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In the southern region of the Kingdom of Franquia, in the Duchy of Aquitaine, there was a small village called Chazelle. The de-Chazelle family, who ruled this village, originally belonged to a lineage of gamekeepers managing the hunting grounds owned by the Duke of Aquitaine.

Though not a noble family, the de-Chazelles were treated as vassals equal to the knightly class, serving for generations as village chiefs and bailiffs of five nearby villages. They also commanded a ranger brigade of about 30 members, making them a well-established local power in the area.

…At least, that was the case until about 20 years ago.

The year Sophia de-Chazelle turned five was when a massive plague swept through southern Franquia. The Duchy of Aquitaine was no exception, and Chazelle village couldn’t escape the devastation.

To cut to the chase, the only person left in the world connected to Chazelle village or the de-Chazelle family was Sophia de-Chazelle. Everyone else had fallen victim to the plague, becoming mere memories of the past.

In such a situation, a five-year-old child left alone had limited options for survival: becoming a beggar, being adopted by a kind-hearted adult, or seeking refuge in a poorhouse run by the Universal Church. Those were the three choices.

None of them seemed particularly appealing, so five-year-old Sophia de-Chazelle chose a fourth option.

At the southernmost tip of the Duchy of Aquitaine stood the Saint Manuel Monastery. Sophia decided to enter this monastery and receive education as a nun. Moreover, the Saint Manuel Monastery was one of the rare nunneries in Franquia officially recognized by the Church Order, with a bishop-level nun-priest dispatched to oversee it.

Thus, if she lived here as a nun, there was a high chance she could become an officially ordained nun-priest.

Fortunately, Jeanne Clomang, the priest who found and treated Sophia after she was left alone in Chazelle village, was from the Saint Manuel Monastery. Naturally, Sophia followed her to the monastery and was raised among the nuns.

As expected, life in the monastery suited Sophia perfectly. The monotonous and repetitive daily routine, which would have been unbearably dull for an ordinary girl, felt like peaceful rest to Sophia.

Sophia remembered her past life.

When she was five, as everyone in Chazelle village and the de-Chazelle family succumbed to the plague, leaving young Sophia alone, she too fell ill and was on the brink of death. At that moment, something forcibly kept her alive, and memories of her past life as a man named Lee Beom-seok suddenly surfaced.

Relying on those memories, she clung to life until Jeanne Clomang, the monastery priest, arrived in the village and cured her illness, allowing her to take refuge in the monastery. Everything that shaped the current Sophia de-Chazelle stemmed from that fateful day 20 years ago.

To summarize Lee Beom-seok’s past life: his youth was spent struggling in a world that didn’t suit him, and his old age was plagued by the relentless harassment of underworld bureaucrats. Compared to that, her current life in the monastery was a serene, worry-free utopia.

‘The only uncomfortable thing is that my past life was lived as a man, while this life is as a woman.’

Starting life anew as a woman after living as a man brought unexpected unfamiliarity and discomfort. From bathroom issues to secondary sexual characteristics, many things felt strange and awkward.

If it weren’t for her inherited “resilient constitution,” this might have led to identity issues, potentially causing depression or severe mental illness.

Fortunately, Sophia was born with physical and mental strength that barely exceeded the limits of her species, just like in her past life. Hormonal imbalances or mental instability? None of that for Sophia de-Chazelle, who was far too robust for such things.

Sophia’s life took a turn when she was suddenly summoned by Bishop Agnes Lefebvre, the monastery’s abbess.

‘I should’ve just said no to whatever the abbess said back then.’

At the time, Bishop Agnes Lefebvre wanted to recommend Sophia for an upcoming vacancy in the “Paladin” order. Unaware of the qualifications, duties, and authority of a Paladin, Sophia naively agreed, thinking it was a good opportunity. Now, as a wandering nun-knight and Paladin agent, she realized it was an extremely unfair contract.

The peaceful, repetitive life in the monastery had been her healing sanctuary, but now she was a special agent tasked with roaming a savage, lawless world and fighting evil.

But what good was longing for the past? She had grown accustomed to the consecrated armor she wore and the holy sword she wielded to cut down demons and their followers.

Even now, it was the same.

“Speak.”

Sophia clenched her teeth as she spoke. In her grip was a demon follower, grotesquely distorted by dark magic, trembling uncontrollably.

“W-what should I say?”

“Where did Erchebet, that damned demon whore, run off to?”

“Khehehe, I don’t know. I don’t know.”

“You don’t know? You helped her devour over 40 villagers, and now you don’t know where she went?”

“Y-yes. I-I don’t know anything.”

“Ah, is that so?”

*Crunch.*

Sophia tightened her grip, and the follower’s head exploded. Simultaneously, the blood curse stone he had been safeguarding shattered into dust, and his grotesque body crumbled into sand.

Hmm, this area will need a separate consecration ceremony later. Sophia muttered indifferently.

“You were relying on the reincarnation power of the blood curse stone, but you didn’t realize such tricks wouldn’t work on me.”

In her grip, a pale spirit entity surrounded by a dark blue aura struggled.

{Let go! This is impossible! I’ve never heard of Paladins having such power!}

“Of course, my brothers and sisters don’t have this kind of ability. But really, you haven’t heard anything? I’ve been quite active lately, you know.”

{What nonsense are you spouting?}

“Listen. Three months ago, there was a demon hiding among the ruling class of the free city of Parel, interfering with funeral rites and trying to offer the flesh and souls of the citizens as sacrifices.”

{…Wait, are you saying?}

“Yes. I took care of it.”

{Hihihi, I never thought a lowly follower like me would run into the Light’s Annihilation Machine.}

“Yes, I am… Wait, what? What machine?”

Sophia unconsciously tightened her grip on the follower’s spirit.

{Gah! Kyaaaaaa———!!?!?}

“Ah, sorry. I was a bit shocked by what you said. Anyway, back to the main point. Where did Erchebet go?”

{Khehehe, Lady Erchebet went east!}

“East from here? That’s just the border fortress city.”

{I-I told you everything! Please let me go!}

The follower’s spirit wept pitifully, begging for its life. But Sophia’s gaze remained cold. After all, this man was originally a village thug who, seduced by the demon Erchebet, offered his entire village to her and became a follower through dark rituals.

“Well, since you cooperated.”

{Are you sparing me?}

*Crunch.*

The spirit exploded in her grip without even a scream. Sophia scattered the remnants with a burst of holy light and sighed deeply.

“It’s always like this.”

Though the Demon Clan had been driven to the Dark Continent, they hadn’t abandoned their ambitions. They constantly sent agents to the continent, creating demon followers and gathering sacrifices for their dark gods.

Paladin agents, including nun-knights, roamed the continent to stop these demons and their followers. But no matter how tight the net, gaps always existed, and with one hand trying to cover ten, some areas were inevitably left exposed.

Moreover, the ugly desires of humans lurked beneath the surface, always ready to succumb to evil’s temptation. Yet, innocent people couldn’t be persecuted for it.

In any case, now that she knew the demon’s trail, she had to pursue it immediately.

“Sigh. Another night in the wild. These cockroach-like creatures really ruin my life.”

A deep sigh escaped her. Still, Sophia brushed off the remnants of the spirit with holy light and hurried eastward. She had to prevent innocent people from becoming sacrifices to the dark gods.

 

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