Chapter 28

Ch.28 Apostle of the Goddess of War

Kwa-woong—!

Filling the dark, damp cave were the surging currents of two Divine powers—black and azure.

The deep blue radiance clashed against a hue that held stars within it. Waves of energy burst sporadically, and gravel rained down from the cave ceiling.

One faith bloomed from the sword of a man trapped in the past, while the other blazed from the tip of the blade wielded by a boy marching toward the future.

Paa-aang—!

Their Divine powers clashed once more.

There was no special technique, no artful finesse—just a head-on collision of strength against strength.

A stubborn headbutt to prove whose faith was stronger.

Whose belief was more righteous.

Kwa-woong!

Light and darkness intertwined, creating an invisible storm.

The mine walls cracked, and a shockwave threatening to collapse everything engulfed the surroundings.

Fragments of shattered blades brushed past cheeks and embedded into thighs. Still, neither of them stopped.

Frenzied, they hurled everything at each other until their bodies threatened to break apart.

Kwaang! Kwaang-kwaang!

“Ghk……!”

Ten collisions.

Holt gritted his teeth and endured.

His eyes were bloodshot, veins bulging red.

“Not yet, not yet!”

His hand gripping the sword trembled violently.

His breathing was ragged, and his stamina had already reached its limit.

A young, talented War Knight had exhausted his Divine power after just ten exchanges.

Since he could no longer receive divine energy from the Goddess of Wisdom, he had survived only on the Divine power he had accumulated within his heart over the years.

After prolonged flight and battle, his divine energy had finally worn down completely—here, at this moment.

For a holy knight, the exhaustion of Divine power was tantamount to a death sentence.

Sion stood silently, one hand holding his sword, looking down at him.

“You seem to be having a hard time holding on any longer.”

“Shut up……!”

Holt growled, swinging his blade wildly in the air.

Though he snarled, his legs trembled, and his breath refused to steady.

Nevertheless, he did not retreat.

To step back would feel like everything he had lived for was being invalidated.

“If I lose to someone like you… then my entire life up to now…!”

“Would it become a meaningless life?” Sion asked.

Holt bared his teeth.

“Yes!”

“Then perhaps it’s better to lose right here. If a life can be negated by just one defeat, it must have been insignificant to begin with.”

Sion lowered his sword as he spoke.

“At the very least, your corrupted life will come to an end.”

Holt laughed bitterly, his shoulders shaking pitifully. It was a sharp, piercing remark.

“You’re really an arrogant brat……!”

Holt lunged forward.

His final strike followed.

Whoosh!

Holt launched his body with every last ounce of strength he had.

With all his soul, he unleashed the dark radiance he had cultivated over a lifetime.

Sion, with an unshaken heart, swung his sword.

‘Even though I don’t believe, the Goddess embraces even me.’

That was his belief—that his path was not wrong.

Blade met blade once again.

Paa-ang—!

A massive wave of energy exploded, and stalactites from the cave ceiling shattered as they crashed to the ground. Dust and rocks rained down upon the heads of everyone inside.

And then—

Slick.

Blood sprayed.

Holt’s body slowly collapsed.

“Ghk…….”

Sion’s sword had deeply cut through his chest, cleaving his ribs.

That single strike brought Holt down.

Holt hung his head, trembling for a long while.

Thud.

Soon, his strength gave out and his knees buckled.

Sion supported his body.

“Kill me.”

Holt whispered weakly.

“You’re good. You’re the best. Go ahead and act all proud.”

……

Sion remained silent. The old knight seemed to have more to say before the end.

“Haah, it’s truly strange.”

Holt gazed into the air and smiled faintly. His wrinkled eyes glistened.

“Suddenly, I had this thought.”

“What thought?”

Holt slowly lifted his head.

His eyes were dim, his lips trembling.

“The idea that losing here, stopping here, might be the Goddess’s will. ‘Stop now, child. Come back to me…’ It feels as if the Goddess is calling me once more.”

Holt stared at the ceiling, smiling faintly as if seeing something.

“A foolish thought, really—that perhaps, just like the day I was first saved, a warm light might descend upon me again.”

In the cave, as dust gradually settled, his quiet breaths echoed.

“I just want to stop now and go back. Back to the Goddess… into her warm embrace.”

He spoke as if dreaming. The light faded from his eyes, and the sword in his hand slipped to the ground. Clang.

“……I want to go back.”

After saying that, all strength left his body. He closed his eyes, bleeding.

The fallen knight, at the end of a long, arduous proof, imagined himself slowly breathing his last, heading toward the place he had desired most.

Perhaps the Goddess of Wisdom had stepped beyond her boundaries to call back the lost sheep.

“You are…… strong, young knight. The Goddess will surely love you.”

The fallen knight of wisdom finally marked the end of his weary life.

Though his end was not a happy one, his fervor surely rivaled anyone’s.

Sion stood by him for a long while, silently offering a prayer to the Goddess of War, paying his respects as a fellow knight and priest.

[Well done. My warrior.]

The Goddess gently caressed Sion’s back.

Tier and the women cautiously approached.

Someone opened their mouth to speak, but couldn’t bring themselves to continue.

After finishing his prayer, Sion spoke heavily.

“Faith… is something I understand, yet don’t understand.”

There was neither blame nor pity in those words.

Only the sincere thoughts of a man standing at the end of this battle.

***

The cave, once a mine and now used as a prison, was quiet, like an abandoned house long left empty.

The duel between the two knights had concluded, and everyone had watched its outcome in tense silence.

Thud.

Sion stepped forward and knelt before Holt. Holt lay bleeding, seemingly lost in memories of the past.

The light in his pupils had faded, dull and lifeless.

“Menesia… my Goddess. Save me… grant me permission to build a small house in your garden.”

“Sir Holt. May you stand upon the Scales of Wisdom and be judged.”

“At last, I shall see my Goddess.”

Swoosh.

Sion slit Holt’s throat, granting him a peaceful death.

So that he could reach the Goddess he longed for, as quickly as possible.

“Phew…….”

It had been a duel that stirred many thoughts.

Twisted faith, false faith.

Regardless of its form, he had arrived at the conclusion that it was still faith.

Sion allowed the fallen knight’s blood to stain his sword. Achilles gladly accepted the offering.

Sion’s mansion grew larger, and his wealth in gold and treasures increased.

And then—

“Wow… this is…”

Sion touched his chest. The knot of divine energy nestled in his heart had grown slightly larger.

Even if it was false faith, the Goddess was satisfied simply by his devotion.

[Even if it’s not sincere, how could it not be faith when you act, speak, and think for me, Sion?]

Goddess Achilles embraced Sion from behind. Though he could not feel the warmth, Sion vaguely believed in the Goddess’s presence.

His doubt remained—not in her existence, but in the goals and beliefs of the Goddess of war.

Yet even his actions to resolve that doubt were recognized by the Goddess as service.

And so, Sion gradually became her apostle.

Even if he himself still denied it.

Sion also collected the material spoils.

He slung the sword Holt had wielded onto his back.

It was a rather fine blade.

Having been used by a knight his entire life, it was even better than the sacred sword Rebecca had gifted him.

When Sion stood up, Tier approached with his younger sister.

“S-Sir Sion!”

“Tier. Are you unharmed?”

“Of course I’m fine! Are you injured, Sir Sion?”

Sion answered with a pained expression.

“I nearly died.”

“Haha. The fight was intense. But still, still… I believed. I prayed to the Goddess of War.”

“What?”

Sion’s eyes widened in surprise.

“From today, I want to believe in and follow the Goddess of War. I want to become a noble knight like you, Sir Sion.”

[Oh, my.]

The Goddess covered her mouth, and Sion broke into a wide smile at the unexpected gift.

Because Tier seemed genuinely converted.

Those eyes burning with faith could not possibly be fake.

‘He’s more faithful than I am. That’s a good thing.’

Sion bowed deeply in gratitude.

“Oh, come on! What are you thanking me for? I should be the one thanking you. Come on, Silvia. Say hello too.”

“Thank you……”

Silvia shyly hid behind her brother.

“This kid… so ill-mannered.”

Tier flustered, urging Silvia forward.

“It’s alright. Let’s get outside first.”

Sion simply smiled and released the people imprisoned in the dungeon.

“Thank you.”

“Thank you, knight.”

“You saved me.”

All the women who had been trapped expressed their gratitude to Sion with one heart and one mind.

***

Ruina visited Bishop Gustein, who had been caring for Kaili, whose fever had not subsided for several days.

“Bishop. Someone’s come looking for you outside.”

“Who is it?”

Gusteine turned and asked. Ruaena scratched her cheek as she replied.

“Well… they said they’re from the <Winged Feet> clan?”

“…I see. Alright. Please look after Kaili for a moment.”

“Yes.”

Gustein wiped his hands and left, while Ruina placed the back of her hand against Kaili’s forehead.

The girl, who had spent all day staring at the Goddess statue, had caught a cold, but her fever stubbornly refused to break.

It seemed like a simple cold that should have healed quickly, yet it wouldn’t go away, and the worry kept growing.

‘Brother Sion… please come soon.’

Meanwhile, Bishop Gustein stepped outside and encountered an unexpected visitor.

A man in flamboyant clothing, completely out of place in the quiet, barren Elim, was waiting for him.

The clown-like man raised one hand and spoke.

“Bringing wind and happiness! Greetings. I am Arichi, a member of the <Winged Feet> clan from the Postal’s guild under the Church of Abundance!”

Gustein found this chattering man extremely noisy. With a dull expression, he glanced at the carriage behind Arichi.

The carriage was packed full of cargo. What on earth was all this?

“A merchant? If so, go away. We don’t have the luxury to pay high prices for goods.”

“Oh, no, no! Priest. I’m not a merchant. I’m a courier from the Postal’s guild, delivering goods—”

“I understand. Hm. So, what brings you here?”

Gustein’s nerves were already frayed.

He couldn’t help but worry about Kaili, that poor child who had been sick for days.

Unaware of the church’s circumstances, Arichi cheerfully grinned and pulled out a gold coin from his pocket.

The jingling sound caused Gustein’s eyebrows to shoot up like an eagle’s wings.

“What’s this?”

“Two hundred gold coins in this sack. One month’s worth of food supplies, various construction materials and tools. A contract stating that you, Bishop Gustein of Elim Church, will receive sponsorship from Chairman Apur and a portion of the profits from the mine for the next three months. All addressed to you.”

“What? What are you talking about?”

Gustein was startled and opened the sack.

Good heavens! It was truly filled with gold coins.

Arichi, sensing the moment, promptly pulled aside the cloth covering the carriage. Abundant food supplies were revealed in full view.

Gustein asked in astonishment.

“I never ordered any of this?”

“Someone else purchased it and sent it by mail! So you don’t need to worry about payment! Haha!”

“W-who? Who sent all this?”

Gustein swallowed hard.

He couldn’t think of a single person who would send such a massive amount to the church.

And with absolutely no conditions attached.

“Here. The sender.”

Arichi handed him the contract.

As it was a contract sealed under the blessing of the Goddess of Abundance, it held the full legal validity of a certified document.

Gustein took the paper and read it. His brows furrowed tightly.

The contents were so unbelievable that he had to read it several times to confirm.

“What have you done, Sion……?”

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