Chương 531: Chapter 531
Clank! Rattle, clank!
The magic gun [Black Queen] began to transform on its own, morphing into the shape of a long railgun.
Seven magic bullets combined into one and were loaded into the bullet slot -
"I'm taking the shot-!"
Flash-!
With Damien's shout, it was fired with a flash of light.
The deadly strike fired by our side's strongest sniper, Damien.
The magic bullet, flying like a beam of light, pierced through the deep forest and successfully penetrated the spirit core of the Elder Tree that was spreading curses in the deepest part.
Squeak... Squeeeak...
As the Elder Tree fell with the sound of deflating air,
Immediately after, the trees that had been viciously swinging their branches and roots towards the forward base as if in deception, gradually stopped their movement.
Without the command of their legion commander, the trees planted their roots into the ground one by one and stood still in their place.
Just like ordinary trees. Simply standing still.
Rustle...
As the wind blew from afar, the burnt leaves scattered on the ground like fallen leaves.
Everyone had a bewildered expression as they looked at this burnt forest that had suddenly sprung up in front of the forward base.
"Well done, Damien!"
Under my praise, Damien, who had rolled back from firing the powerful shot, just showed a thumbs up from afar.
I would like to help him up and take care of him... but now is not the time for that!
"Those who can move, follow me!"
I shouted urgently as I mounted my horse.
"We need to save the Sky Knights! Hurry-!"
***
Forest. Center.
The rescued Mikhail was in a pitiful state.
His body was torn and bloodied by tree vines, and the magical rapier, said to be a national treasure, was shattered into pieces.
It was because he had overloaded his magic power to reveal his location with magical light, ultimately breaking the weapon himself.
However, the injuries to his body and the destruction of his weapon were not what mattered to Mikhail.
"...Aaaaah."
The Sky Knights.
His brothers-in-arms, the knights, and the griffins, had all met their deaths here without exception.
All because of his own mistake.
"Aaaaah! Aaaaaaaaah!"
In front of the row of dreadful corpses, Mikhail screamed in despair, covered in blood.
It was a horrific scream, as if scraping the bottom of hell.
"..."
For the past three months, Mikhail had been walking a tightrope in the sky.
Despite being young and not fully skilled, carrying the negative traits of 'Recklessness' and 'Error-prone', he had fought bravely in battle.
But today, he slipped off that tightrope.
And this was the price for that.
"Mikhail..."
"Aaaaah! Aaaaaaaaah!"
Watching Mikhail cry tears of blood as he lay on the ground, not knowing how to console him, I bit my lip and turned my head away.
"...Gather the bodies. Heal Mikhail's wounds as well."
"Yes, my lord."
Lucas replied with a bitter face and walked towards the bodies of the Sky Knights scattered throughout the forest.
The strongest knights of the northwest continent and rulers of the skies had been annihilated here, and their commander, Mikhail, had suffered severe injuries and his spirit was shattered.
It would be difficult for him to fight on this front any longer.
'It hurts.'
As I watched the bodies of the knights being carried away wrapped in white cloths, I tightly closed my eyes.
'It hurts...'
***
Though we barely won, the damage was enormous.
Twenty members of the Sky Knights, consisting of 4 parties, were completely wiped out.
This was an irreplaceable loss. Even if we were to operate air fleets in the future, it would be impossible to secure air supremacy to this extent again on the monster front.
The problem didn't end there.
"The temple facilities are insufficient, Your Majesty."
High Priest Zenis reported with a face stained with blood and sweat. Having not shaved for a long time, this priest's face was covered in stubble.
"The number of injured is skyrocketing. The temple facilities have reached their limit long ago."
"...Didn't we expand the beds not so long ago?"
"It's nowhere near enough. The temple can't keep up with the increasing number of injured. Today's battle has put the final nail in the coffin."
The temple had been barely managing, but with hundreds of injuries from today's battle, it seems to have finally reached its breaking point.
"Not just the beds, but medical tools, the number of priests, everything is being depleted. We can't hold out like this."
"..."
More is needed.
Materials are being escorted from all over the world, so some workaround might be possible, but ultimately, a greater number of medical personnel - more priests are needed.
The situation is precarious due to a lack of medical staff; injuries that could be healed and lives that could be saved are at risk.
"Priests from all over the world are coming to us voluntarily, but it's not enough. We need more systematized and trained professional healing priests."
The meaning of Zenis's words was clear. I nodded in agreement.
"I have already requested the dispatch of priests from the central church in the Imperial Capital."
The request was made months ago.
The problem is that there seems to be some procedure on their end too, as the dispatch has been delayed more than expected. It's also quite a distance from the Imperial Capital to Crossroad.
'Even with the emperor backing me...'
Why there has been no news is worrisome. My lips are dry from anxiety.
The monster front is in a more precarious state than expected.
The monsters are becoming more terrible and powerful, and above all, the frequency of their attacks is increasing.
The soldiers' fatigue has skyrocketed, and injuries have poured in.
If the temple cannot properly heal the injured, then the return to the front lines will be delayed, and as the return of the injured soldiers is delayed, the burden on the frontline troops increases.
The vicious cycle has already started. A little more slip and the tower we've painstakingly built could collapse in no time.
'We must somehow increase the medical staff...'
But from where?
As I was massaging my aching forehead,
"Senior!"
Evangeline rushed over to report urgently.
"Priests have arrived from the Imperial Capital!"
"What?"
"There's a lot of them, and they have loads of luggage! Come out and see!"
Zenis and I looked at each other with surprised faces.
Talk of the tiger and he will come, but who would have thought additional priests would arrive right now!
As we ran to the north gate, we saw a procession of priests just entering Crossroad.
All were dressed in austere black uniforms, and it was clear from their physique that they were all well-trained, muscular individuals.
It was like seeing well-sharpened blades in fine scabbards.
There were no decorations on their stark black priest robes, just a rosary wrapped around each of their hands and arms...
I was taken aback by their quite different appearance from the priests I had seen before, when the representative of the priests came up to me and calmly greeted me.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Prince Ash."
The woman was middle-aged, with blond hair faded to almost white in places. Round glasses with silver frames added an even colder light to her already cold face.
Her face suggested a lifetime of clerical work, but for some reason,
It seemed as if she smelled of blood.
Introducing herself with the sign of the cross, she said,
"I am Rosetta, Inquisitor of the First Holy Knight Division from the central church."
Inquisitor?
Her intellectual appearance didn't seem to fit the title, but she was a high-ranking church official. I crossed my arms in front of her.
"You're quite a bit late compared to when I requested the dispatch of priests from the church, Rosetta."
"There were quite a few matters within our church that needed to be dealt with internally, which led to this delay."
"If it were a request from Fernandez, you'd act immediately, even if it meant spying, but my request can be delayed like this?"
For the past few years, the church had served as the eyes and ears of the dark side, faithfully reporting back the information from across the continent to Fernandez.
However, my request for the dispatch of priests took this long to be answered.
I couldn't help but feel provoked, but Rosetta sighed deeply.
"It's precisely because of Fernandez... that your request was delayed, Your Highness."
"What?"
"It took time to purge the malignant forces within our church that he had planted."
A faint, almost blood-dripping smile formed on Rosetta's lips.
"How impure it is for our clergy, who should be the most pure in the eyes of God, to cooperate and lead in the power struggles and conflicts of the outside world."
"...So?"
"Timed with the fall of Lord Fernandez, a wave of self-purification swept through our church."
Rosetta patted her waist lightly.
"To the foolish leadership who chased power over the Goddess, and bundles of banknotes over the holy scriptures... we delivered the hammer of justice."
There, a metal whip was present.
It was a long strip of metal, well-tamed with human blood and grease, neatly folded. I swallowed dryly.
Wait, what was the affiliation of these priests again?
The First Holy Knight Division?
'Holy shit... the hardcore fanatics of the Goddess's Order!'
Devotees who dedicated their lives to serving the word of the Goddess, fighting on the front lines. Those who lived strictly by the principles and rules of the church, the fanatically pure who wished for martyrdom.
The fundamentalists of the Goddess's Order - that was exactly who these First Holy Knight Division were.
"There was a significant internal overhaul and reorganization of the church leadership. Hence, responding to various requests was delayed, but it was never a matter of political importance or lack thereof."
"...May I ask how the reorganization concluded?"
"All corrupt clergy were expelled. Each received a punishment commensurate with their sins."
Rosetta clasped her hands in front of her chest.
"Now, the central church, and the Goddess's Order, can live out its true purpose, offering itself for the world."
"...So, to put it simply, you're saying you've taken over the central church?"
Rosetta looked at me intently, then finally nodded.
"There's no point in mincing words. Exactly as you said."
Originally, the central church of the Goddess's Order was tightly held by clergy connected to Fernandez.
However, these fundamentalists and inquisitors, the Holy Knights, had always harbored dissatisfaction with their power-hungry and money-grabbing ways.
And when Fernandez disappeared after our final showdown, and his forces crumbled,
The existing church leadership, now like a kite with its string cut, was attacked by these Holy Knights.
Whether through rational procedures within the church's doctrine or through the barbaric violence they're best known for.
The final victors in the internal political struggle of the church were these Holy Knights.
And the new power at the helm was this woman before me - Rosetta.
'Becoming the top power in the Goddess's Order and then personally coming to the front line as your first act?'
What kind of madness is this...!
'I did wish for more priests to be dispatched sooner and in greater numbers, but did it have to be these psycho militant fanatics!'
Above all, it's unlikely that such a group, extremely devout to the Goddess's Order, would get along well with other factions.
The Goddess's Order fundamentally stands for humans, specifically the citizens of the empire.
I'm not sure about the original text, but the currently established form is as such.
Though the former church leadership had a penchant for money and power, they had a lenient side in this regard, spreading out across the world with a policy of conciliation.
But these Holy Knights are the most stubborn of the stubborn. It was obvious that there would be conflicts with other races and even with people from other countries who worship different gods.
Foreseeing the inevitable future made me internally scream, but Rosetta slightly bowed her head to me.
"Then, I'll take my leave. I've heard there are many injured at the temple, so I'll start with the healing tasks immediately."
"Ah, right. Thanks for helping out after coming such a long way."
"Yes. We shall speak again."
Rosetta and the new priests disappeared towards the temple with measured steps.
"Ah..."
I'm torn between worrying about the troublemakers joining us and being happy that they'll be of help with the suddenly increased number of injured. I don't know whether to feel relieved or concerned, grasping my head in confusion.
"...?"
Hiding in the shadow of an alley across the way, as if he had escaped at some point, was Zenis crouching.
"Zenis? What are you doing there?"
This man, uncharacteristically crouching and trembling. What's going on?
Then, Zenis quickly turned his head around to check his surroundings and, only after confirming that Rosetta and the Holy Knights had left, whispered as if entering a mouse hole.
"...She's my sister."
"Huh?"
"Rosetta! She's my stepsister! And, and!"
Zenis pointed at his own neck with a pale face.
"She wants to kill me!"
"..."
I clasped my aching forehead even tighter.
Come on, Mr. Zenis! Stop talking nonsense and go eat... no, get to work! As if things weren't tough enough already, now this!
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