Chapter 453
Chapter 453: Just Be Honest. (1)
Crack!
A woman with a cold demeanor smashed someone’s head with a mace.
The one with the shattered head wore a black robe and had a black sun tattoo on their body.
That was one of the judges known as the High Priest of the Salvation Society.
“Whew…”
The woman exhaled deeply and straightened her back. Her long hair fluttered in the wind.
The surrounding corpses vividly indicated that a fierce battle had just taken place here.
The surviving woman also bore wounds all over her body and showed clear signs of exhaustion.
“It seems their strength has become even greater than before. How could this happen…?”
She trailed off. Just as she was about to sink into deep thought, a group of people came running from afar.
“Saint!”
“Saint, are you okay!”
“Get the treatment!”
Those who came running were priests serving the War Goddess Moriana. They surrounded the woman called the Saint and radiated divine power.
All of them were a head shorter than the woman. From a distance, it looked like she was standing among children.
But a closer look revealed that they weren’t children but middle-aged men. It was just that her massive stature made them appear smaller.
Not to mention, her shoulders were broad, muscles bulging all over her body, meaning that even a decent-sized man could be knocked out with just a single punch.
She truly resembled the chosen Saint of the War Goddess.
Saint Parniel turned her head and asked.
“Do you know anything about the High Priests of the Salvation Society suddenly heading toward the Ruthania Kingdom?”
One priest bowed his head and replied.
“It seems an allied force has formed around the Ruthania Kingdom. It looks like the priests of the Salvation Society are gathering to confront them.”
“I see. So that’s where the center of the battle is. It’s as if the cockroaches hidden away are gathering there.”
“Let them handle their business over there. We should prepare to return…”
“No, I will go to the Ruthania Kingdom.”
“Saint! The Archbishop has commanded you to return now.”
The priests were astonished and tried to dissuade her, but Parniel shook her head.
“If the priests of the Salvation Society are gathering, there must be someone of higher rank than them present. Or there’s certainly an important reason for occupying that place. I will go there.”
Parniel gripped her blood-stained mace tightly and continued.
“The High Priests of the Salvation Society display strength akin to superhumans. Ordinary people cannot match them. Isn’t it my duty, having received the Goddess’s mission, to go and help?”
Moriana symbolizes war, honor, battle, victory, authority, majesty, and pride.
She could be said to be the goddess who receives the support of knights, warriors, and mercenaries who make a living through combat.
Chosen by such a goddess, the Saint Parniel has been given the mission to eradicate the Salvation Society.
Therefore, she believed that only she could confront the Salvation Society.
“Saint, the Ruthania Kingdom is a military power. There are many strong individuals there too.”
“There’s no need for us to go that far. Aren’t there urgent matters elsewhere?”
The priests tried to dissuade her, but Parniel remained steadfast. In fact, she said in a firm voice.
“The priests of the Salvation Society, the Cracked Beings, are in direct opposition to divine power. Who else but me can effectively confront them? In this world, there is only me as the Saint.”
Only one Saint is born in an era. No other sect can have a Saint born until the existing one dies.
And right now, the War Goddess had appointed a Saint.
However, all sects had kept this fact hidden for a long time. The birth of a Saint appointed by the War Goddess is an ominous sign.
With a few exceptions, very few knew the fact that a Saint exists within the Moriana Sect.
Because of that, Parniel felt the heavy weight of the responsibilities handed to her.
“My birth in this era must be the divine arrangement of the Goddess. Otherwise, how could the War Goddess have sent me?”
The priests had no words in response to Parniel. Indeed, it was too perfect of a timing to dismiss as mere coincidence.
Parniel was born with divine power. Thanks to this, she could exert strength several times greater than others.
Of course, that alone would have been merely somewhat special. No matter how strong one is, there are limits if they cannot control their mana.
But once she was chosen as a Saint and gained divine power, she became a complete combat weapon.
No one could deny that all of this was a revelation from the God to fight the Salvation Society.
“Ugh… I understand.”
“I will set my path to Ruthania.”
“First, let’s meet with the person in charge there.”
The priests could no longer dissuade Parniel. They knew her stubbornness all too well.
It would be all the more difficult to stop her by force.
After all, she was the ‘Saint of War’ who was once counted among the seven great powers on the continent in Ghislaine’s previous life.
*
The priests of the Salvation Society, commanded by Gathros, gathered to seize the Ruthania Kingdom.
However, there was a part that Gathros and Raoul hadn’t anticipated. As the priests of the Salvation Society moved, those who opposed them began to gather in the Ruthania Kingdom one by one.
The Elf Great Chief Ereness had already allied with Ghislaine, and the Saint of War Parniel was also on her way to Ruthania.
Additionally, troops from various allied nations set out to confront the Duke Delphine Faction.
Thanks to Ghislaine’s activities, the Ruthania Kingdom was rapidly becoming a battleground for all forces.
Mercenaries joining from every corner of the continent were also amassing immense power.
“Most of the mercenaries from the Seiron Kingdom were absorbed into the Penris Mercenary Group’s branch.”
“More than half of the mercenaries from the Grimwell Kingdom have joined the Penris Mercenary Group!”
“The newly joined mercenaries are very satisfied with the benefits we provide.”
Reports came in from all over. Ghislaine smiled as she listened to the reports.
“It’s going faster than I thought. Very good. Tell them not to hold back on food and money for the newly joined mercenaries.”
Dominic and some of the Penris Mercenary Group had been dispatched to various kingdoms to establish branches before the Rift processing was finished.
It was the influential figures of those kingdoms who pushed this. With rapid administrative processing, progress would naturally be incredibly swift.
Since they needed to prevent the outflow of mercenaries and use them for their own purposes, they strictly followed the agreements with Ghislaine.
The quicker the process went, the more administrative tasks there were to handle. Those duties weren’t handled by Ghislaine but by the people she brought to do such tasks.
“Uaaaaaaah! Stop! Stop! Just send me back to my territory!”
Claude screamed daily in the Northern Army Camp while handling all sorts of paperwork.
When Ghislaine first called Claude and the administrators, they thought they would simply handle matters related to the allied forces and could return. But before they knew it, they found themselves dragged to the Northern Army Camp, taking on all administrative duties.
“Damn it! Why is there so much work! Why did you create so many tasks! Why won’t this end! Stop bringing me reports!”
Claude realized he wouldn’t be able to go back to Penris for a while.
Wherever Ghislaine was, it practically became the center of Penris. Here, all tasks had to be handled and relayed to various places.
The biggest concern was the mercenary issues. A staggering 20,000 mercenaries were now spread across various kingdoms and were rapidly being absorbed.
As mercenaries poured in like a flood, the workload and items to be sent multiplied immensely.
“Ugh, the Western fellows can handle it on their own. Can’t they just be independent?”
Next came the matters of the West. They had to wrap up stabilization efforts and secure routes for the allied forces’ entry. This meant mountains of documents needed to be sent there as well.
Ghislaine had dumped all of that onto Claude!
“Just kill me…”
Claude and the administrators dealt with their tasks in a daze. Unable to bear it any longer, if they collapsed, Piote would soon appear to heal them and leave.
Ereness watched them closely and spoke.
“I thought you were a reckless fool, but it seems you can actually handle a decent amount of work. Since we’re now in a ‘family’ relationship, I’ll help you a bit.”
“What help? I’m too tired to sleep now! I haven’t slept for three days! Can Great Nature handle paperwork too?”
“Not that, but I’ve thought of a good method.”
As Claude, who was trying to curry favor and delay with his whining, slumped over, Ereness approached him.
From her outstretched hand, a beautiful green light began to emanate.
“Though it’s not as potent as divine power, the energy of nature will invigorate you. Furthermore, the spirits will assist you with your work.”
“Ha, don’t!”
Wham!
The green light enveloped Claude’s body. He felt a refreshing sensation wash over him, restoring his strength.
Water spirits swirled around him, washing Claude’s face. The wind spirit dried it, and the fire spirit warmed his body.
The earth spirit gripped Claude’s feet and thighs, correcting his posture.
“Why the posture?”
“That’s how you can sit healthily for a long time.”
“Aaaaaaaah! Why can’t I be happy!”
Now, Ereness and Piote had teamed up to keep him from sleeping. Even the spirits were forcing work upon Claude.
It seemed the only way for this to end was for him to actually die.
Unbeknownst to her, Ereness smiled benevolently.
“You don’t have to express your gratitude. Didn’t we just agree to become like family?”
“Wow, seriously… Is it because you’re older that you can’t understand?”
Claude felt like he was really going crazy. He envied Lowell, who would be lounging around at Castle Penris as the chief officer.
Even so, because Claude was struggling, the administrative tasks related to the Northern Army were being sorted through quickly and efficiently.
And thanks to Ereness joining, handling the remaining Rifts became much easier.
Roar!
“You wicked beings. I will not allow you to wreak havoc on this land any longer.”
Ereness, who had been gentle like a mother to the Northern Army, transformed into a malevolent spirit the moment battle commenced. It was hard to distinguish which was her true face.
“Bind her.”
Thud thud thud thud!
The wooden vines summoned by Ereness wrapped tightly around Equidema’s body.
The beast tried to break free, but before it could, Piote clambered onto its neck with Belinda’s help.
Roar!
Then they dealt with Equidema in the same manner as before. Thanks to Ereness, Piote was able to climb on much more easily and quickly.
Even if a few vines broke, it didn’t matter. The capable figures beside them continuously restrained Equidema.
Watching the ease with which they captured Equidema, Ereness couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration.
“To catch that beast so easily… You are truly remarkable.”
Ghislaine shrugged and asked.
“How did you catch it?”
“I… we…”
She seemed to be longing for something, her gaze wandering aimlessly before she shook her head.
“No, never mind.”
‘Hmm, something’s definitely off.’
Ghislaine narrowed her eyes at Ereness, who was fumbling for words.
It was clear that Ereness must have sought her out immediately after the restrictions were lifted. This meant that this was her first battle against the Rifts.
Yet she showed no surprise upon seeing the Cracked Beings and Equidema. It was far too familiar for her to have merely heard rumors. She spoke and acted as if she had fought them several times before.
That elf was definitely hiding something.
‘I’ll find out soon enough.’
She had no hobby of prying into others’ secrets, but if Ereness held crucial clues to resolving this matter, she couldn’t just let it slide.
No matter Ghislaine’s intentions, thanks to the speed at which they were handling the Rifts, the morale of the Northern Army increased.
The Northern Army moved slowly while dealing with the Rifts and administrative duties, as if the territory itself was moving.
This required Dark to fly around creating clones in all directions.
Having dealt with all the Eastern Rifts and on their way to the allied forces’ gathering place, Ghislaine suddenly furrowed her brow at a new question.
‘Strange. Why haven’t they moved yet?’
It had already been a month since Ereness joined them. Given the Duke’s strength, they should have already managed the Rifts that opened in the South.
With the Salvation Society’s information network spread across the continent, they certainly knew the allied forces were coming. Some reinforcements from nearby kingdoms had already arrived.
‘The Duke wouldn’t just sit back and watch that… What plot could they be concocting?’
The current situation was clearly unfavorable for the Duke. They must surely be scheming something to turn the tides. But she had no clue as to what that might be.
Not long after Ghislaine began pondering, a messenger arrived with even larger news.
“Assassins are rampant. Several administrators from the territories close to the South have died.”
“What? Assassins? Who was hit?”
“Most were low-ranking officials. There was no significant damage, but the atmosphere has become chaotic.”
Ghislaine fell deep into thought once more.
‘Now? Such assassinations wouldn’t impact the greater trends.’
It was a useless act. Unless a superhuman moved, a high-ranking noble could never be killed.
Even if a superhuman managed to assassinate them, it would still be a problem, as they couldn’t escape the pursuit that followed.
‘Even Raviere, who reached the level of a superhuman, couldn’t escape the pursuit of knights and died. Even superhumans can’t fight relentlessly.’
There was no way they would do something stupid as to throw away a piece that could reach superhuman status.
‘Yet, they still carry out actions like this…?’
While Ghislaine was observing the Duke’s movements over the past few days, a messenger brought even bigger news.
“The Duke’s army has begun its march! They are currently crushing the 4th Legion of the Kingdom Army and moving East!”
At last, the Duke began to move.
