Chapter 25
The cathedral’s basement was no simple structure.
Like an ant’s nest, it was riddled with branching passageways.
To Ashtein, who had no useful information about the basement, this was unwelcome news.
He had no choice but to run around and check each one.
Still, he could instinctively sense which areas were important.
The place where the Holy Knights were gathered.
Aria must be there.
He was certain of his guess.
Look.
Weren’t these men actually coming at him?
Two Holy Knights charged him from the front and side.
They had drawn their swords.
The fact that they had no qualms about using their weapons meant they were almost certainly up to no good.
In their minds, this was probably meant to be intimidating.
But to Ashtein, who had faced all manner of monsters, it was no more than half-hearted.
He smashed the scabbard into the abdomen of the Holy Knight in front, crushed the head of the one approaching from the side, and pressed on.
The farther he advanced, the more Holy Knights appeared.
One hand couldn’t beat two.
Two couldn’t beat three, and three couldn’t beat four.
As if to deny this universal truth outright, Ashtein trampled them underfoot, whether there were one, two, three, or four.
Bang!
A sound hardly befitting a sword striking a scabbard rang out, and one Holy Knight flew through the air.
Another Holy Knight tried to stab Ashtein from behind.
It must have seemed like a decisive blow to him.
But the Holy Knight was bewildered.
Ashtein had pressed his left arm against his side and blocked the Holy Knight’s sword thrust.
With the sword wedged under his arm, Ashtein twisted his waist and countered with his right elbow.
It was as fluid as flowing water.
He was even fast.
The Holy Knight dropped his sword and tried to block the elbow with both hands.
Bang!
Though he had blocked it, a shock that rattled his brain struck the Holy Knight.
Thump.
The Holy Knight collapsed, losing consciousness on the spot.
The remaining Holy Knights looked at Ashtein.
His breathing wasn’t even ragged.
At the sight, they swallowed hard.
The Hero.
A blade capable of reaching even the absolute being known as the Demon King.
An ally who made you feel as secure as if you had an entire army at your back—but when the Hero stood against you like this……
‘A monster.’
And not just any monster.
The very embodiment of another Demon King.
Ashtein said nothing, simply fixing them with a steady gaze.
As though inspecting each of them one by one, he sent a chill through the Holy Knights.
Despite their numerical advantage, they could see no path to victory.
The gap between them was that overwhelming.
For a brief moment, the Holy Knights and Ashtein faced off.
Ashtein spoke.
“So far, I still consider you human.”
He still considered them human.
Did that mean they would be monsters if he didn’t consider them human?
The Holy Knights couldn’t understand what Ashtein meant.
Ashtein hadn’t said it expecting them to understand.
Then why say it?
It was almost like a mantra he was repeating to himself.
What was a Hero?
If one delved into the essence of a Hero, one could see them as an ‘assassin’ sent to kill the Demon King.
Wasn’t that right?
Someone who infiltrated the Demon King’s forces and brought back his head was closer to an assassin than a warrior.
That was why a Hero’s blade had to be impossibly sharp.
When fighting humans, he did dull its edge a little……
But even dulled, a masterwork blade was still a masterwork blade.
Its sharpness rarely ever faded.
Ashtein narrowed his eyes.
As of now, the people before him were still human.
But what if he saw something beyond this point?
Could he still consider them human then?
“I hope I never have to think of you as monsters.”
His smile was chillingly cruel.
The Holy Knights couldn’t utter a word.
The pressure radiating from Ashtein was beyond their imagination.
“I’ll say it again. Move.”
As expected, the Holy Knights weren’t about to obey him so easily.
He shrugged and let out a deep breath.
“You stubborn religious fanatics.”
Combat was about momentum.
Once you seized the flow, you had to keep pressing without hesitation.
Ashtein, who had taken the heads of countless monsters, knew this better than anyone.
Anyone who lost their nerve in the face of life and death would be devoured in no time.
Keep the heart hot and the head cool.
It was a hackneyed phrase, but that only meant it was common sense.
Ashtein moved his legs.
The Hero was coming.
Alone.
One step, then two.
And on the third step—
He disappeared.
No, he hadn’t disappeared.
He had reached the Holy Knights’ very noses.
At a speed beyond their perception.
How?
It was the common question that flashed through most of their minds in that instant.
He’d moved so explosively that it looked as though he had folded space itself.
Bang!
Moving at high speed, Ashtein slammed into a Holy Knight like a charging water buffalo.
Crack!
The Holy Knight who took the full-body charge head-on not only had his breastplate caved in, but was sent flying like a cannonball.
He couldn’t withstand the tremendous kinetic energy.
The Holy Knights momentarily caught their breath at the unreal sight.
Of course, Ashtein didn’t stand around doing nothing.
Gripping the sword by its hilt and halfway down the blade, he swung it at the Holy Knight beside him.
Bang!
Hit squarely by the unexpected blow, the Holy Knight flew away awkwardly, like a frog a child had swung by its hind legs before flinging it, and slammed into the floor.
Like a wolf among sheep, Ashtein darted about, incapacitating the Holy Knights.
As if to prove that their numerical advantage meant nothing, he displayed his overwhelming superiority for all to see.
It was a one-sided fight, like twisting a child’s wrist.
Some of the Holy Knights raised their voices in anguish.
“Goddess!”
“Why are you calling for the Goddess? She’s not going to help you.”
“Guh!”
They were Holy Knights who could strengthen their bodies through divine arts.
Even that blessing was useless; they couldn’t stop a man like Ashtein.
……Human?
Could that thing really be called human?
Holy Knights fell one after another.
They could do nothing but take a beating.
These men, who had always prided themselves on being elite, were brought down by a single person.
Their opponent didn’t even look tired.
If anything, he seemed full of energy.
It was impossible.
It was a kind of fear.
An endless fear of an unprecedented being.
Ashtein raced down the path the Holy Knights had blocked, moving with the agility of a beast.
They were no match for him.
They had neither the strength nor any way to stop the Hero.
“There sure are a lot of you.”
Ashtein murmured something.
Then a huge explosion erupted in the center of the Holy Knights’ formation.
It was an explosion spell.
KABOOOM!
The basement shook violently from the blast of hot air and black smoke.
If the Holy Knights had been in normal condition, they would have raised barriers with their divine arts to protect themselves.
But the Hero had already thrown their formation into disarray, and they had never imagined he would use magic. That unexpected explosion spell dealt them a devastating blow.
Most of the Holy Knights were knocked aside by the explosion.
Only a handful remained.
They trembled as if unable to believe what had happened.
“M-magic, too? H-how?”
Ashtein replied impassively.
“I learned it, so I use it. So, are you going to move now?”
The Holy Knights gave up.
This man couldn’t be stopped.
But they still didn’t yield the way.
“Stubbornness is all well and good, but you could stand to be a little more flexible.”
Ashtein knocked down every last Holy Knight and strolled away.
It didn’t take long.
* * *
It feels good.
It’s so pleasurable I can barely remember to breathe.
My body’s burning up, too.
My lower abdomen throbs.
“Hngh.”
Isn’t it strange?
I feel so good, so why does my heart feel like it’s breaking?
Why do I feel so stifled?
It’s not as if anything sad has happened.
This is the same old thing I go through all the time.
Is it just especially hard today?
“Hieek, hik.”
What am I?
What was I doing this for?
Why did I come back to the cult?
Ah.
That’s right. It was for Mr. Ashtein.
I did this because I wanted things to be easier for him.
But why?
My heart hurts.
It feels good, but my heart hurts so much.
Isn’t it strange?
Those two feelings aren’t supposed to coexist.
I thought about it.
In the end, all of this happened because I’d hoped for something futile.
Mr. Ashtein.
I must have become a little strange for a while because of you, right?
Maybe I’d lost my grasp on reality.
It’s only natural that nothing ever changes.
Why did I think things could change?
It must have been nothing more than a futile dream.
Filth has to stay filthy in the end.
Cardinal Mavlov is taking off my vestments.
I quietly watch him do it.
He’ll make me feel good.
That’s right.
All I have to do is pant.
All I have to do is cry.
All I have to do is obediently surrender my body.
That’s all I can do.
Resistance and defiance are meaningless.
That’s the natural order.
Isn’t that right, Goddess?
If I stay obedient, surely……
Surely it’ll feel good.
That’s when it happened.
The door was smashed in.
Dust billowed through the air with a tremendous crash.
And then I saw.
You.
You, with your navy-blue hair and eyes as black as the night sky.
Mr. Ashtein.
How did you find this place?
Have you already passed the Holy Sword’s test?
Wasn’t it over too quickly?
Or was this another surprise Bishop Ronin had prepared?
I tried to open my mouth.
“Aria.”
Mr. Ashtein spoke a beat before I could.
His voice was cold.
My body froze at the sound of it.
After Makarov, one of the faithful, now even you have found out.
It hurts so much I feel like my mind’s going blank.
It didn’t feel good anymore.
No.
I don’t want this.
You must despise me for letting people use my body however they please, right?
Suddenly, I came to my senses and realized my hands were trembling.
Was I cold?
Yes, that must be it.
I’m naked right now, after all.
“Aria.”
Once again, you called my name.
I was terrified of it.
It was cold and painful, like a blade sinking deep into my heart.
I desperately pretended I hadn’t heard you.
The others shouted something.
They asked how you’d gotten here.
They asked what the Holy Knights outside were doing.
But you didn’t answer them.
You only looked at me.
That terrified me.
Eventually, Mr. Ashtein opened his mouth.
“What do you want me to do?”
At those words, I went numb as if I’d been hit over the head with a club.
Why would you ask me that?
Why wouldn’t you ask me anything, even after seeing me like this?
Why weren’t you angry?
Why weren’t you pointing at me and calling me a filthy whore?
Why?
Why?
Why?
“Tell me.”
With those words, you firmly closed your mouth.
My chest tightened.
Is it okay for me to say how I feel?
What if it gets crushed in vain again?
A sudden fear gripped me.
It was a choice far too difficult for me.
“I-I’m sorry……”
You smiled brightly.
“Don’t apologize. What do you want me to do?”
“……What?”
“Tell me sincerely.”
Your words.
Your eyes.
Your actions.
How could they make me feel so secure?
I bit my lip.
My face twisted horribly.
As if my tear ducts had broken, hot tears spilled from the corners of my eyes.
I must look awful.
I know.
Is it okay to say it?
Really?
You won’t scold me?
I can say it, can’t I?
Because you’re unwavering.
Because you always remain calm.
Even if I tell you how I feel, you’ll accept it calmly, won’t you?
I spoke sincerely, just as you wanted.
“……Please save me.”
You smile.
It was the same gentle smile as always.
“All right.”