Chapter 10

Ch.10 Apostle of the Goddess of War

The place where he was dragged after losing his family and completely losing his mind was hell.

Having no strength to resist, he was pulled around by rough adult hands.

When shackles were put on him and he was thrown into a wooden cage, he felt emotions beyond description.

There, he met children just like himself—

No, children who smelled even more of death than Sion himself.

Their hollow eyes held not a trace of hope.

There were three children who had been captured before Sion.

A girl with a dirty face but an air of nobility she couldn’t hide.

A boy with a determined face for his young age.

And a little girl who couldn’t even speak properly yet.

The moment Sion saw them, he made a resolution.

‘I’ll protect them even if it costs me my life.’

It was a trivial whim.

Perhaps it was guilt over failing to protect his family.

Or maybe it was a means to wash away that guilt.

It might have been nothing at all.

……The reason didn’t matter.

Sion had found a reason to live.

Whenever the slave traders laid hands on Ruina, he would rush at them like he was ready to kill.

—I told you not to touch the girl’s face or you’ll lower her value!

Only after being beaten half to death did the merchant finally step in to stop them.

When they were made to carry heavy loads, he exerted himself to cover Set’s share as well.

He shielded Kaili from seeing anything bad.

Every night, he held her to help her forget her fear.

Sion became his three siblings’ pillar and shelter.

Then, he met Garfenn.

Was it salvation?

He had once believed in the Goddess of Fire, following his mother, but after seeing his village consumed by flames, he resented her.

The one who helped Sion was the Goddess of War, whose ominous epithets he had never even heard before.

Just hearing her name made her sound like a warmonger.

She seemed like a goddess who desired war and incited conflict.

But he soon realized that was a misunderstanding.

On the contrary, the Goddess of War was a deity who protected the weak from war and violence.

Though one might say that’s true of any goddess.

‘The only one who reached out to me was the Goddess of War.’

Sion watched as his siblings began new lives in the embrace of the Goddess of War.

Ruina, clever and of noble birth, was taken under Bishop Gustein’s wing, learning various tasks.

Since the church itself was the heart of the village, the bishop and priests had to handle administrative duties, so there was much to learn.

Set, being a boy, took it upon himself to do the heavy labor.

He carried straw, transported grain to the village, fetched water—handling all sorts of miscellaneous chores.

Sion found it admirable.

On top of that, he pestered Garfenn to teach him swordsmanship, and seeing that determination pleased Sion.

‘As for Kaili…….’

She remained a sibling Sion couldn’t quite understand.

She spoke little, her expressions were blank, and it was impossible to tell what she was thinking most of the time.

He figured it was just because she was still so young.

But after arriving in Elim, Kaili often spent her time blankly staring at the statue of the goddess in the church’s prayer room.

‘Does the statue look pretty to her?’

At her age, she might have made up an imaginary friend to talk to.

But for that imaginary friend to be the Goddess of War…

She was quite the bold little sister.

In any case, they were all settling into their places in the War Church.

A life where everything had been lost.

For Sion, who had resolved to live for these siblings he had never known before, there was nothing more he could ask for than this.

‘Step by step, like this.’

If he could assist the Goddess of War and help rebuild the War Church’s influence, that would be more than enough.

His siblings would never have to suffer the hardships of being lost and alone again.

Though Sion didn’t deeply believe in the goddess, he did think all of this was due to her grace.

He had even experienced her miracle when saving Rebecca.

That had been an unforgettable, ecstatic experience.

‘If I become the goddess’s apostle, will I feel that miracle every day?’

To satisfy his curiosity, Sion decided to seek out Garfenn.

***

Sion woke Garfenn, who had passed out drunk the night before.

“The goddess’s miracle?”

“Yes. The feeling I had back then still lingers in my mind.”

Garfenn stroked his beard and laughed.

“Seems you’ve finally taken an interest.”

“Do you know something about it?”

“I’m the goddess’s apostle. Of course I do.”

Feeling the goddess’s pleased smile, Garfenn rose from his chair.

“Follow me. I’ll explain it step by step.”

“Okay.”

Garfenn led him to the church’s prayer room.

Inside, Ruina, Set, and a few others were cleaning.

Kaili sat crouched in a corner, watching them work.

“Aside from your siblings, all of them are devotees of the War Church.”

“I see.”

“They all hated the Goddess of War at first, but eventually changed their hearts and now serve her.”

Sion observed them.

The way they carefully polished the sacred relics with their one remaining arm, or how they tidied things without even seeing them—it left an impression.

“They’re far more devout than I am. There’s no comparison.”

“Shouldn’t you reflect on that?”

“I apologize to her directly every day.”

Sion turned to look at Garfenn.

“Can you communicate with her?”

“Yes.”

Garfenn clasped Sion’s shoulder.

“Though they pray with far more devotion and sincerity than I do, they’ve never heard the goddess’s voice.”

“Why not?”

“Because they weren’t chosen.”

“……”

The world was even more unfair than he’d thought.

Sion’s heart grew heavy.

And what was the criteria for being chosen?

Questions flooded his mind all at once.

“To be precise, there’s something called the wavelength of a soul that strongly resonates with the goddess. She calls it ‘light.’”

“So you have to have that wavelength to be chosen?”

“Yes. You have an immense light.”

“Then why haven’t I heard her voice yet?”

Garfenn grinned.

“Because you don’t truly believe in her yet.”

“Me?”

“Put your hand on your heart and ask yourself: Do you truly, without doubt, understand the goddess’s existence and her will?”

Sion closed his eyes, placed his hand on his chest, and asked himself.

Do I believe in the goddess? Truly?

No.

‘I…… don’t really believe. Right now, I only see her as a means to protect my siblings.’

Sion opened his eyes. It was too shameful to say aloud.

“I don’t think so.”

“That’s it.”

Sion slumped slightly.

“It’s hard.”

“It’s not an easy path. You have to throw your entire life into the Goddess of War’s lake.”

Garfenn comforted him gently.

“It took me over a decade. Fourteen years before I first heard her voice.”

“It took that long?”

“I was deeply cynical about the very concept of a goddess. I didn’t even pretend to believe. I closed my ears and acted out.”

Sion tried to imagine Garfenn’s past. Judging by his appearance alone, he was practically a beast of a man.

It was hard to picture him as someone who followed the goddess’s will without a shred of doubt, like he did now.

Garfenn called to him.

“Sion.”

“Yes.”

“Becoming the Goddess of War’s apostle is far more significant and difficult than you think.”

“Can you explain?”

Garfenn led him outside. Beyond the hill stretched a vast plain.

“How does it look to you?”

“Wide.”

“Peaceful, isn’t it?”

“At a glance, yes.”

Garfenn’s shoulders shook slightly. Sion’s answer struck him as refreshing.

“Long ago, they say corpses piled up there. A war of unimaginable scale. The crows were so thick they blotted out the sun.”

“I can’t even imagine.”

“Right, that’s how devastated it was. Ruined, with endless war, slaughter, and suffering.”

And so, people prayed desperately for peace.

They begged for the ceaseless wars to end, hoping to raise children in a peaceful era.

“War was hated. People prayed for peace and love. War had no choice but to be rejected.”

Garfenn spoke with the bitterness of memory.

“In that world, we must live serving a goddess who symbolizes war. Everywhere we go, we’re misunderstood as warmongers and hated. That’s the path I’ve walked, and the one you’ll walk.”

“……I see.”

Sion looked up at Garfenn.

He saw an invincible warrior who had overcome countless hardships.

‘But he’s someone who’d break if you tapped him. Master is weak.’

The frail man, Garfenn, continued.

“You don’t realize it yet, but there will come a time when you grow weary. You’ll want to quit. You might even try to run away secretly.”

“I won’t.”

Garfenn found Sion’s answer endearing, but reality was harsh regardless.

“Don’t be so sure, kid. It’s a path of enduring all the world’s oppression and misunderstanding. You must withstand those trials.”

“No one will understand you. You’ll be shunned by every church. Only a handful will welcome you.”

“Even if you save someone in need, the moment they learn you’re the Apostle of ‘War,’ their faces will turn cold.”

Sion had already experienced that.

Wherever he went, people never seemed to welcome followers of the Goddess of War.

“In Rebecca’s case, you were truly lucky. Well, it’s only possible because it’s you, Sion, and it’s also proof that times are changing. Anyway—”

“You must endure all that suffering, fight, and maintain superhuman mental strength.”

“All for the day when the Goddess of War, Achille regains her honor and takes her seat at the Round Table. When that time comes, the apostle’s soul will be saved.”

Garfenn finished his long explanation.

A detached, matter-of-fact confession—and the advice of a senior.

Sion engraved his master’s words into his heart and sought one final answer.

“What about you, Master? Do you regret it?”

“Becoming an apostle?”

“Yes. It must have been hard enough to kill you.”

Garfenn shook his head.

“No. Not a single regret.”

“Why?”

“Because I atoned and was saved.”

Garfenn’s past seemed terribly dark. Becoming the goddess’s apostle was how he overcame it.

Had the path of the apostle been worth that much to Garfenn?

‘Master really seems to think so.’

Sion had found his answer.

He steeled his resolve.

His decision hadn’t changed—if anything, this made it firmer.

After a moment to compose himself, Garfenn spoke.

“To return to your original question: If you walk this path of trials, there will come a moment of realization. That’s when you’ll face the miracle.”

“Will that time really come?”

Garfenn looked at the goddess’s face. She was gazing at Sion with benevolent eyes.

“For you, it’ll come much sooner than it did for me.”

“How do you know?”

“Because the goddess favors you. Enough to make me jealous.”

Sion’s eyes widened.

His face began to flush.

“Don’t rush. The time will come on its own. Just silently become her sword and fight. Protect the weak and uphold the goddess’s beliefs. That’s all you need to do.”

Sion nodded awkwardly. It was still hard to fully grasp.

But his chest swelled unmistakably.

Even if his mind didn’t understand, his heart did. Sion was an instinctive person.

“When that time comes, you’ll feel reborn. You’ll bask in ecstasy, reliving that moment in your dreams every day.”

Sion smiled faintly and clutched his chest.

His heart raced at Garfenn’s words.

He hoped he, too, would experience that someday.

“I’ll work hard until that day comes.”

“I’ll be waiting. And keep your promise not to run away.”

“Of course.”

Garfenn snatched up a wooden sword and spun it in his hand.

“Now, let’s spar. Since your faith is still lacking, I’ll teach you how to fight demons—the quick version.”

“Yes!”

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