“I sense the presence of a formidable monster.”
“With the forces we have in this forest, it’s undoubtedly beyond us.”
Sometimes, he wonders.
What is the meaning of being born into this world?
Sena had many talents from a young age.
If life were a game, he was born with numerous advantages from the start.
Memories of a past life.
That alone was enough, but he also had a body that could resist any harmful traits.
His memory was quite good, and his physical abilities were decent until he got sick.
He could even enter the Empire’s top academy as the best student.
Above all—
The ability to cut through anything.
‘Except people.’
Of course, Sena’s personality was the biggest penalty.
In a town where people died every day, he couldn’t bring himself to kill anyone.
But what if the target was a monster?
“You don’t have to worry about me. I can protect my own life.”
Sena didn’t hesitate.
“More importantly, if it’s a monster that makes you nervous, others are in danger. Let’s go quickly.”
Sylvia put her hand on her forehead and sighed deeply.
“You know better than anyone what a furball he is.”
Astria comforted the distressed Sylvia.
Is he making things difficult for many people?
The deeper they went into the forest, the more Sena could sense something.
A feeling of queasiness, like seasickness, made him uncomfortable.
This was a sensation he had never experienced before. It wasn’t just that he felt unwell; the air here was bad.
‘There really is something here.’
As he nervously followed Sylvia closely, Astria reached out and covered Sena’s eyes.
“Don’t look, you insignificant furball.”
“…My God.”
Even without seeing, the thick scent of blood told him enough.
Sena quietly raised his hand to grab Astria’s arm.
“It’s okay.”
“There’s no need for you to see this. Just walk past.”
“I’m used to it.”
Astria flinched and slowly lowered her hand.
A corpse. It was a corpse, horribly mutilated to the point where it was hard to look at for long.
But Sena didn’t blink an eye. He walked silently to the corpse and knelt beside it.
‘The neck and jaw are just starting to stiffen. Rigor mortis hasn’t fully set in.’
“He died two hours ago.”
Sena closed the eyes of the person who hadn’t been able to shut them and stood up.
“Senior.”
Sylvia looked at Sena with worried eyes. Sena smiled awkwardly.
“It’s okay. More importantly, can you tell where the monster is? Let’s go as quickly as possible before more people die.”
Seeing that Sena seemed unbothered, Sylvia felt uneasy but nodded and led the way.
Before moving, Sena took one last look at the corpse.
‘I’m sorry. We’ll hold your funeral after this is over.’
As time passed, Sena’s bright expression hardened more and more.
The bodies were endless.
Even without Sylvia’s guidance, they could tell where the monster was headed.
Pretending to be unaffected was hard.
‘Is there anyone I can save? … Anyone still breathing, even a little?’
Even if there was?
What would you do?
Sena couldn’t answer his own question.
Would you save them?
Judging by their state, even if they were alive, their chances were slim.
With modern medicine, there was no way to help. He would have to use a ‘miracle.’ A miracle that lay dormant in his body, one he was sick of.
One that required sacrificing his life span.
Twenty-five days left to live.
Could he use it for others?
For complete strangers he had never met before.
Sena couldn’t easily answer.
“They’re ahead. Senior, stay close to Her Majesty.”
“Can you handle it?”
“Yes. It’s close, but I can manage.”
Schwing.
Sylvia drew her sword and advanced. Sena’s eyes widened.
“Sylvia.”
“Yes?”
“Looking at the bodies so far, there were no signs of resistance. It means they died instantly. Be careful.”
Sylvia smiled kindly.
“That’s good information. Thank you, Senior.”
Pushing through the undergrowth, they came to a large clearing. No, it was a forest that had become a ‘clearing’. The large trees that should have been there were cut down, evidence of a battle.
Many people were standing guard around something in the center.
“Ho, the lord is here. At least he intended to solve the problem himself.”
As Astria said, those at the forefront appeared to be the regular troops of this territory.
But what caught Sena’s eye first was another group.
People wearing the same robes that he was wearing now.
Priests.
Why are priests here?
Sadly, priests weren’t the kind to come just because monsters were threatening people.
At that moment, he heard the answer to his question.
“A demon…!”
‘A demon?’
A demon.
The filthiest existence known even to those who don’t believe in God.
A creation that betrayed God, corrupting humans to incite rebellion against God.
Though, in this case, it looked more like a ‘devil worshiper’ than a demon.
Sena felt relieved.
‘Thank goodness. The situation won’t escalate further.’
Devil worshipers are incredibly strong.
To ordinary people.
But they could never stand against a priest.
They were extremely vulnerable to divine power.
Especially for someone like Sena, who had an abundance of divine power. He was confident in dealing with any situation.
However…
‘I need to be careful…’
Sena’s face grew somber.
Seeing the devil worshiper brought back bad memories.
The main reason the Church was obsessed with Sena.
It all started because Sena had defeated a devil worshiper in the past.
Leave the devil worshipers to the Church and focus on treating the injured.
But then—
‘Why are the priests so tense?’
There were about three clergymen.
Devil worshipers should be falling to their knees at the sound of a prayer.
Why weren’t they doing anything?
As Sena pondered the reason, Astria spoke to Sylvia.
“Miss Sylvia. I grant you the honor of displaying your prowess before me.”
Astria ordered Sylvia.
“Show them the might of the Teutonic Knights.”
“Teutonic Knight Sylvia, at your command, Your Majesty.”
Sylvia bowed briefly and rushed towards the devil worshiper.
Sena’s hand hovered in the air. He had tried to grab Sylvia’s hand, but she was too fast.
“S-Sylvia.”
Devil worshipers were indeed weak against priests.
But they were different when it came to non-Holy Knights like Sylvia.
Worry washed over Sena’s face.
“What are you worried about?”
Astria seemed to read Sena’s mind.
“The Teutonic Knights are the Empire’s strongest.”
Astria looked at Sena skeptically.
“I’ve noticed for a while, you seem to underestimate Sylvia and the Teutonic Knights.”
“……!”
“Take this chance to watch closely. See how your dear junior has grown.”
Crack!
This was when the devil worshiper swung his black-stained arm at the lord.
When the devil worshiper swung his blackened arm, Sylvia moved almost as if she was a flash of light, blocking the attack and swiftly severing the arm.
“Argh!”
With a scream, black spikes protruded from the devil worshiper’s body. Sylvia lightly jumped, spun, and slashed the devil worshiper’s neck.
It all happened in less than two seconds. Sena watched in a daze, then his eyes sparkled.
‘My knight is amazing!’
Overwhelming. It was overwhelming.
Sylvia dominated the devil worshiper without giving him a chance to breathe.
However, the reason devil worshipers are formidable against non-clergy became immediately apparent.
Ssshhh—
Black smoke seeped into the severed parts, rapidly regenerating them, even the cut neck.
“Figures, just slashing won’t work. Damn, this is going to make me tired for days.”
Sylvia murmured as she raised her sword high into the sky.
Closing her eyes, she focused.
Crimson light swirled up from the earth, gathering one by one onto Sylvia’s sword.
The symbol of a Master, Sword Aura.
Though Sylvia was not yet a Master, so it took longer and the amount of light was smaller—
It was more than enough to deal with the devil worshiper.
“To the enemy opposing the Empire, eternal rest.”
With a twist of her wrist, she uttered briefly.
“Aurora.”
In that instant, light burst from Sylvia’s sword.
A breathtakingly beautiful light, like seeing a real aurora.
Sena had never seen such a beautiful slash.
The devil worshiper, hit directly by the light, dissipated like smoke.
There was no black left. Only the aurora decorating the sky remained.
“Sylvia!”
Sena ran towards Sylvia.
He wanted to hug her and pat her head.
“Well done!”
“Senior—! No!”
Sylvia spotted Sena and screamed instinctively. Sena, puzzled, turned to his side.
“…!”
‘There wasn’t just one…?’
There stood a mist shaped like a demon right in front of him.
It had an expression so malicious it seemed like an actual demon, not a mere devil worshiper.
Black horns, glaring eyes, sharp fangs.
[Justitia—!]
The mist, filled with intense hatred, reached out for Sena.
The violence in its gesture suggested it could crush Sena’s small body with a single touch.
The problem was, it was already too late for anyone to react.
‘Damn it.’
Astria bit her lip, about to swing her Holy Sword.
Then, something flashed, blinding everyone.
It wasn’t so much that light spread, but more that the world seemed to momentarily disappear.
It took a while for everyone to regain their vision.
When they did, Astria was stunned.
Sena sat on the ground, white wings spread wide.
Next to him, a black demon writhed in pain.
Cawww—!
The demon’s scream, reminiscent of a crow’s cry, gradually faded as it turned to ash and vanished.
Left behind were warm, white feathers enveloping the area.
It felt as if eternal rest had been granted, and the surroundings fell into a serene silence.
The priests were already on their knees, praying and weeping.
“Oh.”
Sena awkwardly smiled at the calamity that had unfolded.
