Chapter 23: Sword Saint (3)

A girl walked through a scorched village.

Walking through the ruins, already too late, the girl longed for her family.

“Mama…?”

A choked sob, suppressed to the limit, is answered only by the mocking caw of a crow.

There is no trace of life left in the wake of the heretics' rampage.

A pyre, like a pile of trash, lay in the square, where the villagers had been burned.

Her childhood friend she played with just yesterday, the old man with the bad leg who always walked with a cane, her cousin who was excited about leaving for the city next month.

All of them, all of them, were blackened and gathered in one place.

“Ah, ah-”

Nausea, vomiting, then shaky legs rising again to search for her family.

Thankfully, none of the faces were those she sought. A shred of hope bloomed in her tattered heart as she moved on.

‘Don’t go.’

Someone tried to stop the girl in her nightmare, but she wouldn't listen.

Like a newborn fawn, her trembling legs somehow carried her to her destination. What she found were the bodies of her family, gruesomely displayed on the symbol of the Religious Order.

Further and further away…

It was the moment a person's personality shattered.

.....!

She cried, wailed until the world tore apart, lost consciousness, and when her breath returned, she cursed the world until she fainted again.

The collapse of a young girl's mind is so easy.

What remained for the girl afterward…

The sole survivor of the village, or the label of a lucky one.

A frail body, abandoned in a harsh world.

That day, the child who held the destiny of the ‘Sword Saint’ died in that village, burned by the undead forces.

Instead, the ‘Descendant of the Lost Star’…

Rather than giving up on a fate extinguished by fire, decided to give ‘Herien,’ the sole survivor of the village, another chance.

In exchange for half her lifespan and some human emotions, ‘Herien,’ once an ordinary human…

Became the ‘Sword Saint,’ albeit in a somewhat unstable state, fueled by revenge for her village and a newfound faith.

Her ordinary brown hair turned sky blue under the influence of Divine Power.

Her physical abilities became incomparable to what they once were.

“...Ah?”

And now, she had been defeated too easily by someone she believed without a doubt to be an apostle of the Black Sun.

‘How?’

Her whole body was a mess, inside and out.

Internal injuries caused by the vast difference in Divine Power.

“....?”

Lisia, who had endured Herien’s attack, also seemed bewildered.

She hadn't imagined the fight would end so easily.

The problem, then, stemmed from the ignorance of a single Follower.

Unaware of the disparity in power, she had charged in like a puppy before a tiger, a pitiful sight.

Herien’s ears, as she lay sprawled on the ground, burned red with shame.

“A-Are you alri…”

“I don’t want your pity, apostle of the evil god…!”

By now, even Lisia felt wronged.

No. She served only one being with lifelong love and devotion; how could they associate her with those filthy wretches?

Frowning deeply with Guilt, she spoke.

“Why do you associate me with such wicked beings?”

“Because you… you carry their Divine Power…!”

-Whoosh!!

At that moment, Divine Power surged…

Sweeping through Herien's fallen body.

“Ah.”

The throbbing pain vanished, replaced by a surge of vitality.

“Do those Black Sun bastards use this kind of Divine Power?”

The benevolent Divine Power, freshly received from the Lord God she loved.

It was hard to believe it was similar to that of those dreadful beings.

“Then, what…”

“Did you say you felt the Black Sun’s energy from my Lord God?”

“...Yes.”

Herien had certainly felt it, and it was an ability she had used successfully countless times.

“There must be a reason.”

Lisia had no doubt about it.

Her Lord God was the light that illuminated the world, the embodiment of true justice.

Surely, this too was a noble purpose, beyond her comprehension.

“What… What is it?”

Herien was taken aback by the Follower’s boundless faith.

Usually, when presented with such doubt, people would hesitate, wouldn't they?

It was her doubt, no less, the one backed by the Constellation of the Hero.

But instead of distrust, Lisia showered her with even stronger love and faith, without a flicker of hesitation.

It was a moment when love felt heavy.

“S-Still… I…”

But Herien was the Sword Saint.

She had to fulfill her duty.

Moreover, if the target posed a threat to the Hero, she had to eliminate that threat by any means necessary.

-Whoosh!!

“...Still…”

Lisia looked at Herien with a weary expression.

“I cannot let you leave here, carrying the energy of that Constellation.”

Having recovered thanks to Lisia, Herien shamelessly muttered and lunged again.

Or rather, she tried to lunge.

“....?”

Until she encountered a strange change…

Welling up from deep within.

[The Sword Saint, ‘Herien,’ has joined your Religious Order!]

#

Suddenly asking me to take care of the Hero and the Follower next to her.

“No way. What is this, a clearance sale?”

Suddenly throwing Followers at me.

- I sense a great Flow of Stars from you.

“What flow?”

Following that, the Descendant of the Lost Star now openly spun ominous prophecies.

- I don’t know.

“....”

- It’s beyond my purview. I can only face what is to come.

Still a string of incomprehensible words.

This was how Constellations communicated.

As if they were some kind of aloof beings, truly, what had gotten into their Heads?

Speaking in riddles or dipping their toes in the metaphorical river was their default setting.

‘Where do they learn this from?’

Or maybe it was a remnant of the game developers, too invested in the concept.

Anyway, the interpretation was all up to me.

“Explain it clearly.”

- To maintain your sanity amidst that great flow-

“Skip.”

- ...save my Follower.

“All that build-up just to say that.”

So it was all a show.

Sprinkle some stardust, show a shooting Star. Ta-da, this is a shining sword, isn't it cool?

“So, you just don’t want to die.”

Followers are the lifeline of a Constellation.

Without those who Worship and call upon them, a Constellation loses all power and vanishes from the world.

- .....

Already short on Followers, and the ones he *did* have weren't in good shape.

He wanted to attach some of them to me to somehow guarantee their safety.

“....Hmm.”

I pondered for a moment.

‘A change in perspective.’

New Followers, a new addition to my collection, was a welcome situation for me.

It meant new possibilities in this world, new fun to pursue.

The increasing Progress was a bonus.

- The world is in quite a turmoil due to your absence.

“I know that.”

The first explanation the System spat out.

It wasn’t that I left on my own accord, but because of my absence, a few guys who were waiting for an opportunity rose up.

- My Follower and the Holy Sword will surely help in stopping that threat.

‘They would be helpful.’

Holy Sword, Hero, Sword Saint.

A job class and items that would make anyone drool, all bundled together as a set.

‘So it wasn't a hostile move after all.’

If the signals he'd been sending were a form of flirting to enter into this cooperative relationship…

I could welcome him with open arms.

Other players would have jumped at the chance without a second thought.

‘Still…’

But I was different.

Playing for extreme gains in extreme situations. That was my playstyle.

“One more thing.”

- ....?

“Accept my friend request.”

[You have sent a friend request to the Constellation, ‘Descendant of the Lost Star.’]

[Black Sun's Incarnation: Eek…!]

The Constellation, tilting his Head in ignorance, and the Black Sun, groaning in terror, already knowing everything.

But there was nothing our Black Sun could do to advise that Constellation.

- What… is this?

“A communication channel between Constellations. There’s another one besides you, but anyway, it’s a good thing.”

- A good thing?

I folded my arms with a smug feeling and gauged his reaction.

From his perspective, a text window would have popped up out of nowhere.

“Amazing, isn’t it?”

- ...Intriguing.

As expected, he showed interest in the System window, trying to touch it with his finger.

“If you’re going to do it, press the accept button.”

[Black Sun's Incarnation: No, don't…!]

‘Shut up.’

- If I accept, will you listen to my proposal?

Comparing the risk of the Holy Sword with a Constellation connection, the latter was obviously more beneficial.

“Of course.”

- Alright.

[The Constellation, ‘Descendant of the Lost Star,’ has accepted your friend request!]

Finally, a positive message appeared.

And above the name of the chattering Black Sun, a new name appeared: ‘Descendant of the Lost Star.’

‘Nice.’

Already two Constellation friends.

[You have acquired the ‘Holy Sword’!]

[The Sword Saint, ‘Herien,’ has joined your Religious Order!]

[Unbelievable achievement accomplished!]

[You have acquired a reward due to fulfilling the conditions.]

[Reward - Skill: Constellation Reign (EX)]

[Constellation Reign (EX): When you are in the human world using ‘Summon,’ you grant buffs to nearby Followers.]

‘Oh.’

I got a pretty sweet skill.

I'll look into the details later.

‘There’s one empty slot?’

The name of the Hero, the owner of the Holy Sword, was missing.

Like a Hero party without a Hero.

As I was puzzled, checking the status window, I spotted an item in a corner of my inventory, emitting a faint glow, seemingly trying to attract my attention.

“Ah.”

[Elite Follower Recruitment Ticket x1]

A recruitment ticket I had received as a reward and saved for later use.

As I checked it, a sense of unease washed over me.

‘No way.’

[Due to fulfilling the conditions, the ‘Elite Follower Recruitment Ticket’ has been upgraded to a ‘Hero Summoning Ticket’!]

While I felt gloomy about the loss of my gacha dopamine, the words ‘higher Grade’ lured me back in.

‘Right. The Hero.’

Which player had ever achieved the feat of recruiting a Hero as a Follower?

‘I’m the first.’

None. This was something only I, only I, could accomplish. The ultimate achievement.

[Would you like to use the ‘Hero Summoning Ticket’?]

And so…

I returned to the human world with rewards even greater than I had anticipated.

[You have used the ‘Hero Summoning Ticket’!]

#

- Clatter. Clatter.

The sound of something hollow and hard colliding.

The source of the sound came from a moving corpse.

Its Eyes, empty sockets containing only deep darkness, exuded a foul and eerie, deathly magic.

『Eldritch』

A being from another world whispered into his empty skull.

- The Absolute Being is gone.

“Th-Then…”

- Now is our chance, while the Absolute Being cannot interfere.

The Absolute Being.

Once the enemy of all Constellations and the commander of the most powerful Followers.

- However, a traitor with different intentions has appeared among us.

The Constellation reminded Eldritch of the ‘Black Sun,’ now hidden, to instill caution.

The moment they stopped seizing this opportune ‘now,’ they would lose their position to other Constellations waiting in the wings.

Eldritch moved his stiff skull and continued.

“E-Even so, my Lord God. They still have remnants of the Absolute Being’s forces.”

- They are mere shells, unable to use Divine Power. Even if they oppose us now, they will only become new recruits.

Undead.

For them, defeat and death only contributed to producing more forces.

- I have blocked the Flow of Stars.

The Flow of Stars meant the manifestation of the Holy Sword, the birth of the Hero.

Beings capable of inflicting significant damage to Constellations.

Countless Constellations had always considered their existence a thorn in their side, so they formed temporary alliances with those who had been waiting for a moment like this.

They were able to check the existence of the ‘Sword Saint,’ as well as the Holy Sword and the Hero.

- Didn’t you personally take care of the Sword Saint?

“I did…”

One of them, the one who received the Constellation's will, Eldritch himself, had wiped out an entire village, definitively ending her fate.

If touching a Follower who had become a Hero was a problem, then dealing with them before they became a Hero was the solution.

The ability to read fate was not exclusive to the Constellation who handled the Hero.

‘Now is…’

The perfect timing to cause an incident and revive their forces.

Eldritch finally understood the Constellation's grand plan.

‘Has our era returned?’

Immortality.

A power that defied reason, a power that anyone in the world could dream of.

He and the Constellation could bestow it.

Even if it was a vile trait that defiled the origin of existence, in the end… everyone would come to Worship his Religious Order.

“What… should I do?”

- Attack the largest human force. Summon your army and make them part of our forces.

Humans were the best sacrifices and resources.

Ghouls if some flesh remained.

Skeletons if only bones were left.

If their thoughts were somewhat strong, they could be reborn as higher-ranking undead.

“Then, the target is…”

- The Regarium Kingdom.

Eldritch rose from his bone throne.

In his hand, the magic to open a portal was already prepared.

“As you command.”

The two fools, with their unwavering faith and undead army, plotted to invade the Kingdom.