Chapter 37

Ch.37 Apostle of the Goddess of War

Was this how a mouse felt when cornered?

Sion faced the demon, receiving the overwhelming wave of energy with his entire body. Regardless of his courage, the flesh was honest—it couldn’t help but tremble. This was the physiological response of prey encountering a predator.

Yet, it is precisely by overcoming instinct and raising a sword that one becomes human. That was the essence of the War Cult, and the edge of Achille’s blade.

“Are we really going to fight?”

“Of course.”

Sion assumed a riding stance.

The strategy, as always, was to strike decisively before the opponent had fully assessed his strength and lowered their guard. Prolonging the battle means defeat. This was the secret to Sion surviving every encounter with stronger foes.

Swish!

Sion’s sword darkened, sending out ripples. Along the blade’s path, shimmering clusters of stars formed a stream like the Milky Way.

By the time the afterimage had barely faded, Sion had already thrust his blade toward the demon’s neck.

Even so, his full-power strike failed to threaten the demon. She didn’t flinch. She simply blocked the lightning-fast thrust between her index and middle fingers.

‘Is the gap in strength really this vast?’

The difference was absurdly large, even surprising to himself.

Damn it! It felt as if electricity had surged through Sion’s brain.

When he regained his senses, the demon’s sharp fingernails were already buried deep in his abdomen.

Dribble.

Blood trickled from the corner of Sion’s mouth. The speed had been too great for even him to react.

Pah!

Sion slapped away the demon’s arm and quickly created distance. Checking his abdomen, he saw the wound wasn’t fatal.

Psychologically, however, it was devastating.

She had been so fast he hadn’t even noticed.

Despite being an enemy, he felt a sense of respect.

This was the first time he’d encountered an opponent so overwhelmingly strong.

“Are you the Apostle of Blood?”

“Hmm? Apostle?”

The woman smiled pleasantly, lifting the corners of her lips.

“How cute. Thank you. You think highly of me, don’t you?”

“Are you not?”

“No. I’m not. There are actual apostles. But I am one of the seven leaders.”

The woman seemed genuinely pleased with Sion and kindly explained.

“You humans call us this: Vampire Lord.”

“Vampire Lord…”

Throughout the world, there were various monsters and aberrant beings.

Vampires were among them. The higher-ranking demons, commonly known as monarchs, were called Vampire Lords and were symbols of terror.

The Evil God they served was none other than the Goddess of Blood.

This was Sion’s first encounter with such a towering giant.

Yet, precisely because of that, he wanted to climb it, to conquer its peak.

‘Maybe this is doable after all.’

Though strong and overwhelming, this wasn’t an insurmountable mountain.

Moreover, the more you understand your opponent, the more fear tends to fade away.

The greatest enemy is the unknown.

Click.

Sion took his stance again.

This time it was different. Instead of a thrust, it was a slashing motion.

The Vampire Lord opened her eyes slightly.

As her vivid red, mesmerizing pupils seemed to suck in blood, Sion circulated divine power throughout his body.

Hummm.

Just as Garfenn had taught him, he imagined channels running through his body and spread the divine power along those imagined pathways.

With Achille’s blessing, he erected a mental barrier.

“Funny. Did you already figure it out?”

So he was right.

Sion steadied his breath and intensified the flow of divine power.

‘Indeed, this demon wasn’t just impossibly fast.’

It was more like a kind of illusion.

A faint sensation remained—the feeling that part of his consciousness vanished the moment he met her red eyes.

From the first ambush until now… There was clearly a reason she tried to lock eyes with him, using seduction.

Words like ‘cute’ were merely part of a deceptive tactic.

The real danger was casting magic without being noticed.

His precaution had paid off.

By channeling Achille’s divine power to the very top of his head, he could now protect himself from the strange illusion.

“Finally.”

Sion lowered his body, poised to spring forward. The genius who had found the key to victory smiled.

“Now we’ll fight properly.”

“Hmph.”

Pah!

Kiiing!

A vivid blade made of blood blocked Sion’s black sword. The clash of their energies made the air vibrate.

Sion’s blade slipped sharply past, refusing even a moment of contact. He avoided eye contact and mechanically executed actions aimed solely at annihilation.

Craaang!

Craaang!

Sion’s decisive strike was violently repelled. Blood splattered into the air.

It turned out that part of the blood-made barrier had broken. The demon’s body was protected by a layer of blood.

‘Is this a constant barrier? Useful.’

It was similar to the divine barrier Sion had received from the Goddess. The demon’s barrier had a wider range, but the Goddess’s protection was superior in defensive power.

In any case, breaking through it and inflicting a fatal wound would clearly be troublesome—and she wouldn’t just stand by and let it happen.

The red-haired demon pulled both arms toward her, as if grasping the air itself.

Why, it looked dangerous.

Sion coated his blade with divine power. Evading would be difficult. Besides, Tier was also behind him.

‘It’ll cut.’

Paaang!

The demon thrust her arms forward. Blood erupted like a whirlpool, surging toward Sion. A storm of blood raged violently.

Sion stood straight, raised his sword high, stepped forward with his front foot, and brought the blade down.

Fwahk!

At the end of the sword’s glittering trail of stars, blood sprayed upward.

…He had split the storm of blood.

He had cut through magic.

The demon’s lips parted slightly.

This was a situation she hadn’t anticipated at all.

“What?”

She almost wanted to believe it was a lie. But it had already happened.

How could this mere brat from the War Cult cut through magic with a sword? Yes, he was surrounded by divine power, but this was the magic of a demon who had lived for hundreds of years.

This was a level of achievement that only a saint of the Goddess, who had spent over a decade exterminating evil, could reach.

“How… how did you do that?”

In response to her trembling question, Sion stared at her indifferently.

“The magic of an Evil God is nothing compared to the power of the Goddess of War.”

“What?”

“…The Goddess of War leads me.”

Sion murmured calmly and began advancing.

“Cute, cute—I said you were cute, but you’re getting too full of yourself, aren’t you?”

Demonslayer.

The knight of the Goddess of War simply doing his duty.

Sion swallowed his calm words and charged forward.

Whoosh, kwaang!

The demon began unleashing waves of blood magic. Each time, crimson and black streaks of light flashed brilliantly.

All around, the marks of battle scarred the surroundings.

Kiiing!

The offensive moves blocking Sion’s advance grew increasingly fierce. Incomprehensible magic poured out without pause.

Fortunately, blood was visible, so he could react—dodge, coat his sword in divine power, and slash. That was all.

At least in theory.

If only his stamina and divine power were infinite.

Kwagagagak!

Sion was pushed back by the magic.

His divine power was no longer sufficient to cut through the blood magic.

It was depleted.

‘Damn it, is it finally over?’

He was exhausted in every way.

Even his pure breathing rhythm began to falter.

Now, the outcome had to be decided.

He desperately wanted to sever this monster’s head.

Only a moment of carelessness, and now this demon completely dominated him—he hated her.

“Die, little boy. I’ll drink your blood deliciously. Become one with me.”

The Vampire Lord smiled sweetly as she spoke. At the same time, her figure scattered, trailing red wisps behind her.

True murderous intent rose from all directions, as if she had truly decided to kill. This time, Sion couldn’t respond.

Scattering and then reappearing behind Sion—the demon’s form moved as silently as an owl in flight, stealthily taking position behind him—

Whoosh!

Schaak!

She swung her arm, wielding a blade of blood.

“Ghk!”

A massive burn-like wound tore across Sion’s back.

An involuntary groan escaped him. It was a critical injury. Sion immediately lost consciousness and collapsed.

Ss— the demon, pleased with her successful hunt, smiled and reached out her hand.

“Haa… haa… I’ll enjoy my meal—”

This human was the first in a long time to awaken her gourmet desire.

How many complex flavors would he have?

She was nearly driven mad with curiosity when—

“Huh?”

Her outstretched left arm felt strangely empty.

“Arm… gone?”

Only then did the demon notice Sion’s severed arm on the ground.

And in the young knight’s grip—her own left arm.

As a mage who controlled blood, even if a body part was severed, no blood would flow.

Thus, she had been slow to notice.

‘Just as I expected, he swung his blade backward.’

The demon replayed the fleeting moment.

Sion hadn’t completely failed to react.

More precisely, he couldn’t react.

He had simply predicted and swung his sword.

The young swordsman’s gamble had succeeded blatantly.

‘What…’

An absurd result.

To have her arm severed by a mere knight, not even an Apostle of the Goddess?

Losing a body part could be regenerated by drinking blood, but the wound to her pride could not be healed.

“You little—”

For a blood demon as proud as an elf, this was a fatal humiliation.

“Cute? Delicious? Forget it.”

She would tear his limbs apart, kill him, and curse his blood for eternity!

Just as she surrendered herself entirely to her surging fury—

Whoosh! Kwaang!

A chilling wave of divine power shot from the diagonal. The trajectory, accompanied by the scent of flowers, instantly severed part of the demon’s upper body.

“……!”

“Enough. Demon!”

A vein bulged on the demon’s pretty forehead.

Turning around, she saw Marquisin, panting heavily, staring at her.

He looked barely able to stand, leaning on his sword—clearly having poured all his strength into a final strike.

Somehow, he had already eliminated all the blood cultists and delivered a decisive blow.

‘What…’

The corner of the demon’s mouth grotesquely twisted as a large hole appeared below her chest, in her abdomen.

She couldn’t comprehend how the situation had turned out this way.

Hadn’t another Lord just been pierced by a black greatsword a moment ago?

‘The Black Wolf I could understand—but what about this brat? Exactly who is he…?’

Having been careless the entire time, she was now pushed into an irreversible situation.

Even the blood cultists she intended to use as meat shields were already dead.

‘Where’s the sacred artifact?’

Indeed, it was difficult.

When there were two Vampire Lords, perhaps, but alone, it was overwhelming.

Two Apostles of the Goddess.

And even Garfenn was among the enemy. This was too difficult.

Playing with this boy swordsman had ruined everything. What a disaster.

‘…It’s frustrating, but there’s nothing I can do now.’

The demon glared at Sion through her sweat-drenched red hair.

“Somehow, I feel we’ll meet again. You.”

And next time, she sensed he would clearly be a threat.

“See you next time, little boy.”

Whoosh!

Blood enveloped her. Wind rose, violently scattering the blood mist.

In Sion’s blurred vision, the red silhouette disappeared.

“Cough, cough.”

Blood mixed with Marquisin’s coughing. He barely held himself upright and reached his hand toward Sion.

Tier quickly supported him and guided him to Sion’s side.

Sion’s condition was grave. His entire body was soaked in blood, and his breath was faint.

“Tier, just a moment.”

Marquisin knelt shakily before Sion. Despite being on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion, his eyes burned with determination.

“Marquisin, stop.”

Garfenn approached cautiously and spoke softly. He intuitively understood what choice Marquisin was about to make.

“I’m simply doing what must be done.”

“…Are you truly sure?”

To this question, Marquisin answered with a faint smile, blood still in his mouth.

“Wildflowers, even if trampled, will bloom again.”

It was the answer of a man who had already made his decision. Garfenn closed his eyes and stepped back.

Soon, Marquisin quietly clasped his hands and began to pray.

His low, gentle prayer circled in the air and gradually coalesced into a single force.

As time passed, colorful wildflowers began blooming one by one around Sion.

Flowers imbued with life quietly blossomed and eventually formed a vibrant floral bed that enveloped Sion’s body.

Lying upon it, Sion appeared peaceful, as if asleep.

“Haa…”

Marquisin finished his final prayer and exhaled deeply.

His breath was weak, on the verge of stopping. His handsome face had aged, looking like that of an old man who had lived over a century.

It was hard to believe he was an elf who normally lived a long life in a youthful form.

Yet, upon his face bloomed a serene smile, pure and radiant like the sun, without a trace of regret.

“…I owe a great debt.”

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