Chapter 273 : Declaration (1)

Two days after the sin of Jealousy devastated Rosario, "Are you feeling better now, Marquis?"

"Yes, I’m fine."

Alon answered Evan’s question as he repeatedly clenched and unclenched his hand.

'Fortunately, it’s recovering faster than when I first used it.'

Of course, since he hadn’t overexerted himself like he did against Baarma, the recovery was naturally quicker, but even considering that, the speed was significantly faster.

In other words, his proficiency with Reverse Heaven had definitely improved compared to before.

Of course, there was still a long way to go.

But the fact that he was growing, especially using Reverse Heaven without employing divinity, was undeniable.

So, feeling somewhat satisfied, he nodded his head.

"By the way, Marquis."

"What is it?"

"When did you even prepare that kind of magic?"

"That kind of magic?"

"You know, the one where meteor showers fell from the sky. I was honestly mesmerized without even realizing it."

[Hmm, it was certainly cool.]

At Evan and Basiliora’s admiration, Alon shook his head slightly.

"It’s incomplete."

"Excuse me?"

"The magic you saw."

"......What?? That one?"

"Yes."

The magic Alon had used this time wasn’t even 30% complete.

It was merely a prototype born from a simple idea and a few rounds of verification.

Nothing more, nothing less.

'There are still many issues left to solve.'

The magic he displayed in the battle against the sin might have looked flashy on the surface.

But there were many aspects still needing improvement.

It was especially true since it was conceived to reduce Alon’s computation resource burden.

"So basically, it was a half-finished spell?"

"Something like that."

"And if that half-finished magic was that powerful... what kind of magic are you trying to create?"

Evan looked utterly dumbfounded.

Alon lightly shrugged his shoulders.

"You’ll see it later when it’s complete."

"When will it be completed?"

"...Who knows."

Alon stroked his chin.

To be honest, he expected it would take quite a long time to complete.

Until now, in the computation experiments and small-scale implementations he had conducted with Penia, there were countless problems that remained unsolved.

However, after actually using the magic in the battle against the sin, he had found clues to solve those issues.

"Well, it won't take too long now."

It might actually speed up.

Alon headed outside with Evan.

"Brother...! Are you alright?"

"I’m fine, Saint."

At that moment, Yuman, who had been earnestly conversing with the cardinals in front of the temple, rushed over.

"But..."

Behind Yuman, the cardinals lined up and bowed deeply toward Alon.

・・・A bit too deeply.

Alon felt a moment of bewilderment behind his expressionless face.

"Please, everyone, rise."

At Yuman’s words, the cardinals cautiously raised their bodies.

"I truly apologize, Marquis."

"We've shown unseemly behavior."

"Indeed."

As he listened to their continuing apologies, larger hooks of suspicion started forming in Alon's mind.

He had heard from Evan that more and more Rosario citizens had come to regard Alon as a divine envoy—or even something more.

When Alon dealt with the sin of Jealousy, a huge light sphere, which was the symbol of the goddess Sironia, had appeared behind him along with a blue glow.

Still, that could be understandable from the perspective of the believers.

But to see even the cardinals, who could communicate somewhat with the goddess, reacting like this,

it was incomprehensible.

'...I'm pretty sure they said they could communicate with the goddess again.'

If he talked with the goddess, the truth would be clear, so Alon, wearing a puzzled expression,

"Ha ha ha, you don’t need to worry so much. We simply came to express our gratitude for this matter," Yuman said.

"Yes, that's right."

"I feel the same. I only came to express my thanks for this event, so please don’t be concerned."

"We haven’t heard anything else."

Hearing the cardinals chatter beside him, Alon spotted Yuman smiling warmly and finally understood roughly what was going on.

"...Just to make sure, I’m not that kind of person—"

"Oh, of course, we know that, Marquis."

"Marquis Palatio is just Marquis Palatio."

"We know very well."

"And apparently, you also have the title 'lightning receiver.'"

As if saying, "Oh, we get it," the cardinals laughed heartily like they were wrestling in a WWE match.

Without giving Alon a chance to explain, they left, telling him to relax and talk freely.

Alon, who had been staring blankly at their retreating figures, shifted his gaze to Yuman, who was still smiling.

"I didn’t say anything, Brother."

Before Alon could even ask, Yuman beat him to it.

"......Really?"

"Yes, I merely mumbled to myself."

...

Alon felt a strange sense of déjà vu, as if he were going through something he had experienced somewhere before.

And soon, another doubt arose.

'...If the communication with the goddess has truly been restored, shouldn’t I have been exposed by now?'

That thought crossed his mind.

But only for a moment.

"Is your body completely healed now?"

When Yuman asked, Alon organized his thoughts and nodded.

"Yes. By the way, how is the situation?"

"...As you can see, not very good."

Following Yuman’s gaze, Alon saw the many faithful still staying at the temple and the completely ruined wreckage.

"...We have been actively working to recover the situation since yesterday, but it’s still a bit difficult."

"The House of Palatio will do its utmost to support."

"No, there’s no need. You’ve already helped us a lot. Moreover, we are now receiving aid from each kingdom."

"That’s a relief."

"And it seems some people have already helped us."

"...People who helped?"

Yuman nodded and began explaining, and after a while, Alon asked back in disbelief.

"...All the Pure Whites stationed outside Rosario have been massacred?"

"Yes. In the east, it looks like they were all electrocuted by something. In the west, they seemed to have been crushed by something. And in the north, many were slashed to pieces."

"...You don't know who did it?"

"Correct. The only clue we have is that someone saw a golden lightning strike in the east."

"Golden lightning?"

"Yes. Do you perhaps know anything about it, Brother?"

Immediately, Seolrang came to mind, but Alon slowly shook his head.

"I can think of someone, but it’s probably not her. She’s far away from here."

As far as he knew, Seolrang was in Colony.

"I see."

Then, after chatting a little longer, Yuman bowed politely toward Alon.

"Anyway, thank you, Brother."

"......All of a sudden?"

"If it weren't for you, Brother, Rosario might have been completely destroyed."

"......Please don’t think too much about it. I only did what was natural."

"Right. We’re on the same path— no, wait, that was a slip of the tongue."

Yuman laughed awkwardly, pretending he hadn’t said anything strange.

As Alon thought that Yuman was the type to say everything he wasn’t supposed to, "Still, I hope things like this don’t happen again."

Yuman quietly muttered as he looked at the devastated ruins.

At that, Alon recalled what the Sin had said three days ago.

[This is not the end.]

[Protection—]

[For, the—]

Just before disappearing.

It wasn’t the pope, but the Sin with murky eyes who had spoken.

Although the Sin of Jealousy had only left behind a few words, it had made Alon think deeply about many things.

'What does “protection” mean? What does it mean that this isn't the end?'

Alon had thought from the beginning when he first encountered the Apostles.

That once the Apostles were gone, the Sins would no longer appear.

It had seemed like a natural conclusion.

He had witnessed with his own eyes that the Apostles were the ones who created the Sins.

However, the Sin had clearly said otherwise.

That this was not the end.

'......Does it mean the Sin of Wrath is still left? If not—'

While Alon was immersed in thought,

"Oh, right, Brother, if you have some time, could you visit the Chamber of the Holy Spirit?"

"......The Chamber of the Holy Spirit?"

"Yes. The one there would like to speak with you."

"With me...?"

"Yes."

Yuman requested it, and Alon nodded and headed toward the Chamber of the Holy Spirit.

"My Lord."

"Yutia."

On his way to the Chamber of the Holy Spirit, Alon encountered Yutia.

When Alon greeted her warmly, she approached with a somewhat worried expression.

"I'm sorry I couldn’t visit you. I’ve just been so busy…"

"No, it’s fine. Of course, you have your duties. Besides, I wasn’t seriously hurt."

"Thank you for your understanding."

Yutia bowed her head.

Waving his hand lightly as if it was nothing, Alon suddenly sensed something.

"Yutia."

"Yes...?"

"Did something bad happen?"

Yutia’s expression didn’t look good.

Like someone who had been caught doing something she shouldn't have... anxiety and nervousness mixed on her face, prompting Alon to wonder.

"N-No, it’s nothing."

She hastily shook her head and began glancing furtively at Alon.

As if she had something she wanted to say.

"......Is there something you want to tell me?"

"Ah, um, well…"

When Alon asked first, Yutia hesitated, then lowered her head deeply and peeked up with only her eyes.

"Do you remember, My Lord? That time?"

"......That time?"

"Yes. When the Seraph of Jealousy appeared."

"I remember."

"You told me then, right? That I didn’t need to use my power."

Alon recalled it and nodded.

He certainly had said that.

"Yes, I did. Why?"

"I was just wondering… what you meant by that."

Hearing her question, Alon felt a bit puzzled inside but answered.

"......I meant exactly what I said."

"Exactly what you said?"

"Yeah. I figured it would be better for you to go down immediately and deploy a barrier, rather than use your power there."

At those words, Yutia momentarily showed a confused expression.

"R-Right. That’s what you meant."

Then, with a little "Haah," she seemed to relax and nodded with a strangely relieved look.

"Still, why ask about that so suddenly?"

"It’s nothing, My Lord. Anyway, you’re on your way to the Chamber of the Holy Spirit, right?"

"Yes."

"Then you should hurry. We’ve prepared it for you. Let’s talk afterward."

Yutia, who had looked so anxious just moments ago, had completely returned to her usual self.

Although feeling puzzled, Alon nodded.

Soon after, "Then, I’ll be back."

"Yes, see you after that."

Yutia bowed slightly and walked away with light steps, a hint of joy in her gait.

Watching her, Alon tilted his head.

"...?"

He felt an odd sense of discomfort.

Something strange.

An unpleasant sense of unease.

"......"

Feeling as if he had missed something important, Alon replayed their earlier conversation in his mind.

And at one point, he realized where this discomfort was coming from.

'.........Come to think of it, did I ever say that the being floating in the sky was the “Seraph of Jealousy”?'

The name “Seraph of Jealousy.”

Alon had never told anyone that the entity he fought was a Sin.

Because revealing that fact would make the already noisy Allied Kingdoms even more chaotic due to the Abyss creatures.

Thus,

'...How did she know?'

Alon turned around.

But Yutia was no longer there.