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I plunged the dagger into Baneus’s nape.

Swoosh.

Surprisingly, was it sympathy? A distinct lack of finesse. Just the ordinary sensation of cutting through flesh, alongside the faintly glowing dagger.

But even without additional strikes, a person dies when their throat is pierced.

“Ah… aaah…”

Perhaps due to the wound in his throat, Baneus’s eyes gradually lost focus as he gasped in the wind. In a last-ditch effort, he reached out with his hand.

Towards the large statue of the goddess in the temple, not me.

Thus, Baneus breathed his last while trying to reach out to the goddess until the very end.

“…Did he really die?”

Something feels off.

Surely, after glancing around, it seems he has indeed stopped breathing.

He just got stabbed in the neck, and that’s all it took for him to die?

I said before that a person dies when there’s a hole in their throat, but that’s true for an ordinary person.

An exceptional knight or mage could seal their wounds with aura and mana, postponing death.

As for priests skilled in healing magic? For instance, someone like Claudia, who’s currently alone against Ellie and the Knights while occasionally countering, could heal any injury instantly as long as it’s not a fatal blow.

And how about One Who Devours the Twilight, endowed with various powers?

Even mentors could treat one or two fatal wounds as if it were nothing, performing emergency care before continuing to fight.

Yet, if their powers are used against them or they suffer an instant kill, then they wouldn’t be able to respond and would drop dead.

“Just in case…”

Muttering to myself, I infused aura into the dagger still embedded in Baneus’s neck and pulled it sideways.

Scrape.

His head was completely severed and rolled onto the floor; following that, I sliced into his body near the heart several times.

This should be sufficient.

“Phew.”

As I wiped the sweat from my forehead, Lydia approached me with a slightly horrified expression.

“Jonah, isn’t that too much?”

“What if he uses some weird trick to come back? Divine powers are essentially miracles. And miracles, no matter how sacred, are forces that defy the natural order. It’s better to ensure it as much as possible.”

“True, but… what I meant was whether it’s okay for your image as a saint.”

“Well, I’m not particularly interested in playing saint while meddling in the temple’s affairs, so I think it’s fine?”

“Eh? You’re not going to do that?”

“Huh? Why would I?”

“Because you’re a saint.”

“But that seems bothersome. As long as I can receive maintenance fees monthly, that’s enough for me.”

“…The joys without responsibilities?”

“Isn’t that what everyone loves?”

“…”

After pondering for a moment, Lydia nodded her head.

“I’ll take care of the kid.”

“Wait, where did that conclusion come from in our recent conversation?!”

“Oh, you don’t need to get married. No, don’t.”

“Hold on. I think I understand your reasoning. Could it be…?”

“Yup. For a knight, infidelity is romance. Marriage is only with Ellie senpai.”

“This is driving me crazy…”

Lydia took my previously half-joking words seriously. For a moment, I felt dizzy from her twisted romantic notion.

Before long, our party members began to gather around me one by one.

Eve, Karen, the Captain of the Knight Order. Along with Benny and Shadow, who had dealt with other mentors nearby.

As the core forces gathered, I pointed towards Claudia, who was holding off Ellie and the Knight Order.

“Given how easily Ellie’s fist breaks things, it’ll take us forever to break through just by rushing in mindlessly.”

“Hoho. It’s not like we have no options. If Jonah-chan promises an appropriate price…”

“Eve, you’re banned from using powers against us. Why would you willingly throw away around 900 years of lifespan for something so trivial?”

“That is indeed a significant matter… And also, I’ve already lived long enough.”

“Speak your true intention.”

“There are plenty of ways to extend one’s physical lifespan within the Elven Forest. The problem is the soul… I’m an elf, so I’ll at least have a solid 300 years.”

“This is why you’re called a long-lived species.”

Just like Baneus, even if a body is filled with vitality, if the soul can’t keep up, it inevitably ages and dies—that’s the law of the Pan Continent.

In that sense, long-lived beings like me are essentially designed to wear down their souls slowly.

“Anyway, it’s banned! Why would you want to take such risks when we’re about to win?”

“Because it ensures that Jonah-chan won’t feel indebted to me.”

“What kind of debt… I’ll help you cool off a fan in the summer, just be satisfied with that.”

“Oh my, waiting on Jonah-chan hand and foot… that sounds intriguing.”

With a sinister grin, Eve licked her lips as though she anticipated something outrageous from me.

After saying that, I doubt it would be anything more than dressing me up in slightly scandalous clothes and fanning me.

Eve has the shamelessness to use my likeness for her own pleasure, but she wouldn’t have the guts to ask for a direct offering of side dishes.

I shrugged and continued speaking.

“Let’s get back to the main point. We’ve downed the priesthood and the inquisitors, and One Who Devours the Twilight has taken down the Grand Master, leaving only Claudia in the mix.”

“While our victory is practically assured, there’s still the chance of casualties on our side. And if things go poorly, we may lose the Pope, which is what we’re concerned about, right?”

“Correct, Benny. There’s no time for a leisurely mission briefing, so I’ll explain quickly. If anyone has a different strategy, please speak up immediately after I’m done.”

“I’m in.”

“Me too.”

“I haven’t even said anything yet…”

Before Karen and the Captain of the Knight Order could further inquire, I continued my explanation with a wry smile.

“The plan is simple. No matter how powerful the Sacred Magic is, it ultimately relies on Divine Power. And we are within a sanctuary. Though the Goddess cannot personally descend here, her will lingers in this land… in other words, that means I can interfere too.”

“Don’t tell me…?”

“Exactly. I’m going to touch that barrier directly and shake it up. While I do, someone will need to protect me, as I’ll be vulnerable while focusing…”

“Protecting Jonah is a knight’s job.”

“Then I’ll ask Lydia to do that. The rest should prepare a big move at the right moment.”

“I have no objections to Jonah’s plan, but how will you align the timing?”

“I’m thinking of casting one of my powers on Ellie. Benny knows, right? The one I used in Historia.”

As I waved my arms in the air, Benny nodded, now clearly understanding.

“That’s perfect! Everyone, when Ellie’s arm glows silver, we’ll attack on the follow-up strike. Got it?”

The other three who hadn’t seen Ellie smash through the city walls with Argetlam nodded in agreement.

“Alright, let’s head out.”

I pulled my scarf up to cover my mouth and stepped forward, swallowing my voice.

While my Transparent Cloak was still flickering and unusable… Claudia was occupied with Ellie and the Knights, who were battering against her in waves.

In that throng, I wouldn’t need to rely on invisibility to slip past unnoticed.

As my true stealth began, I noticed Eve and the Captain of the Knight Order wide-eyed in surprise.

Flowing seamlessly alongside the surroundings, I swiftly clung to the edge of Claudia’s barrier.

Peering inside the pale pink barrier for a moment, to my astonishment, I could see Claudia effortlessly absorbing all the attacks, occasionally firing spears and axes made of Divine Power.

Had we let slip the priests towards the inside of that barrier, or if the Knight Order hadn’t sided with me…?

Then, we would’ve likely been the ones fleeing instead.

But that won’t happen.

Claudia was far too hasty. And filled with too much conviction.

She hadn’t entertained the thought that I might truly be a saint, nor considered the possibility of the Goddess spreading her sanctuary upon my request, and yet she struck the back of the Captain of the Knight Order, turning them against us.

Now it was time to pay the price for that arrogance.

Boom-

I placed my hand quietly on the barrier. The vast Divine Power was arranged in a complex structure, constantly circulating to maintain its strength.

Each time the barrier was struck, the Divine Power rippled, but it never overflowed too much.

I wondered if I had just knocked on it trivially, I probably would have needed to keep at it for a whole day.

So, I’ll make a hole.

Even an impregnable fortress isn’t immune to betrayal from within.

I cautiously poured my Divine Power into the barrier, following the exact purity and format that matched it.

“Ugh.”

My head felt like it was melting. I had probably never concentrated this hard before.

But if I wanted to imitate Claudia’s Sacred Magic honed for over a hundred years, I needed to endure this much strain.

Reeling from the drowsiness flooding me, I took a slow, deliberate approach, injecting my Divine Power.

Doing so slowly to avoid Claudia herself noticing, but surely managing to claim that share.

Once I had sufficiently permeated my essence into it, I suddenly seized a portion of the barrier, pushing its latch open.

“Now!”

Squeezing every last bit of focus out as I shouted, I activated Argetlam toward Ellie’s artificial arm.

The metallic arm shone silver. Without even having to communicate, Ellie struck precisely towards the weak point as if sensing my intent.

Boom!!!

An explosive noise far surpassing any prior occurred. The once unyielding barrier roiled and shook.

No, it began to crack under the pressure of the onslaught.

 

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