scores beside Iliya and me, so she was more than deserved to be called here.
Of course, as soon as she grabbed the Holy Sword.
Her entire body âexplodedâ.
It swelled before bursting out, as if a bomb had exploded from inside her body. I caught Archbishop Luminolâs face as it went pale due to the scene.
[...Wow.]
Seeing that, Caliban let out a hollow laugh.
Seeing someone getting âcrushedâ like that as soon as they grabbed that item was shocking even for him.
[It makes people turn like that just because theyâre not its master? That Holy Sword?]
âWell, they said it got the blood of all the Devils on it. I think it's normal that it has the same characteristics as a Demonic Sword.â
[It's easy in theoryâŠ]
As we were chatting like that, Lana, who had burst out, jumped up. She didnât seem to care much even after dying like that, like always.
âHmm⊠I guess it's not me.â
Hearing that, Caliban let out a sigh.
[...Will it really be okay? Thereâs no guarantee that Iliya wonât end up like thatâ]
â...If, by any chance, things go wrong, the medical staff over there will take care of her, so it wonât be a big issue. Of course Iâll also risk my life to protect her.â
[Then I'll watch for now, butâŠ]
While we were talking like that, Iliya slowly approached the rock and climbed it up.
I could tell that she was scanning the Holy Sword with a nervous look.
â...Okay.â
After saying that, she brought her hands closer to the handle of the Holy Sword.
Lana nonchalantly touched it since she wouldnât die either way, but Iliya was different, she was touching it very carefully..
As if she was introducing herself.
Slowly.
Her fingers touched the grip of the Holy Sword.
â...â
One thing for sure.
It didnât seem like she was going to burst like Lana did earlier.
But, the strange thing here was that nothing happened.
Nothing.
Like, literally nothing happened.
â...What?â
Even after someone said that and time passed for a good while.
â...â
Seeing thatâŠ
My blood cooled down.
I broke out in a cold sweat. My vision became blurry as I struggled to breathe.
_No. _
No.
_No. _
Donât fuck with me.
_There's no way. _
[...What's going on?]
â...She got rejected.â
[What?]
âThe Holy Sword decided that she isnât its master.â
My answer came out as a groan.
Seeing how she didnât die immediately like Lana, it meant that she was âqualifiedâ enough. She was capable of being the Hero.
But, even if that was the caseâŠ
Even ifâŠ
That was the caseâŠ
The Holy Sword declared that Iliya wasnât its master.
How it didnât emit any bright light served as a proof.
â...â
What did this signify?
Practically speaking, the Holy SwordâŠ
Declared that Iliya was not the âmain characterâ of this /genesisforsaken