Chapter 83

Ch.83 Apostle of the Goddess of War

“War… you said war is coming…? What do you mean by that?”

Fedebrenis stuttered.

It was already a life-threatening act to dare speak to the Goddess of Decay.

The Goddess’s reaction was so unusual that he had no choice but to ask.

[War. Achille is coming.]

“Achille!”

The apostle’s face filled with bewilderment.

Sion, who had been listening, could not suppress his shock either.

‘Who did she say is coming?’

The pain was so intense he thought he must have misheard.

Time was running short. Sion struggled with all his might, accelerating his sacred loop to push back against the Evil deity’s aura.

[It’s been a very long time since I last saw Achille.]

The voice of the Goddess of Decay spoke slowly, strangely thin.

Fear.

The memory of Achille’s wrath, etched deep into her soul, remained vivid.

Even sensing her presence made her entire body ache as if being sliced open.

“T-then what should we—”

Before Fedebrinis could finish speaking, the Goddess of Decay clenched her fist.

The decaying magical energy that had penetrated Sion’s body tightened around his sacred loop.

“Khh— Khaaaak!”

Sion screamed in excruciating pain.

This was not a pain a human could endure.

It was agony as if his very soul were rotting away.

[Finish it and leave. Cutting down the seed of the Apostle of War is enough.]

The power of the Goddess of Decay reached its peak, on the verge of taking Sion’s life.

Thud.

Not even a faint sound.

Behind the Goddess of Decay, the head of Fedebrinis, who had been kneeling, dropped into the swamp. His eyes remained wide open as his head sank.

The severed body part neither decayed nor regenerated. The cut surface of his neck remained exactly as it was.

An apostle serving an evil deity met his end without even realizing he had died.

Sssss.

The murky air in the distorted space gradually cleared.

The magical energy receded, and shafts of light fell down.

Black mirages, perhaps illusions, danced all around.

Time itself seemed to freeze across the area.

In the silent Temple of Decay, an overwhelmingly dominant sacred energy stirred.

[You wretched thing.]

A pure, crystalline voice rang out from the air, as if driving away a foul stench.

[You laid hands on my child?]

The next words were filled with fury.

[How dare you.]

You?

Black energy fluttered like flowing fabric.

The Goddess of Decay lifted her head. Her expression, normally emotionless, was now twisted beyond composure.

[Achille…]

[I don’t even know your name. Filth.]

Uuung.

Black energy gathered in the hand of the Goddess of War who had descended in person.

Soon, that sacred energy took shape, becoming the Goddess of War’s beloved weapon.

[War Sword!]

The Goddess of Decay involuntarily groaned.

Her body trembled instinctively.

The sword said to be forged by cutting the night sky for its blade and grinding stars for its edge.

The moment it entered her vision, the Goddess of Decay recoiled from the terrifying aura that threatened to slice open her eyeballs.

And this was while the Goddess had already lost much of her power.

It was impossible to even imagine how overwhelming she had been in her prime.

Thus, she drove the Goddess of Death to the brink of death.

She subdued Chaos and brought order.

She chased the Goddess of Darkness beyond the darkness itself.

The Absolute.

The Conqueror.

The Goddess most feared by evil deities.

The countless epithets attached to Achille bore witness to her power.

That was why the Goddess of Decay had tried to kill Sion.

She had come in person, no matter the cost.

It had been an agreement among the evil deities.

It should have ended in an instant.

They had almost succeeded.

Until the Goddess of War descended personally.

…An unimaginably massive variable.

Hadn’t Achille been absolutely unable to manifest?

[Did you make a deal with Eru? How precious she must be to you.]

[I have no words for a sinful wretch like you.]

Piiing—

A long crack was carved into the temple.

It was the trail left when Achille swung her arm.

The sword aura that had sliced past the Goddess of Decay’s neck split the entire temple in two.

Kwa, ang!

The scale of the clash was incomprehensible.

There was no other way to describe it—entirely different dimensions.

Green hair was severed and fell, her beautiful tresses dropping down.

The severed hair melted away as it fell, dissolving into the air.

[I’ve seen your will clearly. Don’t think this is the end, Achille.]

The evil Goddess of Decay vanished.

She had fled.

The temple was destroyed, her apostle lost.

She had nothing left, and did not even dream of revenge or resistance.

Achille’s wrath was simply too overwhelming to bear.

At last.

The master of the battlefield turned her head.

Her gaze settled on the boy she had named her next apostle. Her eyes radiated an overwhelming presence.

[Sion, my child.]

Sion had already lost consciousness.

Fortunately, he was still breathing.

Had Achille not arrived in time and dispelled the dark energy, his soul would have rotted away completely, and he would have died.

It was a regrettable thing.

To witness the manifestation of the Goddess one served was no common occurrence. It was a rare event, occurring only a handful of times over centuries, a historic moment destined to be remembered for ages.

She took her place before Sion. Her hair gently fell along her slightly tilted jawline.

Achille’s hand touched Sion’s cheek. Her gaze was gentle, as if looking upon a beloved child.

Silence hung in the air.

The Goddess quietly observed Sion’s physical condition.

“Haaat—”

Sion finally exhaled.

Though unconscious, his breathing had returned.

With rest, he would awaken again.

That was the end of the healing.

By merely focusing on the life and healing power she had received from the Goddess of Wildflower, she transferred it.

The Goddess’s transcendence settled upon this space.

[…Well done, my child. You’ve defeated the apostle as intended. Truly.]

Achille softly smiled.

It was a radiant, comet-like curve of her lips.

The War Knights watched this overwhelming moment.

Without exception, everyone knelt in a composed posture.

None dared to lift their heads.

The sheer magnitude and sacredness they felt crushed even their curiosity.

Thap.

Achille turned and took a step toward the War Knights.

It was a soft step, like flower petals gently descending.

“…”

Kegan gasped. The Goddess’s foot appeared before his eyes.

He could only shut his eyes tightly.

As if his filthy eyes were unworthy to gaze upon her sacred form.

[Lift your head.]

He clearly heard it. A voice so distinct it made his ears perk up on their own.

Kegan’s eyes trembled violently.

It was definitely calling him.

Yet he could not believe it.

It should not be happening.

[Lift your head. Kegan. Look at me.]

The Goddess of War called my name.

It was an undeniable fact.

It felt as if his breath had stopped.

“…I, I have the honor of seeing you, my Goddess.”

Responding with breath nearly failing, Kegan answered.

It was a reply barely forced out.

[Our agreement ends here. It must have been painful. You’ve worked hard.]

“W-what…?”

[I will return your memories. Suffer through them. Reflect on them deeply. And then return to me, to my embrace.]

That was the end of Achille’s words.

An instant later, the shattered fragments of the ruined Temple of Decay simultaneously fell to the ground.

It was as if time had frozen and then resumed flowing.

The Goddess was gone.

Her sacred presence could not be felt anywhere.

Not even a trace remained.

Had she even come at all? Doubt crept in.

Only the lingering sensation of having dreamed a surreal dream remained.

“…”

Yet Kegan had no time to dwell on such thoughts.

The moment the flood of memories—long-vacant gaps now refilled—rushed back into him,

he could do nothing but burst into tears.

“A, aaaah.”

Kegan clutched his head in despair.

He wiped his face dry, then smeared tears across his dirty sleeves.

His memories had returned.

The terrible nightmares and guilt that had tormented him.

He realized now that even the loss of his memories had been a warm act of consideration by Lady Goddess Achille.

The former War Knight understood.

***

Tak, tak.

In the quiet darkness, the sound of burning firewood tickled his ears. Along with the acrid smell of smoke, the scent of earth and grass filled his nostrils.

Sion slowly lifted his eyelids.

The first thing entering his blurred vision was the night sky.

As he tried to sit up, he felt muscle pain throughout his body.

“…Am I alive?”

His last memory was of horrifying pain, as if his soul were being squeezed dry.

Just before the Goddess of Decay took his life, everything had gone black.

Yet now, the oppressive decaying magical energy was completely gone. Instead, he could feel a clear, warm sacred energy quietly flowing within his body.

“You’re awake.”

Turning his head at the familiar voice, he saw Jena sitting by the campfire, polishing her sword.

Her gaze, usually sharp and feisty, now carried an undercurrent of reverence.

As Sion fully sat up, the eyes of the War Knights nearby turned toward him in unison.

Their gazes were no different from Jena’s. Clearly distinct from before, filled with respect and awe.

“This place… what happened? What about the Goddess of Decay…?”

When Sion asked, someone else answered instead of Jena.

Emerging from the shadows of the campfire was Kegan.

“It’s over.”

His voice was surprisingly calm.

There was no trace of the emptiness or guilt that had weighed him down before. His eyes were clear and serene, like someone who had just awakened from deep contemplation.

Sion was confused.

He couldn’t even begin to guess how he had survived the brink of death, or what had become of that overwhelmingly powerful evil deity.

Even Sion himself had believed there was no hope at the time.

“How did I…?”

“The Goddess saved you.”

Kegan said calmly.

But the moment he uttered the word ‘Goddess’, the surrounding knights held their breath.

Their expressions were a mixture of absolute faith and rapture.

They had just witnessed a miracle.

It felt like being reborn.

Even those who had turned their backs on the Goddess.

Those who had lived their entire lives unaware of her.

Those who secretly believed in another Goddess.

Now, all prayed with one heart and one mind to the Goddess of War.

It was the day they truly became War Knights.

It was only natural that they felt gratitude and many other emotions toward Sion, who had led them.

“Lady Achille… personally descended.”

“…”

Sion momentarily forgot how to breathe.

Lady Achille personally descended?

“You probably can’t believe it. We saw it with our own eyes and still couldn’t believe it. Even now, it feels like a dream.”

Jena quietly added.

The other knights silently nodded.

Kegan looked at Sion and murmured quietly.

“When you were about to die, the Goddess appeared, killed the Apostle of Decay. She exchanged a few words with the Goddess in a language we couldn’t understand, then swung her sword and erased her.”

“Is that so.”

Sion was amazed, yet inwardly regretful.

How wonderful it would have been to see the Goddess of War’s sword strike with his own eyes.

It would have shaken his mind to its core.

His swordsmanship might have advanced by two entire levels.

“And then she placed her hand on your cheek.”

Sion numbly touched his own cheek. He felt an indescribable warmth. It was a power that naturally made him feel good.

“That’s how you recovered. It was a miracle. I burst into tears.”

“It’s truly astonishing. The Goddess descending in person…”

He felt guilty.

Sion’s expression wasn’t entirely bright.

For her to physically manifest in the mortal world, she must have exerted herself tremendously.

Though he didn’t know the cost, concern overwhelmed Sion.

“And she saw me.”

“You mean Senior Kegan?”

After a pause, Kegan—

“Yes. She returned my memories.”

He confessed with difficulty.

“It was true. I really did kill my comrade because of my mistake.”

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