Chapter 64

Ch.64 Apostle of the Goddess of War

“Good work, Sion. You’ve been through a sudden ordeal.”

“It was the squad members who worked hard.”

Sion calmly finished his report. Behind him, Alt stood by like an aide.

Temporary Commander Tier had still not regained consciousness. Sion’s younger brother Set was in the same condition. The journey back from the marshlands to Elim had been arduous.

Immediately upon their return, Bishop Gustein and Ruina had tended to them. Because of this, the report had been delivered to Garfenn.

Garfenn said to Alt,

“You’ve done well too. Go back, rest, and recover. For now, suspend training and focus entirely on recuperation.”

“Yes, understood! Sir Garfenn!”

Alt left the office. Only Garfenn and Sion remained. There was more to discuss after the report.

Sion broke the silence first.

“What do you think?”

“You mean the Death Priestess?”

“…Yes.”

Given the marshland’s remote nature, it was no surprise that monsters or mages could hide there. It wasn’t strange that someone had been secretly plotting evil schemes in such a place.

“The ancient monster is honestly a bit surprising. You’re saying it was an old monster whose seal had weakened over time…”

At that moment, Goddess Achille whispered to Garfenn.

[I didn’t know this either. It must have happened while I was imprisoned in the celestial prison.]

‘Then it must have been at least 200 years ago.’

[Indeed. It was during the era when Goddesses were falling and causing harm to the mortal world. Many bizarre events likely occurred.]

Garfenn listened silently to the Goddess’s explanation and then relayed it to Sion.

“That’s how it is.”

“It wouldn’t be strange if we encountered such things again.”

“Probably not. The land is simply too vast. There are many things even I don’t know. Especially the northern regions…”

Though Garfenn had spent his entire life wandering the continent, wielding his sword, there were still countless things he didn’t know and far more places he hadn’t visited.

Even a Goddess who governed the mortal world would know less about areas beyond her domain. It was only natural for humans to remain ignorant.

“Still, it’s truly fortunate that the Fire Priest disciples cleaned up afterward. It’s unusual for those vicious ones to act so purely…”

“He seemed like a good person, didn’t he?”

Tch. Garfenn clicked his tongue and grimaced.

“There’s no way.”

“But it’s true…”

Goddess Achille whispered something else to Garfenn—about the Fire Disciples she had seen through her divine eyes and their relationship with Sion.

“Well, let’s just blame my personality.”

“Right, right.”

“What?”

“Hehe.”

Sion stuck out his tongue with a bright grin, then changed the subject. His eyes still held a faint trace of anger.

“The Divine Civil War… Even now, I can’t forgive those who slandered the Goddess.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes.”

Garfenn and Achille smiled at their future apostle. Such a dependable youth would carry the future of the War Cult. It was a boundless blessing.

“Still, we’re almost there. Just now, a message arrived from the Holy Kingdom.”

Finally.

Sion’s eyes widened. What kind of message could it be?

“Oh! Did the approval come through?”

“Hah, hah. You’re in a hurry. No, not that. It’s only that a man named Roben has safely arrived at the Holy Kingdom.”

“Oh…”

That was good news, but not exactly what he had been hoping for. Sion reflected on his own impatience and then asked,

“Is that all?”

“As soon as he arrived, he submitted his report, including the application for the right to appoint a saintess. They said they’d contact us immediately once a decision is made, so we’ll just have to wait.”

“We’ll probably have to wait about a month more.”

“That’s about right.”

The War Cult was a Cult with many enemies.

Especially the Round Table Cults affiliated with the Holy Kingdom, who hated the War Cult.

The misunderstanding about Achille still hadn’t been cleared, and the growing influence of the War Cult posed a real threat to them, so their reaction was natural.

The Fire Disciples they met this time were just a bit unusual.

“For now, don’t get your hopes up. Just wait.”

“Do you think the master will reject it…?”

“I don’t know. When I was there, he did. But maybe it’ll be different this time.”

Garfenn ruffled Sion’s hair roughly.

His beloved disciple had grown so fast, achieving remarkable feats, already knocking on the doors of the Holy Kingdom.

Just a few months ago, such a turn of events would have been unimaginable.

‘Even going outside now is like that. It’s still hard to adjust.’

The War Cult was bustling with people, church services echoed, and the training grounds were filled with the smell of sweat. It happened every day.

Life had returned to Elim, which had once been no different from a dead city.

And whose merit was all this?

‘After the Goddess, it would be Sion.’

[You don’t need to read my mood, my great warrior.]

“In truth, Sion did it all.”

[Too honest, my great warrior… too honest.]

Garfenn chuckled awkwardly, then asked,

“How are Set and Tier?”

[No problem. The Fire Priests handled their treatment well. They’ve passed the critical point, so they should recover with rest for now.]

“Thank goodness.”

Garfenn relayed this information. Sion’s expression brightened.

“Thank you, Goddess.”

“Thank you, Goddess.”

“By the way, you still can’t hear the Goddess’s voice, can you?”

“Huh?”

“It’s about time you started hearing it…”

As he spoke, Garfenn placed his hand on Sion’s chest, channeling divine power to gauge his disciple’s spiritual senses.

“Hmm?”

His eyes opened. Garfenn rarely wore such a surprised expression.

“W-what’s wrong?”

“No, you…”

Garfenn closed his eyes again to confirm. Even upon rechecking, what he felt was real.

‘What utter nonsense.’

Garfenn collected his thoughts and finally spoke.

“First… you’re not yet at the level of directly hearing the Goddess’s voice. But you’ve felt something, haven’t you?”

“Uh—”

Sion thought carefully. Now that he thought about it, several times during the mission, he had sensed the Goddess’s will.

Unlike the past, when he simply believed it would happen, this time he had felt definite signs.

“Whenever I made an important decision, it felt like lightning struck the top of my head.”

“Hmm, exactly. That’s the Goddess’s will being conveyed to you.”

“Goddess, as I thought… thank you.”

Sion made the sign of the cross like a faithful priest. Garfenn snorted at the gesture, which Sion had made up on his own.

“That aside…”

Garfenn’s rough eyes narrowed further as he looked at Sion. This was the real topic.

“You, the form of your divine power—”

“I’ve completed the ring.”

“The ring? You mean that circulation structure you mentioned before?”

“Yes.”

Sion moved the sacred energy near his heart according to his will. Garfenn felt the warm yet powerful pulsation of his disciple’s energy.

The more he felt it, the more goosebumps rose across his body.

“Incredible. So it’s really as you said.”

“Opening pathways throughout the body and consciously circulating energy is good, but connecting all pathways into a single, complete ring means the energy circulates on its own, even without conscious effort.”

“So it circulates while sleeping and moving. No need to stand still and concentrate separately.”

“That’s right.”

“Hah.”

Garfenn, a master of martial arts, quickly grasped what Sion had achieved. Just by seeing the form, he immediately understood its effect.

Because he knew Sion so well, he was even more amazed.

[This Goddess dropped her wine glass upon seeing it. Never before had she seen someone use sacred power—the blessing of the Goddess—in such a way.]

“There aren’t even any like this among the demon race, are there?”

[None. If I had to find one… yes. There is one.]

“You mean the Apostle of Light?”

[Yes.]

Garfenn was momentarily speechless, stunned like a volcanic eruption.

A boy who had held a sword for less than a year.

Had forged power equal to the mightiest knight ever crafted by the Goddess of Light.

For a knight who had lived his entire life seeing the Apostle of Light even once, the shock would be beyond words.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that Sion had just rewritten the very history and concept of martial arts.

“…This is impossible.”

“But it happened.”

“Hah, hah.”

One corner of Garfenn’s mouth twitched upward. He was so astounded that his facial muscles moved on their own.

“Now you should be my master.”

“Aw, come on, that’s a joke.”

“I’m not joking. I need to learn that sacred ring from you.”

“I’ll teach you. But in return, teach me something else.”

“What?”

Sion recalled fighting the Death Priestess.

The most troubling aspect was still vivid in his mind.

“What is a mind realm barrier?”

“Mind realm… barrier?”

“Yes.”

Sion replied casually.

He watched his master’s expression while waiting for an answer—and saw surprise. No, it was shock.

“The Death Priestess used a barrier?”

“Yes. She said something about a mind realm barrier that blocked the power of the Goddess of Fire…”

“The scenery changed, and her heretical power became overwhelmingly strong?”

“Yes, exactly. So you know about it?”

Garfenn smiled faintly and muttered to himself.

“He’s growing too fast… Is he already reaching that level?”

“Huh? What level?”

Sion pressed his master.

“It’s a term used in the Holy Kingdom. For convenience, they’ve divided the ranks of knights.”

“Oh.”

“From beginner, to intermediate when you can handle a sword decently, then advanced when you master divine power…”

Sion’s eyes sparkled. He listened with intense focus, as if not wanting to miss a single word.

‘Unexpectedly, he enjoys this kind of thing.’

Garfenn continued explaining, determined to be as kind and thorough as possible. After all, he hadn’t taught much to Sion until now.

“When one reaches a high level of sacred energy control, constructs a personal world within the mind, and manifests it externally… that is the mind realm barrier. It’s usually called the expert stage.”

“Expert…”

Garfenn chuckled and pinched Sion’s cheek.

“The stage you’ve just awakened to is the expert level. Once you reach it, there’s no one in the world who can match you in swordsmanship.”

“T-then! What comes after that?”

“Master.”

“You mean you, Master!”

When Sion asked cheerfully, Garfenn wagged his finger back and forth, as if to say ‘not a chance’.

“You. Do you really see this master as such a fool?”

“Huh? Fool?”

“Even the master rank has levels.”

Sion opened his mouth in surprise. He hadn’t expected it to be so detailed.

“The Holy Kingdom really loves complicated things.”

“Hahahaha! Yes! You really get it—just like my disciple.”

Garfenn laughed and continued.

“After that comes Grand Master. The master among masters. It refers to the strongest knights in the empire, ranked among the top ten with the sword.”

“Wow…”

Sion couldn’t continue, fascinated. It was a fun reaction. Was talking about the sword really this exciting?

‘He must be truly serious about the sword.’

[Just like my child. Indeed, a knight of war. Hehe.]

The Goddess’s lips curved into a small arc. The taste of her wine, sipped with Sion’s smile as her accompaniment, was exquisite.

Sion asked a boyish question.

“Master, are you among the top ten then?”

“Of course. Though officially not, since the War Cult isn’t part of the Holy Kingdom.”

“No way.”

“If we ranked them by actual strength, where do you think this master would stand?”

Garfenn asked with a hint of pride. It was a childish exchange between men.

“Hmm… definitely first place?”

“Kwahahaha! You’re flattering me now, aren’t you!”

“Hehe.”

Garfenn pushed his chair back and stood up.

“Mood’s good. Since we’re at it, I’ll guide you onto the path of the expert.”

“Really!?”

“Yes. Soon, I’ll give you another important mission.”

Sion’s lips curved upward in a smile. He was in the midst of rapid growth.

Every mission brought great insights. What inspiration would he gain this time?

“What kind of mission?”

“To forcibly bring back a training instructor for the War Knight Brigade.”

“Huh, forcibly…?”

“He’d probably be at the master level, if we’re being technical. Anyway, it won’t be easy.”

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