Chapter 8: The Saint Cried Out

The Saint hated the Goddess.

Who was the Goddess worshipped by the divine church? She was an omnipotent being whose power was beyond human comprehension, watching over all with a benevolent nature.

But it was all, all hypocrisy.

If the Goddess truly was such a being, why did she merely watch as this village was attacked by monsters?

Why did she just observe as people starved to death, unable to break free from the shackles of poverty?

Why did she only look on at the atrocities committed by cultists?

Why did she allow an innocent person to be killed by thieves?

Why did she cruelly trample on the prayers of a young girl seeking salvation?

And above all, why...!

Why did she bestow power upon a girl who hated the divine?

Why did she make her live trapped in those shackles?

So it was hypocrisy.

That's why she hated her.

And thus, it was ruin.

If she couldn't kill the divine, the only option was to destroy the world the Goddess loved.

And that was also a way to save those abandoned by the Goddess.

It was better to die than to live a lifetime of suffering.

That's why the Saint had said those words to Franz.

She felt that someone who didn't hesitate to take lives might somehow understand her intentions.

Contrary to her expectations, Franz naturally didn't understand at all.

Franz thought to himself:

'Wow, this is seriously fucked up.'

Sirens were blaring in Franz's head.

At this rate, not only the world but his own life seemed destined to be lost.

He wanted to believe the Saint was just speaking out of anger, but because of what had just appeared before his eyes, he couldn't even do that.

<Warning!>

<You are on the brink of a Bad Ending! Your choice will greatly impact the fate of the world!>

Bad Ending.

In other words, the destruction of the world.

It was so kind of them to clearly inform him, "You're about to die, bro." Thanks to that, he snapped back to his senses.

Although she had seemed mentally unstable, he hadn't realized it was this serious.

'Still, it's not the worst-case scenario.'

They say there's always a way out, even if the sky falls.

While being on the brink of a Bad Ending was certainly the worst, the latter part of the message implied there was still a chance.

So if he didn't give up and tried his best, he should be able to somehow get past this turning point.

Although the Saint wouldn't return to normal all at once.

But that was okay.

When humans calm down, their thoughts tend to become more rational.

Whew-.

Franz took a deep breath to calm his startled heart.

Then he spoke softly.

"Why? What happened to make you say that?"

Franz decided to listen to the Saint's story first.

When people are going through tough times, just having someone listen can lighten their hearts.

And he needed to hear her story to prevent the Saint from falling into darkness later.

'I need to know what's going on before I can help.'

It might turn out to be a completely absurd reason, but Franz decided to worry about that when the time came.

Fortunately, the Saint went along with Franz's plan.

"To convince you...? Alright. I'll tell you everything."

The Saint wasn't particularly keen on revealing her past, but she could endure it if it meant gaining Franz's cooperation.

After all, with the overwhelming power of that 10-circle magic she had witnessed that day, leading the world to ruin should be nothing.

"When I was young..."

And so, slowly, the Saint's long story began.

From the girl Yustia to the Saint who hated God.

She poured out everything she had been holding inside.

It was the first time the Saint had ever revealed her past to anyone.

They were memories she didn't want to recall, and she never had anyone to tell them to in the first place.

So it was only natural that the hatred that had never been expressed, meeting the kindling of the Saint's oppressed life, would blaze up fiercely.

But now that Franz had listened to her story,

the flames in the Saint's heart had, ever so slightly, begun to subside.

After silently listening to the Saint's entire story, Franz quietly rubbed his forehead.

'How can such a life exist...?'

Being born into poverty was common enough, but it was too shocking that she had witnessed with her own eyes the scene of thieves raping and murdering her parents.

There was no need to spell out how traumatized that young girl must have been.

And he could somewhat understand her hatred for the divine.

In this world, God actually existed, and religion was deeply ingrained in people's lives.

Even when things went well, people would say it was thanks to God's help.

So while it wasn't right for the Saint to blame her parents' death on God, it wasn't strange either.

Especially if everything the Saint had experienced was a trial sent by the Goddess.

Franz just felt sorry for the Saint.

She had gone astray because of the hardships she faced in her young years.

However, even so, he couldn't help her destroy the world.

Everyone wishes for the world's destruction at least once. Especially those who have gone through hardships.

But thinking about it internally and actually putting it into action were completely different matters.

So what should he do now?

There wasn't much he could do.

Franz spoke softly.

"If it's that hard, why don't you quit being a Saint?"

"Quit being a Saint...?"

"Yeah, why are you working under that damn Goddess while hating her? If you don't like the temple, you leave. If you hate it and it annoys you, just quit."

Surprisingly, this was based on Franz's personal experience.

It was the story of a black-haired Korean who was bullied by his boss every day, then changed jobs and became happy.

Hearing Franz's blunt words, the Saint was simply bewildered.

Quitting being a Saint? She had never even considered such a thought before.

"Wow, it's been over 20 years, but thinking about it still pisses me off. That Kim Jeong-hoon, with his bald head and pig-like protruding belly..."

That's when it happened.

As Franz was muttering to himself, recalling the past, a sudden insight flashed in his mind.

Some people relieve stress by singing or shouting loudly, right?

Since they were on a hill, why not try shouting once?

"Hey, why don't you take this chance to curse freely? Like, 'Goddess, you bitch-!' How about it?"

Countless question marks appeared in the Saint's mind.

Even the roughest street thugs wouldn't curse the Goddess in front of a Saint, so she was perplexed to see an Archmage doing so.

They say people go crazy when they're too deep into magic, and it seems even an Archmage couldn't escape that fate.

But still.

It wasn't a bad suggestion.

Focus returned to the Saint's previously dull, lifeless eyes.

Seeing this, Franz inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.

He had changed the subject, worried she might continue talking about destruction, and fortunately, it had worked well.

'If I have to do this charade two more times, I might faint.'

Thinking this, Franz snapped his fingers with a click.

Instantly, a transparent hemisphere formed around the Saint and Franz. Like what people commonly call a barrier.

This was magic that blocked sound from inside and outside.

After all, it wouldn't be right to curse the Goddess in front of the holy knights.

"Now, first, stand up."

As Franz rose, the Saint followed suit.

"I've blocked the sound from outside."

"Ah... then it won't reach the heavens, will it...?"

Disappointment settled in the Saint's eyes.

What the Saint wanted was to directly curse at the Goddess, not to relieve stress by shouting alone.

Franz, who wasn't oblivious to her intentions, snapped his fingers again.

He couldn't let her revert to being a villainess of destruction after he had just prevented it.

The transparent hemisphere surrounding Franz and the Saint disappeared, and instead, hemispheres covered the nearby holy knights and the village at the foot of the hill.

It consumed a considerable amount of mana due to the vast range, but it was a worthwhile trade-off for preventing the Saint from turning into a villainess.

"Alright, now it's ready."

Inhale-.

At Franz's signal, the Saint took a deep breath.

Then she shouted with all her might.

"Goddess, you fucking bitch-!!"

The Saint's clear, beautiful voice echoed across the world.

While it didn't erase her hatred for the Goddess, the Saint felt a strange sense of relief.

* * * * *

Fortunately, after the Saint had cursed once, no more warning windows appeared.

In other words, they had safely passed the first turning point of the Bad Ending.

So Franz naturally couldn't help but feel happy.

Although the Saint's parting words did weigh on his mind a bit.

"My offer is still valid. I'll be waiting for your answer."

But it was still okay.

It meant she wasn't planning to turn evil and destroy the world right away.

Moreover,

<Saint Yustia 10.00%>

The Saint's percentage had risen all the way to 10 percent in one go.

Not only had he saved the world from destruction, but he had also made progress in conquering her heart. It was truly killing two birds with one stone.

Thus, in high spirits, Franz returned to the magic tower with a light step.

Completely forgetting the fact that he had abandoned his work.

And in the Archmage's office, he encountered Arian.

"Archmage...? You're back now...?"

Arian's angry gaze looked as if it could destroy the world.